Just days before I traveled down to Joplin to shoot video of Rush Limbaugh, I learned about the Missouri Film Office. What I learned was that, in an unusual pique of fiscal restraint, it was cut from the budget at the end of June. In the 2+ years that I've been doing video online, it never occurred to me that I should be pestering the Missouri Film Office for some of that crony capitalism they dole out. Even without the help of the Film Office the video above of Rush Limbaugh passed the 100,000 views mark this past Sunday. Yeah, a million would be more impressive, but the only way to get that many views is to incorporate cats.
Of the 500+ videos I've put on YouTube, only two have passed the 100,000 mark. Both were mentioned on-air by the Maha Rushie. Here's my Saving Healthcare video he mentioned back in 2009 and thanks Rush!
I drove down to Joplin, MO, on Independence Day to hear Rush Limbaugh's message to the people devastated by a tornado a couple months ago. I was also there to find out more about how the city was recovering and rebuilding.
Rush delivered a message about American Exceptionalism that focused on the uniqueness of our country's founding 235 years ago. He spoke of the importance of freedom as well as America's tradition of helping those in need.
In addition to his comments, Rush arranged for a truckload of his new brand of bottled tea, Two If by Tea, to be delivered to the crowd. I tried the rasberry tea and thought it was quite good.
Rep. Todd Akin (R-MO) was there with his wife and two of his children as well as some campaign workers handing out literature for his Senate bid. If Akin wins the Republican primary, he will face Claire McCaskill (D-MO) in the 2012 general election.
Before heading over to Landreth Park for the Fourth of July celebration, I stopped by New Creation Church. New Creation is one of the many churches in Joplin that is working to rebuild the community that was devastated by the tornado. I posted a video message from Pastor Cliff Mansley about two weeks ago, so I wanted to see what was happening on the ground at his church. Cliff was spending some much deserved downtime on this holiday with his family, but I was able to speak to his assistant, Joseph Hobbs.
New Creation Church is just outside the area of Joplin that was devastated by the tornado. It didn't suffer any significant damage and has, therefore, been a distribution center and a sort of hotel for volunteers working in the area. They receive truckloads of supplies each week and distribute them to people in need; however, the volunteer work is the real ministry of the church. I think they would agree that at this stage of the recovery, it is more important to send volunteers than more canned goods though both are welcome.
Joseph explained the process of recovery that he's witnessed so far. After survivors were rescued and the initial shock had passed, there was a lot of cleanup work. That's ongoing, but then came the heavy demolition. Houses that were no longer habitable were knocked down leaving only a foundation and sometimes not even that. That process will continue for a while; however, Joplin is now entering the construction phase. Houses that were salvagable are being repaired.
This transition in work is important to understand if you're planning to volunteer in Joplin. Carpenters, brick layers, plumbers, and electricians are becoming more and more important as time passes. If you have those skills, please contact New Creation or another church or organization working to rebuild Joplin. I know that New Creation has added shower facilities and cots and I know that they're booked through July, but would love to have more volunteers in August, September, and on through the rest of the year. I'm not sure exactly how many people they can accomdate at a time, but groups up to about 50 could call New Creation a home away from home for a few days or a weeks as they help families in Joplin rebuild. Here's the contact information for New Creation (Sunday worship is at 10AM):
1831 S. Connor Ave.
Joplin, MO 64804
417-782-8200
info@newcreation-joplin.com
Each tick of the clock brings us closer to the expiration of the Bush tax cuts. Rush Limbaugh has come out against the compromise bill as has far-left Senator Bernie Sanders. President Obama has unwittingly united the left and the right, but what's gnawing at him is the ghost of George W. Bush.
Having won the presidency in 2008 largely by vilifying Bush, Barack Obama is now facing the reality that Bush's tax cuts will become Obama's Tax Hike Extravaganza at the stroke of midnight that begins the new year. And Obama will receive the blame because of his failure to lead on Tuesday, his abdication on Friday, and the fact that Democrats have controlled both houses of Congress and the Presidency for the past two years. Thus the nation plods, zombie-like, toward the economic catastrophe of higher taxes for all.
With Democrats holding a majority on the FCC's board, lefties are salivating over a post-election opportunity to quietly impose a crackdown on free speech in talk radio. There's little risk in approving a rule change during the holidays when few are paying attention and it can no longer be raised as a campaign issue.
Brazenly suggesting that Rush Limbaugh personally be targeted, the Reverend Al Sharpton is most certainly on board with this idea.
When Ted Rall called for armed rebellion and a second civil war, did Al ask for him to be censored? When The Won told his minions to hit back twice as hard, did Al decry the violent rhetoric? When the New Black Panthers brandished weapons at a polling place in 2008, did Al seek remedies for the voters that had been disenfranchised? Having lost in the arena of ideas, Al and the left have nothing but violence as a means of spreading their message.
In an e-mail sent to Zev Chafets, author of the new book "Rush Limbaugh: An Army of One," Limbaugh admitted, "I know I am a target and I know I will be destroyed eventually. I fear that all I have accomplished and all the wealth I have accumulated will be taken from me, to the cheers of the crowd. I know I am hated and despised by the American Left."
Proscription is the government sanctioned murder of political opponents—so called "enemies of the state." In ancient Rome, it functioned like a death tax. The property of the proscribed was auctioned off, those responsible for capturing or killing the person were awarded a bounty, and the rest of the estate went to Rome. That's pretty much what Rush fears.
Rush, we understand your concern, but don't worry. You're the Obi-Wan Kenobi of conservative talk radio: "If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you could possibly imagine." As a mentor of mine frequently said: "the pioneers take the arrows and the settlers take the land." You've taken the arrows so that others—Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, Hugh Hewitt, and Dana Loesch—could stake a claim to parts of this conservative land. You've raised the bar. You've set the standard by which all who follow will, not only be measured, but strive to surpass.
One of Rome's greatest orators, Cicero, was a defender of the republican form of government. He died under Mark Antony's proscription.
Ann Althouse condemns the incivility leveled at Rush Limbaugh in light of his recent hospitalization:
Rush Limbaugh has said on his show many times that once the government runs health care, there is a threat that life-or-death decisions will be made based on politics, and people will worry that if they criticize the government or espouse the wrong opinions decisions will go against them.
This topic is covered at length in Friedrich von Hayek's The Road to Serfdom. As I recall, the chapter "Who, Whom" discusses the incentives mismatch between those Who have administrative power and those on Whom they wield it. This is also why administrative law is such a problem.
The WSJ carries Rush's response to the critics of his NFL bid: "Numerous sportswriters, CNN, MSNBC, among others, falsely attributed to me statements I had never made. Their sources, as best I can tell, were Wikipedia and each other. But the Wikipedia post was based on a fabrication printed in a book that also lacked any citation to an actual source."
Does he realize that he could diamond stud that golden EIB microphone?
Content is still king. It always will be. There are more than a few rabid sports fans that listen to him. Why not add a "sports" tab to RushLimbaugh.com much like sports.yahoo.com? Listener/citizen reports on sporting events would allow him to build out his own sports wire service. Getting player and coach access for his reporters seems like the hardest part.
Sports is outside of the current mission of the EIB which focuses on political commentary. Ultimately, Rush should do this with political journalism. However, sports offers a kind of proving ground for an eventual move into political news gathering. Rush could start with NFL coverage. Add the NBA and NHL a couple months from now and continue doing that until all major US professional sports are integrated. Then add college sports.
News coverage of the sports world can be ramped up in chunks like this. I think that would be harder to do with political coverage. Sports news is also big enough that Rush's crack technical team can build out the infrastructure required for scalability, reliability, and maintainability. Once the sports "proof of concept" is humming, then he adds the EIB political wire.
Tea Party Conservative who began blogging at http://RebootCongress.NET when TARP passed. Email me: contact@RebootCongress.net. Help support my work: Donate Bitcoins
," Limbaugh admitted, "I know I am a target and I know I will be destroyed eventually. I fear that all I have accomplished and all the wealth I have accumulated will be taken from me, to the cheers of the crowd. I know I am hated and despised by the American Left." 
. As I recall, the chapter "Who, Whom" discusses the incentives mismatch between those Who have administrative power and those on Whom they wield it. This is also why 
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