Stupidest question on the latest CBS/NYT poll:**

23. Which comes closest to your view? 1. The U.S. needs to fix its health care system now as party of fixing the overall economy. Or 2. Because of the state of the economy, the U.S. cannot afford to fix its health care system right now.

Unless you want to be a heartless Republican (2) you have to buy not only the basic Orszagist argument the health care reform is the key to solving the deficit problem but the broader argument that it’s the key to fixing the entire economy? What if you just think it’s something we should do and that we can afford to pay for? …

Alas, that’s not the only thing wrong with it. Some of us who take the Constitution seriously don’t really believe the U.S. government is authorized to assume this particular power. Suppose we had a President Nehemiah Scudder and the poll question was:

23. Which comes closest to your view? 1. The U.S. needs to forcibly convert all Jews to Christianity. Or 2. Because more than a billion Muslims remain unconverted to Christianity, the U.S. should wait to forcibly convert Jews until the greater problem is solved.

See the problem now?

Be sure to read the comments for more easter eggs … for example, type in “Where is Chuck Norris?”

Jimmy Carter’s Race Problem

by Hans von Spakovsky

When former president Jimmy Carter accuses the opponents of Barrack Obama’s policy of nationalizing broad aspects of our economy and spending us into bankruptcy of being “racists,” perhaps he should look in the mirror. In his 1982 book, Keeping Faith, Carter disingenuously said he “was not directly involved in the early struggles to end racial discrimination.” No kidding — in fact, he directly and unambiguously supported segregation. [...]

Details snipped to avoid plagiariasm — so read the whole thing.

The conclusion:

I am not aware that Rep. Joe Wilson has ever supported segregation or engaged in the same type of reprehensible, racist behavior. The idea that opposition to Obama’s policies reflects “racism” is absurd; even the White House has rejected it. All of this raises a larger issue about Carter’s remarks. When he makes such a claim, is he projecting his own inner racial beliefs? Is he so guilt-ridden over his past racist behavior that he wants to make amends to the race-baiters that today populate the Left? Or is he just cynically helping them score political points?

The Sun from SOHO -- Continuum image taken on 2009/09/17. Click on the image for the latest view from SOHO.

According to the latest imagery from the SOHO spacecraft there still aren’t any sunspots today. There weren’t any yesterday. There weren’t any the day before. Or the day before that. Or …

In 2006 many solar astronomers expected the new solar cycle to start in 2007 and peak in 2011 or 2012. Some thought the new Cycle 24 would be substantntially more active than most. Guess what? It still hasn’t started yet, not to any meaningful degree. Now there’s even speculation thet there might not even be a Cycle 24, that the Sun may be entering a prolonged period of inactivity like the Maunder Minimum. Stay tuned.

Although … sixteen miles up is pretty good, but it isn’t “space” …

I wouldn’t bet against there being more videos from other cities to come …

UPDATE: Hah. The Senate has voted to deny funding to ACORN:

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A poverty-rights group that has drawn the ire of conservatives suffered another setback in Washington on Monday when the U.S. Senate voted overwhelmingly to deny it access to federal housing funds. [...]

Last week, the U.S. Census Bureau told the group it did not want its help boosting participation in next year’s census.

The Senate measure, which passed 83 to 7 in the Democratic-led chamber, was included in a must-pass spending bill that funds housing and transportation programs for the fiscal year that starts October 1.

More here.

Senator Mike Johanns (R-NE) introduced an amendment to the HUD and Transportation appropriation bill to strip ACORN of all federal funding. A week ago, Johanns wouldn’t have gotten the amendment to the floor. Today, however, after three straight days of BigGovernment.com’s video exposés of ACORN offices in Washington DC, New York City, and Baltimore offering assistance to pimping, tax evasion, and trafficking in underage Salvadorean girls, Johanns not only got his vote — but he got an impressive bipartisan showing. The Senate passed the Johanns amendment 83-7.

At the beginning of the vote, it appeared that Democrats might resist. Initially, a half-dozen Democrats cast votes in opposition to the amendment. A few more cast votes against it as the rest of the Senate voted, but the tide appeared to shift. More and more Democrats signed onto the amendment, and votes started changing. One male voice could be heard in the chamber saying, “I want to change my vote!” Among those who changed their votes: Tom Udall (D-NM), Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), and Herb Kohl (D-WI).

As with other eldritch non-Newtonian fluid relics of the Elder Things, please do not weaponize.

I knew there was surplus Soviet space hardware to be had, but I didn’t know there were any left-over Almaz/Salyut spacecraft in storage …

The aftermath of the presidential inauguration in Wasington D.C., January 20, 2009:

(Images sent by a friend.)

Update: Apparently these images are from Gateway Pundit, who (of course) made the same point.