Saturday, May 31, 2008

Three Cheers for Vaclav Klaus

Of course, it would take a resident of a former communist country to point out the obvious similarities between the modern environmental movement and Marxist-Leninism. But this essay is a must read!

It is a stark reminder that the green movement is a watermellon: green on the outside and red on the inside.

EU Referrendum in Ireland

Voters in Ireland have an opportunity to vote on ratifying the Treaty of Lisbon on June 12. This would integrate Ireland under Brussel's control. As it has been in other countries, all the political parties are in favor of this, but it still looks possible that it could go down in flames.

The Irish would do well to cherish their hard won independence and vote "no". A yes vote would in all likelihood result in the Celtic tiger being bogged down in high taxes, excessive regulation, and a flood of immigrant - stagnating wages and the economy. On top of that, an unresponsive Brussels would dictate by fiat the end the Irish identity.

Look across the Irish Sea at Britain: do you want that kind of decay at home?

Sunday, May 18, 2008

Stupid ideas week

It appears that this past week has been ripe with stupid decisions. For example:
  1. The EPA has ruled the Polar Bear is a threatened species. This is a back door implementation of Kyoto in the U.S., as almost any project can now be challenged by tree huggers by stating that any greenhouse gas emmisions anywhere in the U.S. threaten the polar bear. Never mind the dubious science, just think of the costs that consumers will pay as any electric plant, refinery, factory, oil platorm, aggregate plant will now have millions in compliance costs from lawsuits. Hugh Hewitt has more on this.
  2. A Canadian court has delayed the Kearl oil sands development by Imperial Oil, citing environmental concerns. This will ensure that energy independence will be a pipe dream without a significant decline in standards of living. The hypocricy of the left on this matter, who decry high energy prices while doing everything in their power to prevent practical solutions.
  3. The U.S. House of Representatives passed a pork laden farm bill, providing billions of dollars of subsidies to millionaire farmers during times of record crop prices. This is a bill that should be vetoed, as it takes tax monies from American families to subsidize millionaires while doing nothing to address rising food costs.
If I didn't know better, it is the 1970's redux. Seems like it only takes elected officials 25 years to ignore the errors of the past. I'm waiting for WIN (Whip Inflation Now) buttons, price controls, gas lines, pet rocks, and disco to come back.

Tuesday, May 06, 2008

Hitchens on the Obama two-fer

Christopher Hitchens asks a pertinent question: with Barrack and Michelle Obama, are we getting another two-for-the-price-of-one deal like the Clintons? He digs into the Obama's background and comes up with some disturbing answers.