Right Opinion
The best of conservative opinion and commentary, updated daily.
Tuesday, August 6, 2013
Dems Own Obamacare, and Its Political Cost Keeps Rising
Nothing is free in politics, but there is some question when you pay the price. That's been a saying of mine for many years, though I may have unconsciously plagiarized it from someone else. I think it applies to Obamacare. My American Enterprise Institute colleague Norman Ornstein has been shellacking Republicans for trying to undercut the implementation of the Obama health care legislation. He calls it "simply unacceptable, even contemptible."
Busybody Politics
It is hard to read a newspaper, or watch a television newscast, without encountering someone who has come up with a new "solution" to society's "problems." Sometimes it seems as if there are more solutions than there are problems. On closer scrutiny, it turns out that many of today's problems are a result of yesterday's solutions. San Francisco and New York are both plagued with large "homeless" populations today, largely as a result of previous housing "reforms" that made housing more expensive, and severely limited how much housing, and of what kind, could be built.
The Enduring Legacy of Anne Frank
AMSTERDAM -- On the day I visit the Anne Frank House, which is actually the family's hiding place atop Anne's father's business, the wait to get in is as long as three hours. Such is the attraction of this historic site, 53 years after it was opened to the public. Anne and her family were among an estimated 107,000 Jews deported to concentration camps from The Netherlands during the German occupation in World War II.
Please Commit Fraud!
Perhaps you've heard the radio or TV commercials sponsored by the Department of Health and Human Services urging seniors to report instances of Medicare fraud. There's a number to call, along with cheerful suggestions. The intent here seems benign enough -- saving taxpayer money by catching the dishonest. One might even be tempted to praise it, were it not for what the Obama administration is doing with the other hand -- issuing an engraved invitation to commit fraud when signing up for the health care exchanges.
Obama's Perverse Notion of Fairness
In President Obama's world, "fairness" seems to be of overarching concern. Too bad "fairness" means what he says it does rather than what Webster's specifies. You'll rarely hear Obama talk about economic growth -- even as an aspiration -- and not just because there's been a dearth of it under his miserable five years in office.
Get the Hook!
The creeping insanity of the 21st century United States gets its latest affirmation in the news that Congress doesn't have to live under the laws it writes even when it claims the opposite. Yes, of course, this is about health care. Isn't everything about health care these days?
Yes, There Are Monsters
In August 2002, a homo sapien known as Ariel Castro abducted 21-year-old Michelle Knight, the mother of a two-year-old boy. In April 2003, he abducted Amanda Berry, a day before her 17th birthday. And in April 2004, he abducted 14-year-old Gina DeJesus. For the next ten years, these girls were regularly raped, kept in chains, beaten, humiliated and almost never allowed to see the light of day. When Michelle Knight became pregnant, Castro starved her for two weeks and kicked and punched her in the stomach to induce an abortion. He repeated this method of pregnancy termination on Knight four additional times.
Monday, August 5, 2013
What if We Kept a Real Score?
According to the longest running record keeper at the North Pole (besides Santa Clause), the Danish meteorological Institute, the Arctic experienced its coldest and shortest summer on record. Did you know that? Much of the warming has been during the heart of the cold season in the Arctic, when temperatures are well below freezing. But the fact that it can't even get to normal during their summer season is very interesting. Anyone keeping score?
Late-Term Abortion Ban Is Worthy GOP Goal
In a poll done by Gallup earlier this year, the biggest complaint lodged against the Republican Party was "inability to compromise." When I read the daily headlines, I see this theme continue. Republicans, particularly tea party Republicans, are portrayed as obstructionist, extreme, unreasonable, and unwilling to compromise. But let's get perspective.
Washington Needs an Operation, and the Doctor Is In
Before this year, most Americans had probably never heard of Dr. Ben Carson. Despite being a world-renowned neurosurgeon whose life story was made into a popular movie starring Cuba Gooding, Jr., Dr. Carson became a household name when he blew the socks off Washington, D.C. with a speech that many called the longest 27 minutes of Barack Obama's presidency. From education to taxes and health care, the famous surgeon spoke from the heart about the problems facing our nation, telling the President what so many voters wish they could: his ideas are failing America. Dr. Carson's keynote speech was so powerful and his solutions so practical that the *Wall Street Journal* ran an editorial the next day, "Ben Carson for President." Today, FRC Action is proud to announce that Dr. Carson will be back in Washington to deliver another address -- this time at the Values Voter Summit. The legendary doctor joins a growing list of conservative superstars, including Senators Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Rand Paul (R-Ky.), and Rick Santorum, Governor Mike Huckabee, Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.), Lt. Gen. Jerry Boykin, Fox News's Todd Starnes, Star Parker, Josh Duggar, and many others!
When Dad Is Just a Number
"Wendy" wonders about her dad. Who is he? Does she look like him or share his personality quirks? Does he want to know her? Will he reject her if she reaches out? After all, he fathered under the assumption that he'd never have to know her. "Wendy" is a donor-conceived person, the child of an anonymous sperm donor and her mother. If her father was like most sperm donors, he was likely a student seeking extra cash -- for books, beer, or "stuff." After minimal paperwork at a fertility center, he would have been assigned a number, given a private room, supplied with porn, and then masturbated into a paper cup. Trading his sperm for a few bucks, he would leave. Done. Over.
Sunday, August 4, 2013
Motown's One-Man Show
Gazing from the 14th floor toward the city center and the fragile sprouts of urban development along the river, Detroit's Caesar says laconically: "One hundred and thirty-one to go." Kevyn Orr, Detroit's emergency manager appointed by Gov. Rick Snyder, means that housing in this vibrant enclave is 97 percent leased. The enclave is, however, only eight square miles of this city's 139 square miles.
Saturday, August 3, 2013
My Favorite Movies
It seems that every time I write anything about movies, I can count on hearing from readers who boast about not having seen one since "Birth of a Nation." I can certainly empathize with those who don't want to waste their time and money watching movies based on comic books and have no desire to help enrich or promote the careers of people like Alec Baldwin, Susan Sarandon, George Clooney, Sean Penn, Morgan Freeman, Jamie Foxx, Tim Robbins, Steven Spielberg and Jane Fonda.
