Predictable: 71% of Top Companies Will Drop Insurance Under ObamaCare

By Duane Lester - - 2 Comments

The goal for the Democrats never was to use ObamaCare to insure the uninsured.

It was to get the camel’s nose under the tent flap, meaning once ObamaCare was passed, the left could gradually build upon its failures until they have the program they wanted in the first place:  single payer.

While Obama says you can keep your health care plan if you like it, if employers drop it, you can’t:

A report from the House Ways and Means Committee finds that 71 of the nation’s top 100 companies would find it far more economical to drop their health care plans and simply pay the penalty for not complying with the Obamacare employer insurance mandate.

The report, published May 1, surveyed 71 of the 100 companies in the Fortune 100 list of large corporations and finds that all of them would save considerable amounts of money by dropping their health care coverage instead of complying with the Obamacare insurance mandate.

“According to data provided by the 71 Fortune 100 companies that responded to the inquiry, they could save a total of $28.6 billion in 2014 alone if they stopped offering health insurance to their U.S. employees and instead paid the employer mandate penalty for not doing so,” the report said.

“In the highly competitive global market in which these Fortune 100 companies operate, it is unrealistic for them not to consider the more economical choice of dumping health coverage and telling their employees to purchase health insurance through the Exchanges.”

And when employers start dropping health care, the left will demonize them as caring only about the bottom line and push once again for a public option or single payer.

As I pointed out before, the endgame was government run healthcare, and they don’t mind taking babysteps to get it:

You can sit back and believe the lies of the Democrat President, Congressmen and Senators, or you can hear them speak the truth in the video above and understand the true goal: total control of healthcare on a federal level.

Watch all of the Schakowsky video. Hear her say she is a advocate of single payer. Hear her say, “This is not a principled fight.” These are her words:

Barney Frank says he’s “all for it” and wishes it wasn’t off the table, but says the public option is the way to get it:

If you believe what the Democrats are saying to main stream America when it comes to health care, you are a fool. This is the camel’s nose.

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New All American Radio: Doug Ross Talks Bad Blue and Stacy Washington Talks Race and Politics

By Duane Lester - - 0 Comments

This week on All American Radio I was joined by two friends from the rightosphere, Doug Ross and Stacy Washinginton.

Doug and I talked about his project Bad Blue and how bloggers can use it to find content for their sites and Stacy and I discussed the GOP’s feeble attempt to reach out to black voters.

You can listen to the podcast here and subscribe here: iTunes

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Awesome: Illegal Aliens Are Getting Tax Refunds for Children Living in Mexico

By Duane Lester - - 4 Comments

This is great.  Not only are illegal aliens getting huge tax refunds, they are getting them via fraud and the IRS could care less.

Via Doug Ross:

Investigative television reporter Bob Segall of Indianapolis NBC affiliate WTHR TV Channel 13, was contacted by a long-time central Indiana tax preparer, who blew the whistle on a multi-billion dollar tax fraud about which the IRS has done nothing, according to the TV news show video segment that aired on Monday.

“There is not a doubt in my mind there’s huge fraud taking place here,” he said, slowly flipping through the pages of a [heavily redacted] tax return.

“We’re talking about a multi-billion dollar fraud scheme here that’s taking place and no one is talking about it,” he said.

The scheme involves illegal immigrants that are filing tax returns, claiming child credits for multiple dependents under their support in “their” U.S. household, and collecting enormous cash refunds–such as one persons tax return that showed income of over $14,000, who collected a cash refund of over $10,300.

Thank you, Bill Clinton, for making this possible:

In 1996 during the Clinton Administration, the Individual Tax Identification Number (ITIN) was created in order for both resident and non-resident aliens, regardless of immigration status, to fulfill their tax filing and payment obligations under IRS regulations–even though an ITIN does not confer the right to work and receive income in the United States.

This year tax preparation offices across the country were flooded by an estimated 2 million illegal immigrants, who in growing numbers have been taking advantage of a tax loophole called the Additional Child Tax Credit–a fully-refundable credit of up to $1000 per child–meant to ease the income tax burden on working families who have childrenliving at home.

However, Segall’s investigation and reporting found many illegal immigrants who were claiming these tax credits, but for kids who live in Mexico–even listing nieces and nephews.

I suppose if you audited these folks, that would be racist, or something.

Given the authority, I’d audit and deport.  Let them leech off Mexico’s social teat for a while.

Then, some repealing is in order.

And, this most likely wouldn’t happen under the Fair Tax.  Just sayin’…

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First Contact with Holt County Facebook Admin Ends in Success for Sunlight

By Duane Lester - - 2 Comments

After pitching a fit yesterday about my posts being purged from the Holt County Facebook page, I received the following via email:

Mr. Lester,

I wanted to contact you directly, as I have seen there is concern over your link on the Holt County Facebook page. We have the settings on the Facebook page restricted for links. As you can imagine, people wish to post inappropriate links regularly.

I have no issues with your article and agree that people should be aware of the activities of the sheriff’s department and how they track and spend tax dollars.

I will post a link to the State Auditor’s findings and to your article for viewers to see.

Thank you for sharing your article with us. I apologize for any inconvenience.

Sincerely,

Kathy J. Kunkel

Holt County Clerk

As of this morning, the article and a link to the audit have been added to the Facebook page.

Thanks, Kathy.

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My Latest Article at PJ Lifestyle: Which of the 5 Avengers Prequels is the Best?

By Duane Lester - - 0 Comments

With The Avengers coming out tomorrow, I took a look back at the movies that brought us to this point and asked, “Which of these is the best, and why?”

The Incredible Hulk

This is the second installment of the Hulk, building off of the awful Ang Lee version without even acknowledging it.

The one thing I hear about this movie is how great Ed Norton is as Bruce Banner.

Sorry. I’m just not seeing it.

In fact, I think Norton’s performance is overshadowed by Tim Roth’s. When you watch the trailer, it reminds you just how well Roth embodied the attitude of Emil Blonsky, a confidence that mutates into arrogance before devolving into an unrestrained lust for power.

Roth’s performance allows you to accept that the flawed super-soldier formula not only amplified Blonsky physically, but mentally. The arrogance and recklessness are boosted, leading him to eventually force Sam Sterns to give him the power the Hulk has, and incidentally, creating yet another Hulk villain in Sterns. That was well done and possibly sets up the premise for the next Hulk movie.

Bottom line: Roth acted circles around the others in this film.

And I’ve already talked about my thoughts on General Thunderbolt Ross.

The scenes with the Hulk look amazing and the action sequences are some of the best ever in a comic book movie. The movie also does a great job in humanizing the Hulk, showing that he isn’t just a mindless monster, but can act out of love and concern for others.

Overall, the movie is a great way to further the character without actually rebooting him, and by itself was a great adaption of the comic to film. But it’s just not as good as the other films that help bring The Avengers to life.

Read the rest here.

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Arkansas Rep. Seeks Emergency Powers To Study The Environmental Impact of Bacon Grease

By Duane Lester - - 3 Comments

Folks, it’s time to move to Arkansas. Words I never thought would come out of my brain, and yet, it’s true.

Things must be running so swimmingly in the state that the only thing State Rep. Kathy Webb has to worry about is if people are scraping the bacon grease out of their frying pans before they put them in the dishwasher.

Nope, not joking:

Webb has submitted Interim Study Proposal 2011-201, an act “to declare an emergency” over the alleged crisis. Frying hamburgers is now The People’s Business of the Highest Order.

Webb’s bill claims food grease presents an emergency risk of sewer overflows that threatens the environment. “It is in the public interest to establish a Fat, Oil, and Grease Advisory Committee to study the recommended measures to better ensure that the collection, transportation, disposal, and recycling of fat, oil, and grease are done in a manner that is protective of the environment,” reads the bill.

According to the bill, the state will appoint a 14 (!) member committee “with adequate staff and facilities” to study the frying-pan-grease emergency and recommend legislation, enforcement, and other emergency government action to fight food grease. Even after such action, the committee and its “adequate staff and facilities” will perpetually exist, convene, and soak up taxpayer resources.

This emergency bill will apparently do more than merely save the environment. “Therefore, an emergency is declared to exist, and this act [is] immediately necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health, and safety,” declares the bill.

First they came for the Crisco, and I said nothing because I used bacon grease…

So far, this is the most absurd thing I’ve read today. But I’m just getting started.

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Holt County Facebook Admin Deletes All References to Audit Performed on County – Updated

By Duane Lester - - 0 Comments

Update:  I talked to the County Clerk today, who told me only admins are allowed to post on the page, despite the fact that there is a “Write Something…” box at the top of the page.  That would explain why my stuff was being deleted so quickly, but doesn’t explain how posts by folks looking for bed and breakfasts are still posted.

Whatever.  My article and a link to the audit have both been added to the page by the page admins.  Why they weren’t before I pitched a fit is still a mystery.

…

When I published my article on the results of the audit done on Holt County, Missouri, I wanted to make sure as many people from Holt County saw it. One of the ways I marketed it was via Facebook.

Holt County has its own Facebook page, complete with a bunch of people standing around a giant check from the federal government. Nice.

They don’t mind showing off all the property taken from elsewhere and redistributed in the county, but if you try to show possible fraud, waste and abuse in the county, you get deleted.

In the below screenshot, you can see the recent activity section. Twice I posted the article on the page. Twice it was deleted.

So I asked a simple question:

My question was deleted.

So, I asked another.

Guess what they did with that?

I don’t know who is in charge of the Holt County Facebook page, but they certainly don’t want people who visit it to know about this:

The Missouri Auditor’s Office  recently released the results of an audit conducted on Holt County, Missouri last summer.

The report rated the overall operation of the county as “fair,” which means:

“this entity needs to improve operations in several areas. The report contains several findings, or one or more findings that require management’s immediate attention, and/or the entity has indicated several recommendations will not be implemented. In addition, if applicable, several prior recommendations have not been implemented.”

The audit specifically focused the office of Sheriff Scott Wedlock, saying it “revealed serious shortcomings within the Sheriff’s department.” Specific areas mentioned were revenue from concealed and carry permit fees, the loss of pre-paid phone cards at a cost of $1,710, fuel purchases and usage and general oversight of the department’s accounting.

If you live in the area, or just aim to misbehave, feel free to share the post on the Holt County Facebook page. Here’s the link: http://www.allamericanblogger.com/20786/changes-implemented-after-mo-auditor-finds-serious-shortcomings-in-holt-county-sheriffs-department/

Just copy it and past it in the “Post” box on their page. See if they censor you also.

But if you really want to get to whoever is running this page, share the post with the people of Holt County.

Meanwhile, I’m going to find out who’s running that page and why they keep deleting my posts.

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Democrat State Rep. Doesn’t Want Veterans Moving to His State; They Have “Issues”

By Duane Lester - - 5 Comments

Here’s the idea. Pass a law that gives free tuition to veterans in Louisiana if they meet the minimum requirements and move to the state.

Great idea. As the bill’s sponsor says, veterans generally make good citizens.

But one Democrat State representative, Stephen Ortego, from District 39, wonders why in the world anyone would want to attract veterans.

They have issues:

For the record, I am a veteran and I have issues. I have bills to pay. I have a dog that won’t stop barking at night. And now, I have a sun burn.

But I don’t have mental issues. I pay my taxes. I teach my kids to love one another and their country. I fight for liberty.

And I lived in Louisiana for a few months. Great food, nice people.

But without a doubt the most corrupt government I have ever witnessed. That was a while back. Maybe things have changed. I don’t know.

I do know this.

Ortego, Stephen J.
District 39
P.O. Box 625 Carencro, LA 70520
(337)886-4687
ortegos@legis.la.gov

Let the good man know what you think of his distaste for veterans moving to Louisiana.

Hat Tip: Breitbart TV

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Occupy Cleveland Members Busted in Plot to Bomb Bridge

By Duane Lester - - 2 Comments

Obama supported.

Pelosi adored.

Praised by Big Labor.

And tutored by former socialist bomber Bill Ayers.

Five individuals — at least three of them involved in the far-left Occupy Cleveland movement — were arrested on April 30 in Cleveland in connection with an alleged plot to bomb the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad bridge. The FBI described the arrested individuals as “anarchists.”

That’s no surprise, considering the anarchist presence at the various Occupy camps across the country.

These folks were serious though. We’re talking C4 serious:

FBI Special Agent Ryan Taylor claimed that co-defendant Douglas Wright planned to “deploy smoke grenades on the Veterans Memorial Bridge connecting downtown Cleveland to Ohio City, as a diversion while they knocked the bank signs off the tops of the larger buildings in downtown Cleveland.” According to Agent Taylor, the group allegedly target the signs because they were “the most important part because they need to make sure everyone knows that the action was against corporate America and the financial system, and not just some random acts.”

Apparently growing more ambitious, Baxter and his co-defendants allegedly plotted to obtain C4, a highly destructive plastic explosive, to destroy the Route 82 Brecksville-Northfield High Level Bridge. The Route 82 bridge crosses from Brecksville to Sagamore Hills, over Cuyahoga Valley National Park.

FBI agents monitored the alleged terrorists and provided dummy “look-alike” explosives. The FBI affidavit asserts the public was “never in any danger.”

This isn’t the last attempt you’ll see.

See Gateway Pundit for more, including photos and video.

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Changes Implemented After MO Auditor Finds “Serious Shortcomings” In Holt County Sheriff’s Department

By Duane Lester - - 16 Comments

The Missouri Auditor’s Office  recently released the results of an audit conducted on Holt County, Missouri last summer.

The report rated the overall operation of the county as “fair,” which means:

“this entity needs to improve operations in several areas. The report contains several findings, or one or more findings that require management’s immediate attention, and/or the entity has indicated several recommendations will not be implemented. In addition, if applicable, several prior recommendations have not been implemented.”

The audit specifically focused the office of Sheriff Scott Wedlock, saying it “revealed serious shortcomings within the Sheriff’s department.” Specific areas mentioned were revenue from concealed and carry permit fees, the loss of pre-paid phone cards Continue reading →

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Obama Campaign Slogan “Forward” Has History in Communist Propaganda, Probably Just a Coincidence

By Duane Lester - - 13 Comments

Is it really that hard to believe that even if they powers that be didn’t know about the Eastern European communists love affair with the term “Forward,” that they still wouldn’t be drawn to the word for the same reasons? I’m willing to give them the benefit of the doubt and say they were completely ignorant of how often “forward” has been used by communists as slogans and titles.

I just think these communists used the same thinking as the previous communists:

The slogan “Forward!” reflected the conviction of European Marxists and radicals that their movements reflected the march of history, which would move forward past capitalism and into socialism and communism.

The Obama campaign released its new campaign slogan Monday in a 7-minute video. The title card has simply the word “Forward” with the “O” having the familiar Obama logo from 2008. It will be played at rallies this weekend that mark the Obama re-election campaign’s official beginning.

There have been at least two radical-left publications named “Vorwaerts” (the German word for “Forward”). One was the daily newspaper of the Social Democratic Party of Germany whose writers included Friedrich Engels and Leon Trotsky. It still publishes as the organ of Germany’s SDP, though that party has changed considerably since World War II. Another was the 1844 biweekly reader of the Communist League. Karl Marx, Engels and Mikhail Bakunin are among the names associated with that publication.

East Germany named its Army soccer club ASK Vorwaerts Berlin (later FC Vorwaerts Frankfort).

Vladimir Lenin founded the publication “Vpered” (the Russian word for “forward”) in 1905. Soviet propaganda film-maker Dziga Vertov made a documentary whose title is sometimes translated as “Forward, Soviet” (though also and more literally as “Stride, Soviet”).

Here’s the video, if for some reason you have seven minutes of your life you don’t care to waste:

And here’s some communist propaganda, featuring the Obama slogan:

Young builders of communism! Forward, to the new successes in work and study!

Under the banner of Lenin and Stalin, forward to victory of communism!

Understanding the Leadership of Stalin, Come Forward with Communism

Probably just a coincidence…right?

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Two Burglars Enter The Home of Two Marines, Coroner Arrives Later

By Duane Lester - - 12 Comments

Talk about picking the wrong house to break into:

The two men were shot during an attempted burglary of the house, after being surprised by the residents, as they returned home. The burglars held them at gun point and threatened to kill them.

According to Lee, the Marine grabbed for the gun when Skinner looked away and a struggle for the weapon followed.

“The Marine resident was able to kick Skinner and free the shotgun from Skinner’s grip. Skinner came at the Marine resident who was on the floor and the Marine resident two times.

The Marine resident then found Everette struggling with another Marine who was a guest in the home and shot Everette once in the rear end.
The whole altercation happened within 15 minutes, Jacksonville Police arrived on the scene at 1:55 am to find Skinner and Everette dead in the home.

Lee says the shooting of Everette and Skinner falls under North Carolina statute 14-51.2, commonly referred to as the castle doctrine.

“Based upon my review of the facts of this case, the occupants of the residence were justified in using deadly force against both Everette and Skinner because the actions of Everette and Skinner caused the occupants to reasonably believe it necessary to use deadly force to protect their lives.”

Anyone else love the fact the term “rear end” is used in this article. The only thing better would be if they wrote “hind end.”

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MO Police Chief Asks City Council to Ban Open Carry Because Only Cops, Military Should Bear Arms Openly

By Duane Lester - - 1 Comment

Washington, Missouri Police Chief Ken Hahn doesn’t like you exercising your God given right to bear arms.  See, he saw a subject citizen walking around town with a gun.

I know, I know. Who are these people who think they can just walk around, being all non-violent and capable of defending themselves?

But that’s not the most ridiculous part of this EPICLY ridiculous editorial.

This is:

There is no need for anyone other than a law enforcement officer, or the military, to openly carry a firearm in the city.

There’s no byline, but whoever penned this is an idiot.

First of all, if someone is openly carrying a firearm, they aren’t going to hurt anyone with it. If anything, the people who would try something stupid won’t with this guy in the business.

And what do you call a country where only the law and the military openly carry firearms?

Eventually, you call it North Korea.

I don’t want to live in North Korea. I want to live in a country where as long as you don’t impede another person from exercising their rights, you can pretty much do what you want, even if that means strapping a Sig Sauer to your belt when you buy a box of Ding-Dongs.

Speaking of Ding-Dongs, that brings us back to the Police Chief. Do you know the crime statistics for Washington, Missouri? I do.

In 2010, there were exactly 0 murders in Washington. Zero.

There was one rape. I’m not a betting man, but I’d wager the person who was raped would have preferred to have had a gun handy. I imagine they’d rather deal with the investigation that followed the shooting of a would-be rapist than the trauma of something like that.

Washington also saw four robberies and sixteen assaults. And you know what’s crazy? All of these stats are lower than the year before. Crime is dropping in Washington. No one is getting killed.

So QUICK! Take the guns out of the hands of law abiding people.

I hope the people of Washington know about this and do something to prevent it. If they don’t, look for crime stats to change for the worse.

And one last thing that bears mentioning. Whoever wrote this actually included this:

Counties and municipalities should not be restricted from enacting laws to ban the open carrying of firearms. The state should not interfere with safety concerns in a municipality or county. We hope the Nieves’ bill dies in the Senate. And we hope the Washington council exercises its authority to enact an ordinance to address a safety concern brought to the attention of the public by Chief Hahn.

The Nieves’ bill would prohibit counties and municipalities from implementing restrictions on your Second Amendment rights. The author thinks it is wrong for the state to tell a city or county what to do, but then in the very next sentence, encourages the city to tell a private, law abiding citizen what it can do.

It makes me sick. I guarantee this moron supports ObamaCare, because they see nothing wrong with the government forcing the people to bend to its will.

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