Reflections From a Murky Pond

It appears that President Bush is set to once again defy Congress. Even though Republicans in the US Senate blocked the Auto Bailout by requiring immediate concessions from the UAW as well as from the automobile manufacturers,  President Bush is said to be planning give or loan funds to the Detroit “Big Three.”

From The New Republic:

As of Friday night, it still appeared the Bush Administration was prepared to do what Senate Republicans wouldn’t: Rescue the auto industry. The news had broken in the morning, first with a press release from the White House and then with an announcement from the Treasury Department: “Because Congress failed to act, we will stand ready to prevent an imminent failure until Congress reconvenes and acts to address the long-term viability of the industry.

— Jonathan Cohn

What will the Left say? They – the leftist Liberals – have roundly and soundly denounced President Bush’s every action in the past. They’ve always been especially loud and vituperous when Bush has previously went against the will or whim of Congress. Will the Left denounce this defiance as well, even though it achieves their aims? Or will they – this time – eschew hypocrisy and revile Bush’s actions that contravene the will of the Senate as they have in the past when the results were not what they wished for?

President-elect Barack Obama tried to move himself and his family into the President’s Guest House, known as the Blair House earlier than normal protocol for incoming Presidents so that his daughters start classes at Sidwell Friends School on Jan. 5.  The White House turned him down since the quarters were already booked.

There is no room in the inn it seems. 😉

The Obama family were told that Blair House, which is where incoming presidents usually stay in the five days before Inauguration Day, is already booked in early January for “receptions and gatherings” by members of the outgoing Bush administration. Those receptions, a White House official said, “don’t make it suitable for full-time occupancy by the Obamas yet.”

The Blair House,  which has stood facing the White House for over 180 years will be ready and awaiting the Obamas’ tenancy on January 15th, 2009, in accordance with longstanding White House protocol.

Perhaps – if Obama asks nicely – Bill and Hillary may let him and his family “sublet” the Trowbridge House which is the Guest House for Former Presidents. It is directly adjacent to the Blair House.

And hey! In keeping with the sarcastically Christmas-esque theme, it seems that in Italy they’ve gone beyond the unfortunate lack of room at the inn and added Obama to the Nativity!

In all truth the above post isn’t – or shouldn’t be – news. Sadly, the Liberal media is reporting on it – and in an inflated, biased and negative tone – in an effort to create a myth about Obama being treated poorly by the outgoing Bush administration.

BTW: It should be humorously noted that the Italians have a positive mania about the nativity and often add very large numbers of irregular figures to their nativity scenes. The Obamas are hardly first additions, nor are they the oddest by far.

Soviet is the Russian word for a labor union or “workers’ local council” where the workers are in actual control of company as opposed to just using collective bargaining to protect their interests. On December 1th, 2008, the largest, most powerful, and most destructive to America soviet in the US was handed a bitter defeat.

The US Senate – or at least the Republicans still holding the line within it – defeated the soviets in a quiet but brilliant move. Led by U.S. Senator Bob Corker (R-TN), a member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, they successfully blocked the Auto Bailout by adding an amendment to the bill that called for more concessions from the United Auto Workers (UAW) union than had been previously asked for by the Democrats who originally crafted the bill.

The amended bill recieved bipartisan support in the US Senate and would have passed into law, but the UAW refused to abide by this new, fairer bill that included the “Corker Amendment” and removed themselves from the negotiation table. I find no surprises there.

The unamended, staunchly pro-Labor bill failed in the Senate 52-35.

Senate Majority Leader, Harry Reid (D-NV) has claimed that he won’t bring this issue up again until the next Congress convenes. This means that there is little chance for an Auto Bailout before the “Big Three” – or “Big Two,” since Ford “Miraculously” came up with enough funds for 2009 – file for bankruptcy, which may allow them to renegotiate or repudiate their lopsided contracts with the UAW soviet.

As I’ve mentioned many times in the course of publishing Reflections From A Murky Pond, I’m Pagan – a follower of Morrigu and Cernunnos; Christmas as such has no religious significance for me. As an American though, Christmas has a mostly secular but quite cultural significance. It involves good cheer, family, charity, and a certain innocent joy strangely mixed and alloyed with an orgy of commercialism.

Could some please tell me though when did we sexualize Christmas? Every year when the holiday season rolls around various catalogs and stores start advertising very erotic – often downright sluttish – Christmas lingerie. Since this has been going on for years and years I assume there is a continuing and steady market for such theme lingerie.

I just don’t get it though. Peruse the nine (9) samples of such things below. I picked them as examples of the theme that were still PG-13 and not requiring of NSFW banners. They’re all marketed through Amazon.com, a quite mainstream, mass market retailer as opposed to an erotic lingerie and/or “stripperwear” outlet.

Now I’m hardly a prude, and as a relatively normal, heterosexual male I have a decided and admittedly prurient interest in attractive women half dressed in lingerie. I just don’t understand the connection with Christmas; it’s not a fetish that makes any sense to me whatsoever.

Men, tell me if and why you’d be particularly interested in seeing a woman in Christmas themed erotic lingerie. Women, please tell me if you’d purchase and wear such things and if an why you’d be comfortable with- or interested in doing so.

BTW: Each of the images above is a link to Amazon, where you can if you so desire purchase the lingerie depicted. I figured that, since I was using them as a resource, I should send some business their way.

It is reported that President-elect Obama plans upon taking office in January to extend the United States’ nuclear umbrella to Israel. Obama intends to sign a strategic defense pact with Israel that would mandate that any nuclear attack by Iran upon Israel would result in a a “devastating U.S. nuclear response.”

Of course when I say “it is reported,” I mean it is reported by numerous international news sources, not by the American MSM – with the sole exception at this point of Fox News.

I’m not sure why this alleged – probable is a better term – action on the part of Obama is cause for surprise or concern. Obama’s administration’s defense of Israel and countering Iran should have been an wholly expected course of event.

Obama has so far seemingly taken great pains to stock his incoming administration with Zionists and possibly Islamaphobic “Hawks.”

I am a Zionist. You don’t have to be a Jew to be a Zionist.

— VP-elect Joseph Biden
2007 interview with Shalom TV

~*~

I want the Iranians to know that if I’m the president, we will attack Iran (if it attacks Israel)

In the next 10 years, during which they might foolishly consider launching an attack on Israel, we would be able to totally obliterate them.

— Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
2007 interview with Good Morning America

Then there’s Obama incoming White House Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel. Rahm Emanuel is the son of Benjamin M. Emanuel who was an Irgun (HaIrgun HaTzva’i HaLe’umi BeEretz Yisra’el or National Military Organization in the Land of Israel) terrorist who regularly took part in attacks civilian targets (both Arab and the British) in the 1940s.

Rahm is the namesake of Rahamim, a combatant in the Zionist Lehi (Lohamei Herut Israel or Fighters for the Freedom of Israel) terrorist faction who was killed. His family name, Emanuel was adopted by his family in 1933, after Rahm’s paternal uncle, Emanuel Auerbach, was killed in a skirmish with Arabs in the holy city Jerusalem.

In 1991, during the 1st Gulf War, Rahm Emanuel left America and volunteered with the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). During the war he performed noncombat duties at an Israeli supply and repair depot.

All in all, by his choices of the people who will surround him and advise him Obama has made it quite clear that he will maintain the strong and uncritical alliance that has continued for decades between America and Israel.

I’m not sure of why the bulk of the Liberal MSM has so far decided not to cover this. It’s newsworthy, but hardly shocking – except to the anti-Israel – sometimes but not always antisemitic – fringe of the Left, many of whom saw Obama as hope for ending America’s support for Israel.

Even if – possibly especially if – Israel’s claims of this pending “nuclear umbrella” are partially or totally false, I would think that their claiming of it as fact and citing a what would have to be classed as yet another leak in the Obama team would be worthy of reporting.