Joe Manchin Speaks Out: Cause for Celebration

JB makes no secret of the fact that he loves this ad. It takes on Obama and Democrats in two ways: (1) It rebels against a significant bellwether Democrat taking point, and (2) rubs sand in the eyes of those seeking to upturn the second amendment. Both issues taken together can be seen as a frontal attack on the party leadership by one of their own.

Joe Manchin’s effort should be celebrated and rewarded. It marks a break with Democrat orthodoxy. And, recognizing that what is facing this country cannot be solved by merely playing a numbers game - that change must come organically from within - it is important to note that Manchin is the first to speak out forcibly against the radical fringe that has co-opted his party for too long.

For nearly a decade, even while stipulating that the majority of Muslims means us no harm, we have been waiting for someone in the Muslim community to speak out against its radical fringe. While their reluctance to speak out can be understood, their silence nevertheless makes them accomplices.

Where Democrats are concerned, they now have the opportunity to rally around someone who has dared to speak out. I agree with John, it’s a watershed moment. Our fight is not with Democrats per se, most of whom love our nation as we do. It’s their silence that is vexing; their willingness to follow their leadership into the grave.

If we are to survive as a nation, we must root out the extremes and work together to solve our problems. We can no longer afford to depend on the woefully inadequate ‘R’ and ‘D’ shorthand to show us the way. (Note my use of the term ‘bellwether” in the first paragraph.)
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The Nobel Prize committee’s lurch to the Right re its awarding prizes to Llosa and Xiao-bo has veered Left again in announcing its economics prize. Peter Diamond, Dale Mortensen and Christopher Pissarides were rewarded for their “search theory” which seeks to couch the “new norm” of jobless recovery in new, more politically acceptable terms.

In doing so, they have provided cover for the misdeeds of the Obama administration. The new theory applies the meaningless, asexual term, ‘friction’ to the present economic crisis - such as to housing, trade (in general), and even to marriage - to spin and finesse what is already self-evident to most: that Keynesian economics does not work.

I might also note that Peter Diamond's nomination to a spot on the Federal Reserve Board has been held up by Republicans questioning his qualifications.

http://pkoelliker.blogspot.com/

Liu Xia Taken

This goes to the point of just how much the Nobel Prize committee has been politicized. It has been seriously embarrassed recently, having awarded prizes to the likes of Barack Obama, Al Gore, Paul Krugman among others. The committee has been blatantly exploited as a political tool by the Left, and it has finally sunk in. This year they’ve tried to redeem themselves by awarding Mario Vargas Llosa and Liu Xiaobo. In doing so, at least in Xiaobo’s case, they’ve succeeded in making things much worse for him. The Nobel Prize committee has been playing in the deep, ideological end of the pool. They’ve done so without having first learned how to swim. It would be best for them to disband and start over.

The same can be said for the Republican Party. Their projected wins in November will thrust them into the spotlight. They will be held to an impossible standard. Any hint of flaw or wavering will be exposed, and magnified by the media’s version of Hubble. It would be best for both parties to disband and start over.

http://pkoelliker.blogspot.com/