Marathon Pundit

Tuesday, November 03, 2009

Upper Peninsula Upventure: Munising Falls

Although there many more waterfalls on Michigan's Upper Peninsula, Munising Falls is the last one to be featured in this series.

Located on the east end of the town of Munising, adjacent to a large parking lot, it is very close to the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.

Next: Commerce

Earlier posts:

Eagle River Falls
Canyon Falls
Agate Falls
Little Girls Point
Gogebic Range
Bishop Baraga and St. Mary's Pro-Cathedral
Farming
More Pictured Rocks
Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore
Munising Bay
Seney, Hemingway, and Post-traumatic Stress Syndrome
Hickey Creek
Ishpeming and Iron Mining
Calumet, Michigan's St. Anne's Church
Keweenaw Waterway Bridge
The Keweenaw Waterway
Keweenaw National Historical Park, Quincy, Part One
Keweenaw National Historical Park, Calumet
Calumet, Michigan's St. John the Baptist Church
Little Gippers Preschool, Calumet, Michigan
A brief history of copper mining
Calumet, Michigan's St. Paul the Apostle Church
Finland, Finland, Finland
Escanaba's Sand Point Lighthouse
Manistique East Breakwater Light
Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse
Wawatam Lighthouse
Whitefish Point Light
The Munising Front Range Light
Grand Island East Harbor Lighthouse
Copper Harbor Lighthouse
Eagle Harbor Lighthouse

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upper peninsula

NJ, Virginia: It's morning in America again

I'm feeling very Reaganesque this evening. Republican gubernatorial candidates in New Jersey and Virginia have prevailed, I feel that it is morning America again.

With the victories of Chris Christie and Bob McDonnell, Democrats have to be nervous now. Will congressional Dems, particularly Blue Dogs, put their careers on the line by forcing ObamaCare, card check, a second stimulus, and cap and trade on an angry public?

The news out of New York's 23rd District is not good, it appears that Democrat Bob Owens will win there. But we'll defeat him next time. That was one weird race, and the conditions of the special election are impossible to be replayed.

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Ohio: Not all "saved" jobs were in danger

The Columbus Dispatch reports on some more "Obama math" used by the White House regarding those "saved" jobs:

The Obama administration announced Friday that federal stimulus money had created or saved about 7,200 education jobs in Ohio as of Sept. 30.

Although a couple of hundred of those jobs were in Columbus City Schools, the district acknowledged yesterday that many of the "saved" jobs definitely wouldn't have been lost in the first place, and others might not have been lost at all.

"I know we explained to (the Ohio Department of Education) what we were doing, and they told us what categories to use," said Jill Dannemiller, director of federal programs for the Columbus schools.

Although other areas of the district's budget might have suffered without the stimulus, district officials said, the jobs report nonetheless highlighted the fuzzy math involved in pinpointing a saved-jobs number.

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Agency that runs Chicago's convention centers "in deep financial hole"

Two afternoons ago I wrote that another major trade show was considering abandoning Chicago for a cheaper place to do business. Arcane and onerous union work rules are a large part of the reason the Plastics Show may mold itself a new home in Orlando.

From the Chicago Tribune:

The agency that runs McCormick Place and Navy Pier is in a "deep financial hole" and will have to rethink every aspect of its operations, its new chairman said Tuesday.

"It's not an insurmountable hole, but we can't operate as business as usual," John Gates Jr., chairman of the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority board, said during the board's monthly meeting.

The deep recession has rocked the tourism and convention businesses, he noted. The taxes produced by those industries are a major revenue source for the agency, used to pay back various expansion bonds.

And the agency should rethink those work rules, which the Tribune did not cite as a cause for the revenue slump.

Related post:

Union extortionists may drive another trade show from Chicago

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Toppled Obama stimulus "campaign sign" in Des Plaines

I'm hoping this toppled Obama stimulus "campaign sign" on the corner of Oakton and River Road in Des Plaines portends a successful Election Day for the Republican Party.

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Northwest Chicago Suburbs

Government union surprises Philly, goes on strike

At least they waited for the World Series to move back to New York. But at 3:00am this morning, the largest union representing Philadelphia area transit workers went on strike, forcing southeastern Pennsylvanians to scramble to find a way to work. Or a way back.

These government workers are not public servants.

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mlb

Cleaning up Cook County

While driving around the neighborhood this morning, I encountered this crew of young gents fulfilling their Cook County community service commitment.

They are cleaning up Morton Grove's St. Paul Woods. But we all know the real trash is found within Cook County government. Voters can finish the job by exercising their franchise in the primary election on February 2, and in the general nine months later.

Related posts:

Why We Fight: New video from the Cook County GOP
Illinois corruption update: Cook County worker with clout collected salary while jailed
Hack that Obama endorsed bringing Illinois politics to new low
More on Stroger's cousin and her busboy
Todd "Corruption Tax" Stroger dragged into municipal election
Hey Obama! Speak out on proposal to impose nation's highest sales tax in your hometown: UDPATED
More Cook County waste
Todd Stroger: More Chicago Democratic sleaze
Another update on America's worst government--Cook County
Rita Rezko's contribution to America's worst government, Cook County
The latest from America's worst governmental body, Cook County
Bid to rescind Cook County corruption tax fails: UPDATED
T-Day in Obama's hometown: Highest sales tax of any big city in America
Patronage hiring still thrives in Cook County
Another thing for Obama to be silent on: Cook County summer jobs going to pols' kids
Update on America's worst governmental body, Cook County
Palatine wants to secede from Cook County
Something else for Obama to be silent on: Chicago will have the nation's highest sales tax
Say no to higher Cook County taxes
No fat in Cook County budget?
Beavers leaves it to the race card as America's worst governmental body gets worse
Your Cook County tax dollars at work
Stop the proposed Cook County phone tax
"Is anyone watching out for Chicago taxpayers?"
Time for me to shop...outside Cook County?
Marathon Pundit Chicago River dumping follow up
Obama and Chicago's "We Don't Want Nobody Nobody Sent" culture
Cook County sues Cook County
My day as a Cook County juror

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House ObamaCare bill will create 111 new bureaucracies

Yes, the goal Obama administration is to make government fat, as Fox News tells us.

In its latest attempt to portray Democrats' reform package as an unwieldy expansion of federal government in the health care sector, the House Republican Conference circulated what it called a list of "new boards, bureaucracies, commissions and programs" created in the House health care bill.

House Republicans claimed Monday that the health care reform bill pushed by Speaker Nancy Pelosi would create a whopping 111 new "federal bureaucracies."

Among some off the new agencies, the list cites a Health Insurance Exchange; the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation; the Public Health Investment Fund; the Public Health Workforce Corps; an Assistant Secretary for Health Information; the Food and Drug Administration Office of Women's Health; grant programs for alternative medical liability laws, infant mortality programs and other issues; and about 100 other government-sponsored creations.

Chains the Dems can believe in.
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New Jeremiah Wright video emerges: UPDATED

Here is some more extremism from the Reverend Wrong, courtesty of Accuracy in Media.

A new video of Jeremiah Wright has surfaced, showing Barack Obama's pastor of 20 years praising Marxism and discussing his ties to communists in El Salvador and Nicaragua and the Libyan government. Equally important, Wright is being introduced in the video by Robert W. McChesney, co-founder of Free Press, an organization which has come under scrutiny for its links to the Obama Administration and dedication to the transformation and control of the private media in the U.S.

In an article in the socialist Monthly Review, "Journalism, Democracy, and Class Struggle," McChesney declared, "Our job is to make media reform part of our broader struggle for democracy, social justice, and, dare we say it, socialism."

In the video, which captures Wright's appearance at a September 17, 2009, anniversary celebration of Monthly Review, Wright said that while the "corporate media" provide a "binary lens" of the world, in such terms as "communist versus Christian," Monthly Review offers what it calls "no-nonsense Marxism."

A year ago, the Obama campaign assured us that Wright wasn't a big deal. But when considering the sharp leftward lunge the White House has taken, they lied to us. Again.

For twenty years, Obama sat in the pews of Wright's Trinity United Church.

UPDATE 11:15am CST: The Wright video has been removed from Vimeo. Which is wrong.

UPDATE 12:30pm CST: Ed Driscoll just tweeted me, there is a three minute clip online.

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Monday, November 02, 2009

Farm groups gearing up for cap and trade fight

Look out, Washington: There is no such thing as a lazy farmer.

From the Wichita Eagle:

Farm state senators and others soon will get a taste of what their colleagues from Missouri already have piled high on their desks: thousands of letters from farmers urging them to vote against the climate and energy bill.

The Missouri Farm Bureau started the letter campaign early, weeks before the bill was fully written and made public.

It was followed this month with a pitch from the American Farm Bureau, the nation's largest agriculture lobby, to get farmers to take farm caps, sign their bills and send them to senators with notes that say, "Don't cap our future."

Farm lobby groups and senators who agree with them argue that imposing limits on the nation's emissions of heat-trapping gases from coal, oil and natural gas would raise the cost of farming necessities such as fuel, electricity and natural gas-based fertilizer.

The national energy tax, better known as cap and trade, is another expensive scheme the Democrats are trying to force on America.

Related post:

Wheat growers drop support of cap-and-trade

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farming

Ill. GOP strikes out at Democrats again

The feisty Illinois Republican Party (Yes, it's true) comes out swinging by releasing another forceful press release about a Democrat, this time Governor Patrick Quinn.

The Chicago Sun Times recently reported that a top Quinn aide, Carolyn Brown Hodge, has resigned after it was discovered that a probe was launched to determine if she was doing political work on the State’s dime. It was also reported last spring that Quinn's campaign was asking special interest groups to host fundraisers for "face time" with Quinn. At the time, Governor Quinn said he was embarrassed. Well, he should be – nothing has changed.

This is not a coincidence. Pat Quinn continues to campaign and run the State of Illinois in the same manner as his running mate Rod Blagojevich did. He has failed at true ethics reform, we still have a budget crisis, our unemployment is 10.5% and he wants to raise our taxes. The people of Illinois are tired of Blagojevich style politics.
Pat Brady, Chairman, Illinois Republican Party

To learn more about Pat Quinn and his ties to Rod Blagojevich visit http://www.friendsofblago.com/int-quinn.htm

Quinn has been accused of being a ghost payroller while employed by the administration of Governor Dan Walker in the 1970s.

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WSJ: House ObamaCare "worst bill ever"

It takes a lot for a piece of legislation to be dubbed the "worst bill ever" by the Wall Street Journal. But the House ObamaCare bill, which was unveiled last week, wins that dishonor. If it becomes law, we'll be stuck with it for ever. It's immortal, like that the nuclear war-resistant Mary Jane candy I got while trick-or-treating decades ago.

No country has ever shed itself of government-run health care.

From the Journal:

Epic new spending and taxes, pricier insurance, rationed care, dishonest accounting: The Pelosi health bill has it all.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi has reportedly told fellow Democrats that she's prepared to lose seats in 2010 if that's what it takes to pass ObamaCare, and little wonder. The health bill she unwrapped last Thursday, which President Obama hailed as a "critical milestone," may well be the worst piece of post-New Deal legislation ever introduced.

In a rational political world, this 1,990-page runaway train would have been derailed months ago. With spending and debt already at record peacetime levels, the bill creates a new and probably unrepealable middle-class entitlement that is designed to expand over time. Taxes will need to rise precipitously, even as ObamaCare so dramatically expands government control of health care that eventually all medicine will be rationed via politics.

Yet at this point, Democrats have dumped any pretense of genuine bipartisan "reform" and moved into the realm of pure power politics as they race against the unpopularity of their own agenda. The goal is to ram through whatever income-redistribution scheme they can claim to be "universal coverage." The result will be destructive on every level—for the health-care system, for the country's fiscal condition, and ultimately for American freedom and prosperity.

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Upper Peninsula Upventure: Eagle River Falls

In the middle 1800s, the Keweenaw Peninsula town of Eagle River, Michigan was a copper boom town. According to an historical marker in the now-unincorporated town, in 1855, Eagle River boasted two breweries, thirty two saloons, and three hotels. One property, the German Hotel, hosted the town's jail on its third floor.

My guess is that Eagle River had a very busy police department.

Douglass Houghton, Michigan's first geologist and the man credited for realizing the commercial potential of the Keweenaw Peninsula, drowned off of the shore of Eagle River in 1857.

The town is named for the river, and pictured on the left is Eagle River Falls, which is at the center of the village.

Next: Munising Falls

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Anti-ObamaCare Tea Party Saturday on Chicago's Southwest Side

The Tea Party movement is coming to Chicago's bungalow belt.

Patriots are requested to be at Wentworth Park at 5700 S. Narragansett Avenue on Chicago's Southwest Side from 12:00pm--to 2:00pm on Saturday, November 7. The goal of the protest is to convince Rep. Dan Lipinski (D-IL) to vote against the House ObamaCare bill.

Speaking at the Tea Party will be doctors, students, and defectors from Eastern Europe.

The event, which is officially titled One Year to Judgement Day, is being organized by Chicago Tea Party Patriots.

Visit their Facebook page.

Make patriotic signs and bring flags.

Related post:

Marathon Pundit speaks at Chicago's "Silent No More" Tea Party

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universal health care

obamacare

Ill GOP has tough questions for Alexi Giannoulias regarding small businesses

It will be small businesses, not Fortune 500 firms, and certainly not the federal government, who will pull us out of the recession. The Democrats' are promoting obstacles to small business growth, such as the so-called Employee Free Choice Act and ObamaCare. In Illinois, Alexi Giannoulias is the frontrunner in the race to win the Democratic nomination for the Senate seat currently held by Rod Blagojevich appointee Roland Burris.

The Illinois Republican has some pointed queries for the "Boy Banker":

Key Questions for Alexi Giannoulias on Critical Issues Facing Illinois Small Business Owners:

It's easy to hold a press conference and promise free taxpayer handouts with no way to deliver on your promise. But if Alexi Giannoulias wants Illinois small business owners to believe he's on their side, he will need to change his positions on some of their top priorities.

Small business priorities are clearly expressed by the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) – the nation's leading small business association. If Alexi Giannoulias claims he is fighting for small business, reporters should ask him where he stands on the following NFIB priorities:

1) Do you support or oppose the government health care bill (H.R. 3962) unveiled last week by Speaker Pelosi?

Background: The health care bill unveiled by Speaker Pelosi last week includes a $460 billion “surtax” on small business. On Thursday, the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) issued the following statement:

"H.R. 3962 is the 'how to' on how NOT to do health care reform…The House health care bill will do nothing to lower costs, increase choices or produce a more competitive marketplace. Instead, it will actually harm small business owners with its expensive employer mandates, punitive payroll taxes and new government-run program – all of which will only result in more money coming out of small business owners' pockets.” (NFIB Statement, 10/29/09)

2) Do you support or oppose the Employer Free Choice Act, otherwise known as "Card Check"?

Background: "NFIB strongly opposes the deceptively named Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) or 'card check' because it mandates employers recognize labor unions without first holding a private-ballot employee election. Under current law, the election process is guaranteed by law and administered by the National Labor Relations Board. This system ensures that neither a union nor an employer may coerce, harass or restrain employees in exercising their right to choose whether or not to support the union. Each employee's choice is made in the privacy of a voting booth, with neither the employer nor the union knowing how any individual voted…NFIB will be working tirelessly to convey to lawmakers that card check is an assault on free enterprise with the potential to permanently cripple our economy." (Source: NFIB Web site)

3) Do you support or oppose permanently repealing the estate/death tax?

Background: "NFIB has led efforts to provide estate tax relief for America's small businesses. The estate tax creates a disincentive to expand a business, create jobs, and far too often, literally taxes family businesses right out of the family. Much of the cost of the estate tax occurs before the tax itself is levied. The threat of the tax actually forces small-business owners to pay for expensive estate planning if they want to keep their business in the family." (Source: NFIB Web site)

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universal health care

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Obama's union bias

Our "post-partisan" president is a most-partisan president.

Unions are one of the most loyal donors to Democratic political coffers. And they often supply volunteers for political campaigns. Remember, just 12 percent of Americans belong to a union.

The Detroit News' Nolan Finley takes a look at how President Obama is rewarding union workers over non-union ones.

As part of Delphi's restructuring in bankruptcy court, the Troy-based auto parts maker dumped its pension plan onto the federal Pension Benefit Guarantee Corp.

That usually means a continued pension check, but one that is much smaller. And for Delphi's salaried workers, that's what they can expect.

Delphi's union-represented workers, however, will dodge that bullet. The Obama administration swooped in and, in an extraordinary deal, is forcing General Motors to make the 46,000 union workers and retirees whole. GM used to own Delphi, and relies on the supplier for much of its parts.

"The U.S. government is taking care of a select group of people and tossing the rest of us under the bus," Peter Beiter, a retired financial manager for a Delphi plant in Rochester, N.Y., told the New York Times

And the government now owns GM. The government is abusing its power.

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Sunday, November 01, 2009

British ObamaCare update: Whistleblowers silenced

This could be America in 2020. The Independent informs us that Great Britain's government-run health care agency, the National Health Service, is not a fan of transparency. Just like the Obama administration.

NHS whistleblowers are routinely gagged in order to cover up dangerous and even dishonest practices that could attract bad publicity and damage a hospital's reputation.

Some local NHS bodies are spending millions of taxpayers' money to pay off and silence whistleblowers with "super gags" to stop them going public with patient safety incidents. Experts warn that patients' lives are being endangered by the use of intimidatory tactics to force out whistleblowers and deter other professionals from coming forward.

The IoS has learnt of children in Stoke-on-Trent needlessly losing organs after safety issues highlighted by a senior surgeon – who was suspended after coming forward to voice concerns – were ignored. In one of more than 20 serious incidents, a newborn baby girl needed an ovary removed after a standard procedure to remove a cyst was delayed because of staff shortages.

According to Public Concern at Work (PCaW), two-thirds of doctors, nurses and other careworkers are accepting non-disclosure clauses built into severance agreements, in order to avoid years of suspension, financial ruin, incriminations and distress before a case reaches court. The details of these claims, including allegations of dangerous practice, dishonesty and misconduct, are never disclosed to the public.

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White House admits the obvious: They can't tell difference between "saved or created" jobs

The Obama White House probably used a lottery quick-pick method, while leaning on a scale, to come up with the number of jobs its ~~economic stimulus~~ boondoggle has saved or created. But they finally admitted the obvious, as Politico tells us:

White House officials announced Friday that they had counted exactly how many jobs were created or saved by recent stimulus spending: 640,329.

So how many were saved and how many created? They don't know.

In a briefing with reporters, officials acknowledged they can't tell the difference between jobs "saved," and jobs "created" by the $787 billion stimulus package.

They said they also can't tell the difference between private sector jobs and government jobs.

Once again, I have to report that in the rush to pass the stimulus boondoggle, the Democrats said the unemployment rate would not exceed 8 percent. It's now at 9.8 percent.

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Obama

Matt Burden is running for Ill. General Assembly

There is another candidate running for the Illinois General Assembly you should take a look at: Matt Burden, a great patriot, a milblogger at Blackfive, and the editor of The Blog of War: Front-Line Dispatches from Soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.

From Burden's campaign site:

Dear Friend,

For more than 20 years, I've served my country, fighting to protect and preserve the American freedoms, rights, and values that make this country great.

Now, it's time for me to serve our community and you in a new leadership role. As your State Representative, I will serve you in Springfield with the same honor, integrity, professionalism, and passion as I have done on the battlefield.

The 41st District represents the very best of Illinois. It's why we choose to live here, raise our families here, make our livelihoods here, and fulfill our dreams here. And while our State Government is broken, together, we can rebuild it and restore honor and integrity to the Land of Lincoln.

I'm honored to serve you and am grateful for your support.

Sincerely,

-Matt

Fellow Republican Bob Biggins is the current state rep, he's retiring at the end of his term. The 41st covers parts of Cook and DuPage County. Burden says he is a Reagan Republican.

Go Matt!

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Union extortionists may drive another trade show from Chicago

Well, it's sundown on the union
And what's made in the U.S.A.
Sure was a good idea
'Til greed got in the way.
Bob Dylan, "Union Sundown," 1983.

Chicago once was the trade show capital of America, no city came even close. According to Tradeshow Week, it's now in third place, trailing Orlando and Las Vegas. There is just one reason for this--union greed. Yes, Orlando has Disney World, and Vegas, is well, Vegas, but the off-floor attractions of those cities are a drawback to some exhibitors. If you're selling a product, do you want buyers trolling the Strip or entertaining their families at the Happiest Place in the World? Or would prefer them walking the aisles of Chicago's McCormick Place?

In the 1980s and 1990s, I worked as a convention service manager at several Chicago hotels. We charged exhibitors, many of whom were small businesses, $45 an hour for carpenter labor to erect booths, including pop-up displays that a semi-intelligent schnauzer could set up. No tools are needed for pop-ups. At night and weekends, we charged even more. Some of that money the hotel kept, but most, went to cover the wages, benefits, and taxes of the carpenters.

Exhibitors told me that Chicago was "still an Al Capone town," and "run by extortionists," or "a goon city."

I did the payroll, and a funny thing--many of those union carpenters had the same last names. Yet another Chicago "coincidence."

Since then there have been some minor relaxation of union work rules, but the goons still rule the roost on the trade show floors.

The big convention money of course is at Chicago's convention Valhalla, McCormick Place. As well as the big rackets. And another major trade show, the NPE, better known as the Plastics Show, might put Chicago in its rear view mirror.

From Plastics News:

McCormick Place has been home to NPE since 1971, but SPI (Society of the Plastics Industry Inc.), which organizes the show, is looking at alternatives this year because of complaints by exhibitors about high costs and labor union rules. Such complaints happen after every NPE, but the tough economy made it harder to take this year, they said.

Chicago has one big advantage: It is centrally located in the heart of the U.S. plastics industry, with a large number of attendees who can drive to the show. Florida has a smaller plastics sector, but a booming tourist economy in Orlando, thanks to attractions like Disney World — and it is a right-to-work state.

Tourism officials from both cities are tight-lipped. "We put a bid in for it. Now we're waiting for SPI to make their decision. We won't discuss what our proposal is," said Brian Martin, spokesman for the Orlando/Orange County Convention and Visitor's Bureau.

If you think I am going overboard with my use of "extortionists" in my headline, this paragraph might change your mind:

Tim Hanrahan wrote a column for Plastics News complaining that McCormick Place charged his company, Erema North America Inc., $345 to deliver four cases of Pepsi to Erema's booth during NPE2009.

Besides my time in the hospitality industry, I also did some telemarketing work for some trade shows, some of which exhibited in Chicago. Business people from all over the country told me similar stories--some of them emphatically told me they would never buy booth space in Chicago as long as they had a say in the matter.

Chicago's Mayor Richard M. Daley, still smarting from the Olympics debacle, met with the CEO of SPI in hopes of convincing him to keep the Plastics Show in the city on the lake.

But don't expect much. Big labor is a major financial contributor to his political war chest.

That Pepsi won't taste any better if NPE moves to Orlando, but it will seem that way.

In Washington, President Obama and congressional Democrats want for workers to join unions by putting into law the Orwellian-named "Employee Free Choice Act."

For more on EFCA, see the below entries.

Related posts:

Do not let Sen. Evan Bayh kill jobs
Labor looks to Bonoir to fix its problems
Union boss threatens lawmakers on EFCA
WSJ: Beware of the new Employee Free Choice Act
Report from the bloggers' conference call about EFCA with Rep. Tom Price
Union members: More equal than others in Obama's America
EFCA still sub-sixty?
Compromise on card check coming?
Report from the bloggers' conference call on EFCA and cash for union coffers
Report from the bloggers' conference call on EFCA and under-funded pensions
SEIU prez: Union spent $60.7 million to elect Obama
George McGovern: "The ‘Free Choice’ Act Is Anything But"
Report from the bloggers' conference call about Employee FORCED Choice binding arbitration
Report from the bloggers' conference call about card check
Former union organizer talks about card check
Minority business groups coming out against card check
Sen. Mitch McConnell on card check
Financially ailing AFL-CIO funding push for Obama's health care plan
Nonsense from a South Dakota AFL-CIO official about card check
Report from the bloggers' conference call with Rep. John Kline talking about EFCA
Card check update: "A mortal threat to American freedom"
Blagojevich and union "card check"
Employee "free choice" may drive economic uncertainty

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Bishop Baraga and St. Mary's Pro-Cathedral

The first cathedral, albeit a temporary one, on Michigan's Upper Peninsula, was St. Mary's Pro-Cathedral in Sault Ste. Marie Michigan.

Its first bishop was Frederic Baraga, a Slovenian priest who came to came to the Upper Peninsula to serve as a missionary in 1831.

Baraga was fluent in eight languages, including two Native American tongues, and wrote a grammar book and dictionary in the Ojibwa (Chippewa) and a prayer book in the Ottawa language. He converted thousands of Indians to Christianity and was a stout defender of the tribes even as whites overwhelmed the U.P.

Although he was based in L'Anse, on the Keweenaw Peninsula, Baraga was named the Bishop of St. Mary's Church in Sault Ste. Marie in 1857. That structure was a log cabin.

The winters are long and snowy on the Upper Peninsula, and in Baraga's time the only reliable way to travel during winter was on snowshoes, which is why the bishop is still known as "the Snowshoe Priest." Baraga journeyed on snowshoes well into his sixties. Besides northern Michigan, Baraga's missionary work brought him to Ontario and Wisconsin.

As the western half of the Upper Peninsula became populated with mining communities, a new cathedral, with Baraga as bishop, was consecrated in Marquette in 1866.

The current St. Mary's Pro-Cathedral was consecrated in 1881.

Related post:

Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan sunset

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Saturday, October 31, 2009

Upper Peninsula Upventure: Canyon Falls

Near Alberta, Michigan in Baraga County is Canyon Falls. Like Agate Falls to the west, these falls are adjacent to a roadside rest area--in this case on US Route 41.

Besides some rapids, there are two falls, a lower, on the left, and an upper falls.

By the way, situating rest areas next to natural attractions is a great idea.

The falls are on the Sturgeon River.

Baraga County is named for Bishop Frederic Baraga, "the Snowshoe Priest." More on Baraga tomorrow.

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Vatican denounces Halloween

Perhaps Europe needs more Halloween celebrations. Considering the United States has much higher levels of church attendance, I'm going to have to say that the Vatican needs to lighten up a bit about Halloween. The Scotsman explains what I'm talking about.

The Catholic Church has swung its crook at celebrants of Halloween, warning parents to forbid children to dress up as ghosts and ghouls, and dismissing the celebrations as a pagan night of "terror, fear and death."

In an effort to take a sharp pin to the ballooning success of Halloween, which has spread from America to Italy in recent years, the Vatican has issued a stern warning through the pages of its official newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, with an article headlined "Halloween's Dangerous Messages."

What millions around the world consider a harmless tradition bound by unconvincing costumes and mountains of teeth-rotting sweets is, according to the Catholic Church, riddled with a dark undercurrent of occultism and is "absolutely anti-Christian".

Father Joan Maria Canal, a Spanish priest and liturgical expert, was quoted in the paper as saying that parents should "direct the meaning of the feast towards wholesomeness and beauty, rather than terror, fear and death."

It's just a big costume party. Ease up, padres.

UPDATE 11:15pm: The Catholic Key blog views this story as sensationalism.

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Underfunded pensions: SEIU this time

Here's a story that just isn't getting reported on much. Underfunded union pensions.

If you are wondering what's in it for union members--who for the most part have pretty good health care plans--foist ObamaCare on the nation, it involves those pensions.

Doug Ross goes into great detail to explain SEIU's pension problems. This is a complicated subject. I know--some of the most ardous posts I've written have been about the same issue involving other unions.

This is something you need to know about.

Related posts:

Union pensions might be bailed out by Dems' health care reform plan

Report from the bloggers' conference call about EFCA with Rep. Tom Price

Multi-employer pension blues

Report from the bloggers' conference call on EFCA and under-funded pensions

Financially ailing AFL-CIO funding push for Obama's health care plan

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obamacare

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Bunker Hill Woods in fall

It's great to run when there is natural scenery such as what I saw yesterday afternoon in Niles' Bunker Hill Woods, just one mile north of Chicago's city limits.

The yellow leaves are from Sugar Maples, the red comes from a Red Oak.

Sometimes you can't tell the leaves from the forest, there is an asphalt trail partially obscured.

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Uncovered 2008 video: Obama boasts "We are going to paint the nation purple with SEIU"

When the ACORN controversy first heated up last fall, the Barack Obama campaign claimed that the candidate never organized for ACORN. Of course that was a lie, Obama was a trainer for ACORN's Project VOTE in 1992.

ACORN founded SEIU Local 880, and it still lists the tainted group as "Our sister organization and close ally."

Watch as Obama boasts, "SEIU Local 880 and myself, we organized people."

He goes on, "That's how we built political power on the South Side of Chicago."

And finally, "We are going to paint the nation purple with SEIU."

Hat tip to Chicago News Bench.

Related post:

SEIU prez: Union spent $60.7 million to elect Obama

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Friday, October 30, 2009

Upper Peninsula Upventure: Agate Falls

The Upper Peninsula Upventure now turns to waterfalls. My first one is one of the best, Agate Falls near Paynesville. The Ontonagon River reaches erosion resistant sandstone near Michigan State Route 28. It's quite accessible, there is a rest area next to the park, and above the falls is a trail bridge, which was once a railroad.

But to get the best view of the falls, patience and agility are required. After 31 marathons, the latter is not my strong suit, but I made it down to the bottom of what can only loosely called a trail. There are no directions to this spot, and I'm sure the Michigan Department of Natural Resources strongly discourages what I did.

But I wasn't the only one.

Next: Canyon Falls

Related posts:

Yosemite Falls

Bridalveil Fall

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Republican Paul Mitchell files petitions for Ill. House

An energized Illinois Republican Party is producing new kinds of candidates. Including Paul Mitchell of Lake County.

From Mitchell press release:

Hainesville Resident Paul Mitchell announced today that he filed the necessary forms in Springfield bright and early on Monday morning, October 26th, 2009, to be a candidate in the February 2nd, 2010 Republican primary.

Mitchell is bidding for the nomination for the State House Representative seat in Illinois’ 62nd District. His opponent is Republican incumbent, Sandy Cole.

While a political newcomer, Mitchell is no stranger to teamwork and building organizations: he is an Air Force Veteran, community leader and father of five, who now works as a business consultant.

To enter the race, Mitchell filed over 1,000 petition signatures, more than twice the statutory requirement of 500 signatures.. Saying that he is "running on the Republican platform, not away from it," Mitchell says, "I'm facing an incumbent who hasn't had an opponent on the ballot since 2006. I think it’s time that Lake County Republican voters had some alternatives."

Mitchell will be opening his campaign headquarters in Gurnee in November. His campaign website is http://paulfor62.com.

The 62nd District includes all parts of th villages of Hainesville, Grayslake, Gurnee, Lake Villa, Lindenhurst, Round Lake, Round Lake Beach, Third Lake, Wildwood, and others.

For media inquiries, contact Lynn Thomas by clicking here.

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Mark Kirk radio ad on health care

Republican US Senate candidate Mark Kirk has a new radio ad about health care.

The North Shore congressman opposes ObamaCare.

Hat tip to Capitol Fax.

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news

politics

health

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Philly still faces possible transit strike--just in time for the World Series

With the World Series split at 1-1, Game Three of the Fall Classic will be hosted by the Phillies in Philadelphia--The American League Champion New York Yankees will play their first World Series game in the City of Brotherly Love since 1950.

How easy will it be for fans to travel to Citizens Bank Park tomorrow? If the largest union representing SEPTA employees--the Philadelphia area's transit company--it may not be easy at all. A possible strike still looms--the union representing most of SEPTA's employees may walk out tonight.

Party poopers.

UPDATE Oct. 31: The deadline has passed, they're still talking. No strike yet.

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mlb

CBS questions jobs "saved or created" by stimulus

Here's a video report from CBS, not Fox News, questions the Obama administration's claim that their ~~economic stimulus~~ boondoggle "saved or created" large numbers of jobs.

Meanwhile, Bloomberg's Caroline Baum explores the "saved or created" myth.

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Styx: Rockin' the Paradise

I went running the morning after those horrendous 9/11 attacks on our country. On my Walkman, I was flipping stations, and as you can well imagine, it was not a normal day on the airwaves. WJMK-FM at the time played oldies from the '50s and '60s, But I listener called in and requested "Rockin' the Paradise" by Styx. I believe the DJ, John Landecker, had to send out his producer to buy it, Styx didn't fit into the station's format.

Like myself, Styx is a product of Chicago's Roseland neighborhood and the city's southern suburbs. Here they are performing "Rockin' the Paradise":

Whatcha doin' tonight, I got faith in our generation
Let's stick together and futurize our attitudes
I ain't lookin' to fight, but I know with determination
We can challenge the schemers who cheat all the rules

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Kim Strassel is mild about Harry Reid

The Wall Street Journal's Kim Strassel is "mild about Harry."

You couldn't swing a cat this week without hitting a discussion of the public option. Somewhere, in some Capitol office, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is grinning.

Two weeks ago, the subject of a government-run insurance plan was a sore point with the Nevadan. He didn't have the votes for it, his base was bitter, and he didn't want to talk about it. This week, a transformed Mr. Reid devoted an entire news conference to it. Americans support the public option! His caucus supports a public option! He supports a public option! The public option is in! No problem!

In the real world, this kind of behavioral shift lands you in a psych ward. In Washington, the press just marked it down to forces bigger than Harry. The majority leader had been pushed into a public option by his liberal members, we were told. Chuck Schumer was scarier than Ben Nelson. The Huffington Post was even scarier than Chuck Schumer. Poor Mr. Reid, clucked observers, had been backed into a corner.

Maybe. Then again, maybe he is majority leader for a reason. Maybe Mr. Reid didn't just wander out of the Nevada desert. Maybe he has a plan. Maybe, just maybe, he sees a big upside in turning the public option into the centerpiece of the health-care debate. After all, what does he have to lose?

Not a whole lot, since he's trailing in polls to anyone in Nevada with an "R" after his name, even "Vegas Vic" the neon cowboy.

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There "shall" be ObamaCare

Did you know that that the word "shall" appears in the $1 trillion House of Representatives health care bill?

That's not all, the Denver Post's David Harsanyi tells us:

The King James version of the Bible runs more than 600 pages and is crammed with celestial regulations. Newton's Principia Mathematica distilled many of the rules of physics in a mere 974 pages.

Neither have anything on Nancy Pelosi's new fiendishly entertaining health-care opus, which tops 1,900 pages.

So curl up by a fire with a fifth of whiskey and just dive in.

But drink quickly. In the new world, your insurance choices will be tethered to decisions made by people with Orwellian titles ("1984" was only 268 pages!) like the "Health Choices Commissioner" or "Inspector General for the Health Choices Administration."

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Thursday, October 29, 2009

Ten "stimulus" projects to remember

Upon the news that the Obama administration has greatly exaggerated the number of "saved or created" jobs that have resulted from the $787 billion ~~economic stimulus~~ boondoggle, the Senate Republicans have come up with list of ten stimulus projects to remember.

They need to be remembered--so we don't repeat the mistake of the stimulus bill.

1. $300,000 FOR MAPPING RADIOACTIVE RABBIT FECES: “A Week Mapping Radioactive Rabbit Feces With Detectors Mounted On A Helicopter Flying 50 Feet Over The Desert Scrub. … $300,000 In Federal Stimulus Money.” “A government contractor at Hanford, in south-central Washington State, just spent a week mapping radioactive rabbit feces with detectors mounted on a helicopter flying 50 feet over the desert scrub. … the helicopter flights, which covered 13.7 square miles and were paid for with $300,000 in federal stimulus money, took place in an area that had never been used by the bomb makers. … Marylia Kelley, the executive director of a California group called Tri-Valley Communities Against a Radioactive Environment, said the rabbit cleanup was ‘kind of funny, in a sick way.’” (“Even Rabbit Droppings Count In Nuclear Cleanup,” The New York Times, 10/14/09)

2. $4,200-$5,500 TAX CREDIT FOR PURCHASING GOLF CARTS: “President Obama’s Stimulus Plan… Is Now Paying Americans To Buy That Great Necessity Of Modern Life, The Golf Cart.” “Thanks to the federal tax credit to buy high-mileage cars that was part of President Obama's stimulus plan, Uncle Sam is now paying Americans to buy that great necessity of modern life, the golf cart. The federal credit provides from $4,200 to $5,500 for the purchase of an electric vehicle, and when it is combined with similar incentive plans in many states the tax credits can pay for nearly the entire cost of a golf cart.” (“Cash For Clubbers,” The Wall Street Journal, 10/17/09)

3. $219,000 TO STUDY THE SEX LIVES OF FEMALE COLLEGE FRESHMEN: “Five Hundred Syracuse University Freshmen Will Divulge The Details Of Their Sex Lives … $219,000 In Stimulus Funds For The Study.” “Five hundred Syracuse University freshmen will divulge the details of their sex lives as part of a women's health study called ‘The Women's Health Project,’ being conducted by Michael Carey, SU professor of psychology and medicine. Carey has found himself the target of nationwide criticism from conservatives since he received $219,000 in stimulus funds for the study, which looks at the sex patterns of college women.” (“SU Sex Study Raises Concern,” The [Syracuse] Daily Orange, 9/8/09)

4. $1 MILLION TO RENOVATE “THE SUNSET STRIP”: “Sunset Boulevard, Also Known As ‘The Sunset Strip’ And One Of The Most Famous Streets In The World, Will Be Getting A $7 Million Facelift After More Than 75 Years Of Use, With A Free Million Dollar Nose Job Coming From Uncle Sam. The City of West Hollywood Council received one million dollars in federal funds from the Federal American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA), (otherwise known as the $700 billion federal stimulus package), for the long-planned Sunset Strip Beautification Project, which is scheduled to break ground soon. The guaranteed funding will allow the City to increase the already nearly $7 million budgeted for this project by an additional $1,105,000, meaning enhancements to a project that already included the resurfacing of the roadway, sidewalk and improved landscaping.” (“Feds Stimulus Sunset Strip Beautification Project,” WeHoNews, 9/28/09)

5. $2.3 MILLION FOR BUG RESEARCH IN CONNECTICUT: “$2.3 Million” “Federal Economic Stimulus Cash” For “Rearing Large Numbers Of Arthropods” Such As “Nasty Invasive Insects Like The Asian Longhorned Beetle, The Nun Moth, And The Infamous ‘Predator Of The Hemlock,’ The Woolly Adelgid.” “‘Rearing large numbers of arthropods’ probably isn't the first thing that comes to mind when you think about using Connecticut's $3 billion in federal economic stimulus cash. But the U.S. Forest Service is using part of the $2.3 million it's spending here to fix up a quarantine research facility in Ansonia. (The arthropods, by the way, are nasty invasive insects like the Asian longhorned beetle, the nun moth, and the infamous ‘predator of the hemlock,’ the woolly adelgid.)” (“Money For Nothing,” New Haven Advocate, 9/1/09)

6. $6 MILLION FOR A SNOWMAKING FACILITY IN THE 15th SNOWIEST CITY IN THE COUNTRY:
“The Other Third Of The Stimulus, Government Infrastructure Spending, Has Been The Most Controversial From The Start. Some Proposals Have Been Criticized As Wasteful, Such As A $6 Million Snowmaking Facility In Duluth, Minn.” (“The Challenge In Counting Stimulus Returns,” The Wall Street Journal, 10/27/09) (Top 101 Cities With The Highest Average Snowfall In A Year (Population 50,000+)

7. $500,000 TO STUDY “SOCIAL NETWORKS LIKE FACEBOOK”: “A $498,000, Three-Year Grant” To Study “Social Networks Like Facebook.” “Millions of Internet users have been enjoying the fun -- and free -- services provided by advertiser-supported online social networks like Facebook. But Landon Cox, a Duke University assistant professor of computer science, worries about the possible down side -- privacy problems. … To delve deeper into these issues and begin the search for alternatives, Cox recently won a $498,000, three-year grant from the National Science Foundation. The funding is part of the federal stimulus package called the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA).” (“Seeking Privacy In The Clouds: Research Aims At Isolating Social Network Information From ‘Control Of A Central Entity,’” Science Daily, 10/15/09)

8. $380,000 TO SPAY AND NEUTER PETS IN WICHITA, KANSAS: “The City Recently Launched A $55,000 Project To Spay And Neuter Pets Owned By Low-Income Residents. Unwanted Pets Ultimately Cost $240 Apiece To Collect, Board And Euthanize, the city estimates, so the program covering 800 animals should save taxpayers money in the long run. The stimulative effect? That is harder to gauge. With the $380,000 overall Wichita has received from its share of the stimulus, the city estimates that it is directly funding 32 jobs so far. The bigger job producers, such as construction and transit projects, are due to start in the coming months.” (“The Challenge In Counting Stimulus Returns,” The Wall Street Journal, 10/27/09)

9. $3.4 MILLION FOR A TURTLE TUNNEL IN FLORIDA: “The Other Third Of The Stimulus, Government Infrastructure Spending, Has Been The Most Controversial From The Start. Some Proposals Have Been Criticized As Wasteful, Such As … A $3.4 Million ‘Ecopassage’ To Help Turtles Cross A Highway In Tallahassee, Fla.” (“The Challenge In Counting Stimulus Returns,” The Wall Street Journal, 10/27/09)

10. $30 MILLION FOR A SPRING TRAINING BASEBALL COMPLEX FOR THE ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS AND COLORADO ROCKIES: “A Big Chunk Of The Money That Will Pay For A New Spring-Training Baseball Complex On Tribal Land In The East Valley Will Be Delivered Via A Financing Program That's Part Of The Federal Economic-Stimulus Plan. The Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community says it may borrow as much as $30 million of the estimated cost of the $100 million complex near Scottsdale that will become the spring home of the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Colorado Rockies.” (“Stimulus To Help Tribe Build Baseball Complex,” The Arizona Republic, 9/17/09)

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McConnell statement on House ObamaCare bill

Earlier today the House of Representatives unveiled their plan for government-run health care. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) released this statement:

This latest bill is the strongest evidence yet that Democrats in Washington are blowing past the American people and pushing ahead with a 1,990-page, trillion-dollar experiment that raises health insurance premiums, raises taxes, and slashes Medicare.

Americans want common-sense reforms that lower costs and increase access. Instead, Congress has come up with yet another proposal to put more government between Americans and their doctors while spending trillions more with money we don’t have. That’s not reform.

While final details of this bill are still unknown, here's what we do know: It will be a thousand-page, trillion-dollar bill that raises premiums, raises taxes and slashes Medicare for our seniors to create new government spending programs. That's not reform. So, wholly aside from the debate over whether the government gets into the insurance business, the core of the proposal is a bill that the American public clearly does not like, and doesn't support.

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Upper Peninsula Upventure: Little Girls Point

Named for a Chippewa Girl who drowned there in the 1800s, it was at Little Girls Point County Park near Ironwood where I gazed upon Lake Superior for the first time.

Besides the story, the point is best known for agates, which one of my travel books claims are "easily found" here. I gave up looking after ten minutes.

What's remarkable about this spot is the rocky beach, similar to England's Brighton Beach--which I've only seen in movies. At Copper Harbor, on the U.P.'s Keweenaw Peninsula, I saw similar stony beaches.

Despite the apparent paucity of agates, Little Girl's Point is worth visiting, the drive from Ironwood offers many lovely natural vistas. From the beach you can catch a glimpse of the Porcupine Mountains.

Next: Waterfalls

Earlier posts:

Gogebic Range
Farming
More Pictured Rocks
Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore
Munising Bay
Seney, Hemingway, and Post-traumatic Stress Syndrome
Hickey Creek
Ishpeming and Iron Mining
Calumet, Michigan's St. Anne's Church
Keweenaw Waterway Bridge
The Keweenaw Waterway
Keweenaw National Historical Park, Quincy, Part One
Keweenaw National Historical Park, Calumet
Calumet, Michigan's St. John the Baptist Church
Little Gippers Preschool, Calumet, Michigan
A brief history of copper mining
Calumet, Michigan's St. Paul the Apostle Church
Finland, Finland, Finland
Escanaba's Sand Point Lighthouse
Manistique East Breakwater Light
Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse
Wawatam Lighthouse
Whitefish Point Light
The Munising Front Range Light
Grand Island East Harbor Lighthouse
Copper Harbor Lighthouse
Eagle Harbor Lighthouse

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Horslips: The Man Who Built America

Take the sounds of Jethro Tull, Thin Lizzy, and The Pogues, throw it into a blender, and the result will be 1970s Irish band Horslips.

Leave it to the Irish to write so eloquently about America:

See him driving those golden nails
that hold together the silver bars
That one day gonna take us to the stars
cos he's the man who built America

See him walking the golden wire
a million miles from his starting place
and see the world reflected in his face
cos he's the man who built America

Good news. Horslips is getting back together, with December concerts in Belfast and Dublin.

A million miles from their starting place...

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California Collision: Marin County

This is my penultimate California Collision post.

After our visit to Point Reyes National Seashore, it was time to head back to San Francisco, drop off our rental car, and return to Morton Grove. But first we had to travel through the heart of Marin County.

It is the wealthiest county in the nation. Marin is also known for it's über-liberal politics, its dedication to New Age religions, and overall hedonism.

The American Taliban, John Walker Lindh, is from Marin, which led President Bush to quip in 2002 that he was "some misguided Marin County hot-tubber."

With Mrs. Marathon Pundit behind the wheel, I had the opportunity for to gaze at Marin and notice a few things. My observations are of course not scientific, but considering we were on major thoroughfares, what I saw, or didn't see, says a lot:

Just one big box store, a Target.

Two major franchised fast food outlets, a McDonalds and a Subway.

Marin County residents probably view this as a good thing, but remember, big boxes charge the least for products, which means that money saved could be used to purchase a second hot tub.

On the other hand, perhaps Marin-ites know that discounters bring in the riff raff, who might ascertain a method to live in a tony town such as Tiburon, ruining their paradise.

Even from the relative safety from the passenger seat on a freeway, I could feel the California smugness.

And that will be a topic of my final post of this series.Hotel LaRose

Note: Although each photograph in this post was taken during my California trip, none of them were taken the day we drove through Marin.

Earlier posts:

Sea and Sand
Tomales Bay
Charlie Brown and Santa Rosa
Napa Valley
Central Valley Orchards and Drought
Shiloh Wind Farm
First National Bank of Oakdale Building
Strawberry Fields Forever
Tioga Lake

Mule Deer
The Pacific Crest Trail
Lembert Dome
Dana Fork
Tenaya Lake
Olmsted Point
Siesta Lake
Giant Sequoias
Glacier Point Sunset
Half Dome
Yosemite Falls
Yosemite Chapel
El Capitan
Theodore Roosevelt, John Muir, and Yosemite
Bridalveil Fall
El Portal
Obama's economic stimulus "campaign sign" stains Yosemite National Park
Drought
Is something going on here?
The Castro
F-line Streetcars
Alcatraz
Angel Island
San Francisco's Chinatown
Fisherman's Wharf
Harvey Milk's Camera Shop
San Francisco's Union Square
The Painted Ladies
San Francisco and the military
Haight-Ashbury
Mission San Francisco de Asís
San Francisco's sea lions
San Francisco's blues mural
San Francisco: Cable cars

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See and hear: Giannoulias caught fibbing on PAC money

Watch...and listen...as Democratic US Senate candidate Alexi Giannoulias is exposed as a liar on how his campaign won't accept political action committee donations.

I posted on this issue earlier this month, but this video (and audio) is too good to pass over.

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Oops! Stimulus jobs overstated by White House

I'm still trying to figure out the difference between a "saved" or "created " job. But AP finds out that the White House can't count very well. If the stimulus is really "Putting America to Work," then it's not doing it at the level the Obama administration claims.

An early progress report on President Barack Obama's economic recovery plan overstates by thousands the number of jobs created or saved through the stimulus program, a mistake that White House officials promise will be corrected in future reports.

The government's first accounting of jobs tied to the $787 billion stimulus program claimed more than 30,000 positions paid for with recovery money. But that figure is overstated by least 5,000 jobs, according to an Associated Press review of a sample of stimulus contracts.

The AP review found some counts were more than 10 times as high as the actual number of jobs; some jobs credited to the stimulus program were counted two and sometimes more than four times; and other jobs were credited to stimulus spending when none was produced.

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Keep Illinois "Say No to ACORN" ad on TV

For the last week, Americans for Prosperity-Illinois' "Say No to ACORN" advertisement has been appearing on television screens.

Click here to support the ad.

And if you are curious about the connection between ACORN and SEIU, click here. Or here. Or here.

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Karl Rove on next week's elections

Normally odd-year elections are overlooked even by political junkies, but this year is different, as Karl Rove explains in this morning's Wall Street Journal:

Democratic enthusiasm for President Barack Obama's liberal domestic agenda—particularly for a government-run health insurance program—could wane after the results of the gubernatorial elections next Tuesday in Virginia and New Jersey. GOP victories in either state will tell Democrats in red states and districts that support for Obama's policies is risky to their political health.

The more significant is the open race for governor in Virginia, a purple state. The Washington Post poll released Monday showed 55% support for Republican Attorney General Bob McDonnell and 44% for Democratic State Senator Creigh Deeds. The president is trying to reverse these numbers by stumping the state for Mr. Deeds.

Mr. McDonnell has relentlessly focused on the economy, transportation and education. Mr. Deeds tried to make the race about abortion and his opponent's supposed animus toward working women. But Mr. McDonnell understood that anti-Obama, anti-Washington sentiment was not enough to win and bent the contest back to jobs, roads and schools. He also has a good ground game to turn out the vote, which the GOP hasn't done for too many years in Virginia.

If Republicans also win the races for lieutenant governor and attorney general by five points or more, it will strengthen the case of those predicting a GOP "wave" in 2010.

There is also a close race in New Jersey between incumbent Democratic Governor Jon Corzine in New Jersey, who is being challenged by Republican Chris Christie and independent Chris Daggett. Pollsters are say the race is too close to call.

In upstate New York, there is a special election for a vacant House of Representatives seat. Republican party bosses, not voters, selected Dede Scozzafava, who is to the left of many Democrats. Doug Hoffman, who is running under the Conservative Party banner, is running as a real Republican. A victory by Hoffman will be seen as a vindication of the tea party movement. But Rove believes the Democrat, Bill Owens, will prevail. But there is always next year.

Related post:

Report from the bloggers' conference call with Bob McDonnell and Virginia business leaders

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news

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Gary mayor announces plans for Jacko museum

Chicago Breaking News reports that Gary, Indiana Mayor Rudy Clay announced fundraising plans for a Michael Jackson museum.

The onetime King of Pop was born in Gary and spent his early childhood there.

Well, I would have a little more confidence in the project if plans for it were announced in the Northwest Indiana city, not Las Vegas.

Details are sketchy, but besides the museum, the endeavor includes a hotel, a cultural center, and a replica of the Jackson family home, which still stands. Yes, that's me in front of it.

But why doesn't Gary move the house to downtown Gary?

As for a hotel, bombed-out is the best way to describe downtown Gary. An abandoned Holiday Inn--or maybe it was a Sheraton--still stands there. Nearby are the ruins of a train station. Gary's main drag, Broadway, is filled with boarded-up buildings.

Hoteliers won't be fighting each other to build a new property. Museum or not.

Yes, I'm cruel. But economics, after all, is the dismal science. Someone tell Clay, please.

Related posts:

Gary to pay Joe Jackson for attending Michael's memorial

Sunday night at the Michael Jackson home in Gary

My Mississippi Manifest Destiny: Elvis Presley's birthplace

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Unwanted unionizaton update: Activist calls for Gov. Quinn to rescind executive order

Western Springs, Illinois resident Pam Harris, who cares for her disabled son, spearheaded the drive to prevent the unionization by SEIU or AFSCME of home health care workers like herself.

In June, Gov. Patrick Quinn signed an executive order authorizing an election to determine whether home health care workers who care for family members should be unionized.

Earlier this month a vote was held, and the unions lost--big time.

But the unions, according to Harris, can try again next year.

But two Illinois leglislators, Rep. Jim Durkin (R-Westchester) and Rep. Michael G. Connelly (R-Naperville), have introduced the following resolution to asking Quinn, whose reelection bid has been endorsed by SEIU, to rescind his executive order:

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, In June of 2009, the Governor issued Executive Order 15, which allows collective bargaining by individual providers of home-based support services; and

WHEREAS, The Home-Based Services Program provides services to individuals with severe disabilities who need help with daily living activities in order to remain in their communities and live as independently as possible; and

WHEREAS, Many of the individual providers of home-based support services are parents who are providing services to their children; and

WHEREAS, Continuity of care is important for profoundly disabled children who are served in the program; even a minor change in the care provided can have a significant negative impact on the disabled child; and

WHEREAS, The payments given to parents who provide services to their disabled children do not meet the cost of providing care; and

WHEREAS, The unionization of providers of home-based support services would decrease the resources that are available to parents to provide necessary care to their disabled children and could lead to the separation of disabled children from their families and the placement of those children in higher-cost State facilities; and

WHEREAS, Collective bargaining is allowed under many State and federal laws, and many members of the Illinois House of Representatives are strong supporters of America's tradition of collective labor bargaining; and

WHEREAS, Executive Order 15 does not have a regulatory sunset date, and it could allow for repeat and continuous elections; and

WHEREAS, On October 19, 2009, individual providers of home-based support services voted against collective bargaining representation with an overwhelming 66% of the vote; and

WHEREAS, Neither of the two unions seeking collective bargaining status received more than 20% of the vote; and

WHEREAS, It is time to listen to the will of the individual providers of home-based support services; therefore, be it RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we urge the Governor to reconsider Executive Order 15; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we express our opinion that an objective reconsideration of Executive Order 15 would lead to the withdrawal of the gubernatorial order, as it does not reflect the attitudes and desires of the individual providers of home-based support services that the order sought to help; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the Governor of the State of Illinois.

The unions don't care about these disabled Illinoisans and those who care for them. They want dues money to advance their political agenda.

HR720 is the number of the legislation, it can be tracked here, but remember to type in "HR720." If you live in Illinois, contact one of your legislators and ask them to co-sponsor the resolution.

Related posts:

SEIU and AFSCME defeated in Illinois

The insidiousness of SEIU

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Roland Burris' incoherent Senate ramblings

There are plenty of Chicago legislators who emit nonsensical verbiage, forcing observers to wonder, "How did that person ever get elected to office?"

Fortunately for the rest of the nation, most of those public servants are relatively powerless members of Chicago's City Council.

Then there is Sen. Roland Burris (D-IL), who was not elected, but appointed to his position during the final days of Rod Blagojevich's unhappy tenure as governor.

Burris, a member of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, chose to speak and ask questions during a hearing last week on White House Czars.

Poor Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA). It was left to him to make sense of Burris' emissions. He probably felt like that overwhelmed United Nations translator who gave up after translating Muammar Gaddafi's ramblings last month.

Here are some Burris jewels, which David Weigel of the Washington Independent posted yesterday:

BURRIS: This has — being a constitutional and political science student, I mean, this is Political Science 101 or Political Science, maybe, 1000. The panel's just been terrific.

And I have so many thoughts just rolling through my head, I don't even know where to start. I mean, this is — this is the meat that caused us political scientists to even exist, because you're dealing with these major issues of the separation of powers and the creation of this country and whether or not you want your president to really have the powers that you granted it, and whether or not the Congress, which is on similar or equal footing, can then control or muscle in on those powers of the president

Undersecretary as acting secretary?

BURRIS: Every president's going to go through it. I don't even know how we in the Congress can legally — I mean, I heard the distinguished ranking member say that we passed a law. We can pass a law and say there's going to be a position in there, but I don't think the Congress can tell the president who to put in that position.

I mean, if we do that, then I think that we're violating the separation of powers. I mean, this is what we get into. And you can create a position. What happens if — what happens if the president says, "I don't want to appoint anybody as secretary of state. I'm going to use the undersecretary as an acting secretary"?

Is there a law that would require us or require the president to appoint a secretary of state? Is there? Is there?

CASEY: A law that requires the president to appoint a secretary of state?

BURRIS: Yes.

CASEY: Specifically, there would not be a law requiring him to do that. Now, of course, if he wants the functions that you vested in a secretary of state performed, he — he probably has to do...

Bigger than czars?

BURRIS: The recess appointments. And they serve for only a certain period of time, and — and otherwise…

CASEY: Right.

BURRIS: … that person would have to leave the position and — I mean, you can see all the questions that are just flowing through my process here, as we try to talk about czars and policy-makers. This is even bigger than — than czars.

I mean — you're — you’re wrestling with this — this just wonderful document that's created 200 and plus years ago that created our entity and this thing called separation of powers.

No questions, but more questions than answers, and "What if":

BURRIS: So, Mr. President (sic), I really don't have many questions, I just — I got more questions than I have answers, Mr. Chairman, in reference to this, because I — I just sit here and listen to the experts talk, and every time there was a statement made, there's a — there's a new question come to my mind, well, what about this? What ifs — What if? What if? And — and so, I find this so fascinating, and I'm — I'm certainly going read each and every one of you all's testimony.

Burris, who is a vain man--even when measured against other politicians, has already constructed his mausoleum, with an empty place for his future accomplishments.

The conclusion of his Homeland Security Committee testimony belongs on it.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, this is — this is — I mean this is. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I'm done

Hat tip to Liz Mair.

I'm done.

UPDATE 1:30pm CDT: No I'm not done. The Right Scoop has the video of Burris' bumblings. Very painful. What is Burris' problem? Too many meds? Not enough?

And to think this man represents me in Washington...Very sad.

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Philly fury: Just one $1 million spent in stimulus funds, only 52 jobs saved, none created

Philadelphia has one thing going for it, the Phillies are in the World Series, although a possible transit strike might put a damper on the Fall Classic.

But the Philadelphia Daily News is reporting this morning that of the massive $787 billion ~~economic stimulus bill~~ boondoogle, just $1 million of the $157 million pledged to the City of Brotherly Love has been spent. And only 52 jobs have been saved--none created.

Philly's unemployment rate is 10.7 percent.

From the Daily News:

Meanwhile, Mayor Nutter yesterday traveled to Washington, where he and other members of the U.S. Conference of Mayors met with White House economic adviser Lawrence Summers. Their message? That stimulus dollars are not flowing into cities quickly enough to stem the rising tide of unemployment.

Tom Cochran, executive director of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, said that the group asked the White House for direct unemployment aid to cities.

"I would say that [the stimulus program] is a slow train and right now with the unemployment we have, it's going to take more than a slow train," Cochran said. "We need a federal express."

Much of the massive recovery bill has not been spent yet nationwide. According to a report from the Council of Economic Advisers - a White House agency charged with advising the president - only $151 billion of the package had been outlaid by the end of August. That's roughly 19 percent of the total price tag.

Related post:

Possible Philly transit strike looms over World Series

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No change here...Obama rewarding fundraisers with White House access

Do you remember the presidential campaign, when Barack Obama said he would clean up the past practice of granting access to the White House to donors not available to chumps like me.

Promises are cheap, but access to the Obama White House is expensive, as the Washington Times tells us:

During his first nine months in office, President Obama has quietly rewarded scores of top Democratic donors with VIP access to the White House, private briefings with administration advisers and invitations to important speeches and town-hall meetings.

High-dollar fundraisers have been promised access to senior White House officials in exchange for pledges to donate $30,400 personally or to bundle $300,000 in contributions ahead of the 2010 midterm elections, according to internal Democratic National Committee documents obtained by The Washington Times.

One top donor described in an interview with The Times being given a birthday visit to the Oval Office. Another was allowed use of a White House-complex bowling alley for his family. Bundlers closest to the president were invited to watch a movie in the red-walled theater in the basement of the presidential mansion.

Mr. Obama invited his top New York bundler, UBS Americas CEO Robert Wolf, to golf with him during the president's Martha's Vineyard vacation in August. At least 39 donors and fundraisers also were treated to a lavish White House reception on St. Patrick's Day, where the fountains on the North and South Lawns were dyed green, photos and video reviewed by The Times and CBS News also show.

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