“I was asked recently which of the political leaders I had met had most integrity. I listed George near the top. He had genuine integrity and as much political courage as any leader I ever met.”
–Tony Blair on George W. Bush
This is what the FHA Mortgage Widget looks like for five counties I picked in New Jersey. You can get the code from http://www.fha.com/fha_loan_limits_widgetcode.cfm .
My partner, who is now working nights, tries on a blindfold to help him sleep during the days.
Mexicana Airlines suspended operations today. It’s amazing it lasted this long:
The investors brought into Mexicana last week mentioned specifically the high-salaries of employees as a major impediment to airline operations. It has been reported salaries for Mexicana employees is 30% higher than comparable airline salaries in the United States and double those of Mexico’s low-cost airlines. (Emphasis added.)
I’m getting tired of commenting on Althouse, so I think that I’ll be avoiding the site for awhile. Although most of the commenters provide interesting comments, there are a few extremely tendentious leftish types who have taken on the personal mission of “beating back the right wing lies“.
You can wreck a blog by (a) never allowing dissent, or (b) choosing to never deal with the commenters who arouse themselves by repeatedly shitting in the punchbowl. Ann Althouse has chosen the second tack.
Although there are some lovely people at the party, the turds are turning my stomach. I would rather hang with a nicer group. Bye, Ann.
Eli Lehrer of the Heartland Institute accuses US Attorney General Eric Holder of dragging his feet on implementing reforms that would protect vulnerable prisoners from rape.
Via Instapundit, found an interesting site, New Geography. It’s sort of about economics and urban planning, but it’s not as dry as that sounds. Check it out.
Another post from his daily email newsletter:
I keep hearing gays and lesbians lament that the government won’t let them get married. No, the government won’t give them a piece of paper declaring that they’re married. Marriage is not a piece of paper; it is made out of years of love, mutual effort, understanding, and some regular doses of sacrifice; it also helps to have a sense of humor. If you have that, the piece of paper is nice but ranks low among your blessings. If you don’t have it, all the government recognition in the world is going to seem pretty moot.
Jim, if all it was about was a piece of paper, it would indeed be a non-issue. But government recognition of same-sex marriage has big ramifications, particularly relating to taxation, estates, and privacy. Without that bond, a partner can be denied input on end-of-life decisions if the other partner is terminally ill. Estates that both partners have contributed to over many years can be ravaged by greedy families if one partner dies. Partners don’t have the civil protections that married couples have in criminal proceedings. The list goes on and on. This is why gays and lesbians fight for gay marriage rights. The issues are real and substantive. They’re not about a “piece of paper”.
In his excellent (and free) daily newsletter “Morning Jolt,” Jim Geraghty of National Review gets it right:
My lone thought on Chelsea Clinton’s wedding until now was, “Well, that’s nice.” But apparently some folks are deeply bothered by the nuptials.
Doug Ross is up in arms, quoting his wife’s lament that “they had to hold an over-the-top, massive celebration when the American economy is suffering.” Don Surber echoes the complaint: “Chelsea Clinton blew $5 million on a wedding while her father raises money for Haiti. Shouldn’t charity begin at home?”
Well, the Clintons gave $10 million to charity between 2001 and 2008. Most of that was to the Clinton Foundation, and while there have been some who have griped that some of the donations seemed timed and targeted for political benefit, there’s little dispute that the causes are worthy.
But even if the Clintons were misers, this is their money. They only have one child; presuming Chelsea never divorces and remarries, this is it for them. Can you blame them for pulling out all the stops?
I gripe about the Kobe beef and quail-egg appetizers at Obama fundraisers, but that’s because he’s still a public servant living in public housing at the moment, and ostentatious displays of luxury from an elected leader during year three of a recession rankle. But Bill Clinton’s out of office and nobody elected Chelsea to anything. Chelsea’s never claimed to be a woman of the people, or salt of the earth, or humble, or anything. For most of her adult life, she’s lived her life and avoided the public spotlight. So if her parents can afford it, why shouldn’t she get the cake that costs more than some cars and pull out all the stops? You know that a large chunk of the guest list is her parents’ friends, anyway.
Pat Austin, writing at And So It Goes in Shreveport, is divided: “Now, I realize Chelsea’s situation is different. It’s her first wedding and her parents are important people with lots of money. I get all that. Every young girl, I suppose, dreams of the gorgeous wedding. I’m certainly not suggesting Chelsea have a justice of the peace wedding. What is so galling is the media and this is what Doug points out in his post. The hypocrisy of the media is obvious when you consider what would have been written had the Bush’s held such a huge shindig for daughter Jenna’s wedding. ‘Those elitist, out-of-touch Republicans!’ I can just hear it. Just let me hear one time from the liberals that conservatives are out of touch elitists. Let me hear just one time how the Democrats are for the little people.”
Don’t most media institutions give us enough to gripe about with what they do write, as opposed to what we’re certain they would have written in different circumstances?
Has Chelsea Clinton ever given us grief? Her lone foray into the world of politics and the public spotlight as an adult has been a few campaign stops with her mother. Whatever you think of Hillary Clinton’s presidential ambitions, I don’t think it’s reasonable to hold Chelsea’s high opinion of her mother and father against her. Chances are, if your mother ran for president, you would do what you could to help out, even if you thought it was a crazy idea.
The War Planner, writing at Left Coast Rebel, almost gets the tone right. Almost: “I am sincerely happy for her and — not ungrudgingly — am happy for her parents. Whatever anger, fears, dislikes, and other petty hatreds I harbored for the Clintons for their escapades in the last decade of the last century have evaporated — at least for one day — and been replaced by a joy for them and a wish that their lovely daughter will begin a wonderful and happy life with her new main squeeze. You cannot let the black cloud of resentment hang over your heart on such a wonderful day for such a sweet, young lady. You must move on; you must forgive and forget . . . and you must get down on your knees and give thanks to the Lord God Almighty that the elder Clintons, in all of their questionable wisdom, DID NOT EXTEND AN INVITATION TO BARACK OBAMA IN WHAT MUST BE THE ALL-TIME SNUB OF THIS CENTURY AND THE LAST.”
I appreciate the sweet reaction of . . . Robert Stacy McCain. Really: “Don’t let these complaints spoil your happiness, Chelsea. A girl as sweet as you deserves a shameless capitalist wedding. And in the spirit of true bipartisanship, please give my best regards to your Mom and Dad and tell them if they’re thinking about a Democratic primary challenge to Obama in 2012, I’ll be happy to start Operation Chaos II.”