Gibbs Takes on Rush Limbaugh - Washington Wire - WSJ:

At a briefing today to discuss the administration’s efforts to rescue the auto industry, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs took on conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh—and every other critic “sitting in the cheap seats” –for criticizing the rescue of General Motors and Chrysler as a “government takeover” that smacks of socialism.

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Told by a reporter that “You had Rush Limbaugh today — today or yesterday — talking Obama Motors again,” Gibbs, who doesn’t often provide free advertising by taking on his critics by name from the podium, let fire.

“Look, Rush Limbaugh and others wanted to walk away. Rush Limbaugh and others saw a million people that worked at these factories, that worked at these parts suppliers, that had — that supported communities, and thought we should all just walk away. The president didn’t think that walking away from a million jobs in these communities made a lot of economic sense,” Gibbs said.

He was just getting up to speed.

“We’ve got auto companies that for the first time since 2004 all showed an operating profit in the first quarter of this year. It’s adding jobs. And the money that this administration invested — about $60 billion — we believe we’re on the path to recouping all of that. That’s a significant story.

“I’ll let those that sat in the cheap seats a year-and-a-half ago and wanted to walk away” from a milion workers, he continued, “explain to every one of those workers why they made that decision.”

Finally, he wrapped it up: “And then you should ask Mr. Limbaugh — I don’t know what kind of car he drives, but I bet it’s not an F-150.”

The F-150 truck, we should note, is made by Ford, which didn’t get federal rescue funds.

The Physics of a Rolling Rubber Band:

sciencehabit writes

“Modern physics can get complicated. Sure, researchers know exactly what forces act on a ball rolling down an incline — an experiment that helped Galileo develop universal laws for movement and acceleration. But what happens when a deformable shape like a a rubber band rolls around? A new study reveals that the faster it goes, the more squashed it gets (video included).”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Do not assume that things like this are absurd. Studying this sort of thing opens doors previously closed and offers us insights that might be very useful. You just never know. You have to open every door to find the one with the treasure in it.

Android Data Stealing App Downloaded By Millions:

wisebabo writes “A wallpaper utility (that presents purloined copyrighted material) ‘quietly collects personal information such as SIM card numbers, text messages, subscriber identification, and voicemail passwords. The data is then sent to www.imnet.us, a site that hails from Shenzen, China.’”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Maybe this will help understand why “open” is not the great thing the professor thinks it is.

The Emperor’s New Antenna:

… Next thought: so what’s the scoop here? Biggest problem in the history of all of mobile phones, or minor issue blown way out of proportion by the tech media? Neither, of course. It helps when you paint opposing positions in extreme terms, granted—but the media really does have a bias toward sensationalist reporting. And by “the media,” I mean all the media, full stop: television, papers, magazines, bloggers, from tech to sports to politics. As we’ve heard ad nauseum, the way you hold any mobile phone that doesn’t have an old-fashioned external antenna sticking out will affect the reception. …

I finally broke down and ordered an iPhone 4. The antenna issue is of no concern to me. Every cell phone I’ve ever had has had an antenna problem which I’ve solved by using an earpiece. I looked hard at android phones, read lots of articles about them, comparisons and features etc. Android offers nothing that iPhone doesn’t except it’s “open”. Meaning to me that any idiot can write an app for it which may or may not work or work well. Android seems to me to appeal to Windows type users who like having problems with their stuff that they can “fix” because it’s “open”. I prefer not having to fix anything and just “use” the damn thing. I like the integration through MobileMe where I can put an appointment in my phone and have that appear on my computer in moments. Same goes for contacts, web sites etc. Sure you can do that if you search out the individual apps on Android phones but I don’t want the extra hassle. So I ordered the iPhone 4 and now that annoying RU professor who insists on coming to my table while I’m trying to enjoy the music will have something else to bitch about as he waves his “Droid” about bragging he only paid $29 for it. Cheap is cheap as he proves time and time again, you get what you pay for. I used my iPhone 1 for almost 3 years and I don’t remember what I paid for it. Every time that professor tries to do something on his “Droid” that an iPhone does and is frustrated by it he can mutter to himself that he only paid $29 for it.

Another area that convinced me to get the iPhone 4 is my heart monitor. I had an ablation last week and the doctor has me wearing a portable heart monitor so he can keep track of my progress. It’s a marvelous thing. I wear a sending unit around my neck with 4 probes stuck to my chest. It sends the data via bluetooth to a cellphone on my belt. That cell phone is a Motorola unit running Windows 6.1 Mobile and has software on it that ties it up as a heart monitor. If the sending unit detects something unusual the cell phone sends the data to a center somewhere who then sends it to my doctor. Everything works great… most of the time. When it doesn’t I have to talk to the techs and laboriously work on the Motorola phone to get it working again. I never want to have to work with a button festooned phone again. That thing has so many buttons on it that I accidentally activate something damn near every time I touch it. It will think I want to make a call when I bend over a certain way etc. Working with it reminded me of the elegant simplicity of the iPhone and like all of Apple’s products, it just works and I don’t have to fuss with it. I don’t think I’m a fanboy but I do think I’m not the idiot professor either. I would never go over to a table in a restaurant, wave my iPhone around and try to convince Droid users I made the better choice. My advice if you do get an iPhone is to keep it out of sight in restaurants or you might have your annoying professor moments too.

My advice is to buy what you want but if you have to convince others you made the better choice, you didn’t.

iPad Owners Are ‘Selfish Elites.’ Critics Are ‘Independent Geeks.’ Discuss. | Epicenter | Wired.com:

… As to the critics-who-are-a-test-drive-away-from-being-fans, the study found that “bashing the iPad is, in a way, an identity statement for independent geeks,” wrote Koelkebeck.

“As a mainstream, closed-platform device whose major claim to fame is ease of use and sex appeal, the iPad is everything that they are not.”

Ouch. …

Apple bashers are a lot like people who bash conservatives, impotent, what gal would want to get laid by a guy wearing sandals and a pony tail.

Silence of the Sheep:

Andrew Klavan wrote a book called Empire of Lies. It was slated to be published in France by Seuil Policiers, but the editor who bought the book left that firm, and the new editor decided not to publish Klavan’s book. This wasn’t because she thought it wouldn’t sell; it wasn’t an economic decision at all, as Klavan had already been paid. Rather, the editor explained that “she can not publish . . . because of the political and religious aspects of the story.” That is, the book’s protagonist is a conservative Christian. Not only that, the liberal media is a sort of collective villain.

Klavan applies this experience to recent headlines here in the U.S., and contrasts liberals with conservatives:

[E]verywhere, the Left favors fewer voices and less information, and conservatives favor more. Everywhere, the Left seeks to disappear its opposition, whereas the Right is willing to meet them head-on. …

When has Rush Limbaugh ever wished a liberal’s mouth closed forever? Really, who can deny that Rush would happily argue a point with absolutely anyone anywhere? When has Fox News ever done anything to its rival cable stations but trounce them in a free competition for ratings? When has Fred Barnes ever tried to bully or intimidate someone into shutting up?

And, of course, Andrew Breitbart, everyman as journalist, figures in this schema. It’s an interesting question: do liberals try to silence their opponents because of an inherent authoritarian tendency, or merely because they are losing the argument? I think it’s a combination of the two.

FOXNews.com - Chicago School Refuses to Host Rove, Welcomes Obama Appointee:

A private university in Chicago that refuses to host former senior Bush adviser Karl Rove, arguing that welcoming a “political” speaker ahead of the midterm elections could threaten its tax-exempt status, has added an Obama administration appointee to address the student body.

Loyola University Chicago is hosting Eboo Patel, an Obama appointee to the White House interfaith council, next month, calling into question the school’s rationale for rejecting Rove’s appearance.

“The news that Eboo Patel, an appointee of the Obama administration, will be allowed to speak at Loyola University Chicago, while Karl Rove was essentially barred, is further proof that the (university) administration either has zero understanding of tax law or is unabashedly biased,” …

It’s Chicago, Obama’s stomping ground and it’s a university, home to left wing zealots.

If You Don’t Want Your Car Stolen, Make It Pink:

pickens writes

“A study in the Netherlands illustrates car thieves’ preferences. From 2004-2008, the most commonly colored vehicle stolen was black. This may be because black vehicles look more luxurious. Following close behind black were gray/silver automobiles. Of the 109 pink cars in the study, not one was stolen. A bright and uncommon color, like pink, may be as effective deterrent as an expensive security system. Ben Vollaard, who conducted the research, wrote, ‘If the aversion to driving a car in an offbeat color is not too high - or if someone actually enjoys it - then buying deterrence through an uncommon car color may be at least as good a deal as buying deterrence through an expensive car security device.’”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Okay as long as you didn’t ever want to sell it, cheat on your spouse or pick up girls.

Cajundome in Lafayette Louisiana, Bobby Jindal hitting back at the Administration, listen closely to what he says the President told him about people losing their job

JournoList Sinks Lower:

The Daily Caller has released the latest batch of JournoList messages, and it’s a shocker: the journalists and other assorted left-wing intellectuals (!) debating what apparently was the hottest topic of the hour, Sarah Palin’s son, Trig. I had thought that the belief that Trig was really Bristol’s baby was an insane idea held only by Andrew Sullivan. It is an insane idea all right, but it turns out that it was believed, or at least taken seriously, by a number of liberal journalists–while some others, to their credit, tried to restore a sense of decency to the liberal press. Beyond that, the tactics of how to spin Palin’s fifth child in a way that could damage the Republican ticket was seemingly an obsessive concern of these journalists. It is a sad spectacle.

Sarah Palin commented, with considerable restraint, on her Facebook page, in a post titled Journey Into the Media’s Heart of Darkness:

How ironic that on a day when we celebrate the 20th anniversary of the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, The Daily Caller released 15 pages of JournoListers’ email exchanges about a dark and demented conspiracy regarding my son, Trig.

This JournoList exchange exposes the warped nature of today’s media, thus explaining why many of us are forced, in fairness to the public, to utilize other mediums to communicate until the mainstream media wakes up and begins respecting the public’s intelligence and desire for truth in reporting. There is a sickness and darkness in today’s liberal media. With revelations like the JournoList exchanges, may the light keep shining to expose the problem.

She’s right. If you read the liberal journalists’ comments on Palin’s disabled son, “sickness” and “darkness” are the words that come to mind. …

Peggy Noonan’s urgent agenda item:

Even those of us who warned against the “canonization” of Shirley Sherrod didn’t expect that right-of-center commentators would propose that her radical manifesto become part of the canon. Yet that’s what Peggy Noonan is calling for:

This September, when school begins, we should make [Sherrod’s] speech required viewing in the nation’s high schools.

Gee, can’t this wait until February, when Black History Month rolls around?

JOHN suggests: Or May Day perhaps, when socialist views are traditionally celebrated?

Noonah is part of the media who screwed this story up by not fact checking before they ran the story. But because they think that the rest of us are as stupid as they are that we need to be educated… about what? Their shortcomings? We already know they are fools and idiots, what else do “we” need to be educated about.

Goldman reveals where bailout cash went - USATODAY.com:

Goldman Sachs sent $4.3 billion in federal tax money to 32 entities, including many overseas banks, hedge funds and pensions, according to information made public Friday night.

Goldman Sachs disclosed the list of companies to the Senate Finance Committee after a threat of subpoena from Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Ia.

Asked the significance of the list, Grassley said, “I hope it’s as simple as taxpayers deserve to know what happened to their money.”

He added, “We thought originally we were bailing out AIG. Then later on … we learned that the money flowed through AIG to a few big banks, and now we know that the money went from these few big banks to dozens of financial institutions all around the world.” …

Obama, his administration and the democrats in congress in charge of all this are nothing but blithering idiots… And that’s is putting it mildly. You may not want to vote for a republican but you’re a damn fool if you vote for a dem, any dem.

My mental age never got past 14 but if this doesn’t make you laugh then you’re dead.

Journ-O-Lists Run Interference:

Journalists have done all they can for the Obama administration, but their efforts are getting a little threadbare. Michael Ramirez depicts the relationship between the press and the administration; click to enlarge:

I thought, as I think most people did, that the support of the liberal press would do Obama more good than it has. One wonders whether he might have been better off if not surrounded by sycophants.

Super Heroes vs. the Westboro Baptist Church - ComicsAlliance | Comics culture, news, humor, commentary, and reviews:

They’ve faced down humans time and time again, but Fred Phelps and his minions from the Westboro Baptist Church were not ready for the cosplay action that awaited them today at Comic-Con. After all, who can win against a counter protest that includes robots, magical anime girls, Trekkies, Jedi and…kittens?

Unbeknownst to the dastardly fanatics of the Westboro Baptist Church, the good folks of San Diego’s Comic-Con were prepared for their arrival with their own special brand of superhuman counter protesting chanting “WHAT DO WE WANT” “GAY SEX” “WHEN DO WE WANT IT” “NOW!” while brandishing ironic (and some sincere) signs. Simply stated: The eclectic assembly of nerdom’s finest stood and delivered. …

The pictures are worth a look.

Fred Phelps and his family make up the Westboro Baptist Church and are by all accounts a bunch of nuts. They are the group that protest at military funerals with outlandish claims. Probably the best way to deal with Phelps is to make a fool of him and these people did a good job of that.

Obama Defines Dysfunction With One Appointment: Kevin Hassett - BusinessWeek:

… This wasn’t exactly what voters expected from the man who promised to change the tone of Washington, but it got worse. Obama launched a dizzying flurry of actions designed to reward organized labor at the expense of everyone else. …

… How sad that the Obama who was so inspirational in 2008 has become so partisan that he would appoint an SEIU attorney to adjudicate cases involving the union’s local chapters, and hide behind an ethics report that violates any standard of common sense.

Obama is dancing for his masters, the unions. How ironic that the first black president has become a slave to the puppet masters who put him there.

YouTube - MSNBC Host Sorry Glenn Beck is Going Blind Because He Won’t See The Country He is Trying To Destroy:

MSNBC’s Ed Schultz expresses his anger that President Obama’s disloyalty for going on FOX News instead of his show. Schultz also says he is “sorry” Glenn Beck is going blind because he won’t see the country he is trying to destroy.

He appears to be playing to a very left wing crowd in this clip. Only very far lefties would listen to this kind of thing. Normal people will just ignore him for what he is. Sadly this also applies to far righties too. You can’t get anyone to see your point of view if they won’t listen to you and no one will listen to people like this. Occasionally I look at cable ratings. People like Beck, Hannity and O’Reilly get numbers in the 2 to 3 million range. People like Chris Mathews, Olbermann, and Maddow get numbers from 250K to 700K. Schultz’s numbers are so low he has never even been on the list. Obama went on Fox because he wanted to be seen by some people and Schultz couldn’t provide that so he’s mad at Obama. But consider that we are a country of 300 million and you see how few people pay any attention to any of them. They get a lot of coverage from their peers but in essence no one watches them. They are the modern sideshow on politics which is a sideshow all by itself.

BTW I still don’t have cable or satellite and only see snippets of any cable or news show from the net. And snippets are all that you really need unless you get off on car chases that have no bearing on anybodies life beside the idiot being chased and the people he might hurt.

Bad boys, bad boys, whatcha gonna do…

Dell Settles with the SEC for $100M:

Sri.Theo writes in with news of Dell’s humbling settlement with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. The core of the complaint is that Dell took secret payments from Intel to keep AMD’s chips out of Dell’s machines. The SEC calls it “accounting irregularities” — Dell was dipping into this secret slush fund to bolster its results, quarter by quarter. At one point the payments from Intel made up 76% of Dell’s quarterly operating income. “For years, Dell’s seemingly magical power to squeeze efficiencies out of its supply chain and drive down costs made it a darling of the financial markets. Now it appears that the magic was at least partly the result of a huge financial illusion. … According to the commission, Dell would have missed analysts’ earnings expectations in every quarter between 2002 and 2006 were it not for accounting shenanigans. … (Intel is expected to settle a long-running anti-trust case that has highlighted these payments in the next couple of weeks.) … Michael Dell… and Kevin Rollins, a former boss of the company, agreed to each pay a $4m penalty without admitting or denying the SEC’s allegations.”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Karl Rove: Friendly Fire on the Hill - WSJ.com:

Describing the White House last week, Congressional Democrats used words like “ineptness,” “neglected” and “disconcerting,” and phrases like “isn’t aggressive enough.” President Barack Obama has only himself to blame for these protests. …

heh heh heh

John Kerry Does Something Right:

John Kerry is easy to poke fun at. He is a man of modest abilities who has had, apparently from childhood, an outsized sense of entitlement. Even when he was a relatively unknown politician, he was notorious in Boston for demanding privileges and, if balked, asking imperiously, “Do you know who I am?” And he acquired his vast fortune the old-fashioned way: he married it.

Currently, Kerry is under fire for dodging taxes, specifically, Massachusetts’s boat sales and use tax. Kerry bought a $7 million yacht, and he docks it in Rhode Island, which has no similar tax. This saves him an astonishing $500,000. The newspapers are having a field day, and Kerry is on the defensive. Here is Kerry’s yacht, named Isabel, which boasts an “Edwardian-style, glossy varnished teak interior, two VIP main cabins and a pilothouse fitted with a wet bar and cold wine storage”:

As is so often the case, Kerry is easy to ridicule. But in fact, he is doing the right thing by avoiding his home state’s tax. One of the principal advantages of our federal system is that states must compete for residents and for business. Because Rhode Island doesn’t try to charge Kerry a half million dollars up front, its residents will benefit from the opportunity to house and maintain his boat. This episode reminds me of 1990, when the Democratic Congress, eager to show that it was anti-rich people, adopted a ten percent excise tax on luxury yachts. The tax devastated New England’s boat-building industry while generating almost no revenue. An embarrassed Congress soon repealed the tax.

Maybe John Kerry’s rational tax avoidance will embarrass Massachusetts into competing with its neighbors.

Perhaps, but Kerry is still a pompous ass.