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POPSAbout That 550 Tons Of Yellow Cake Had the United States not invaded Iraq in 2003, that 550 metric tons of yellow cake would have remained physically within Saddam's sphere of influence. Again, perhaps that would not bother some, but in light of 9/11, it bothered many Americans, including President Bush. Yellow cake is a very dangerous substance, which can be converted to WMD with the right equipment and technology. To believe that Saddam Hussein lacked the ability or motivation to acquire and perfect the equipment for production of nuclear WMD is, in my opinion, foolhardy and naive. Those who believe that presence of IAEA inspectors assured that the yellow cake was controlled and adequately protected from diversion can explore the facts: Those who wish to explore the facts further should Goggle "IAEA effectiveness in Iraq" to glean more information, which includes, in part, the following report from the Nuclear Control Institute (http://www.nci.org/new/iraq-ib.htm):
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POPSU.S. Charity Teaches Third World Women Marketable Craft "It was important to figure out if they could crochet," Crecelius said. "We found out that they could. They were actually very skilled with their hands and almost everyone picked it up quickly. The first day, the woman I was crocheting with - Alice - made, like, a flawless hat. And by the third day, the majority were making almost flawless hats, so that was pretty cool. We knew that our program worked."
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POPSObama's Interview With Military Times July 02, 2008 Somebody please ask junior Senator Barack Obama what he means when he says that contract worker support of our war effort should be just used for kitchen work and automobile repair. Does Barack Obama actually know what kind of invaluable service outfits like Blackwater perform in the support of our efforts in ferreting out zeolots who want to do harm to the Iraqi citizens we are trying to liberate? This is what Barack said to The Military Times, July 2, 2008: There is room for private contractors to work in the mess hall, providing basic supplies and doing some logistical work that might have been done in-house in the past. I am troubled by the use of private contractors when it comes to potential armed engagements… It is frightening to think Obama is one step away from being Commander in Chief. UPDATE: Astute Bloggers has more on Obama's Far Left attitude on Blackwater employees.
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POPSHope + Change = 70% Tax Rate Still, Barack assures us that John McCain's and George Bush's policy stances are indistinguishable, so let's so stipulate. Is that worse than the alternative? After all, what President in the modern era does Senator Obama's agenda most resemble? Huge expansion of the federal government? Check. Letting entitlement spending run wild? Check. "Windfall profit" taxes on oil companies? Strong desire to meet with dictators and state terrorism sponsors? Big doofy grin? Check, check, and check. The Tax Man Cometh Obama’s Plan Since the early 1980s — after Americans rejected Jimmy Carter and embraced Ronald Reagan and his tax cuts — the United States has benefited from relatively competitive tax rates. But if Sen. Barack Obama’s tax plan becomes law, the IRS will become one of the most punitive tax men in the world. http://blog.heritage.org/2008/07/01/morning-bell-the-tax-man-cometh/ (Obama caricature by Cox & Forkum)
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POPSChange! Obama: Don't Worry, I'm Still Planning to Surrender
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POPSGen. David Petraeus beats megastar Angeline Jolie.... People in the *real* world know who is truly important. No disrespect to Ms. Jolie, but her influence is minimal when it comes to life & death issues. This is also true of Crews, Baldwin, Franken, Hayden, etc..... Celebrities are useless when it comes to getting things accomplished. Nice article that gives credit where credit is due.
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POPSMedia reports Bush didn't lie In other news, Satan builds a ski resort and the car wash business is up sharply due to cars being soiled by flying pigs. Sorry for skimping on the AP quote, I hear they start charging at five words so I cut it down to four.
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POPSConfidence Poll Well, it's not surprising. I am pleased that, even though it's lower than I would have expected, the military was at the top. Congress is, indeed, in the very pit.
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POPSGovernment on a diet
Most governments have reduced their top tax rates and spending-to-GDP ratios over the last decade or so, according to data published by the OECD, IMF and World Bank. But slimmer governments have done so at a faster pace, and to significantly lower levels. Their highest tax rate on personal income fell to a group average of 30% in 2006 from 36% in 1996. Top corporate rates were lowered to an average of 22% from 30%. Their average ratio of total government outlays to GDP fell to 31.6% in 2007, from an average peak level during the previous two decades of 40.4% Investment growth jumped to an average annual rate of 5.9% in 2000-2005, from 3.8% over the previous decade. Exports have risen by 6.3% annually since 2000. The net result was a surge in economic growth. The IMF reports that GDP soared in the slimmer-government group at a 5.4% average annual rate from 1999-2008 (including its forecast for the current year), up from a 4.6% rate over the previous decade. Over that same period,
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POPSThe US economy These gains in income and wealth have resulted directly in a better standard of living for virtually every segment of American society—including the poor. Among families living below the official poverty line in the early 1970s, less than 40 percent had a car, almost none had color televisions, and air conditioning was virtually unheard of; in 2004, 46 percent owned their own homes, almost 75 percent owned a car (indeed, 30 percent owned two or more cars), 97 percent had color TVs, and 67 percent had air conditioning. The poor in the U.S. have an average of 721 square feet of living space per person, as compared with 430 in Sweden and 92 in Mexico.
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POPSBush made the world a safer place Bush was the right man for the presidency, at precisely the right time. I shudder to think of the mess we would be in had Gore or that other idiot been at the reins on 9/11.
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POPSBush never lied to us about Iraq Oh....but the lie is so much more delicious and makes the "critics" sound so pious. If it will taint the "selected " President, then it doesn't matter if it's true or not.
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POPSWhy Americans Are Shunning Hollywood’s Wares
aside to make movies that embody traditional values, it often scores big with the public. Consider 2004’s Spider-Man 2, a sequel far better than the original. The movie is a fable about duty and heroism. The movie resonated powerfully with the public, grossing a whopping $374 million domestically, and it took in another $400 million or so overseas. Factor in DVD sales, and you’re getting close to a billion-dollar movie. The Incredibles affectionately embraces the bourgeois family, flaws and all. The Parrs have their difficulties: teenager Violet is sullen, the kids fight, Mom and Dad bicker, Bob hates his drab insurance job, but for the Parr kids, the family bond is all-important. Pixar’s 2003 runaway winner Finding Nemo, the movie shows children “what adults are supposed to do,” writes author Frederica Mathewes-Green on National Review Online—“to be brave and self-sacrificing, to defend children even at risk to themselves, to give, even in the face of ingratitude.”
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POPSProfessor Designs Plasma-propelled Flying Saucer The force created by passing an electrical current through this plasma pushes around the surrounding air, and that swirling air creates lift and momentum and provides stability against wind gusts. In order to maximize the area of contact between air and vehicle, Roy’s design is partially hollow and continuously curved, like an electromagnetic flying bundt pan. One of the most revolutionary aspects of Roy’s use of magnetohydrodynamics is that the vehicle will have no moving parts. The lack of traditional mechanical aircraft parts, such as propellers or jet engines, should provide tremendous reliability, Roy said. Such a design also will allow the WEAV to hover and take off vertically.