Right to Opine

A new survey shows Britons ‘less willing to pay for taxes to help others’. Among other interesting findings,

Britons are less willing than ever to pay higher taxes to support the National Health Service, schools or the environment, a new survey suggests.

The National Centre for Social Research’s 28th annual British Social Attitudes report also found increasing numbers blaming poverty on “laziness”.

Maybe the U.K. is coming around. Funny, but the BBC reports this as if it’s a bad thing. We need more of that on this side of the pond.

Ed Morrissey, Hot Air — US approved large escalation of legal gun sales to Mexico

So Fast & Furious helped the administration cover up the even larger loss of government-approved guns sold to Mexico. [Originally reported by CBS.]

Jonah Goldberg, Townhall — The Problem With China Envy  

Yahoo! News — Woman denied food stamps kills self, shoots children

A tragic example of the ultimate end of the entitlement mentality. Note the office had an unarmed guard—in other words, no security at all. Every employee and applicant was at her mercy. Gun-free zones don’t exist despite the law, and her children are paying the price.

NY Times — Filibuster by Senate Republicans Blocks Confirmation of Judicial Nominee

I really don’t understand each party’s tantrum-throwing when judicial nominations are blocked in the Senate by the other side. The Dems did it to Bush; the GOP is doing it to Obama. It’s the only protection we have against having a President pack the courts with pure partisans.

Fox News — NAACP Taking Complaints About U.S. Voter Laws to United Nations

And what, exactly, are the Useless Nabobs going to do? Not only do they lack any kind of jurisdiction, but many member nations have stricter voter ID requirements than any of our states.

Frank J. Fleming, PJ Media — We “Lazy” and “Soft” Americans Don’t Deserve Obama

American Thinker — NFL hypocrites hire the Venereal Girl

David Harsanyi, Real Clear Politics — Obama vs. Capitalism

George F. Will, Washington Post — Choking on Obamacare

BBC — Woman ‘kept away from dying mother’ in Leeds care home

An official called it an “isolated series of errors and misjudgements.” But if you follow the news out of the U.K., stories like this crop up with alarming frequency. And this is the health care system Obama’s outgoing Medicare chief is head-over-heels in love with. But that’s not the worst of the NHS in today’s news. This is nothing short of chilling:

Telegraph — NHS must come clean over use of ‘death pathway’

Michael Brown, Townhall — Two-parter on the outrage that is modern sex-ed:

1. Sex-Ed Classes and the Rape of Our Children’s Innocence
2. Sex-Ed Classes and the Rape of Our Children’s Innocence (Part 2)

Dennis Prager, Townhall — A Response to Oregon’s Governor on Capital Punishment

Daniel Botkin, WSJ — Absolute Certainty Is Not Scientific

Fox News — Farmers Worry New Agriculture Labor Rules Will End Teen Jobs

Really think the feds are for the little guy? More regulations that give big corporations even greater advantage over small businesses.

NY Times — Some Cities Object to Being Carved Up by Redistricting

…when urban and metropolitan areas are broken up and combined with rural areas, mayors say, fewer voices are left to vigorously push an urban or metropolitan agenda in Washington.

Read “liberal agenda” there. Cry me a river. Funny how Dems justified their gerrymandering when they were ascendent, but would deny the GOP its turn when they’re on the losing end.

WSOCtv — Mother says son was suspended for calling teacher ‘cute’

Cute = sexual harrassment? Our schools are being run by idiots and they wonder why we resist paying them more?

Neal Boortz, Townhall — Newt on Immigration  

WSJ — Sales-Tax Measures ‘to Cost Us Big’

Think the Dems in the Senate are on the side of the little guy? Why do you think Amazon supports this? It will drive smaller competitors out of business.

Fox News — Food Stamps Used for Starbucks Frappuccinos

Your tax dollars at work. This is one good argument for going back to physical, paper food stamps which can only be redeemed for groceries. What a scam.

CNN — Gun-themed purse delays teen flier

File under “You have got to be kidding!”

LA Times — Jobless rate falls to 8.6%, sending mixed message on economy

Not really much of a mixed message. 120,000 new jobs – 315,000 people giving up is not a reduction in unemployment…it’s resignation and despair. The way the official unemployment number is calculated is a complete joke. By this logic, we could get to 0% unemployment if everyone would simply stop looking for a job.

BBC — What happened when US forces left Afghan hotspot?

Mark Steyn, IBD — America Has Squandered Its Opportunity To Lead

Hot Air — Bad news from Saudi Arabia: Letting women drive will dry up the virgin market

Grant Cunningham — A short history of Unix, and a caution for the future.

Fox Business — CEO’s Open Letter to President Obama [Hat tip Hot Air]

Judicial Watch — U.S. Seals Court Records Of Border Patrol’s Murder

…and…

Fox News — ‘Fast and Furious’ Whistleblowers Struggle Six Months After Testifying Against ATF Program

Directly from the most transparent administration ever.

Townhall — 10 Of The Best Economics Quotes From Milton Friedman

Andy Stern, WSJ — China’s Superior Economic Model

Yes, the SEIU’s Andy Stern, and this is exactly the kind of big-government/socialist clap-trap you would expect from him. Far too many misstatements, fallacies, and nonsense for me to snark the entire thing, but consider just this: he bases the entire piece on a straw man. The U.S. has not been a model of truly free markets for many years. The left—albeit, sadly, with the cooperation or apathy of the right—has made sure of that.

George F. Will, Washington Post — The unintended consequences of racial preferences

CNN — Siri can’t direct you to an abortion clinic

Hold on a minute. I thought the left has been telling us Planned Parenthood was all about women’s health and reproductive medicine—to justify receiving state and federal funds. Now they’re complaining that they aren’t listed as abortion clinics? Cool. Defund them!

NY Times — For Afghan Woman, Justice Runs Into Unforgiving Wall of Custom

So she’ll be released from prison—on charges of adultery, mind you—provided she marries the man who raped her? This is what we leave behind? We should just bomb ’em back into the stone age (which for them really wouldn’t take too much bombing) and be done with it. This administration has already pre-announced our defeat, so why prolong it and risk any more of our valiant servicemen?

Equally odious is the E.U.’s response. Their moral cowardice is on full display.

LA Times — L.A. porn condom initiative moves closer to ballot

This is almost funny. Their state is falling apart around them and these loons have time to worry about whether or not Willie’s got a raincoat?

Fox News — Student Sparks Debate With Dorm Room Confederate Flag

Racist! Bigot! Oh, wait…the student is black.

Ann Coulter, IBD — Conservative And Black? You Better Watch Your Back

Adam Carolla, The Blaze — Epic Rant on OWS

Bloomberg — Secret Fed Loans Gave Banks $13 Billion

And you thought TARP was bad?

Daniel J. Mitchell, Townhall — In Euro Collapse Who’s Better Prepared: Well Armed Swiss, Disarmed Brits

Washington Times — Bye-bye, Berwick

It appears Berwick spoke more truth than his Leftist proponents wanted the public to hear.

Forbes — What You Don’t Often Hear About Those ‘Greedy’ One Percenters

RealClear Markets — The Root Cause of Market Failure In Higher Education

NY Times — Gingrich Gave Push to Clients, Not Just Ideas

If you still need more evidence that the Grey Lady has traded legitimacy for propaganda, this piece should do it. Posited as news, the article is rife with insinuations that Gingrich has been involved in shady dealings, but provides not a shred of evidence to support them. There is not a single instance cited of his having done something immoral, unethical, or illegal—just a few hundred words of the purest smear.

Or this:

NY Times — Gingrich Wields History, Seeking to Add Chapter

Another hit piece. Expect more of the same as Newt rises in the polls. Having successfully eviscerated Cain, they can now turn to the next most threatening target. The Left can’t abide the fact that this is one candidate who could mince Obama in a substantive debate. Where are the articles pointing out the obvious disdain Obama—purported to be a Constitutional scholar—shows for our founding principles? Oh yeah…they disdain those principles, too.

CNN — UK condemns embassy incursion in Iran

Britain condemned Iran for allowing protesters to storm its embassy and a separate diplomatic compound in Tehran on Tuesday, warning there will be “serious consequences” as a result.

What, you’re going to impose a new U.N. sanction requiring Iranians to eat British food? Please. The current crop of Western leaders has long lost any credibility re Iran.

Hot Air — Victory: McDonald’s outsmarts San Francisco on Happy Meal ban