The American "education" machine is broken!





Latest Analysis, Commentary and Opinion*
(The title of each article is linked to the complete article)

Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Jobs Are the Key to Housing Recovery
   Employment/Jobs piece by Offsite (6/30/10)

Jobs - not home prices or mortgage interest rates - are the most important factor in the housing recovery, says Yale economist Robert Shiller, co-creator of the Case-Shiller Housing index.

The Fed Is Out of Touch So Just Shut It
   Economics piece by Offsite (6/30/10)

The U.S. Federal Reserve is losing its marbles, says Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, international business editor of London’s Daily Telegraph.

U.S. drops effort to deport ‘Son of Hamas’
   National Security piece by Offsite (6/30/10)

An immigration judge in San Diego ruled today the son of a Hamas founder who converted to Christianity and spied for Israel will be granted political asylum after the Department of Homeland Security dropped its objections.

China’s Illegal Subsidies to Its Paper Industry Threaten U.S. Jobs
   Employment/Jobs piece by Press Release: Steven Capozzola (6/30/10)

WASHINGTON - Heavily subsidized by the Chinese government in violation of global trading rules, the Chinese paper industry has tripled production over the past decade, killing jobs throughout the United States and driving up the massive U.S. trade deficit with China, according to a report released today by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI).

Under the gun
   Guns/Self-defense piece by Offsite (6/30/10)

Handgun ban tossed out - The U.S. Supreme Court followed up on its 2008 Heller decision—which threw out the blanket ban on private handgun ownership in Washington, D.C.—by ruling 5-4 on Monday that Chicago, as well, violated the Constitution by imposing an effective ban on private handgun ownership.

Entrepreneurship Helps Make America Great
   Business piece by Offsite (6/30/10)

For all its problems, America is a great place. And one thing that makes America great is its prosperity.

Global Stocks, Commodities to Crash
   Investments piece by Offsite (6/30/10)

Global stocks and commodities, outside of gold, are poised to crash amid continued woes for banks, according to RBS strategists.

Public Sector Benefits Must Be Cut
   Government piece by Offsite (6/30/10)

Real-estate mogul Sam Zell has joined the chorus of those warning that salaries and health benefits for government workers are too generous.

‘Spies Amongst Us - How Many More?‘
   Espionage/Spying piece by Offsite (6/30/10)

A week is a long time in politics, or so the saying goes. It was only a week ago that the president was happily consuming cheeseburgers in Ray’s Hell Burger in Virginia, with his counterpart, President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev. While the Russian president smiled and popped another jalapeno into his mouth, he must have been thinking something along the lines of the word “Sucker!“

Federal agencies plan to start buying in bulk
   Government piece by Offsite (6/30/10)

It seems the federal government didn’t realize until recently that you can save more money by buying in bulk.

How McChrystal endangered our troops
   War piece by Offsite (6/30/10)

Grassroots conservatives and pundits have bent over backwards to support a general who should not have been placed in charge of a war effort, but the truth about what Gen. McChrystal really supported is beginning to come out.

Euro’s Drop Will Help Europe Rebound
   Europe piece by Offsite (6/30/10)

Not everyone is bearish on Europe’s economy.

Presidential spokesman links amnesty to ‘heck of a fine’
   National Security piece by Offsite (6/30/10)

Responds to question about reports of executive decision on border - White House spokesman Robert Gibbs today joked that it would be a “heck of a fine” should the president decide to pardon some 10 million illegal aliens in the United States now.

Supremes in contempt of 1st Amendment
   Supreme Court piece by Offsite (6/30/10)

I have read scores of Supreme Court decisions, but rarely has their been so broadly vague and amateurishly twisted a rationale as in Chief Justice John Roberts’ majority decision (Jan. 21) on “Holder, Attorney General, Et al. v. Humanitarian Law Project.“ With only three justices dissenting, this dangerous judicial activism disables the free-speech anchor of the First Amendment.

2nd spy case undermines Russian leader
   Espionage/Spying piece by Offsite (6/30/10)

UNITED NATIONS - The FBI’s discovery of a large Russian spy ring and the arrests of 10 alleged members may prove problematic for Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, for whom it is the second spy fiasco in the last 10 years.

State’s ‘emergency’ gun ban in lawsuit bulls-eye
   Guns/Self-defense piece by Offsite (6/30/10)

Suspending ‘fundamental civil rights’ challenged as unconstitutional - Less than 24 hours after word erupted in Washington the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed 2nd Amendment gun ownership rights for all Americans, a lawsuit has been filed over a practice in North Carolina of banning guns during “emergencies.“

Goodbye Palestinian Authority - Welcome Jordan
   Middle East piece by David Singer (6/30/10)

The Palestinian Authority (PA) is likely to be wound up at the end of the year according to PA Chief Negotiator Saeb Erekat - if no agreement is reached with Israel on the so called “two-state solution” - the creation of a new Arab state between Israel, Jordan and Egypt.

‘Would You Rather Have Obama Golf or Govern?‘
   Government piece by Selwyn Duke (6/30/10)

After seeing Barack Obama’s golf swing, I’m confronted with the staggering possibility that he might actually be better at governing than golfing.  And this is despite the fact that he seems to devote more time to the latter, an impression that has won him much bad publicity.

Kill Whitey and Other Leftist Fantasies
   Progressivism piece by Carey Roberts (6/30/10)

The ever-feisty, always irrepressible Rev. Jeremiah Wright is back in the news. Yessiree, President Obama’s long-time spiritual guru is once again regaling audiences with his unique blend of fire-and-brimestone and racial invective.

A Nation at the Crossroads
   The Republic piece by Alan Burkhart (6/30/10)

There was a time when America was a nation that, for the most part at least, respected its own laws. Those days seem to be fading. In more recent times laws seem to be open to interpretation by whoever happens to be in power at the time. The rapidly heating debate over illegal immigration is the most obvious example of how our laws are misinterpreted and even ignored outright by those in power.

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

The Disadvantages of an Elite Education
   EdukShun piece by Offsite (6/29/10)

Our best universities have forgotten that the reason they exist is to make minds, not careers - It didn’t dawn on me that there might be a few holes in my education until I was about 35. I’d just bought a house, the pipes needed fixing, and the plumber was standing in my kitchen. There he was, a short, beefy guy with a goatee and a Red Sox cap and a thick Boston accent, and I suddenly learned that I didn’t have the slightest idea what to say to someone like him.

Europe’s Problems Will Infect US Markets
   Economics piece by Offsite (6/29/10)

Europe’s economic problems could spread to the United States and cause stocks to fall, says economist Nouriel Roubini.

Gun control and Justice Breyer’s cluelessness
   Guns/Self-defense piece by Offsite (6/29/10)

Now that the Supreme Court of the United States has decided that the Second Amendment to the Constitution means that individual Americans have a right to bear arms, what can we expect?

Ohio Dems Seek Gun Records To Harass Gun Owners
   Demercrats piece by Warner Todd Huston (6/29/10)

In the wake of the new Supreme Court decision on the 2nd Amendment, we have this illuminating story from Ohio and if this isn’t the perfect example of why American gun owners fear detailed firearm owners registration records in the hands of government officials there isn’t one to be had. Ohio’s State Democrat Party recently sent a letter to every county sheriff’s office demanding that sheriffs send them the names and addresses of all concealed carry permit holders in their county.

German Treasurer: US Should Learn From Us
   Government piece by Offsite (6/29/10)

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schauble says Germany’s austerity is correct, and the U.S. should learn from it.

It’s a ‘Perfect Storm’ for Gold
   Investments piece by Offsite (6/29/10)

Gold, which recently surged to a record high $1,265, still has plenty of room to rise, many experts say.

Central Banks Should Print Money
   Economics piece by Offsite (6/29/10)

Many experts say governments and central banks should quickly reverse their fiscal and monetary stimulus to curb debt and prevent a virulent outbreak of inflation.

It Seems We Are Back On Google..
   Internet piece by Editor (6/29/10)

I noticed this morning hits coming from Google.

Obama and the “Internet Kill Switch!“
   Information Police piece by J. D. Longstreet (6/29/10)

We saw this coming years ago and warned that if Obama was elected he and the Socialist/Democrats would make a strong effort to take over the Internet.

Russian Spies Captured in US Dragnet
   National Security piece by Jim Kouri (6/29/10)

Federal agents mounted a multi-state dragnet to smash an alleged Russian spy ring accused of infiltrating US policymaking and reporting back to Moscow. Ten suspected spies were arrested including several in the New York metropolitan area.