Video: Chuck Norris and NRA Want You to Vote
Looks like the right wing is finally starting to figure this internet thing out. This Trigger the Vote ad by the NRA is laugh out loud funny. If the left constantly says 60% of the voters are stupid rednecks, well…then just go with it. And anytime you add in Chuck Norris you’re good to go.
Concept of the Day: The Abilene Paradox
The Abilene Paradox has been an important concept to understand in business culture and has been around for a while, but what we’re seeing with a fast collapse of left-wing ideology and in popularity of the Obama government may be best understood using it as well, noted by the Ace of Spades blog.
In brief, the Abilene Paradox is when a group of people collectively decide on a course of action that is counter to the preferences of any of the individuals in the group…each member mistakenly believes that their beliefs are counter to the group so no one raises objections.
It’s how totalitarian governments or institutions such as slavery stay in place so well, the information the people are given leads them to believe their views are not shared by a large group of people so they stay silent and in line.
In today’s society it works more that people assume, because of the media, their views are in the minority, and they don’t want to “rock the boat” and be called a racist, homophobe, islamophobe, etc. etc. so they keep to themselves.
This paradox falls apart when unexpected people begin to speak out in a prominent way (then you then start to get a cascading effect). When a Republican speaks out against Obama or illegal immigration or ObamaCare - no big deal, but when others begin to — that’s when it starts to break down (See former Obama supporter Mort Zuckerman’s “The Most Fiscally Irresponsible Government Ever“).
Bottom line – understand what you believe, why you believe it, and speak your opinion, without worrying about “rocking the boat.” It’s likely you’re not alone.
Ground Zero Mosque Pits America Against Its Elites
Strangely putting his foot into a debate (and his mouth) that would be best left to the people of New York City (or perhaps also families of those killed in the attack), Friday night Obama gave strong support for the building of the Ground Zero mosque. He took this “courageous” stand at an Islamic Ramadan dinner hosted at the White House (remember when he hosted the National Day of Prayer and..oh wait, he skipped that one). (click here for a picture of where the mosque is being built)
Here are his comments, don’t worry he backpedaled quickly after.
“As a citizen, and as president, I believe that Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as anyone else in this country,”
“That includes the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in lower Manhattan, in accordance with local laws and ordinances,” he said. “This is America, and our commitment to religious freedom must be unshakable.”(see video here)
Then he changed his tune the next day. He “clarified” his remarks, and by clarify, I mean completely changed what he originally said because he got blasted for hurting the Democrats on the ballot in November again.
“I was not commenting and I will not comment on the wisdom of making the decision to put a mosque there. I was commenting very specifically on the right people have that dates back to our founding. That’s what our country is about.”
We maybe could use leadership on this issue, but not the ivy league scolding of the masses Obama has brought. Of all the things he has done to denigrate America, for some reason this one angered me the most. It revealed the naive understanding of a complex situation and the elites almost backwoodsy knee jerk support of anything Islam. By backwoodsy I mean they react like the hillbillies they hate so much for crying “communist” every time the other side does anything, without considering any complexities of an issue.
For starters, 68% of Americans are against the mosque. Either Obama is way smarter than everyone else (which I assume is what he thinks) or he’s missing something everyone else sees.
By hiding behind the lame “Freedom of Religion” card (though it’s nice the Left does actually know it exists) there is no consideration of the other freedom, the freedom of speech of the community to gather and say “not here.”
The guy behind this 100 million dollar, purportedly “bridge building” mosque is Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf. Ground Zero is no random choice of place for this mosque. He called the United States an “accessory” to the 9/11 attacks. It’s quite clear this is marking a victory for violent Islam. They hid behind the peaceful passages of their texts to do it, and we always run as the elites scold everyone with the Islamophobic card.
Even Muslims know that’s what it’s all about. The op-ed “We Muslims Know the Ground Zero Mosque is Meant to be a Deliberate Provocation” says what everyone else knows, but since it’s by a Muslim it’s hard to use the Islamophobic card. Check out the article.
And finally, where the elites fail to understand this country and grasp the issue here, Charles Krauthammer nails it in his recent column with all the nuance and thought that the ruling class prides themselves on but sorely lacks on this issue. It’s really the first and last word you’ll need to read about it. Link here.
He writes:
A place is made sacred by a widespread belief that it was visited by the miraculous or the transcendent (Lourdes, the Temple Mount), by the presence there once of great nobility and sacrifice (Gettysburg), or by the blood of martyrs and the indescribable suffering of the innocent (Auschwitz).
When we speak of Ground Zero as hallowed ground, what we mean is that it belongs to those who suffered and died there — and that such ownership obliges us, the living, to preserve the dignity and memory of the place, never allowing it to be forgotten, trivialized or misappropriated.
No one’s saying “no mosques” or trying to get the government to stop the mosque, no matter what straw men the administration puts out there. The fight is for the hearts and minds of Americans to demand it be moved somewhere else. What they definitely aren’t looking for is our leadership pushing for it.
By the way, since it’s been 10 years almost, finishing something there that actually memorialized the deaths might be nice.
An Indecent Proposal
Greg Gutfeld, hysterical host of Red Eye on Fox News, turned the tables a bit and decided that in the spirit of building bridges (as the mosque supposedly wants to force New Yorkers to do) why not get Islam to build their own bridges with the gay community. It’s a crime punishable by death in their religion, so what better place to start? Hence, his Muslim Gay Bar idea.
Check out two interviews he did on the subject below. The second is a response to the negative feedback he got from lefties. Again, so amazingly ironic the tolerant Left quickly gets intolerant. Which is why fewer and fewer Americans are listening to them anymore.
The Broken Window Fallacy
One of the most important concepts to understand how misguided our economic policies today are is the “broken window fallacy.” The video below does a very good job of simplifying it.
This isn’t a new concept, and it can be pretty obvious to anyone, especially economists. Which likely means that the intellectual class in Washington fully understands it, but growing jobs and wealth isn’t at all the goal of their economic policies.
For a population that doesn’t understand basic economic concepts like the broken window fallacy, what they do understand is getting free stuff, interpreting that stuff as wealth or accomplishment, and then voting for the party that gave it to them.
Not understanding what they can’t see on the surface, how that money would have been spent better and built a flurry of job opportunities for a career rather than a temporary handout, is what the politicians bank on.
Obama Bows Yet Again…Maybe Ok This Time
Via michellemalkin
I’m guessing this Chris Christie curtsey wasn’t intentional. Kind of like anything positive that happens around Obama.
Unemployment Checks THE Fastest Way to Create Jobs
I would follow this stunningly full-of-win logic through, but then my head might explode. This is the kind of nonsensical thing someone like Sarah Palin supposedly says all the time, only actually Nancy Pelosi really does.
Graph of the Day
Why when they bring up the tired old “it’s for the children, you must not care about the children” argument every time the teacher’s union wants more free health benefits for themselves. Now if you actually want to use vouchers to let kids do something better with that money — you again hate children. For some reason.
When what we’re thinking is about this chart and wondering where that money is going, and who is really coming up with ideas better for “the children?”
