Examining Slack Belts

Barack Obama (1/18/09) — "Millions of Americans are losing their jobs and their homes."

AP (1/19/09) — "Standing in the shadow of the Lincoln Memorial, US president-elect Barack Obama called on Sunday for a new spirit of national sacrifice to overcome war and economic crisis."

"The American people are making a host of sacrifices in their individual lives.  We are going through an extraordinary crisis.  ...You've got parents who are cutting back on everything to make sure that their kids can still go to college.  You've got workers who are deciding to cut an entire day and entire day's worth of pay so that their fellow co-workers aren't laid off.  I think that across the board people are making adjustments, large and small, to accommodate the fact that we're in very difficult times right now."  [Barack Obama's second prime time live press conference; March 2009]

"When times are tough, you tighten your belts.  ...But you can put off buying the new curtains, even if it'd be nice to have. You know, that -- remodeling the bathroom, I mean, everything is working. You don't need it right now."  Remarks by the President in Town Hall Meeting in Nashua, New Hampshire, 2/02/10 - The White House, Office of the Press Secretary

"Judicial Watch said the newly obtained 2,000 pages of documentation show Pelosi's military travel cost the U.S. Air Force $2,100,744.59 over two years – including $101,429.14 for in-flight expenses, including food and alcohol."  Taxpayers pay $101,000 for Pelosi's in-flight 'food, booze' - World Net Daily

"But while penny-pinching Americans head to Sonic Drive-Ins for $1 everyday value meals or stay at home for cheap cube-steak dinners (sales of the inexpensive meat are up 10 percent), the White House serves up high-grade [$100/serving] Wagyu beef to congressional revelers.  ...The man who scolded Americans for wasting energy and turning their thermostats too high still hasn’t lowered his own.  'He’s from Hawaii, O.K.?' senior adviser David Axelrod snickered to the New York Times in January.  'He likes it warm.  You could grow orchids in there.'"  Cube-steak Americans vs. the Wagyu-beef White House - Michelle Malkin

"…Caroline Taylor, another Martha’s Vineyard realtor, estimated that the [Obama vacation] property would go for $35,000 to $50,000 a week."  Spendapalooza: The Obamas’ vacation at Martha’s Vineyard - Michelle Malkin

"Imagine the outrage if any Republican President went on vacation during a recession and spent $4,000 a night on accommodations.  On ABC’s Good Morning America Wednesday, correspondent Yunji de Nies seemed to suggest that President Obama’s family will be spending such an amount renting expensive living space at an estate house in Hawaii for a two-week Christmas vacation.  De Nies: 'Christmas trees here aren't cheap – neither is staying in this $8.9 million house, which runs $4,000 a night.  The Obamas rented this one and the two next door for family and friends.  When you spend that kind of money, people pay attention to detail.' ...This conspicuous consumption might feel like a slap in the face to financially struggling Americans who are trying to have their own merry little Christmases.  Oh well.  Let them eat marked-down fruitcake."  Mele Kalikimaka at $4000 a day - Pundette & Pundit

"The First Lady was photographed last night in Hawaii wearing $635 per pair designer shoes by Maison Martin Margiela.  ...A woman lucky enough to have a job in this economy and working for the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour would have to work 88 hours (without taxes taken out) to make enough to pay for Michelle Obama's shoes.  If she can get them on sale, they would only set her back $445 for 62 hours work."  What Recession? - Free Republic

"How about Michelle Obama’s ridiculously pricey purse?  She was spotted in Moscow carrying a designer VBH black alligator handbag that has been estimated by some to be worth 'only' $875, while others say it is top of the line and could cost a high of $6,000.  The manufacturer says she has the expensive clutch, the White House, doing more damage control, says it's the cheaper $875 purse."  UPDATE: Michelle's $6,000 Purse - Frugal Café Blog Zone

The Obama's went with a Rainbow Play System which Obama himself called 'the Rolls Royce of swingsets', specifically the model is Supersized Monster Castle Package IV with a Double Bubble on the Penthouse, which retails for $14,799 plus $1500 install, not including the surface it sits on.  Taxpayer* money well spent in a down economy.  What, don't your children have a penthouse on their swingset?  (*There is no official word yet on who paid for this swing set.)  A Playground You Can Believe In - News Busters

"In the wake of the movie [An Inconvenient Truth, aka A Pack of Lies] winning an Oscar last month, the Tennessee Center for Policy Research reported that Gore’s Nashville mansion consumed more than 20 times the electricity than the national average.  Last August, the Gore mansion burned more than twice the electricity in a single month as the average American family uses in an entire year.  Gore’s heated pool house alone uses more than $500 in electricity every month."  Al Gore's Inconvenient Electric Bill - Steven Milloy

"Does anyone else quite see the issue of volunteering at a food bank and dealing with underprivileged people while wearing a pair of designer $540 sneakers? I am not saying that Michelle Obama needed to dress down and wear a contrived outfit from Good Will, but the image and message sent by the First Lady wearing a pair of over-priced designer Lanvin sneakers while people are going hungry and her husband President Barack Obama tells us we are in the worst economy since The Great Depression kind of presents a disconnect to the people and a 'Let them eat cake' mentality."  Let Them Wear Keds - Scared Monkeys



Lest we become bogged down or infuriated or (for those who haven't been paying attention) startled or quite saddened by the facts, here's a little comedy relief:

The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.  2 Peter 3:9