In the midst of all the serious stuff, there is still the lighter side… (Anyway this cracks me up.)

Evidently, during the recent launch of the space shuttle, it was determined that a little bat had attached itself to the fuel tank and was hurled into the stratosphere – or was at least sacrificed in the attempt. In what has to be one of the most charming and creative exercises in uniquely American humor, I share this:

PS – You can buy a memorial T-shirt too. That’s economic development we can believe in!

Call me naive, but I sorta have this idea that our elected officials – Senators particularly – should be at least somewhat sensitive to the relative merits of the different issues they confront. I mean, right now, when the economic situation has been described as “catastrophic” and there’s all this potential for lofty debate and serious discussion about economic philosophy and political reality, what is America’s most exclusive deliberative body focusing on?

Don’t get me wrong. I love football. Really wish it was a year-round sport even. But c’mon guys: The United States Senate needs to be involved in determining how college football champions are selected?!?!?!

How about good old-fashioned playoffs? Duh.

For eight years, Democrats never missed an opportunity to disparage George W. Bush’s international dealings. We heard endless complaints about how our reputation had suffered around the world due to Bush’s fumbling, unsophisticated handling of foreign affairs. We were promised that – along with all the Hope! and Change! – that the Obamessiah would bring a complete turnaround in how this country would be perceived by the international community.

Sure enough, in less than two months, world leaders are noticing the difference.

It started with that good ol’ boy in Venezuela, Hugo Chavez, who castigated Obama for accusing him of obstructing progress in Latin America and exporting terrorism. Making great inroads in South America so far, huh?

Then we insulted the Russians: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s gift to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at their meeting in Geneva on Friday evening was meant to underscore the Obama administration’s readiness to “to press the reset button” in ties with Moscow. But instead of the Russian word for “reset” (perezagruzka) it featured a slightly different word meaning “overload” or “overcharged”. (peregruzka). Yeah – giving the Russians a red button is a real breakthrough.

And, of course, the big promises to turn US/Iran relations completely around. Let me tell you how that’s going. “They give the slogan of change but in practice no change is seen,” Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a televised speech. “What is the change in your policy? Did you remove the sanctions? Did you stop supporting the Zionist regime? Tell us what you have changed.” Chalk up a winner there. Well, not exactly.

By now you’ve probably heard about the real classy reception the British Prime Minister Gordon Brown was given where he was treated like an insignificant third cousin. No fancy state dinner, no joint press conference – but hey – the Big O did give him a lovely parting gift of 25 DVDs of old movies. Too bad that they don’t work in the UK video players and the PM is virtually blind. Hey, how was BO supposed to know that?

And as hard as it is to believe, Obama managed to screw up his inaugural meeting with the Irish PM because he can’t seem to make any kind of public appearance without TOTUS. After an embarrassed Brian Cowen realized he was giving Obama’s speech, the President returned to the podium and promptly thanked himself for inviting everyone to the party. Smooth move that one.

He’s sure not making any inroads in Afghanistan where he’s called for a meeting with “Taliban moderates”. Their response was a sneering suggestion that complete withdrawal of foreign troops was the only acceptable solution for them. Big changes coming in that part of the world real soon.

All of the above exercises in revamping our place in the world and re-establishing the United States as the beloved leader among nations now that Barack Obama is in charge of our foreign policy pale in comparison to the recent effort to re-invigorate our relationship with France.

BHO in all his cosmopolitan wisdom, wrote to Jacques Chirac to tell him about his desire to “work with him” for the next four years. In a letter described by Chirac as “very nice,” Obama wrote, “I am certain that we will be able to work together, in the coming four years, in a spirit of peace and friendship to build a safer world.”

Unfortunately, Obama does not seem to know that in May 2007, Nicolas Sarkozy was elected as the French president, succeeding Chirac who did not run for a third term. And now we learn that President Sarkozy is irritated because Obama has so far refused to arrange to meet him personally in the next few months.

So far there are still a few countries and leaders the Obama White House hasn’t managed to insult, upset, ignore, or otherwise p.o., but I’m quite sure that will be changed. With this kind of track record, the United States’ reputation in the world is most likely to be a VICTIM of Change.

Not to worry – The One has the nation’s economy under control though.

Sometimes it’s hard to come up with a new angle on a story. When I left for work this morning I was all about doing a post tonight re: the AIG bonus mess. During the past eleven hours, just about every blog in the country has had either a post or a comment about the bonuses, and who knew what when, and how outraged and SHOCKED, I tell you SHOCKED! everybody is.

For those of you who are still in the work force here’s the Readers’ Digest version: AIG disclosed the contracts covering the retention bonuses at the time of the TARP bailout last year – which was written by none other than that financial genius, Turbo Tax Tim Geithner. No secrets. Everything right there for all to see. One of the people who saw was the famous Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), who just happens to be the number one beneficiary of AIG’s political largesse (slightly ahead of the President himself). Now, far be it for me to cast aspersions about possible pay-back, but the good Senator seems to have activated his ESP last month and figured that some loud-mouthed taxpayers might find out about these bonuses and get their knickers in a knot and try to cancel the bonuses. So bless his pea-pickin’ little heart, Chris stuck a little clause in last month’s stimulus bill which, as we all know passed and was signed into law by O’Bama himself with all due haste:

“(iii) The prohibition required under clause (i) shall not be construed to prohibit any bonus payment required to be paid pursuant to a written employment contract executed on or before February 11, 2009, as such valid employment contracts are determined by the Secretary or the designee of the Secretary.”

So now, not only are the bonuses contractual obligations of the United States government, but they are statutorily mandated and protected. And all that hang-wringing, frustration, and anger on display in the Halls of Congress and the West Wing? I guess there’s only one thing The One can do now: Somebody’s gonna have to pay.

Quoth the designated hatchet-man:

“President Obama is standing behind his treasury secretary and his job is safe,” White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel said Tuesday, despite the outrage in Washington and across the country over bonuses AIG is giving its executives.

Yeah, sure.

Sometimes a new angle just can’t be ignored…

Move over guys – here comes Timmy!

UPDATE
Today we learn that our Congressional delegation is also outraged about the AIG bonuses. Perhaps if they would have READ the damn bill they wouldn’t have to be so “outraged”! This is pure unadulterated bull-pucky. And all this righteous indignation is nothing more than theatre of the absurd. They’ll yell and scream for effect until the spotlight focuses somewhere else and then everything stays exactly the same. Horse feathers!

Funny, isn’t it – all the billions of taxpayer dollars being spent on everything from whorehouses to stem cell research, and for some strange reason Congress just can’t step up and vote for a decent education for disadvantaged kids.

Guess this is one way to guarantee that the poor will always be with us.

Truth to tell, I’ve never been a Ron Paul supporter. I read the pamphlets, I listened to as many of his rEVOLUTIONaries as I could stand, and I always came away with the feeling that “something” just didn’t compute. I just felt that his theories and principles and his rhetoric were discordant, but I couldn’t really pinpoint anything specific that summed up my unease. Then I happened upon his interview with Neal Cavuto.

Apparently Mr. “Fiscal-Conservative-to-the-Max” is one of the biggest porkers in the latest Congressional hog fest – to the tune of over $73 million sliced off for his District. That’s some bacon, yessir!

And how does he justify this seeming inconsistency? Partially, with the always popular “Everybody’s doing it, so I have to too” line, but he follows that with the clever, albeit disingenuous, “But I never vote for the appropriation bill.”

Wow. Like that makes a difference.

He gets to make a “principled” vote, knowing full-well that it doesn’t make a dime’s worth of difference in the final analysis.

Smarmy little weasel. That’s exactly the kind of hypocrisy that fries my potatoes. I’ll take a “money-grubbing, take all the earmarks I can get my hands on” kind of guy as long as he’s upfront and honest about it and puts his vote where his mitts are over this kind of double-talking pedagogue.

Check, please.

Shortly after class, an economics student approaches his economics professor and says, “I don’t understand this stimulus bill. Can you explain it to me?”

The professor replied, “I don’t have any time to explain it at my office, but if you come over to my house on Saturday and help me with my weekend project, I’ll be glad to explain it to you.”

The student agreed and at the agreed-upon time, the student showed up at the professor’s house.

The professor stated that the weekend project involved his backyard pool.They both went out back to the pool, and the professor handed the student a bucket. Demonstrating with his own bucket, the professor said, “First, go over to the deep end, and fill your bucket with as much water as you can.”

The student did as he was instructed.

The professor then continued, “Follow me over to the shallow end, and then dump all the water from your bucket into it.”

The student was naturally confused, but did as he was told.

The professor then explained they were going to do this many more times, and began walking back to the deep end of the pool.

The confused student asked, “Excuse me, but why are we doing this?

The professor matter-of-factly stated that he was trying to make the shallow end much deeper.

The student didn’t think the economics professor was serious, but figured that he would find out the real story soon enough.

However, after the 6th trip between the shallow end and the deep end, the student began to become worried that his economics professor had gone mad.

The student finally replied, “All we’re doing is wasting valuable time and effort on unproductive pursuits. Even worse, when this process is all over, everything will be at the same level it was before, so all you’ll really have accomplished is the destruction of what could have been truly productive action!”

The professor put down his bucket and replied with a smile, “Congratulations. You now understand the stimulus bill.”

H/T to Ben who posted this on HillBuzz.

I just received an email from the Montana Department of Agriculture. Not that I’m any big special person in the farming and ranching communities in the state, but I am on a list for all the press releases issued by the various state departments. Turns out there’s something special coming up…

“An Agriculture Appreciation Day luncheon for legislators and a Montana products showcase are among the Montana activities scheduled in Helena to celebrate National Ag Week, March 15-21, 2009. ‘National Ag Day, March 20, is a time to recognize the importance of farming and ranching and to celebrate Montana’s No. 1 industry,’ says Ron de Yong, director of the Montana Department of Agriculture.”

Last year Montana’s agriculture industry was so important to the state that Governor Schweitzer was compelled to violate the state’s campaign laws in order to promote not only Ag Day and Ag Week but Montana Ag Month, by doing a radio PSA after filing for office.

Well, here it is a year later, the Gov’s not running for anything so it’s perfectly legal for him to do all the PSA’s he wants to do to promote whatever industry needs a little oomph from Montana’s main spokesman. So where is Big Bri? MIA?

Or maybe our agricultural industry is just so healthy and thriving that it only needs seven days of attention this year.

Yep. I’m sure that’s it.

Awesome!!!!

We all experience God’s miracles in our lives. Sometimes we recognize them, sometimes not so much. Sometimes we see God’s hand in the everyday miracles and remember to thank Him for the blessings He gives us. Sometimes, whether because we are too busy, or too preoccupied, or just too oblivious, we miss the special grace He shares with us.

And then there are those times when He bops us up alongside the head with one of HIs Super-Duper, Biblical, You-Aren’t-Going-To-Believe-This-But-It’s-An-Honest-To-God-Full-Blown-Really-Truly-Did-You-See-That, Hallelujah MIRACLE.

Today, God came through for my “other daughter” Beth in a way that only He could. You can read her story here; she’ll be posting today’s fantastic news tonight or tomorrow.

For my part, I have only one thing to say: “Let us rejoice and be glad in it! Amen.”