Well, some of us tried to warn our fellow Americans about Obama’s lack of experience.

“Barack Obama’s incompetence, if indeed he is incompetent, results directly from a flawed political and media process that allowed such a candidate to go forward. It’s a failure of quality control. It’s an indictment of the gatekeepers and of the media in particular. They didn’t look the gift horse in the mouth and now it turns out he’s wearing dentures. It wasn’t President Obama’s fault that he aspired to a job he had no preparation for: a man’s entitled to try for as much as he can get … will you give a billion dollars, please … but only a fool would let him. And the fools in this case would do well not to ask for him to try harder. At some point the only way they can redeem themselves is to stop digging and realize that they, not he, are to blame for this fix.”

###

I suppose, then, we should re-write our founding documents?

###

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader – the trailer is out.

###

From the common sense department:

Women in always-intact marriages who worship at least weekly are more likely to have had fewer lifetime sexual partners than those in other family structures who never worship.

###

Good guy wins another one. Let’s see, another attempted robbery, and another store-owner dispatching the would-be robber. And, again, this one is in Chicago, which means that the individual who engaged in self-defense could face prosecution. As they say, “better to be tried by 12, than carried by 6.”

Good morning.

1. More on the Oval office speechy thing, here and here and here… and a transcript is here.
2. A gang.
3. “Conservatisms”.
4. The left notices green.
5. And criticises Mr Obama.
6. Holly-links.
7. A Torah text.
8. The un-unifier.
9. Bizness keruffle.
10. Aaaah!
11. Eucharist.
12. Slavery.
13. Cheese, Grommet?
14. Of language and William Wallace.
15. Guns and drugs.

Can we say, “home school”? Student achievement, in grades K-12, has been flat since 1970, yet inflation-adjusted spending per student has doubled, from $75,000 to $150,000.

From the article,

The extra $75,000 we’re now spending has done wonders for public school employee union membership, dues revenue, and political clout. It’s done a whole lotta nothin’ for student learning…

###

Shooting from the hip. Well if the Sundance Kid can pick off targets, shooting from the hip, and if Officer John McClane can grab his duty weapon, duct-taped to his back, and shoot two bad guys with his last two rounds, then it makes perfect sense we should mandate that law enforcement, rather than simply shooting at and possibly killing armed suspects, shoot the guns out of the hands of armed suspects. I suppose lessons will be forthcoming from Hollywood.

###

Who’s your Daddy? It’s one thing to be left an orphan, or without a parent, due to unforeseen events. Yet it’s another thing to intentionally be brought into this world, through means of anonymous sperm donor IVF, with no regards to the effects of such an unnatural arrangement. Consider the following findings of sperm-donor-children-with-anonymous-fathers who are now coming of age:

• two-thirds agree, “my sperm donor is half of who I am;”
• about half are disturbed that money was involved in their conception;
• nearly half say they have feared being attracted to or having sexual relations with someone to whom they are unknowingly related;
• two-thirds affirm the right of donor offspring to know the truth about their origins; and
• about half of donor offspring have concerns about or serious objections to donor conception itself, even when parents tell their children the truth.

And let’s not forget that they have no part in the simple act of picking out, and sending, a Father’s Day card…

###

The question isn’t, How does the Republican Party cater to disenchanted Latinos? but, How does the Republican Party demonstrate to Latinos that even immigrants need to follow the rule of law?

Good morning.

1. Monster …  chess?
2. Katrina moment meme upside down.
3. Uhm, yikes.
4. Teachers and unions.
5. Who cares? Bush and Obama.
6. Tawdry gossip.
7. Before the speech, what not to say. So … looking at the transcript (I haven’t yet) how badly did he score? More here.
8. After the speech, notes here and here and here and here.
9. Financial seismology?
10. Broken windows anyone?
11. Prayers requested.
12. Change of which we can hope for more.
13. Sex and Christianity, a passage quoted.
14. Alas.
15. Green snake oil.
16. A girl. No gears.

Good morning.

1. Mr Atlas and the shruggery. Uhm, or about the film.
2. Watts talks.
3. Of man and nature.
4. Elisha and the bears, here and here.
5. From potty mouth to potty art.
6. BP boycotts.
7. Deepwater and overreaction.
8. A year for women.
9. Pakistan.
10. and war.
11. And a question.
12. Rajan on interest rates (note: I’ve just started reading his book Fault Lines: How Hidden Fractures Still Threaten the World Economy).
13. Crises and opportunity.

Good morning.

1. Carbon shmarbon … this is the real reason not to burn oil.
2. Stupid.
3. Disgust.
4. Naked (singularity).
5. My car … got top honors. 
6. I’ve seen several links to this regarding the world cup.
7. Thoughts on US and the world cup, or at least soccer in general.
8. Youtube and a speech of note.
9. Our secular left coast and their putative non-love for communism questioned.
10. Leaving the farm behind.
11. Another bubble.
12. Afghanistan wealth is not in poppies.
13. Very cute story.
14. I can think of several reasons all political why not.
15. Crime mapped.

Isn’t government supposed to enforce the laws it makes?   Well, it looks like the Obama administration has a bit more leeway.

How’s that Gitmo-closing promise coming along, 5 months after its due date?  “The House Armed Services Committee has dealt a blow to President Obama’s hopes to shutter the military prison at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, by unanimously approving legislation that would prohibit creating a detention center inside the United States.”  Aren’t there one or two Democrats on that committee?

The Hollywood Left just loves their socialists.

American filmmaker Oliver Stone said Friday he deeply admires Hugo Chavez but suggested the Venezuelan president might consider talking a bit less on television.

Promoting his new documentary “South of the Border” in Caracas, Stone heaped praise on Chavez, saying he is leading a movement for “social transformation” in Latin American. The film features informal interviews by Stone with Chavez and six allied leftist presidents, from Bolivia’s Evo Morales to Cuba’s Raul Castro.

“I admire Hugo. I like him very much as a person. I can say one thing. … He shouldn’t be on television all the time,” Stone said at a news conference. “As a director I say you don’t want to be overpowering. And I think he is sometimes that way.”

(We’re not entirely sure whether Stone said “director” or “dictator” at th end there.  Either can be overpowering.)

When the director of the Congressional Budget Office directly refutes cost-saving claims of the President and his Budget Director, it’s worth noting.  Even the NY Times (finally) notices.

How’s that “smart diplomacy” workin’ for ya’?  Please remember; speeches are no substitute for sound policy.

Marry a Jew, lose your citizenship.  Can armbands with the Star of David be far behind?  Tell me again, who are the bad guys in the Middle East peace situation?

How did the pollsters do predicting the recent primary results?  About as good as expected, which isn’t saying much.  And the Daily Kos fired its official pollster, Research 2000.  Turns out they skewed left.  Now who would have thought that?  This time, however, it was downright embarrassing.

And finally, Chuck Asay on life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.  (Click for a larger image.)

Good morning.

1. A story of justice.
2. This is not unrelated.
3. Of Jews and genes.
4. Drilling and scale.
5. Perhaps a progressive defender of the President will explain how putting criminal charges (?) and fines on BP will help fix the problem faster (and not slower).
6. In which diversity means nothing.
7. Helen and Rod.
8. Summer is on its way.
9. Girls will be girls.
10. Faster than a bear.
11. Uhm, many (if not most) occupations require the acquisition and refinement of specialised skills …
12. A point of agreement with Mr Obama discovered.
13. Those Iraqi WMD.
14. Against the Obama’s Katrina meme.

Top of the morning (and especially to the Blackhawk fans in the crowd).

1. Of love and war.
2. A Saint noted.
3. And then came the hound.
4. Such is Life  … get used to it.
5. Central Europe.
6. Yah think?
7. Reuters remains … the question is why do they still have a market?
8. Form and function.
9. Bulbs.
10. Eugenics? Bookstores? Seriously?
11. A troubling parallel. Seriously, why the heck would we have refused any sort of assistance?
12. On the alien thing.
13. Middle east kabuki.
14. The putative reset and questions thereof.

Good morning, oh, and go Hawks!

1. More on Ms Thomas (HT: HNN)
2. A film noted.
3. Considering new drug developments.
4. Just a little off the deep end.
5. Tyranny.
6. Working towards the world’s dumbest fathers day gift. Try REI, Midway, or you know … something fun or interesting.
7. Kiev in pictures.
8. Hope for our political future and a turning back of the tide.
9. The next big bubble and a look at real education.
10. Remarks for Mr Singer.

Good morning.

1. The recession.
2. All that healthcare … will not help much it seems.
3. Mr Obama’s crystal ball.
4. And this is not unrelated.
5. As Mr Obama and industrial backers make post legislation push to fix the opinion on his healthcare legislation … one wonders whether how the cognitive dissonance between that motion and his statements regarding corporate speech is resolved seeing as it seems that this sort of law doesn’t apply to messages with which he approves. 
6. Considering marriage.
7. A parable and one of the cultural chasms. 
8. A (likely) much discussed study for today.
9. On Ms Thomas, here and here.
10. Wal-Mart and the unions.
11. Hypocrisy in high office, not just a common practice for our Congress critters and the likes of Mr Obama.

Apparently, this story has legs like I never would have imagined.  Even after video comes out showing that the "peace" activists were armed with, among other things, knives, you’d think that folks would see through this little charade. 

Anyway, here are some relevant links from the past few days.

In preparation for sailing, a few harmless Jihad chants and hopes for martyrdom.  Then, after cheerfully ignoring warnings about the blockade, preparing for violent confrontation.  (The very first link also has a video of the attacks on the soldiers.)  The reason that the IDF soldiers were taken advantage of initially, I believe, is that they didn’t think "peace" activists would try to stab them to death. 

There are some photos, taken by the activists terrorists themselves showing downed IDF soldiers.  Reuters, in two different cases, decided that they should crop out the part of the picture that shows knives in the hands of those peaceful protestors.  Ruins the narrative.

Is the blockade against Gaza legal?  Why yes, yes it is.  And if you have more questions about the blockade in general or the flotilla in particular, this is a great resource.

Good morning.

1. Natural gas in Israel?
2. Death of a poet.
3. That statute is in the US. 
4. Meta-linking and the high court.
5. Asia and the NSS … and not even getting to the dog barking in the night, i.e., any mention at all of Taiwan is conspicuously absent.
6. Uhm, sorry. That picture is now presently popular in China … as a symbol of government restraint.
7. A new econ blogger noted (here).
8. A great film-maker. 
9. Turkey.
10. Talking SSM, here and here.
11. Eucharist.

Good Morning.

1. Our Administration, providing work for those out-of-work Soviet 5 year planners.
2. Well, duh.
3. Yikes … or perhaps heh should be the tag-line.
4. Well, when the Administration and Congress critters start considering cost impacts of their policies, I’ll eat my socks. 
5. Public and private.
6. Not giving Obama a pass on the spill from the left.
7. and from the middle.
8. The Sestak thing and the buck apparently doesn’t stop there.
9. Economics meta-link.
10. Gitmo. Oops.
11. Ms Kagan and the stare decisis that didn’t bark in the night?
12. Taxing the rich.

Good morning.

1. Regarding the prospects of one Ms Pelosi.
2. Mr Obama and his ‘blackness’, here and here. My remark to the second is that this is not indicative of WASP-ness but just being a jerk, which comes in any color.
3. Holodomor. 
4. Something to remember when talking heads talk about job recovery.
5. Regarding my short morning post.
6. Heh.
7. Remember this for the next time Mr Obama is touted as post-partisan.
8. Child mortality.
9. Not just for warding off Vampires.
10. Crucifix ban.
11. And God said, “heh“.
12. The addendum to the memo.