Rodents of Unusual Size!

A Rodent of Unusual Size has been discovered in South America. No not
Chavez, this one's dead already.
>
> The fossilised skull of a rat the size of a car has been unearthed.
> The creature lived about four million years ago, weighed about a tonne
> and ate mostly soft vegetation. It was so big that it probably spent
> much of its life semi-submerged in water, like a hippo, to reduce the
> stresses caused by its size.
>
> Palaeontologists found the skull in rock deposits in Uruguay. It is
> believed to date back two to four million years to a time when giant
> wildlife was commonplace in South America.
>
And yes, they are calling it Mighty Mouse. What else?

You though this was going to be about DemocRats, didn't ya? ~:D

The Tricksy Phantom

They're driving too much! TAX THEM!

Yet another example of why Big Government is the enemy of life.  I added some emphasis in red to cut to the actual information part of the article.

A special commission is urging the government to raise federal gasoline taxes by as much as 40 cents per gallon over five years as part of a sweeping overhaul designed to ease traffic congestion and repair the nation's decaying bridges and roads.

The two-year study being released Tuesday by the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission, the first to recommend broad changes after the devastating bridge collapse in Minneapolis last August, warns that urgent action is needed to avoid future disasters.

Under the recommendation, the current tax of 18.4 cents per gallon for unleaded gasoline would be increased annually for five years - by anywhere from 5 cents to 8 cents each year - and then indexed to inflation afterward to help fix the infrastructure, expand public transit and highways as well as broaden railway and rural access, according to persons with direct knowledge of the report, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the report is not yet public.

So just to belabor the point to death, the Big Government answer to deteriorating public infrastructure, which was built with tax money and was supposed to be maintained with tax money (but oddly seems not to have been), is to tax people to the point where they can't afford to drive anymore  and then use that NEW tax money to fix what was supposed to have been fixed with the old tax money but wasn't.  By a miracle the money will be spent to actually fix the road this time.  Maybe.

Some people on the commission appear to have a brain cell or two still firing.

The commission's chairwoman, Transportation Secretary Mary Peters, and two other members oppose gas tax increases and were issuing a dissenting opinion to the report calling instead for private-sector investment and tolls.

The Bush administration has said that raising taxes won't cut congestion and creates additional risks for congressional pork, such as Alaska's infamous multimillion dollar "Bridge to Nowhere," which has been scuttled.

That makes three people on the commission with a functioning cerebral cortex, they are all Republicans.  The rest are either DemocRats or wish they were.  Coincidence?

The tone of the article is designed to make these three Republicans seem obstructive and unreasonable, since they are being killjoy meanies who want to let bridges fall down to save a couple of bucks.  This explains why Reuters stock was reduced to SELL! yesterday.  The article was written by some doofus from the AP, but there's no difference between Reuters and AP.  May they join each other in the toilet of bankruptcy as soon as possible.  If you've got MSM stock, my condolences.

The Phantom Obstructionist

the Left is now, officially, a parody of itself.

The last few years it has been getting harder and harder to satirize the political Left.  You make up something completely idiotic, the wildest, dumbest thing you've ever thought of, and the sons of bitches will top it a week later in an official policy release.  That has got to be tough to do.  In order to keep up this trend of self-parody excellence, Moveon.org has just hired professional help.

The powerful liberal activist group has wooed Peter Koechley away from the satirical newspaper The Onion, where he was managing editor.

So now when you hear something about Moveon.org and you think it sounds like The Onion, you'll know why.

The Phantom Satirist.

Now here's a scary poll.

Wall to wall positive press coverage has its advantages it seems.

OTTAWA -- A new poll suggests Canadians would root en masse for whichever leading Democrat winds up facing the Republicans in this year's U.S. presidential election.

The Canadian Press/Harris Decima survey suggests Canadians so overwhelmingly favour the Democrats, it barely matters whether Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton win today's New Hampshire primary.

I've got ten bucks right here says not one of those polled in favor of DemocRats could name one single policy of Obama's, yet they -say- they love the guy.  Or Hillary, its ok either way.  Given the number of unflattering pictures of Hillary that started circulating this week that may change, as the masses of asses start to respond to the media hatchet job on Nurse Rached.

In the world of biology there's a name for this: regurgitation.  The puking back of what has been shoved in, completely un-digested.  And we wonder why this country is an over taxed, over regulated mess.


The Phantom

Dakar/Rat Patrol Memorial Rally and Turkey Shoot

The boys and girls over at Small Dead Animals have convinced me I need to field a team in this year's canceled Dakar Rally.

No Problem! Here's our chase vehicle and supply wagon.
As you can see from this New Year's Day pic, the race prep is almost complete!
Ok, well at least the motor is nearly ready!Perhaps "nearly ready" is slightly optimistic, but at least I got it to the machine shop yesterday. Pretty soon I'll have 88 smokin' horsepower to shoehorn into my wreck... er truck.

Moving right along, here's Team Phantom's invincible race vehicle!

No, that's not Photoshop, it really does say "The Phantom" on it. Yes, I do have a big head. And here it is today, as of 11AM this morning, race-ready and rarin' to go!
Anybody got a shovel?

The Phantom

Of course you realise this means war...

Gearheads of the world take note, Al Queer-da has moved from obscure head cutting swine to official pain in the ass with this latest move.  The bastards have caused the cancellation of the Dakar Rally!

Al-Qaida threats against the Dakar Rally and an attack in Mauritania forced organizers to cancel the annual race on Friday, the eve of the 5,760-mile trek across North African desert scrubland and savannah.

It was the first time the automobile, motorbike and truck rally has been called off in its 30-year history. In a statement, organizers blamed "threats launched directly against the race by terrorist organizations." the Dec. 24 killings of a French family and international tensions.

Yep, the sons of camel crap gunned down a whole family on Christmas Eve while they were having a picnic beside the road.  Also blew up a UN office in Algiers on Dec. 11th (they love numbers, eh?) and killed 37 people.

Patrice Clerc, who heads the company that organizes the rally, told The Associated Press the threats against the rally came from al- Qaida's North Africa wing. He said the French government warned explicitly that the race was threatened but did not share its intelligence.

"Yes, we perhaps bowed to terrorism but our company today does not have the right to run this risk for all those people who trust it," Clerc added. "We don't have the right to play games with safety."

This is true.  You boys grabbed your freakin' ankles for 'em.  Not a proud moment for Europe, France in particular.

On the one hand, it would be stupid to get killed over a car race.  On the other hand, guys get killed in car races all the time.  Nobody goes in the Dakar Rally thinking its going to be this nice, safe walk in the park.  The Gearhead Way would be to say thanks for nothing, government of France, get gun permits from Mauritania for every man, woman and grease monkey in the entire race entourage, and GO RACING.  Its the fucking Dakar, its supposed to be dangerous.  That's the whole point of it in the first place.  Gee, maybe the French PUSSY government could send some guys too!

I daresay the noble freedom fighters who bravely shot unarmed women and kids on Christmas Eve would bravely face 3,000 ARMED and pissed off racers and pit beasts, plus the army of Mauritania, plus maybe even some guys from the French Foreign Legion if Sarkozy actually has a pair.  Or not.  Either way, backing down from these assholes is not going to make the world a safer place. 

Fuck 'em!  Go racing.  If they stick their retarded heads up, shoot 'em off.