Gallipoli

Here’s a PSA for my fellow history buffs.  Premiering Sunday on Smithsonian Channel, which is fast becoming one of my favorites.

Handshake

So… what is Clinton thinking?

No Clue

Wow.

Just how bad was it?  Romer admitted that no one at the White House understood the fundamentals of this recession, and how they just assumed it would behave like previous recessions.  And it might have done so, had the Obama administration applied the policies that alleviated previous recessions, especially those that Ronald Reagan used to pull the US out of a decade-long stagnation slump where high inflation eroded the buying power of Americans.  Instead of cutting taxes (especially capital gains taxes) and reducing regulation to entice new investment, Barack Obama and Congressional Democrats chose to chase a government takeover of health care, a massive tax on energy production that would penalize expansion and growth, and expanding the jurisdiction on Wall Street of the same agencies that had watched the collapse come and did nothing about it.

Romer, however, still hasn’t got a clue why a one-time expenditure of government funds didn’t make things hunky-dory:

Oil Rig Explodes in Gulf of Mexico

Let’s hope everyone is found alive.

An oil rig has exploded 80 miles off the coast of Louisiana, with 12 people overboard and one missing, the Coast Guard said Thursday morning.

Rescue attempts are underway for at least 12 people, Coast Guard spokesman John Edwards told CNN. 13 people were on board the rig total, Edwards said, noting 12 have been accounted for, but one person was missing.

The accident took place 80 miles off the coast of Louisiana on the Vermilion Oil rig 380, which is owned by Houston-based Mariner Energy.

UPDATE: Yea!

David Reed, a paramedic on board the Rowan Gorilla II oil rig located 14 miles from the platform that exploded told submitted an iReport saying he saw all thirteen workers rescued from the water.

MPD Seeks To Follow Law

Well, it’s a start.

Milwaukee police officers who retire to Arizona and Florida can easily get permits to carry hidden guns in those states, just like most other residents.

Soon, hundreds of former MPD officers in Wisconsin also could be able to carry concealed weapons, under a federal law that allows retired officers to be certified annually and carry their guns in any state.

The Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act was passed in 2004, and many other Wisconsin law enforcement agencies have been certifying their retirees to carry guns for years.

So after six years, MPD will finally get around to implementing the law.  But they will do so with onerous regulations. 

Retirees would have to pass the same firing range testing as active officers, using MPD-approved guns, and sign waivers that would clarify the city has no liability for any later use of the guns by the retired officers.

In addition, either Tobin or Flynn could revoke a retiree’s certification for any reason, Tobin said, and only retirees who are residents of Wisconsin can apply.

The certification procedure will cost $100.

Administration Blocks Importation of M-1s

Garands and Carbines, that is:

The South Korean government, in an effort to raise money for its military, wants to sell nearly a million antique M1 rifles that were used by U.S. soldiers in the Korean War to gun collectors in America.

The Obama administration approved the sale of the American-made rifles last year. But it reversed course and banned the sale in March – a decision that went largely unnoticed at the time but that is now sparking opposition from gun rights advocates.

A State Department spokesman said the administration’s decision was based on concerns that the guns could fall into the wrong hands.

“The transfer of such a large number of weapons—87,310 M1 Garands and 770,160 M1 Carbines—could potentially be exploited by individuals seeking firearms for illicit purposes,” the spokesman told FoxNews.com.

“We are working closely with our Korean allies and the U.S. Army in exploring alternative options to dispose of these firearms.”

Concerns that the guns could fall into the wrong hands?  Like the roving bands of criminals who prefer a heavy-ass rifle that kicks like a small mule?  Or criminals who go for the lighter carbine and it’s weak-ass, non-standard, expensive ammunition?

Why can’t they just be honest and say the real reason—“we don’t like guns”?

These guns are of great interest to collectors because they’re historic.  It’ll be a shame when the administrations comes up with its inevitable solution and scraps ‘em.

Russians Told to Smoke and Drink More

Now THAT’S what I want to hear from my government!

“If you smoke a pack of cigarettes, that means you are giving more to help solve social problems such as boosting demographics, developing other social services and upholding birth rates,” Kudrin said, quoted by the Interfax news agency.

“People should understand: Those who drink, those who smoke are doing more to help the state,” he said, offering unconventional advice as the Russian government announced plans to raise excise duty on alcohol and cigarettes.

Young Childless Women Earning More Than Male Peers

Huh.

An analysis of census data by consumer research firm Reach Advisors found that women between the ages of 22 and 30, without children, had bigger paychecks in 2008 than their male peers in 47 of the 50 largest U.S. cities. Their wages were 8 percent higher, on average, but varied considerably from one city to the next.

nadia comaneci denver stripclub

...Is currently the #1 search phrase bringing people to B&S. 

Why?

French Railway Company Faces Opposition For Transporting Jews to Nazi Camps

Do they have a point?

ORLANDO, Fla. – The French national railway’s hope to bid on the first high-speed tracks in the United States is running into resistance from Holocaust survivors because of the company’s role in transporting Jews to Nazi death camps.

[...]

“Why does this company deserve my tax dollars when they cooperated with the Nazis and let their trains transport people to be murdered?” said Goldstein, 71, who lives in Boca Raton.

SNCF stands for Societe Nationale des Chemins de Fer Francais. The company has argued that it had no control over operations when France was under Nazi occupation from 1940 to 1944 and was under orders to transport Jews to death camps. The firm also has said the French government has made an apology and offered reparations, although survivors contend the company itself has never made such amends.

“We plan to have a full disclosure of our records and complete transparency,” said Peter Kelly, an American-based attorney for SNCF. “The fact is many railway workers were killed by Nazis, many were bullied and the company was under control of an occupied government.”

The Fundraiser That Wasn’t

Oops.

The Wisconsin Republican Party is blasting Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Barrett for a fundraiser with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi that never happened.

The state GOP sent out a press release Wednesday saying Barrett hosted a “super secret” fundraiser with Pelosi on Tuesday night but didn’t want to admit it. Their release showed drawings of Pelosi handing Barrett a bag of money.

Problem is, there was no fundraiser. Spokesman for both Barrett and Pelosi confirmed to The Associated Press that it didn’t occur.

Republican Party spokesman Andrew Welhouse says he thought the fundraiser happened because he heard about it on Milwaukee talk radio.

Fewer Illegal Aliens

Good!

The number of illegal immigrants living in the U.S. has dropped for the first time in two decades — decreasing by 8 percent as the sour economy dried up jobs and increased enforcement made it harder to sneak across the border with Mexico, a new study finds.

Much of the decline comes from a sharp drop-off in illegal immigrants from the Caribbean, Central America and South America attempting to cross the southern border of the U.S., according to the Pew Hispanic Center, which based its report on an analysis of 2009 census data.

K-12 Bailouts

Some school districts’ bailouts aren’t so much.

Lakeland Union High School, for instance, is getting $45. MHLT is hauling in $28. In these parts, Arbor Vitae-Woodruff was the big winner - it gets $125.

Going the Distance

Washington County Gets a New District Attorney

Yep.

A longtime West Bend prosecutor has been named district attorney for Washington County by Gov. Jim Doyle.

Mark Bensen has worked in the Washington County office since 2001 and was named deputy district attorney last year by District Attorney Todd Martens. Martens was named to the circuit court bench this year by Doyle, creating the opening for a successor.

Bensen will take office immediately for a term lasting until 2013.