I wasn’t going to watch, but I walked into the room where Mike had it on, and he declared: “This guy is such an ASSHOLE!”

That about sums it up.

The highlight of the five minutes I saw was Obama scolding the SCOTUS – to their faces – for the campaign finance ruling. He said, “With all due respect to separation of powers… I urge Congress to pass legislation to correct this.”

*blink*

At that point, when I realized Scalia was not going to fulfill my fantasy and hop up there and punch P.BO in the face, I quit watching.

Then, The Inconvenience came in and said I better get on Gunbroker and buy the 1911 I’ve been eyeballing (Springfield 1911 Lightweight Champion Operator), because Obama said he wants to sign a small arms treaty. I said, “Seriously?” and he said “Yes, seriously!” and within about 2 seconds I was logging in… only to have him say “Psych!”

Not funny.

Now I think I’m going to go ahead and buy it as his punishment. Speaking of which, he just added a 1945 Remington-Rand 1911 (former property of the US Army) to the stable. Can you tell we’ve recently downed a copious amount of the JMB Kool-Aid?

Oh, the other thing I caught in the few minutes of SOTU I watched was Obama blaming our spending problems on George W. Bush. I don’t have the exact quote, but the gist of it was “Yeah, well, HE WAS WORSE!”

I saw on FoxNews that he’d said it was time to give Americans the government they deserve. Funny, I feel like we have it.

I just read President Obama’s Nobel acceptance speech, and it was very good.

I mean – it started off good, and as I kept reading, it got “Holy shit, this is really good, who wrote this!?” kinda good.

He talked about just war, about resilience, about being the good guys, about cultural relativity… There’s also a shoutout to global warming climate change, but I’ll let it slide. Just this once.

Did I mention it’s really frickin’ good?

Yet the world must remember that it was not simply international institutions — not just treaties and declarations — that brought stability to a post-World War II world. Whatever mistakes we have made, the plain fact is this: The United States of America has helped underwrite global security for more than six decades with the blood of our citizens and the strength of our arms. The service and sacrifice of our men and women in uniform has promoted peace and prosperity from Germany to Korea, and enabled democracy to take hold in places like the Balkans. We have borne this burden not because we seek to impose our will. We have done so out of enlightened self-interest — because we seek a better future for our children and grandchildren, and we believe that their lives will be better if other peoples’ children and grandchildren can live in freedom and prosperity.

…

The leaders and soldiers of NATO countries — and other friends and allies — demonstrate this truth through the capacity and courage they have shown in Afghanistan. But in many countries, there is a disconnect between the efforts of those who serve and the ambivalence of the broader public. I understand why war is not popular. But I also know this: The belief that peace is desirable is rarely enough to achieve it. Peace requires responsibility. Peace entails sacrifice.
…

Where force is necessary, we have a moral and strategic interest in binding ourselves to certain rules of conduct. And even as we confront a vicious adversary that abides by no rules, I believe that the United States of America must remain a standard bearer in the conduct of war. That is what makes us different from those whom we fight. That is a source of our strength. That is why I prohibited torture. That is why I ordered the prison at Guantanamo Bay closed. And that is why I have reaffirmed America’s commitment to abide by the Geneva Conventions. We lose ourselves when we compromise the very ideals that we fight to defend. And we honor those ideals by upholding them not just when it is easy, but when it is hard.

…

So even as we respect the unique culture and traditions of different countries, America will always be a voice for those aspirations that are universal. We will bear witness to the quiet dignity of reformers like Aung San Suu Kyi; to the bravery of Zimbabweans who cast their ballots in the face of beatings; to the hundreds of thousands who have marched silently through the streets of Iran. It is telling that the leaders of these governments fear the aspirations of their own people more than the power of any other nation. And it is the responsibility of all free people and free nations to make clear to these movements that hope and history are on their side.

I can’t speak to the delivery, as I only read the transcript, but I liked it so much I think I’ll watch it tomorrow. Go read/watch for yourself.

Well done, Sir.

H/T Ernunnos

Via Uncle:

I laughed way harder than I probably should have at this.

Just rented/watched it. Lots of ’splodey things. Kind of an infomercial for the US Military. Storyline a leetle shallow. Megan Fox is hot. Giant robot battles.

The most notable feature of the movie, in my opinion (save Megan Fox’s hotness) was: They made a very big point of letting you know the POTUS in the movie is Obama. And then they made a very big point of sending a really annoying bureaucrat who did not know what he was talking about to screw up the military’s arrangement with the Autobots by order of the POTUS…

…An order the military promptly disregarded in the interest of Doing The Right Thing and Saving The World.

So. Take from that what you will.

When The Sister told me Dear Leader won a Nobel Peace prize, I was like, “Haha, what’s the punchline?”

“No, I think he really did!” she said.

“Yeeeah right, is it on the Onion or what?”

“No, for real! It’s… hold on… yeah, it’s all over Google.”

Obama, who has publicly committed to improving America’s image abroad, was named recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize for, the Nobel committee said, his initiatives to reduce nuclear arms, ease tensions with the Muslim world and stress diplomacy and cooperation rather than unilateralism.¹

For your edification, here’s a brief guide to ways you, too can win a Nobel Peace prize:
1. Hate Jews.
2. Hate Jews and be a terrorist. (66% prize penalty for the terrorist part, apparently.)
3. Talk about Manbearpig. Not to stir the global warming climate change pot again, but what, exactly, does that have to do with peace? It’s lulzy that doesn’t fall under… you know… science.
4. Follow Ronald Reagan’s instructions.

and last but not least…

5. Think happy thoughts!

I’m winning it next year, guys. I can feel it.

Oh, and also news:

“From our standpoint, you know, we think that this gives us a sense of momentum … when the United States has accolades tossed its way, rather than shoes,” State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley told reporters on Friday.²

Said with full self-awareness: From the consistent level of snark, I’m under the impression Barack Obama has indeed found most of his spokespeople on the internet.

Cool. Maybe I’ll get hired for that, too.

^1,2 http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/10/09/state-department-lauds-obamas-nobel-peace-prize-making-jab-bush/

So, the Obama folks screwed up with that “how I can support the President” bit. It might have worked with a POTUS not already being accused of propagandizing heavily, but Obama ain’t that POTUS.

That said? To quell fears about the message Obama will be delivering to schoolchildren tomorrow, they’ve released the speech for parental review. That’s how you do it, guys.

And the speech itself? Nothing sinister. No agenda-pushing. It’s about perseverance and personal responsibility. It’s actually quite good.

Where you are right now doesn’t have to determine where you’ll end up. No one’s written your destiny for you. Here in America, you write your own destiny. You make your own future.

…about Obama’s call for schoolchildren to write letters to themselves about how they can help the president…

…but they already pulled it.

Do these clowns run these schemes past anything but an echo chamber before they throw them out to the public? I mean, flagging healthcare dissenters? Schoolchildren helping the president?

If you still need evidence the administration is completely disconnected from reality, look no further than the list of things they consider legitimate, valid ideas.

http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2009/08/26/taking_liberties/entry5268079.shtml

Section 431(a) of the bill says that the IRS must divulge taxpayer identity information, including the filing status, the modified adjusted gross income, the number of dependents, and “other information as is prescribed by” regulation. That information will be provided to the new Health Choices Commissioner and state health programs and used to determine who qualifies for “affordability credits.”

Section 245(b)(2)(A) says the IRS must divulge tax return details — there’s no specified limit on what’s available or unavailable — to the Health Choices Commissioner. The purpose, again, is to verify “affordability credits.”

Section 1801(a) says that the Social Security Administration can obtain tax return data on anyone who may be eligible for a “low-income prescription drug subsidy” but has not applied for it.

Over at the Institute for Policy Innovation (a free-market think tank and presumably no fan of Obamacare), Tom Giovanetti argues that: “How many thousands of federal employees will have access to your records? The privacy of your health records will be only as good as the most nosy, most dishonest and most malcontented federal employee…. So say good-bye to privacy from the federal government. It was fun while it lasted for 233 years.”

Giovanetti and I are on the same page, and all, but… has he ever dealt with the fedgov? I’d be willing to bet he’s never purchased anything through a FFL…

Is Obama a natural-born citizen? Is there a big cover-up? Do you think it matters?

What say you, PGB readers? Are you ‘birthers?’

So, what’s the point of even having military tribunals in the first place?

Detainees, Even if Acquitted, Might Not Go Free

Obama administration said Tuesday it could continue to imprison non-U.S. citizens indefinitely.

The Wall Street Journal
FOXNews.com
Tuesday, July 07, 2009

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration said Tuesday it could continue to imprison non-U.S. citizens indefinitely even if they have been acquitted of terrorism charges by a U.S. military commission.

Jeh Johnson, the Defense Department’s chief lawyer, told the Senate Armed Services Committee that releasing a detainee who has been tried and found not guilty was a policy decision that officials would make based on their estimate of whether the prisoner posed a future threat.

Like the Bush administration, the Obama administration argues that the legal basis for indefinite detention of aliens it considers dangerous is separate from war-crimes prosecutions.

[more]

*Whistles the hopeychangey theme song*