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27°
Snow | 17MPH
NEWSROOM * CIRCULATION * ADVERTISING
Tuesday
February 2010
9

Kevin Fischer is an award-winning veteran broadcaster who has been seen and heard on Milwaukee TV and radio stations for nearly three decades.
Kevin, who is a legislative aide to state Sen. Mary Lazich (R-New Berlin), can be seen offering his views on the news on the public affairs program, "InterCHANGE," on Milwaukee Public Television Channel 10, and heard filling in on Newstalk 1130 WISN. He lives with his wife, Jennifer, and their baby daughter, Kyla Audrey, in Franklin.
Last week I shared with you, “Seven Flaws in the way Liberals Think.”
This week, I recommend, “Why Are Liberals So Condescending?”
Here’s an excerpt:
“American liberals, to a degree far surpassing conservatives, appear committed to the proposition that their views are correct, self-evident, and based on fact and reason, while conservative positions are not just wrong but illegitimate, ideological and unworthy of serious consideration. Indeed, all the appeals to bipartisanship notwithstanding, President Obama and other leading liberal voices have joined in a chorus of intellectual condescension. It's an odd time for liberals to feel smug. But even with Democratic fortunes on the wane, leading liberals insist that they have almost nothing to learn from conservatives.”
Here's the entire piece filled with exceptional, intellectual historical context.
Betty White topped all the Super Bowl ads Sunday.
Is it any wonder.
Brooklyn Decker is the 2010 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit cover model (photo credit: Walter Iooss Jr./Sports Illustrated). Issue on sale now. (PRNewsFoto/Sports Illustrated, Walter Iooss Jr.)
Here's another photo:

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From CITIZENS FOR A PRO-LIFE SOCIETY (CPLS)
From Monica Migliorino Miller, Ph.D. Director of CPLS
see www.prolifesociety.com
see "Requiem for the Disappeared" on You Tube
One of the most compelling pro-life movies ever made.
On the burials of the aborted unborn.
Tim Tebow Ad-- Was it Pro-life and What Was all that Fuss About Anyway?
I watched the Super Bowl because I wanted to see the Tim Tebow ad. When all is said and done--and it is done now---this ad was not worth the enormous controversy that it generated. Indeed, put forth as an ad that would promote the pro-life position--versus the pro-choice position-- well, I must have missed it. It wasn't there! Please watch the ad for yourself. See the link below. Was this really an ad about a mom's decision to choose life for her unborn child? Unless you knew that the producers of the ad were pro-life--you would have NO IDEA that the supposed issue of this ad was the choice to give life--rather than a choice to abort. Indeed, the ad's script makes it sound like Tim Tebow had post-natal health issues--not that his mother was encouraged to abortion him. After all--that's the impression one gets when Tebow's mom says: "I can remember so many times when I almost lost him."
Tell us what you think by simply responding to this email. I am disappointed, and feel that pro-lifers were sucked into a controversy that really wasn't there. Maybe the real controversy is that an anti-abortion group paid for an ad during the Super Bowl. If we judge the ad on its own merits--it is not a an anti-abortion ad. This is not to say that it is a bad ad-- it's just that the ad itself-- the very ad that actually aired on nationwide TV coast to coast, watched by millions during a Super Bowl, was not an ad that focused on the pro-life issue--or in any way drew attention to that issue.
Now--that's said--- are there any benefits from the Tebow ad? Yes, and here they are:
1. Value of the AD was in Pre-Super Bowl Hype
Even though the ad that actually aired was not focused on the pro-life or abortion issue-the very fact that pro-abortion people made a stink about it in the weeks leading up to the Super Bowl, was a plus for the pro-life movement. The threat that a pro-life commercial was to air during the Super Bowl caused millions of people to focus on the abortion issue--and the pro-abortionists looked foolish, narrow-minded, paranoid and ridiculous. Now that the real ad has aired--and the abortion issue was never addressed--the pro-abortionists look even more ridiculous.
2. Some People May Actually Check Out the Full Story on Tebow
I am willing to grant that the ad had a very very very subtle pro-life subtext-- too subtle to be called a real pro-life commercial-- but it is possible that some who viewed the ad may actually check out the Focus on the Family website and read the full story about Tim Tebow. I may be wrong here-- but I cannot imagine that all that many people will do so-- but some may-- perhaps thousands out of the 60 million or so who watched the Super Bowl--but the commercial just wasn't compelling or provocative enough to inspire anyone to be especially motivated to check out the full story--unless they're a big Tim Tebow fan. I hope I am wrong here--after-all the ad cost $2.5 million dollars!
3. It was a FIRST AND PERHAPS MORE WILL FOLLOW.
At least CBS was willing to take an ad from a pro-life group and air it despite the vehement pre-airing opposition. Perhaps, in the future, an ad with an obvious pro-life message will make it into prime time. Something new did happen here. Focus on the Family can take the credit for being the first. Will they be the last? Let's hope not!
I disagree in part with Miller. Knowing her militant past and approach, I’m sure she would have preferred a no holds barred, in your face ad. That, like many of the pro-life movement’s more questionable tactics would have backfired.
The ad didn’t have the self-righteous, lecturing, pontificating tone so many critics were expecting, and that is exactly why it worked! It was charming, light-hearted, clever. Had it been the "pro-life" ad Miller desired, it would have never cleared CBS management.
What did Miller expect? Horrific video and pictures? Save it for the sidewalks.
Miller also feels the uneducated won’t know the background of the Tebow story after watching the ad. It’s impossible to convey the all the details of this amazing episode in just 30 seconds. Miller is correct in acknowledging the hype the ad received which was beyond golden took care of that.
Finally, don't be so optimistic, Ms. Miller. Your final paragraphs about the benefits of the ad are what have the folks at Planned Parenthood all nervous. And maybe, just maybe, the Tebows paved the way for the type of ad you really want to see someday.
Now, here's the latest News You Can Use from WRTL:
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Communicating While in Coma - Would New Findings Haved Helped Terri Schiavo? Next month marks the fifth anniversary of the starvation death of Terri Schindler Schiavo. It is both a vindication and a tragedy that new testing reveals some patients diagnosed as being in a "persistent vegetative state" can comprehend what is being said and answer simple questions. This in spite of their outward appearance of being unaware of their surroundings. The Schindler family (Terri's mother, father, brother and sister) begged for such tests to be done on Terri. The villain in the Schiavo case was and continues to be Judge Greer who never gave Terri a fighting chance. Greer refused the family's request for sophisticated brain scanning. In the words of Wesley Smith, "I will go to my grave believing the judge knew what he didn't want to know." That Terri could indeed comprehend what was going on around her. Beyond Terri, this new research has profound medical and ethical implications for patients who languish in a state in which they appear to lack awareness. Many decisions to remove life support systems, even feeding tubes, have been made based on the seemingly hopeless "persistent vegetative state" of the patient. Why allow the person to languish, they argue, when they have lost their humanity? Let them die a "dignified" death. When Rom Houben, a Belgian man, "woke up" 23 years after being in a diagnosed PVS state and related that he was conscious that whole time, many scoffed and attempted to undermine this man's experience and the findings of the medical people working with Houben. The new study gives further evidence that some patients really do have an "inner voice." "We were astonished when we saw the results of the patient's scan and that he was able to correctly answer the questions that were asked by simply changing his thoughts," said Dr. Adrian Owen who is the co-author of the new study. "Not only did these scans tell us that the patient was not in a vegetative state but, more importantly, for the first time in five years it provided the patient with a way of communicating his thoughts to the outside world. We can be pretty confident that he is entirely conscious. He has to understand the instructions, comprehend speech, and then make a decision." These findings open up a whole new universe in the thinking of the medical community and the decisions made by families. Most importantly, the findings breathe new life and hope into patients who cling to consciousness not evident to the outside world.
Wisconsin Right to Life Welcomes Archbishop Jerome Listecki as a Trustee of our Veritas Society Wisconsin Right to Life welcomes Archbishop Jerome Listecki as a Trustee of our Veritas Society. We are deeply honored that Archbishop Listecki has agreed to serve in this capacity. He is a man of great faith and is truly an inspiration to so many in our state! The positive right-to-life ads seen on television throughout Wisconsin for the past 14 years are a project of Wisconsin Right to Life's Veritas Society. In 2009, Veritas ads achieved almost 68 million ad viewings by Wisconsin residents. The impact is phenomenal in reaching the goal of changing hearts and minds to cherish human life. Not only are Veritas Society ads targeted to the correct population, messages are carefully researched before ads are produced. Then, ads are aired on programs watched by women 18-34. We estimate that 81,964 babies have been saved, cumulatively, from abortion in Wisconsin since 1995 when Veritas Society ads began runningVeritas Society television ads have become a staple in Wisconsin homes! Come Hear the Former Planned Parenthood Director Who Rocked the Nation When She Quit and Joined the Right-to-Life Movement! Wisconsin Right to Life Presents
ABBY JOHNSON The former Planned Parenthood Director who rocked the nation when she quit and joined the right-to-life movement! Come hear about Abby's long personal journey from abortion salesperson to right-to-life advocate. Wednesday, May 12, 2010 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Best Western Inn on The Park - on the Capitol Square 22 S. Carroll Street - Madison, Wisconsin RADIO HOST VICKI MCKENNA WILL M.C. Coffee, tea, dessert Admission $10.00 per person - tables of 10 $80.00 Reservations only. Call toll free by May 10 to 877-855-5007 For more information and to download the event flyer, click here Senator Rick Santorum to be Featured Speaker at Wisconsin Right to Life Dinner/Auction on Thursday, April 29
Thursday, April 29, 2010 Midwest Airlines Center, Milwaukee, Wisconsin Special Guest Speaker: Senator Rick Santorum
Read Rick Santorum's biography Dinner reservations are $65 per person; tables of ten are $600. Black tie optional. Join us for an evening of good food, fun, friends and fellowship. Doors open at 5:00 p.m. and hors d'oeuvres served. Silent Auction from 5:00 - 7:30 p.m. Dinner is served at 6:30 p.m. Be a table captain! Anyone who organizes or purchases a table of 10 will have their picture taken with Sen. Santorum. To make reservations call Janna toll-free 877-855-5007 or 414- 778-5780.
Wisconsin Right to Life State Convention - Saturday, April 17 WRTL State Convention 2010
Everyone Deserves a BIRTH-DAY!
Download and print the Convention Registration Flyer. Take a video tour of the NEW Holiday Inn Hotel & Convention Center, Stevens Point.
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Franklin residents, I am pleased and honored to share a special message with you from Franklin First District Alderman Steve Olson whom I wholeheartedly endorse. I respectfully request that you give him your support. By far, he best represents the values and concerns of Franklin citizens and is the clear choice in the First District aldermanic race.
Dear Friends:
It has been an honor to serve the residents of the 1st aldermanic district in
The last three years in the City of
Safety of our children
We have had a magnifying glass placed over us by more than 72 communities who followed our lead in restricting where sex offenders could reside in our communities. They watched us as we successfully enforced our ordinance in Circuit Court, requiring a sex offender to move from his home. The effort required strong leadership that I am honored to provide for the safety of our children.
Holding the line on spending
Economic development
Even while we experience dramatic fiscal issues we must not lose our focus on the continued orderly development in our City that will benefit us as community. Development of the
Managing State and Federal mandates
The State of
The issues above are important and complex, and represent only the tip of the iceberg of what faces the City in the future. I am the candidate who has the experience and knowledge that can work to solve these and the many other issues that will come before the city.
The issues are many and the differences between my opponent and me are striking but getting the message out will be expensive. I ask for your support for my re-election. May I count on you to send me a check in support of independence, common sense and hard work for the City? I will be grateful for any contribution.
Please mail your check to the address below, made out to “Friends of Steve Olson”. Contributions of more than $100 require the name of your employer. Individuals may donate up to $250 per year. I cannot accept corporate contributions.
The campaign needs locations for yard signs in support of my candidacy. Please let me know if you would display a yard sign that we’ll put up and collect again the day after the election.
As always, I look forward to hearing from you on any of your concerns for the City. Please call or e-mail.
I thank you for your support. Vote on April 6 for Steve Olson.
______ Steve, I’m sending you a check for $__________
______ Add me to the list for a yard sign, my address is: ______________________________________________________
______ I have a spot for a big sign
______ I want to help with the campaign, please call me.
Friends of Steve Olson
414-425-9060
www.steveolson.us
This e-mail is authorized and paid for by Friends of Steve Olson,
Steve Olson's Leadership Experience
Please feel free to copy and paste the above and send your reply to steve@steveolson.us
It ran during the pre-game.....
Really offensive, isn't it?
UPDATE:
This is the ad that aired during the first quarter.....
My power windows haven’t been working right lately, so whenever I want my bacon, egg and cheese biscuit, I need to park, get out of the vehicle, walk into the Golden Arches, and look an employee right in the eye and place my order in person as opposed through a cold, faceless intercom.
I don’t mind terribly. At least I know I’ll get napkins because I won’t forget.
But I miss the convenience. I’m not sure about the actual lost time, if any at all, but it seems there is some when parking and leaving the car to go inside. Plus it’s just the getting in and out when there’s this nice and easy, 1-2-3 drive-through just begging for my business that just doesn't feel right.

Drive-throughs have been around for decades and I can’t imagine how many times I’ve used them to buy burgers, chicken, custard, make a bank transaction, get my car washed, or return a library book.
I can recall riding my bike as a kid to McDonald’s, standing in line outside at the window, then finding a spot under a tree to eat my Big Mac. It was honestly a big deal when the restaurants added seats. And then in the mid-70’s, the mega fast food chain started installing drive-throughs.
Boy, are they popular. Tom Vanderbilt writes in Slate that “drive-throughs account for some 65 percent of McDonald's
Despite their popularity, Vanderbilt finds these car-lanes to be “odd,” and asks, “Has the American romance with the drive-through gone sour?”
“There has always been something odd in the encounter between automobility and architecture; the driver momentarily breaks her sense of hermetic enclosure, while the fast-food employee briefly thrusts himself out of the window, the two meeting amid the sickly sweet commingling of ambient grease and tailpipe exhaust,” says Vanderbilt.
The drive-throughs, Vanderbilt claims, are being criticized for our national obesity crisis, their harshness on the environment, and being discriminatory.
Hmmmm. Care to venture a guess as to whether this guy voted for Obama?
“The drive-through is a place predicated not on sociability but on pure efficiency,” writes Vanderbilt.
Ummm, yeh, so. What’s wrong with that?
They’re drive-throughs, and Vanderbilt doesn’t like them. I sense Vanderbilt’s inner glee when he writes that “all is not well with the drive-through,” that sales were down during 2008 and some locales have resorted to enacting anti-idling ordinances as a weapon to curtail the growth of drive-throughs.
Hmmm. Care to venture a guess as to whether this guy has nightmares about global warming?
Read Vanderbilt’s piece and you can almost detect a wailing and gnashing of teeth over those emissions from cars filled with fast food hunters.
And that’s not all.
SOB!
Drive-throughs are inherently unfair to pedestrians, bicyclists, the Amish, and probably the occasional rickshaw as well. Vanderbilt suggests that drive-throughs are dangerous. I’d love to see the stats on pedestrians walking in front of fast food places who were struck by those nasty people in cars attempting to exit. Vanderbilt doesn’t have any hard facts. He just tosses out unsubstantiated conjecture aimed at alarming. Imagine that.
Like many print persons, Vanderbilt commits a journalistic foible of burying the lead. Vanderbilt's true sentiments finally surface in the final 34 words of his 1,576 word column, and his ridiculous anti-business suggestion is not surprising:
“Ultimately, the question of whether bicycles or pedestrians should be allowed at drive-throughs may be less important than the question of whether, in any but the most vehicularized places, drive-throughs should exist at all.”
Ban drive-throughs? I don’t think so.
U.S. House Budget Committee Chairman Rep. John Spratt (D-SC) (R) and Spratt's Staff Director and Chief Counsel Thomas Kahn leave after he received copies of the FY2011 budget proposal in front of the U.S. Capitol February 1, 2010 in Washington, DC. President Barack Obama released the details of his budget for FY2010 Monday.. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Employees at the U.S. Government Printing Office deliver copies of the proposed 2011 fiscal year budget for members of the media in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Monday, Feb. 1, 2010. U.S. President Barack Obama's $3.8 trillion fiscal 2011 budget puts an emphasis on job creation with $100 billion in additional stimulus spending, along with higher taxes for the wealthy in an attempt to narrow the deficit. Photographer: Joshua Roberts/Bloomberg

Jim Eley wears an anti-Obama sticker on his back while at the National Tea Party Convention at Gaylord Opryland Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee February 6, 2010. Photo: Reuters

Indonesian students look at the statue of President Obama as a 10-year-old boy at Menteng Park in Jakarta, Indonesia, Friday, Feb. 5, 2010. The statue of young Obama that drew public backlash after it was placed in the park will be moved to the elementary school he attended while living in the Indonesian capital four decades ago amid criticism arguing that statues in public places should be reserved only for national heroes and those who have made significant contributions to the country.Photo: AP

U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood testifies during a hearing on his department's budget request for FY2011 before the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee on Capitol Hill February 3, 2010 in Washington, DC. LaHood spoke to the media later to clarify on the remarks he made during the hearing whether Toyota owners who are affected by the recall should drive their vehicles. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Toyota of Hollywood team leader Erick Garcia eyes his work in Los Angeles, California, on Wednesday, February 3, 2010, while perfecting the fix for shortening the gas pedal in several models of Toyota cars involved in a recall. (Rick Loomis/Los Angeles Times/MCT)
A man, accused of stealing food, is detained by a police officer during a food distribution in Port-au-Prince, Sunday, Jan 31, 2010. Relief workers prepared for a woman-only food distribution system in Haiti's capital, launching a new phase of what they hope will be less cutthroat aid distribution to ensure that families and the weak get supplies following Haiti's devastating Jan. 12 earthquake. (AP Photo/ Rodrigo Abd)

Suspected looters lie on the ground with their hands tied behind their backs in front of a bank after they were caught in the closed bank in the aftermath of Haiti's earthquake in Port-au-Prince, Saturday, Feb. 6, 2010. Seventeen suspected looters were detained at the bank, which was closed due to the Jan. 12 earthquake, during a joint operation by the Haitian police and UN peacekeepers. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

Matin shaves a client with the debris of his shop still scattered around him in downtown Port-au-Prince. Matin, who lost his fourteen-year-old daughter in the 7.0-magnitude earthquake that struck Haiti on Jan. 12, returned to work with the few things he found among the debris of the business he owned for 26 years. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

Laura Silsby, (L), the head of New Life Children's Refuge leaves a court hearing with another member of her group Charisa Coulter February 4, 2010 after being accused of child abduction and criminal association in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Five women and five men are part of a church organization that attempted to cross into the Dominican Republic with 33 Haitian children. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
Army Specialist (SPC) Toby Felts is greeted by his wife Denise after arriving with 42 fellow guardsman at the N.C. Guard Armory on West Boulevard Monday afternoon. Soldiers of the N.C. Guard's 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team will be returning to N.C. this week. The 30th began training in December of 2008 and deployed overseas in April 2009. During their deployment, the 30th conducted a wide range of missions; they trained Iraqi Police and Army Forces, assisted in civil projects like schools and infrastructure improvements, and conducted joint combat operations with Iraqi Security Forces. The 30th suffered 29 wounded in action and seven killed in action, five of those killed were N.C. National Guard Soldiers. DAVIE HINSHAW - Charlotte Observer.

Kay Mangassarian,47, and her son Kevin Grigorian,14, look at their home that is covered with mud Saturday Feb. 6, 2010 in La Canada Flintridge, Calif. (AP Photo/Los Angeles Daily news, John McCoy)

Heather McLaughlin, 23, (right) receivess a helping hand from 16-year-old neighbor Zosha Wiktor in mopping up the mud that flooded her home in La Canada Flintridge, California, on Saturday, February 6, 2010. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times/MCT)

Local resident Ali Hadfi picks up a loaf of bread for his family in a grocery store prior to a snowstorm February 5, 2010 in Alexandria, Virginia. The Washington DC area is expecting up to two feet of snow. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Arline Marino leaves her walker to shovel the sidewalk in front of Marino's Lunch in Staunton, VA., Friday, February 5, 2010. The National Weather Service was forcasting total snowfall of 18-28 inches in the Shenandoah Valley. (AP Photo/The News Leader, Pat Jarrett)

An empty open-top double-decker tour bus drives near the Capitol in Washington, Friday, Feb. 5, 2010, as snow fell in the Washington area. Life in the nation's capital ground to a halt Friday as steady snow fell, the beginning of a storm that forecasters said could be the biggest in modern history. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

A state snow-plow truck is seen beached in a snow bank during a steady snowfall in Catonsville, Md., Saturday, Feb. 6, 2010. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

The White House is blanketed in snow in Washington Saturday, Feb. 6, 2010. Mid-Atlantic residents were buried by a blizzard the president jokingly called "Snowmageddon," and those brave enough tried to clear a path through the wet, heavy mounds of thigh-high snow. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The bronze flag-raisers of the Marine Corps War Memorial are draped with snow, in Arlington, Va., Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2010, that blanketed the metropolitan Washington area. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

People look at the Vietnam War Memorial during a snow storm in Washington, Friday, Feb. 5, 2010. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

A robin looks for berries as snow clings to the branches of the trees, in Fort Washington, Md., Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2010, after a winter storm left up to six inches of snow in the Washington area. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Photographer Gregory Holm and architect Matthew Radune spent weeks spraying water on the home for the Ice House Detroit project. The two encased the home in ice, hoping their effort inspires and helps draw attention to the housing crisis that has battered the nation. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

In this photo taken Friday, Feb. 5, 2010, A. Digrindakis enjoys unseasonably warm weather by twirling a hula hoop around her neck on the University of Oregon campus in Eugene, Ore. (AP Photo/Don Ryan)

Punxsutawney Phil, right, is held by Ben Hughes after emerging from his burrow on Gobblers Knob in Punxsutawney, Pa., to see his shadow and forecast six more weeks of winter weather Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2010. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Famed armadillo artist Jim Franklin, left, and Texas singer-songwriter Gary P. Nunn get an up-close look at an armadillo named Bee Cave Bob after Bob emerged from his burrow during the first annual Armadillo Day in Bee Cave, Texas, on Tuesday Feb. 2, 2010. The movements of the armadillo were interpreted by "weatherologist" Al Manack to suggest that the planting of crops should begin in three or four weeks. The Benevolent Knights of the Raccoon hosted the Texas-style Groundhog Day because they believe that a groundhog in Pennsylvania has no relevance to Texas or Texans. (AP Photo/Austin American-Statesman, Jay Janner)

Mei Lan, a 3-year-old female giant panda from Zoo Atlanta is shown to the media prior to her departure from Atlanta to China Thursday, Feb. 4, 2010 aboard a Federal Express cargo plane, called the "FedEx Panda Express". Mei Lan is Zoo Atlanta's firstborn giant panda and will be accompanied on the trip by Heather Roberts, left, a giant panda keeper at Zoo Atlanta. Before heading to China, the plane will make a stop in Washington, DC, where it will pick up Tai Shan, a 4-year-old male giant panda born at the National Zoo. Experts believe there are only 1,600 giant pandas that remain in the wild. (AP Photo/Rich Addicks)

"Abagnale" the sea lion heads out towards the Pacific Ocean after being released at Rodeo Beach in Sausalito, California, Friday, February 5, 2010. After avoiding rescuers for weeks, Abagnale was pulled from the water with an entanglement around his neck. The release follows about 10 days of treatment at the Marine Mammal Center. (Sherry LaVars/Contra Costa Times/MCT)

Thomas Dold, from Stuttgart, Germany, collapses at the finish line after winning his 5th consecutive Empire State Building Run-up in a time of 10:16, in New York, Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2010. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

The Wisconsin Badgers and Michigan play hockey at Camp Randall Stadium Saturday. The Badgers won, 3-2. Journal Sentinel photo: Tom Lynn
Students at James Lick Middle School jump rope as they participate in a world record attempt for jump roping February 1, 2010 in San Francisco, California. An estimated 80,000 students and teachers at nearly 2,000 schools in California attempted to break the world record for number of people jumping rope at the same time. The current record is held in Australia with 59,000. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Competitors approach an obstacle during the Tough Guy Challenge, in South Perton Farm, in Staffordshire, England, Sunday, Jan. 31, 2010. Some thousands take part in the biannual assault course, and are challenged by 21 different obstacles, including, fire, tunnels, and swamps to complete the track. (AP Photo/Simon Dawson)

John "Super Squibb" Squibb of Berlin N.J. downs wings during Wing Bowl 18 eating contest at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, Friday, Feb. 5, 2010. Squibb ate 238 chicken wings in the allotted time to win the 18th annual Wing Bowl eating contest, held every year the Friday before the Super Bowl. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Norah Jones, left, and Ringo Starr present the award for record of the year at the Grammy Awards on Sunday, Jan. 31, 2010, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles)
Beyonce performs at the Grammy Awards on Sunday, Jan. 31, 2010, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles)
Singer Taylor Swift poses with Album Of The Year award for 'Fearless', Best Female Country Vocal Performance for 'White Horse', Best Country Song for 'Fearless' and Best Country Album for 'Fearless' in the press room during the 52nd Annual GRAMMY Awards held at Staples Center on January 31, 2010 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
Pink performs "Glitter in the Air" at the Grammy Awards on Sunday, Jan. 31, 2010, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles)
Singer Lady Gaga backstage during the 52nd Annual GRAMMY Awards held at Staples Center on January 31, 2010 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Larry Busacca/Getty Images)
No, this is not a Grammy winner. A model wears a creation, part of Italian fashion designer Lorenzo Riva's spring-summer 2010 high fashion collection unveiled in Rome, Monday, Feb. 1, 2010. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

New Orleans Saints fans Stacey Rog (L) of Dallas, Texas and Stacey Hooks (R) of Nederland, Texas dance to the beat of the famous song "When the Saints Go Marching In" at a bar on Bourbon Street on February 6, 2010 in New Orleans, Louisiana. The two came to New Orleans to enjoy a little Mardi Gras and to support the Saints in their first ever Super Bowl. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)

"L'Homme qui marche I", a sculpture by artist Alberto Giacometti, is on display at Sotheby's during a preview at Sotheby's, January 20, 2010, in New York. The scuplture, one of the most important by the artist ever to come to the auction market, will be auctioned as part of Sotheby's sales of impressionist & modern art which will take place in London, England on February 3, 2010. The sculpture has an estimate of 12-18 million Pounds (19.5-29.3 million USD). EMMANUEL DUNAND - AFP/Getty Images
As I post every Sunday, here are the five most read blog entries of mine from the previous week. NOTE: some entries may have been posted prior to the past week.
1)
2) The $54 million Wine Train
3) NFL admits officials missed a key penalty against Saints in Vikings loss last Sunday
4) Franklin homeowners, did you pay more than $6,052 in property taxes last year?
5) "Seven Huge Flaws in the Way Liberals Think"
Sarah Palin delivered the keynote address in
Pailin to Obama: "Stop lecturing and start listening."
More from Palin:
"
"This movement is about the people. Government is supposed to be working for the people."
"How's that hope-y, change-y stuff workin' out for you?"
"You've got both party machines running scared."
"This is about the people. It's a lot bigger than any charismatic guy with a TelePrompTer."
Watch Palin's speech in its entirety.
A. During the first quarter.
Brilliant.
More people will be watching then as opposed to the fourth quarter when the game could be the customary Super Bowl blowout.
Newsbusters.com reports:
“The Left and their media minions may not have enough time to fully express their anger before it happens, but a second ad featuring Pro-Life advocate and college football star Tim Tebow is now scheduled to air during the Super Bowl pre-game show.
Adding insult to injury, this one's supposed to run…..
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four times."
Great column by CNN’s Roland Martin who writes:
“Instead of slamming Tebow, let's thank him for being an athlete who shows more conviction in his personal life, rather than being convicted of a crime in a courtroom.”
He was one of the greatest
Reagan was dubbed, “The Great Communicator,” and for good reason. Here are some of his memorable quotes:
Politics is supposed to be the second oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first.
Politics is not a bad profession. If you succeed there are many rewards, if you disgrace yourself you can always write a book.
The best minds are not in government. If any were, business would hire them away.
The government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.
The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, 'I'm from the government and I'm here to help.'
Thomas Jefferson once said, 'We should never judge a president by his age, only by his works.' And ever since he told me that, I stopped worrying.
To sit back hoping that someday, someway, someone will make things right is to go on feeding the crocodile, hoping he will eat you last--but eat you he will.
I have left orders to be awakened at any time in case of national emergency, even if I'm in a cabinet meeting.
I have wondered at times about what the Ten Commandments would have looked like if Moses had run them through the
The taxpayer: That’s someone who works for the federal government but doesn’t take the civil service exam.
Government is like a baby: An alimentary canal with a big appetite at one end and no sense of responsibility at the other.
We’ll all do the job as if there will never be another election. In other words… we’ll take no actions or make no decisions that are based on how they might bear on or affect an election. Whatever we do will be based on what we believe, to the best of our ability, is best for the people of this country.
Abortion is advocated only by persons who have themselves been born.
Above all, we must realize that no arsenal, or no weapon in the arsenals of the world, is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women. It is a weapon our adversaries in today's world do not have.
Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the
How do you tell a communist? Well, it's someone who reads Marx and Lenin. And how do you tell an anti-Communist? It's someone who understands Marx and Lenin.
I don't believe in a government that protects us from ourselves.
I know in my heart that man is good. That what is right will always eventually triumph. And there's purpose and worth to each and every life.
If you're afraid of the future, then get out of the way, stand aside. The people of this country are ready to move again.
No arsenal ... is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women.
People don't start wars, governments do.
If we ever forget that we’re one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under.
And finally, during a microphone check in 1984:
My fellow Americans, I am pleased to tell you I just signed legislation which outlaws
The mainstream media was highly offended, a sure sign the line was hilarious.
You don’t have to keep reminding me over and over again about that other Bowl on Sunday.
It has become so popular that the prestigious Wall Street Journal has a feature piece.
Here’s a preview….
Here are, in my view, interesting, noteworthy columns and articles from the past week that I highly recommend (You will note that on occasion, I do not endorse the opinions of the author and may point that out. Despite my disagreements, I still feel the piece is worth a read).
Sweet tea for convention attendees
"If you read any of the extensive coverage of the Tea Party Convention going on this weekend in
Holperin: 'We Democrats' authorized all kinds of new taxes
"You know the Governor's got enough little tax and fee hikes in that budget of his to sink a good sized battleship.”
Back on the Street
“Many in the media have cast 2009’s sentencing reforms as early release for ‘non-violent offenders.’ However, the changes actually give violent felons – including homicide offenders – multiple new chances to get out of prison early and to shorten their state supervision in the community.”
The myth of local control
“Call us hopelessly naive, but we’d rather trust local people to make local decisions. District educators and school board members, in consultation with parents, are more than capable of designing programs which meet community needs and achieve acceptance.”
Climate bill: All cost, no benefit
“It's common practice in politics to market legislation in a way that hides its true intent. The so-called Clean Energy Jobs Act, praised by a Journal Sentinel editorial on Jan. 17 is one of the most misnamed bills of all time.”
Super commercial
“In the midst of the usual glut of Super Bowl commercials with messages about beer, cars and women with impossible bosoms, on Sunday there will be one 30-second message that has some people upset, even angry.”
The conservative football fix
“If you’re willing to record a game and watch it later, you can view it in less than an hour, without missing a snap. This isn’t going to change as long as advertisers are lining up to throw money at the networks carrying NFL games. So what should be fixed?”
A look back at the people and events that made news the past week.
Week-ends is a regular weekly feature of This Just In...
HEROES OF THE WEEK
Daniel Lund
LeMarc Humphrey
William S. Sims, Arleigh A. Burke, John McCloy and Doris "Dorie" Miller
Rebecca St. James
Wayne Burroughs
James Smith
Mike Scofield
Elliot
VILLAINS OF THE WEEK
Daniel Acker
Robbers in Texas........UPDATE
Whoever was responsible for this.
QUOTES OF THE WEEK
"We Democrats authorized all kinds of new taxes in the recently adopted state budget (cigarette taxes, capital gains taxes, solid waste fees, cell phone tax, boat registration fee, etc. etc.) and took a lot of heat for that.”
State Senator Jim Holperin (D-Conover) in an e-mail to a constituent last fall. The e-mail was reported this week by the
“If the economy hasn’t turned around in the next two years, God help us all”
Wisconsin governor Jim Doyle
“It’s time for state government to pull its head out of the sand and face the harsh, cold reality of our budget crisis.”
State Senator Mike Ellis (R-Neenah) responding to a memo from the Legislative Fiscal Bureau that the state’s structural deficit has increased to $2.3 billion.
“I'll give you as Shermanesque a quote as I can. I am not going to run for president. I'm just not going to do it. My head's not that big, and my kids are too small.”
Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan on "UpFront with Mike Gousha."
“I know the rules, and I know how restrictive they are. I would never do anything to affect the work I do here in the state Assembly.”
Assembly Speaker Mike Sheridan (D-Janesville) claiming he's done nothing illegal and has the support of his caucus after admitting he’s dating a lobbyist for the payday lending industry.
“Even an eternal candidate like him must understand that voters in
“If Scott Walker had parted the
Reince Priebus, chairman of the state GOP, noting that Walker's cash total, donors and poll numbers are each ahead of Tom Barrett at this point.
“Automatic tolling should come some day ... not soon enough.”
Former state Transportation Secretary Tom Carlsen.
“Gov't is the servant of the people. Start serving us Bama, take a bow to US the American People for a ‘change’"
A commenter on the Big Government website.
"I’m all for full disclosure, but not the full monty.”
Sen. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.) responding to Cosmopolitan magazine editor Kate White's invitation to pose nude for the ladies mag.
OUTRAGE OF THE WEEK
Seeing double with stimulus numbers.
MOST UNDER-REPORTED STORY OF THE WEEK
State Senator Jim Holperin: 'We Democrats' authorized all kinds of new taxes…….
Senator said budget had “enough little tax and fee hikes to sink a good sized battleship”
The John Edwards story
MOST OVER-HYPED STORY OF THE WEEK
That groundhog out in PA.
STRANGEST, MOST UNUSUAL STORY OF THE WEEK
Unruly passenger blames those darn cookies.
Another Caught in the Act video.
New Zealand teen auctions herself to pay for tuition.
REMEMBER: Your suggestions/nominations for any of these categories every week are welcome, especially for HEROES OF THE WEEK. If you know of anyone in the community deserving of recognition, please e-mail me.
This past fall, I called out
It’s not just a football issue. It happens in other sports, like soccer.
I’m very pleased that the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association Board recently adopted a major change in soccer rules. Beginning in the fall, a game will now end if there’s a 10-goal differential between the teams at the 60-minute mark.
This is a great decision on the part of the WIAA. I’ve been watching area high school soccer for over 30 years, and I have never seen a team come back from a 10-goal deficit to win, and it certainly won’t happen in the last 20 minutes of a game.
The change takes any decision out of the hands of soccer officials and ends the game automatically. At that point in the game, there’s no reason to continue and risk unnecessary injuries. And the victorious team wins by 10 goals instead of 12 or 15. So what!
Oh for the days of John Welk. Welk was the soccer coach for boys and girls at Milwaukee South during the 70’s and 80’s, and 90’s. His teams, particularly the boys were far superior to any others in the City Conference. It always looked liked he had four or five extra players on the field.
Welk’s team would jump out to a quick four or five goal advantage and then, under his instruction, the South players would relent. Shots of goal stopped, unless someone had a clear opportunity. Back and forth South players would pass the ball without any aggressive effort to score.
Sadly, those sportsmanlike days are over. And while I applaud the WIAA, it’s unfortunate that it took an edict from
From the Your Opinion section in Friday’s Journal Sentinel:
JOBS PROGRAM
Answer the phone
I'm all for President Barack Obama's program to create jobs for Americans.
We can start by hiring people to answer the telephones of businesses so the caller can talk to a live person, rather than dialing a long list of menus and options - which is irritating and frustrating and a waste of time - while listening to terrible, loud music, causing further irritation, and in the end, not being able to resolve the problem.
Let's put people to work right now! A live person is better than a dozen menus and computers.
Melvin E. Wenzel
Franklin
Amen, Melvin.
The Barking Lot is a regular weekly feature of this just in…Written by my lovely wife, Jennifer and me. It opens with the weekend dog walking forecast followed by the main blog from dog lover, Jennifer. Then it’s DOGS IN THE NEWS and our close. Enjoy!
THE WEEKEND DOG-WALKING FORECAST: We grade the weather outlook for taking your pet outdoors.
TODAY: Variable clouds with snow showers. Very windy. High of 26. "D"
SUNDAY: Mostly cloudy. High of 25. "D"
Here’s my lovely wife, Jennifer with this week’s main blog:
We were spoiled for many years with Sugar’s lack of barking. Although she was a Basenji-Cocker Spaniel mix, she really exhibited no traits of her mother, the Cocker. True to Basenji form, she did not bark. She would let out an occasional chortle and that was it. Then when Skippy, the English Springer Spaniel, came in to our lives, we learned how a barking dog could really disrupt the family peace. She would bark to be let out and let in. Fine. She would bark at dogs across the street. Fine. But she would also bark at the mail man, motorcycles, meter readers and even leaves blowing down the street in the fall. NOT fine. We did our best to curtail her canine crooning but she didn’t improve much over the years. Sadly her barking stopped when she lost her hearing and at that point we actually wished she would bark again.
We weren’t the only ones in our neighborhood who owned a barking dog. We just accepted it as a part of suburban living and dealt with it. Really, no one let their dogs out all night or too early in the morning. Things never escalated to complaints, police visits, or threats. Although we had never heard of debarking, we never would have considered the procedure.
There are many proponents of the medical procedure to alter a dog’s vocal cords so that their bark is merely a whisper. Dr. Mike Marder is a veterinarian who owns a debarked dog.
Apparently this surgery is “necessary” in co-op apartment buildings when neighbors threaten to complain to the board.
Similar to the issues surrounding spaying and neutering as well as declawing, there are two sides to the “debark debate.” Personally I find many medically compelling reasons to spay and neuter, but I find little reason to consider debarking. So do these readers of the New York Times.
I understand the frustration of owning a dog who barks too much. And I sympathize with any owner who faces the possibility of having to get rid of their pet because of the habit. There are many other options I would pursue before ever thinking of resorting to surgically altering my pooch.
-----Jennifer Fischer
Thanks, Jennifer.
Amen.
If you don’t like the fact that a dog will bark and bark loudly, THEN DON’T HAVE ONE!
It is time now for DOGS IN THE NEWS, canines that made headlines the past week.
Jennifer, your blog focused on what was probably the biggest dog story of the week. The second was this: Duck hunter gets shot in the back.........by his own hunting dog. Did the hunter break a basic rule?
Should operating on your dog be a crime?
Wisconsin dog sniffs out arsonists.
Cops bill owner after running over dog.
Pet shops face bans on sale of puppy mill dogs.
Missing dog shows power of the Internet.
Dog to see owner for the first time in years.
Human pacemakers offer hope to ailing dogs.
What's happening with Spikey? And what about his rescuer? Oh, there's more.
Amos calms dogs in court.
Baking doggie delectables beats the recession.
Is "Up" worthy of a Best Picture nomination? The great talking dog controversy.
And don't forget, that big show is just around the corner. I know because Jennifer keeps reminding me.
That's it for this week.
Thanks for stopping by.
We close with our closing video....more on Spikey.
It's Friday night. Time to unwind with our regular Friday night feature on This Just In.
The weekend has finally arrived.
The sun has set.
The evening sky has erupted.
Let's put controversy and provocative blogs aside for the rest of this work week and smooth our way into Saturday and Sunday.
Tonight……

The Vancouver Olympic Games begin one week from today.
So tonight’s music features selections with an international flavor.
We begin with a salute to the host country.
In 1956, orchestra leader Hugo Winterhalter made it all the way to #2 on the charts with this classic instrumental.
Another great instrumental released in 1965 by a painsits about the beauty of
OK, let’s head somewhere warm.
There’s a neighborhood in



Very nice.
The Brazilian hot spot was immortalized in song in the 60’s and famed saxman Kenny G a few years ago produced this beautiful cover.
That’s it for this week.
Goodnight.
Sleep well.
Have a great weekend.
We close with a visit to where the Games began.
From the 2004 Olympics in
That means you'll find our regular weekend material beginning tonight on This Just In with our Friday night Goodnight music post.
Tonight, as Jim McKay used to say on ABC, we are "spanning the globe" to bring you the thrill of music.
Saturday morning, wake up to The Barking Lot, our weekly dog blog with the dog walking forecast, my wife Jennifer's main blog, and DOGS IN THE NEWS with an update on....

Then it's Week-ends, our weekly week in review. Also Saturday, Recommended
Sunday, My Most Popular Blogs, the MJS Scorecard, Culinary no-no #150, and Photos of the Week. Here is a photo that DID NOT make the final cut.:..

I've got to hand it to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel photographers. Those pictures they take for the Dining section are very tantalizing. Here's one from today's paper. Ward’s prime rib is beautifully tender if mild on flavor. The restaurant offers cuts of 8-, 16-, 24- and, new this week, 40-ounce (above). Photo: Rick Wood.
And I loved this from last Friday...

Braised short ribs with cheese tortellini is a hearty plate that will provide comfort on a cold
Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend.
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Call it Milwaukee Archbishop Jerome Listecki’s baptism of fire.
Last month when he testified in
Watch this WTMJ-TV video.
Now the
A few years ago, scandals rocked the Catholic Church and made for screaming headlines nationwide. The controversy quieted down for awhile but has resurfaced, re-opening decades-long wounds.
Former FBI executive and former executive director of the U.S. bishop’s Office of Child and Youth Protection, Kathleen McChesney writes a timely piece in the current issue of St. Anthony Messenger magazine, “Sexual Abuse and the Catholic Church: Where Are We Now?”
For McChesney, the answer is quite simple:
“I am certain that the crisis of sexual abuse of children by Catholic clergy is far from over.”
McChesney concedes, “In the United States the number of allegations of sexual abuse committed by priests and deacons that have taken place during the past five years is quite small and appears to be diminishing.”
But….
“It is very likely that there are young people who remain unsure or afraid of accusing a respected member of the clergy of sexual assault. Moreover, hundreds of adults continue to come forward each year, describing their abuse as children or teenagers in years past…”
The author laments that there is no single, definitive child protection approach offered or taken by the Holy See.
“Being ashamed and sorrowful is obviously not sufficient remorse for every person whose life has been torn asunder by the violent act of a priest or a deacon,” McChesney contends. “Clearly, there is much more that can be done to become a better, safer Church.”
McChesney concludes with eight recommendations on how to address this ongoing problem. You can read McChesney’s article here.
As a devout Roman Catholic, clergy sex abuse angers and disgusts me. However, we shouldn't lose perspective that the overwhelming majority of priests and deacons are honest, good, decent human beings and perform wondrous deeds for the Church and their communities.
They proved it during the entire Brett Favre affair. The man took them to Super Bowls, won MVPs, played every week with unsurpassed grit and toughness, then was traded even though he wanted to stay, and brain dead Packer fans, including the ones not employed by WTMJ Radio, moaned and groaned, “Duuhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, gee I hope he has to be in a wheelchair the rest of his life.”
Some of the intelligent commentary was reserved for the Big Idiot’s radio show after 6:00 p.m. on TMJ (Can we say, ‘I’m a big fat shill’?), but most came on the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s blog. Here’s a sample of the Rhodes Scholars in green and gold (the spelling errors are those of the intelligentsia that wrote them):
Hate him, hope the Packers break his leg and he is never able to play again. GO PACK!!
Great football player, not a very good person
He's a selfish traitor and I hope someone puts him out.
I have never wished harm to anyone on a football field, but I do now.
I despise him and would LOVE to see Aaron Kampmann put him on the ground and retire him once and for all.
Brent who? I hope he dies of aids.
I wouldn't minde seeing one of our guys break his legs
Hope Brent gets the swine flu!
Brent, break a leg on Monday, literally break a leg. I have visions of Theismann dancing in my head when it comes to Monday night.
i hope he tears his ACL on the first play. I hate him!!!!!!!!!!
THE MAN NEEDS HELP, HE LIES ABOUT EVERYTHING, HE PROBABLY TANKED THE JETS SEASON ON PURPOSE SO THEY WOULD RELEASE HIM, I DON'T EVEN BELIEVE HIS WIFE HAD CANCER.
OK, we have "fans" who want to see Brett suffer a broken leg (like Joe Theissman) or a torn ACL or get pile-driven into the ground. And these are the people who are criticizing Brett's lack of character??????????
I Loathe Him! No one was a bigger Brett Favre fan than I, no one. But the guy is a pile of human garbage.
The guy deserves a broken clavicle at the hands of Aaron Kampman
I hope he gets smashed by Chillar on a blind-side blitz and shatters his pelvis.
Brilliant. Hope their moms are proud.
That brings us to this Sunday’s Super Bowl,
Without Favre playing, there might be little for
But there’s undoubtedly a large faction of Wisconsinites who will be pulling for the slight underdogs, the New Orleans Saints who knocked out the Minnesota Vikings and Brett Favre.
Ooooooohh, I love this, the argument that I’m plugging for
Ummm, excuse me. A few years ago, the Chicago Bears played the Indianapolis Colts in the big game. NO WAY IN HELL I was rooting for the Bears simply because…….DUHHHHHH….they’re in the NFC.
Do you honestly think that if Green Bay was in Super Bowl that people in Chicago would be pulling for the Pack for the absurd reason that we're in the same division?
And why the hell should I cheer for Drew Brees, he of the Purdue alumni? If I recall, Brees threw 150 passes one night at
I didn’t like Brees then and I certainly don’t like him now.
Then there's the whole Katrina angle. Enough already. I'm sick of hearing play-by-play guys talking about it. If acts of God were supposed to determine NFL championships, what about all the Midwest floods and tornadoes?
Peyton Manning is all class and truly deserving of my fan support.
Go Colts!
Here are the topics the panel discusses on InterCHANGE Friday night on Milwaukee Public television Channel 10 at 6:30 with a repeat broadcast on Sunday morning at 11:00:
1 –
Talk about a company imploding.
2 – Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.
Should the military allow gays no questions asked? Or, has the “Don’t ask, Don’t tell” policy worked just fine? Is Obama really pushing this effort, or will they just study it endlessly and delay a decision forever?
3 – Tommy Thompson.
Will Tommy get back in the game to run against Russ Feingold, or does he just like his name out there to satisfy his ego? Could he beat Feingold, or would he be humiliated? Does Feingold have anything to worry about as far as his other challengers are concerned?
4 – Super Bowl.
It’s the Saints against the Colts in
Last June, state Senator Mary Lazich blogged about U.S. Senator Tom Coburn’s list of the 100 most questionable stimulus projects.
Coburn is a contemporary William Proxmire except that he’s Republican.
Coburn and Senator John McCain have updated the list. Check out #11.
ABC News describes the project, reporting that $54 million “will be spent to build a new rail bridge, elevate and relocate a total of 3,300 feet of track and put flood walls around the main station for the Napa Valley Wine Train, an antique train that runs on 25 miles of track and features a restaurant and restored vintage train cars.”
Proponents are all too willing to defend the project. But it raises lots and lots of eyebrows.
Watch.

President's Budget to Stretch Nation's Purse
"Despite all of his feigned, disingenuous concern about budget deficits and a rising national debt, Obama is spending like there's no tomorrow."
A man goes to the Minnesota Vikings ticket office and inquires about purchasing Super Bowl tickets. The ticket teller replies that there weren't any tickets for sale because the Vikings did not make it to the Super Bowl.
The following day the same man goes to the Minnesota Vikings ticket office and inquires about purchasing Vikings Super Bowl tickets. The ticket teller politely replies that there weren't any tickets for sale because the Vikings did not make it to the Super Bowl.
This goes on for an entire week.
The man again goes to the Viking ticket office inquiring about Super Bowl tickets and the teller says none are for sale because the Vikings did not make it to the Super Bowl.
Another week of this goes by and the man still is asking the ticket teller about Viking Super Bowl tickets.
Finally the ticket teller in a loud voice says:
"I'VE TOLD YOU FOR THE LAST TWO WEEKS THERE WERE NOT ANY TICKETS AVAILABLE BECAUSE THE VIKINGS DID NOT MAKE IT TO THE SUPER BOWL!!!"
The man replied:
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"I know. I drive all the way from Green Bay just to hear you say that."
You could live in
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John Hawkins, the columnist of lists, has composed another beauty.
This time, he examines the problems in the liberal though process. My favorite out of his seven is #5:
“Liberals believe merely being liberal makes them good people. Liberals who're obsessed with money think they're compassionate because they give away other people's tax dollars. They believe they care more about the earth than other people, even as they fly around in private jets, because they babble on about global warming. They can be dumb as a rock, but believe they're smarter than most other people because they're liberals. In other words, in the minds of most liberals, liberalism is an all-purpose substitute for actual virtue instead of just another political philosophy.”
BINGO!
Read the entire list here.
The National Taxpayers Union Foundation (NTUF) says taxpayers need to be very afraid of President Obama’s super kagillion budget and has come up with 10 underreported facts about the president’s spending spree.
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I did. A heckuva lot more.
Why the $6,052 figure?
Forbes ranked the counties in
Granted,
But how does it feel, fellow Franklinites, and there are plenty of you out there, to know that you fork over higher property taxes than the folks that Forbes have identified as paying the highest property taxes in the Midwest?
Taxes matter. I firmly believe they constitute the #1 issue for the vast majority of
Elections also matter. Vote for candidates that understand that in general, but especially during a recession, tax and spending increases need to be put on hold.
Then pay close attention to how elected aldermen and school board members regard you, your hard work, and your tax dollars. Most of our current batch of locally elected officials last year didn’t seem to care that the people who pay the bills were struggling, with many of them either unemployed or under-employed. Those officials need to be held accountable.
The tax revolt starts with you, right now.
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