Forward?

Here comes the boom? - Dear Mr. President and Vice President: Remember when you poo-poo'd Iran's nuclear build-up? Check out this nifty little graph --

So what does it mean? It means, "Iranian scientists have run computer simulations for a nuclear weapon that would produce more than triple the explosive force of the World War II bomb that destroyed Hiroshima, according to a diagram obtained by The Associated Press." So, yeah...nothing to worry about here.

More great news from The Recovery! - "The median wealth of U.S. households is the lowest since 1969: 
New research found that while median wealth plummeted, the top 1 percent increased wealth by 71 percent."

Your tax dollars at work! - "Head of Fed Dept. Wasted Thousands in SUV Rental for Three Block Drive." Apparently, a big wig over at the Federal Maritime Commission spent more than $1,600 a month for a 2011 Chevy Tahoe, fully loaded with leather seats and GPS. The agency also spent up to $75 an hour for a staff member to drive the vehicle in the nation's capital -- to avoid a three block walk. (Video below.)

"California's economy remains shaky" -- Let's see...higher taxes, burdensome regulations, a lawsuit happy state...gee, ya think?

Fiscal "cliff" or "iceberg?"

Out of touch?

President Obama, speaking in Roanoke, VA, on Friday, actually said the following (video below):

There are a lot of wealthy, successful Americans who agree with me — because they want to give something back.  They know they didn’t — look, if you’ve been successful, you didn’t get there on your own.  You didn’t get there on your own.  I’m always struck by people who think, well, it must be because I was just so smart.  There are a lot of smart people out there.  It must be because I worked harder than everybody else.  Let me tell you something — there are a whole bunch of hardworking people out there.  (Applause.)

If you were successful, somebody along the line gave you some help.  There was a great teacher somewhere in your life.  Somebody helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that allowed you to thrive.  Somebody invested in roads and bridges.  If you’ve got a business — you didn’t build that.  Somebody else made that happen.  The Internet didn’t get invented on its own.  Government research created the Internet so that all the companies could make money off the Internet.

Out of touch? Yeah, just a bit...

(To read the official White House transcripts of this speech/gaffe/belief, go here.)

Take it from the expert...

Question: Who said, "the last thing you want do is to raise taxes in the middle of a recession. Because that would just suck up -- take more demand out of the economy and put businesses in a further hole..." ?

Answer: Watch/listen to the video below.

(h/t: Instapundit)

Which states are "business friendly?"

Q: What kind of states keep businesses growing and going? (What kind of state attracts, encourages and keeps businesses - and jobs?)

A: States that provide market or manufacturing/service bases that aren't burdened by over-regulation, excessive litigation or stifling taxes.

So it should come as no surprise that "blue" states - those typically associated with/controlled by liberal policies and politicians - are the least "business friendly."

The venerable TaxProf Blog cites a report released today that paints an interesting picture of the nation's economy, and where business goes to either thrive or die:

The Tax Foundation today released the 2011 State Business Tax Climate Index (8th ed.) which ranks the fifty states according to five indices: corporate tax, individual income tax, sales tax, unemployment insurance tax, and property tax. Here are the ten states with the best and worst business tax climates:

1	South Dakota	41	North Carolina
2	Alaska	42	Rhode Island
3	Wyoming	43	Minnesota
4	Nevada	44	Maryland
5	Florida	45	Iowa
6	Montana	46	Ohio
7	New Hampshire	47	Connecticut
8	Delaware	48	New Jersey
9	Utah	49	California
10	Indiana	50	New York

Interestingly, all ten of the states with the worst business tax climates voted for Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential election, and five of the ten states with the best business tax climates voted for John McCain (and eight of the ten voted for George Bush in 2004).