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The first day of spring also brought a change in BeezleBub's activities at the farm. Instead of splitting more firewood for next winter or working at the sawmill to finish sawing timbers for new construction at the farm stand, he spent the day working in the greenhouses, getting pots ready to take transplanted tomatoes and peppers. Farmer Andy got the wood-fired boiler used to heat the greenhouses going, burning the first of the 80 cords of firewood he harvested for that purpose. (He used to use oil to heat them in the past, but changed over to wood when he realized it would cost far less to use his own renewable resources. The wood-fired system paid for itself in the first season, eliminating the need to buy 11,000 gallons of oil he usually used to heat the greenhouses.)The greenhouse growing season has started.
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The House vote on ObamaCare is slated for today. While some members of the MSM are already crowing about success of passage (Bill Weir of ABC being one of the worst, not bothering to hide his liberal bias), others are saying it's too close to call and are unwilling to predict the outcome of the vote.**********
Glenn Reynolds has a round up of yesterday's anti-ObamaCare protests.While claims of racism have been leveled against the protesters, primarily TEA party supporters, it's been the anti-TEA party folks slinging the sexual and racial epithets towards TEA partiers. It's the old double standard being applied...again.
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Zombie tells us why most of America hates ObamaCare: no one wants to pay for the medical care of those unwilling to take responsibility for their own actions in regards to their health.As Zombie writes:
Zombie also provides a number of telling examples, showing us some patients are entirely at fault for their condition, but blame their doctor for telling them the truth.
A built-in false assumption with the health-care debate is that sickness is always no-fault sickness. It’s never socially acceptable to assign blame for people’s medical problems — especially blame on the patient.
But I’m not afraid to confess that I’m a judgmental person. And I’m pretty confident that most Americans who oppose socialized medicine share this same judgment: that some people are partly or entirely to blame for their unwellness.
(H/T Instapundit)
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Bogie lays a twofer on us, giving us a view of a “real hardy New England gardener,” and reasons why riding season hasn't started yet in her neck of the woods.**********
Rocketman shows us a visual guide of how Obama's politics work, including going outside constitutionally defined means to get his way on a host of issues. Then again, he's never really liked the Constitution because it limits what he can and cannot decree, meaning he can't just proclaim himself President-for-Life like so many of his socialist friends and allies.**********
Right Truth offers some interesting health care statistics that should give anyone supporting ObamaCare some pause.But then ObamaCare has never really been about health care reform, has it?
(H/T Pirate's Cove)
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Powerline reports the latest Rasmussen poll shows a majority of Americans (54%) are still against ObamaCare. This despite all of Obama's appearances - primarily in Democrat strongholds - to push this steaming pile of manure.**********
David Starr has important advice for hand tool manufacturers, specifically those making screwdrivers, chisels, and scribes.**********
One of the biggest lessons learned by the US Army in Iraq and Afghanistan?The traditional physical training used by soldiers needed to be changed to reflect the realities of combat.
Good training always increases the prospect of survival in combat.
Heeding the advice of Iraq and Afghanistan combat veterans, commanders are dropping five-mile runs and bayonet drills in favor of zigzag sprints and exercises that hone core muscles. Battlefield sergeants say that's the kind of fitness needed to dodge across alleys, walk patrol with heavy packs and body armor or haul a buddy out of a burning vehicle.
(H/T Granite State Pundit )
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Let this example be a cautionary tale when it comes to refinancing your mortgage, particularly when the 'refinance' offer comes from someone you don't know.**********
Topless gardening? Oh, yeah, bring it on!**********
Is New Hampshire in danger of becoming a welfare state like California, Michigan, New Jersey, and New York?Yes, if the state legislature keeps adding all kinds of 'essential' services - essential being defined purely by the Democrats – and boosting taxes and fees to unsustainable levels. The legislature seems incapable of learning lessons from our surrounding states, all of which have expansive welfare systems and below par economic performance in relation to New Hampshire. They haven't made the connection between welfare benefits and economic performance, where as one goes up the other goes down.