In Virginia it appears a law requiring women to view an ultrasound before deciding to execute her baby will finally pass this session and be signed into law. The prospect of women being exposed to more information before the decision to abort has predictably driven the Party of Death into a frenzy.

Sen. Janet Howell (D–Planned Parenthood) was in such an uproar she couldn’t even produce a relevant legislative metaphor. The Senate defeated Janet’s amendment to the ultrasound bill that would’ve required men who wanted a Viagra prescription to undergo a rectal check and cardiac stress test.

Anyone with even a minimal knowledge of equivalency — and not blinded by abortion obsession— would have known the proper sex–specific amendment would have required men in the market to enhance their structural integrity to first buy a copy of American Baby.

That amendment would have had a much better chance of passage and left both sides of the gender divide better informed regarding the consequences of their actions.

The second example of photo–phobia involves requiring voters to show a valid photo ID. Judging by the Democrats response to this bill you would have thought someone was trying to stop an abortion!

NAACP Director Benjamin Chavis screamed that Republicans were trying to “lynch democracy” by instructing voters to show ID. That’s strange. Are hotels trying to “lynch sleep” when they require a photo ID before allowing you to check in?

Is the bank trying to “lynch currency” when you must show a photo ID before cashing a check?

Is 7/11 trying to “lynch parties” when they ask for a photo ID before selling you the MD 20/20?

Yet people check into hotels, cash checks and get hammered every day even with the photo requirement.

Voter fraud in the US is much more real than earthquakes from hydraulic fracking, manmade global warming or Keystone pipeline environmental devastation, yet Democrats will do nothing to prevent the occurrence.

A federal investigation in Chicago estimated that at least 100,000 illegal votes had been cast in the 1982 gubernatorial election and that voter fraud was routine for years. In Atlantic City Democrat campaigns regularly request absentee ballots for the homeless and then cast those ballots fraudulently. And in Louisiana I’ve personally seen the man who carries cash and a .45 to pay the vote haulers.

Before its demise, ACORN was notorious for producing fraudulent voter registrations, which are a precursor to fraudulent voting, just as buying a wheelbarrow of Contac is the precursor to meth.

Still hysterical Democrats claim voter ID laws are designed to prevent students and the elderly from voting.

Is that a fact? When is the last time you saw a student without a driver’s license? When is the last time you saw a senior citizen who had never in their entire lifetime had a driver’s license?

Even if they had never had a license in the past, DMV will issue ID for voting and other identification purposes to seniors and students. I’ll concede grandma may have lost a step over the years, but even the pokiest should be able to get an ID with a two–year lead time.

Anyone who doesn’t place a high enough priority on voting to obtain the proper ID before the election is probably someone who’s input the Republic can limp along without.

The judicious use of photos can preserve life and the integrity of the voting process. In fact, using photos during many decision–making processes can add much to the quality of life in Virginia.

I’m going to contact my legislators and ask them to introduce a bill requiring all potential tattoo customers to first examine a photo of what that tattoo will look like on their saggy old behind when they reach the age of 65, BEFORE they go under the needle.

Gym, beach and public pool customers can only benefit.

Michael R. Shannon is a public relations and advertising consultant with corporate, government and political experience around the globe. He is a dynamic and entertaining keynote speaker. He can be reached at michael-shannon@comcast.net.

The Obama Administration and Congress seriously weakened the missile defense program in FY 2010.[3] During FY 2011, they failed to recover the lost ground.[4] Early in 2011, the Obama Administration presented its missile defense program and budget for FY 2012, which again failed to make up for the ground lost during FY 2010.[5]Accordingly, the question arises whether this Congress has started to repair the damage to the missile defense program caused by the Obama Administration and earlier Congresses. While expecting the 112th Congress to repair all of the damage in one year would be unreasonable, it is reasonable to expect Congress to begin the repairs in the FY 2012 defense authorization and appropriations legislation. It has not.

Legislation and the Objective Missile Defense Program: A Comparison

The following analysis of the key components of the NDAA and the relevant appropriations measures compares what Congress legislated with what it should have done with 11 prominent components of missile defense. While these 11 components do not cover the full array of missile defense-related provisions in the new laws, they are among the most significant.

Overall Funding Levels.

President Obama’s FY 2012 defense budget request on February 14, 2011, was inadequate to recover lost ground and place the missile program on a path to surpassing the projected expansion of the missile threat to the U.S. and its allies.[6] The President’s request proposed spending $10.7 billion on missile defenses in FY 2012. Regrettably, Congress authorizes missile defense programs at a lower overall funding level ($10.5 billion) in the NDAA than the Administration’s request.[7] By way of comparison, the earlier House version of the NDAA would have provided more than $100 million above the Administration’s requested level. The conference report on the bill explains that it does not provide a consolidated number for the missile defense program. Nevertheless, the overarching funding level for missile defense is consistent with the projected $10.5 billion funding level.

To put the missile defense program back on track during FY 2012, Congress needed to authorize at least $11.5 billion. While such an increase was within reach, Congress made the task much more difficult by imposing a spending cap on national security programs for FY 2012 under the Budget Control Act, including caps on the broader defense program and the narrower missile defense program.[8] As a result, missile defense will not be adequately funded in FY 2012 and possibly not even in subsequent years.

Policy Guidance for a More Defensive Strategic Posture.

The NDAA fails to enact U.S. policies leading to a more defensive strategic posture. According to the resolution of ratification of the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START), the sense of the Senate is that “a paramount obligation of the United States Government is to provide for the defense of the American people, deployed members of the United States Armed Forces, and United States allies against nuclear attacks to the best of its ability.”[9] The Senate declaration further states that “policies based on ‘mutual assured destruction’ or intentional vulnerability can be contrary to the safety and security of both countries, and the United States and the Russian Federation share a common interest in moving cooperatively as soon as possible away from a strategic relationship based on mutual assured destruction.”[10]

The NDAA was an appropriate vehicle for affirming the Senate declaration and starting to move toward a more defensive strategic posture. Such a posture, based on both offensive and defensive strategic forces, should hold at risk enemies’ means of strategic attack on the U.S. and its allies. This means maintaining counterforce strategic targeting capabilities and eschewing the countervalue targeting requirements at the heart of a mutual assured destruction policy.[11]

The earlier House version of the NDAA contained a provision sponsored by Representative Doug Lamborn (R–CO) that addressed the nuclear side of the strategic equation by blocking the Obama Administration from making any changes in nuclear employment strategy away from counterforce targeting and toward countervalue targeting without a required report to Congress.[12]

Missile defenses are inherently counterforce weapons. A combination of counterforce nuclear capabilities and missile defenses are essential components of a defensive strategic posture that holds at risk the means of strategic attack possessed by active and potential enemies of the U.S. and its allies. Regrettably, the final version of NDAA[13] dropped the reference to preserving counterforce targeting. Thus, compared to the earlier House version, Congress chose to give the Obama Administration greater freedom to pursue countervalue targeting options, even though such options directly contradict the declaration in the New START resolution of ratification that rejected policies of mutually assured destruction.

A Layered Missile Defense Architecture.

The most capable missile defense architecture could intercept attacking ballistic missiles in all three phases of flight: the boost/ascent, midcourse, and terminal phases. The U.S. has fielded capabilities to counter ballistic missiles in the midcourse and terminal phases, but it has nothing in the field to counter ballistic missiles in the boost/ascent stage. The ideal missile defense interceptor for destroying all but the shortest-range attacking missiles would be deployed in space.

Given the material advantages to deploying space-based missile defense interceptors, the earlier House version of the NDAA appropriately contained $8 million to study the feasibility of space-based missile defense interceptors.[14] The NDAA addresses the future of the Medium Extended-range Air Defense System (MEADS) program, but appears to omit the $8 million for the study.

Limits on U.S. Missile Defense Options.

During the Senate’s consideration of New START, the Administration’s representatives pledged to Members of the Senate that it would not permit arms control to limit U.S. missile defense options,[15] even though New START itself includes several provisions imposing such limitations. The treaty’s most sweeping limitation is in the preamble.

While the Obama Administration is purportedly discussing missile defense cooperation with the Russian government, press reports indicate that the discussions are really about how the two governments can cooperate in limiting U.S. missile defense options and capabilities.[16] One element of these discussions that has recently concerned Members of Congress was Obama Administration plans to share missile defense technology with Russia, which Russia could use to defeat U.S. missile defense systems more effectively or provide to other countries for the same purpose. Accordingly, the House version of the NDAA prohibited the sharing of sensitive missile defense data with Russia and limited sharing of less sensitive data.[17] The Obama Administration objected to the provision.[18] Despite exhaustive efforts by Senator Mark Kirk (R–IL), the final version of the NDAA is closer to the weaker Senate position.[19]

President Obama wasted no time in undoing even this language by issuing a signing statement with the NDAA saying that he would treat Section 1244 as not binding on him.[20] This signing statement is nothing less than a poke in the eye to Congress on arms control matters. Since President Obama is inviting a confrontation with Congress in this area, Congress ought to oblige him.

First, the Senate Minority Leader should designate a fellow Senator as his personal arms control observer. Further, he should arrange to furnish this observer with adequate staff and insist that both the Member and the staff have unlimited access to all current U.S. arms control negotiations, including negotiating instructions, relevant diplomatic cables, and backstopping activities. While much of this material is and should remain classified, the observer and his staff would be fully capable of handling the material appropriately. This is justified because such material is essential to the Senate conducting proper oversight on arms control and ultimately making informed judgments on the ratification of future arms control treaties. The Administration made such actions even more necessary by withholding the New START negotiating record from the Senate during the ratification debate.

Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP) Attacks.

The conference report accompanying the NDAA omitted language from the House report on the bill that would require the Secretary of Defense to report on the state of Department of Defense (DOD) planning to address EMP events.[21] This includes EMP events caused by high-altitude nuclear explosions, which would constitute an EMP attack on the U.S. or its allies. Capable ballistic missile defenses could defend against such attacks by destroying the missile before its warhead is detonated.

Nevertheless, the earlier report language is considered to be carried over under the conference report and therefore remains applicable to the Secretary of Defense.

Ground-Based Midcourse (GMD) Interceptors.

The NDAA does not explicitly ask the DOD to explore options for increasing the number of fielded GMD interceptors. Pursuant to the 2010 Ballistic Missile Defense Review Report, the DOD is formulating a hedging strategy for providing a more robust missile defense capability to protect U.S. territory against long-range missiles. This may include accelerating the fielding of additional GMD interceptors, either the two-stage version that could be placed in Europe or the three-stage version that could be added to the existing fields in Alaska and California or at an additional location on U.S. territory.

The NDAA contains a provision that requires a DOD report on this hedging strategy.[22]Further, this final version authorizes $1.16 billion in funding for the GMD program, which is the level requested by the Administration. The House version would have provided an additional $100 million to the GMD program, including funding to increase the number of fielded interceptors.

Upgrade of the Standard Missile Interceptor.

The NDAA does not provide for upgrading the Navy’s Standard Missile to protect the U.S. homeland. The Obama Administration’s European Phased Adaptive Approach for developing and fielding Aegis BMD systems is planning not to upgrade the associated Standard Missile interceptor to counter long-range ballistic missiles until 2020. This upgraded model is the Standard Missile 3 Block II-B (SM-3 II-B).

The NDAA provision on the hedging strategy for protecting U.S. territory against long-range missile attack[23] does not offer an option for accelerating the availability of the Standard Missile 3 to counter long-range missiles with earlier models of the interceptor (SM-3 I-A, SM-3 I-B, and SM-3 II-A). Rather, it points to the option of accelerating the development of SM-3 II-B to permit fielding it before 2020.

Upgrading the earlier models is the more appealing option. The SM-3 I-A is already in the Navy’s inventory. In an April 2011 test over the Pacific Ocean, it intercepted and destroyed an intermediate-range missile in a way that demonstrates this model’s ability to intercept long-range missiles in the late midcourse phase of flight.[24] Successful pursuit of this option could provide additional protection to U.S. territory in a matter of months, instead of waiting some eight years under the SM-3 II-B option. The U.S. needs to forward deploy missile defense engagement radar and to improve the overall command and control structure of the Aegis weapons system.[25]

The Senate Appropriations Committee’s version of an earlier defense appropriation bill for FY 2012 (H.R. 2219) explicitly addressed this issue by transferring funding away from the Block II-B development program—effectively deferring it—to development of the Block I-B and Block II-A models. Regrettably, it did not direct that the transferred funds be used to develop and test these models to make them capable of countering long-range missiles. The final bill retains this transfer of funds, but also fails to direct that the early models of the Standard Missile be made capable of countering long-range missiles.

Procurement of Standard Missile Interceptors.

The Obama Administration has admitted that the demand for missile defense interceptors by the regional combatant commanders will outstrip the supply in the near term.[26] The Administration plans to procure 341 Standard Missile interceptors for ballistic missile defense by FY 2016. Increasing the procurement to 436 missiles would be a healthy response to the increased demand.

Recognizing this problem, the House of Representatives provided an additional $50 million for Standard Missile procurement, but the Senate moved $315 million from the Administration’s $565 million request for Standard Missile procurement to further research and development on the system. This transfer was retained in the conference report. The Senate Appropriations Committee chose to transfer funds from Block II-B development to increase the nearer-term production capacity for Standard Missile interceptors. This transfer is retained in the final version of the defense appropriations provisions in the omnibus appropriations bill. At this point, it is unclear how the Obama Administration will reconcile this inconsistency between the two laws.

East Coast Missile Defense.

The Obama Administration maintains that the GMD interceptors deployed in Alaska and California can adequately defend U.S. territory against missile attack for the remainder of the decade. Nevertheless, the GMD interceptors in Alaska and California will need to operate at the edges of their performance envelopes to defend the East Coast against an Iranian long-range missile. Further, it is unclear whether these interceptors could counter an intermediate-range or long-range missile attack on the Southeast from Venezuela if Venezuela obtains missiles in the near future from an outside source, such as Iran. Finally, the GMD interceptors cannot defend against shorter-range missiles launched at the U.S. from ships off the coast, including missiles that could deliver an EMP strike.

A provision in the NDAA addresses the Administration’s hedge strategy and directs the Administration to examine the option of locating a missile defense site on the East Coast, but it does not contain an equivalent directive regarding the Gulf Coast. Nor does it direct the Administration to consider its hedge strategy in response to a future ship-based ballistic missile threat. Most importantly, it does not direct the Administration to explore the option of increasing territorial missile defense capacity by deploying missile defenses on Navy cruisers and destroyers, thereby making the missile defense mobile and capable of countering an anticipated threat in any U.S. coastal region.

Medium Extended-Range Air Defense System (MEADS) Funding.

In part because Senate appropriators sought to continue to fund U.S. participation in the MEADS program for the interim, Congress adopted a provision in the NDAA to fund the program under a “fencing” restriction.[27] The provision limits the DOD from obligating or expending more than 25 percent of the funds made available unless the Secretary of Defense submits to Congress a report detailing plans for continuing the program in a more limited way or terminating it.

In relation to its February 2011 budget request, the Obama Administration announced that it will not continue U.S. participation in the MEADS joint missile defense program with Germany and Italy beyond the current agreement. In 2011, Congress examined the possibility of terminating the program immediately.

The Administration’s decision to drop out of the MEADS program is premature because the program is valuable to the general cause of missile defense cooperation between the U.S. and its allies and offers tangible benefits in protecting U.S. allies in Europe against shorter-range missiles, including missiles that Russia may deploy. Earlier congressional examinations found that terminating the program immediately cost more than continuing the program through the end of the current agreement. The best option for the U.S. and allied security is to continue the current program and get the most out of it.

Missile Defense Cooperation with Israel.

The Obama Administration’s February 2011 budget request proposed an inadequate $106 million for the missile defense cooperation program with Israel. The enacted NDAA more than doubles the Administration’s request by authorizing a cooperative program with Israel at more than $216 million. The appropriators, not to be outdone, provided direct funding levels for the same program of almost $236 million. How Congress addressed the matter of extending and expanding U.S. missile defense cooperation with Israel demonstrates what could have happened with the broader missile defense program during the 2011 legislative process if Congress had put its mind to it.

Further, the funding profile for this cooperation is consistent with a layered defense concept. It provides support for the lower-tier defense (the David’s Sling system) to counter rockets and very short-range missiles and support for the upper-tier system (the Arrow) to counter intermediate-range missiles, such as those possessed by Iran. By taking these steps, Congress has demonstrated that it wants to cooperate with Israel in defending its people, territory, institutions, and infrastructure against rocket and missile attacks to the best of its ability. This cooperative relationship is free from rhetoric about imposing limits on technological advancement to prevent an arms race and calls for Israel to restrain its rocket and missile defense program to maintain a strategic balance between Israel and its mortal enemies, such as Hamas, Hezbollah, Syria, and Iran. There are no demands for self-defeating arms control agreements.

A Lost Opportunity

In retrospect, the outcome of the legislative process for missile defense during 2011 demonstrates that the House of Representatives strongly favors fielding an effective missile defense capability to protect the U.S. and its allies. Select Members of the House Armed Services Committee and its Subcommittee on Strategic Forces, such as Chairman Howard P. “Buck” McKeon (R–CA), have demonstrated considerable leadership on this issue. Chairman of the Strategic Forces Subcommittee Michael R. Turner (R–OH) and his team of missile defense advocates, including Trent Franks (R–AZ) and Doug Lamborn (R–CO), undertook the necessary detailed work to advance the missile defense. Chairman of the Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces Todd Akin (R–MO) has been seeking to advance the missile defense capabilities of the Navy in the context of the Navy’s multimission responsibilities.

By contrast, their Senate counterparts have offered more tepid support for missile defense, more in line with the Obama Administration’s policy of seeking strict limits on U.S. missile defense capabilities based on outmoded concepts of strategic stability and deterrence and the desire to advance highly questionable arms control goals. Clearly, Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee Carl Levin (D–MI) is not as strong a supporter of missile defense as Chairman McKeon. Even though the Senate is less friendly toward missile defense than the House, some Senators advocate for missile defense, including Senator Jon Kyl (R–AZ), James Inhofe (R–OK), Jeff Sessions (R–AL), and Mark Kirk (R–IL). Senator Kirk has focused on thwarting Russian efforts to curtail U.S. missile defense capabilities through the arms control process. Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee Daniel K. Inouye (D–HI) has been a consistent supporter of the sea-based missile defense program.

However, for the missile defense program to advance on a consistent basis, Congress must commit to providing the U.S. and its allies with the best technologically possible protection against missile attacks. It has demonstrated that it is capable of doing this, even in the face of a reluctant Administration, by extending and expanding missile defense cooperation with Israel. Its actions in this area should become the template for future congressional efforts to advance the missile defense program.

Changing Course

Nothing less than a bold departure from the Obama Administration’s missile defense plans will adequately serve the strategic interests of the United States. In a world of proliferating nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles, America and its allies and friends need a comprehensive missile defense system that protects people and vital interests from attack. Deploying such a layered system would require three steps:

1. Expanding and continually improving the Navy’s proven Aegis missile defense system. Congress has ample opportunity to improve the Aegis system’s capabilities. One option is to enable early models of the Standard Missile 3 interceptors to counter long-range ballistic missiles in the late midcourse stage. The second opportunity is to improve the SM-3’s ability to intercept short-range ballistic missiles in the ascent phase. The interceptor demonstrated this basic capability in a 2002 test. It needs smaller and lighter “kill” vehicles to enable it to defend against short-range ballistic missiles carrying an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) warhead and launched from a ship off the U.S. coast.

2. Expanding advanced integration of the components of a layered missile defense system, including ground-based interceptors. A comprehensive, layered missile defense capability requires a network of systems with land, sea, air, and space capabilities. Two links in this network are the sensors that detect and track ballistic missiles in flight and the interceptors that destroy them. The third link is the command and control system that takes the targeting data furnished by the sensors and feeds that data to the interceptors in a timely fashion.

3. Develop and deploy space-based missile defenses, particularly space-based interceptors, to counter ballistic missile attacks. All but the very shortest-range ballistic missiles travel through space. Thus, the most capable missile defense system would locate interceptors where the missiles would fly—in space. Brilliant Pebbles technology could be revived, which would ultimately permit the deployment of space-based interceptors.

Conclusion

Saying that missile defense is as easy as one-two-three would be an oversimplification. Nevertheless, this three-step plan would move the U.S. missile defense program in the direction of meeting America’s comprehensive security needs in a world in which the threats from proliferation and modernization of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles are growing.

Meanwhile, Congress needs to act decisively to limit the damage the Administration could inflict on the missile defense program through its aggressive arms control agenda. The Senate Minority Leader should designate a fellow Senator as his personal arms control observer. This observer should be furnished with adequate staff and be given unlimited access to the arms control negotiations in which the U.S. is participating, including classified materials.

SOURCE: The Heritage Foundation

Baker Spring is F. M. Kirby Research Fellow in National Security Policy in the Douglas and Sarah Allison Center for Foreign Policy Studies, a division of the Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for International Studies, at The Heritage Foundation.

"If a soldier is wounded in battle--what we saw many times in Baghdad in 2003 or Fallujah in November 2004--a collocated support soldier may be the only person in a position to evacuate the wounded soldier on his own back.  In this environment, women do not have an equal opportunity to survive, or to help fellow soldiers survive.  Lives should not be put at needless risk just to satisfy 'diversity metrics' for the career ambitions of a few.

"It is not realistic to expect that women will be held to the same physical standards as men.  Attempts to establish such standards always are attacked by feminists as 'unfair' and 'barriers to women's careers.'  The result is lowered, gender-normed standards that mandate inequality in the name of ‘equality’.”

"By formally eliminating rules affecting units collocated with infantry battalions, the Defense Department is imposing needless complications and burdens on direct ground combat units.  The Pentagon also is inviting another ACLU lawsuit challenging young women's exemption from Selective Service registration, which the courts have upheld as constitutional because women are not assigned to direct ground combat.

"For this reason, the incremental policy changes announced today will have harmful consequences not only for our brave women and men in the military, but for unsuspecting civilian women as well."

Elaine Donnelly, President of the Center for Military Readiness, served as a member of the 1992 Presidential Commission on the Assignment of Women in the Armed Forces

Calling out energy providers and consumer watchdogs who have protested the high costs of EPA regulations, McCarthy defiantly challenged, “If you are worried about whether this will benefit the economy, read those figures.”

Federal Agencies Disagree

Much of EPA’s asserted benefits accrue through the agency’s calculation that each life it extends through regulations provides $9.1 million in societal value. EPA’s $9.1 million figure is higher than that asserted by any other federal agency.

For example, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) asserts a life extended is worth $7.9 million, and the Department of Transportation (DOT) assumes a life extended is worth $6 million. EPA itself asserted as recently as three years ago a life extended is worth $6.8 million.

‘I Can’t Answer the Question’

During a press conference at the EUEC, this reporter asked McCarthy how EPA arrives at its $9.1 million figure and why it differs from the value assigned by other federal agencies.

McCarthy said she could not give a specific answer. Instead of providing a formula or specific considerations EPA took into account when arriving at its $9.1 million valuation, McCarthy said EPA “works in close consultation with the White House” to arrive at its figure.

“We work very hard to come up with the proper number,” said McCarthy.

Following up, this reporter asked McCarthy if her answer meant EPA does not have a specific formula it utilizes.

“I didn’t say that,” McCarthy responded. “I said I can’t answer the question.”

EPA ‘Misleading at Best’

Emergency medical physician John Dale Dunn, a policy advisor for the American Council on Science and Health, says regardless of whether EPA inflates the value it assigns a human life, it is misleading for the agency to claim its regulations are providing economic benefits.

“The costs that energy producers pay to comply with EPA regulations are certainly economic, and these economic costs certainly get passed down to consumers in the form of higher prices,” said Dunn. “EPA’s asserted benefits, however, are not economic. The asserted benefits are largely the subjective value that EPA places on a person allegedly living a little bit longer due to EPA regulations.

“When EPA bureaucrats say their regulations will ‘help the economy,’ they are being misleading at best,” Dunn explained. “Even if, for the sake of argument, EPA is not inflating the value it places on a life extended, its asserted benefits are noneconomic in nature. The economy pays dearly for EPA regulations, even if EPA says the noneconomic benefits are worth the price.

“You can say, ‘I think the subjective value people place on having their life extended is $9.1 million,’ but that certainly doesn’t mean the economy grows by $9.1 million each time a life is extended,” Dunn observed. “EPA is comparing economic apples to noneconomic oranges, and the agency is being misleading at best when it claims its regulation benefit the economy.”

Minimal Life Extension

This reporter also asked McCarthy how much time is added, on average, to each life allegedly extended by EPA regulations.

McCarthy said she could not answer that question, either.

“There is a good reason why Assistant Administrator McCarthy said she could not answer the question: the answer is embarrassing for EPA,” said Dunn. “EPA is not preventing an army of twentysomethings from dying grossly premature deaths. Instead, even if we accept EPA’s highly suspect data-mining, EPA regulations add mere hours or days per life extended.”

“To say that adding a few hours or days to an elderly person’s life is worth taxpayers spending $9.1 million is quite a bold statement,” said Dunn. “And to say that adding a few hours or days to an elderly person’s life provides $9.1 million in economic value is simply preposterous.”

“It is also curious that EPA claims a higher monetary value per life saved than the Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Transportation,” observed Dunn. “DOT regulations are designed to prevent sudden tragedies that strike people of all ages. DOT is saving many more years of life per accident avoided than the few days of life extended by EPA regulations, yet EPA has the audacity to claim a higher benefit value than DOT.”

“EPA is cooking the books when it claims the benefits of its new and proposed regulation outweigh their extremely high costs,” Dunn summarized.

SOURCE: The Heartland Institute

James M. Taylor is managing editor of Environment & Climate News, a national monthly publication devoted to sound science and free-market environmentalism with a circulation of approximately 75,000 readers. He is also senior fellow for The Heartland Institute focusing on environmental issues. More bio here

Continue and watch the rest

[Israeli Prime Minister's Office, Jan. 29, 2012,http://www.pmo.gov.il/PMOEng/Communication/EventsDiary/eventireland290112.htm]

Last week, PA TV rejected this condemnation saying it was not honoring the killers by inviting their family members to publicly send them greetings, but that it was a "humanitarian" gesture to the prisoners. PA TV also indicated they were caught by surprise by the glorification of the terrorists as heroes, as it was "a live broadcast," during which the "mother spoke with complete spontaneity," and therefore PA TV is not responsible. 

PA TV Claim of Ignorance and Innocence is False

PA TV's claim that it did not intend to glorify the terrorists is false. For years, PA TV has had a policy of honoring terrorists specifically through this long-running weekly program and others, which present terrorists as heroes and role models to the Palestinian population. The following are some examples:

Terrorist: Abbas Al-Sayid 

Crimes: Serving 35 life-sentences for sending suicide bombers to attacks that killed 35, including Park Hotel Passover suicide bombing that killed 30. 

PA TV honor: PA TV visited his home and invited released terrorists and others to talk about him. 

PA TV broadcast glorification by others:

Released female terrorist, Du'a Al-Jayousi: "He was an example and role model for us, we wanted very much to meet him."
Released male terrorist, Muayyad Al-Jallad: "I do not forget our neighbor and brother, Abbas Al-Sayid. He is the crown on our heads... He is honor to the nation, and there is no doubt that he makes us proud. Allah willing, he has enough patience and will... We are all familiar with his manly qualities of heroism and strength."

PA TV itself glorified the terrorist:

PA TV host: "We are outside the home of the patient, heroic fighter who is resolute, overcoming his chains, desiring freedom - Abbas Al-Sayid, the lion of the prison cells... the leader, hero, defeater of the enemies, defeater of the dungeons, and lion under interrogation."

[PA TV (Fatah), Oct. 25, 2011]

Click to view

Terrorist: Ahlam Tamimi : Suicide Bomber Mission

Crimes: Led a suicide bomber to his attack at the Sbarro pizza shop in Jerusalem in August 2001. 15 people were murdered in the attack, 7 of them children. 

PA TV honor: PA TV glorified her while visiting the home of another terrorist involved in the same terror attack.

PA TV itself glorified the terrorist:

PA TV host: "We, [at] the program In a Fighter's Home, send best wishes of loyalty to Ahlam Tamimi. We wish her freedom - she and [the rest of] our glorious female prisoners. Special wishes to you, Ahlam, from the program In a Fighter's Home and from the program team, from the home of the heroic fighter prisoner, Muhammad [Wael Daghlas]. You both belong to the same group."

[PA TV (Fatah), Aug. 10, 2011]

Click to view

Terrorist: Muhammad Wael Daghlas

Crimes: Serving 15 life sentences for planning and sending the suicide bomber to his attack at the Sbarro pizza shop in Jerusalem. 

PA TV honor: PA TV visited his home.

PA TV itself glorified the terrorist:

PA TV host: "... from the home of the heroic fighter prisoner, Muhammad [Wael Daghlas]."

[PA TV (Fatah), Aug. 10, 2011]

Click to view

Terrorist: Salim Hajja

Crime: Serving 16 life sentences for involvement in three suicide bombings; the bombing of the Dolphinarium night club in June 2001 in which 21 were murdered and 120 wounded; the Sbarro restaurant bombing in Aug. 2001 in which 15 people were killed and over 100 wounded; and a suicide bombing of a bus in Haifa in Dec. 2001 in which 15 were killed and 40 wounded.

PA TV honor: PA TV interviewed his family in their home.

PA TV broadcast glorification by others:

Prisoner's mother-in-law: "Praise to Allah... Omar [son of Salim] will follow in your (Salim's) footsteps, and praise to Allah he will be a hero like you, Allah willing. As Allah lives, I am proud of you, that you are the husband of my daughter. I swear to Allah - I am proud of you. My daughter's husband. I hold my head up high when someone says to me that my son-in-law is a prisoner. ... Inside, I am proud of him, that he is my son-in-law."
Prisoner's son: "Daddy is a hero. I am very proud of him."

PA TV itself glorified the terrorist:

PA TV host: "Well, come along with us, our prisoner brothers, for a visit to the family of the heroic fighter prisoner, of course - Salim Hajja, and I want to greet his father, his mother Taibe, his brother Mustafa, the whole family, his wife and his son, and of course you, Mustafa (i.e., she means Salim). Allah willing you will live a free life - you, your son, your wife and your family, in a normal way, like the other families in the world and in this country. Allah willing."

[PA TV (Fatah), Aug. 11, 2011]

Click to view bulletin

Terrorist: Darin Abu Aisheh

Crimes: Carried out a suicide bombing at a roadblock in 2002, wounding three Israelis.

PA TV honor: PA TV interviewed her mother in her home. 

PA TV broadcast glorification by others:

Poster of the terrorist displayed in the mother's home: "The Palestinian National Liberation Movement - Fatah - Beit Wazan branch is happy to announce [the death of] the heroic Martyrdom-seeker, Darin Muhammad Tawfiq Abu Aisheh Member of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades."

[PA TV (Fatah), Aug. 3, 2011]

Click to view

Terrorist: Anas Jaradat

Crimes: Headed the Islamic Jihad in Jenin and was responsible for 3 car bombings in Israel, causing the death of dozens.

PA TV honor: PA TV visited his home and interviewed his father and a Fatah official about him.

PA TV broadcast glorification by others:

Jaradat's father: "I send greetings to [my son] Anas, who is a real hero. When I say 'hero' I recall all the actions which he carried out. (i.e., 3 car bombings) He is a hero in the full sense of the word. The reports that we hear confirm his heroism."

Secretary of the Fatah branch in Jenin, Ata Abu Ramila: "We say to brother Anas - the heroic Jihad-fighter prisoner Anas Jaradat - and to all the heroic prisoners: ... What Anas and all the heroic prisoners did is a glorious deed (i.e., 3 car bombings), a badge of honor for him, for his family... for our Palestinian people, and for all the free and noble people of our nation. The occupation (i.e., Israel) will pass away, Allah willing. The occupation will pass away only through the pure blood which has poured from our courageous Martyrs, and through the suffering of our heroic prisoners, first among them this heroic prisoner, Anas Jaradat."

PA TV itself glorified the terrorist:

PA TV host, addressing Jaradat's father: "You are the hero's father. We don't want to see the hero's father cry."

[PA TV (Fatah), Aug. 3, 2011]

Click to view

Terrorist: Amer Abu Sarhan

Crimes: Convicted of stabbing 3 Israelis to death in 1990. 

PA TV honor: PA TV visited his home and interviewed the District Governor of Bethlehem about him.

PA TV broadcast glorification by others:

District Governor of Bethlehem, Abd Al-Fattah Hamayel: "I'm glad to be in this thriving home, home of the father of the heroic prisoner, Amer Abu Sarhan. We honor him greatly through you [PA TV]. To all his fellow prisoners -- the brave and heroic who are resolute in Ribat [religious conflict] -- to the glorious female prisoners in the occupation's prisons -- we salute you and express our utmost appreciation and pride."

PA TV itself glorified the terrorist:

PA TV host: "Welcome, dear viewers, to this episode about the heroic prisoner Amer Abu Sarhan from Al-Abidia."

[PA TV (Fatah), Aug. 2, 2011]

Click to view

Terrorist: Yusuf Shaker Al-Asi

Crimes: Built bombs for Fatah's military wing, the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades

PA TV honor: PA TV interviewed his mother, showing a poem and a poster of the bomb maker with an inscription praising Martyrdom for Allah.

[PA TV (Fatah), Aug. 2, 2011]

Terrorist: Yasser Al-Sharbati

Crimes: Involved in planning a suicide bombing in Jerusalem.

PA TV honor: PA TV visited his family's home with PA Minister of Prisoners' Affairs, Issa Karake, and District Governor of Hebron, Kamel Hamid.

[PA TV (Fatah), Aug. 15, 2011]

The above are just a few of the many terrorists honored during the weekly broadcasts of For You and In a Fighter's Home on official PA TV, in addition to the many video clips celebrating terrorists and terror attacks, official ceremonies, and more. The policy of official PA TV is to honor and glorify terrorists and present them as role models for society. 

Finally, in this specific case several facts indicate that PA TV was aware of the identity of the relatives of the Fogel killers before permitting them to speak on air:

1. The PA TV host knew who she was interviewing and introduced her as the "family of Hakim Awad" - the terrorist
2. The identity of the callers - "family of Hakim Awad" was written on the screen.
3. The interview was broadcast live on Jan. 19 and rebroadcast on Jan. 21. So even if the first time PA TV was surprised - they made a decision to rebroadcast the terrorist glorification. 

PA TV is run from the office of PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.

The following is the PA response and denial of knowingly broadcasting glorification of the Fogel family murderers:

Headline: "PA TV: Netanyahu's claims are an attempt to hide Israel's crimes"

"PA TV said that the claims by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, concerning the prisoners' program [For You, a recent episode which included greetings to the murderers of the Israeli Fogel family] are meant to hide Israeli crimes, especially those against prisoners. It should be noted that Netanyahu demanded that the PA 'condemn PA TV for accepting a telephone call from the mother and aunt of prisoner Hakim Awad, who carried out the Itamar operation (i.e., Hakim Awad's killing 5 members of an Israeli family in their sleep).' In its press release, a copy of which was obtained by WAFA, PA TV emphasized today: 'The prisoners' program is meant for the purposes of [maintaining] humanitarian contact between the prisoners - especially those who are not permitted visitors - and their family members. The call on the episode of Jan. 26, 2012 was by family members of the prisoner, and in a live broadcast. What the mother said with complete spontaneity, does not reflect any official view or position of PA TV or of the Palestinian Authority.' The press release called upon anyone interested, and all journalists, to watch the filmed footage which had been aired, and not to rely on Netanyahu's words. It should be noted that official Israeli circles constantly take care to invent and blow up events, with the aim of hiding the violations, the racist activities, and the crimes against humanity which they are carrying out against our people everywhere."

[WAFA, Jan. 30, 2012

© Palestinian Media Watch – www.palwatch.org

"Anyone who wants to affront the shari'a and become a heretic, anyone who behaves stupidly, thinking that this is a game, should not think that this will go unpunished. Today, these criminals want us to become used to this. They want us to hear this and remain silent. When someone curses our Lord, [they want us to say]: 'Never mind, this is democracy, freedom, and so on. Let's keep quiet about it.' Absolutely not! This will never be. One must never remain silent before the people of Falsehood. When Allah made a covenant with the people of knowledge, 'You shall make it known to people and not hide it.' Beheading them should be easier than cutting the buttons off their shirts.

"The truth should not be open to discussion, and the people of Truth should lie in wait for the people of Falsehood. They should not keep silent about a single word. If we give them leeway once, we will never be able to close the door. If a criminal affronts the shari'a and people keep quiet about it – even once – he will not keep quiet anymore. That's it – the door has been opened.

"What encouraged that criminal heretic to say that Allah has nothing to do with politics? He saw an even greater heretic say worse things about Allah. If not for the first, the second would not have committed heresy either. But if the first heretic had been beheaded – if the court had sentenced him to death for apostasy, everybody would have known that Islam was the official religion of this country, and that nobody could affront it.

"Could any of those cockroaches go to Israel and talk about Judaism that way, or even talk about it in his own home? Could any of those blabbermouths talk about Judaism? Could they doubt the Holocaust – that thing in which they say the Jews were massacred, and so on? If it really happened, they deserved it. Do any of them dare to doubt the Holocaust?

"And what about our 'geniuses' whose tongues are as long as that, and who affront only the religion of Allah, because they know that it has nobody to defend it? Nobody defends Islam, so they can bully it. But do any of them dare to appear on one of their despicable TV programs, and talk about the Jews, curse one of their leaders, or reject any of their myths? The whole world would be up in arms against him, and he would learn a moral lesson that he would never ever forget. […]

"In Islam, an apostate is punished by death. There is no dispute about this. Let none of those blabbermouths say to you: 'There's no punishment for an apostate in Islam. I've never seen such a thing.' Fine, so you're blind, what do you want from us? You have no sight and no sight. How could you not see it?! It is in all the books of jurisprudence. […]

"Our religion is tolerant, merciful, and all those nice things, but there is no such thing as tolerance towards what is wrong. What do they do with a killer anywhere in the world? Do they caress, hug, and kiss him? Or do they kill him, or at least sentence him to life in prison? The killer should be killed. He should be sentenced to death. Don't we have the death sentence? It exists in all the laws in the world.

"Doesn't that constitute cruelty, violence, even terrorism? 'No,' they say – 'not at all. It is in order to reduce crime. The crime he committed is worse than his punishment.' Well, we have such a thing as well. We have a punishment for apostates. There are people who deserve such a punishment. What is the difference? Why do you have reservations when it happens here, but are pleased about it when it happens over there? Why don't you tell them, in America and Europe, to ban capital punishment, to ban life terms, and to shut down Guantanamo? In Guantanamo there are torture methods that do not exist anywhere in the world, except in Egypt. Nobody tops them but our own security agencies." […]

SOURCE: MEMRI

© 1998-2012, The Middle East Media Research Institute All Rights Reserved.

In a similar fashion, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has waged a long war on the provision of energy; most recently with the imposition of its Utility MACT rule on plant carbon dioxide (CO2) and mercury emissions, neither of which pose any threat. Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK), ranking member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, decried the rule as one “intended to undermine the viability of coal, one of our country’s most abundant and reliable energy sources.”

Despite having spent billions to meet the demand for upgrades of the technology to trap such emissions, coal-fired plants all over the nation are in the process of being closed as a result of the MACT rule. These “greenhouse gas” rules are baseless insofar as CO2 is not a pollutant and is vital to the growth of all vegetation on the planet. There is no proof that minor mercury emissions represent any threat to public health.

The EPA use of bogus “computer models” to support wild health claims argues for an end to this agency and the return of its responsibilities to state environmental agencies.

In January, the American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC), the leading authority, warned that “environmental regulations are shown to be the number one risk to reliability over the next one to five years.”

The Institute for Energy Research has stated that “Beyond the 38 gigawatts of electricity capacity that has already been announced to retire, NERC estimates that another 36 to 59 gigawatts of capacity will come off-line by 2018, depending on the ‘scope and timing’ of EPA regulations. Together, nearly a quarter of our coal-fired capacity could be off-line by 2018, marking the first time in energy history that installed coal-fired capacity has declined.”

This is a threat to the viability and security of a nation that sits atop the largest deposits of coal in the world! It is a nation in which coal provides 50% of its electricity.

In a similar fashion, environmentalists, after a long propaganda war against coal, have launched an equally massive campaign against natural gas, attacking the use of “fracking”, a technology that has been safely used for the last fifty years or more to access equally vast reserves of natural gas.

Likewise the cost of automobiles has been systematically driven up by the wholly false EPA assertion that their CO2 emissions represent a threat to clean air. The imposition of a mandate to mix gasoline with ethanol has resulted in greater CO2 emissions while, at the same time, reducing the mileage of cars. In addition, the use of food crops like corn for the production of ethanol, have driven up food prices.

Anyone who has lost electricity due to a blizzard or a hurricane knows how totally dependent the nation is on reliable and affordable electricity, and knows how totally dependent they are on is provision.

The simple fact is that the present and prior administration’s EPA, the Department of Transportation, and others have been lying to Congress and the American public for years regarding their claims about air pollution and energy provision. The Interior Department just put uranium-rich acres of land off-limits to mining.

Environmental organizations and special interest groups like the American lung Association are a fifth column of enemies within the nation.

The global warming hoax—now called climate change—is on its last legs. Nations around the world that have wasted billions on the claims made for “renewable” energy, solar and wind, are pulling back from further support. The “science” behind these claims has been totally and utterly refuted.

Even the United Nations, the source of the global warming hoax, is now switching its debased claims to a new hoax based on so-called endangered species.

The loss of tens of thousands of jobs in the energy and transportation sectors, as well as energy-intensive industries, is incalculable. EPA demands and mandates are deliberately undermining the nation’s economy.

The lives and safety of Americans are under attack by environmental organizations and, if they are successful, the only outcome would be the deaths of millions here and around the world from hunger and the lack of power to turn on the lights, heat and cool homes, and power industries.

The planet is not running out of oil, coal, or natural gas. It can use more nuclear power, not less.

We are witnessing an environmental attack on American energy and, ultimately, on America.

© Alan Caruba, 2012

If I were to update part of President Abraham Lincoln’s “House Divided” speech to fit our current situation, with my italic changes, it would sound this way:

“’A house divided against itself cannot stand.’ I believe this nation cannot endure, permanently, half socialist and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved; I do not expect the house to fall; but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing, or all the other. Either the opponents of socialism will arrest the further spread of it and place it where the public mind shall rest in the belief that it is in the course of ultimate extinction, or its advocates will push it forward till it shall become alike mandatory in all the states,…”

Socialism is a major threat to America because, under the guise of caring for people, it interferes with every aspect of our lives and ultimately puts the state in the place of God. The Catechism of the Catholic Church points out that, after the Flood, God grouped people into separate families, nations and languages, “under the guardianship of angels,” in order to “limit the pride of fallen humanity, united only in its perverse desire to forge its own unity as at Babel.” We know from the horrors of the 20^th century that socialism is that very temptation to create an empire without God, under a ruling elite.

Our founding fathers, who were well-versed in history and the Bible, also knew that humans were prone to corruption, and so they created a government with written guarantees of liberty and one in which power was diffused by the separation of a national government into the executive, legislative and judicial branches and by the separation of national, state and local governments. They encouraged partisan politics to impede the centralization of power.

Even if Obama relents, the bishops hopefully are getting a rude awakening that the limited national government created by the founders has gradually morphed, by incremental subversion of the Constitution, into an institution with almost unlimited coercive power. The bishops would do well to heed the warning of Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence, that "the two enemies of the people are criminals and government, so let us tie the second down with the chains of the Constitution so the second will not become the legalized version of the first."

It’s no accident that the size and intrusiveness of government--at all levels—has paralleled an increase of irreligion and immorality among the electorate, because sin has consequences. Many politicians are only too willing protect us from one another and mitigate the wreckage of our misdeeds. Only conversion and prayer will save this country. "Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people,” said John Adams, our second president. “It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other."

Mr. Retzlaff is a free-lance writer living in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany, N.Y.

A statement of facts filed with the plea shows that Morton had contact with several "lone wolf" terrorists, and that others were subscribers to the site. CNN, citing an unnamed senior counter-terrorism official, reported that "Investigations had revealed that Revolution Muslim was the 'top catalyst for radicalization for violence in the United States' over the last several years."

For example, after one reader reached out to him last April, Morton advised him to be wary that someone helping "start a jihad group to kill U.S. Army veterans in the United States" may be working for the FBI. Jose Pimentel may not have heeded Morton's advice. He was arrested by New York police six months later as he assembled a pipe bomb in his home that he intended to use to kill soldiers returning from Afghanistan and Iraq.

Morton also endorsed Rezwan Ferdaus's desire to wage jihad. Ferdaus reached out to Morton early in 2010, asking if martyrdom operations were acceptable in Islam. It depends on the motivation, Morton wrote back. "[E]very act is judged by intention and so we reserve an opinion on this matter. We can however say that these operations have apparent detractions, but also enormous benfits (sic) in a war of attrition."

Ferdaus was arrested in Massachusetts last September in connection with a plot to use remote-controlled planes to fly bombs into the Pentagon and the U.S. Capitol. He also made switches to detonate explosive devices that he intended to supply to al-Qaida terrorists targeting American troops.

The statement of facts in Morton's plea ties him and the Revolution Muslim website to:

• Colleen LaRose, also known as "Jihad Jane," who admits to plotting to kill a Swedish cartoonist who drew images of the prophet Muhammad, and to recruiting people to wage terrorist attacks.

• Antonio Martinez, who pleaded guilty to plotting to blow up a Maryland military recruiting center.

• Carlos Almonte and Mohamed Alessa, who entered guilty pleas last March to conspiring to join the Somali terrorist group al-Shabaab to kill civilians "whose beliefs and practices did not align with their extremist ideology."

"We may never know all of those who were inspired to engage in terrorism because of Revolution Muslim," said U.S. Attorney Neil MacBride, "but the string of recent terrorism cases with ties to Morton's organization demonstrates the threat it posed to our national security."

In addition, the statement of facts shows that Morton communicated with Samir Khan, an American al-Qaida propagandist credited with publishing the group's English-language magazine, Inspire. Khan is believed to have been killed in a U.S. drone strike in Yemen that also killed American-born al-Qaida cleric Anwar al-Awlaki.

Morton and Chesser also let radical British cleric Bilal Ahmad post directly to the Revolution Muslim site.

In November 2010, Ahmad posted on the Revolution Muslim website praise for Roshanara Choudhry after she tried to kill Member of Parliament Stephen Timms for supporting the Iraq war. Ahmad then posted the names of all members of Parliament who supported the war, with a prayer that her actions "inspire Muslims to raise the knife of jihad against those who voted for the countless rapes, murders, pillages, and torture of Muslim civilians as a direct consequence of their vote."

Morton and his colleague Zachary Chesser followed the teachings of Awlaki and Abdullah Faisal, a radical Jamaican sheikh who preached the need to kill non-believers. Faisal's sermons calling for Muslims to kill the "enemies of Islam," including Jews, Americans and Hindus, led to his 2003 conviction in the United Kingdom for soliciting to murder.

Their postings on Revolution Muslim often sounded similar themes, the statement of facts said, and they republished Inspire, which contained calls to violence and instructions on carrying it out.

Chesser is serving a 25-year sentence after pleading guilty to related charges.

In the "South Park" case, Morton told investigators in October that the decision to post the threats was made without seeing the program. It turned out that the show never depicted the prophet, just someone in a bear suit who other characters called "Mohammed."

"He said that he would have pulled the South Park post made by Chesser in April 2010 if he had known that the episode really didn't depict the Muhammad as he thought it was going to."

When the show aired, Chesser told Morton that Iran's fatwa calling for author Salman Rushdie's murder following his publication of The Satanic Verses inspired radical European Muslims. Threats against "South Park's" Trey Stone and Matt Parker could have the same galvanizing effect in America.

Morton also posted a threat against a Washington woman who advocated having an "everyone Draw Muhammad Day" in response to the "South Park" threats.

"Morton asserted that Islam's position is that those that insult the Prophet may be killed under Shariah law just as if they were fighting with a weapon," the statement of facts said. "Morton exhorted his listeners to fight the 'disbelievers near you.'"

Morton, 33, could be imprisoned for up to five years for each of the three counts in his plea when he is sentenced in May.

Owing to its totemic status in the Kulturkampf, abortion is among the most heavily subsidized of medical procedures. In the first trimester, it generally costs less than $400. If the unborn child is in the second trimester, the price of ending his or her life is a bit steeper. Still, like life, death is cheap, generally under $600.·

Abortion is alone on the top shelf at the Bang for the Buck Bar. The rest of the menu is cheap, cheap, cheap. The New York City Department of Health, for example, has a website dedicated to, er, disseminating “Free NYC Condoms” (“Get Some, Get Yours — Grab a Handful and Go!”). It even has the toll-free 3-1-1 number you can call if, while away from your computer, the cupboard is bare in your time of need. And if you’re really interested in the subject, Big Apple taxpayers helpfully provide “A Brief History of Condoms in New York City.” Besides learning that “distribution of the NYC Condom topped 40 million” in 2009, you’ll revisit such milestones as Valentine’s Day 2007, when the health department “set a national precedent” with its “Lifestyles condom in a chic, branded Gotham wrapper.” Go New York, go New York, go!

Planned Parenthood reports that birth-control pills run as low as $15 per month — and at the click of a mouse, PP will help you find a health center from which to get a prescription. Like the pill, diaphragms and the “Nuva Ring” start as low as $15 per month, and PP will work to get you set up with Medicaid or other state programs that defray costs — just as it will if you prefer the cervical cap route, which will set you back about $70 (with the spermicide “kit”) but, like a diaphragm, lasts about two years. Starting at $400, Implanon, a thin implant inserted in the arm, sounds costly at first blush, but it lasts for three years. Injections of Depo-Provera, the “birth control shot,” go for about 40 smackers, and they last three months. If for some reason you’re not near one of Nanny Bloomberg’s Gotham wrapper stands but you’d still rather go over-the-counter, PP itself will supply you with a package of three sponges for about ten bucks.

More good news: You’re not like BP — if there’s an accidental spill, you’ve got very affordable options. The “Morning After” pill — which is actually a treatment course of four to eight tablets — costs about $20 at the local drugstore, although, as PP points out, “we all like to be prepared. That is why it’s a great idea to keep some emergency contraception in your medicine cabinet or bedside table” just in case. If you wait too long, there’s always the “abortion pill,” RU-486. It starts at about $300, and PP assures you that “Planned Parenthood centers that do not provide it can refer you to someone who does.”

SOURCE: National Review Online

Andrew C. McCarthy, a senior fellow at the National Review Institute, is the author, most recently, of The Grand Jihad: How Islam and the Left Sabotage America.

According to the most recent homicide figures published by the Mexican government, 47,515 people were killed in narcotics-related violence in Mexico between December 1, 2006 and September 30, 2011, with 12,903 narcotics-related homicides in the first nine months of 2011 alone.  While most of those killed in narcotics-related violence have been members of TCOs, innocent persons have also been killed.  The number of U.S. citizens reported to the Department of State as murdered in Mexico increased from 35 in 2007 to 120 in 2011.

Gun battles between rival TCOs or with Mexican authorities have taken place in towns and cities in many parts of Mexico, especially in the border region.  Gun battles have occurred in broad daylight on streets and in other public venues, such as restaurants and clubs.  During some of these incidents, U.S. citizens have been trapped and temporarily prevented from leaving the area.  TCOs use stolen cars and trucks to create roadblocks on major thoroughfares, preventing the military and police from responding to criminal activity.  The location and timing of future armed engagements is unpredictable.  We recommend that you defer travel to the areas indicated in this Travel Warning and to exercise extreme caution when traveling throughout the northern border region.

The rising number of kidnappings and disappearances throughout Mexico is of particular concern. Both local and expatriate communities have been victimized.  In addition, local police have been implicated in some of these incidents.  We strongly advise you to lower your profile and avoid displaying any evidence of wealth that might draw attention.

Carjacking and highway robbery are serious problems in many parts of the border region and U.S. citizens have been murdered in such incidents.  Most victims who complied with carjackers at these checkpoints have reported that they were not physically harmed.  Incidents have occurred during the day and at night, and carjackers have used a variety of techniques, including bumping/moving vehicles to force them to stop and running vehicles off the road at high speeds.  There are some indications that criminals have particularly targeted newer and larger vehicles, especially dark-colored SUVs.  However, victims driving a variety of vehicles, from late model SUVs to old sedans have also been targeted.  While violent incidents have occurred at all hours of the day and night on both modern toll ("cuotas") highways and on secondary roads, they have occurred most frequently at night and on isolated roads.  To reduce risk, we strongly urge you to travel between cities throughout Mexico only during daylight hours, to avoid isolated roads, and to use toll roads whenever possible.  The Mexican government has deployed federal police and military personnel throughout the country as part of its efforts to combat the TCOs.  U.S. citizens traveling on Mexican roads and highways may encounter government checkpoints, which are often staffed by military personnel or law enforcement personnel.  TCOs have erected their own unauthorized checkpoints, and killed or abducted motorists who have failed to stop at them.  You should cooperate at all checkpoints.

Effective July 15, 2010, the U.S. Mission in Mexico imposed restrictions on U.S. government employees' travel. U.S. government employees and their families are not permitted to drive for personal reasons from the U.S.-Mexico border to or from the interior of Mexico or Central America.  Personal travel by vehicle is permitted between Hermosillo and Nogales but is restricted to daylight hours and the Highway 15 toll road (cuota).

U.S. government personnel and their families are prohibited from personal travel to all areas described as “defer non-essential travel” and when travel for official purposes is essential it is conducted with extensive security precautions.  USG personnel and their families are allowed to travel for personal reasons to the areas where no advisory is in effect or where the advisory is to exercise caution.

For more information on road safety and crime along Mexico's roadways, see the Department of State's Country Specific Information.

State-by-State Assessment:

Below is a state-by-state assessment of security conditions throughout Mexico divided into northern and southern regions.  The accompanying map will help in identifying individual locations.  Travelers should be mindful that even if no advisories are in effect for a given state, crime and violence can occur anywhere.  For general information about travel conditions in Mexico, see our Country Specific Information.

Northern Mexico

Baja California (north): Tijuana is a major city/travel destination in the Northern portion of Baja California -see attached map to identify its exact location: You should exercise caution in the northern state of Baja California, particularly at night.  Targeted TCO assassinations continue to take place in Baja California.  Turf battles between criminal groups proliferated and resulted in numerous assassinations in areas of Tijuana frequented by U.S. citizens.  Shooting incidents, in which innocent bystanders have been injured, have occurred during daylight hours throughout the city.  In one such incident, an U.S. citizen was shot and seriously wounded.  According to the Government of Mexico, as of August 2011, the city’s murder rate was approximately 20 per 100,000.  During 2011, 34 U.S. citizens were the victims of homicide in the state.  In the majority of these cases, the killings appeared to be related to narcotics trafficking.

Baja California (South): Cabo San Lucas is a major city/travel destination in the Southern portion of Baja California -see map (PDF, 286 kb) to identify its exact location: No advisory is in effect.

15.  Chihuahua: Juarez and Chihuahua are the major cities/travel destinations in Chihuahua -see map (PDF, 286 kb) to identify their exact locations: You should defer non-essential travel to the state of Chihuahua.  The situation in the state of Chihuahua, specifically Ciudad Juarez, is of special concern.  Ciudad Juarez has one of the highest murder rates in Mexico.  The Mexican government reports that more than 3,100 people were killed in Ciudad Juarez in 2010 and 1,933 were killed in 2011.  Three persons associated with the Consulate General were murdered in March 2010. The state of Chihuahua is normally entered through Columbus, NM, and the El Paso, Fabens and Fort Hancock, TX, ports-of-entry.  There have been incidents of narcotics-related violence in the vicinity of the Copper Canyon in Chihuahua.

Coahuila: You should defer non-essential travel to the state of Coahuila.  The State of Coahuila continues to experience high rates of violent crimes and narcotics-related murders.  TCOs continue to compete for territory and coveted border crossings to the United States.  In August 2011, suspected members of TCOs and police exchange fire near a crowded soccer stadium in Torreón causing panic.  The city of Torreón had a murder rate of more than 40 per 100,000 population between January and August of 2011.  USG personnel may not frequent casinos, sport books, or other gambling establishments and adult entertainment establishments.

Durango: You should defer non-essential travel to the state of Durango.  Between 2006 and 2010, the number of narcotics-related murders in the State of Durango increased dramatically.  In 2011 several areas in the state continue to experience high rates of violence and remained volatile and unpredictable.  USG personnel may not frequent casinos, sport books, or other gambling establishments and adult entertainment establishments.

Nuevo Leon: Monterrey is a major city/travel destination in Nuevo Leon -see map (PDF, 286 kb) to identify its exact location: You should defer non-essential travel to the state of Nuevo Leon, except the metropolitan area of Monterrey where you should exercise caution.  The level of violence and insecurity in Monterrey has increased, illustrated by an attack on a popular local casino in August that resulted in 52 deaths.  One U.S. citizen was injured in that incident.  Local police and private patrols do not have the capacity to deter criminal elements or respond effectively to security incidents.  As a result of a Department of State assessment of the overall security situation, on September 10, 2010, the Consulate General in Monterrey became a partially unaccompanied post with no minor dependents of USG personnel permitted.  USG personnel serving at the U.S. Consulate General in Monterrey may not frequent casinos, sport books, or other gambling establishments and may not travel outside the San Pedro municipal boundaries between midnight and 6 a.m.  Although there have been no such incidents in 2011, in 2010 TCOs kidnapped guests out of reputable hotels in the downtown Monterrey area, blocking off adjoining streets to prevent law enforcement response.  TCOs have also regularly attacked local government facilities, prisons and police stations, and engaged in public shootouts with the military and between themselves.  TCOs have used vehicle born improvised explosive devices against military and law enforcement units.  Pedestrians and innocent bystanders have been killed in these incidents.

San Luis Potosi: You should defer non-essential travel to the state of San Luis Potosi, except the city of San Luis Potosi where you should exercise caution.  The entire stretch of highway 57D in San Luis Potosi and portions of the state east of highway 57D towards Tamaulipas are particularly dangerous.  In February 2011, one U.S. government employee was killed and another wounded when they were attacked in their U.S. government vehicle on Highway 57 near Santa Maria del Rio.  Cartel violence and highway lawlessness are a continuing security concern.  USG personnel may not frequent casinos, sport books, or other gambling establishments and adult entertainment establishments.

Sinaloa: Mazatlan is a major city/travel destination in Sinaloa -see map (PDF, 286 kb) to identify its exact location: You should defer non-essential travel to the state of Sinaloa except the city of Mazatlan where you should exercise caution particularly late at night and in the early morning.  One of Mexico's most powerful TCOs is based in the state of Sinaloa.  With the exception of Ciudad Juarez, since 2006 more homicides have occurred in the state's capital city of Culiacan than in any other city in Mexico.  Travel off the toll roads in remote areas of Sinaloa is especially dangerous and should be avoided.  In the last year, the city of Mazatlan has experienced a level of violence (primarily confrontations between TCOs) not seen before and incidents of violence are occurring more frequently in tourist areas.  USG personnel are permitted to travel between the Mazatlan airport and the tourist areas only during daylight hours.  We recommend that any other travel in Mazatlan be limited to the tourist areas (Zona Dorada and the historic town center).  In 2010 there were over 300 narcotics-related murders within the city, compared to fewer than 100 in 2009.  In the first seven months of 2011, there were 300 narcotics-related murders.

Sonora: Nogales and Puerto Peñasco are the major cities/travel destinations in Sonora -see map (PDF, 286 kb) to identify their exact locations: You should defer non-essential travel between the city of Nogales and the cities of Sonoyta and Caborca (which area also includes the smaller cities of Saric, Tubutama, and Altar), defer non-essential travel to the eastern edge of the State of Sonora which borders the State of Chihuahua (all points along that border east of the northern city of Agua Prieta and the southern town of Alamos), defer non-essential travel within the state south of the city of Ciudad Obregon with the exception of travel to Alamos (traveling only during daylight hours and using only the Highway 15 toll road, aka cuota, and Sonora State Road 162), and exercise caution when visiting the coastal town of Puerto Peñasco.  Sonora is a key region in the international drug and human trafficking trades, and can be extremely dangerous for travelers.  The region west of Nogales, east of Sonoyta, and from Caborca north, including the towns of Saric, Tubutama and Altar, and the eastern edge of Sonora bordering Chihuahua, are known centers of illegal activity.  U.S. citizens visiting Puerto Peñasco are urged to use the Lukeville, Arizona/Sonoyta, Sonora border crossing, in order to limit driving through Mexico, and to limit travel to main roads during daylight hours.

Tamaulipas: Matamoros, Nuevo Laredo, Reynosa, and Tampico are the major cities/travel destinations in Tamaulipas -see map (PDF, 286 kb) to identify their exact locations: You should defer non-essential travel to the state of Tamaulipas.  All USG employees are: prohibited from personal travel on Tamaulipas highways outside of Matamoros, Reynosa and Nuevo Laredo due to the risks posed by armed robbery and carjacking; may not frequent casinos and adult entertainment establishments within these cities; and in Matamoros are subject to a midnight to 6 a.m. curfew.  Be aware of the risks posed by armed robbery and carjacking on state highways throughout Tamaulipas.  In January 2011, a U.S. citizen was murdered in what appears to have been a failed carjacking attempt.  While no highway routes through Tamaulipas are considered safe, many of the crimes reported to the U.S. Consulate General in Matamoros have taken place along the Matamoros-Tampico highway, particularly around San Fernando and the area north of Tampico.

Zacatecas:You should defer non-essential travel to the state of Zacatecas except the city of Zacatecas where you should exercise caution.  The regions of the state bordering Durango and Coahuila as well as the cities of Fresnillo and Fresnillo-Sombrete and surrounding area are particularly dangerous.  The northwestern portion of the state of Zacatecas has become notably dangerous and insecure.  Robberies and carjackings are occurring with increased frequency and both local authorities and residents have reported a surge in observed TCO activity.  This area is remote, and local authorities are unable to regularly patrol it or quickly respond to incidents that occur there.  Gun battles between criminal groups and authorities occur in the area of the state bordering the state of Jalisco.  There have also been reports of roadblocks and false checkpoints on highways between the states of Zacatecas and Jalisco.  The  city of Fresnillo, the area extending northwest from Fresnillo along Highway 45 (Fresnillo-Sombrete) between Highways 44 and 49, and highway 49 northwards from Fresnillo through Durango and in to Chihuahua are considered dangerous.  Extreme caution should be taken when traveling in the remainder of the state.  USG personnel may not frequent casinos, sport books, or other gambling establishments and adult entertainment establishments.  USG personnel may not travel outside the City of Zacatecas after dark and must abide by a curfew of midnight to 6 a.m. within a secured venue.

Southern Mexico

Aguascalientes: You should defer non-essential travel to the areas of the state that border the state of Zacatecas.  The security situation along the Zacatecas border continues to be unstable and gun battles between criminal groups and authorities occur.  Concerns include roadblocks placed by individuals posing as police or military personnel and recent gun battles between rival TCOs involving automatic weapons.

Campeche: No advisory is in effect.

Chiapas: San Cristobal de las Casas is a major city/travel destination in Chiapas -see map (PDF, 286 kb) to identify its exact location: No advisory is in effect.

Colima: Manzanillo is a major city/travel destination in Colima -see map (PDF, 286 kb) to identify its exact location: You should exercise extreme caution when traveling through the areas of the state of Colima that border the state of Michoacán.  You should also exercise caution when traveling at night outside of cities in the remaining portions of the state.  The security situation along the Michoacán border continues to be unstable and gun battles between criminal groups and authorities occur.  Concerns include roadblocks placed by individuals posing as police or military personnel and recent gun battles between rival TCOs involving automatic weapons.

Estado de Mexico: Toluca is a major city/travel destination in Estado de Mexico -see map (PDF, 286 kb) to identify its exact location: No advisory is in effect.

Guanajuato: San Miguel de Allende and Leon are the major cities/travel destinations in Guanajuato -see map (PDF, 286 kb) to identify their exact locations: No advisory is in effect.

Guerrero: Acapulco, Ixtapa, Zihuatanejo and Taxco are the major cities/travel destinations in Guerrero -see map (PDF, 286 kb) to identify their exact locations: You should defer non-essential travel to the northwestern and southern portions of the state (the area west and south of the town of Arcelia on the border with Estado de Mexico in the north and the town of Tlapa near the border with Oaxaca), except for the cities of Acapulco, Zihuatanejo, and Ixtapa.  In those cities, you should exercise caution and stay within tourist areas.  You should also exercise caution and travel only during daylight hours on highway 95D (cuota/toll road) between Mexico City and Acapulco and highway 200 between Acapulco and Zihuatanejo/Ixtapa.  In Acapulco, defer non-essential travel to areas further than 2 blocks inland of the Costera Miguel Aleman Boulevard, which parallels the popular beach areas.  In general, the popular tourist area of Diamante, just south of the city, has been less affected by violence.  Flying into the coastal cities in southern Guerrero remains the preferred method of travel.  You should also exercise caution in the northern region of Guerrero (the area north of the town of Arcelia on the border with Estado de Mexico in the north and the town of Tlapa near the border with Oaxaca).  The state of Guerrero has seen an increase in violence among rival criminal organizations.  Acapulco's murder rates increased dramatically since 2009; in response, the Government of Mexico has sent additional military and federal police to the state to assist State security forces in implementing operation  “Guerrero Seguro” (Secure Guerrero) that focuses on combating organized crime and returning security to the environs of popular tourist areas.

Hidalgo: No advisory is in effect.

Jalisco Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta are the major cities/travel destinations in Jalisco -see map (PDF, 286 kb) to identify their exact locations: You should defer non-essential travel to areas of the state that border the states of Michoacán and Zacatecas.  You should also exercise caution when traveling at night outside of cities in the remaining portions of this state.  The security situation along the Michoacán and Zacatecas borders continues to be unstable and gun battles between criminal groups and authorities occur.  Concerns include roadblocks placed by individuals posing as police or military personnel and recent gun battles between rival TCOs involving automatic weapons.

Mexico City (also known as the Federal District): No advisory is in effect.

Michoacán: Morelia is a major city/travel destination in Michoacán -see map (PDF, 286 kb) to identify its exact location: You should defer non-essential travel to the state of Michoacán except the cities of Morelia and Lázaro Cardenas where you should exercise caution.  Flying into Morelia and Lázaro Cardenas, or driving to Lázaro Cardenas via highway 200 from Zihuatanejo/Ixtapa, are the recommended methods of travel.  Attacks on Mexican government officials, law enforcement and military personnel, and other incidents of TCO-related violence, have occurred throughout Michoacán.

Morelos: Cuernavaca is a major city/travel destination in Morelos -see map (PDF, 286 kb) to identify its exact location: You should exercise caution in the state of Morelos due to the unpredictable nature of TCO violence.  Numerous incidents of narcotics-related violence have occurred in the city of Cuernavaca, a popular destination for U.S. students.

Nayarit: You should defer non-essential travel to all areas of the state of Nayarit north of the city of Tepic as well as to the cities of Tepic and Xalisco.  The security situation north of Tepic and in these cities is unstable and travelers could encounter roadblocks or shootouts between rival criminals.  There is no recommendation against travel either to Riviera Nayarit in the southern portion of the state or to principal highways in the southern portion of the state used to travel from Guadalajara to Puerto Vallarta.

Oaxaca: Oaxaca, Huatulco and Puerto Escondido are the major cities/travel destinations in Oaxaca -see map (PDF, 286 kb) to identify their exact locations: No warning is in effect.

Puebla: No advisory is in effect.

Queretaro: No advisory is in effect.

Quintana Roo: Cancun, Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, Riviera Maya and Tulum are the major cities/travel destinations in Quintana Roo -see map (PDF, 286 kb) to identify their exact locations: No advisory is in effect.

Tabasco: Villahermosa is a major city/travel destination in Tabasco -see map (PDF, 286 kb) to identify its exact location: No advisory is in effect.

Tlaxcala: No advisory is in effect.

Veracruz: You should exercise caution when traveling in the state of Veracruz.  In recent months, the state of Veracruz has seen an increase in violence among rival criminal organizations.  In response, the Government of Mexico has sent additional military and federal police to the state to assist State security forces in implementing operation “Veracruz Seguro” (Secure Veracruz) that focuses on combating organized crime.

Yucatan: Merida and Chichen Itza are the major cities/travel destinations in Yucatan -see map (PDF, 286 kb) to identify its exact location: No advisory is in effect.

Further Information

We encourage you to review the U.S. Embassy's Mexico Security Update.  The update contains information about recent security incidents in Mexico that could affect the safety of the traveling public.  For more detailed information on staying safe in Mexico, please see the State Department's Country Specific Information for Mexico.

For the latest security information, U.S. citizens traveling abroad should regularly monitor the State Department's internet web site, where the current Worldwide Caution, Travel Warnings, and Travel Alerts can be found.  Follow us on Twitter and the Bureau of Consular Affairs page on Facebook as well.  Up-to-date information on security can also be obtained by calling             1-888-407-4747       toll free in the United States and Canada or, for callers outside the United States and Canada, a regular toll line at             001-202-501-4444      .  These numbers are available from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday (except U.S. federal holidays).  U.S. citizens traveling or residing overseas are encouraged to enroll with the State Department's Smart Traveler Enrollment Program.  For any emergencies involving U.S. citizens in Mexico, please contact the U.S. Embassy or the closest U.S. Consulate (see list below).  The numbers provided below for the Embassy and Consulates are available around the clock.  The U.S. Embassy is located in Mexico City at Paseo de la Reforma 305, Colonia Cuauhtemoc, telephone from the United States: 011-52-55-5080-2000; telephone within Mexico City: 5080-2000; telephone long distance within Mexico 01-55-5080-2000.  U.S. citizens may also contact the Embassy by e-mail.

Consulates (with consular districts

Ciudad Juarez (Chihuahua): Paseo de la Victoria 3650, telephone (011) (52) (656) 227-3000. Facebook& Twitter

Guadalajara (Nayarit, Jalisco, Aguas Calientes, and Colima): Progreso 175, Col. Americana; telephone (011) (52) (333) 268-2100. Facebook& Twitter

Hermosillo (Sinaloa and the southern part of Sonora): Calle Monterrey 141 Poniente, Col. Esqueda; telephone (011) (52) (662) 289-3500. Facebook

Matamoros (the southern part of Tamaulipas with the exception of the city of Tampico): Avenida Primera 2002 y Azaleas; telephone (011) (52) (868) 812-4402.Facebook& Twitter

Merida (Campeche, Yucatan, and Quintana Roo): Calle 60 No. 338 K x 29 y 31, Col. Alcala Martin; telephone (011) (52) (999) 942-5700.

Monterrey (Nuevo Leon, Durango, Zacatecas, San Luis Potosi, and the southern part of Coahuila): Avenida Constitucion 411 Poniente; telephone (011) (52) (818) 047-3100. Facebook & Twitter

Nogales (the northern part of Sonora): Calle San Jose, Fraccionamiento “Los Alamos”; telephone (011) (52) (631) 311-8150. Facebook

Nuevo Laredo (the northern part of Coahuila and the northwestern part of Tamaulipas): Calle Allende 3330, Col. Jardin; telephone (011) (52) (867) 714-0512.

Tijuana (Baja California Norte and Baja California Sur): Paseo de Las Culturas s/n Mesa de Otay; telephone (011) (52) (664) 977-2000. Facebook

All other Mexican states, the Federal District of Mexico City, and the city of Tampico, Tamaulipas, are part of the Embassy's consular district.

Consular Agencies (mainly serving the location city only)

Acapulco: Hotel Emporio, Costera Miguel Aleman 121 – Suite 14; telephone (011)(52)(744) 481-0100 or (011)(52)(744) 484-0300.

Los Cabos: Las Tiendas de Palmilla Local B221, Carretera Transpeninsular Km. 27.5, San José del Cabo, BCS, Mexico 23406 Telephone: (624) 143-3566 Fax: (624) 143-6750.

Cancun: Blvd. Kukulcan Km 13 ZH Torre La Europea, Despacho 301 Cancun, Quintana Roo, Mexico C.P. 77500; telephone (011)(52)(998) 883-0272.

Cozumel: Plaza Villa Mar en El Centro, Plaza Principal, (Parque Juárez between Melgar and 5th Ave.) 2nd floor, Locales #8 and 9; telephone (011)(52)(987) 872-4574.

Ixtapa/Zihuatanejo: Hotel Fontan, Blvd. Ixtapa; telephone (011)(52)(755) 553-2100.

Mazatlan: Hotel Playa Mazatlán, Playa Gaviotas 202, Zona Dorada; telephone (011)(52)(669) 916-5889.

Oaxaca: Macedonio Alcala No. 407, Interior 20; telephone (011)(52)(951)514-3054 or (011)(52)(951) 516-2853.

Piedras Negras: Abasolo 211, Local 3, Col. Centro; telephone (011)(52)(878) 782-5586 or (011)(52)(878) 782-8664.

Playa del Carmen: The Palapa, Calle 1 Sur, between Avenida 15 and Avenida 20; telephone (011)(52)(984) 873-0303.

Puerto Vallarta: Paseo de Los Cocoteros 85 Sur, Paradise Plaza – Local L-7, Nuevo Vallarta, Nayarit C.P.; telephone (011)(52)(322) 222-0069.

Reynosa: Calle Emilio Portes Gil #703, Col. Prado Sur; telephone: (011)(52) (899)-921-6530

San Luis Potosi: Edificio "Las Terrazas", Avenida Venustiano Carranza 2076-41, Col. Polanco; telephone (011)(52)(444) 811-7802 or (011)(52)(444) 811-7803.

San Miguel de Allende: Centro Comercial La Luciernaga, Libramiento Manuel Zavala (Pepe KBZON), telephone (011)(52)(415) 152-2357.

The last thing you want to do before a national election is pick a fight with a major section of your own base which is a bit skeptical about you anyway. Giving them a reason to turn on ObamaCare and the administration was the dumbest thing possible. And it happened because the people running things did not understand it would happen. They assumed that they could put on their paternalistic attitude, smile dismissively, spin up some talking points and everyone would go along.

This stupidity is our best hope. If the Republican Party establishment insists on arrogantly making a mess of things, the Obama Administration's arrogance and heavy-handedness exceeds their own and may succeed in the battle of alienation.

ISLAM'S GROUNDHOG DAY 

Groundhog Day is the long eternal tragedy of Islam, which always sees its shadow and always ends up with six weeks, six months or six hundred years of more winter. That hopeful time when the bitter cold of winter begins its slow transition into the warmth and renewal of spring never comes for Islam.

In a reversal of the cycle of season, the Arab Spring led to the Islamic Winter, but that is the endless pattern of Islamic attempts at reform and rejuvenation, which rather than finding renewal in their attempts at transformation only go on perpetuating the same cycle of violence, tyranny and oppression.

There is a peculiar tragedy to a religion which cannot escape its own destructive nature, each time it reaches for some form of redemption, its hands come up dripping with blood and it all ends in more bodies and petty tyrannies.

The full article is up at Front Page Magazine

GET YOUR WAR ON

If you tune in to CNN you can see footage of adorable Syrian children, as reported by Anderson Cooper. Because we've got to get our war on in Syria and liberate the Syrian people on behalf of the Muslim Brotherhood. No adorable Christian children need be shown because we might have to think about what's going to happen to them once the funloving Religion of Peace is in the driver's seat.

Copts in the village of Kobry-el-Sharbat (El-Ameriya), Alexandria, were attacked on January 27 by a mob of 3000 Muslims led by Salafi leaders, who looted and torched homes and shops belonging to Copts. 

Three "reconciliation meetings" were held at the El-Ameriya village police headquarters. They were attended by Salafi and Muslim Brotherhood representatives from neighboring villages, as well as church representative. Muslims demanded the eviction of all Coptic inhabitants from the village because "Muslim honour had been damaged."

That's what's going to happen to them. The Obama Administration is bent on this, but they don't particularly want to do the heavy lifting. Which makes it more likely that the Turks, the Saudis and some others will contribute the troops, while the United States acts as the air force for the Muslim Brotherhood one more time.

AKP's sleazy Islamist Foreign Minister is meeting with Clinton to discuss the next "steps" and it's clear that Turkey would like to be at the center of a coalition to take down Assad. The euphemism will be "Friends of Syria", because nothing says friendship like an invasion.

I WAS A MAINSTREAM MEDIA REPORTER BUT I BROKE FREE

Can anyone imagine seeing a headline like, "I was a Sunni Muslim but I broke free" in any mainstream American newspaper today? Nope.

But you can see a headline like "I was a Hasidic Jew - but I broke free‎" in the Post. Now if we are to have "I was a Jew, but I broke free" articles, then we should at the very least have equal time for, "I was a Muslim but I broke free" articles.

It's not too hard to break out of being a religious Jew. You just stop. Nobody beheads you or kidnaps you and ships you to Pakistan. Breaking out of being a Muslim is a good deal harder as plenty of Ex-Muslims can tell you.

Peculiarly though the media will not pay any attention to Ibn Warraq or to the victims of Muslim honor killings, but street trash like Deborah Feldman looking to find a book deal can always get media coverage.

Deborah Feldman claims that Jews are no better than Muslim "extremists" and while I'm no fan of the community she was a part of, she could leave. She doesn't have to look over her shoulders waiting for a cousin or brother to come up and kill her. The women who actually do have to live like that can't get book deals or the media coverage she laps up.

Jews and Christians who leave their religion bask in the adoring attention of a media which loves to portray those religions in the blackest colors. But when it comes to Islam, the only coverage allowed is the positive kind.

What's really repulsive is that the blurb for Deborah Feldman's book actually dares to compare this  Satmar version of Snooki, with about the same IQ, to Ayaan Hirsi Ali’s Infidel.

Ali has actually taken risks for what she believed in. Feldman grew up in a broken family and deciding she wanted the party life broke up her marriage. She's more qualified to be on the Jersey Shore than to write a memoir about her "struggle".  If you're an Orthodox Jew and you decide not be one anymore, your only challenge is shopping for new clothes. If you're a Muslim and you decide to opt out, then you are endangering your life.

Today Ali needs bodyguards. Feldman needs PR agents. The difference between the two tells you all you need to know about the reality of Islam and the contempt in which Western elites hold traditional religion while embracing Islam.

THE CHUTZPAH OF OMAR THE BOYCOTT MAKER

The classical definition of the Yiddish word Chutzpah is a man on trial for killing his parents who asks for leniency because he is an orphan. Next to that definition is a picture of Omar Barghouti, a Qatari-born Muslim who moved to Israel and enrolled in Tel Aviv University to obtain a Masters Degree in Philosophy while conducting an academic boycott campaign against Israel.

See the full article at Front Page Magazine

LOOSE LIPS

There was still some ambiguity after Panetta's statement on the Iran window what the Obama Admin was up to, that ambiguity is all but gone after anonymous "officials" appeared to have hand fed NBC news a story that claims Israel is working with the MEK Iranian group to assassinate Iranian nuclear gurus.

This is straight up sabotage and a warning that the Obama Administration will keep on leaking information to damage any Israeli action against Iran unless Israel falls into line. Considering the operational necessities of launching an attack and the level of US surveillance, O and his cronies can do a lot to inhibit and even cost lives in an attack on Iran.

This should also settle any further rumors that bombing Iran is an election strategy for Obama. That couldn't be further away from the truth. 

The Obama Administration's sabotage is all the more obnoxious after it threw a hissy fit because Russia and China wouldn't let it go after Syria. So war with Syria on behalf of the Muslim Brotherhood, yes. Allowing Israel to take out Iran's nuclear program, no. Sabotaging Israeli efforts to go it alone, also yes. 

Israel had to inform the United States of what it was doing as part of the process of cooperation, though considering the MEK's presence in Iraq, it is extremely doubtful that the United States had no involvement in this, under the previous administration or even the current one. 

While there is no independent verification of this story, it is far more plausible than the nonsense peddled by the mainstream media about Mossad agents running around Tehran. I have suggested all along that Israeli and American backed Iranian dissidents were responsible. But it doesn't take much to reach that conclusion.

After the Iranian backed Iraqi PM's MEK massacre and the US withdrawal, the MEK would need backers more urgently. Its position in Iraq is precarious and while its people have refugee status, nobody is going to protect them from Maliki's thugs. The Ashraf\Liberty situation is ugly and the MEK certainly has no sympathy from the Obama Administration. Not unless MEK was willing to hit Syria.

The ideology wouldn't really matter. The region is full of militias willing to ally with anyone on a temporary basis if it gets them money and advances their agenda. That's what keeps Afghanistan and Iraq where it is. And MEK is "unusual" enough that just about anything could be expected. But none of that means it's actually true.

Iran's claim that this is an MEK-Israel plot is convenient, but this is a region where every Muslim state or party accuses its enemies of working with Israel. During the Arab Spring, both governments and rebels accused each other of being pawns of Israel. Iran would like to delegitimize the MEK and justify further crackdowns by Maliki. This is the best way to do it.

The Pre-Tehran arm of the American left has been pushing the same line for a while, tying the MEK to some Republican officials who have at times supported it as a foil against Iran. The NBC article even looks like it was written by ThinkProgress with the same talking points.

It doesn't really matter though who's pulling the trigger. The assassinations are a sideshow that aren't going to stop the nuclear program. Israel is now on its own moving toward a direct strike method, while Obama tries to hold it back.

Defense Minister Barak, formerly a darling of the Clintonites in the Obama Administration, is on the outs after having strongly endorsed a strike. How bad is it? So bad that Administration handlers are now pushing the message that Netanyahu is the reasonable party who needs to keep Barak in hand. 

The following excerpt from the New York Times, a reliable administration organ sets the tone

President Obama tried to defuse arguments for military action in a telephone call last month with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, the substance of which was confirmed by an Obama administration official who spoke only on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to describe the conversation. While the two men have had an often contentious relationship over Middle East diplomacy, American officials emerged from that exchange persuaded that Mr. Netanyahu was willing to give economic sanctions and other steps time to work.

Which is the tune that was played all along. Give us more time till Iran has a nuke.

a senior Obama administration official, expressing frustration that the Israelis are looking at the problem too narrowly, given the many kinds of pressure being placed on Tehran and the increasing evidence that far tougher sanctions are having an effect.

Ah yes too narrowly, instead of taking the "broader view", which all comes out to not enough nuance. Which is a good summary of liberal foreign policy.

Administration officials cite this more complex picture in pressing the Israelis to give the latest sanctions a chance to inflict enough pain on the Iranian leadership to force it back to the negotiating table, or to make the decision that the nuclear program is not worth the cost.

Just like North Korea. And here we go...

Administration officials also noted a distinction in the tone of Mr. Barak and Mr. Netanyahu, who does not publicly favor the phrase “zone of immunity.” This week, an American official noted, Mr. Netanyahu declared that on the topic of Iran, officials should just “shut up.”

“I think that’s good advice,” the American official said.

Yes I'm sure administration officials are big fans of Israel shutting up about Iran, but then shouldn't they be shutting up about Israeli plans for Iran?

NUDGES

The creepy social engineering innovations that you'll see tomorrow are being tested in Europe today. So here's a sample of what you can look forward to. 

Mr Halpern is director of Downing Street's behavioural "nudge unit". It advises government on ways to encourage people to change behaviour, without using compulsion. The approach is based on a school of thought that "nudging" people in a certain direction is more productive and cost-effective than trying to change behaviour by banning things or passing regulation.

So where is the UK "nudging" people now?

Mr Halpern said Britain faced a shortage of housing, partly because elderly people remained in family homes after their children left. “A big issue we have is under-occupation of houses,” he said. “We have more TVs than people in the house.” 

Officials also denied Mr Halpern was urging elderly people to down size after he told the conference that “we do have enough houses… it is just essentially they are lived in by older people”.

A report last year suggested there were 25 million empty bedrooms in the country. Ministers were urged to draw up proposals to encourage elderly couples to downsize and create more affordable family homes. The Government has recently backed council schemes that help pensioners move into smaller properties and rent out their family homes.

Sic transit.

BUT JEWISH REPORTERS CAN BE ANTI-ISRAEL TOO

CNN's Israel bureau is downsizing, reportedly to cope with a reduced budget due to falling advertising revenues.

That doesn't explain why they fired four Israeli Jewish journalists (out of a crew of 8), and retained only Arab journalists. The local chief editor of CNN is now an Arab.

This is blatantly unfair considering how hard Jewish CNN reporters have worked on smearing Israel. This discrimination fails to take into account how hard reporters like Joshua Hammer, Joe Klein and Peter Beinart have worked at proving that they hate Israel more than any Muslim does.

No one denies that Muslims really hate Israel, but I would urge CNN to remember that while hating Israel may be a qualification for working at CNN or in any mainstream media organization

THE ROUNDUP

The obsessive compulsive narcissism of Barry

What will European Sharia law look like? You're already seeing it now.

As larger and larger urban areas become Islamized (and it is happening very quickly), shari'a will not need to come in from above, through the traditional processes of legislation. Rather, it will come in from below, from people willing to enforce it and profit from it, and from the fact that the ethnic-European police will not even enter a lot of those neighborhoods.

So we are talking about de-facto City States, not de jure Nation States, going Islamic. That seems like an incontrovertible trend to me, and I would love to see any evidence pointing away from this reality. The nation state as a model will become increasingly unimportant, I project, as Western Civilization continues to decline, and the Islamic cultures overcome the sterile remains of the Englihtenment.

The entire piece is a good assessment of the trajectory of the process. Londonistan made real.

How big is that jobs deficit anyway?

According to the US Debt Clock Time Machine, in the period from 2000-2004, we gained about 10 million in population and 4 million in the workforce -- that is, for every new person in the population, we gained four tenths of a person in the workforce.

Now here's what worries me. From 2008-2012 we gained 9.5 million in population. Supposing an "average" gain in the workforce of about five tenths or 50%, we should have seen the workforce grow by 4 or 5 million. Right? But instead, the workforce SHRANK by nearly 5 million.

If it should have grown by 5 million and instead shrank by 5 million, aren't we looking at a deficit of 10 MILLION JOBS?

The Arab Spring comes to Sydney.

Showdown in Georgia

It's not easy being a Black Conservative.

It's getting harder to deny anymore...even as my adult, grownup brain wants to disdain the idea—actual evil seems to be afoot in the world, and its guise is becoming ever more clear.

Decoding the code

Islamonausea: It's the new human condition.

Veteran discrimination

The lost art of raking up profits

I decided long ago to end the shameful practice of begging on my property.  First, I never allowed my own kids to raise funds this way.  Second, every time a tot or teenager arrived on my doorstep, he was given a choice.

My pitch was simple; I'd say, "Look, I don't need or want what you are selling.  But I understand that your teacher wants you to raise money for your class project/field trip/whatever, and I'd like to help.  There's a rake in my garage, and I'll pay you ten dollars in cash if you work in my yard for one hour.  You can give the money to your school, or you can keep it for yourself.

Only one ever took me up on my offer

From NY to Jerusalem, Daniel Greenfield Covers the Stories Behind the News

“CPAC 2012 ‘Fight Club’ Debate’ Featuring Tucker Carlson and Paul Begala

Participants:

Tucker Carlson in the Right Corner

As a contributor to FOX News, the editor-in-chief of the Daily Caller news site and a senior fellow at the Cato Institute, Tucker Carlson deconstructs the day's events with wry skepticism, a unique perspective and provocative interviews. Carlson has hosted a number of different nightly news programs on various networks over the past 10 years, including CNN's Crossfire, and several shows on MSNBC and PBS. One of the media's wittiest and most entertaining commentators, Carlson brings his informed viewpoint to discuss politics in America including his take on the divided Congress, the administration of Barack Obama and the 2012 elections.

Paul Begala in the Left Corner

is a Democratic strategist who serves as a political contributor for CNN, appearing frequently on CNN's The Situation Room as well as other programs on all CNN networks. Begala was formerly co-host of Crossfire, CNN's political debate program. Begala first entered the national political scene after the consulting firm he and fellow Democratic strategist James Carville started, Carville & Begala, helped President Bill Clinton get elected in 1992. Serving in the Clinton administration as counselor to the president, he was a close adviser to Clinton and helped define and defend the administration's agenda, serving as a principal public spokesman.·

Every year, the ACU brings thousands of grassroots conservatives and conservative leaders together in Washington, DC for three days of blockbuster speeches, policy discussions and networking opportunities – all celebrating the shared principles of smaller government, a strong national defense and traditional values. Based on this year’s theme, “We STILL Hold These Truths”, CPAC 2012 will feature grassroots training and strategizing to strengthen the conservative movement and ensure conservatives have the resources and tools necessary to defeat the Obama agenda in November.  The full agenda is now available online at www.cpac.org.

The American Conservative Union is America’s oldest and largest grassroots conservative organization and was founded in 1964. The ACU has hosted CPAC in the Nation’s Capital since 1973.  To view CPAC 2012 online, please visit www.cpac.org.

How screwy can all this get? Today, February 7th 2012, Benjamin Bernanke in front of a Senate panel stated, "Since I have been in office the American inflation rate has been steady from between 1-1/2% to 2%." That's right, Ben. Just keep letting your chauffer fill the gas tank and your cook do the shopping and buy your clothes in Hong Kong while indirectly billing it all to the taxpayers, and you can keep up this charade indefinitely. The really sad matter relating to this is that not one of the over 15 Senators in the hearing challenged Bernanke's pronouncements.

The fact of the matter is that the government has turned into the largest lie-promoting facility in the world. And let us be clear. It makes no difference which of the two clubs is in power, the end result always being identical. Inflation in the immediate past has been 10% in 2009, 12% in 2010 and 12% in 2011 and will be 15% in 2012. Removing the cost of fuel and food from the statistically produced government-reported information makes it all worthless.

Every time the FRS expands the fiat money supply inflation jumps. This does not bode well for the strength of the dollar, which has actually been falling for the last ten years. As the value of the dollar declines prices of everything you buy not domestically produced, which is almost everything, rises in cost. The buying power of your individual income in fixed dollar valuation of 1950 has fallen every year for the last 62 years. When your author lived in NYC in 1952 movies (always a double-feature) cost 75 cents, a cup of coffee was a nickel, a new Chevy was $1,400 and a one-family home cost 9 to 14 thousand dollars.

Why would the Department of Labor produce any more realistic data than the FRS? They, in fact, play the same silly game – this time, just as before – for the benefit of the progressives who want to keep their gratuitous jobs in Washington. They are now reporting the unemployment level as 8.4%, which is so utterly ridiculous that not even 4th graders believe it. Here again, by simply refusing to count all those who fell off the benefits wagon – well, you know what I mean; those whose unemployment benefits have expired – not counting those entering the labor market, those no longer looking for employment and those forced to take jobs at much lower income, they have succeeded in underreporting national unemployment statistics that actually are (according to ShadowStats.com) 24.4% as of 02.02.12 – which, by the way, is identical to the "Great Depression" peak in 1933. By the way, that's not even counting the over 30% of teenagers, blacks and Hispanics. The government-issued numbers do make Obama and Congress look the heroes!

Budgets, as produced, and proposed budget cuts by Congress are always quoted as 'over the next ten years.' Since congressional spending is never planned longer than three years, this is just another load of BS. This is more smoke and mirrors accounting through which any budget cuts are transferred to Never Never Land while the smoke and mirrors fantasy just continues.

In fact, Congress, whatever they tell you, has not cut one single penny in spending for the 2011 and the 2012 budget years. It is obvious even to people with minimal education that you cannot continue spending money that you borrow. Today our government borrows 43 cents of every dollar that it spends. This borrowing increases the national debt and transfers our outlays to our children and grandchildren while further eroding the value of the dollar, making everything more expensive.

In foreign trade through the enactment of "Free Trade" policies – NAFTA, CAFTA, WTO and GATT and our latest fiasco of a free trade deal with Panama, Columbia and South Korea – we have produced ever-growing trade deficits for the last 20 years. The American trade balance has not been balanced since the '60s; today the trade deficit is about $817 billion every year. With NAFTA, our annual trade with Mexico went from a $5.7 billion surplus to a $67 billion deficit in just ten years (2002 to 2012). In the meantime these trade policies have lost us 10 million manufacturing jobs, the highest paid blue-collar jobs in America, and 40,000 manufacturing enterprises. If you buy more than you sell every year – and are now close to approaching buying one trillion dollars more than you sell – you will shortly go belly up.

The end of the dollar as the world's reserve currency is at hand. We would expect this to take place before the 2012 election or very shortly thereafter. Once the dollar ceases to be the international reserve currency we will be unable to continue this game. To verify that inevitability we have noted that Russia, China, Japan and India have been dramatically reducing their American debt holdings in the last six months.

But the worst will be that we will have to provide actual value for what we (you and I) are nationally purchasing. Let us be very clear. We are at the present time buying foreign goods at 60 cents to the dollar. This is because our government continues to put forth statistical information that is bogus, while the money we borrow (40 cents on the dollar) is not part of the statistical information. While the purchase power of the dollar has fallen 97% since 1913 the real plummet only began after Richard Nixon took us off gold conversion. With one "Quantitative Easing" after another, dollar value has fallen dramatically. Then, when in March 2009 the Fed suspended reporting the M-3 money supply, all bets were off. You see, the M-3 statistic factually reported the amount of new money pumped into the existing dollar pool in circulation. Without that information all dollar valuation is simply conjecture.

Now, let us understand one thing clearly: The people doing this are the international banksters with the able aid of the politicians and the passive acquiescence of the media. If you voted for a Republocrat in the last election you have no one to blame save yourself.

SOURCE: Daily Bell

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