Thursday, March 22, 2012

Mainstream America...Politico Thinks You Are Stupid

Politico is a magazine that almost no one has heard of, at least outside of Washington DC. They think that we are stupid.

Editor-in-Chief of Politico, John Harris, ranted on C-SPAN about voters and how they respond to polls. The Washington Examiner noted that he actually assigned a reporter to investigate whether or not voters are stupid based upon poll results and numbers.

Typical liberal or typical Washington. If the polls do not agree with you, they must be stupid. What other explanation is there?

First of all, does Harris know anything about polling? I used to work at a phone polling center. Polls typically last between 10 and 30 minutes. They are draining on the questioner and the person answering. Usually the questions get jumbled up, asking the respondent to answer about peanut butter, then presidential candidates. The questioner must battle to keep the respondent on the line with no promise of reward.

This is how we gauge opinions in the United States.

Also, what intelligent political analysts understand is that people follow their self-interest. Obama voters were not stupid, nor were they all Commies. They had their own complex set of interests. For some, it boiled down to the self-interest of simply voting for the first black president.

Most voters are pretty smart, but have very specialized knowledge and experiences.

Harris is a condescending ass.

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Disturbing Video From Florida Atlantic University: A Former Professor's Reaction

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/white-fuin-mother-fuers-would-die-fl-student-flips-out-in-class-threatens-to-kill-prof/

Above is a link to The Blaze that contains a video of a young female black student, for lack of a better term, flipping out.

The poor instructor, more likely a graduate assistant than a full professor by the look of him, seemed to have no idea of how to deal with the student. She seemed to be set off by a discussion of Darwinism., which caused her to threaten the life of the instructor, various people in class, and ten thousand white people.

The student verbally attacked blacks as well as whites and actually did appear to smack an individual in the head. Eventually one student confronted her and physically removed her from the room.

I taught college for ten years. Thankfully, I never had to deal with anything like that. If I did, I had an advantage in that I am taller and physically stronger, which would enable me to be more assertive.

First, I would have tried to address her verbally. Once a person starts to lose their mind like this woman, you can't reason with her. The instructor should have asserted authority and directed her to leave the classroom after the first offensive diatribe directed at anyone. An instructor, professor, etc is the king in his classroom. He or she must maintain order and enforce respect for himself and other students. Or at least appear to, even when the situation is crazy.

This one stood there looking morose, seeming to try to wish it to go away. That is no way to defuse crazy.

Also, at this point keep a close eye on her hands. If they are going into a large pocket, bag, or backpack, grab hold of the person immediately. No one will blame you for restraining a person in this situation, after what happened at Pitt and Virginia Tech.

You also cannot rule out drugs as a reason for the outburst. Keep in mind that PCP and other drugs reduce awareness of pain and heighten energy levels.

If the crazy person is not armed and is continuing to act crazy, instruct other students to move away from him or her for their own safety. Try to keep the altercation verbal until the police arrive.

But if she starts to get physical, if you have the strength or training, it is incumbent upon you to restrain the student. You are the representative of the school, so it is your job. You don't like it? Tough.

Of course in such a situation, it would be nice to have an All American offensive tackle in the class.

The point is that as the instructor, you have to take charge of the situation and try to protect the other students from harm as much as humanly possible. Being a spectator is not an option.

Our Liberal to the North and Our Conservative to the South

In Panhandlia, we see and hear more about what goes on in Virginia and Maryland than our own state capital. On Tuesday, the Washington Examiner ran an interesting story about a tale of two governors.

The Center for Public Integrity assessed each state for their potential risk in terms of public corruption. Virginia graded at F, Maryland at D-, and West Virginia at D+.

It should be noted that West Virginia received praise for making improvements over the past two years, presumably an endorsement of changes occurring under Governor Tomblin.

The reactions from our neighbors could not be more different.

Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell's office noted that the state administration would review the study, which emphasized the ease at which laws and rules might be avoided or broken, not actual corruption. "If there are areas in which Virginia can improve, the governor wants to know what they are."

Quite reasonable.

Now Maryland's response. Governor Martin O'Malley's office attacked the report, disagreeing with "findings and flawed methodology."

Nice work. Thank you for proving that conservatives care more about good government than liberals.

New Jersey under Governor Chris Christie was cited as the highest graded state.

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Yes, makin' mock o' uniforms that guard you while you sleep Is cheaper than them uniforms, an' they're starvation cheap;

Tis time to part.

According to the Jerusalem Post, Afghan leader (and I use that term loosely) Hamid Karzai called American soldiers "demons." He accused them of at least 500 atrocities.

Obama says nothing in defense of the men and women that he leads as commander-in-chief.

Those uniforms keep Karzai in his elegant home and funny hats. Does he seriously think that Afghan military forces can be trusted?

Many of us have relatives who are in Afghanistan, who have been there, or who will be going. We are not amused at all by this characterization.

Perhaps this is public posturing to appease the Afghan crazies. Even so, it is unacceptable.

Obama needs to act in the same manner as President Eisenhower. When our closest allies enraged him during the Suez Canal Crisis, he threatened to withdraw all support. If Karzai cannot remember which side his bread is buttered on, then the United States must remind him that he needs us far more than we need him.

Karzai insults our troops by calling them demons. But they are all that keep him from having to see the Devil face to face.

Monday, March 19, 2012

New Texting Laws Follow Common Sense For Most Part

Hands Free info posted a piece on West Virginia's new anti-texting laws. An excerpt is below:

http://handsfreeinfo.com/west-virginia-cell-phone-laws-legislation


The law takes effect July 1 with fines of $100 (first offense), then $200, then $300. Three points assessed against driver’s license on third and subsequent violations. Operation with hands-free devices would be allowed.

West Virginia becomes the 36th state to ban text messaging while driving.

The act makes text messaging and handheld cell phone use while driving primary offenses. While text messaging will be subject to primary enforcement as of July 1 — when the law takes effect — the cell phone enforcement will be limited to secondary status for another year. That means police will need another reason to stop and cite motorists using handheld cell phones until July 1, 2013.