Guest Post by Loki

Today’s IR had a guest editorial from former Secretary of State Bob Brown. He also ran against Brian Schweitzer for governor in 2004.

Today he bemoaned the failure of Sen. Richard Lugar in his re-election campaign. He cried about the loss of compromise in Congress.

This article disgusts me. We have the most partisan Congress in history. Democrats shut out Republicans in key meetings. There was no reaching across the aisles by Democrats during the Obamacare passing. President Obama made recess appointments while Congress was in session without compromising. Democrats don’t compromise on their Supreme Court nominations, but they force Republicans to compromise, can we spell Bork. We have the Department of Justice prosecuting cases based on their political merit to the Democrat party.

And Mr. Brown bemoans the loss of a compromiser in the Senate. No wonder Montana can’t find enough conservative Republicans to run for office. They are judged by their peers as to how well they compromise with Democrats making them indistinguishable from Democrats.

It is no wonder Mr. Brown lost the election in 2004. He was running under the wrong party designation. He must have compromised himself into that position.

The Democrats are digging in and doubling their partisan efforts and attacks. They are not compromising their ideology. Now is not the time for Republicans to compromise.

The real news is not that Senator Lugar lost. But that the Tea Party backed candidate won. I guess rumors of the demise of the Tea Party were just partisan stories from the main stream media.

It is time for Republicans to return to conservatism.

Guest Post by Loki

President Obama cut oil well drilling permits in the gulf and on public lands. Now he is taking credit for the US producing more oil although all of the production is from permits passed during the Bush presidency. He has failed in recovering the economy so badly that the illegal aliens are streaming back to Mexico for jobs so Obama is taking credit for lower illegal aliens in this country.

Governor Schweitzer fought the legislature on the budget. He complained that they were not spending enough. Now he is the darling of the East coast talk shows bragging about ‘his’ budget surplus. (And by the way, after BS’s little statement on Romney and his Mormon heritage I will scream if I ever see BS noted as a ‘moderate’ Democrat. He is a far left anti-Mormon fanatic who is job hunting.)

Attorney General Steve Bullock fought conservatives who wanted to join the Supreme Court fight against Obamacare saying it was a frivolous cause. Now he is taking credit for saving the state money. (The image of a leech suddenly pops into my head.)

Liberal Democrats have made taking credit for their failures as success’s an art form this election year. And yet the media never calls them on their illogic. Jay Scott of KBLL radio has taken defending liberal causes to a new height. He touts every study or liberal ‘fact’ checker he can find to refute any stories detrimental to any liberals or their causes. His highlighting every wire story on global warming is making me want to change his name to Global Jay.

It scares me. Not only that the media does not question these absurdities and lies but that the public seems to have such a short term memory that they have forgotten. I hope to maintain my sanity through this election year, because I know my temper won’t last.

p.s. The Helena IR’s political cartoon showed Gingrich in a clown suit and the Doonesbury cartoon called those who listen to Fox news idiots. Another example of the demand for civility applying only to conservatives.

thousands of words have already been written – but I think this pretty much says everything that needs to be said….

Guest post by Loki

H/T Ace of Spades

Guest Post by Loki

Or how America became a country of mob rule.

A self proclaimed Community Watch Commander shoots an unarmed juvenile. No charges have been filed…. yet. But now mob rule has begun. Claims of racism as yet unproven are chanted by the mob. The ‘Reverend’ Al Sharpton flies to the scene to stoke the fires of hate and racism. I guess MSNBC now encourages their hosts to create controversy instead of just reporting the news. Never mind the rule of law. Don’t wait for evidence. No… demands for an immediate arrest are made by the mob, Sharpton and the NAACP. ‘Minister’ Farrakhan threatens retaliation. Interesting how liberal religious leaders always threaten violence.

Of course Eric Holder who can’t find a law broken when members of the Black Panthers intimidate voters now thinks he can find a hate crime he can prosecute.

Now the L.A. city council looks to ban any speech they deem to be racist or hateful. Of course they will be the arbitrators of what is ‘free speech’.

The Own Wall Street crowd is coming out of their hibernation. They riot, trash public facilities with feces and urine, throw garbage and commit crimes. Nancy Pelosi and President Obama stand with them. Yet the peaceful Tea Party is called a hate group and the IRS investigates their tax status. I wonder whey the IRS will begin their investigation of the OWS group’s tax status.

Progressives are using mob rule to trash the legal system and create a nation of ‘fairness’. That of course being for them to judge what is ‘fair’. And the progressives are using the mob to strengthen their rule.

Countries are either defeated by a foreign enemy or slowly poisoned by their own populace. When the rule of law is ignored and ‘fairness’ is defined by mob rule then there is no law and soon their will be no country. Because the only thing that holds a society together is the assurance of the rule of law being followed equally and not redefined daily by the mob. That would be chaos.

Guest Post by Loki

It is my opinion that the Obama administration is conducting a clandestine war on guns. His front line commanders are Eric Holder, the EPA and the media.

Eric Holder has stated that the public has to be ‘brainwashed’ against guns. I believe that his ‘Operation Fast and Furious’ was an action to demonize guns and gun sales in Southern Border States. It was designed to have crimes and murders in Mexico linked to American guns. Then it backfired with the death of an American border agent. The program was never intended to stop guns going across the border or to arrest any gun runners. Even when a major suspect with ties to Mexican drug kingpins was detained he was just as quickly released. Holder would not have cared about any murders or crimes attributed to American guns as long as it looked bad for guns sales.

His plan backfired when these same guns were linked to ATF being complicit in the sale of a weapon linked to the murder of a border agent. If this had not happened we would still be hearing stories of how American guns were killing in Mexico and the media would be interviewing grieving widows across the border and legal gun dealers being asked if they felt guilty for what they were doing.

The progressives have continued to try and reinstate the ‘Brady Bill’. And they will continue in the future.

Now they are using a backdoor approach to use the EPA to ban lead in bullets. This is not the first attempt. They have been using this approach for decades hoping to find the right leadership to back their claim.

Don’t be fooled by lack of visible activities. Progressives have never and will never give up on their attempts at banning guns and will use what ever means they can to ban guns. After all they have watched the news and know you can’t control an armed populace.

Loki

“Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely.”

This week two of Montana’s highest ranking politicians have taken the gloves off and thrown away whatever masks of respectability they may have been hiding behind to fool the good people of Montana about their true power-hungry, insufferably nasty approach to getting their own way. Senator Max Baucus and Governor Brian Schweitzer have officially taken leadership positions in that disgusting group of politicians who resort to – shall we call them “unsavory” tactics? – to fulfill their personal agendas: The Corrupt Bastards’ Club.

On Wednesday, Politico ran this story about how Maxie is using threats and intimidation to deter donations to Denny Rehberg’s campaign:

Democrats on K Street are warning their corporate clients: Give to Republican challengers in the 2012 election, and you’ll regret it come tax reform time. Lobbyists are getting that message from allies of powerful Democrats such as Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.), who is closely watching support for Rep. Denny Rehberg, a Republican challenging Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.). Baucus supporters fear that if Rehberg ousts Tester, Baucus could be next to face a serious Republican challenge in the state.

One K-Streeter close to the Baucus operation said the senator considers a gift to Rehberg a contribution against him. Another Democratic lobbyist told a client to take his name off a Rehberg fundraising event because it would be hurtful to his company, according to sources. The case K-Streeters are making to their clients: It will be a hard sell next year to get Baucus’s support on business-friendly tax perks set to expire or the Bush-era tax cuts that must get through his committee.

The game of hardball is a bold example of a powerful chairman willing to leverage his power to protect his party’s majority, his home-state colleague and potentially his own seat. “We all know how this particular game is played: A chairman of a committee has his allies downtown quietly put out the word that folks with business before that committee may want to think twice about contributing to a candidate opposing one favored by the chairman,” said a Democratic oil industry executive. “Getting the message out this way provides deniability to the chairman yet ensures that everyone in the lobbying community gets the joke.”

The story tries to make this about Max helping his good buddy, Jon Tester’s campaign, but the money line in the story confirms that this is all about Max keeping his position as Chair of the powerful Senate Finance Committee (where he “authored, but did not read, the abominable 2,000+ page ObamaCare bill), and ultimately, his own senate seat in 2014. What do you want to bet that Tester wasn’t thrilled to read this story? Nope, this wasn’t about some altruistic effort to help a fellow Democrat get reelected. Shining a great big spotlight on the dirty business of blackmailing lobbyists – who needs that kind of help? This was very simply a giant “FU” warning to those who might consider displeasing the big guy. Yep, all Max, all the time.

Then Thursday, in an effort to not be bested for the title of “Most Corrupt Bastard in the State”, Governor Schweitzer takes the center stage with his underhanded, over-bearing machinations to extricate himself from the consequences of his patently illegal behavior:

A long-standing ethics complaint filed by the state Republican Party against Gov. Brian Schweitzer was dismissed today, by a “deputized” commissioner of political practices. Bozeman attorney Jim Goetz issued the decision, saying the Democratic governor did not use state funds when his administration produced public-service radio ads in 2008, featuring Schweitzer when he was running for re-election.

Goetz had been appointed as a deputy commissioner in the case by the sitting Political Practice Commissioner Jim Murry, who recused himself from the case. Murry was appointed by Schweitzer as the new commissioner less than four weeks ago. Goetz’s 34-page ruling, released this afternoon, said while the law forbids use of state funds to produce PSAs featuring a candidate for office, it does not forbid the use of “public facilities, equipment, supplies or personnel.”…

The ruling ends four years of proceedings before the political practices commissioner’s office on the complaint, during which the office has had four commissioners, including Murry. The ruling also reverses the rulings of prior commissioners, who had said Schweitzer did violate state ethics laws and had refused his earlier request to dismiss it… [Ed. note: The previous commissioners, Dennis Unsworth, Jennifer Hensley, and David Gallik were all appointed by Schweitzer, but apparently didn’t have the necessary level of chutzpah to commit this kind of political idiocy.]

Brian’s got higher aspirations – senator, president, emperor – who knows how high, but there’s no way he’d get elected with an ethics conviction mentioned every time his name was mentioned: “Brian Schweitzer, who was convicted of violating the ethics law he supported and signed in 2005…”. That conviction, issued by a well-respected, independent University of Montana law professor, had to go away no matter what. Even if it took the shadiest of all shady maneuvers to get it done. I hope Mr. Goetz gets credit for what has to be considered at least a $4100 contribution to Schweitzer’s next run for office.

Montanans tend to know the people they elect and, historically, have been willing to accept the petty foibles of the men and women entrusted with the power of governance. We tell stories, with wry amusement, of the political shenanigans of the Copper Kings. We cringe in embarrassment when we read stories about our political leaders’ personal failings, but understand that, “There but for the grace of God…”, and we go on, expecting that lessons have been learned and ways will be mended. But we have our limits: Politicians who cross the lines for personal enrichment or political gain just don’t sit well with those of us in Big Sky Country.

We understand that our politicians aren’t perfect, but we do have standards. Max and Brian have lowered the bar this week: Using the power of their offices to place themselves above the laws of this state and country.

Make no mistake, The Corrupt Bastards’ Club will never lack for members. We just never intended our politicians from Montana would be vying with those from states like Illinois, Louisiana, New York, and Alaska to win the titles of “Most Corrupt Bastards”.

“Power does not corrupt men; fools, however, if they get into a position of power, corrupt power.”

And Lord, what fools these mortals be…

Got enough “HOPE”? More to the point… got any “CHANGE”?

The last week has been a touch hard on the wallet. On Sunday gas was $2.99 a gallon, today it’s over $3.19 and shooting sky-high faster than an Apollo rocket. By next Saturday, I’ll have to stop for a loan before I fill the tank. For some reason, the idea just doesn’t thrill me. Over the past several months I’ve watched as the price of groceries has followed the same trajectory – up, up, up, and away. And there’s no ceiling in sight.

What’s a girl to do?

Why, join the Resistance, of course!

What is the Resistance, you ask? Let me enlighten you…

The Resistance is a grassroots movement to counter the narrative being promulgated by the Obama regime that a majority of the country supports the policies and programs that have been instituted over the past three years and have caused the current economic situation we find ourselves in. It’s a counter-insurgency designed to illuminate the lies, deceptions, and misdirection of the media, the socialists and enviro-whackos running the country.

It’s a guerrilla campaign to let your friends and neighbors know that they aren’t the only ones who are frustrated and fed up.

Most of all, it’s fun, easy and effective. It’s the Sticky Note Campaign. It started over a year ago, but has seen a sudden re-emergence in the last few days.

Basically, you take a pad of sticky notes and write a short, simple message conveying outrage over the hike in gas and grocery prices (or anything else, for that matter!) and leave them on gas pumps, grocery shelves, restaurants – any place where people are likely to “get it”.

Sticky Notes ready? Vive la Resistance!

Here are some possible slogans for your personal mini-war (and feel free to share any clever slogans of your own):

Guest Post by Loki

Of all of the Republican candidates this year the one I least support is Ron Paul. Mainly because he is not a Republican or a conservative but is a socially liberal Libertarian.

Today I was reminded of that by the death of Whitney Houston. The extremely liberal Tony Bennett upon hearing the news proclaimed that as a tribute to Ms. Houston we should legalize drugs to prevent deaths like hers, Amy Winehouse and Michael Jackson. Legalizing drugs would not have helped Ms. Houston one bit. It would have brought on her demise much quicker. She did not die from her lack of being able to attain drugs. She died because of her long history of abuse of drugs and the destruction it had on her health.

Ron Paul agrees with this stand as to the legalization of drugs, an extremely liberal position. Man is weak and to think legalizing drugs would not have dire consequences is utter madness. Ron Paul has a similar attitude about world politics. That somehow if we let the world fight its own battles things will work out gloriously. Too bad our enemies do not feel that way. If we were to abandon our friends and let chaos rule the world we would soon find ourselves alone.

Were drugs to be legalized our hospitals would soon be filled with victims of drug over doses and addicts. And of course liberals would also demand that we would have to build many more rehab facilities and pay for them with Obamacare. The cost of so many people being unproductive and using our resources to return to normal lives would be extremely costly.

The war on drugs is ugly and costly. The alternative offered by Ron Paul and liberals is socially destructive and financially worse.

One final off topic thought, why do liberals want to legalize drugs but regulate our sugar intake? Liberals just seem to have such diametrically opposed thoughts completely free of logic. I sometimes feel flummoxed.

ED Note: The delay in posting this is entirely mine. Loki wrote and submitted this post on Feb 12. Apologies for the delay. ~ Basketcase Mgr.

Guest Post by Loki

There has been a small increase in manufacturing in the USA. Manufacturers have found that with automation they can actually make things in the USA cheaper than in China with shipping costs. Using computers and robots they have nearly fully automated some manufacturing.

The problem the manufacturers are having is that there are not enough people in the USA to repair and maintain the new automatic facilities. Schools are producing graduates that are great at video games and tweeting and not much else. The schools have coddled the students giving out medals for last place and telling them how they should feel good about themselves. “R U hme”, is now considered ‘good enough’ for language skills.

While Russia’s Putin flexes his muscles for the cameras and hunts bare-chested from horseback our President goes golfing. While China has started building Aircraft carriers Obama is cutting our military. While our unemployed languish at home, their wives plead with Obama for jobs as he is passing out visas to high-tech immigrants.

We are becoming a country of spectators of life waiting for our unemployment checks and voting for the political party that promises to take care of us. Our future is beginning to look like a job at McDonalds asking an immigrant if he would like fries with his order.

But hey, if the world ever needs some tweeters or video game players we have a lock on those jobs.

Well, I have to go. I need to call tech support in India.

Loki