Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Cacophony of Crickets from White House on Gay Marriage

COMMENTARY |Long ago, when I “followed” Richard Grenell on Twittter, I didn’t know he was a “somebody” and I didn’t know he was gay. I found out soon enough when Grenell’s resignation from a campaign position in the Romney campaign ignited controversy within the Republican Party. The Keen News Service quoted Log Cabin Republican head R. Clarke Cooper saying that Grenell resigned because he “was essentially hounded by the far right and far left.” Grenell’s editorial in today’s Wall Street Journal justifies my previous high opinion of the man. Grenell applauded President Obama for his public statement in support of gay marriage, but continued to criticize the administration’s foreign policy failures. I applaud Grenell for not hanging his hat on single issues of identity politics. This differentiates him from people who tend to vote based on single issues like skin color, sexual orientation, or religion. Grenell is not an anomaly among gay policy activists who vote Republican. A 2010 Keen News Service article cited data reflecting that the 2012 gay vote was moving in a Republican direction. In his editorial, Grenell points to the “conservative ideal of limiting government involvement in our lives…” Ironically, I justify my opposition to gay marriage by the same logic. Government should leave marriage to the clergy. Civil unions can effectively address practical and legal issues in a more direct manner than by a broad stroke of the federal brush. The courageous Grenell recognized he would be stoned by both left-wing and right-wing mullahs for not anchoring his political identity within a single issue. And he is. But if it’s hypocrisy regarding gay issues you’re looking for, you have to look no farther than President Obama, for it, against it, and for it again. Obama’s support for gay marriage was not well received by black clergy, according to Politico, so there is now a cacophony of crickets at the White House. The crickets chirped even louder when it was announced that Obama was not invited to the wedding of Barney Frank to partner Jim Ready. It is ridiculous for Frank to offer the press narrative that Obama was not invited to his wedding out of concern that the Secret Service would put a damper on wedding spirits. Obama simply wants to avoid the political downside of gay marriage wedding photos with the Dodd-Frank architect. .

Richard Grenell: Marriage, Gay Republicans and the Election - WSJ.com

Richard Grenell: Marriage, Gay Republicans and the Election - WSJ.com

For those people looking for hypocrisy in gay issues, you have only to look at President Obama, who was forced by Joe Biden to come out with his remarks in support of gay marriage. Sinice that position did not poll well in the black community, you will not hear more of it and Axelrold has made the "issue" disappear. Obama , not having the courage of his convictions, stopped at the water's edge, in any case. Richard Grenell is courageous, by contrast, knowing that he will be stoned by liberal-left mullahs for not basing his entire identity on disagreement with a single issue. Smaller people cannot do that and vote based on single issues like skin color, sexual orientation, or religion.




While we're on the subject, who believes Barney Frank when he says Obama was not invited to his wedding because Barney was afraid the Secret Service would put a damper on the proceedings? That is a statement of political cover for Obama. Obama's refusal to atttend the wedding of Barney Frank to Jim Ready is a matter of pure political optics. Since the gay vote isn't as important to Obama as that of the broad hetero constituency, Obama cannot afford the political fallout of a wedding photo with the Dodd-Frank architect. Let me be clear (to use one of Obama's murky expressions) : Obama doesn't have the courage of his convictions, any of them.

Monday, May 21, 2012

Goodbye Euro, Hello Drachma - Yahoo! News

Goodbye Euro, Hello Drachma - Yahoo! News

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Greek debt drags on the survival chances of the European Union, especially if the larger economies of Spain and Italy follow Greece. German Chancellor Angela Merkel says she's fighting to keep Greece in the EU. The Germans have also said the EU could take the hit and go on if Greece defaults. Somewhere there is a contingency plan for a Greek exit from the EU, and according to the New York Times, Europe is getting used to the idea.





What would be the currency impact if Greece is kicked out?





Greece would go back its original currency, the drachma. That is easier said than done since there is no exchange rate. The value of the drachma could drop as low as 40 percent of a euro. Everything bought and sold in Greece would become more expensive. The flip side is Greece would become cheaper for tourists with stronger currencies.



So now would be a good time to visit Greece?   Click the headline--read the rest.

Friday, May 18, 2012

Facebook IPO: Will You Still Love it Tomorrow? - Yahoo! News

Facebook IPO: Will You Still Love it Tomorrow? - Yahoo! News COMMENTARY | The last and final stage of Facebook nirvana is to be Mark Zuckerberg on the day of the multi-billion dollar Facebook IPO. I've reached the penultimate stage of Facebook nirvana. I deactivated my account two years ago and deleted it one year ago. There is a lot of sniping at Zuckerberg, some of it perhaps deserved. Appearing in a hoodie last week in New York, Zuckerberg flouted an understandable resistance to the seductive burden of wealth and the less attractive burden of maturity. Zuckerberg paid off the "Winkelvii" and another Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin with cash or shares. The kind of infighting that characterized the Harvard "Mashbook" days turned cunning techno-schemer Zuckerberg into the martial refusenik who rejected billion dollar offers for the company from Yahoo and Microsoft. BusinessWeek tells the story in lustrous detail. That's one tough nerd-- with vision, yet.

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Dharun Ravi is a Victim of New Jersey’s Bias Crime Statute - Yahoo! News

Dharun Ravi is a Victim of New Jersey’s Bias Crime Statute - Yahoo! News COMMENTARY | The Indian Asian News Service reports hundreds people in New Jersey's Indian-American community marched on Trenton to protest Dharun Ravi's his bias-crime convictions. The protestors have a point. The largely quiet and conservative Indian community appears to be a target of discrimination by a law intended to curtail discrimination. Ravi was convicted of spying on his gay roommate with a webcam. New Jersey prosecutor Julia McClure thinks Ravi's conviction is an important milestone in the annals of crime. She wants to see him rot in state prison. That doesn't square with Star-Ledger reports that Ravi was offered two pleas.

Friday, May 11, 2012

Beached ‘London Whale’ Loses $2 Billion at J.P. Morgan Bank - Yahoo! News

Beached ‘London Whale’ Loses $2 Billion at J.P. Morgan Bank - Yahoo! News ..... J.P. Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon yesterday admitted to costly mistakes in its Chief Investment Office in New York. In an AP story, the loss was termed a "surprise" that will affect stock market trading today. The $2 billion loss didn't sink America's largest bank, which still earned about $4 billion for the quarter. But the gigantic loss adds fuel to the fight in Congress as to how much regulation of the banking industry is necessary and how much of it is political frosting on a cake that's already been eaten. What's not surprising is that many Americans have questions about J.P Morgan and the way America's banks do business.

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Foreign Policy Reduced to Bumper Sticker Wars - Yahoo! News

Foreign Policy Reduced to Bumper Sticker Wars - Yahoo! News COMMENTARY | The Associated Press quotes President Barack Obama hailing his Afghanistan policy as "the light of a new day." Will that fit on a bumper sticker? Without a doubt, the Obama administration wants to shift the focus of the national elections from the economy to foreign policy. Though the speech had a practical side, the selection of date and location is part of Obama's election strategy. (Click on the headline to read more)

Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Details Emerge in Brooklyn Gun Battle - WSJ.com

Once upon a time there were some New York thugs with guns.   The thugs came on shooting at people they were trying to rob in an auto repair shop.  One of the victims was a cop.  The cop exchanged fire, got shot in the shoulder, dropped his Glock.

Also present was a school safety guard who picked up the cop’s dropped weapon and chased the thugs away.  Two of the thugs were shot. Now the school safety guard is being prosecuted.

In Mayor Bloomberg’s town, the honest people are criminalized.  The thugs are granted easy pickings, certain that they can wreak havoc without interference.

Details Emerge in Brooklyn Gun Battle – WSJ.com

Bronx Van Tragedy Claims Seven

The word "accident" is a misnomer applied to the tragedy that occurred on the Bronx River Parkway a few days ago. Seven people were killed when a minivan left the highway, hurdled over a barrier, dropped through the air, and landed within an area of the Bronx Zoo. Pray for the victims, pray for the family and friends of the victims. But the usual ambulance chasers have descended like pidgeons upon the scene to convince us all that the "accident" could have been prevented by anyone other than the driver of the van. According to police, the van was speeding along at 70 mph on a road that many consider difficult at safe speed. Safe speeds are the ones that are posted on the signs along the roadside, but who reads them? There is no way to bring those lovely children back but, as usual, city officials, lawyers, assembled pidgeons and herds of sheep, will have to pretend they are doing something. The harsh reality of New York highways is that everyone is afraid to slow down. Driving at speed limits would lead to immense traffic jams, just like the immense traffic jams that occur when people drive at breakneck speeds. My point here is that no one addressed the real problems that resulted in these tragic deaths. No one says "slow down." Would the van have catapulted into space if it had been driving at 50 instead of 70? Probably not, but another point to consider is that the driver would have been able to maintain control of the vehicle. Okay, I'm not a traffic cop but it pisses me off to hear the lamentations, the denials, the excuses, the lawsuits, the b.s. coming from people who do not have the courage to tell the truth. America's highways are a war zone,and New York City is a popular battleground. Stop b.s. ing us in the hopes of a fat lawsuit. You can't bring those children back. Putting the blame where it belongs may help someone else.