Dream Act

There are three bills, two in the Senate and one in the House, to address the “Dream Act” in the Lame Duck Congress.

The House bill has no age limit, so at least in theory an illegal alien could be 75 years old and go to college to get “amnesty.”

The Senate bills at least have age limits (30 & 35), but they define college education rather loosely. No degree necessary – just two years of “college work’ in an eight year period. Most Animal House occupants of a college residence could meet that without breaking a sweat…and some of the bills don’t say military service, they say ‘uniformed service” – I suspect that the Public Health Service would satisfy that, and the National Oceanic…

Then there are exemptions…lots and lots of exemptions…

It is the Healthcare Bill, Redux:

“Nothing here, just vote for it and please keep moving…you will see what’s in it after you pass it…please keep moving…”

No! Don’t think so.

Liberalism is just a case of arrested development…

Liberalism is just a case of arrested development, because all children believe in the Money Tree, Santa Clause and the goodness of puppies.

Most grow up. The odds are 2-1. (40% conservative, 20% liberal for my math-challenged liberal friends.)

But that is not so in all countries — witness Greece, Ireland, Britain, Spain etc. where conservative economic voices were just as loud and were overridden by the Money Tree People.

And it all works. Until it doesn’t.

The problem with economics is that it degrades softly but painlessly — it is visibly not working but it doesn’t hurt. By the time it hurts — like a low oil light on the dashboard — the damage is done.

Catastrophic failure ensues. Forensics will show the gradual degradation of the system, but that is too late except for historical review.

Then the Money Tree People cry, “Why didn’t you tell us there was no Money Tree?”

“We did, but you BELIEVED, and you were set in the “compassion” mode, with low receptivity. You WANTED so much to help everyone. Now there is nothing for ANYONE! Those you made dependent, remain dependent, and will survive even at the cost of your survival.”

CALIFORNIA!

It is apparent to me why California voters are really bad at math…

This next story will tell you something about the problems with public schools that you absolutely, positively never suspected.

It seems there is an “Alternative High School” on the Mesa college Campus, and that high school regularly changes the grades of students who transfer into that school from different school districts!

But, that is an accepted methodology, because, as the article explains, the school does this regularly because the student has the opportunity to improve on their portfolio work or otherwise demonstrate improved knowledge.

“Area Superintendent Tony Burks said it was possible for students to show they understood a topic, even on the first day they enrolled, by showing their old school papers or doing quick assessments in math or reading.

He said the school’s unusual model is still sound. “While this may seem unconventional when compared to the traditional/comprehensive high school model, this is a Board-approved school, widely accepted concept, including acceptance by the University of California system,” Burks said in an email.”

http://www.voiceofsandiego.org/education/schooled/article_54a1e61a-f334-11df-8184-001cc4c002e0.html

(In at least 70 cases, the grades were changed on the same day the student enrolled.)

It is apparent to me why California voters are really bad at math…

CAIR To The Rescue!

Mark Styn says, accurately, that  salvation from the government pat-downs may be CAIR!

CAIR contends that Islamic women cannot either be seen through their clothes, or felt — and that to require that would violate the Islamic woman’s religion.

I suspect that even Big Sis would understand the problem with searching 3 year old girls and Nuns, but letting Islamic women in veils and full cloth “body armor” pass through, pardon the expression, unmolested.

Crooks in Training…

Investigative reporting is moribund, but not quite dead.

It seems San Diego city Council members/California State Legislators are not as sophisticated as are 30 year US Senators.

http://www.voiceofsandiego.org/government/thehall/article_ef3f19f6-f2ba-11df-8f31-001cc4c03286.html

But most politicians are “crooks in training.”

Doing things the hard way…

Americans apparently like the long road. Eventually, we will profile the less numerical number of threatening types of people instead of the far more numerous threatening objects, and we will try terrorists where they belong, in military courts in GITMO instead of civilian courts in NYC — because those are the rational methodologies for quick success rather than the ideological means of eventual failure.

We just can’t quite bring ourselves to doing things the easy way first.

Rube Goldberg lives.

“Start Over…”

I see in the Christian Science Monitor that James Carville and Greenberg, the co-planners of the Clinton success, say that President Obama should admit his errors and say he will do better, because there is a reservoir of good will remaining for him personally and that the American public has a penchant for giving second chances.

Greenberg says that every focus group has shown that continuing to claim eventual success for policies that the American people simply do not like is the least favorite methodology for predicting future political success.

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/monitor_breakfast/2010/1118/Democratic-strategists-tell-Obama-reset-and-start-over

Was The Message Rejected?

The message has been sent, but reading the blogs today it is apparent that the message has not yet been received.

Perhaps received but not deciphered.

Perhaps deciphered but not understood.

Perhaps understood but just convinced they know best what is best for everyone else.

Where We Stand…

There is every bit as much support for signing anything the D’s want without analysis, as there is in the R’s opposition simply because it is favored by “O.”

The discussion on GM is a good a case in point. I’ll bet none of us gets a share of the IPO — it went primarily to investment banks and you could not buy it through your account manager, but those who favored the bailout support GM (without necessarily buying either the stock or the GM product) and those who opposed the bailout point to the high unfunded union liabilities, the paying back of only 25% of the loan even after this IPO, the Volt being a subsidized joke, etc.

Where we stand on almost everything, depends upon where we sit.

On the START Treaty, much depends upon how much you trust the Russians — and that depends on your reading of history. Some of us do read, some don’t — and then there are those who say, “Yes, the Russian’s cheat, but that is because we are such an awful country…”

The Blame America First crowd may be headquartered in San Fransisco, but they have party headquarters in the heads of many, everywhere.

Surprise!

Quoted Without Comment”

(Headline) L.A. teachers union endorses loyalists for school board races
November 18, 2010 | 8:20 am

“Unquestioned loyalty to teachers and traditional union interests drove the school board endorsements of United Teachers Los Angeles, the powerful teachers union for the L.A. Unified School District.”

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/11/la-teachers-union-endorses-proven-loyalists-for-school-board-races.html