Innocent Bystanders

Sometimes the Headline Says it All May 31, 2013

NC man charged with crimes against nature involving Chihuahua

[It’s a week and a half old, so I apologize if you’ve seen it already.]

100 Days to Go! May 31, 2013

At our current pace of viewing, the blog will hit 5 million views 100 days from now. [Give or take some Aceolanches to crank up views or some more of Michael’s Rolling in the Deep covers to suppress them.]

A 5 Million Views Party will be held, most likely at Michael’s place. I’m planning on heading down to celebrate, and I’m hoping y’all can join me.

We might even tell Michael we’re coming.

The Real Formula for Rape May 31, 2013

Can’t rightly remember how many times I’ve been told that men’s sexism, combined with pornography, leads inexorably to rape. It’s been a mainstay of feminist rhetoric for decades.

But just as with the “1 in 4 college women are are raped” canard, this business of sexism being at the root of sexual crimes is a myth:

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In Which I Tear Down Another Person’s Plan, But Without Proposing an Alternative May 31, 2013

I take issue with Drew.

He argues, as have many, many others, that the problem in Syria is “a them problem, not an us problem.”  This, most recently in response to a WSJ op-ed recommending intervention of some sort.  Now I agree with Drew that you can’t just wave away the reality that it’s the Islamists over there who are doing the heaviest, most effective fighting.  I think John McCain, for example, is a lunatic if he thinks America can determine who the good guys are, and who the bad, especially after he so hilariously proved himself wrong by staging a photo op with kidnappers.

So it’s not like I think Drew is totally off the rails on this one.  I just think he’s waving off some important data as well.

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Your Fitness Options: Choose Wisely May 30, 2013

The latest fitness craze? Prancercise!

That makes me long for the days of yore, when fitness regimens hewed more closely to my values and aesthetic sense (I think it’s SFW, but exercise a small degree of caution).

Mind-Bending Illusion May 30, 2013

See those squares marked “A” and “B?”

They’re the same color.

Benghazi Response Time? Who Cares? May 25, 2013

The American Thinker makes the point that we could have responded to the Benghazi attack in time to save some lives:

Elite U.S. troops were completely capable of saving Ambassador Chris Stevens during the Benghazi Consulate attacks on September 11, 2012. Elements of the highly specialized Combatant Commanders In-Extremis (CIF) units are always on alert, on forward deployment, ready to respond. Their job description is to hit the ground in 3 to 5 hours. CIF elements are ready to engage in active combat anywhere in their region, 3 to 5 hours after the call.

That’s nice, but it’s completely moot. It didn’t really matter what the response time was – 3-5 hours or 9-12 hours per Leon Panetta. The fact is, you don’t know a priori how long the attack is going to last, so you send somebody, period. You don’t say, “Gee, they probably won’t get there in time, so we won’t bother.” You send somebody.

I don’t understand why response time is even an issue.

The Obama Charm Offensive Continues May 25, 2013

In what I suspect is a part of the Obama administration’s attempt to start redirecting attention away from their multiplicity of scandals, the First Lady visited Savoy Elementary School in DC, leaving us with some odd photos:

Patting your head while rubbing your belly isn’t so hard	FLOTUS on stilts

Unions Finally Clue In to Obamacare Issues May 24, 2013

It’s so hard to keep a straight face when you read something like this. Apparently many union leaders have figured out that Obamacare ain’t all that:

… some unions leaders have grown frustrated and angry about what they say are unexpected consequences of the new law — problems that they say could jeopardize the health benefits offered to millions of their members.

Do tell:

The union plans were already more costly to run than traditional single-employer health plans. The Affordable Care Act has added to that cost — for the unions’ and other plans — by requiring health plans to cover dependents up to age 26, eliminate annual or lifetime coverage limits and extend coverage to people with pre-existing conditions.

“We’re concerned that employers will be increasingly tempted to drop coverage through our plans and let our members fend for themselves on the health exchanges,” said David Treanor, director of health care initiatives at the Operating Engineers union.

Not very likely. A recent survey showed that 97.4% of employers thought it was likely or certain that they would continue providing health insurance to full time employees. What they’re doing instead is transferring some of the cost to employees, going with higher deductibles, and perhaps turning to “skinny” health plans to control costs.

But even if the employers don’t dump employees onto the health exchanges, the health care consumer won’t be able to keep what they have:

“It makes an untruth out of what the president said, that if you like your insurance, you could keep it,” said Joe Hansen, president of the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union. “That is not going to be true for millions of workers now.”

Sucks to be thrown in with the rest of us, huh? Part of liking your insurance is liking the price. It was never true for anybody that Obamacare wouldn’t change either the terms or costs of your healthcare package.

And the unions can finally see that without the special carve-outs they thought they were going to get, their health care is going to suffer just like ours.

Bloomberg Gets Excited About Mortgage Rates May 23, 2013

This is news?

“U.S. Mortgage Rates Rise, With 30-Year at a 2-Month High”

We had a record low last November – that was newsworthy because it was, like, an all-time record. And the fact that mortgage rates are increasing is certainly important. But it doesn’t seem worth reporting a “2-month high.”