California is bankrupt and only large cuts to government spending can save the day. In order to make these cuts, the governor will have to lock horns with the public sector unions and force them to back down. Unfortunately for California, Jerry Brown is a tool of the unions – from Daniel Weintraub over at HealthyCal:

…The Republicans want a spending limit, pension reform and regulatory relief for business, among other things.

But Brown and his Democratic allies have come under intense pressure from interest groups, especially the public employee unions, to oppose any spending limits or changes to the pension system. This has led to a recurrence of the same kind of partisan frustration and name-calling that has marked past budget stalemates, and which Brown promised to avoid.

The governor, for instance, has called Republicans “disloyal to California” for refusing to put his tax plan on the ballot. A handful of Republicans who were negotiating with the governor, meanwhile, threw up their hands earlier this week and said the negotiations were going nowhere because Brown refused to cross his public employee union supporters…

While Democrats can pass whatever budget they want – holding both the legislative and executive branches – they cannot pass a tax increase without GOP approval. A 2/3 vote in favor is required for a tax increase – or for a tax increase to be sent to the people in the form of a referendum. Right now, the California GOP is standing firm – and there is no upside for the GOP in helping the Democrats out of their jam.

Decades of extreme liberalism – even when Republicans were governor – in California has bankrupted the State. Only a dose of free market conservatism can fix things. The people of California were asked to endorse such a course last November but chose, instead, to elect Jerry Brown to go along with their liberal legislature. Putting back in to the Governor’s mansion the very man who instigated a lot of the liberal profligacy back in the 70’s didn’t seem like a wise idea to me…but I guess that the merest chance that the GOPer hadn’t been nice to the hired help trumped such considerations for the voters of California. Californians have got what they wanted – and I’d like to ask them: now, how does it taste?

Let them stew – let the liberals who bankrupted the State fix the problem. Yes, I know they can’t – not unless they turn on a dime and start enacted conservative, free market policies. But that they are too stupid and rigidly ideological to do what is sensible isn’t my problem – nor is it the problem of the Republicans of California (except in the fact, of course, that they have to live in a State governed by liberals). Perhaps when things really fall apart – and they will – the people of California will awake from their liberal stupor and start to think before voting?

From Politico:

Former President Bill Clinton said Friday that delays in offshore oil and gas drilling permits are “ridiculous” at a time when the economy is still rebuilding, according to attendees at the IHS CERAWeek conference.

Clinton spoke on a panel with former President George W. Bush that was closed to the media. Video of their moderated talk with IHS CERA Chairman Daniel Yergin was also prohibited.

But according to multiple people in the room, Clinton, surprisingly, agreed with Bush on many oil and gas issues, including criticism of delays in permitting offshore since last year’s Gulf of Mexico spill…

The Obama Administration’s adherence to environmentalist ideology – which condemns all use of fossil fuels – is insane at this time. Its akin to communist apparatchiks in the old USSR rigidly asserting the party line even when reality was 180 degrees different. Regardless of what one thinks of the merits of green energy, what we need right now is the oil and natural gas – and the jobs – which can be found within United States territory, on shore and off shore.

Had President Obama gone full steam ahead with “drill, baby, drill” from day one, we’d already have a lot more oil production on line…and if he wanted to use taxpayer dollars to stimulate the economy, it would have been much wiser to subsidize the construction of oil refineries instead of blowing it on subsidizing “too big to fail” banks. Had Obama been sensible – had he, that is, ignored environmentalists – then we would have a lot more energy security at this point, and more wealth-creating jobs in the economy.

But, for liberals, ideology trumps common sense. Liberals believe that using oil is evil, and so nothing will be done to in any way, shape or form increase oil availability in the United States. Liberals prefer that we are more dependent on foreign oil – after all, if oil prices skyrocket it will be easier to shove us all on the public transport (liberal leaders, of course, won’t use public transport…as in all Ruling Classes, those who rule will not endure the lifestyle of the ruled). Worst of all even with the world spinning out of control and oil supplies at grave risk, there is no indication of any policy shift by Obama.

Never thought I’d say this – but give us just two weeks of Clinton back in office. Its not enough time for him to find another Lewinsky, but it is time enough for him to lift the oil drilling ban.

An absolutely disgusting story out of Texas:

Racial divisions have surfaced in the town of Cleveland, 40 miles north of Houston, ever since last Thanksgiving’s alleged gang rape of an 11-year old Hispanic girl.

Most of the 17 suspects accused of sexually assaulting the preteen girl are black. And on Thursday night, community activist Quanell X hosted a rally there.

…”She lives in another community,” Quanell X told the gathering. “You mean to tell me the only men that had sex with that girl were black men, locked up in that jail?”

The activist cast blame on the parents of the alleged victim, whom some describe as a willing participant in the sexual activity, at least initially…

You can see a television report about the rally and the larger case here – the video is more nauseating than the print report. So, what do we have?

A little girl who can’t consent to sex – not even “initially” – is brutally raped. An investigation ensues and suspects are arrested and charged…but because the girl is hispanic and the accused are black, race-baiters in the black community – purely in it to gain un-earned power and wealth for themselves – are setting an entire community on edge.

Perhaps the little girl was being badly raised by her parents. It is certain that the perpetrators were badly raised by theirs. But this isn’t a racial issue – this is a moral issue. A wrong thing was done to a person and those who did it must pay. But such a simple exercise of justice doesn’t allow a hustler like Quanell X to make any money or fame off the deal…he has to interject himself and his only means of doing that is to start calling the cops KKKers and blaming the victim and her family for what the criminals did.

But one cannot blame Quanell X (who almost certainly wasn’t given that name by his parents…but “X” just works so much better when you’re running the same scam that Malcolm ran); it has been made just too easy. With people like Malcolm X, Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton leading the way, there was no chance that other people wouldn’t try it. Stir up racial hatred, blame whitey, liberals start falling all over themselves to both praise you and ensure you get money. Quanell is just keeping to the script.

But we people who are not trying to scam anyone and only want to see justice done have to bring a halt to this – we cannot forever allow people like Quanell to stir up racial hatred because they would rather con people out of money than get a real job. People end up dying because of this sort of nonsense. Perhaps a solution would be to change libel laws in regards to accusations of racism – make it easier for someone accused of such to prevail in court, thus making race-baiters more wary of hurling the accusation? Just a thought – but we do have to bring an end to this.

http://www.eyeblast.tv/public/eyeblast.swf?v=hdaGnzprpr

Our government has a biblical power to cure? A laying on of taxpayer funds will make us all well?

Ah, well, she’s convinced – government is the answer. Of course, the reality is that government has made her rich and powerful, and if there ever comes a time when government is not needed, then Nancy Pelosi is not needed…

I was tossing a turning a bit last night and so wound up channel surfing just about the time the quake hit – it was terrible watching it develope from bad to worse to horrific.

There is not much any of us can do at the moment except pray for those who are lost and those who are still suffering…but I have to say that there seems to be a curse on the world these days; that God really cannot be mocked forever without consequences…a world which has enjoyed an unprecedented amount of prosperity and, for most people, exceptionally long and secure peace, may be about to enter a time of storms. Perhaps, in the end, we should have stayed more sane, moral and just?

UPDATE: It just keeps getting worse:

Huge earthquakes rocked northeastern Japan on Saturday, a day after a giant temblor set off a powerful tsunami that killed hundreds of people, turned the coast into a swampy wasteland and left two nuclear reactors dangerously close to meltdown.

The United States Geological Survey said a strong earthquake struck just before noon in the sea in virtually the same place where the magnitude 8.9 quake on Friday unleashed one of the greatest disasters Japan has witnessed — a 23-foot (7-meter) tsunami that washed far inland over fields and smashed towns.

Saturday’s magnitude 6.8 quake was followed by a series of temblors originating from the same area, the USGS said. It was not immediately known whether the new quakes caused any more damage. All were part of the more than 125 aftershocks since Friday’s massive quake, the strongest to hit Japan since officials began keeping records in the late 1800s…

No one really knows how much damage has been done, or how many people have died. I’ve read that an entire train is missing, along with a cruise ship. Volcanoes are erupting in Russia and Indonesia and at least one nuclear plant is in serious danger. This is going to be a real tough even to deal with and I don’t think anyone really sees the magnitude of the crisis.

From The DC Caller:

…Global warming enthusiasts have … taken to Twitter to raise awareness of the need to respond to the earthquake by finally acting on climate change. And the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s Lee Doren compiled some of the best ones.

Some examples:

AliceTMBFan said “2 hours of geography earlier talking about Japan has left me thinking…maybe global warming is way more serious then we thought…”

Arbiterofwords tweeted “I’m worried that Japan earthquake, on top of other recent natural ‘disasters’, is a sign we’ve passed point of no return for climate change.”

MrVikas said “Events like the #Japan #earthquake and #tsunami MUST keep #climate change at forefront of policy thought: http://bit.ly/cZe8To #environment

Tayyclayy noted her frustration by tweeting “An earthquake with an 8.9 magnitude struck Japan.. And some say climate change isn’t real?!”…

And these are the people who claim to be part of the “reality-based community”! Complete idiocy – hate to break it to you, guys, but the plates of the earth move whether its warm or cold outside…

But this does show the level of sheer imbecility we’re dealing with…

Latest from Libya:

The Gaddafi regime has issued a defiant warning that the “time for action” had arrived as a sustained military assault forced the defeat of Libyan rebels in the strategically important town of Zawiya and their retreat from Ras Lanuf.

Amid squabbling among EU and Nato leaders on the eve of an emergency European summit on Libya in Brussels, Muammar Gaddafi’s son said that a new offensive would be launched within days…

Read in the news that France is urging military action against the Libyan regime – which is a grand thing, but one wonders if France had the capability of projecting sufficient power that far from home? The United States does – but I also read that our Secretary of State is waiting for the world to decide what we should do. Meanwhile, Libyans are butchered and the situation spins out of control.

I have to say that in all my life I’ve never felt more humiliated than I did when I read all that – France is leading the way while the United States hangs back! In the governments of the world the United States is being marked as a blind, stumbling giant…and as long as Obama is President, a negligible quantity in world affairs. If we won’t act like Americans when we’ve got a carrier battle group and Marine Expeditionary Unit right where we need them, when will we act?

If at all, probably too late. Obama will screw himself up to a decision right about the time it becomes moot…and then, even worse, we might strike as the rebels are being crushed, just in time for the United States to share in the defeat. Goodness, it is going to be a long 22 months until we get that poltroon out of office.

From Bloomberg:

As European Union leaders haggle over their second plan to stem the financial crisis, traders are betting Greece won’t be able to pay its debts.

Greek 10-year bond yields rose to a record this week and it costs more than ever to insure against a default, even though the nation received a 110 billion euro ($153 billion) bailout from the EU and the International Monetary Fund last year. Two- year yields exceed 10-year levels, suggesting a restructuring may come before the three-year aid program expires…

My bet is that those who bought Greek bonds at the time of the bail out are now looking for the exits – my personal feeling about that is: serves ’em right. What kind of idiot would buy a Greek bond when demographics ensure that the Greek debt cannot ever be paid off? Greece’s population is going in to terminal decline – there will be, year after year, fewer and fewer Greeks around earning any income with which to pay off bonded debt.

It is to be hoped that Greece will default – and swiftly be followed by the rest of the PIIGS (Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece and Spain). The debt cannot be repaid – profligate governments, short-sighted and/or lazy populations, ossified socialism and declining birth rates ensure that any money lent to such nations is so much cash down the drain. The European model has failed – even thus-far strong Germany still has the massive, structural problem of too much welfare and too few children being born. They are weathering the storm better than the rest of Europe because they have been far more sensible…but a people not reproducing itself while providing lavish welfare is doomed.

Default is the only way out of the economic mess – it will clear the decks and at least allow economic life to resume. They’ll be poorer, but perhaps a bit wiser. And with the loss of the European dream – socialism plus hedonism – perhaps the European people will also recover their sanity. Perhaps they’ll start working, saving and, who knows?, maybe even going back to Church and experiencing faith…and having children. Anything is better than just continuing on, hoping that one more bout of fiat money and one more chop at the tree or morality will do the trick…

HAT TIP: Mish’s

From NRO:

Union leaders predicted up to 25,000 would protest at the Indiana Statehouse today.

Instead, about 8,000 did. Many of them weren’t even Hoosiers: Indiana blog Capitol & Washington reports that about half of the buses carrying protesters came from Illinois and other states…

The union bosses and their lapdogs in the Democrat party are promising revenge for Wisconsin. They will put union issues on State ballots and, in general, press the issue in a major way in 2012. The only question I have is – when do I get to donate for this effort? Nothing would please me more than for the corrupt unions to be leading the left side of the campaign as we enter 2012…it’ll allow us to fill the world with the absurd stories of union corruption and insane union contracts. Obama has to some how win back Independents in order to win in 2012 – he won’t be able to so that with the SEIU, AFSCME and the NEA hanging ’round his neck, forcing all Democrats to make pro-union statements in the press.

We’ve won the argument – and the longer the left and the unions keep up the drum beat, the more we’ll win at the ballot box.