Incredible new findings

Just a friendly reminder to all my friends.....
February 17, 2007

By Randall Hoven  http://www.americanthinker.com/randall_hoven/

"The arguments of liberals are more often grounded in reason and fact."
  - Senator Barak Obama  http://www.examiner.com/a-538596~Perception_vs__reality.html   in his memoir The Audacity of Hope.

As conservatives head into the 2008 presidential election cycle, they might consider brushing up on their facts to catch up with the "arguments" of liberals.  I have prepared a short test to help benighted conservatives gauge their ignorance.

Try answering the 10 questions below, then I will reveal the actual answers and help you evaluate your fitness to cast an informed (by facts) vote in 2008.

The Test

1.  In 2005, the U.S. federal government spent $581 billion on Health and Human Services and $560 billion on Social Security Administration, for a combined total over $1.1 trillion.  How much did the United States spend on Defense-Military?

(a) $2.744 trillion

(b) $1.474 trillion

(c) $744 billion

(d) $474 billion

2.  In 2001, public spending per capita on health in the United Kingdom, Canada and France was $1,518, $1,531 and $1,599, respectively.  How much was public spending per capita on health in the United States?

(a) $168

(b) $682

(c) $1,286

(d) $2,168

3.  In 2003 in the U.S., those making $200,000 or more (Adjusted Gross Income, or AGI) made up less than 2% of all federal income tax returns, yet they accounted for almost 22% of all income (AGI) reported to the IRS.  What fraction of all federal income tax dollars came from those who made $200,000 or more in 2003?

(a) 2%

(b) 12%

(c) 22%

(d) 42%

4.  While 140 countries have signed the Kyoto Treaty to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, the U.S. refuses to do so.  From 1994 to 2004, carbon dioxide emissions from consumption of fossil fuels increased by 19.4% in Canada, 26.4% in Greece, 42.9% in Norway, and 68.4% in China.  How much did carbon dioxide emissions from consumption of fossil fuels increase in the U.S. from 1994 to 2004?

(a) 129%

(b) 92.1%

(c) 29.1%

(d) 12.9%

5.  In 2004 in the U.S., just three years after the 911 attacks, there were 1,013 anti-Jewish hate crime offenses.  How many anti-Islamic hate crime offenses were there?

(a) 100,094

(b) 10,094

(c) 1,094

(d) 194

6.  In 2004 in the U.S., the cumulative total of men who had AIDS due to sexual contact with other men was 402,722.  How many men had AIDS due to sexual contact with women?

(a) 43,347,000

(b) 4,334,700

(c) 433,470

(d) 43,347

7.  In 2004 in the U.S., it was not known whether a weapon was present in 5.2% of the cases of rape and sexual assault.  A non-firearm weapon was known to be present in 7.9% of the cases.  How often was a firearm known to be present in rapes and sexual assaults?

(a) 80%

(b) 40%

(c) 20%

(d) 0%

8.  The CIA's "Comprehensive Report of the Special Advisor to the DCI on Iraq's WMD" by the Iraq Survey Group (ISG), also known as the "Duelfer Report", is the authority commonly cited to debunk the threat of WMD as an excuse to invade Iraq in 2003.  Which of the following statements was taken from the Duelfer Report?

(a) "we cannot express a firm view on the possibility that WMD elements were relocated out of Iraq prior to the war"

(b) "ISG technical experts fully evaluated less than one quarter of one percent of the over 10,000 weapons caches throughout Iraq"

(c) "Iraq could have re-established an elementary BW [biological warfare] program within a few weeks to a few months of a decision to do so"

(d) All of the above.

9.  In 2003 in the U.S., the number of pedestrians killed in motor vehicle accidents was 5,991.  How many motorcycle riders were killed?

(a) 36,076

(b) 7,663

(c) 6,736

(d) 3,676

10.  The intelligence of President George W. Bush is often ridiculed, especially on late-night comedy shows.  What fraction of the general population is less intelligent than President Bush?

(a) 25%

(b) 50%

(c) 75%

(d) 95%

The Answers

The correct answer to every question was (d).  The answers to the first seven questions can be found in  http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/  The Statistical Abstract of the U.S.  Specific tables from that source, and other sources, are cited in the discussion below.

1.  The U.S. federal government spent $474 billion on Defense-Military in 2005, well less than either Health and Human Services or Social Security (Table 461).  In fact, it was less than 20% of all federal outlays and just 3.8% of GDP.  These are historically low numbers and unprecedented for wartime.

2.  Despite the U.S. health care system often being described as a "free market", the U.S. spends more in public dollars per capita than almost all other countries, including Canada and the U.K.  In fact, only Norway spends more (Table 1318).  Note that these are public dollars, meaning government spending.  Total public and private spending on health care in the U.S. is about double that, or about 16% of GDP.

3.  Households with AGI of $200,000 paid over 42% of all federal income taxes, despite making up less than 2% of all returns and just 22% of all reported income (Table 474).  In fact, the average tax rate for those making $500,000 or more was 25%, while it was only 7% for those making between $30,000 and $40,000, or near median incomes.  That means the richest tax payers pay more than triple the rate of the middle class.  And this is well after the Republican tax cuts took effect.

4.  Between 1994 to 2004, carbon dioxide emissions from the U.S. increased by 12.9%, the same increase as that of France and a smaller increase than that of Canada, Greece, Norway, and China.  In fact, U.S. emissions grew at a slower rate than the emissions from 143 of 213 countries (67%), including Cuba, Venezuela and Iran.  Moreover,North America is actually a carbon dioxide sink, meaning it  absorbs more than it produces.  http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/282/5388/442?ijkey=mon8W/Sb1uNZ6

5.  In 2004 in the U.S., just three years after the 911 attacks, there were 194 anti-Islamic hate crime offenses, about one fifth as many as anti-Jewish offenses, and only about 2% of all hate crime offenses (Table 308).  In fact, anti-Jewish offenses constituted over two thirds of all anti-religion hate crime offenses, despite both the small numbers of Jews in the country and the much-feared "Muslim backlash" (meaning backlash of non-Muslims against Muslims) that appears ever more phantasmagorical.

6.  In 2004 in the U.S. there was a cumulative total of 43,347 men who had AIDS due to sexual contact with women, or about a tenth as many as those who had it from sexual contact with other men (Table 177).  However, since heterosexual men outnumber gay men by a factor of 10 to 100, gay men (herein meaning men who have sex with men) are 100 to 1,000 times more likely than heterosexual men to get AIDS from sexual contact.

7.  In 2004 in the U.S., no firearm was known to be present in any rape or sexual assault - zero, despite some other type of weapon being present in about 8% of such crimes (Table 315).

8.  The Duelfer Report  https://www.cia.gov/redirects/ciaredirect.html   admitted that dozens of chemical weapons actually were found [later determined to be more than 500], that the ISG did not search much of Iraq, that its sources were not reliable, that most suspected WMD sites had been looted or destroyed, that WMD could very well have been taken out of the country, that WMD programs could have been reconstituted and WMD produced quickly, and that Saddam Hussein intended to do exactly that shortly after he bribed enough countries using the "oil for food" program to drop the sanctions and inspection regime.  Does that sound like "no threat" or "no evidence" to you?

9.  More pedestrians than motorcycle riders were killed in motor vehicle accidents in 2003 - in fact, 63% more, according to the National Safety Council.  http://www.nsc.org/lrs/statinfo/odds.htm   Of the 44,757 deaths due to motor vehicle accidents, only 3,676 (8%) were motorcycle riders.  Should pedestrians be forced to wear helmets, as are motorcycle riders in many states?  Why not drivers and passengers in cars and trucks, for that matter?

10.  George W. Bush's SAT score of 1206 has been widely reported.  http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A61961-2004Jun22.html   The SAT score (if taken prior to 1995) can be used to estimate IQ, to compare to the general population, and to compare to occupational averages and popular figures in history.  http://www.iqcomparisonsite.com/GREIQ.aspx   Using such estimates, President Bush's IQ is between 125 and 130 which ranks him as more intelligent than over 95% of the population, more intelligent than most college professors and medical doctors, and similar to Abraham Lincoln, Rousseau and Thackeray (comparative IQs of 128).

Evaluation


You might be a liberal if you think

We spend more on defense than we do on health care and other human services.
Our health care system is worse than other developed countries because the free market has failed and our government doesn't spend enough on health.
The rich pay less in taxes than the poor.
The U.S. is one of the worst offenders in producing global warming gases, and keeps on polluting while other countries are cutting back.
The biggest problem with Islamic terrorism is the resulting backlash against Muslims.
AIDS affects everyone equally, gay and straight.
We have high rates of rapes and sexual assault because of the availability of guns.
There was no good reason to invade Iraq in 2003, certainly not the threat of WMD.
More lives would be saved by making helmets mandatory for motorcycle riders than would be saved by making them mandatory for pedestrians or car drivers and passengers.
President Bush is stupid.
Unfortunately, you'd be wrong on every point listed above, based on facts.

The test and list above were not meant to be comprehensive, merely illustrative.  To list liberal beliefs that can be countered by reason and facts would be a task akin to counting grains of sand on a beach - beyond the scope of this article.  Perhaps it will be attempted by a cloister of monks in the next century.

9:33 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

The news

She said yes.  I am engaged!!!  Next time I talk to whoever, I'll let you know the story.  And the Vigilence TOC made fun of my idea....

7:51 AM - 1 Comments - 6 Kudos - Add Comment

Words of wisdom from the "man"

*NOTE - This quote is old.

"In the annals of American history, only a few events are so well-known and so deeply rooted in national remembrance that the mere mention of their date suffices to describe them. Of these occurrences, none could have had more significance for our Nation than December 7, 1941. On that Sunday morning... the Imperial Japanese Navy launched an unprovoked, surprise attack upon units of the Armed Forces of the United States stationed at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. This attack claimed the lives of 2,403 Americans, wounded 1,178 more, and damaged our naval capabilities in the Pacific. Such destruction seared the memory of a generation and galvanized the will of the American people in a fight to maintain our right to freedom without fear. Every honor is appropriate for the courageous Americans who made the supreme sacrifice for our Nation at Pearl Harbor and in the many battles that followed in World War II. Their sacrifice was for a cause, not for conquest; for a world that would be safe for future generations. Their devotion must never be forgotten." —Ronald Reagan

7:49 AM - 1 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

My first battle wound

I got my first stitches ever today.  And my first (and only) battle wound ever.

There I was.... holding the bat in my hand.  The pitcher throw the ball and I take off for first base.  I knew I wasn't going to make it, but I was determined to try.  I stretch as much as I can, but I lose my footing.  I hit the ground, I knew I was going to have a little wound.  I look at the dugout and someone was staring at my leg, wide-eyed and suprised.  I looked down and saw this little pouch where a chunk of skin had been torn off and filled with sand.  I knew I wasn't going back to the softball field anytime soon.

The doc was there, he took me to his office and cleaned it up.  He spent like 30 minutes cleaning out all the sand and crap that got up in there.  Then he stitched it all up and wrapped it.  I have to walk around like I have a peg leg for the next few days.  I also have to hope that it doesn't get infected, I don't rip out the stitches since it is right below my kneecap, and that I don't have to get anywhere in a big hurry.

I already tried to get put in for a purple heart.....but it's not going to happen.  It was worth a shot.  I also thought about trying to get some pity sex, but that will happen right after I get the purple heart.  Don't worry, you aren't gonna see my name in the newspaper anytime soon.

11:06 AM - 3 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

My Independence Day

(3 years ago today I got to leave that terrible place in Mexico.  My lack of people to truly talk to out here made a blog seem appropriate for this year)

Today is the day, my Independence Day.  Three years ago I was blessed and allowed to drive out of the red gates for good.  The week before was the slowest week of my life.  All we could do was wait in eager anticipation for the hour to come.  I remember driving away from Casa and being more confused than ever.  I was elated with never having to see that place again.  But I was so sad to be leaving so many important people there.  As we drove out, I still remember the last person I saw on the way out.  Her name was Heather, we called her Big Mamma and she was one of the coolest people I have ever met.  I never had pride in that place.  I will never be glad that I was there.  However it is all that I have.  I do not have a high school yearbook with signatures all over.  I do not have pictures from prom.  I have memories, dreams, and nightmares.  I have ill-timed reminders which make me cower in fear at the most inopportune times.  

Time does not heal these scars.  Now this place is no more and no revenge can be brought.  No temporary relief from this curse which haunts my mind.  I had a dream a few nights ago.  I was back there for a time.  But I knew it was a dream.  I tried to wake up from it and return to the real world, despite appearences I am more afraid of a dream about Casa than the real-world dangers of Iraq.  

These scars may be obvious to me, but only us program kids understand the why and the how.  My good friends out here in Iraq   see something is wrong.  They realize there is pain there, but cannot comprehend it.  They know it hurts, but do not know what it is.  And as far as I know, there is only one other program kid in Iraq.  Where can I go to?  Sure there are people that will listen, but there is no one that will understand.  

All my program friends stopped talking to me.  I think they care, in some deep corner of their mind I may cross their mind once in a while.  I haven't talked to any of them for a year now.  A year of listening, a year since understanding.  I miss the feeling, knowing the person across from me felt that exact same way while stuck at the exact same place.  It was always a comfort.  It was what kept me sane during the best and worst days of my life.  The worst - the day I got kidnapped.  The best - my Independence Day.

Currently listening : Warped Tour: 2006 Compilation By Various Artists Release date: 06 June, 2006

11:56 PM - 3 Comments - 4 Kudos - Add Comment

I feel pretty

Weather report for Iraq--Monsoons with rain, thunder, and lightning. 

It's awesome

6:02 AM - 1 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Comedy

As written by Ann Coulter:

Democratic Sen. russel Feingold called for a formal Senate censure of President Bush when he found out the president was rude enough to be listening in on al-Qaida phone calls.  (Wait until Feingold finds out the White House has been visiting Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's Myspace Page!)

Now that's funny....

4:13 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

How to talk to liberals.

I have discovered the secret to dealing with Liberals.  I never knew this was all I had to do!!!

What to do if you fall into a conversation with someone about the terrorist attacks who doesn't believe in retaliation:

1. Engage in conversation, and ask if military force is appropriate.

2. When he says "No, " ask, "Why not?"

3. Wait until he says something to the effect of "Because that would just cause more innocent deaths, which would be awful and we should not cause more violence."

4. When he's in mid sentence, punch him in the face as hard as you can.

5. When he gets back up to punch you, point out that it would be a mistake and contrary to his values to strike you, because that would be awful and he should not cause more violence.

6. Wait until he agrees, and has pledged not to commit additional violence.

7. Punch him in the face again, harder this time.

8. Repeat steps 5 through 8 until ! he understands that sometimes it is necessary to punch back

9:58 AM - 1 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

hah

Something else I cam across and like.  For some reason I keep posting stuff about discrimination on these blogs.  Probably cause I am pissed off about that bullshit.

"Are we fighting a war on terror or aren't we? Was it or was it not
started by Islamic people who brought it to our shores on
September 11, 2001? Were people from all over the world, mostly
Americans, not brutally murdered that day, in downtown Manhattan, across the
Potomac from our nation's capitol and in a field in Pennsylvania?

Did nearly three thousand men, women and children die a horrible,
burning or crushing death that day, or didn't they?


And I'm supposed to care that a copy of the Koran was "desecrated"
when an overworked American soldier kicked it or got it wet? Well, I don't.

I don't care at all.


I'll start caring when Osama bin Laden turns himself in and repents
for incinerating all those innocent people on 9/11.


I'll care about the Koran when the fanatics in the Middle East start
caring about the Holy Bible, the mere possession
of which is a crime in Saudi Arabia.


I'll care when Abu Musab al-Zarqawi tells the world he is sorry for
hacking off Nick Berg's head while Berg screamed
through his gurgling, slashed throat.


I'll care when the cowardly so-called "insurgents" in Iraq come out
and fight like men instead of disrespecting their own religion
by hiding in mosques.


I'll care when the mindless zealots who blow themselves up in search
of nirvana care about the innocent children within range of
their suicide bombs.


I'll care when the American media stops pretending that their First
Amendment liberties are somehow derived from international
law instead of the United States Constitution's Bill of Rights.


In the meantime, when I hear a story about a brave marine roughing
up an Iraqi terrorist to obtain information, know this: I don't care.


When I see a fuzzy photo of a pile of naked Iraqi prisoners who have been humiliated in what amounts to a college hazing incident, rest assured that I don't care.


When I see a wounded terrorist get shot in the head when he is told
not to move because he might be booby-trapped, you can take it to the bank
that........... I don't care.


When I hear that a prisoner, who was issued a Koran and a prayer
mat, and fed "special" food that is paid for by my tax dollars,
is complaining that his holy book is being "mishandled," you can
absolutely believe in your heart of hearts that ....... I don't care.


And oh, by the way, I've noticed that sometimes it's spelled "Koran"
and other times "Quran." Well, Jimmy Crack Corn and
---- you guessed it, I could not have said this any better myself!


If you agree with this view point, pass this on to all your e-mail
friends. Sooner or later, it'll get to the people responsible for this
ridiculous behavior!

If you don't agree, then by all means hit the delete button.

Should you choose the latter, then please don't complain when more
atrocities committed by radical Muslims happen here in our great country

9:51 AM - 1 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

Boredom

Mine just came out really funny, so I wanted to pass this on

Put your music library on shuffle and answer the questions with songs in the order they come up. it doesn't really make sense at times, but some answers you come up with will freak you out.

It's sort of like a modern day 8 ball.. but more fun :)

1. What's my mood like right now?
Until it sleeps - Metallica

2. How's tomorrow going to be for me?
Putting a Jihad on you - Team America Soundtrack

3. What kind of person am I?
If I could be like that - 3 doors down

4. Am I loved?
Nobody's listening - Linkin Park  (ouch that hurts!)

5. How can I achieve my highest potential?
Blind - Korn  (WTF?)

6. What should I do with my life?
Cowboys like us - Georga Strait

7. Is everything really going to be alright in the end?
Twenty Three - Yellowcard

8. What is my best quality?
A.D.I.D.A.S - Korn   (Shit yeah!!)

9. How does my sex life look?
The end of the line - Offspring  (Fuck....)

10. What's the meaning of life?
Otherside - RHCP

11. What do people think of me?
Frijolero - Molotov  (I'm not that mexican damn it)

12. Would I make a good catch?
The Clincher - Chevelle

13. How crazy am I?
Hit that - Offspring

14. Will I have a good life in general?
Sad but true - Metallica

15. Can (insert name here) ever really love me?
Hypnotize - System of a Down  (Maybe that would work....)

16. Can I and (insert name here) ever be more than friends?
every breath you take - the Police

17. What's going to happen to me this week?
For whom the bell tolls - Metallica

18. Where will I be a year from now?
Tehran - Offspring  (Iraq is gonna be bad enough, now this shitty thing thinks I am gonna get stuck in Iraq.  Fuck me SIDEWAYS!!!)

19. What is my biggest wish?
Fuck you like an animal - NIN

20. What is the love of my life doing at this very moment?
I wish you were here - Incubus

21. How will I die?
Do this anymore - Nickelback

22. What will happen after I die?
I stand alone - Godsmack

23. How do my friends feel about me?
The boys are back in town - Thin Lizzy

5:46 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment