Today, the top speed limit in the country is 80 mph. By tomorrow, September 1, 2011, the Texas Legislature will have upped the state's maximum speed limit to 85 miles per hour, faster than any other state in the nation.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
New book disputes claim Jefferson fathered children of slave Hemings
In a book due out Thursday, eminent scholars say it’s unlikely that Thomas Jefferson fathered Sally Hemings‘ children, disputing a decade’s worth of conventional wisdom that the author of the Declaration of Independence sired offspring with one of his slaves.
The debate has ensnared historians for years, and many thought the issue was settled when DNA testing in the late 1990s confirmed that a Jefferson male fathered Hemings‘ youngest son, Eston. But, with one lone dissenter, the panel of 13 scholars doubted the claim and said the evidence points instead to Jefferson’s brother Randolph as the father.
The scholars also disputed accounts that said Hemings‘ children received special treatment from Jefferson, which some saw as evidence of a special bond between the third president and Hemings.
“It is true that Sally’s sons Madison and Eston were freed in Jefferson’s will, but so were all but two of the sons and grandsons of Sally’s mother Betty Hemings who still belonged to Thomas Jefferson at the time of his death. Sally’s sons received by far the least favorable treatment of those freed in Thomas Jefferson’s will,” said Robert F. Turner, a former professor at the University of Virginia who served as chairman of the commission.
The debate has ensnared historians for years, and many thought the issue was settled when DNA testing in the late 1990s confirmed that a Jefferson male fathered Hemings‘ youngest son, Eston. But, with one lone dissenter, the panel of 13 scholars doubted the claim and said the evidence points instead to Jefferson’s brother Randolph as the father.
The scholars also disputed accounts that said Hemings‘ children received special treatment from Jefferson, which some saw as evidence of a special bond between the third president and Hemings.
“It is true that Sally’s sons Madison and Eston were freed in Jefferson’s will, but so were all but two of the sons and grandsons of Sally’s mother Betty Hemings who still belonged to Thomas Jefferson at the time of his death. Sally’s sons received by far the least favorable treatment of those freed in Thomas Jefferson’s will,” said Robert F. Turner, a former professor at the University of Virginia who served as chairman of the commission.
Study: Stimulus Funds Primarily Used to Poach Workers, Not Hire Unemployed
Put simply, stimulus funds caused more job shifting than job creation. Another key finding? Union-friendly wage protections kill jobs:
Among organizations required to pay prevailing wages, 38.2 percent thought that they could have hired workers at wages below the Davis-Bacon prevailing wage (Figure 3) while another 17 percent were unsure. This meant higher costs for the federal government and fewer jobs created
Among organizations required to pay prevailing wages, 38.2 percent thought that they could have hired workers at wages below the Davis-Bacon prevailing wage (Figure 3) while another 17 percent were unsure. This meant higher costs for the federal government and fewer jobs created
Boehner continues to outmaneuver and out think Obama
Speech Stunt Backfires on Obama After Boehner Boxes Him In
House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) has asked President Obama to address a joint-session of Congress on Thursday, Sept. 8, when it wouldn't conflict with the Republican presidential debate.
Citing logistical difficulties, Boehner requested that Obama hold his jobs address, which Obama wants to deliver next Wednesday, one day later.
The Speaker's letter made no mention of the more obvious conflict: between the president's speech, and a Republican presidential debate scheduled on Wednesday night at 8 p.m. EST. That debate is the first of the post-Labor Day political season, and the first one in which Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) is set to participate.
The response by Boehner sets up an early showdown between Obama and the Congress just returning from its August recess....
A speech on Thursday would compete with the opening night of the NFL season, traditionally a ratings winner.
This year's opener, televised on NBC, features the reigning Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers against the New Orleans Saints. More than 27 million viewers watched last year's NFL opener on NBC. By contrast, 32.1 million people -- on a total of 10 networks -- watched Obama's speech on healthcare to a joint session of Congress shortly after Labor Day in 2009.
New book disputes claim Jefferson fathered children of slave Hemings
“The Jefferson-Hemings Controversy: Report of the Scholars Commission” is a new look at a very old dispute about American history. (Carolina Academic Press)
In a book due out Thursday, eminent scholars say it’s unlikely that Thomas Jefferson fathered Sally Hemings‘ children, disputing a decade’s worth of conventional wisdom that the author of the Declaration of Independence sired offspring with one of his slaves.
The debate has ensnared historians for years, and many thought the issue was settled when DNA testing in the late 1990s confirmed that a Jefferson male fathered Hemings‘ youngest son, Eston. But, with one lone dissenter, the panel of 13 scholars doubted the claim and said the evidence points instead to Jefferson’s brother Randolph as the father.
The scholars also disputed accounts that said Hemings‘ children received special treatment from Jefferson, which some saw as evidence of a special bond between the third president and Hemings.
“It is true that Sally’s sons Madison and Eston were freed in Jefferson’s will, but so were all but two of the sons and grandsons of Sally’s mother Betty Hemings who still belonged to Thomas Jefferson at the time of his death. Sally’s sons received by far the least favorable treatment of those freed in Thomas Jefferson’s will,” said Robert F. Turner, a former professor at the University of Virginia who served as chairman of the commission.
China confronts Indian navy vessel
By Ben Bland in Hanoi and Girija Shivakumar in New Delhi
A Chinese warship confronted an Indian navy vessel shortly after it left Vietnamese waters in late July in the first such reported encounter between the two countries’ navies in the South China Sea.
The unidentified Chinese warship demanded that India’s INS Airavat, an amphibious assault vessel, identify itself and explain its presence in international waters shortly after it completed a scheduled port call in Vietnam, five people familiar with the incident told the Financial Times.
This latest example of China’s naval assertiveness has irked defence officials in India and Vietnam. China claims the South China Sea in its entirety, rejecting partial claims by Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Taiwan over the resource-rich region.
Like Mama Bears, Nursing Mothers Defend Babies With a Vengeance
Grizzly bears protect their young. Women who breast-feed are far more likely to demonstrate a "mama bear" effect -- aggressively protecting their infants and themselves -- than women who bottle-feed their babies or non-mothers, according to a new study.
ScienceDaily (Aug. 30, 2011) — Women who breast-feed are far more likely to demonstrate a "mama bear" effect -- aggressively protecting their infants and themselves -- than women who bottle-feed their babies or non-mothers, according to a new study in the September issue of Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110830165352.htm
Boeing Opts To Upgrade 737
Boeing will not build an all new replacement for the world’s most popular airliner. Instead, the plane maker has decided to upgrade the ubiquitous 737 with new engines and a few other items to increase efficiency and extend the life of the 40-plus year old design.
The decision to ‘re-engine’ the 737 instead of coming up with a clean sheet design was made after airlines made it clear they want fuel savings now rather than later. With the recent history of the all new 787 Dreamliner, there were fears in the industry that a new design could take more than a decade. Boeing promises to deliver the 737 MAX as it is being called by 2017.
Rival Airbus has made a similar decision with its popular single aisle airliner, the A320. The European company will re-engine the airplane and deliver it as the A320neo in 2015.
Boeing says the 737 MAX family of airplanes – there are three sizes – will be 10 to 12 percent more fuel efficient than the current lineup of 737s. And it says it will be four percent more fuel efficient than the A320neo.
The Swiss
Popular Swiss People’s Party platform promises to “halt mass (Muslim) immigration”
A Right-wing political party in Switzerland produced this provocative anti-immigration campaign.
by barenakedislam
Election candidates for the right wing Swiss People’s Party, Switzerland’s biggest, signed a ‘contract with the people’ on Sunday promising to deport foreign criminals and halt ‘mass immigration’ from Muslim countries.
The “contract” also promises to fend off any moves for Switzerland to join the European Union.
[snip]
The party, which already holds around a quarter of the seats in the federal assembly, is expected to make further gains in the upcoming elections.
The Dems are going after the Tea Party as if it were the KKK. Here was the big counter protest to a tea party event in Napa.
Tea Party Counterprotest Fizzles in Napa
The catalyst that triggered this political firefight was the arrival in Napa of the Tea Party Express buses; Saturday, August 27 was the day the media-savvy group kicked off its coast-to-coast Reclaiming America Tour, culminating on September 12 in Tampa, Florida, at the CNN/Tea Party Express Debate between various presidential primary candidates.
Grassroots Tea Party groups from the region — the Wine Country, the North Bay, and nearby — converged on the Napa County Fairgrounds for a brief two-hour visit by the Tea Party Express buses and their accompanying CNN cameras.
But the Green Party simply could not let this stand. Word went out across the land that the Greens would be waiting with a “massive anti-tea party rally.”
Here’s what the “massive anti-tea party rally” looked like half an hour after it was scheduled to begin:
Egyptian Sheikh Calls for Worldwide Sharia & Threatens Christian Extermination
"...if the Christians make problems for the Muslims, I will exterminate them."
They don’t protect American’s Jobs, but they will protect illegals.
Labor Secretary: US to 'protect' illegal workers
Labor Secretary Hilda Solis defended her to apply U.S. labor protections to illegal immigrants
Read more: http://dailycaller.com/#ixzz1WdYrpneD
For the techno crowd.
Hands On: Sony’s HMZ-T1 Is an Amazing OLED 3DTV. That You Wear On Your Head.
Sony's new 720p OLED 3DTV with 5.1 virtual surround has a 150-inch screen-equivalent and costs $800. But it weighs less than a pound. That's because it's worn on your face.
And then I tried on the HMZ-T1.
Not only did this sell me on the concept of wearable TV, it was one of my better experiences with 3DTV which I've likewise been skeptical of. There was a simple reason for both of these things: This was one of the more immersive entertainment experiences I've yet had. When I tried playing Gran Turismo, I found myself pivoting my head to look left and right although that has no effect on the display (of course). It was just a natural reaction. I felt like I was in the driver's seat of a car, and was scanning the road as I normally would. When we popped in a 3D movie, I actually ducked a bit as a shark swam overhead.
Homegrown terror threat: Muslim-Americans playing 'prominent roles' in Al Qaeda and threatening more attacks on home soil, reveals 9/11 report card
Homegrown terrorists are playing increasingly prominent roles within Al Qaeda and are threatening more deadly attacks from within the U.S., the much anticipated 9/11 report card has revealed.
As the tenth anniversary of the devastating attacks on New York approaches, the National Security Preparedness Group issued a stinging assessment of just how far the U.S. needs to go to combat terror threats.
Airport security is still not thorough enough to stop a large-scale air bombing, the report claimed and, even more worryingly, the greatest threat to national security may well be coming from America itself, with the frighteningly common radicalisation of Muslim-American teens.
Devastating: The report stated that, ten years on, still not enough has been done to ensure a terror attack like 9/11 could never happen again
The report, issued today, stated: 'Most troubling, we have seen a pattern of increasing terrorist recruitment of American citizens
Homegrown: Abdulhakim Muhammad, left, is accused of killing a military recruiter while Nidal Malik Hasan, right, has been charged with the Fort Hood shooting
Shows the problem in the nutshell. They do not believe or understand the Market. If we had followed the Market we would be out of this recession.
Obama Trying Desperately to Head Off Coming Crash in Clean-Energy Industry
The Obama administration is trying desperately to head off what many economists say is a coming crash in the clean-energy industry. To make the case, Vice President Joe Biden on Tuesday equated spending on clean energy during a recession to spending on crucial weapons and technology during a war, previewing a theme likely to recur this fall as the White House and Democrats try to save what’s left of the federal clean-energy budget.
Orgasm Curse?
BEWARE THE “ORGASM CURSE?” Ladies, Be Prepared To Fall In Love If You Have Sex. Especially in James Bond films . . . .
Common Sense Vindicated
Fathers' Presence Linked to Enhanced Intellect, Well-Being Among Children
ScienceDaily (Aug. 30, 2011) — Fathers who actively engage in raising their children can help make their offspring smarter and better behaved, according to new research from Concordia University.
Fathers who actively engage in raising their children can help make their offspring smarter and better behaved, according to new research
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110830102551.htm
Your tax dollars at work – a gay strip club.
HIV/AIDS group charged with diverting tax dollars to strip club
AIDS group spends $330,000 in federal tax dollars to open strip club...
D.C. Attorney General Irvin Nathan has accused a District HIV/AIDS service provider of spending nearly $330,000 in federal tax dollars to open a strip club.
In a lawsuit filed Tuesday, Nathan said Miracle Hands Inc. promised the city it was using the cash to renovate a warehouse in Northeast for use as a job training center for residents with HIV/AIDS. Instead, the warehouse was turned into the Stadium Club, a strip club that continues to operate, the suit says.
Read more at the Washington Examiner: http://washingtonexaminer.com/local/dc/2011/08/ag-hivaids-group-used-dc-dollars-open-strip-club#ixzz1Wczot1RT
The Nanny State keeps coming up with ways to send it citizens to Texas
California Wants Parents to Provide Workers Comp, Paid Vacation for Babysitters
Read more: http://www.theunion.com/ARTICLE/20110830/BREAKINGNEWS/110839991/-1/RSS#ixzz1WcXgoNiD
Muslims around the world celebrate Eid al-Fitr, the end of the holy month of Ramadan
Tens of thousands of Egyptians prayed in celebration of Eid al-Fitr in Tahrir Square, the epicentre of the protest that toppled long-time president Hosni Mubarak in February, 2011
Ever notice that walkers just are not toned the way runners are?
Athletes take part in the Women's 20km walk at the International Association of Athletics Federations World Championships in Daegu
Stunning
Extremely long exposure: Photographer endures 15-hour shoots in the wintry Australian outback to snare stunning images of star trails in the night sky
Hour after hour of painstaking night time shooting in the depths of the Australian winter netted photographer Lincoln Harrison these incredible images. Captured using a long exposure lens, the trails are created as the Earth rotates, giving the impression of the stars moving across the sky.
Muslims: safety is no reason for them (Who would not want their head twisted when the loose clothing gets snagged?). So lets start a small riot. Why do they always turn to violence.
Mass brawl at theme park after Muslim women are banned from going on rides unless they remove their head scarves
Two park rangers were hospitalised and 15 people were arrested in the scuffles at Rye Playland in New York. The theme park was forced to shut its gates to visitors yesterday when fighting broke out after Muslim women, who were part of a tour group celebrating Eid, were banned from rides unless they removed headscarves.
The Greens are not moral.
“Why would those enviros rather bankroll Saudi Arabia’s oppression of women than allow the pipeline to run through the United States?”
New Stealth Boat Glides Over Gas Layer
Juliet Marine Systems, Inc.
Aug. 30, 2011: A new kind of boat is designed to move fast and stealthily through water by generating a layer of gas around its underwater surfaces.
A new kind of boat is designed to move quickly and stealthily through water by generating a layer of gas around its underwater surfaces.
The design reduces friction by a factor of 900, according to the New Hampshire company that produced the boat. Its smooth speed makes it ideal for special operations. It could also revolutionize shipping.
Juliet Marine recently unveiled the Ghost, a ship it says can reach speeds of up to 60 miles per hour. The shape of the craft is similar to earlier attempts at making watercraft less visible to radar -- notably the Navy's "Sea Shadow" project of the 1980s.
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/08/30/new-stealth-boat-glides-over-gas-layer/#ixzz1WbkE3IZk
This is the worst tax concept out there. It is unseen, but adds 20% to 30% to cost of everything. Taxes need to be transparent. The payer needs to know what he is paying. With VAT you never know. If you want bigger gov’t, more spending – this is your ride.
Obama’s New Economic Advisor Advocated Value Added Tax
Washington (CNSNews.com) – President Barack Obama’s nominee to chair the President’s Council of Economic Advisors has supported a European-style consumption tax that taxes every stage of production for a good or service, a policy generally called a Value Added Tax, or VAT.
Read more: http://cnsnews.com/news/article/obama-s-new-economic-advisor-advocated-v#ixzz1Wbj2ysAm
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