(Crossposted at David Horowitz’s NewsReal Blog)

Even when he loses, he wins.

To be perfectly honest, I had no idea that conservative media mogul Andrew Breitbart was a front-page contributor to Arianna Huffington’s left-wing news rag. I always imagined that he had more class than that, but who knew?

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The other day, I wrote about the Amazon.com distribution plant in Cayce, and the proposed sales tax exemption (worth 40 million dollars!) that former Governor Sanford promised Amazon.

As I predicted, the people trying to push this idea through would to attempt to slip in the kickback as a proviso during Budget Week (which is this week).

Guess what? The promoters of the Amazon Kickback are doing just that. Gosh, I must be psychic or something.

Sometime this week, Rep. Dan Cooper (R-Anderson), and a few other House Republicans, are planning to slip in a proviso that will put the Amazon Kickback into law, at the urging of Commerce Secretary Bobby Hitt and his allies.

The advantage of slipping in the Amazon.com sales tax exemption as a proviso, is that only the most astute lawmaker would notice that such a thing has been done, and the whole maneuver would be executed in the figurative dead of night.

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Just who is Representative Keith Ellison (Democrat, MN-05)?

Is he one of two Muslim Congressmen?

Is he the heel to Rep. Peter King (R-NY), whose Homeland Security hearings  on the radicalization of American Muslims have been smeared as a “witch hunt”?

Is he the Congressman who—in his best Joseph Welch impression—recounted a tale (of which some are questioning the veracity) of Mohammed Salman Hamdani, a 23-year-old Pakistan-born American who sacrificed his life saving civilians from the 2001 Islamic terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center buildings

Or is he a radical himself, with ties to radical Islam himself?

Yes, yes, yes, and unfortunately, yes.

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Equality under the law is one of the cornerstones of capitalism.

What does that mean?

It means that, in order for free-market capitalism to thrive, the government can not be picking winners and losers, through the use of incentives and disincentives. Period.

According to sources, the latest organization to come out against the proposed sales tax break for the Lexington County-located Amazon.com distribution center was… drumroll please… the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce.

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(Hide yer kids, hide yer wife, e’rrybody readin’ Right Turns Only out hurr! Check it out today!)

Meet Columbia, SC lawyer Todd Kincannon: Republican… “Nationally noted parliamentarian.” Election law expert… Pop-culture connoisseur…  The blogosphere’s last, best hope against anti-blogger legal firms?

Anti-blogger legal firm RightHaven—best known for suing Senate candidate Sharron Angle for posting a portion of a Las Vegas Review-Journal article on her campaign website and demanding that she relinquish her ownership of her personal campaign website—is the brainchild of a Las Vegas attorney working for the owners of the Review-Journal, going after bloggers who reprint newspaper articles from their clients.

Since May 2010, 110 of RightHaven’s lawsuits against bloggers have been settled or closed. According to the Las Vegas Sun, the law firm’s predatory ways have likely generated hundreds of thousands of dollars, earned from bloggers unwilling or unable to fight the lawsuit in court.

However, one blogger is standing up to RightHaven’s founder, Steve Gibson. Dana Eiser, who runs the small blog Lowcounty912, counterclaimed Gibson’s claim, noting that commenting about and reprinting newspaper articles was protected by the fair use doctrine and the First Amendment. Kincannon also noted that RightHaven had violated South Carolina’s Unfair Trade Practices Act by suing Eiser, adding that Righthaven had committed unfair and deceptive acts by wrongly branding Eiser as a copyright infringer.

Also, the counterclaim notes that there is no provision in the Digital Millenium Copyright Act that provides for the transfer of domain names—in other words, Gibson and his hordes of attorneys were overreaching the boundaries set down by the law, in its pursuit of conservative bloggers who dared to talk about articles printed on dead trees.

Not only are the Summerville, SC native and the Columbia lawyer seeking to defend the rights of bloggers, they are calling the copyright-trollish Gibson out on his horse hockey. Team Eiser is asking for all of RightHaven’s ill-gotten funds to be refunded, to all the bloggers they’ve scalped or scammed into coughing up cash.

While I am not a lawyer, I know what a scam is, and what a scam looks like; RightHaven LLC is definitely a scam.

As the conservative blogosphere grows and evolves, we must remember that an attack on the rights to free speech against even the least of us is an attack on all of us. RightHaven attempted (and failed) to take down one of the first conservative New Media warriors, Matt Drudge. While Gibson’s attacks on new media don’t appear to be political, they do have political implications: the case of Diana Eiser and Lowcounty912 is definitely a warning shot across the bow of dying, progressive-dominated industries such as the Old Media.

Let the rallying cry of the online conservative movement echo across the BlogoWeb: “we’re here, we’re conservative, get used to it!”

[X-Posted at David Horowitz's NewsReal Blog... check it out!]

As yet another Middle East country falls to the spreading wave of protests and revolutions, here at home, malcontents are stirring up chaos, just as malcontents such as the Muslim Brotherhood stirred up the riots in Egypt.

In Wisconsin, Gov. Scott Walker’s plans to salvage his state’s budget from looming financial ruin by bringing the benefits of public-sector unions—such as teachers’ unions—in line with benefits received by private-sector unions, including removing public-sector unions’ collective bargaining privileges.

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[X-Posted at David Horowitz's NewsReal Blog... check it out!]

It’s come to this.

Facing flagging public support for their platform, Washington Democrats are now resorting to enlisting cartoon characters to help drum up support for funding public television with taxpayer money.

Yesterday, Representative Ed Markey (D-MA) held a press conference featuring the beloved public television cartoon character Arthur (from the eponymous “Arthur” show, which is in turn an adaptation of the “Arthur” series of books by children’s author Marc Brown), and the famous duo of Bert and Ernie from state-run television staple “Sesame Street. They joined together to protest House Republican leaders’ plans to reduce funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

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[X-Posted at David Horowitz's NewsReal Blog... check it out!]

It’s always done “for the children.”

Whether it’s ostracizing home-schooling, making power tools less useful and accessible, or reminding parents that Daddy Barack and Mommy Michelle know better than you which foods your children should eat, Big Government Progressives always seem to want to have control over you, from cradle to dinner table to grave.

In the past few months, states have been rushing to ban so-called “alcoholic energy drinks,” out of fears that minor children may die from ingesting too many mixed drinks. The most recognizable of these alcoholic drinks is called Four Loko, the so-called “black-out in can.”

In 2009, several state attorneys general—led by progressive Democrat and Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan (whom the New York Times believes to among the most likely women to become the first female President some day)—began an investigation against drinks similar to Four Loko, worried that the idea of mixing an energy drink and alcohol was an insidious plot by Big Booze to get kids illegally drunk. Four Loko, which is produced by graduates of Ohio University, fell under similar suspicion.

In 2010, progressive universities such as the University of Rhode Island made possession of Four Loko a crime; New Jersey’s Rampao College, Worcester State University, and Boston College banned the sale of Loko, effectively dictating legal consumers’ choices—because everyone knows that Adam Smith and his “invisible hand” would otherwise force energy drinks down little Johnny and Jane Collegiate’s throats, if given the choice.

The dangerous epidemic of consumers being able to choose products that Big Brother disapproved of went on merit outright bans in Pennsylvania, Oregon, New York, Michigan, Oklahoma, and Washington.

A few months ago, the Obama administration issued a warning to the manufacturers of Four Loko and similar drinks, warning that caffeine was an “unsafe food additive,” and that the federal government may issue sanctions against them, up to and including the seizure of all of their products currently on the market. Naturally, the justification for this draconian threat was “public health [concerns]“… because we can’t have any of the little people making decisions about what legal products they consume, can we?

Now, this exercise in creeping nanny statism has made its way to a most unlikely state—South Carolina. The same state that is leading the charge to allow states to opt-out of Obamacare, is now seeking to dictate what legal products consumers can consume.

The legislation, which passed with sadly bipartisan support, introduced a bit of twist during debate—a Democrat called the Republican-held House “socialist.” State Representative Todd Rutherford (D-Richland) wondered aloud why the allegedly conservative House GOP was seeking to create, in his words, “a nanny state.”

Rutherford went on to ask the deaf ears of his colleagues, “Why are we stepping in and becoming communists and socialists? Why is this not up to the individual 21 year old to drink, if they want?”

The refrain of the Four Loko haters is that they’re “concerned about underage consumption,” and about the “health risks” that the drink may pose—consumers may not be able to correctly gauge how inebriated they are after consuming alcohol, therefore Big Government must step in, because people might make bad personal decisions.

If one believes that the power of determination lies with the individual, and not the Government, then one should not support the banning of legal products, “for our own good.”

I don’t care if it’s “for the children,” there are already laws on the books to prevent children from getting “crunk in da club” off of Four Loko, or anything else alcoholic. If one decides to imbibe an adult beverage, one does so knowing the risks involved.

When it’s all said and done, it may be that the road to Nanny State Hell is paved with good intentions, and the road crew is manned by do-gooders from both political parties.

(Hide yer kids, hide yer wife, e’rrybody readin’ Right Turns Only out hurr! Check it out today!)

Before I begin, an explanation: If you say Ron Paul’s name backwards, he will be teleported back to the alien dimension from whence he originates. Therefore, I will be referring to him as Luap Nor as much as possible, in hopes of helping him return to his home.

Also, I noted before, that after other times I’ve written about Luap Nor, I was stalked by his supporters and was thoroughly creeped out. I warned them to not stalk me, and I would like to thank you creepy people for not stalking me after writing about him last time. Please continue to keep up the good behavior, namely not stalking me.

The writing was on the wall for Crazy Uncle Ron, for a long time.

In between his campaign’s constant spamming of the CPAC (that stands for Conservative Political Action Conference, for all you neophytes) Presidential Straw Poll, his supporters’ boorish disruption of speeches by Donald Rumsfeld and former Vice-President Dick Cheney, his calls for a new era of American isolationism,  or starting screaming matches with people in the conference halls, Ron Paul and his supporters lived up to their respective reputations of “crazy uncle” and “political gadflies.”

This year was the final straw for some, as Paul was removed as the national security adviser for Young Americans for Freedom, the group started by one of the most prominent and important conservatives in American history, William F. Buckley, Jr.

In a statement released today, YAF director Jordan Marks noted that “it’s a sad day in American history when a one-time conservative/libertarian stalwart has fallen more out of touch with America’s needs for national security then our current socialist presidential regime.”

According to the online political news agency Politico, the dispute between Paul and the Young Americans for Freedom stems from Paul’s pro-isolationist activities, and the disruptive tactics of the Paulistian hordes at CPAC.

Twisting the knife a bit, Marks went on to note that “Paul is clearly off his meds, and must be purged from public office… Good riddance and he won’t be missed.”

Is this the start of the exclusion of Uncle Ron from polite company? That remains to be seen, but the Young Americans for Freedom’s decision to remove the man who blames America first, and Israel second, for the evils of the world, is a great start towards that goal.

Besides, now that Paul—I mean, Luap— will have more time on his hand, now that he is now longer a part of YAF, he’ll have more time to spend with his friends, professional conspiracy theorists Alex Jones and Jesse “The Body” Ventura—who are both tenured professors of “Woo Woo Crazy Person-ology.”

Getting to spend more time with close friends is always a good thing, right?

(Hide yer kids, hide yer wife, e’rrybody readin’ Right Turns Only out hurr! Check it out today!)

Recently, the Communication Workers of America teamsters (or as one political wag calls them, “the Communista Workers of Amerika”) paid for a radio advertisement running on Ohio stations, extolling the virtues of Sen. Sherrod Brown… over two years before the election. Click play on the embedded Flash doohickey below, or click here to listen to the mp3 version.

Yep, someone’s scared. And they have good reason to be. Here’s why:

Sherrod Brown is the dimmer half of Ohio’s US Senate delegation, who lucked into the Senate seat by running against a weakened Sen. Mike DeWine in an abysmal year for Republicans all around, in 2006.

Since having the election pretty much gifted to him by circumstances beyond his control or influence, Brown’s pretty much served as a seat-filler. He votes the party line, does what Barack Obama tells him to, and pretty much just serves the interests of the Congressional Progressive Caucus that he sits with, as opposed to serving the interests of Ohio voters.

For those who don’t know, the Progressive Caucus was founded in 1991 by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), a self-described socialist. Some of the Progressive Caucus’s pet causes include the socialization of American health care, radical environmentalism, as well as the usual cadre of anti-American foreign policy goals that come with being a Democrat these days.

However, signs are starting to pop up, suggesting that, going into the run-up to 2012, Brown may be vulnerable.

A December poll by Democratic Party-leaning pollster PPP (PDF available here) found that only 43% of Ohio voters would vote for Brown, the same amount of people who would vote for current Ohio AG Mike DeWine, in a hypothetical grudge rematch.

The same poll found that Brown would squeak out a win over current Ohio lieutenant governor Mary Taylor, Brown taking 40% to Taylor’s 38%, ± 4.3%.

Interestingly, 65% of respondents reported that they did not know enough about Taylor to form an opinion, other than the fact that they’d rather have “Senator Taylor,” as opposed to “Senator Brown.”

Only 40% of voters had a favorable opinion of Sherrod, who is married to Cleveland Plain Dealer columnist Connie Schultz, whereas 37% had an unfavorable opinion.

PPP added an ominous warning for Brown, noting that “Brown’s ceiling right now is a dangerously low 43%, and he is only narrowly winning these hypothetical matchups because an unusually high 14-38% of Republicans and independents are undecided.”

Of course, this shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. If you are surprised, let me blind you with some political science.

According to OnTheIssues.org, a non-partisan website which tracks the votes and position statements of candidates and politicians across the nation, Sen. Brown accomplishes a feat that many would think implausible—being more liberal than Barack Obama.

As you can see from the chart, using data from OnTheIssues, Brown is not only more liberal than Obama, but also out-liberals arch-progressive Howard Dean, is in turn less liberal than former Ohio governor and supposed moderate, Ted Strickland.

The up-shot of all this? When your supporters and power base feel that you are in such statistical dire waters that they have to start campaigning before the campaign even starts, you know that you’re standing on sinking sand.