This story is sad, but still amusing.

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WTVC-TV) - A 4-year-old boy, beer in hand, is accused of stealing Christmas presents from his neighbors. It's a strange story, but also a sad one.

April Wright is 21 years old and is going through a divorce with her husband who is in jail. She says she is not sure how her 4-year-old managed to get out of the house, open a beer, and steal the neighbors presents from under their tree. Now she's just glad he's okay and says she won't let it happen again.

I hope April Wright practices better judgment in her future endeavors.

I wonder who brought this incident to the attention of the media? Oh yeah... judgment...

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Alan Greenspan is warning of possible problems with the national deficit.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan on Thursday backed a call for creation of a bipartisan commission to make the tough calls needed to cut the record federal deficit.

"I trust any such taskforce will address the very thorny issue of the asymmetrical consequences of too much or too little fiscal restraint," Greenspan said.

The 18-member commission would weigh tax increases, spending cuts and other approaches needed to prevent the ballooning national debt -- currently at $12 trillion -- from compromising the United States' long-term strength.

The commission -- a tried-and-true Washington tactic for politicians to offload painful choices -- could make it easier for lawmakers to sign off on unpopular measures like trimming retirement spending or raising taxes to get the budget back in line.

How in the world is this commission going to address "spending cuts?" The house just approved a measure to increase the debt limit by $290 billion. Does anyone "really" buy into this mess?

The result of the commission's findings will result in a recommendation of tax increases. If the government is increasing the debt ceiling, how is there any hope of reducing the deficit? This is surreal.

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Get a load of this!

‘And here’s the most outrageous part: at the end of this rush, they want us to vote on a bill that no one outside the Majority Leader’s conference room has even seen. That’s right. The final bill we’ll vote on isn’t even the one we’ve had on the floor. It’s the deal Democrat leaders have been trying to work out in private’

“Senators on both sides acknowledge that the health care bill we’re considering is among the most significant pieces of legislation any of us will ever consider.

This is insane! What is this legislation "really" attempting to accomplish? Is this not tyrannical!?

If the "rules" of the Senate are bypassed, what good are the rules? What the hell is going on here!

The American people didn't elect a dictator, or did they?

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Now we have this words that the "pay czar" is going to limit the salaries of some companies which received bailout money.

BY DEBORAH SOLOMON IN WASHINGTON AND SARA SCHAEFER MUÑOZ AND ALISTAIR MACDONALD IN LONDON

Authorities on both sides of the Atlantic are moving to enact tough curbs on pay, in an indication that governments are taking increasingly aggressive steps to rein in compensation after the financial crisis.

In the U.S., the Treasury Department's pay czar, Kenneth Feinberg, is poised to enact tougher-than-expected rules for employees at companies that received large amounts of government assistance. The U.K. on Wednesday slapped banks with a 50% tax on portions of bonuses they pay to individuals, in perhaps the most aggressive move yet by a government.

Mr. Feinberg has already capped salaries of top employees under his review. ...

I have a question. Why is it that CEOs "need" to have their salaries capped? I know that these companies received bail-out money, but there are plenty of private institutions which receive government money. Football (the NFL) for example. Many city and state governments are involved (financially) in the construction of stadiums. Why is there no cry to limit the pay of professional athletes?

There also have been quite a few movies which have received government funds during production. Where is the outcry to limit the pay of actors?

Athletes and actors generally don't employ many people. A CEO who brings a large company "back from the brink" could potentially save thousands of jobs. Why is the CEO looked at as a bad guy, but the athletes and actors are not? Moreover; why is the government even involved in pay decisions at all?

Just a thought...

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Apparently in China; population control is keeping things "green." Of course this story in China Daily does not underscore the wicked ways by which population control is implemented.

COPENHAGEN: Population and climate change are intertwined but the population issue has remained a blind spot when countries discuss ways to mitigate climate change and slow down global warming, according to Zhao Baige, vice-minister of National Population and Family Planning Commission of China (NPFPC).

"Dealing with climate change is not simply an issue of CO2 emission reduction but a comprehensive challenge involving political, economic, social, cultural and ecological issues, and the population concern fits right into the picture," said Zhao, who is a member of the Chinese government delegation.

Many studies link population growth with emissions and the effect of climate change.

Meanwhile, she said studies have also shown that family planning programs are more efficient in helping cut emissions, citing research by Thomas Wire of London School of Economics that states: "Each $7 spent on basic family planning would reduce CO2 emissions by more than one ton" whereas it would cost $13 for reduced deforestation, $24 to use wind technology, $51 for solar power, $93 for introducing hybrid cars and $131 electric vehicles.

She admitted that China's population program is not without consequences, as the country is entering the aging society fast and facing the problem of gender imbalance.

"I'm not saying that what we have done is 100 percent right, but I'm sure we are going in the right direction and now 1.3 billion people have benefited," she said.

She said some 85 percent of the Chinese women in reproductive age use contraceptives, the highest rate in the world. This has been achieved largely through education and improvement of people's lives, she said.

This holistic approach that integrates policy on population and development, a strategy promoting sustainable development of population, resources and environment should serve as a model for integrating population programs into the framework of climate change adaptation, she said.

So China is doing its part to curb greenhouse gases --by controlling its population? The only problem here is that China was controlling its population long before the whole Climate Change / Global Warming issue was even cooked up. I suppose now China feels that it can be a little more open with what it has done. Hey, "1.3 billion people have benefited," said Zhao Baige.

The Chinese must be paying attention to the Obama administration. The Obama administration came out with a number to represent how many jobs were saved by the Stimulus Package. Now the Chinese are claiming 1.3 billion people benefited from government enforced population control. China's 1.3 billion number is just as absurd as Obama's "jobs saved" numbers. It's like claiming you can calculate how much rain didn't fall in any given area!

The question still remains; how many people has the Chinese government killed and will kill in their quest for population control? The Chinese government will kill as many people as they choose, the only difference is that they are not going to be "called out" on human rights issues because they are killing people for the environment.

Population control is "A O.K." so long as the environment is the goal. Besides, China never claimed to uphold any human rights standard, so they can do whatever they want right?

Morality by consensus is a scary thing; especially if you were born in China!

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