May everyone who reads Bigfoot's Place have a happy, healthy and enjoyable year in 2013.
Monday, December 31, 2012
Twenty-Twelve was certainty an interesting year, especially if you understand "interesting" in the context of the old curse "May you live in interesting times." We have seen the Supreme Court uphold "Obamacare" by calling its mandate a "tax", and strike down most of Arizona's SB 1070, while leaving intact its provision that allows state policemen to check the immigration status of people they legally stop. We have seen a woman named Sandy demand that we subsidize her birth control and leftwingers accuse us of waging a "war on women" if we refuse, a hurricane named Sandy devastate the shores of New Jersey and New York City, and the mass murder of children by a mentally unstable gunman at an elementary school named Sandy Hook. We have also seen two more end-of-the-world predictions, one based on a misunderstanding of the Mayan calendar, fail to take place.
Despite what appeared to be solid support for Republican nominee Mitt Romney, we re-elected President Obama, even though his economic and fiscal record is the worst of any president in my lifetime, and whose foreign policy record isn't all that great. At least two promising GOP candidates for Senator derailed themselves by opening mouth and inserting foot. The Democrats made modest gains in both houses of Congress, but for the most part, the next four years of federal governance appear to be "meet the new boss, same as the old boss."
In the world of sports, the New York Giants won the Super Bowl, and then failed to make the playoffs the next season, the third time in franchise history that they have done so. Payton Manning (Denver QB) and Adrian Petersen (Minnesota TB) have had amazing comeback seasons. Meanwhile in the NCAA, my Virginia Tech Hokies had their worst football season in 20 years, but still won their bowl game. Penn State coach Joe Paterno was fired after his former assistant Jerry Sandusky was accused of child molestation. Sandusky has since been convicted and Paterno has passed away.
As we reminisce about all of the above and more, and get ready for 2013, let's see what's going on to close out 2012.
From The Corner at National Review Online, there appears to be an agreement to avoid the upcoming "fiscal cliff".
On the other hand, the Daily Caller reports that the "fiscal cliff" negotiators haven't worked out the sequester, which remains "a point of contention".
According to Breitbart's Big Government, there's no deal yet, and negotiations will resume next year.
Redstate recommends that Republicans kill the deal, because there are no spending cuts.
From CNN Politics, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's blood clot, for which she has recently been hospitalized, is reported to be located between her brain and her skull. (Full disclosure: A member of my family had this type of injury about 8 years ago, which required removal of the overlying section of skull.)
From Fox News, Senator Rob Portman (R-Ohio) has asked the president to "rescind" an executive order that gives Congress and some other officials a pay increase. (Is Senator Portman from Ohio or Oiho?)
Also from Fox News, the federal government is again running into the debt ceiling.
From Push Back Now, Senator and gun control advocate Diane Feinstein has had a concealed carry permit.
From the New York Post, a couple living in Greenwich Village have been busted for allegedly possessing weapons and bomb-making material. One of them has been an Occupy Wall Street activist.
And from SFGate, a roundup of 2012 news for New England, featuring a bear that vacationed in Cape Cod.
Despite what appeared to be solid support for Republican nominee Mitt Romney, we re-elected President Obama, even though his economic and fiscal record is the worst of any president in my lifetime, and whose foreign policy record isn't all that great. At least two promising GOP candidates for Senator derailed themselves by opening mouth and inserting foot. The Democrats made modest gains in both houses of Congress, but for the most part, the next four years of federal governance appear to be "meet the new boss, same as the old boss."
In the world of sports, the New York Giants won the Super Bowl, and then failed to make the playoffs the next season, the third time in franchise history that they have done so. Payton Manning (Denver QB) and Adrian Petersen (Minnesota TB) have had amazing comeback seasons. Meanwhile in the NCAA, my Virginia Tech Hokies had their worst football season in 20 years, but still won their bowl game. Penn State coach Joe Paterno was fired after his former assistant Jerry Sandusky was accused of child molestation. Sandusky has since been convicted and Paterno has passed away.
As we reminisce about all of the above and more, and get ready for 2013, let's see what's going on to close out 2012.
From The Corner at National Review Online, there appears to be an agreement to avoid the upcoming "fiscal cliff".
On the other hand, the Daily Caller reports that the "fiscal cliff" negotiators haven't worked out the sequester, which remains "a point of contention".
According to Breitbart's Big Government, there's no deal yet, and negotiations will resume next year.
Redstate recommends that Republicans kill the deal, because there are no spending cuts.
From CNN Politics, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's blood clot, for which she has recently been hospitalized, is reported to be located between her brain and her skull. (Full disclosure: A member of my family had this type of injury about 8 years ago, which required removal of the overlying section of skull.)
From Fox News, Senator Rob Portman (R-Ohio) has asked the president to "rescind" an executive order that gives Congress and some other officials a pay increase. (Is Senator Portman from Ohio or Oiho?)
Also from Fox News, the federal government is again running into the debt ceiling.
From Push Back Now, Senator and gun control advocate Diane Feinstein has had a concealed carry permit.
From the New York Post, a couple living in Greenwich Village have been busted for allegedly possessing weapons and bomb-making material. One of them has been an Occupy Wall Street activist.
And from SFGate, a roundup of 2012 news for New England, featuring a bear that vacationed in Cape Cod.
Saturday, December 29, 2012
The Senate, not letting a crisis go to waste, has inserted a bunch pork projects into their $60 billion relief spending bill to aid the victims of Hurricane Sandy. Included are $150 million for Alaska fisheries and $58 million for planting trees on private property. I know that Sandy was a big storm, pounding New Jersey and New York, and sending snow as far southward as northwestern North Carolina, but I don't think it also reached Alaska. To be sure, larding up emergency spending bills with items unrelated to the actual emergency is nothing new, but once again we see politicians exploiting an emergency for their own projects. Read more at Breitbart's Big Government and watch the video at Fox Business.
Thursday, December 27, 2012
Retired General H. Norman Schwarzkopf, who led coalition forces in the 1991 Gulf War, died earlier today in Tampa, Florida. He graduated from West Point in 1956, was commissioned a Second Lieutenant, served two tours in Vietnam, received three Silver Stars, and later served in the invasion of Grenada. Somewhere during all of that, he was given the knickname "Stormin' Norman", which he reportedly didn't like all that much, preferring "The Bear", which was used by some of his troops.
Read more at CNN, the Los Angeles Times, ABC News, US News, the Wall Street Journal and Newsmax. As reported in the Newsmax story, Schwarzkopf's father, also named Norman, was the founder and commander of the New Jersey State Police, after serving in the Army during World War I and achieving the rank of Colonel. At the time the future General was born, the elder Schwarzkopf was leading the investigation of the Lindbergh kidnapping.
Read more at CNN, the Los Angeles Times, ABC News, US News, the Wall Street Journal and Newsmax. As reported in the Newsmax story, Schwarzkopf's father, also named Norman, was the founder and commander of the New Jersey State Police, after serving in the Army during World War I and achieving the rank of Colonel. At the time the future General was born, the elder Schwarzkopf was leading the investigation of the Lindbergh kidnapping.
Sunday, December 23, 2012
Friday, December 21, 2012
It's now the evening of December 21, 2012, and the world still hasn't come to an end. That's because it's not supposed to. Instead, it's merely the start of the 13th b'ak'tun, a Maya calendar period consisting of 144,000 days, as explained in this article. So now that it looks like the world will keep on going for the foreseeable future, let's take a look at things that really are going on out there.
From Delaware105.9, ABC news veteran and former White House correspondent Sam Donaldson, recently arrested for DUI, has waived his arraignment hearing. His trial has not been scheduled.
From Fox News, later tonight and early tomorrow morning, the Ursid meteor shower will peak. These meteors are related to comet Tuttle 8P, and appear to radiate from the constellation Ursa Minor, a.k.a. the Little Dipper.
From Human Events, the NRA addresses the Newtown massacre.
From the Daily Caller, reporters at an NRA presser are overheard mocking the NRA and praising the Code Pink protesters.
From White House Dossier, now that Susan Rice has withdrawn, President Obama will nominate Senator John Kerry (D-Mass) for Secretary of State.
From the Spiegel, a German archaeologist working in Yemen has found evidence of a tribal confederation centered on the city of Zafar.
From Yahoo Finance, the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing has been producing a much higher than usual amount of $100 bills.
From ARRA News Service, Congressman-elect and Iraq combat veteran Tom Cotton (R-Ark) gives his opinion on the possible nomination of former Senator and Vietnam combat veteran Chuck Hegel (R-NH) for Secretary of Defense.
From Gateway Pundit, at the funeral of Senator Daniel Inouye (D-HI), former Hawaii resident Barack Obama talks for ten minutes about himself.
From The Foundry, the twelve days of Obamacare surprises, including more cuts to Medicare.
From the IPT, the president of the Al Haya Party in Egypt claims that American diplomats and President Obama have given Egyptian secular democrats a "cold shoulder".
From MSNBC, the most exciting alien planets discovered in 2012.
And from SFGate, sirens in Denver are not a doomsday signal. They are only a test.
From Delaware105.9, ABC news veteran and former White House correspondent Sam Donaldson, recently arrested for DUI, has waived his arraignment hearing. His trial has not been scheduled.
From Fox News, later tonight and early tomorrow morning, the Ursid meteor shower will peak. These meteors are related to comet Tuttle 8P, and appear to radiate from the constellation Ursa Minor, a.k.a. the Little Dipper.
From Human Events, the NRA addresses the Newtown massacre.
From the Daily Caller, reporters at an NRA presser are overheard mocking the NRA and praising the Code Pink protesters.
From White House Dossier, now that Susan Rice has withdrawn, President Obama will nominate Senator John Kerry (D-Mass) for Secretary of State.
From the Spiegel, a German archaeologist working in Yemen has found evidence of a tribal confederation centered on the city of Zafar.
From Yahoo Finance, the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing has been producing a much higher than usual amount of $100 bills.
From ARRA News Service, Congressman-elect and Iraq combat veteran Tom Cotton (R-Ark) gives his opinion on the possible nomination of former Senator and Vietnam combat veteran Chuck Hegel (R-NH) for Secretary of Defense.
From Gateway Pundit, at the funeral of Senator Daniel Inouye (D-HI), former Hawaii resident Barack Obama talks for ten minutes about himself.
From The Foundry, the twelve days of Obamacare surprises, including more cuts to Medicare.
From the IPT, the president of the Al Haya Party in Egypt claims that American diplomats and President Obama have given Egyptian secular democrats a "cold shoulder".
From MSNBC, the most exciting alien planets discovered in 2012.
And from SFGate, sirens in Denver are not a doomsday signal. They are only a test.
Thursday, December 20, 2012
At around 11:40 today, a man entered Sandy Hook Elementary School in Strasburg, Virginia with a four-foot-long two-by-four labeled "High-Powered Rifle". He was detained and later arrested and charged with disorderly conduct. The school has the same name as the one in Newtown, Connecticut, where Adam Lanza killed 26 people and then himself, after killing his mother at their home.
Read the story at the Mail Online.
Full disclosure: Strasburg is near the junction of Interstates 66 and 81. I drive through the area from time to time, mainly to visit family members who live farther south in Virginia.
Read the story at the Mail Online.
Full disclosure: Strasburg is near the junction of Interstates 66 and 81. I drive through the area from time to time, mainly to visit family members who live farther south in Virginia.
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