Nightly Ramble:Towtruck Edition

Welcome one and all to the most intense nightly read anywhere on the sphere; The Bigsblog Nightly Ramble

This is the Towtruck edition. Seems to be the Naional car has quit, and is sitting at the sid eof the road. Our supposed leadership has decided that spending several million dollars on a set of gold-plated spinner rims is the answer,a dthey’re calling it ‘stimulation’… as opposed to buying some gas. Besides, it works with the viddie on the end of today’s post.

As usual, we do this in no particular order, today, just as I see it as I make the daily rounds.

• State vs Individual: Billy: I’m not sure you’re going to understand this, but…
  

  “The argument, as I see it, is predominantly…
  1. You will be better off with a government than you would be without one.
  2. Therefore it is necessary that you, and everyone else, accept the existence of a government.”I will happily stipulate to that being the statist argument. That’s it, essentially.

  The anarchist argument is essentially a defensive rejection. In this, the common objection to the anarchist “argument from a negative” (to paraphrase the oft-seen) is fairly correct: it is against the positive assertion of the statist. This is a matter of ethics, however: if one’s principal political value is the state, then “the negative” is no good not for reasons of logic or anything, but because it is against the positive assertion of the state. If one’s principal political value is the individual, then it is good and proper to assume the negative position against the positivist.

  The nature of the discussion seems to me to assume, incorrectly, that if one’s principal political value is other than the state, that one cannot by nature asume the government to have any proper role at all.   I submit, Billy, that keeping government in that proper role, however, requires an electorate which  has the ability to think for themselves at all times, and gets to act on it.  I see the current fight… and the fight of the last 100 or so years, as being centered on the government trying to break out of that proper role, and in it’s attempt to reinforce that position outside it’s proper role by preventing the latter two conditions. Then again such is logically always the case when government … of whatever sort… exists. Of itself that doesn’t mean government shouldn’t exist, anymore than chain saws shouldn’t exist. You’ve just got to be careful with the things, knowing the damage they can cause when you’re not being careful. That requires an alert people. The problem with government is some people are not. Which explains why I’m out here beating the drum, by the way.

• Burris admits it: Burris now admits to trying to raise cash for Blago as a part of securing that senate seat.  Who didn’t see this coming?  The Chicago Tribune wants him gone.      Rick Moran wonders if the Democrat covered his pay for play up so as to get the spending bill passed? A valid point, I think. Michelle thinks so, too. Even Glenn notes:
  

  NATIONAL JOURNAL: For Ethics Hawks, Congress Could Be Next. “House Democrats have done their best to tamp down smoldering controversies involving Ways and Means Chairman Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., and John Murtha, D-Pa, chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense. But the questions dogging the two are not likely to go away soon. . . . The ethics-sensitive tone set by President Obama may make it harder for lawmakers on Capitol Hill to sweep ethics controversies under the rug. However, observers differ over whether Obama’s new ethics rules have brought, or can bring, real change to Washington. There’s little disagreement that recent steps to strengthen the ethics process on Capitol Hill have been largely symbolic.” Symbolic mostly of a focus on symbolism rather than substance. Geez guys, get the book!

  Meanwhile, they’re even noticing at NPR: The ‘Culture Of Corruption,’ Redux. “Democrats are watching this closely, with apprehension.”

  The corrption wave is approaching, guys. When it breaks, things are going to be interesting indeed. My guess is it’ll start hapening around the midterm elections.  And won’t that be interesting?

• BUSHITLER crowd now gets offended.  After 8 years of putting up with the kind of nonsense at the right, here, the Kossacks are now suddenly all sensitive about such attacks being directed at Obama. OK, the whole thing is juvi at least, but here it is; Sorry, you get no sympathy from me, Kossacks.  None. Particularly when there’s far more in the way of similarity to the tactics and policies of Obama.
• Cat Racing? Do I really want to know, Chuck? One supposes it’s like herding cats… only faster.
• It’s the unions, Stupid: Bruce: Well done.  We still seem to be stuck in this mold, though, of not recognizing the elephant in the room. the UAW.  I keep saying this… and I’ve seen nothing whatever to counter the idea…  this whole thing has never been about saving the Big Three… this is about saving the UAW.  The fact was and remains that the very reason why the Big Three have to keep coming back for more bailouts is because the Unions won’t budge from their unsustainable wage and benefit demands, and unrealistic work rules. . And since there’s a Union-backing Democrat in the White House seemingly with a bent to sign taxpayer checks for whoever wants to finncially and physically support Democrats, there’s no reason for the UAW to make any consessions to reality. And this model will continue until the federal government stops issuing checks to make good the difference, for whatever reason… most likely the well being dry… or we get rid of the unions. Don’t expect the Big three to complain at any listenable volume anytime soon for relief from the Unions, either. With efforts such as unionization-by-intimidation otherwise known (Laughingly) as card-check, the message that the unions will be getting support from the government has not been lost on the Big three, you see. Thus, bringing these facts about the UAW and it’s excesses will not be brought up by the Big Three anytime soon… and for the same reason… the only way out of this box the Unions and the government have created, is to grovel in front of the government and the unions and accept the taxpayer funding.
• It’s not as bad as we’re being told: Victor Davis Hanson has a great article up at Pajamas Media today, about the Depression, Recession, Downturn — Whatever.
• Hamas Lied? Who would have even considered that?
• More Democrat corruption: It’s a measurement of the way things are in the world of Democrat party politics that this story hasn’t raised much of a ripple, even.  Up to their eyeballs in reports of fraud among Democrats are becoming an every day occurrence.
• Driver’s Ed: With a BBCT to Neal Boortz, here’s why I don’t trust other drivers.