Blog Heap o'Links for February 2011

"Scarf it down, scarf it down, 'waaaaay down..."

We all know Michelle Obama's not going to preach that we have a national obesity crisis and then let the White House family and guests dine on anything but alfalfa sprouts and carrot sticks, right? Riiight....

The Obamas should be trusted to know what’s best for their kids and to define “moderation” on their own terms without outside interference and free from accusations of hypocrisy — provided the rest of us are receiving the same considerations in return and not under threat of being chased down by food cops clutching BMI calipers or with restaurants being told what to serve because we’re too stupid to order properly. But that’s not happening.

One more thing — not to nitpick, but the environmentally-conscious White House also violated a basic tenet found in “‘green’ your Super Bowl party” rules & regs by serving beers that weren’t brewed locally....

And when you've scarfed that down, check out the pictures of all the heatlhy eating habits the Obamas demonstrate on this HillBuzz page.

This White House has a very “do as we dictate, not as we do” mentality that permeates everything.

Visually, that hypocrisy is never more digestible, on a gut level, than when people see the Obamas chowing down on things they would deny others.

There's more Obamalama-ding-dong diet tips on this HillBuzz page

…allegations came to light Monday that the Church of Scientology is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for violating human trafficking laws. In particular, the allegations are that Sea Org practices may have violated human trafficking laws. Sea Org is a kind of fraternal religious order for the most devoted members of the Church of Scientology… claims that the church pays Sea Org workers as little as $50 per week, uses physical force to keep church members from escaping Scientology compounds, as well as other complaints of mistreatment of church members who try to quit, and allegations that dozens of apostates were confined in "reeducation camps" doing manual labor — sometimes for years….

There's some question on HillBuzz whether Ulsterman's "White House Insider" is a genuine source a la Deep Throat or a pastiche of sources and perhaps speculation. In any case, the WHI's messages are increasingly like this:

...[Obama's] primary focus is now getting elected in ‘12. Everything else has been given over to Jarrett and her group. Everything. The president has no interest in policy. None. No interest in working legislation. None. No interest in forging a specific agenda. None. He is being told what he needs to say and that is it. That is the extent of his interest. “Just make it look good.” Exact words right there. President Obama is obsessed 24/7 with just “looking good”. If something goes well, he gets happy and outgoing. If something makes him look badly, he lashes out and pouts. The man is bouncing off both of those extremes even more now than he used to and it appears to be getting worse and worse. The word “manic” is being used more and more regarding his moods these days....

...Jarrett expressed concern over possible newly passed eligibility requirements in states. If only one or two states clarify eligibility in order to run for office, White House will simply use those states as examples of “anti-Obama racism”. ...

...Others are now willing to let their observations be more known. Concern for the country is now winning over concern for their own political interests. Finally....

As with drugs and other moral prohibitions, I believe the approach of blanket criminalization of abortion is inappropriate. To the epidemics of mammon -- like drug over-indulgence and the degeneracy and confusion which results in the epidemic of unintended and unwanted pregnancies and consequent abortion -- fundamentally, healthy bodies, minds, and families, and powerful, rightly-directed devotion are the only real *preventative* answer. Which, plainly, is the long, slow, hard road.

While heading there, regardless of our thinking in how to deal with the issues, we'd all like DATA if the government has it, right?

Obama Administration Covering Up Abortion Data

The CDC Coverup Now Turns to Bureaucratic Panic

Here's a beautiful story, linked from Drudge, and is now wide-spread, but in case you didn't see it, a family adopts the canine companion of the fallen Marine son.