Daughters and Sex

Columnist Ross Douthat has stirred up a hornet’s nest by commenting on a new study suggesting that being the parent of a girl may nudge people toward the Republican party. Douthat speculated that watching daughters cope with a “social landscape in which sex has been decoupled from marriage,” and in which young men cruise through the sexual marketplace leaving broken hearts in their wake, may cause mothers and fathers to embrace more conservative mores regarding love and sex.

Well. Judging from the sulfuric response, Douthat has transgressed gravely. Ann Friedman, writing in New York magazine, thunders:

Are we supposed to believe that the solution to a biological double-standard is a sexual double-standard? That women who want it all later in life must spend their youth prim and sexless, waiting for men to prove that they’ve got themselves together both professionally and emotionally? There’s one little problem: We like sex. None of us are going back to a world in which we only put out once he’s put a (promise/engagement/wedding) ring on it.

Every generation believes it has discovered sex. But, Friedman’s heated denials notwithstanding, women (on average) want different things from sexual relationships than men do, and recent generations of women have been ill served by feminism’s embrace of the sexual revolution. Feminists posited that women and men were identical in their sexuality, and that only an absurd double standard had required men to treat women respectfully.

When modern feminism debuted in the 1960s, it didn’t just urge women to be like men. It encouraged them to be like the worst men — carelessly promiscuous, vulgar, and selfish. Some men treated women as disposable pleasure vessels. Feminists regarded this not as a disgrace but as a challenge. Women who behaved the same way toward men were hailed as feminist pioneers.

Via: NRO
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Mary Landrieu and All That JAZZ

The Louisiana senator says she's pro-energy, but her PAC has raised a lot of money to elect opponents of the oil and gas industry.

Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu rolled out her pitch for a fourth term in an interview with the Times-Picayune in April. "I'm indispensable," she told the New Orleans newspaper, noting that her pull in the Senate would "secure for Louisiana a significant and reliable string of revenue."

As usual, Ms. Landrieu was talking about her efforts on behalf of Louisiana's oil and gas sector, the bedrock of the state's economy. She claims to be her party's fiercest advocate for that industry, and she talks extensively about her support for the Keystone XL pipeline, her opposition to industry taxes and her desire to rein in EPA regulations.

In the Times-Picayune interview, Ms. Landrieu emphasized her intentions to expand oil and gas production and speed up royalty payments to her state, hinting at greater influence in 2015 as potential chairwoman of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

Behind the scenes, however, Ms. Landrieu has been working just as hard to make sure she's irrelevant. Through the auspices of JAZZ PAC, her leadership political action committee, she has from 2006 to 2012 contributed some $380,000 to re-elect some of the most ardent Senate opponents of the oil and gas industry. One result is a bloc of liberal members who easily cancel out Ms. Landrieu's votes and guarantee the defeat of legislation designed to help Louisiana.

Via: Wall Street Journal

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GLAAD: Lethal Enforcers of the Left's Tolerance Mob By Michelle Malkin

"Duck Dynasty's" Phil Robertson is not alone. He's the latest in a long, long lineup of politically incorrect targets of the left's sensitivity mob. Founded in 1985, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) gangstas won't stop until both the cultural and legal enforcement of their agenda are the norm.

The A&E network (Atheists & Elitists) suspended the reality TV patriarch and self-made businessman on Wednesday for the Biblical views he expressed in an interview with GQ. Robertson was asked by the liberal magazine what he viewed as sinful. Drawing on the condemnation of sexual immorality in Corinthians 6:9, he cited "adulterers, the idolaters, the male prostitutes, the homosexual offenders, the greedy, the drunkards, the slanderers, the swindlers -- they won't inherit the kingdom of God."

Robertson's punishable transgressions? Responding honestly to a question posed to him (this was not an unsolicited "anti-gay rant"; it was a response) and abiding by his Christian faith. GLAAD's P.C. Praetorian Guard sprung into repressive action. The same group that initially gave f-word-spouting, homophobic liberal Alec Baldwin a pass accused Robertson of uttering "some of the vilest and most extreme statements" against "LGBT people" ever. (They should listen to the Koran-inspired executioners' rants of gay-hanging and gay-stoning Iranian mullahs sometime.) GLAAD also railed against Robertson's "vile" preference for female anatomy over male as if it were an international human rights violation.

A&E folded faster than a stadium seat, immediately disavowing Robertson and suspending him from his family's show indefinitely. Meanwhile, network execs continued to cash in on the lucrative "Duck Dynasty" empire with a marathon of program reruns on the very day they threw Robertson under the bus. The network is free to do that, of course. And I am free to tell you all about the radical thugs that A&E indulged.

GLAAD has worked tirelessly to marginalize and suppress the free speech of Christian leaders, Christian businesses and conservative talk-radio hosts dating back to their infamous Dr. Laura boycott 13 years ago. The group's mission is not about equality or defending against "defamation." It's about silencing critics, making open debate radioactive, demonizing people of faith and making even the slightest perceived slight a hate crime.

Via: Townhall

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CBS: Top ObamaCare official wanted site shut down over security risks — and was overruled

It’s not as if HHS wasn’t aware of concerns over security for the ObamaCare exchange they launched.  Dozens of Attorneys General issued public warnings over the summer about the lack of security in a system that would contain the most private identity information of any web portal ever. Their own Inspector General blasted the contractors working on the site in June for their performance on security.

Still, HHS rolled out the site even with those gaps unaddressed, putting millions of Americans at risk for identity theft — but the news gets worse.  CBS News’ Sharyl Attkisson reports this morning that a top official in the ObamaCare exchange told Congress on Tuesday that HHS discovered two more big security issues that no one detected before the rollout:

A top HealthCare.gov security officer told Congress there have been two, serious high-risk findings since the website’s launch, including one on Monday of this week, CBS News has learned.

Teresa Fryer, the chief information security officer for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), revealed the findings when she was interviewed Tuesday behind closed doors by House Oversight Committee officials. The security risks were not previously disclosed to members of Congress or the public. Obama administration officials have firmly insisted there’s no reason for any concern regarding the website’s security. …

Details are not being made public for security reasons but Fryer testified that one vulnerability in the system was discovered during testing last week related to an incident reported in November. She says that as a result, the government has shut down functionality in the vulnerable part of the system. Fryer said the other high-risk finding was discovered Monday.

Via: Hot Air
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MEMO: Democrats’ Lie of the Year

MEMORANDUM
FROM: RNC Press Secretary Kirsten Kukowski @kakukowski 
TO: Interested Parties
RE: Democrats’ Lie Of The Year 

Last week, PolitiFact awarded the Lie of the Year to President Obama for the infamous promise, “If you like your health care plan, you can keep it.”

But it’s not just President Obama who deserves the prize. Several Democrat Senators and Congressmen—including those running for the Senate next November—were his willing accomplices, deliberately misleading the American people as they tried to defend ObamaCare. They weren’t just quoting the president. They were putting their own credibility on the line. It was a team effort, and they are the rightful co-winners of Lie of the Year.

It’s doubtful ObamaCare would have passed without that lie. As such, that lie had consequences: over five million Americans have received cancellation notices for their individual insurance plans because of ObamaCare.

This was no small fib. Americans have a right to be upset, and November 2014 will be their chance to do something about it. And we guarantee we’ll replay or reproduce those words as often as possible. Voters need to know these candidates cannot be trusted to keep their promises.

Here’s a sampling of vulnerable Democrats running for Senate repeating the Lie of the Year:
 

• Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), 2009: “If you like your current health insurance, you will be able to keep it. And you will be able to continue seeing your current doctor.” (“What Health Care Reform Means For You,” Office Of Sen. Jeff Merkley, 8/11/09)
   
• Sen. Kay Hagan (D-NC), 2009: “If you’ve got health insurance, in our country, you keep it. Whatever we do, I don’t want to dismantle any system where people are happy with the coverage that they have.” (Sen. Kay Hagan, Remarks At HCAN Rally, 6/25/09)
   
• Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA), 2009: “Those individuals who like the coverage they already have will be able to keep their current plan.” (Sen. Mary Landrieu, Floor Remarks, 12/22/09)
   
• Rep. Gary Peters (D-MI), 2009: “If you’re covered and you like your insurance, you can keep it.” (Kathleen Gray, “Peters Queried, Not Booed, Over Health Care,”Detroit Free Press, 8/20/09)
   
• Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), 2009: “Everyone will have the freedom to keep their health care plan if they like it.” (Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, Floor Remarks, 10/15/09)

Via: GOP.com

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Duck Dynasty: We Can't Imagine Show Going On Without Phil

By: Todd Starnes (FOX News Radio)

Duck season may soon be over for A&E.

The Robertson family released a statement late Thursday that raises doubts about the future of one of the most popular shows on cable television.

“We have had a successful working relationship with A&E but, as a family, we cannot imagine the show going forward without our patriarch at the helm,” the Robertson family said in a prepared statement. “We are in discussions with A&E to see what that means for the future of Duck Dynasty.”

The family said it has “spent much time in prayer” since learning A&E had suspended Phil Robertson, the patriarch of the Louisiana family, over comments he made about his religious faith.

Robertson sparked a national debate on religion and tolerance in an interview with GQ magazine. The writer asked him what he considered to be sinful behavior.

“Start with homosexual behavior and just morph out from there. Bestiality, sleeping around with this woman and that woman and that woman and those men,” Robertson said.

Then he paraphrased Paul’s letter to the Corinthians: “Don’t be deceived. Neither the adulterers, the idolaters, the male prostitutes, the homosexual offenders, the greedy, the drunkards, the slanderers, the swindlers -- they won’t inherit the kingdom of God. Don’t deceive yourself. It’s not right.”

Via: Fox News

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It's Official—HHS Says Obamacare Is a Hardship

The latest announcement from the Obama Administration has confirmed what so many Americans already know: Obamacare is a hardship.

With millions of reported insurance cancellations, unbalanced by just 400,000 sign-ups for coverage on the Administration’s excuse for a website, the White House is or should be in full panic mode. And issuing more government rules to correct the consequences of their unworkable government rules is the only thing they seem to know how to do.

Thus, the Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary is now exercising her authority to grant a “hardship” exemption to the individual mandate to purchase health insurance. The Administration announced that those who have had their previous policies canceled will now qualify for a “temporary” hardship exemption (no exact time frame is given) from the individual mandate. Thus, as the law allows, those who get a “hardship exemption” are now able to purchase a catastrophic plan—typically only available to those under age 30. This is supposed to be beneficial because catastrophic plans have cheaper premiums, as Secretary Sebelius estimates, on average about 20 percent lower than other plans available on the exchange.

Under the Affordable Care Act, however, catastrophic plans have the highest deductibles allowed—$6,350 for self-only coverage—before the plan pays benefits. In addition,catastrophic plans are not eligible for subsidies in the exchanges.

The Administration’s latest action begs a crucial question: Is this a workable option for the people who had their coverage canceled? First, to qualify, of course, you must have had your policy canceled. You must also state that you found no other options “affordable.” Apparently, this means that no other plan was “affordable” despite the possibility of getting taxpayer subsidies for those other plans. Verification is going to be a challenge.

Via: The Foundry

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[VIDEO] A Gov't Carol: The 12 Ways of Spending

In the spirit of all the Christmas specials that are hitting the air, we thought we would return again this year to sing a little number about the “12 Ways of Spending” the government decides we need.

Don’t feel that people in Texas should help pay for a bike path in Missouri? Well, the federal government says it’s necessary - and there’s a lot of similar programs.

Besides learning that many of us at the MRC are not good singers, we also hope you learn a little bit about some of the ways the government spends our money.

Rather than type them all out, we put 12 of them to a festive melody. Below is the final section of lyrics with links to information on the actual programs. Watch the video above to hear the song in its, uh...full musical glory. (CAUTION: We are not professional singers)

Via: CNS News

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MA State Police Confiscate 1250 Bags Of Heroin Labeled “Obamacare”

Trooper Joe Petty assisted by Tpr Dave Stucenski & K9 Frankie Locate 1250 Bags of Heroin

Early this morning, Trooper Joseph Petty was on a traffic stop of Route 91 in Northampton when a vehicle passed by him. Trooper Petty observed several violations. Trooper Petty stopped the vehicle a short time later in the Town of Hatfield. Trooper Petty made contact with the operator and passengers.

During the stop, evidence of illegal narcotics led to a request for a State Police K9. Trooper David Stucenski and K9 Frankie located 1,250 individual bags of heroin in the vehicle. Four people were taken into custody and charged with narcotics violations. — in Hatfield, MA, United States.

Via: Weasel Zippers

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RNC Statement On Latest ObamaCare Delays

WASHINGTON – Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairman Reince Priebus released the following statement in response to the latest ObamaCare delays:

“President Obama is now admitting, after years of deliberate lies, that ObamaCare is unaffordable and a hardship for millions of Americans,” said Chairman Priebus. “Unilateral delays by this president can’t change the basic fact we all know: ObamaCare is fundamentally flawed and must be repealed and replaced with a plan that actually improves healthcare.

“It’s disappointing that it took this many years, millions of canceled plans, and hundreds of millions of wasted dollars for the president to see that ObamaCare just isn’t working. How can Democrats claim ObamaCare fixed our healthcare system when it’s made life more expensive, more unpredictable, and more confusing for millions of Americans? ObamaCare just doesn’t treat Americans fairly.”

Via: GOP.com

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Feds fail to send records on 10,000 Iowa Medicaid applications

WE CAN'T GUARANTEE COVERAGE!!!

Although Obamacare’s first enrollment deadline is only days away, Obama administration officials still haven’t given Iowa administrators complete data for 10,000 low-income residents, potentially leaving them without coverage on Jan. 1.

The communication failure includes 7,400 applications to cover 10,400 people who were directed to low-income programs Medicaid and Hawk-I, an Iowa program to insure children.

While HealthCare.gov preliminarily determined the Iowans were eligible for these programs, in order to be enrolled state officials need to review and process the potential beneficiaries.

Information on the 10,000 is currently incomplete and with the deadline for coverage just days away, Iowa state officials are concerned that they won’t get the information in time.

“Federal officials have indicated that they will send more complete information by the end of the month, and then the state will begin making determinations,” Amy Lorentzen McCoy, a spokeswoman for the Iowa Department of Human Services, told the Des Moines Register Thursday.

Once Iowa officials determine whether applicants are eligible and finish enrolling them, the affected consumers will be insured reaching back to January 1 retroactively. But, McCoy told the Register, “If someone needs to see a health care provider during this interim period, we can’t guarantee coverage.”

It’s not clear how accurate HealthCare.gov’s preliminary determinations were or what will happen to applicants if they weren’t.

The glitch comes as Iowa is rushing to implement the Obamacare Medicaid expansion, which Republican Gov. Terry Branstad agreed to last week. Under Iowa’s version of the expansion the state will extend Medicaid coverage to those from 100 to 133 percent of the federal poverty line, but the state will charge this subset of consumers a premium, limited to 2 percent of their income or less.

Via: Daily Caller

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WHITE HOUSE DAMAGE CONTROL: OBAMACARE REPEAL WILL 'COST TOO MUCH'

Over the last several weeks the Obama White House has been executing a media blitz meant to sell Obamacare to the nation—again. As the final maneuver in that plan, the President is releasing several reports on how Obamacare will affect the states.

His message: repealing Obamacare will just be too expensive.

"These state reports mark the culmination of a multi-week effort by the White House and supporters of reform to bring a renewed refocus on each of these benefits and what the cost of repealing them would mean," a White House official told reporters at The Hill.

Obamacare supporters crafted these reports to foreground how repealing Obamacare will affect families in the various states. 

However, it is a bit hard to understand how repealing the Affordable Care Act could cost more than the millions that is being inefficiently spent to enroll single applicants. Early in November, for instance, it was discovered that the five Obamacare enrollees for the District of Columbia cost the taxpayers a hefty $26.7 million each. Other states have seen similar waste, one source estimating that the cost for all enrollees nationwide had been$14,000 each.

Then there are the millions doled out to left-wing groups to push Obamacare as "Navigators," specialists intended to herd citizens into the Obamacare exchanges. One such group was given $1.1 million to gather and publicize Obamacare "success stories." There are hundreds of such groups across the country acting, essentially, as government-funded Obamacare salesmen.

Via: Breitbart

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Ben Carson in His Own Words

After five years of President Obama, we want a dynamic conservative candidate who we can believe in to take us to 2016. With names on the horizon like Ted Cruz, Rand Paul, Marco Rubio, Bobby Jindal, and Nikki Haley, we have some promising politicians; and another name has risen to the top: Dr. Ben Carson.

Ben Carson is the latest potential presidential candidate to be anointed by conservatives. Less than a year after his speech at the National Prayer Breakfast, the 61-year old neurosurgeon, known for his deeply held religious beliefs as well as his determination to live the American Dream, has gained support from many conservative organizations like the Tea Party, right-to-life groups, Americans for Prosperity, Freedom Works, and David Horowitz's Freedom Center .

Carson's post-election entrance onto the national stage at the 2013 Prayer Breakfast gave despondent conservatives new hope. The famous surgeon criticized the President's signature health law and mocked political correctness while the President sat stone faced. Carson's boldness made headlines from MSNBC to far-right alternative blogs.

The decidedly political speech, different from his 1997 Prayer Breakfast address, was a triumph and made him an instant hit with stalwarts on the right. Glenn Beck actually said "I love you" during an interview when Carson told him his favorite person in history was George Washington. Rush Limbaugh thinks Carson "has everybody in the Democrat Party scared to death." Mark Levin and Sarah Palin have lauded Carson on their sites.

Via: American Thinker

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