HILLARY GEARING UP

Hillary Clinton is poised to make her run for the highest office in the land and is sizing up the competition. She thinks Obamamania is going to pass and she actually views the ambulance-chasing John Edwards as a threat. Very interesting....we're only 22 months or so from finding out who will take over the Oval Office next. When you consider that the nomination will be locked up by Super Tuesday next March, we're only a year from finding out who will take on John McCain, or Rudy Giuliani or Mitt Romney or whoever. There's not much time.

So who will The Hildabeast be facing in the primary? Probably no one. Barack Obama is going to fade...most likely because he will have peaked too soon and because he hasn't done anything the least bit noteworthy as yet in his short political career. Aside from the fact that the media is treating his potential candidacy like the Second Coming, there's not much to it. Just tell me one issue that Obama has championed? What issues is he known for? Oh, and then the revelation that he did cocaine while in college...that isn't going to help either. It shows a weak personality. So it's Bye-Bye-Barack. Enjoy your 15 minutes.

What of John Edwards? His candidacy is going nowhere. He wasn't electable when he ran with The Poodle and he isn't now. But he's got a lot of money and connections, so he'll hang around long enough to give Hillary a workout on C-SPAN in a few debates. But really, Edwards is in the same boat as Obama. He doesn't have much of a record either -- except his record as a rather successful plaintiff's attorney. Remember .. this is the guy who said that cripples would walk if the voters would just make John Kerry our president.

So far it looks like smooth sailing for Hillary Clinton. The next year is going to be interesting. On top of that, you have Nancy Pelosi swinging the Speaker's gavel down at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue. What fun!

PRISON ABUSES AT GITMO

The FBI released a report yesterday that says 26 employees from the agency witnessed prison abuses at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. And just what sort of abuses are we talking about? Nothing too hateful...but this isn't about the prisoners. It's about the FBI bureaucrats doing a little CYA. More and more, government officials in a number of agencies are worried that Democrats are going to rip apart the Islamic terrorist prison and start indicting people for so-called "torture." So what exactly did these FBI types observe at Gitmo?

Here's one quote from the report: "On several occasions witnesses saw detainees in interrogation rooms chained hand and foot in fetal position to floor with no chair/food/water; most urinated or defecated on selves and were left there 18, 24 hours or more." Torture? Well, it doesn't fit my definition. I think I spent some time in that very situation when I was a baby!

Evidently they also saw some prisoners that were cold. So sad. Another account says there was a man with a full beard whose head was covered in duct tape. Someone out there has a strange imagination? Duct tape? Maybe the prison was trying to fashion a turban.

But this one takes the cake....evidently we are supposed to believe this is some sort of torture: "subjecting a detainee to a lap dance by a topless female guard." If that's what passes for inhumane treatment at Gitmo, sign me up! But hold the duct tape.

AND YOU WONDER WHY HEALTH INSURANCE IS SO EXPENSIVE

Most Americans believe (1) that their health care is the responsibility of their employer or the government; and (2) that they should only have to pay a few hundred dollars every year out of their own pockets to take care of their health needs. This failure of the American people to accept the responsibility for their own health care would be the principal reason why socialized medicine in the United States is inevitable. Before most of us travel on to the eternal celestial dirt nap we'll be able to experience what our cold neighbors to the north have been experiencing for years ... long lines and waits for basic health care.

Imagine what your automobile insurance would cost if it was structured like our health insurance policies. You would pay the first $500 in car care costs every year .. and then everything else would be covered by your car insurance policy. Oil changes -- tune ups -- brakes and tires -- windshield wipers -- maybe even a new motor! Just imagine the cost.

Now we have a story that 72% of all Americans think that health insurance policies should be required to pay for treatment for obesity. In other words .. we should be free to eat ourselves into blubberhood and then demand that our health insurance pay for whatever treatments we need to correct the consequences of our own behavior.

Politicians are going to love this idea. Why? Because they know it will make health insurance even more expensive. When health insurance becomes more expensive people drop their policies. They then join the ranks of the poor, poor pitiful uninsured. Pressure mounts for a government solution. The government solution is socialized medicine --- also known as "universal coverage." Socialized medicine makes politicians more powerful. Powerful politicians are happy politicians.

WHAT IS SO MAGIC ABOUT BEING "NON-PROFIT?"

I heard an advertisement recently for one of those credit card debt counseling agencies. You've heard the spots I'm sure. Just give them a call and they will magically reduce the interest rates on your credit cards and consolidate everything into one easy monthly payment all in one swell foop. The tag on this particular ad caught my attention. It was something like "So-and-so is a non-profit and community governed agency so you know they have an interest in helping you."

What's that all about? What's the message there? Blankety-blank is non-profit, so somehow that means that you should automatically know that they want to help you? And what does that say about someone out there who IS making a profit? They don't want to help? They don't want to deliver a service in return for the money they earn?

Perhaps you haven't noticed it, but the popular trend in our culture is to demonize profit. We saw that last year when Exxon Mobil posted a record $39 billion profit. Oh the screams! The gnashing of teeth! Exxon Mobil was clearly evil! They must be punished! Quick! Pass a windfall profits tax! You had to search far and long to actually hear someone ask the right question: "But what was their profit margin?"

When you have record sales it stands to reason that you're going to have record profits. The key, however, is how much money you're making on every dollar of sales. In that regard there was nothing particularly stunning or noteworthy in the Exxon Mobil balance sheet: Nine or ten cents on the dollar. That's it.

This demonization of profit is all part of a leftist war on the capitalist, free enterprise system. If you're in business to make money you can't possibly have the best interests of your customers in mind. The only worthy people out there -- the only ones who truly want to help -- are the ones who aren't trying to make money.

Eyes and ears open, folks. The leftist war against economic liberty is being waged all around you.

THE COST OF THE MEXICAN INVASION

Several weeks ago I shared a story with you detailing the number of lives that are taken by illegal aliens every single day. On a daily basis we had about 12 people killed by illegal aliens (mostly Mexicans) every day, and another 13 killed in motor vehicle accidents -- usually of the hit-and-run variety. These figures came from a Iowa Republican Congressman Steve King.

Case in point: Sunday morning, December 31, 2006. Atlanta, Georgia. A local police officer, Deputy Loren Lilly, was on his way to work just before six o'clock in the morning. Lilly was an 18-year veteran of law enforcement. A car crossed the centerline and hit him. Officer Lilly's car flipped over several times. He died at the scene.

The two men in the other car fled, but were soon caught. Joel Camacho Perea and Maurillo Herrera are now in jail. A hold has been placed on them by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency.

It now looks like both of these men were in this country illegally.

The toll mounts. Congress will continue to do nothing to stop it. After all, there's votes to be had and power to be gained; even at the cost of a dead police officer.

ARE YOU PAYING ATTENTION OUT THERE?

SOMETHING HERE DOESN'T MAKE SENSE

There's an AP poll out today which shows that six out of ten Americans think that there will be an attack on this country by Islamic terrorists before the year is over. OK ... mighty fine. But I have a question. If six out of ten Americans believe that an attack is on the way, then it stands to reason that at least a few of these people voted for Democrats. How in the world can you be worried about attacks by Islamic terrorists on the one hand, and vote for Democrats on the other? This is a party that put all concerns over Islamic terrorism below their determination to destroy George Bush. Now they're in the driver's seat. Really makes you feel safe, doesn't it?

WE DON'T WORK FOR PRINCESS NANCY

There is probably nothing that can stop this .. but the Democrat congress will move quickly to raise the minimum wage as soon as they convene the 110th Congress on Thursday. Not that anyone is interested, but it is not the role of the government to set wages in a free market economy. We have our intellectual and physical capital to sell in the marketplace. There are people out there who need our intellectual and physical capital. What we are paid for our efforts should be a matter that is settled through negotiations between the parties involved. The role of the government should be to provide for enforcement of the terms of the contract negotiated by the individuals involved.

Ok .. I know .. nobody cares.

Anyway ... Princess Nancy says that the Democrats in Congress are going to "give Americans a raise" by raising the minimum wage. Well isn't that special. But here's something that I want you to think about. When someone tells you that they are going to give you a raise, the premise there is that you work for them! How in the world can a person give you a raise if you don't work for them? So there you have it. To people like Nancy Pelosi and her fellow Democrats, America is the federal government, and the federal government is America. All that is good about America comes from the federal government. In the final analysis the Imperial Federal Government runs the show .. and we all work for our leaders in Washington.

Isn't it nice they're going to give us that little raise?

REDNECK SCRAP BOOK

Is this a redneck limo or something else? You decide. More in the Redneck Scrap Book.

READING ASSIGNMENTS

Thermometers contain mercury. Mercury is a hazardous substance. Thermometer breaks in home in Carmel, New York. 911 is called. nearly 100 "first responders" show up. Government. Only government.

Would you be interested in knowing that our Department of Homeland Security is posting press releases from the Council on American-Islamic Relations on the TSA website? Remember now --- CAIR leaders have openly professed their desire to see America under Islamic Sharia Law .. .and we post their press releases on taxpayer funded government websites?

Have you checked out James Taranto's "Best of the Web Today" column lately?

John Edwards: "Just another class warrior" ... but with nice hair.

Yikes! Thomas Sowell nails the Duke lacrosse rape case prosecutor right between the eyes. Damn, that really looks like it hurt!

This is going to end up being a problem for labor union bosses. The Supreme Court is going to consider the question of whether or not unions can use member's dues for political purposes without the dues-payer's consent.

Billions of dollars in Social Security benefits to illegal aliens? We'll talk about it today ... and here's the story for you to read.

CNN is falling all over themselves apologizing for their mistake where they mixed up Osama and Obama...putting the Illinois senator's name on the screen when they were talking about Osama Bin Laden. Where were the similar apologies when CNN put a big X over Dick Cheney's face on the air? Remember that?

Pat Robertson says God told him there will be a mass killing in 2007....in the form of a terrorist attack. So what kind of attack will it be? Robertson says God wasn't specific...so we don't know if it will be nuclear. What we do know is that Pat Robertson needs attention.

Bad news for the Rudy Giuliani campaign. Their entire presidential strategy was leaked after some plans were stolen from a Giuliani staffer. So what now? It's awfully hard to run a campaign when everybody knows what you're going to do.

Commercials in the UK advertising cheese are being banned from children's shows. Cheese is being treated like hamburgers and sugary snacks, which apparently are also banned. It won't be long before we have these same kinds of bans here...just wait.

Breaking news: Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki hates his job. He says he only took the gig because he thought it would help his country, but he wants out. In fact, he says the possibility that he may serve a second term is completely impossible. Such dedication from Iraq's leaders!

Dr. Walter E. Williams looks at the rules of the Constitution and how nobody seems to be following them these days. Yet he points out there is one example where evenly applied rules actually do work...and you'll be surprised where he finds it. Read on to find out.

A new poll says that an overwhelming amount of Americans support a hike in the minimum wage...to $7.25 an hour. But why not more? Who can raise a family of four on $7.25 an hour? Why not $17.25 an hour? Surely that's more fair...how about an even twenty bucks?

Alphonso Jackson, the black secretary of Housing and Urban Development had better get ready....he has stepped on an hornet's nest. He is calling out Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton other race hustlers for perpetuating victimhood. Get ready for a firestorm. Of course he's right.

President Bush has written an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal in which he calls on the new 110th Congress to work with him for the good of the country. Dream on, Mr. President....the Democrats have been out of power for 12 years. It's a nice idea, though.

John Stossel draws attention to people who are trying to help the homeless...and are being shut down because they don't have a license from the health department. So much for private charity. So Stossel and his 20/20 crew headed down to the church kitchen to see if it really was clean.

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