All Obama, All the Time

The Federal Government Introduces the Media Stimulus Plan.

Call it what you will, but it does seem like the guy is on TV, or the radio, or in the print media every time you turn around. Time Magazine is featuring President Obama on its cover for the 12th time in 12 months. The media darling even made an appearance on the George Lopez show the other night.

All this apparently led to this interesting situation: Woman Sells TV. Reason? Obama is on all the time

For what it's worth, here is my two cents: My wife and I went to the movies the other night to see the new Harry Potter film The Half Blood Prince (one of my favorites of the whole movie series). Before the movie, before the previews, during that new section where they play five minutes of advertising, there was some montage of Michigan scenes with a song that was telling us to hang tough or something. Pictures of Kid Rock, the Joe Lewis Fist, Gov. Jenny Granholm....and President Obama.

Seriously?

Apparently I can't even go see Harry Potter without images of our dear leader flashing before my eyes. (Don't get me started on Gov. Granholm, I just ate lunch.) News items are one thing, promotion is another. Go on Facebook or other websites and you are bombarded with ads telling you that President Obama wants mothers to go back to school! President Obama wants to give you a free stimulus check! President Obama wants you to buy the ShamWOW! Madison Avenue (or some obscure city street in Beijing) knows the power of an image in marketing products or ideas.

But do you want your current federal officials to be just 8 x 10 glossy media campaigns? I don't want them to be rock or movie stars. I want them to do their job in upholding the Constitution, representing their constituents and defending the Republic. Our elected officials should not be a member in good standing of the cult of personality.

At least wait till they leave office. I'm still waiting patiently for my Bill Clinton SAX statue.

Michigan Congressman Shirks Job Responsibilities

Congressman John Conyers and his lovely wife, Inmate 9865-34

John Conyers (D-Mich), Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee spoke at a National Press Club luncheon and pondered the question; why should members of Congress have to read these bills anyway.

"What good is reading the bill if it's a thousand pages and you don't have two days and two lawyers to find out what it means after you read the bill?"

He’s talking about the massive 1,000 page Health Care Bill that President Obama wants to ram through Congress. Even though the bill is obese and unreadable, Rep. Conyers is still going to vote for it anyway.

Have we all forgotten the meaning of a representative form of government? These politicians we elect are in fact supposed to read these bills, understand them, and vote in the best interest of their constituency and the Republic, namely you and I. Imagine if we held a public referendum on each and every bill that came through Congress.

But for Congressman John Conyers, doing this is just too much work. Instead, let’s just come up with a hair brained idea that sounds good: Universal or Free Health Care. Now lets market it to the people by saying it’s for their own good and it won’t cost them a penny (maybe), but it will save you money later (just ignore what the Congressional Budget Office says). Never mind what is actually IN THE BILL, let’s only vote on whether or not it SOUNDS good.

Even though, through Rep. Conyers’ own admission, the bill is so overwritten that one can not reasonably comprehend it, he’s going to vote for it anyway…because it looks good. This should frighten you. Here is a link to the actual bill: FREE Health Care! (Can't figure out the bill? Here is a picture that should help)

This isn’t the first time Rep. Conyers has made this statement. He made a similar proclamation some years back when a newsman asked him if he actually read a bill before signing it. Basically he said then that if Congress took the time to read every bill that came across their desks, they would never get anything done.

That’s not really a bad thing, John.

It’s not like he doesn’t have time on his hands. This is a guy who dropped an ACORN probe (claimed it came from the “powers that be”) coincidentally as his Detroit Council woman wife’s lawyers began the process of negotiating on criminal charges for bribery. (She is going to Jail by the way…maybe). This is the guy who has so much faith in the government public system he sends his children off to a private school 20 minutes north of Detroit.

Rep. Conyers’ statement proves a couple of things. 1) Both parties in Congress have no idea what they are voting on. They only care about the two or three lines added on to the bill that will line the pockets of their special interest groups and help them get re-elected, 2) Government has gotten so large that it has bogged down Congress with its complexities, leading our elected representatives to only vote for the COVER of the Bill and 3) We the People must demand more from our elected representatives.

I have only one question for Congressman Conyers; If this health care bill is so fantastic, will he sign himself and his family to the same plan he is forcing on the rest of his constituents?

“I cannot undertake to lay my finger
on that article of the Constitution
which granted a right to Congress of expending,
on the objects of benevolence,
the money of their constituents.”

James Madison

US Soldier Demands Apology From Senator McCaskill

This is the great thing about the internet. While the major players in Washington all say that the majority of Americans back a Universal Health Care Bill, the citizens on the front lines continue to prove them wrong. Here is yet ANOTHER example of citizens standing up and giving it back to the elected officials who are about as clueless as a slug.

At a recent "Town Hall" on Health Care, a Marine explains to Sen. Claire McCaskill what the Constitution means.

Requiem for a Boat

The Glassmaster is no more.

After nearly four years of repairs, renovations and really good fishing trips, my Glassmaster boat gave up her last breath this weekend in a cloud of burning fuel exhaust.

The day we bought her off Craig's List, the starter burned out on her maiden voyage and we nearly went floating aimlessly down from Wyandotte to Niagara Falls. Now, the circle is complete with the starter once again failing to get the old girl running.

You'll always remember your first...boat. We had some great times together.

In the Summer, she provided days upon days of fun up on Clear Lake. She came with us on a couple of our men's Fall fishing trips; in fact she held 6 guys while floating on Houghton Lake in the dark. There was the time she made the Wyandotte-Detroit Run in 12 parsecs. I even caught my first river Walleye on her while fishing the Trenton Channel.

On a clear day when the waters are calm she could really let loose, topping off at 30 miles per hour. And it's amazing how she made me smile while flipping a big fat finger at Al Gore every time she started up, the cloud of grey exhaust fumes wafting aimlessly into the sky, doing her part to counter the recent drop in global temperatures.


I learned a thing or two about boats from her; like how to pull a prop, replace a starter, install a new throttle, rewire lights, install carpeting and new seats, fix a steering column, what "blown gasket" means, repair a stripped gear, etc. The Johnson Outboard Repair Manual became my bible.

As I faced the task of pouring more money into her, I realized that it was time to move on. We are now in the process of buying a newer boat.

But as I was cleaning her up last night, getting ready to place her back on Craig's List, I hit the ignition for old time's sake.....she stalled, then coughed and the starter turned over. That's my girl...she refuses to quit. But it's too late for me. Rest easy now little boat, safer harbors are ahead.

I'm sure there is someone out there looking for a 1969 Glassmaster with a 55 HP Johnson. She comes loaded: a fish finder, marine radio and a well marked up repair manual.

The memories, I'll keep.

Pay No Attention to the Man Behind the Curtain

When I was younger, I wanted to be a magician, but I never had the patience for the practice nor the eye-hand coordination. I blame my stubby Polish fingers.

But I did enjoy learning the tricks and watching magicians. I knew enough to not be distracted by the shiny coin, because the other hand held the secret. If the Magician created a flash of fire on his right side...I looked toward the left. If the knife was pointing out the front, I looked toward the back. Where there was smoke, there were mirrors.

Wednesday's Presidential Press Conference was one big shiny coin. To his credit, the Obamagician made it work. Concerning the arrest of Professor Gates, I am just like the President of the United States: I wasn't there and I don't have all the facts. Unlike the President, I'm going to hold off on my opinion of that until I do.

I do know when we are being misdirected, though.

The President's Health Care Plan (ObamaCare (tm)) is not doing so well. And what does a politician do when things aren't going their way? They pull out the shiny coin. In this case, the age old topic of Race in America. Instead of the media talking about how ObamaCare is tanking in the public opinion polls (and even with his very own Blue Dog Democrats), the lead story the very next day on the Today show was the President's comments. In fact, the Gates' Arrest story was the lead story for THREE days.

• Bill O'Reilly had it as his talking points on Friday.
• I'm sure Keith Olbermann will name the cops as his "Worser" persons or something.
• Brian Kilmede on FoxNews will declare that Harvard people are a different race than say Yale people (to which Yale alumni will agree)
• Pundits and politicos will all agree that we suddenly need a national dialogue on race.
• Glen Beck will take about 45 minutes to rant about something while wearing lederhosen.
• The posters over at Huffington Post will declare all police racist and demand that we call them peace officers instead (like Canada and the superior Europeans)
• The Daily Show, a comedic cable show where most college students get their news, will poke fun at Dick Cheney just because it can.

The Health Care plan? It's been pushed to a secondary story just ahead of the "Where is Micheal Jackson's Nose mystery".

The President took the downtime that his health care bill wasn't in the spotlight to announce that 1) it was going to be delayed a bit and 2) it may, just may, end up costing middle class Americans a bit more of their money than they expected. (up from ZERO). Meanwhile, Democratic Representatives are being openly laughed at when they attempt to explain how inexpensive free health care is and the President's approval rating fell below 50% for the first time.

Pay no attention folks, be amazed at the wonders over there. Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain.


If we shadows have offended,
Think but this, and all is mended,
We regret that you blew this out of proportion
While these uncalibrated visions did appear
(With apologies to Bill S.)

Schoolyard Diplomacy

A young Al Gore demonstrating Man's superior influence on Nature.

It seems like the new administration has decided to not follow President Bush's Cowboy Diplomacy when on the international stage. The Obama Administration went their own way and brought back the dreaded Schoolyard Diplomacy when dealing with rogue countries like North Korea:

I Know You Are, But What Am I?

Apparently Secretary of State Clinton compared North Korea to little boy throwing a hissy fit to seek attention. North Korea came back by calling Clinton a Primary Schoolgirl (BURRRRN!) The Hippos Ass has learned that afterwards, Secretary Clinton snapped back with "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but your little nukes will never hurt me."

North Korea then went over to the United Nations and tattled on the U.S. and America got a "time-out."

China, meanwhile, was out at the back fence smoking and trying to pick-up some hot Russian student.

Vegan Group Attacks Hot Dogs

You know the old saying...if you knew what was in a hot dog, you'd never want to eat one.

But ignorance is bliss, right? Gotta have a nice Dearborn all beef hot dog every once in a while. They sell them in front of my local ACO Hardware store. Mustard: Not Ketchup. Now ballparks are selling Sushi at games. I love sushi...but not at baseball stadiums. Gotta have a dog.

'Course, not knowing what something is made up of can make it difficult to come to an informed decision or conclusion. Take this story about hot dogs for instance.

Hot Dogs Can Cause Cancer, Lawsuit claims

The Detroit Free Press reports that "Hot Dogs CAN cause cancer." The group in question is the American Institute for Cancer Research which on the surface appears to be some sort of cancer prevention group. They want to force hot dog makers to put warnings on their packages. All good, right?

Wrong.

What the Free Press neglects to report is that the group actually advocates a vegan lifestyle and is an anti-meat non-profit organization. So much for getting to the meat of the story. Secondly, the group is placing hot dogs into the same category we place smoking and want to FORCE the hot dog companies to put a warning on their labels. Are hot dogs the best food for you? No. Do the majority of Americans know this? I don't have any numbers, but I'm willing to bet the answer is yes.

If you want to go ahead and have a vegan lifestyle that's fine with me. It's still a free country. In fact, more power to you, as I'm sure that it's tough to do in this society. But I don't go around forming shadow groups so I can pressure people from eating salads or tofu. Live and let live.

Unfortunately, groups like the American Institute for Cancer Research don't care. Their agenda is to get you and everyone else to stop eating meat, one way or the other. They want to make hot dogs as unappealing as possible so no more hot dogs are purchased. But what about bologna? Summer Sausage? You get the idea.

They hide behind a fancy name that on the surface looks good, but if you really knew what it was made of, you'd try not to expose yourself to it all the time.

Kinda like Hot Dogs....

ObamaCare (tm) is not going over so well in middle America.

Good news! We’ve finally found a member of Congress dumber than Nancy Pelosi


President Obama has sent his lackies in Congress out to their home towns to drum up support for his ObamaCare program. While media outlets like the Washington Post continue to report that the majority of Americans support the President's initiative to destroy insurance companies, reports from the front line indicate a completely different opinion.



Need more proof? Here is Health Secretary Kathleen Sebelius looking like a Deer caught in the headlights after this exchange:

Palin Derangement Syndrome Strikes Again

Shocker: Vanity Fair Mocks Sarah Palin Sweetness & Light

The word OBSESSION comes to mind. Also the word IDIOTS. In fact, I can think of a few more words...but decorum prohibits me, owing to the fact that The Hippo's Ass is a family site.

Ford tops in quality survey | detnews.com | The Detroit News

Ford tops in quality survey detnews.com The Detroit News

Looks like American car companies ARE making cars Americans want: Quality cars. Nice Job Ford Motor Company...keep up the good work. If you are reading this, send it to your congressman or congresswoman in Washington. Spread the word.

Oh and yeah....I'm back!

Spent too much time venting over on Facebook until I realized that not everyone wanted to hear my rants. Not that everyone should read my rants, just trying to be a bit more courteous.

So come back here from time to time. I hope to add a few more bells and whistles to the blog and even add an RSS feed and Twitter.

Yeah...I went there.

Drop me a line, send me a story or YouTube video you think needs to be aired. I'll do my best to post it. Send me a comment even if you don't agree with what I post.

Its still a free country...for now.

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