Housing construction up 8.2%

Housing starts post surprising rebound

Construction of new homes posted the biggest increase in more than two years in April, a rare bit of good news in what has been the worst downturn in housing in more than two decades.

Now, apartment construction is the prime mover behind these numbers, so it's not like the housing market has turned the corner.

For what it's worth, I guess I would have thought that apartments might be down a tick as lower house prices and continued low unemployment opened the door for more first-time home buyers.

House committee votes to cut FCS money
Army Times: The House Armed Services Committee agreed Wednesday to cut the Army’s Future Combat System to provide money for National Guard and reserve equipment. The 33-23 vote to cut $233 million from the FCS program was along party lines. Rep. Neil Abercrombie, D-Hawaii, chairman of the committee’s air...[READ]

Hoping for short memories?
First flag pins. Now the cross. What's next for Obama? A .50 caliber sniper rifle? Not that I really think this really matters. What's telling is that if it was so important when he didn't, it's now equally important that he does. Right? Right? That sound you hear is the...[READ]

Bursting the Bubble
Murdoc's never been really convinced that there's a big Oil Bubble that will surely burst any day now. There's no doubt that some wild speculation is helping drive up the price, but simple supply and demand (combined with continued warfare and threats of more in the prime oil zone)...[READ]

Whoops
Economy grew by 0.6 percent in first quarter Apparently, someone missed the memo about the recession. It's sad that a lot of folks are going to be quite disappointed in these numbers and will spend a lot of time arguing that blah blah blah....[READ]

Rimfire AWB in Louisiana
We all joke about the quasi-pathetic 5.56mm round the US military uses in its assault rifles, but legislation introduced in Louisiana would ban a bunch of .22LR rifles in an "assault weapons ban." Amazing. Go read....[READ]

IN THE MAIL: A Conservative History of the American Left
Just got A Conservative History of the American Left by Daniel J. Flynn: From Communes to the Clintons Why does Hillary Clinton crusade for government-provided health care for every American, for the redistribution of wealth, and for child rearing to become a collective obligation? Why does Al Gore say...[READ]

House to House (of Representatives)
Cadillac Light: SSG David Bellavia is running for congress in New York State. Bellavia served in the First Infantry Division for six years. He has been recommended for the Medal of Honor and has been nominated for the Distinguished Service Cross. He wrote a book about his experience in...[READ]

The Great New Orleans Gun Grab
I've mentioned this book before, and I have a quick review with a number of excerpts up over at GunPundit. Seriously, this isn't a book just for gun owners and pro-gun activists. The situation in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina was understandably ugly, but the government put a lot...[READ]

Springsteens for Obama
Bruce has come out in favor of Barack Obama, saying this: "I've been writing about America for 30 years. I've tried to write about who we are, what we stand for, what we fight for. I believe that these essential ideals of American identity are what's at stake on...[READ]

Best, worst, it's all about how you look at it...
Then and now: Democrats on the Economy in 1996: “Our economy is the healthiest it has been in three decades.” (President Bill Clinton, State of the Union Address, January 23, 1996) Democrats on the Economy in 2008: “The bottom line is that this administration is the owner of the worst...[READ]

Hot soup on a campfire under the bridge
The UK's Independent: USA 2008: The Great Depression Now, I live in Michigan and have been seeing worse than most of the country for the past few years. But I need to see a lot more before I start using the word "depression." As Glenn Reynolds said: I remember...[READ]

Hillary's sniper rifle
I haven't even bothered posting on the whole "I remember landing under sniper fire" thing because A) I guess I don't know that it really matters all that much and B) It's unbridled jackassery. But a few new pieces of evidence have surfaced that I probably ought to point out....[READ]

'An onslaught of attack'
Court: Michael Moore did not defame Iraq vet A federal appeals court has ruled filmmaker Michael Moore did not defame an Iraq war veteran when Moore used a clip from a television interview without his permission in the anti-war documentary “Fahrenheit 9/11.” Moore says he makes "movies that point out...[READ]

Cycling 4 Children '08
2008 Equal Parenting Bike Trek - 758 Miles - Lansing Michigan to Washington, D.C. Five Michigan fathers will pedal their bicycles 758 miles from Lansing, MI to Washington, D.C. Robb MacKenzie - Upper Penninsula of Michigan - US EPBT Founder - 2007 cyclist Robert Pedersen - West Michigan -...[READ]

IN THE MAIL: On My Honor
This is one I can't wait to check out: On My Honor: Why the American Values of the Boy Scouts Are Worth Fighting For by Rick Perry: Texas governor Rick Perry, through the legacy of the Boy Scouts of America, takes dead aim at the moral relativism of the...[READ]

DD(X) Losing Congress
Lawmakers' Support for DDG 1000 Program Ebbs Construction contracts have been given for the two lead Zumwalt-class ships, but the program is in serious trouble. Advanced Gun System (AGS) firing Long-Range Land Attack Projectile (LRLAP) The Navy has advertised the first two ships as costing $3.3 billion each to build,...[READ]

USAF Synthetic Fuel
Last Wednesday, a B1-B bomber became the first Air Force plane to fly faster than the speed of sound on a blend of the new coal-derived synthetic fuel: The fuel, a 50/50 blend of synthetic and petroleum gases, is being tested as part of an ongoing Air Force program...[READ]

Not just McCain
Barack Obama's military adviser said this about our presence in the Middle East: We’ll be there a century, hopefully. If it works right. A century. Hopefully. If it works. Writes Captain Ed: This should raise some eyebrows on the Obama campaign’s willful deception on this point. But it won't....[READ]

Don't vote for defeatists
"Yes, sir, the pause that refreshes." General George Patton raises the level of the Rhine a tad.March 24, 1944 Jeff Jacoby's Patton and the 2008 vote: "Americans love a winner," Patton growled, "and will not tolerate a loser. Americans despise cowards. Americans play to win - all the time. I...[READ]