Obama Demonstrating "Forward"

Obama demonstrates "Forward". What else can I say?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGXZOrEV7_c&feature=plcp

Obama - the most transparent Presidency Ever!

In the spirit of the most transparent Presidency ever - I mean, because he said so, I have examined our leaders' background so that we as voters can be informed. I probably am stepping all over the toes of the professional media / journalists whose job it is to track these things down. I apologize in advance.

Let's get transparent about Obama shall we?

Occidental College Records - sealed
Columbia College Records - sealed
Columbia Thesis Papers - sealed
Harvard College Records - sealed
Selective Service Registration - sealed
Medical Records - sealed
Illinois State Senate Attendance Records - sealed
Illinois State Senate Records - sealed
Law Practice Client List - sealed
Certified Copy of Original Birth Certificate - sealed
Signed Embossed Certificate of Live Birth - sealed
Baptism Record - sealed
Reasons Michelle Obama can no longer practice law - sealed
Reasons Michelle Obama has 22 assistants and other first ladies have one - sealed
"Foreign Student Aid" Records - sealed
Name of Country Passport used to visit Pakistan in 1981 - sealed

Ah yes, I can see it now...well, no, we actually can't. I'm sure there is nothing there. Move along knuckle draggers, move along....

Can Bank Robbers Vote?

The Democrats are up in arms because a state like Arizona dares to protect itself by enforcing the law, and surely their focus on state rights vs. federal responsibilities is in no way connected to getting more votes, but merely a theoretical, constitutional exercise
.
An exercise that I am all for.                                                                                                                  

Since bank robbery is a federal crime, I am proposing that state police and local authorities do nothing to investigate, pursue or in any way assist in the management of bank robberies - instead, let's let the feds sort it out when they get around to it.It's not about the bank robber vote, it's about doing the right thing.

Do I have that right Mr. Schumer?

Course I do.

Who Wants to be in the Poorhouse!

Thats right ladies and gentlemen - Ketchup Chips is starting my own game show - Who Wants to Be in The Poorhouse!! In this fast paced game, contestants have to guess only one fact that corresponds to another fact - and the winner - and all his children and neighbors - are guaranteed a spot in the Poorhouse for the rest of their lives. It's educational, it's fun and it's downright exciting in a Russian Roulette kind of way. Are we ready to play? Of course you are!!!!!!!!!

Here's the first fact - the ten cities below have the largest percentage of their population living UNDER the poverty line in America:

1. Detroit , MI 32.5%

2 Buffalo , NY 29.9%
3. Cincinnati , OH 27.8%
4. Cleveland , OH 27.0%
5. Miami , FL 26.9%
6. St. Louis , MO 26.8%
7. El Paso , TX 26.4%
8. Milwaukee , WI 26.2%
9. Philadelphia , PA 25.1%
10. Newark , NJ 24.2%

And now - here is the question - for all the marbles - what is the one single fact that all of these diverse, geographically dispersed, multi-racial cities have in common? You can do it - c'mon, put that thinking cap on.

YOU GOT IT!!! Congratulations - the answer is they all have elected Democrat mayors and city councils for at least the last 30 or so years! You win a spot in the Poorhouse!!!!!!!!!!

Detroit, MI (1st on the poverty rate list) hasn't elected a Republican mayor since 1961.

Buffalo, NY (2nd) hasn't elected a Republican mayor since 1954.

Cincinnati, OH (3rd) hasn't elected a Republican mayor since 1984.

Cleveland, OH (4th) hasn't elected a Republican mayor since 1989.

Miami, FL (5th) has NEVER had a Republican mayor.

St. Louis, MO (6th) hasn't elected a Republican mayor since 1949.

El Paso, TX (7th) has NEVER had a Republican mayor.

Milwaukee, WI (8th) hasn't elected a Republican mayor since 1908.
 

Philadelphia, PA (9th) hasn't elected a Republican mayor since 1952.

Newark, NJ (10th) hasn't elected a Republican mayor since 1907.

So there you have it - the first round is complete, and we already have a winner that looks an awful lot like a loser. Tune in again next week when we tee up the next contestant on "Who Wants to Be in the Poorhouse!"

Fisker Karma - is a bitch

Who doesn't believe in karma after this?

The Fisker Karma is a plug-in hybrid car that seems to have everything the rich and famous — and environmentally correct — look for in a set of wheels. Sleek silhouette? Check. Green cred? Check. Six-figure price tag? Check.

Does it work? Not so fast.

In a test conducted Wednesday by Consumer Reports magazine, the niche-market $107,850 sports car conked out completely, after a short ride at 65 miles per hour on a Connecticut test track.

“Our Fisker Karma … is super sleek, high-tech — and now it’s broken,” Consumer Reports wrote on its website late Thursday. “We have owned our car for just a few days; it has less than 200 miles on its odometer … We buy about 80 cars a year and this is the first time in memory that we have had a car that is undriveable before it has finished our check-in process.”

“It is a little disconcerting that you pay that amount of money for a car and it lasts basically 180 miles before going wrong,” Consumer Reports said. The company plans to build a sedan at a former General Motors plant in Delaware, which it now owns. When Fisker opened that plant in 2009, Vice President Joe "Plugs" Biden credited ”a real commitment by this Administration, loans from the Department of Energy, and the creativity of U.S. companies.”

Energy Secretary Stephen Chu claimed, in the same press release, that the plant’s reopening was “proof positive that our efforts to create new jobs, invest in a clean energy economy and reduce carbon pollution are working.” Secretary Chu is the Obama adminstration's green loan czar, personally overseeing hand-outs in the billions of dollars to Obama supporters, Democratic party faitful and green pretenders and hangers on.

In September 2009, Chu announced a $528.7 million loan guarantee for Fisker, specifically to develop its two plug-in hybrid cars. The Obama administration said at the time that $359 million of that loan would help reopen the Delaware factory.

The White House also announced in 2009 that Fisker “estimates it will build 75,000-100,000 of these highly efficient vehicles every year by 2014.”

Fisker has sold just over 400 of the Finland-built Karma cars to date.

Last month, with the memory of the Solyndra loan-guarantee scandal still fresh, the U.S. government froze Fisker’s access to further loan funds, citing the company’s failure to meet intermediate milestones. “They won’t release any more money, given where they’re at with the programs,” company spokesman Roger Ormisher told Bloomberg News on Feb. 7

Tesla Motors, another electric-car pioneer whose cars sell for in excess of $120,000 and whose main investors include bazillionaire Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin and mega-billionaire PayPal co-founder Elon Musk, also received a $465 million government loan guarantees. Not that they needed the governnment's (read: yours and mine) money, but as Democratic supporters, if the glass is half full, get a bigger glass!

Anyways - it is indeed disheartening to read this stuff, and to see unemployment actually increasing and still have Obama's poll numbers holding their own. Perhaps it is time for KC to stick his hand out, like everybody else?

Nah, KC has more self respect than that.

Welfare Fraud - how to maximize your benefits

Amanda Clayton hit the jackpot in the "Make Me Rich!" lottery show in October and, after electing to take a lump sum of $700,000 and allowing for taxes, was left with about $500,000.

The 24-year-old, who is unemployed, said she continued to receive public assistance. "I thought that they would cut me off, but since they didn't, I thought, maybe it was OK because I'm not working," Clayton said. "It's hard. I am struggling."

She added, "I feel that it's okay because I mean, I have no income and I have bills to pay. I have two houses."

But the Michigan Department of Human Services (DHS) said Wednesday that the woman was no longer receiving benefits and warned that people who continued to receive handouts in such circumstances may face criminal investigation and be required to pay back those benefits.

"Under DHS policy, a recipient of assistance benefits must notify the state within 10 days of any asset or income change. DHS relies on clients being forthcoming about their actual financial status," DHS director Maura Corrigan said.

"Michigan DHS does not currently have the ability to verify a person's lottery winnings in determining benefit eligibility, but bills pending in the state legislature would require the Michigan Lottery to notify the welfare department of winners.

"We fully support this proposed change. Our Office of Inspector General will continue to vigorously pursue any and all abuse and fraud in the welfare system."

+++++++++

You gotta love it! There are two points to take away from this:

 1. Welfare victims think they are entitled to support regardless of who has to pay for it, or how long they have to pay. The they we "owe" it to them, and can't see right from wrong.

 2. The "Inspector General" does no inspecting at all, and simply relies on the "good intentions" of the welfare victims to pay back the money they stole, or to notify (fat freaking chance) the department if they are getting money not due them. The office should be renamed Non-Inspecting Inspector General. 

I was somewhat sympathetic to the pleas of some unemployment victims who may be forced to get drug testing prior to receiving benefits, but I think that sympathy has gone out the window - courtesty of one Amanda Clayton.

These victims, for the most part, are stealing from the rest of us, or making us pay for their poor life choices (a la Ms. Fluke!).

Have you feed your welfare victim today? Lord knows I have. And they are eating steak.

Electric Cars Suck

It is indeed interesting to listen to the wind up greenie weenies talk about how their "investment" in electric cars spurs on greater research into new battery technology and new technology in general.

It is the non-sensical equivalent of saying "I bought a new TV today so that the TV buyer of tomorrow has a better picture".

Remember the good old days when you bought a real car and then after 5 years traded it in on a new one? You got a good resale value because someone else could drive your old one, and with minimal investment could keep it running for another 15 years?

Now remember the first computer you bought. Remember using it for three years then trading it in on a new one? You don't remember that? That is because it didn't happen. The technology advances were so substantial that your old computer was worthless after three years. Nobody wants old technology when the newer technology is better, faster and cheaper.

Just like electric cars.

Your $30,000 plus investment will be worthless in 5 years and have no trade in value. The batteries will have been destroyed and render the whole thing useless. Just like my $30 electric drill. Cheaper to throw it away than to get new batteries.

Electric vehicles won't sell because there is no secondary market for used ones. Electric vehicles don't sell because they are too expensive. Electric vehicles don't sell because today's battery technology doesn't allow you to get to work without running out of juice.

If you buy today, you waste your money so someone else can have better technology tomorrow.

Like the joke sign in the bar says: "Free Beer Tomorrow!"

Except for electric vehicles, tomorrow never comes.

Chevy Volt causes Hippies to Cry

General Motors will suspend Chevrolet Volt production from March 19th to April 23rd in order to bring supply of the plug-in hybrid car in line with demand, according to the Detroit Free Press.

Apparently the demand is zero - because of the last 7 out of 10 weeks, no Volts have been manufactured.

Chevrolet sold 1,023 Volts in February 2012, which up from 603 in January, but far from the 60,000-unit annual output originally planned for when the car was launched in December, 2010.

Less than 8,000 Volts were sold in all of 2011 - with more than half of them being sold to government agencies. Industry estimates are that it costs $250,000 in government subsidies and rebates to move each Volt off the lot, with dealers reporting being forced to put the units on the lot despite no sales and no interest.

GM spokesperson Chris Lee told the newspaper that 1,300 employees at the Hamtramck, Michigan, assembly plant where the Volt is built would be temporarily laid off during the production freeze.

Volt production was also halted for several weeks from late December until February 6th to reengineer the car to address fire concerns raised during government crash testing.

There you have it - the greenie weenie agenda once again fails when faced with the reality of the consuming public. Despite massive government intervention, relentless green agenda propaganda, desperate legislational agendas and simple economic principles, the green vehicle, green re-cycling, green energy, green home, green underwear, green environment etc. etc. etc. movement won't work.

You cannot make rational people do dumb things for very long - because eventually they figure it out. The greens never will.

Wanna buy a Volt?

Have you fed your welfare victims today?

As Conservatives are told they are heartless about providing benefits to people that won't work, we find out that the unemployment figures are actually ginned up in Obama's favor, but creating a loophole wher millions of Americans can STILL live without working at all.

Disability is the new LAZY MAN's way to play. Disability claims are up almost 20% as people threatented with having to go back to work after disemployment incentives are used up now turn to "back problems" and "mental health issues" as the new way to get paid. In fact over 43% of all claims are related to "mental illness" and a growing number of them come from former white collar workers.

Over 10.5 million people, about 5.3 of the population now are "disabled". Another 7.5 million or another 3.5% are behind bars. 27% are under age 20. 23% are over 65. A furhter 6% of the population is "legitimately disabled" to a degree they can't work. 1% are in the active duty military. 9% are "unemployed". A further 9% do no work because they can't be bothered any more to seek a job. 8% of the population is on welfare.

Want to feel like a one %'er? You should by now.

Just remember that given these figures, 9% of the US population is providing the free ride to all the other classes (with the exception of the military - who deserve every penny they get and more). Even if you remove double counting possibilities (disability victims on welfare) - 28% of the population supports 72%.

As the disability fund is expected to run out of benefits in FOUR YEARS, I would plan on a big fat juicy take hike to pay for all the Obama supporters who can't or won't contribute.

I can only hope this change doesn't happen. I'm running out of charity.

Obama's 2012 Loss - the Math behind the defeat...

If you begin to look at the chance of Obama losing in 2012, the electoral math is daunting.


Let's begin with the 2008 results adjusted for the post-Census re-districting. I think even the most rabid of left leaners would agree that this is a baseline and that the chances that Obama will win MORE electoral votes than he did three years ago is zero.  No results, bad job, bad economy with anemic recovery that nobody feels is a recovery. Millions still unemployed, union friends compensated for Solyndra, GM and over 2100 health care "exemptions".


Then we'll begin with what I think are fairly obvious adjustments -- we'll give the Republicans back the electoral votes they lost in Nebraska along with Indiana, North Carolina, and Virginia -- traditionally Republican states that Obama carried last time through a special magic the like of which we are not likely to see again. Not the usual Chicago dead people voting magic, magic none the less.


Let's work from that base of 219 electoral votes and assume that the following states are potential battlegrounds in 2012: Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Colorado, New Mexico, Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, and Florida. We'll throw in Maine and New Jersey as stretch states as well just to be conservative. Sorry for the pun.


This gives the Republican nominee an almost unlimited number of paths to the White House.


Perhaps the most obvious one, in that it resembles the 2000 and 2004 battlegrounds most heavily, is that a Republican could win by just by taking just Florida, Ohio, and Nevada from that list of states.


Or,  the Repubicans could just tie it -- and win in a Republican-controlled House -- simply by taking Ohio, Michigan, and Wisconsin from the rust belt and only Nevada in the West.


Alternatively, they could win without taking a single rust-belt state by winning in Nevada, New Mexico, Colorado, Florida, and New Hampshire. This outcome seems like a real possibility given Florida's now rabid distate for President Zero, and Nevada's growing dislike of Senator Reid.


Another odd-looking way of doing it would be to take Pennsylvania, Ohio, Nevada, and Oregon, although Ohio looks a little floppy given their propensity of voting for candidates with the most handouts.


In any event, working from this base, Obama has to take 2/3 of the electoral votes in battleground states this time around to get the job done.


And there is not enough Acorn left to plant a tree that big.

Deal of the Day Site

I am officially sick of deal of the day sites. What was once a gun slinging, fast reaction combination of e-commerce paint-ball and shopping has now turned into either a way for retailers and junk peddlers to get rid of last years insect-ravaged toaster models - or - a way for bad local restaurants to lure in the masses with 50% deals on cheeseburgers and spa treatments.

It just plain sucks, and I ain't doing it anymore.

When Ebay switched over from the world's largest garage sale full of snipers, and treasure and bidding wars into the world's largest cheap Chinese good flea market / store, the fun went out of that as well. Ebay Stores suck.

So I don't do that anymore either.

What is left for me is Goodwill - which will soon be ruined by hoarders and vultures trying to pretend in their own limp way that they are American Pickers looking to score a "honey hole" or "flip" that silver plated baby rattle into the "find of a lifetime". I swear it is like dealing with a bunch of Guy Fieri knock offs with worse haircuts and more body odor.

I can still search through Craigslist and fend off the desperate horde of single moms selling baby swings, onesies and broken toys as I continue the elusive search for something of value - and the "something of value" gets harder to find every day.

Barn finds, estate treasures and garage sales are all that is left. It seems that I got to go mobile to get to the good stuff!

Is your Smart Meter Spying on You?

Most of us by now have one these devices on our house - the new-fangled meter that allows the power company to take a reading of our power consumption remotely without having to send a service representative around the neighborhood the write it all down. Innocent as can be right?

Potentially not.

The meter can tell when you use power, what applicances are drawing loads, and by extention, when you are home, what rooms you use the most, what temperature you keep your house at, how many people live there, and on and on. Your TIVO already tracks every show you watch, every commercial you skip or watch - and even every slice of tv you rewind (thank you Janet Jackson). Doesn't feel so innocent any more does it?

Who else would want your data than just ther power company?

Neighborhood “busy bodies” will want to know what their neighbors are doing for the sheer pleasure of knowing, or the greater pleasure of gossiping.

Vengeful ex-spouses, jealous paramours, determined stalkers, and civil litigants may want to know an individual’s whereabouts and activities.

Burglars could use intercepted data to determine when a location is unoccupied, what an occupant is doing,and whether valuable electronics are inside.

A thief gaining access to bi-directional communications or controls could activate or deactivate intrusion alarms to divert police from, or to facilitate unlawful access to, a target.

Vandals could manipulate environmental controls, fire suppression systems, etc., to damage property as an end in itself.

Lastly, market manipulators, extortionists, terrorists, and others with political agendas could use unauthorized access to AMI command and control systems to disrupt the delivery of services to targeted facilities, create widespread blackouts, disrupt load balancing commands, or create fear and panic among the general population.

Insurance companies could petition for the data to reject a claim based on activities within the house. Most policies require you to have someone attend the home at least once in 24 hours. If you are on vacation and Aunt Edna forgets to come by, and the house burns down - the insurance company could deny your claim.

Follow the money

Corporations, utilities, vendors, and third party data brokers will want to position themselves to sell meter data or analytics, just as credit reporting agencies have done. If utilities want to capture this revenue, and/or to prevent others from capturing it, they will need carefully crafted contractual provisions that clearly define who owns the AMI data and what rights the consumer, utility, service provider, or other third parties have to use or transfer it.

Surely the constitution protects me?

Law enforcement will also want on-demand access to your data. In the U.S., law enforcement presently has limited access to meter data to establish ownership of a place involved in criminal activities or to obtain search warrants for facilities suspected of drug production.Otherwise, the prohibition of unreasonable searches and seizures in the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution limits access to this data without first obtaining a warrant from a judge.

However, because these protections generally do not apply to information revealed to third parties, a California Court of Appeals held that data collected from a specially installed surveillance electricity meter could be obtained by law enforcement without a warrant. Because the metering equipment was outside and did not reveal information about activities within the home, the Court found no constitutional protection.

Sophisticated analysis of metering data might reveal enough about in-home behavior to reverse this outcome. On the other hand, as the use of such technologies becomes more common, consumer expectations may change, thereby placing law enforcement use of meter data outside of Fourth Amendment protections. As a result, data revealed to a utility, billing agency, or other vendor may now be available to law enforcement without a warrant. Utilities and others handling meter data will need to understand what they may, or must, do when law enforcement agencies demand access.

So what am I going to do about it?

Each utility has to be responsible for the data. Each one will provide you with a privacy policy (which you probably round file). Read it - and speak up. If you don't like their privacy rules, they generally have a public overview board that you can squawk to. Lastly - ensure that when you are talking to them ask them to confirm that they are using a breach solution from a professional breach reporting / solution company. You want to be notified when they invetibably and/or accidently expose your data to the world.

And close the fridge and stop watching Mexican wrestling on TeleMundo. Big Brother is watching you....

http://goldsilver.com/video/smart-meters/

Left Wingers and Crybabies in general - the British are coming!

Left leaners and cry babies in general in the US could learn a lesson from this British dolt who successfully sued the police after a justified stop for inflicting him with "post traumatic stress disorder" because of the stress of being legally stopped.

Businessman Robert Whatley, 71, of Usk, took legal action over a 17-minute pursuit for not wearing a seat belt. Mr. Whatley was later found guilty of not wearing a seatbelt, failing to stop for a police officer and having tinted car windows that did not conform to legal requirements. He also admitted having an invalid registration plate and was fined a total of £235 and ordered to pay £300 towards prosecution costs by Caerphilly magistrates.

Mr. Whatley was stopped in 2009 at the end of the pursuit, after he would not stop for officers and was chased for several miles along country roads between Cwmbran and Usk. Mr. Whatley promptly filed a complaint against the officers and a claim against the police force.

The officers were later cleared in a disciplinary hearing for any wrong-doing and Gwent Police has made no admission of liability.

Mr. Whatley, who claimed "post-traumatic stress disorder" as a result of the incident he created, has already received more than £8,000 from the force after claiming for damage to his Range Rover.

BBC Wales says the payment is in excess of £20,000. Police said they decided to settle on financial grounds. Contesting the matter further would have incurred substantial legal costs if the case had gone to court”

Liberal Bias in the Media The Victory Continues!

A New Jersey teachers union chief whose salary tops $300,000 is under fire for saying in a recent interview that "life's not always fair" while arguing against vouchers to send poor students to private schools.

New Jersey Education Association Executive Director Vincent Giordano made the comment on the local "New Jersey Capitol Report" program over the weekend. During the interview, he was challenged by the host on why low-income families should not have the same options as other families when their child is in a failing school.

 

"Those parents should have exactly the same options and they do. We don't say that you can't take your kid out of the public school. We would argue not and we would say 'let's work more closely and more harmoniously,'" Giordano said.

When told some families cannot afford to finance the shift to private school without government help, Giordano said: "Well, you know, life's not always fair and I'm sorry about that."

This was reported in a blog. Romney's comment that he doesn't worry about the poor because there is a safety net for them in this country - front page news for weeks.

Don't buy it people. Don't buy what they are selling....

The Obama Family Problem

Okay Michelle, this conversation isn't going to be easy, but I think it is time that we put a little fiscal responsibility into the Obama household. After getting denied that car loan because of our credit situation - we have got to do something. So here are the numbers.


Last year as a family we made $108,500. Pretty good - all of those community organizing events that I put on are starting to pay off. But here's where it gets scary Michelle - together, the 4 of us SPENT $191,100 for the year.


Holy crap. I mean really? Holy crap! That amount of $82,600 we overspent put our total debit at $713,550 for a family. Holy crap, that's all I can say.


Now, I know that you are a good housekeeper and all, and the coupon clipping has really helped out but that total was only $1,925. I mean, it isn't a drop in the bucket.


Now, I can try and get more Black Panthers to intimidate voters and all - heck I might even ask my rich uncle to donate some money for an advance on the new book I'm writing. But heckfire Michelle, we have got to get the spending under control around here, or we're going to be in big trouble. Dang it  -  we ARE in big trouble. Earning 15 or 20% more by taking money from my rich relatives isn't going to make a lot of difference.


And no, Michelle just stopping the "discretionary spending" isn't going to help. That's pocket change. I mean it's good and all, but that isn't going to get this under control.


We've got to get to the meat of this and cut off the things that we signed up for that we have to pay every month - I mean, less giving to our poor neighbors who won't work, no more paying for your niece's 5th baby, and stopping sending money to that guy in Idaho so he won't make any more Obama Chia-pets. We just don't have the money for it any more, and giving all these hangers on a "hand up" has turned into a "hand out". Enough is enough Michelle - we're cutting all these losers off right now.


Okay, okay, stop the crying - it isn't all your fault. We both spent our way into this, and there is no spending our way out of it. Your lazy relatives will be motivated to find work once we stop giving them handouts, and my rich uncle says he has enough money to start a new business or two if we stop taking from him, so everyone will get taken care of.


Michelle - sometimes a real man has got to do what a real man has got to do. It may be tough now, but it's the best for all our futures.


Whats that?


No, you can't give your brother money so that he will like you again. Are you even listening to me?


Fercrisakes!

Stratocaster 0001 - the first Strat?

David Gilmour of Pink Floyd fame has a Fender Stratocaster #0001, which has been well documented and photographed. In close examination by a number of experts, they believe that it is actually a 1954 model from the first year of manufacture. Some have contended that it is a Frankenstrat put together of old parts (1957 neck and 1957 body) but the pickups appear to be original 1954 and so do the tuners.

Although stamped with the #0001 serial number, it’s not the first ever-made Stratocaster. The unusual color and the gold hardware indicate that it might be a showpiece made for a special occasion or for an employee - perhaps an "unveiling".

Other researchers indicate that it was the first Stratocaster to have a serial number via a neck plate, and that there were most certainly other Strats produced ahead of Gilmour's. There is talk of a 1953 "prototype" as well as the original "body contour design" model given to musician Bill Carlson for testing. There are also pictures of what appear to be a Stratocaster with a Tele neck that Leo Fender used as a test bed during the Stratocaster development.

The neck is signed “TG 6.54”, referring to Taddeo Gomez June 1954 and the body has a handwritten signature “Mary 9.28.54”, referring to Mary (this could very well be Mary Lemus, a Fender factory employee. Mary began work at Fender in 1954 as an assembler, eventually becoming a final assembly supervisor) signing off on it September 28. 1954.

According to Guitarist journalist David Mead, who examined the guitar for an article in 1995, the ash body is indeed white although it might appear to be aged Olympic White, pale green or even blue-ish on some pictures. The guitar features an anodized gold 8 hole 1-ply pickguard, custom gold plated tremolo system and output jack and Kluson Deluxe tuners. The pickups appear to be original 1954 Fenders with a 3-way pickup switch (the 5-way switch didn’t surface until the mid 70’s).

First Strat? Probably not. Worth enough to buy a mansion? Undoubtedly.

Obama State of the Union Executive Version

My fellow Americans I'm doing a great job. If you don't think I'm doing a great job you're blocking progress. So I'll just go around you. (Wait for applause)

I'm just like Abraham Lincoln who didn't cry over spilled milk. (Wait for laughter)

Even though I'm doing a great job the country is a mess. Rich people messed it up,  but it's easy to fix.

We'll do it with their money. Put a bill on my desk and I'll sign it in the morning. (Wait for applause)

 I bless you, and I bless the United States of America.

Obama's Keystone Pipeline Vision

I wonder if votes had anything to do with it?

It would seem that the Dems have written off  "working class" America in their bid for stealing, sorry winning, the 2012 election. At this point, the strategests are deciding who they can count, who the can count on, and who they can count out. Here is who the Democrats have decided to pander to and who they have decided to ignore:

1. If you work or are unemployed (non-union). Your vote was already anti-Obama. You now don't count, and have been placed in the adversary column. Sorry, all decisions from this point are against you.

2. If you work and are unionized. Obama is counting on you already and has some big promises coming. Don't worry about the Keystone veto costing jobs - there are better things that have been given to your union leaders to make up for that. Boeing plant closure, recess labor board appointments, etc. etc. The union bosses are taking care of their, ooops I mean your interests as we speak.

3. Bi-Coastal Elites - for you, the gravy train is coming, Obama needs not only your support, but the money and noise that a left wing media led parade would engender. Since there are so few of you, then the payoff will be outstanding. No new taxes, etc. etc. This is going to be a great year for you!

4. Greenie Weenies - You scare Obama with your Protest and Occupy pooping on police car tactics, but since the Democrats have written off the soap-using rest of working America, you folks will do well. First gift? Cancellation of the Keystone project, already proved to have zero environmental impact. Of course - sending the oil to China so they can continue to beat us in manufaturing, growth and desfense spending may have a long term effect - but hey, Bush lied, spotted owls died. Get your requests for environmentally friendly Solyndra projects lined up - because the check book is open for business - fake green business that is!

5. Democratic base (those indigent, poor and over 35) - you like the handouts and the entitlements and the freebies. I mean who wouldn't? (Other than those that have some respect for themselves!) - so good news, he ain't be changin' nothin' for you all. You are in the bag and he knows it. Nothing better, but certainly nothing worse. What they haven't told you is that given the debt situation and the likely loss of the senate, the entitlements are probably about over with. Shoulda sold that vote when you could!

6. Democratic base under 35 - Here's how this will work. Obama knows that he can't trick you hip elites into believing things have actually gotten better, so he is going to rekindle "Hope and Change Part II", and is counting on you and your friends to be swayed not by the power of his experience and output, but by the insipid media inspired cheering session that will become the 2012 campaign. Obama sings with Lady Gaga, Obama with no shirt, Michelle cares about fat kids, corporations are bad etc. etc. . This time he really needs you. So close your eyes, groove to the music and vote Obama. On the other hand, you probably don't realize how good the incentives are going to be for your votes, for it is you, along with the bi-coastal elites that are the swing votes in this election. Better get to negotiating!

7. Business - you suck. You get nothing. And don't ask.

There you have it - the 7 major spheres of influence being contested this year. Where do you fit, or more importantly, what value on the free market does your vote have?

Why I left Canada - Pizza, Taxes and Socialism

KC went shopping with the mother in law from Canada today. At the grocery store she saw the prices and fainted. After reviving her she stated that categorically every food item in the US was at least 1/2 the price it was in Canada. Milk at a grocery in the US? $1.88. In Canada? $4.99.

So I decided to do a little investigatin' and a lot of calculatin' and some assumpteratin'.

Western Pizza in good old Regina (hold the beaver jokes) Saskatchewan, Canada (pop 185,000) charges an astonishing, mind bending, delirious price of  $51.95 for an 18 inch all-dressed pizza. In addition to that - they have the rock-hard, diamond encrusted, brass coated stones to charge a $5.00 delivery charge for AAANNNYYYY pizza - not just the largest one. This makes the cost of an 18" pizza a mind numbing $56.95. Add in the generous gov't taxes to fund the working poor's adventures in life and you are out $65.50 for a pie.  A 14" "large"? That will set you back $35.95 with delivery. Over $40 with taxes. Want to see the evidence?

In the good ole' USA (capitalistic, exploit the working man USA) the same pizza would cost $21.00 at Bill's Pizza in Prescott Arizona (pop 90,000 if you count the sheep!) and you would get free delivery. For the record, the closest homes in Prescott are further from the pizza store than the farthest in Regina. And the taxes are 7%. Total cost? $22.47.

A 14" pizza, with everything, delivered in Phoenix regularly costs under $14.00. $15 with taxes.
And don't think I forgot about tipping - despite the fact Canadians never tip a delivery guy - I just negated it from both sides of the equation.

Here's where it gets good. My personal tax rate in the US is 20% lower than it is in Canada. Ergo to purchase that pie in Canada would cost me an additional 15-20% in gross pay to get the job done. Using an 18% rounding I come up with $77.29 in equivalent earnings to buy that Western Pizza dough-sicle. Lastly the US dollar is worth about 3% more than Canada, meaning all things being equal - that pie cost my Canuck bretheren about $74.97 in US funds.

Give or take - that pie is 343% more expensive in the Great White North.

Who wants a slice of that "free" health care? I'll get it with extra cheese for ya.

Part II - KC writes Western Pizza corporate head office with his cogent analysis.....

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