Podcast 316

Midweek Updates. Live from the newsroom at the Bob Davis Podcasts. Bruce Jenner allegedly kills someone and everyone is talking about Brian Williams. Go figure. NBC News still doesn’t know what to do with the news anchor who embellished stories about Iraq, and now apparently Katrina, and whether he saved puppies or not when he ‘was a fireman’. If Williams is forced to leave, NBC will have to write him a check for fifty million dollars. Williams just signed a five year contract with the network for ten million dollars a year, so he might NOT be singing ‘Don’t Cry For Me Argentina’. Alas, the news media IS crying for Williams. The New York Times says Williams is a victim of ‘false memory’, which apparently a lot of us have. The Minneapolis Star Tribune suggests this is a time for forgiveness. Why are they apologizing for Williams when real reporters – not to mention American servicemen and women – are actually dying when they cover the news, or being beheaded, or something like that. Even more sad news than the fall of a ‘hero’ television presenter is the sad story of Whitney Houston’s daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown. The Brown family says they’ll remove Bobby from life support today, February 11th, the same day her mother passed. Bobby always said when Whitney died, she lost more than her mom, she lost her best friend. Yet more sad? IRS head John Koskinen says ILLEGAL aliens will be able to receive back earned income tax credit payments for as long as they have been in the US. Millions of illegals could receive millions of dollars in payouts, financed by American Taxpayers. It seems President Obama executive memoranda which amnestied these people neglected to exempt them from such payments, so Koskinen wants to be on the ‘safe side’. Enough to make us want to remove ourselves from life support. A town in Pennsylvania is placing signs at the edge of town that say, “This is NOT a Gun free Zone”, which is driving the gun control zealots into a frenzy. One of them says the signs will mean criminals will shoot first, and that Conoy Township ‘will be like the wild west’. The town says they’ll take that bet. Minnesota Governor Dayton’s struggle with the House over huge pay raises for his commissioners has descended into a battle over whether the Governor will testify. He says he’ll meet with legislators but won’t testify. He also offered to do what he can to increase the pay of legislators! Meanwhile it appears the Republican House has a little  ‘splainin’ to do as well, since GOP operative and House employee Ben Golnick was also given a huge raise and makes over six figures. Sigh. In Michigan legislators are considering a bill which would outlaw subsidies to businesses. It seems Michigan is on the hook for 6 billion dollars in subsidies to auto companies. And you wonder why Detroit is a wasteland. Great idea, by the way. And eggs are good for you! Sponsored by Depotstar. 

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Podcast 315

The Gathering Storm. Updating the big stories, starting with foreign affairs. While people in the Upper Midwest and Boston are slipping and sliding through their commute, so apparently is the foreign policy of the Obama Administration. A president who said in September ‘there will be no boots on the ground’ when he announced a bombing campaign that would ‘degrade and destroy’ the Islamic State, now wants a new authorization from congress to use force in western Iraq. Is this an admission that the policy of airstrikes has not been successful? While the White House version of the force authorization only calls for special forces, and troops for specific purposes and not a general invasion, wait’ll we see what Congress ends up adding. In the Eastern Ukraine, a president who claimed economic sanctions would eventually force the Russians to end their misadventure there, now is reportedly considering arming Ukrainians. Putin has played the economic sanctions, which have hurt the Russian people, to gain public support for his effort in the Donetsk region. Moreover, whether right or wrong, Russians regard Ukraine as Russia. Kiev was the origin of Russia going back to the 10th century. When Ted Cruz, John McCain and Robert Menendez agree, its very possible so called ‘lethal aid’ will be shipped to Ukraine. Is this wise? What was the start of the current stand off. When did the US lose its way in Europe? Now what? Seems like the President may just decide to pull back and run out the clock, leaving all of this to the next President. Meanwhile, the Europeans are in conference with Ukrainian leadership, and Russian diplomats and they don’t want any arms shipments messing up their deal with Putin, in which Putin pretty much gets what he wants; The federalization of Eastern Ukraine, giving him the ability to destabilize a Ukrainian rump state whenever he chooses. Let’s not forget the province in question also has some pretty valuable natural resources and a land bridge to Crimea. Is this a good recipe for world economic growth? What if foreign policy turns out to be the big issue of 2016? Do you know what the Republican and Democrat foreign policy will be? It’s really important people start talking to each other about their values, working to knit those values together into some kind of political idea that can then be worked into concepts that are more than just rhetorical flourish. Don’t expect others to do your work for you. And if people do vote for someone with simply emotionally appealing ideas; they will get the so called leader they deserve. Sponsored by X Government Cars. 

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Podcast 314

Global Warming Hot Air. The ‘Climate Change Community’ thanks Brian Williams for making up stories, stealing coverage from what could be the biggest scandal in scientific history; It appears the US Government has been cooking the books when it comes to temperature data. Actual temperatures posted from weather stations in Paraguay, Northern Canada and Siberia have been altered (gasp) to show higher readings…for years. A midwinter meltdown would ensue, if this story was actually taken up by the news machine, but they’re too busy with Dirty Laundry from Brian Williams right now. Meanwhile billions of dollars are being spent on wind and solar, and electric car subsidies. Not to mention the legislative roadblock ordered up by Obama Crony Warren Buffett on the Keystone pipeline, due to concerns the EPA has over its environmental ‘impact’. Carbon Credits anyone? Hot Air indeed. More bad news for the IRS and for taxpayers. Thousands of taxpayer numbers and social security numbers have been hacked, and have been used by hackers to file early returns. People are discovering the problem when they file their taxes and get the message, “Your return has already been processed”. The actual taxpayer then has to go through the process of ‘proving’ to the IRS that they have been the victim of identity theft. This, with an agency that is so poorly run they don’t answer the phone, or even respond to letters, and sometimes when they do, they get confused. Solution? Give them more money. Oh Hell No! The solution is a new tax system that does away with the byzantine tax code and the poster child for government inefficiency; The Internal Revenue Non Service. Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton has kicked up a firestorm after giving his commissioners huge raises. The head of the unelected Met Council now earns well over one hundred thousand dollars a year. Other commissioners will make as much as $155,000 a year. Dayton says these people need this money to take care of their families. Keep in mind the average Minnesotan earns somewhere around forty eight thousand dollars a year, with no pension. State employees can double dip pensions, and their pension is based on their income. Remember, taxpayers pay their salary and fund their pensions. Governor Dayton catches a break though. It was revealed this week that the average dock worker on the west coast earns $147,000 a year, plus benefits paid by the employer and an eighty thousand dollar a year pension. What’s in your wallet? Sponsored by Baklund R & D. 

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