HOLDING THE GROUND AT CPAC 2011

UPDATE: I've been cleaning up some of the HTML issues.

 

The lobby of the Marriott Wardman Park packed with CPAC attendees

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CLICK HERE FOR CPAC DAY TWO PHOTOS
CLICK HERE FOR CPAC DAY THREE PHOTOS

The speeches have ended, the panel rooms empty, the internet/AM radio bands are silent, the bars are empty and  the Bank of Kev staff is safely back home in their respective corners of the country.

CPAC 2011 is over.

What a ride it has been these 12 months. To be honest I cant talk about CPAC 2011 without talking about CPAC 2010 first since they are linked in many ways. 

                                                   
                            ACU Chairman David Keene speaks in the main hall at CPAC 2010

When I first started the Bank of Kev presence at CPAC in 2010 in many ways it was relatively easy to get noticed. Despite a lack of funding, organization, experience and infrastructure we had several factors working in our favor:

-       We were the new kids in town so we had no previous record to be judged by.

-       We did panels/events that no one else was doing at the conference.

-       The Bank of Kev Productions name created a high level of curiosity in who we were and what we were doing.

These factors along with our high quality content led us to a great inaugural year at CPAC. The conference ran so smoothly from the travel (clear weather no delays for anyone on my staff) to the panels/events that it even I was shocked at how well it went.  This came home to me on Saturday night after the conference ended when a woman came up to me and just simply said “congratulations”. While I did not recognize her at first she told me how she met me on Wednesday night before the conference had began and how I gave her an overview of our panels/events at the conference. She then said this (paraphrasing):

“When I saw you walking through the bar I could tell you were tired but I could also tell your events went really well by just looking at your demeanor. I could just tell it was a great success.”

She also went on to tell me how she kept hearing about how much fun these “Bank of Kev panels” were to attend and then asked if I was planning on attending as (then what was called) a Co-Sponsor next year. I gave the standard answer of “I haven’t made a decision yet” to which she replied.

“I hope you do come back, we NEED people like you who do what you do.”

Uh-Oh pressure!

While breaking new ground is difficult and labor intensive it also has some advances since the bar of success can often be quite low since you have no competitors. This came up during a discussion with one my staffers when I told them that “Breaking new ground is easy, holding on to that ground and building on it is hard.” 

         
               My amazing Bank of Kev CPAC 2010 Staff. These people made it all happen while I took pictures.

I knew right when that woman spoke to me the bar that we would have to not only hold but build on the ground we took in 2010.  Experience has taught me that is not an easy thing to do and often those second years are far more difficult than the first.

Flash forward to Monday February 7, 2011. There is a major snowstorm bearing down on the middle of the country and threatens to shut down the DFW airport (which already was disabled by a snowstorm the previous week.) and several other airports that my staffers are going to fly out of. I’m frantically on my cel phone re-booking my and several of my staffers travel plans to avoid the storm.  These re-booking made one of my staffers land in D.C. at 1 a.m. Wednesday morning and I and Joy McCann having to take a red eye to MIA (on a 757 in coach which sucks donkey) and on to D.C. so we would not get stuck in DFW. 

 

              

  When this happens at DFW you need to start making other arrangements or you gonna get stuck.

 SIDE NOTE: When I landed in DC went on to AA.com and looked at our flights from our original itinerary and saw that all the flights we were to take out of DFW to DCA were cancelled. Had I stuck with the original plan it would have been a disaster!

While everyone all arrived safely and we began to gather I was already super tired (from no sleep and super stress from traveling) but I got what I call the CPAC surge and my energy level was high ready to take on the tasks ahead of us. 

 

Last year we did the Stage Right Show live from the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel lobby bar and it was a rocking place to be. Great people, amazing guests, cool drinks and entertaining show (both on the radio and at the bar) for all concerned. However, not this year, the hotel ordered us to vacate to the “CPAC side” of the hotel so that’s what we did. Luckily @PJTV Exec Producer Owen Brennan came to our rescue and graciously let us use the PJTV booth space to Wednesday nights show.

This one of the things I like about CPAC, is how many people/groups will come to your aid when you need help.  While I knew some individual employees there (  really did not know PJTV on corporate level , yet they stepped right up and offered us help when we needed it. 

 

Yes we were thrown a curve ball but my staff  with a great assist from PJTV came through and we turned a dead area (at that time) of the hotel into a rocking place. As we did the show we could not help but notice that the bar was much quieter than last year. Watching this all unfold in front of me, I was reminded of the famous quote from Fast Times at Ridgemont High.

“Act like wherever you are, that's the place to be.”

THURSDAY DAY 1 - GETTING STARTED IN HOLLYWOOD

Last year when we did this panel it was just Larry O’Connor (now Editor in Chief of Breitbart.TV) and myself. We spoke to a standing room only crowd and there was a surprising amount of press coverage. This year we had two new additions Big Hollywood Editor in Chief, John Nolte and BigDawgMusicMafia.com founder Lisa Mei Norton.  Having Larry, John and Lisa join me on the panel was great and even better was the turnout we had more people than last year and even hit CNN.com

 

     Lisa Mei Norton (left), Kevin McKeever (center left), John Nolte (center right), Larry O'Connor (right) at CPAC

 

John Nolte wrote a great write up on the panel and here is an excerpt.

No bitterness, no complaining, no excuse-making. They weren’t there to hear how bad it is for conservatives in the entertainment business or to make excuses for why they haven’t sold a script yet. They were there as conservative actors, writers, filmmakers and musicians for advice on how to succeed and move forward in a very tough business. Between O’Connor’s good humor and experience in theatre and McKeever’s production background, the main message was pretty clear: be an artist first, learn your craft, make contacts and keep your politics to yourself.

[snip]

 Out of all of us, though, Lisa Mei Norton of Big Dawg Music Mafia is probably the most important example for conservatives eager to enter the arts. Rather than wait around for Hollywood to have some kind of moral awakening to their ideological totalitarianism, she went ahead and started her own company to give conservative musicians an outlet to publicize their work. That’s what I like to see…

Yes go read the whole thing.
 

One thing this panel represented was the amount of depth that is starting to come thorough on the Bank of Kev panels. Having both John and Lisa Mei added such great depth and fun to these panels and I look forward to working with them both in the future. 
 

THE GOPROUD / ANDREW BREITBART BIG PARTY
   

A great video from ReasonTV about the party. Watching the video will give you a good idea of what it was like.Be sure to watch the whole thing so you can see the interview with Sophie B Hawkins.  
 

Much has been written about the “controversy”  of GOProud at CPAC. With out going into to it too much I will simply state that I am honored to be a supporter and an ally of GOProud. I attended their Homocon headlined by Ann Coulter in New York City in September (much fun even when I got stuck in the elevator) and consider GOProud’s leadership team of Jimmy LaSalvia, Chris Barron and Bruce Carroll to be my friends. 
 

                      
                       Sophie B. Hawkins rocks the house at the GOProud BIG PARTY 

So lets be blunt: The GOProud/Andrew Breitbart Big Party was an amazing success. Here is what the founder of PJTV Roger Simon thought of it.

The party staged by Andrew Breitbart for GOProud — the gay Republican and conservative group — was as close to a game changer as things get and the most interesting event at CPAC by far, at least to this point — and that’s meant as no insult to CPAC. With sexy Sophie B. Hawkins singing to a boisterous, supportive crowd, the party almost obliterated in one night the conception that Republicans are anti-gay and gave the impression that young libertarians — and some not so young — are taking over the GOP.

 [snip]

So a word about my friend Andrew. I’m told he got a lot of flack for staging this event. But as I said to his business partner Larry Solov, every time you do something important or new or even interesting, you are going to get flack. And I must say this of Andrew, he is the only man I know who could have pulled something like this off with such elan. Forget for a moment the dissension such developments always engender. Andrew Breitbart proved them wrong with a party. Party on, Andrew.

I completely agree with Roger here. This party was a game changer, the question is how big of a game changer it was. We wont know for a while but I think it will benefit everyone in the long run. 

Why?

Well one thing I like about GOProud is that they make a concerted effort to work with people on things they can agree on. What even better is that  if you disagree with them on issues they will still welcome you with open arms. Numerous times during the party I saw Chris Barron personally welcome people who would be classified as "Social Conservatives" (they have the resume to prove it) and  have publicly stated that DADT should not be repealed, think marriage should be between one man and one woman.  Chris, Jimmy and the entire GOProud staff (not to mention everyone at the party) welcomed with out a second thought. 
 

    GOProud's Chris Barron is interviewed by Larry O'Connor at the BIG PARTY while Producer Meredith Dake looks on.
 

Everyone who was there wanted to have a good time and that is exactly what happened. During the party people would stop me just to say thank you for sponsoring such a great party. Several people told me that this is what CPAC needed to have: A place where we could have fun and celebrate! 
 

   Producer Meredith Dake (left) hangs out with BigJournalism.com Editor-In Chief Dana     

   Loesch

Hearing people say that made it worth every penny. 

SIDE NOTE: The next  morning I ran into GOProud's Jimmy LaSalvia and he said it the best: 

 "That was the best party I have ever been to!" 
 

I could not agree more!
 

THE BOOTH

This at CPAC we had a booth. Well sort of. I worked out a deal with the group Students For Liberty and its executive director Alexander McCobin. You might remember Alexander from CPAC 2010. 


 
"Freedom does not come in pieces!"

This is my type of guy! So Alexander got his booth crew together and ran the Students For Liberty booth. These guys work so hard that when I told them to start slacking this was the nest they could do.

 

When I ask them to start slacking this is the best they could do. 

Alexander told me the booth was mobbed during the whole conference.

FRIDAY DAY 2 - ANDREW IAN DODGE AND THE WORLD OF TOMORROW 

To give an idea how far things for the Bank of Kev have grown one needed only to attend the Andrew Ian Dodge and the World Of Tomorrow panel on Friday. At the start of the panel Andrew announced he was running against Olympia Snowe for the Republican Nomination for Senate in 2012. The place was packed with press and here is a sample links of the impressive coverage he generated.

Maine tea partier announces (Politico) , 
Tea Party Targets Olympia Snowe (Slate)
 CPAC 2011: The Candidate and his Birth Certificate (Slate), 
Tea partier Andrew Ian Dodge launches campaign against Snowe (Washington Post)

 You can access Andrew's Campaign Website here. 

SATURDAY DAY 3 - BLOGGER FREE FOR ALL
 

                                 The Bank of Kev Blogger Free-For-All powered by Sheep Gas!

 Saturday I gathered my bloggers and piled them into a room for my annual Bank of Kev Blogger Free-For-All. So you are probably wondering what goes on at my blogger Free-For-All? Well Gay Patriot has a nice description. 

I was honored to be on the panel with Tony Katz from the Tony Katz Radio Spectacular, Tania Gail from Midnight Blue Says, Joy – aka – Little Miss Attila, Alexander McCobin from Students for Liberty, and Doug Welch from Stixblog. The whole affair was sponsored byKevin McKeever from Bank of Kev Productions.

Our discussion truly was a free-for-all.  We ranged from topics like our 2012 Presidential outlook (Mine –> grim.); how to become a well-read blog; and what the definition of “conservative” is all about.  These are great conservative bloggers and I always love to be in their company.

There was this report from LittleMissAtillia.com

Gay Patriot and I have a friendly wager going regarding the 2012 election, which he sees as a potential replay of 1996 and I see more in terms of 1980. In other words, he thinks Obama is likely to win reelection, and I think he is not.

The bet originated during the BankOfKev Blogger Free for All, and the stakes are dinner at CPAC 2013. If I lose, I buy dinner for him and his boyfriend; if GP loses, he buys it for me and my husband, if I’m able to bring him out there that year. (The GP mate agrees with me, and as far as dinner is concerned, he notes that “either way, I win, since Bruce is paying.” As you can imagine, there’s been a lot of smack talk, and every time one of us makes a good point to support our point of view, it’s generally underscored with a remark about our expensive tastes in food.)

Yes the bet does exist and I will make sure the loser of that bet pays up even if I dont get any food. (hey wait a minute)

CLOSING THOUGHTS

 

    Lisa Mei Norton of BigDawgMusicMafia.com (left), Larry O'Connor of Breitbart.TV (center) and 

   Meredith Dake Producer of the Stage Right Show (right) at CPAC 2011 on Friday night in the bar. 

 

Despite some bumps early on CPAC 2011 was an amazing success for Bank of Kev Productions in all respects.  Not only did we hold our ground from last year we actually strengthened our position and came out of CPAC with a great deal of momentum. It worth getting the CPACPlague and being sick the whole next week.
 

                                     Relaxing in the bar on Saturday night after CPAC had ended.

On Saturday night as most of my crew hung out in the bar an attendee came up to me and asked if I was going to do it again. As before I gave him the standard answer of how I have not made a decision yet. He responded like so:

  "You got to come back! It wouldn't be CPAC without the Bank of Kev here!"

It was then I realized that CPAC 2012 is closer than you think.

 

See you all next year! 

PRICE OF OIL STABALIZES BUT GAS PRICES CONTINUE TO RISE

First off the price of oil has stabilized for now.

NEW YORK, Feb 25 (Reuters) - Equity markets rallied after a week-long selloff on Friday and crude prices eased from this week's peaks as Saudi Arabia boosted oil output to calm fears of supply disruptions sparked by the uprising in Libya.

Gold and bond prices rose, however, reflecting concerns that the uprising in Libya could spread to oil-producing countries in the Middle East and crimp global economic growth.

Saudi Arabia raised production about 8 percent to above 9 million barrels per day to make up for a near halt in Libyan exports, an industry source said, helping prices fall further from peaks last seen in 2008. For details see:[ID:nLDE71O1KA]
"The tensions in the Middle East seem to be less at the forefront of the market's mind. The initial panic seems to have subsided a bit," said Phil Gillett, a trader at Spreadex.

The Saudi move bolstered news that U.S. consumer sentiment rose to its highest level in three years in February, helping offset a bearish report that showed the U.S. economy grew slower than initially estimated in the fourth quarter. [ID:nN25299682] [ID:nN25247775]

The U.S. dollar rebounded against the euro but gold prices rose toward $1,410 an ounce and were on track for a fourth straight week of gains, supported by safe-haven demand.

However that may not last for long.

Oil production in Libya is expected to shut down completely and could be lost for a prolonged period of time, Bank of America Merrill Lynch said on Thursday.

"We expect Libyan production to be shut down completely and we might lose sweet crudes from Libya for a prolonged period of time," Bank of America Merrill Lynch analyst Sabine Schels told Reuters.

Schels said that the world faced the prospect of real supply shock in which the loss of 1.6 million barrels per day of sweet oil could potentially trigger a steep rise in prices and force a sharp reduction in demand to balance the system.

"Some of the supply can be replaced with Saudi light crude and some from SPR, but if the disruption is prolonged, we will need demand to drop to balance the system," Schels said.

  The bank is currently discussing scenarios and outlooks, and will publish a report on its findings in the coming days.

"We already faced a demand shock last year with global demand increasing by 2.8 million bpd and on top of that, what we have now is a real supply shock," Schels said.

"In a price shock scenario whereby we lose 1.6 million bpd, the rise in prices can be a lot greater than in the case of a demand shock.

Watch out folks this aint over yet as you get to deal with this at the pump.

                                        

Gas prices have finally caught up with soaring oil, jumping six cents overnight to a nationwide average of $3.29 cents a gallon, according to the American Automobile Association. Gas prices had already crept up another six cents earlier in the week, and experts expect further increases in the next few days.

If you havent already go on down and fill your tank up right now. The cost to fill it up increased six cents in 24 hours and we are no where near the big summer driving season yet. 

GOTTA CATCH EM ALL!

OIL AND GAS PRICES CONTINUE TO SOAR

Already we have Brent North Sea Crude trading at $119 USD per barrel, gasoline prices jump 11.2 cents per gallon in just a week, there are predictions that gas prices in California will go above $4 a gallon in a few weeks (well before the start of the summer driving season) If that wasnt enough looks like it will go much higher much faster. 

"We use a special blend of gasoline that's only used in California, and that is to control air pollution."

You read it right!  Brad Barbeau, Assistant Professor at the School of Business at CSUMB, says what you're putting in your car is helping to curb the pollution problem.  The problem is that it's more expensive to formulate compared to what other states use, so it hits you in your pocket.  Not to mention there's only 13 refineries in the state that make it.

"The amount of gasoline that's produced by those refineries is just about exactly equal to the amount of gasoline that's demanded," says Barbeau.  "So our market is very sensitive to changes in supply and demand."
Don't forget the taxes.

"In addition to the federal tax that everybody pays, we have an 18% state tax on gasoline," says Barbeau.  "Plus the local 7.5% sales tax."

The unrest in the Middle East is helping to drive those prices up as well, but Barbeau says to keep this in mind.  Libya exports only 2% of the world's oil supply and production is down by about 50%.  That means only 1% of the world's oil supply is interrupted at the moment. 

While Barbeau doesn't know how long prices will continue to rise, all eyes are on California.

"Who are you going to watch?  The one who's at an average price or the one who's going to hit $4 a gallon first," asks Barbeau.  "They're watching us because if we're going to hit four dollars a gallon, which we may very well, it'll be California that gets there first.  As always, we lead the nation."

As I said yesterday this will have a an impact both strong and subtle on anime conventions this summer. Unlike in 2008 when gas prices spiked during the summer after people already booked hotel rooms and made travel plans, prices are now spiking still in the middle of winter when people make their decisions.

 

CPAC DAY 3 PHOTOS NOW ONLINE!

 

The final day of CPAC photos are now up online. Lots of fun had by all even our official Good Time Party Guy Doug Welch of StixBlog (pictured here as the center of attention). 

                         CLICK HERE TO SEE THE PHOTOS FROM THE FINAL DAY OF CPAC 2011  

BLOCKBUSTER TO CLOSE 600 STORES

From IMDB.com

In what appeared to some analysts as yet another step toward the disappearance of the familiar blue façades that have been a part of the U.S. retail scene for the past quarter-century, Blockbuster on Tuesday agreed to sell itself to a so-called stalking horse consortium of its debtholders for $290 million in a deal that would allow the new owners to liquidate the company’s assets. Some 600 Blockbuster stores will be shut down before the end of next week, the new owners said.

Why is this happening you ask.

Digital technologies are rapidly changing the way movies are delivered to consumers. DVD sales are continuing their multi-year decline with no end in sight. Theater attendance is off a whopping 23 percent so far in 2011 compared to the same point one year ago. And not even 3D is saving it, anymore.

Financial and analysts say movie makers and distributors need to keep up with rapidly changing consumer behavior in an era when entertainment is cheap and readily available on the Internet. Many in Hollywood agree, and are working to change. But profitable new ways of doing business have been slow to come, and the consequence could be an industry on the decline in much the same way as music industry was in the 2000s.

"The trends that we see today are similar in many ways, although I don't think we're the same as the music industry," said Mitch Singer, chief technology officer for Sony Pictures Entertainment, a division of Sony Corp. "Revenues are declining, people are finding other ways to access our content," he said.
Attendance at U.S. and Canada theaters so far this year is down to 173 million tickets sold compared to 225 million for the same time period in 2010 -- a decrease of 23 percent, according to tracking firm Hollywood.com Box Office.

[snip]

Worse, consumers bought only $10 billion in home video entertainment products in 2010, compared to $14 billion in 2004 when the DVD market was booming, reports IHS Screen Digest.

If you needed any more evidence of how bad it is out there folks. 23% decline in box office with a 35% decline in DVD sales is something you cant ignore.


The people who "know this business" were unwilling to comment for this blog post.

BREAKING NEWS: OIL PASSES THE $100 USD PER BARREL MARK

From CNBC.com

U.S. crude futures briefly crossed the critical $100 mark Wednesday, the first such move since October 2008, as escalating violence in Libya shook crude markets and extended supply worries.

In London, Brent crude futures rallied above $110 a barrel, posting the biggest three-day percentage gain in a year.

 Between 300,000 and 400,000 barrels per day of Libyan output — up to 25 percent — has been shut down, according to Reuters calculations, marking the first cut in oil supplies related to the recent wave of anti-government unrest in North Africa and the  Middle East.

After Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi vowed in a defiant speech on Tuesday that he would not step down, promising severe punishment to his detractors, analysts fear that long-lasting supply disruptions or even permanent damage lies ahead for the OPEC member's oil industry.

Traders were intently watching what top OPEC exporter Saudi Arabia will do, even as its oil minister has reiterated assurances the kingdom and other OPEC members would be ready to act should a supply shortfall develop.

"I don't think Libya alone will take us to $150 a barrel, but, if unrest spreads in the Gulf countries, we could easily get there. That is why it is imperative the Saudis release some extra barrels into the market now to calm the situation, rather than simply trying to talk the price down," said Edward Meir, an analyst at MF Global in New York.

In the summer of 2008 when Oil went over $100 USD per barrel the economy was much stronger than it was today and the $4+ USD per gallon gas prices had little effect on local convention attendance. Today, however, the economy is far weaker and much more unstable so it looks like we will hit $4 USD before Memorial Day in many parts of the country (Gas is already about $3.60 USD here is so cal) and if Oil hits $147 USD we could easily see prices hit $5 USD per gallon during the summer driving season.

Your link insanity.

Brent climbs above $110...
Libya teeters on edge of civil war...
'1,000 People' Killed in Protests...
$4 Gasoline? Yes in California... $5?
Highest Prices in February Since 1990...
Hundreds back FACEBOOK call for Saudi protest...
Uprising Could Mean $140-Plus...
King orders $37 billion in handouts to citizens...

CPAC DAY 2 PHOTOS NOW ONLINE

Day 2 photos of the Bank of Kev at CPAC is now up online on the Facebook Page. On this day there was a announcement of a Senate Candidacy and a whole lot of fun.


CLICK HERE FOR THE CPAC DAY 2 PHOTOS

THE GOPROUD / ANDREW BREITBART / BANK OF KEV BIG 80'S PARTY PHOTOS ARE UP ONLINE

What happens when GOProud, Andrew Breitbart and the Bank of Kev conspire to put together a party at CPAC? Well you get...

1. The hottest party the conference has ever seen!
2. The best music of 1980's rocking Washington D.C..
3. The ultimate KurtCobainFreeZone!
4. A party packed with the hottest conservatvie babes in North America. (see photo above)
5. A rocking live performance by Sophie B. Hawkins. 


CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT THE PHOTOS FROM THE GOPROUD /BREITBART /BANOFKEV PARTY

CPAC - DAY 1 PHOTOS NOW ONLINE

Photos from Day 1 of CPAC are now up on my Facebook Page. It will give you an idea how far the Bank of Kev has grown in the past 12 months.

          CLICK HERE TO SEE THE PHOTOS! 

UP NEXT:  Andrew Breitbart, GOProud and the Bank of Kev create the ultimate Kurt Cobian Free Zone in Washington D.C..

BORDERS FILES FOR CHAPTER 11

From the NewLondonDay.com

Bookseller Borders, which helped pioneer superstores that put countless mom-and-pop bookshops out of business, filed for bankruptcy protection Wednesday, sunk by crushing debt and sluggishness in adapting to a rapidly changing industry.

The 40-year-old company plans to close about 200 of its 642 stores over the next few weeks. All of the stores closed will be superstores, Borders spokeswoman Mary Davis said.

Borders Group Inc. President Mike Edwards said in a written statement that cautious consumer spending, negotiations with publishers and other vendors and a lack of liquidity made it clear Borders “does not have the capital resources it needs to be a viable competitor.” Borders plans to operate normally and honor gift cards and its loyalty program as it reorganizes. The company will receive $505 million in debtor-in-possession financing from GE Capital and others to help it reorganize.

According to the Chapter 11 filing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of New York, Borders had $1.28 billion in assets and $1.29 billion in debts as of Dec. 25. It owes tens of millions of dollars to publishers, including $41.1 million to Penguin Putnam, $36.9 million to Hachette Book Group, $33.8 million to Simon & Schuster and $33.5 million to Random House.

Borders often had HUGE manga sections in their stores and was a key way to get manga into the mainstream. Now we are looking at 200 locations (along with their manga sections) close in the next few weeks. That means there are 200 less locations for fans to find thier anime/manga.

No that is not a good thing.  

CPAC - DAY 0 PHOTOS NOW UP

The first round of photos from CPAC are now up on my Facebook page. On Wednesday we had to fight a major snowstorm, weird travel routings  and a sickness that floated through the hotel but in the end we did gather and had a great time.

                           CLICK HERE TO SEE THE PHOTOS FROM CPAC - DAY 0

COMMING UP:  CPAC - DAY 1 Photos.

BIG HOLLYWOOD COVERS BANK OF KEV PANEL AT CPAC 2011

The mighty John Nolte of Big Hollwood has some coverage of my panel at CPAC 2011! Here is an small excerpt.

I’m not sure how much I was able to help but I was sure impressed by the questions and the people asking them. No bitterness, no complaining, no excuse-making. They weren’t there to hear how bad it is for conservatives in the entertainment business or to make excuses for why they haven’t sold a script yet. They were there as conservative actors, writers, filmmakers and musicians for advice on how to succeed and move forward in a very tough business. Between O’Connor’s good humor and experience in theatre and McKeever’s production background, the main message was pretty clear: be an artist first, learn your craft, make contacts and keep your politics to yourself. Be a sleeper agent of sorts. After you’ve made a career for yourself, then go ahead and create that personal projects that reflect your worldview.

Go read the whole thing! It will give you a great idea of what my CPAC panel yesterday was like.

I would also like to thank John Nolte, LArry O'Connor and Lisa Mei Norton of Big Dawg Music Mafia for their participation yesterday.

HAPPY 100 BIRTHDAY RONALD REAGAN

                            
     

                     

After the wall fell I recall looking at my globe, the one my grandparents’ had given me to help with my geography homework. I sat at the kitchen table in our tiny little run-down house with the secondhand black and white television (we were pretty poor when I was young) listening to the news and looking at East and West Germany on my globe thinking that the Replogle people were going to have to recast it because the boundaries had changed, the whole world had changed.

And it was in large part to a man named Ronald Reagan.

I thought of that again as I stood on the patio and watched the sun set over that piece of wall right outside the Reagan Library. Physical, tangible possibilities, that is what it represented to me, and that’s the lesson I learned from Ronald Reagan.

Dana Loesch

                     
                   

UNEMPLOYMENT DROPS TO 9.0 % ONLY 36,000 NEW JOBS ADDED

From The BLS

The unemployment rate fell by 0.4 percentage point to 9.0 percent in January, while nonfarm payroll employment changed little (+36,000), the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employment rose in manufacturing and in retail trade but was down in construction and in transportation and warehousing. Employment in most other major industries changed little over the month.

The unemployment rate (9.0 percent) declined by 0.4 percentage point for the second month in a row. (See table A-1.) The number of unemployed persons decreased by about 600,000 in January to 13.9 million, while the labor force was unchanged. (Based on data adjusted for updated population controls. See table C.)

The mighty Captain Ed gives everyone the lowdown.

Frankly, this doesn’t make a lot of sense. If only 36,000 jobs were added and 600,000 people stopped being unemployed, then the labor force should show a significant contraction. The lower overall rate makes sense if 600,000 people left the workforce, but not if the workforce remained the same. Otherwise, we’d have to conclude that 36,000 jobs represents 0.4% of all employment in the US.

Looking at the A-6 table, which compares numbers January 2010 to January 2011 (not seasonally adjusted), we can see that the unemployment rate for those without disabilities has dropped from 10.4% to 9.7%.  The number of non-disabled adults outside the work force has grown substantially in that period, from 62.8 million to 64.7 million.  That far outstrips population growth and indicates that people are still leaving the work force in large numbers.  In the A-16 table for the same period (not seasonally adjusted), the number of people outside the workforce has grown from 83.9 million to 86.2 million, again showing a large increase.

Well as I said before if the unemployment rate goes down that means its time for a Gregalouge.

VIDEO OF THE DAY

FOX NEWS REPORTER HOSPITALIZED FROM BEATING

Often people will make fun of journalists for many reasons and there is often alot of mateiral to feed the mill.  However people need to remember that  Greg Palkot, Anderson Cooper and Christiane Amanpour are risking their lives to cover what is going on in Egypt. 

From the Hollywood Reporter.

On Wednesday, Anderson Cooper was punched in the head 10 times near Tahrir Square.

"It was chaotic," Cooper told The Hollywood Reporter during a brief phone interview from Cairo on Wednesday. "I've been in riots and melees before, but this is the first time that I've been in a situation that escalated to a level where we really had no control. Many people in the crowd came for a fight and that's what they have."

Christiane Amanpour's car also came under attack.
Said U.S. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley a statement via Twitter, "There is a concerted campaign to intimidate international journalists in Cairo and interfere with their reporting. We condemn such actions."

KENNEDY MINISERIES TO AIR ON REELZ CHANNEL IN APRIL

                      

From BigHollywood

Though based on a screenplay approved by their parent company A&E Television Networks (AETN), on January 7th the History Channel buckled to the demands of the Kennedy family and unceremoniously pulled the rug out from under the completed $30 million miniseries “The Kennedys.” Today, after weeks of what was likely a bruising scramble to outrun the tentacles of the Kennedys, in an exclusive, the Hollywood Reporter tells us the mini will air in eight parts on the ReelzChannel starting April 3rd. The channel is currently available in 60 million homes across the country and a big advertising blitz is planned to get the word out.

Politics, controversy at a cost of 30 million, yet not a peep from the people who "know this business".

Why is that?