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Predicting the Biggest Stories of 2013, Part 1
Townhall.com ^ | December 22, 2012 | Steve Deace

Posted on 12/22/2012 8:11:08 AM PST by Kaslin

Each December I gaze into my crystal ball and predict what I believe will be the top 10 stories of the coming year. I almost never get these right but they’re fun to speculate about nevertheless. A year from now we’ll take a look back and see how well I did, unless I didn’t do well at all. In that case we will pretend this never happened for the sake of preserving my fragile self-esteem.

10. The highest grossing movie of 2013 will be Iron Man 3.

The year is shaping up to be one of the biggest in cinema history with several proven pop culture franchises re-emerging like Star Trek Into Darkness, Oz The Great and Powerful (prequel to the Wizard of Oz), Thor: The Dark World, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, Despicable Me 2, Monsters University (prequel to the beloved Monsters, Inc.) and – my most anticipated movie of the year – Man of Steel. Then there are epic-scale newcomers like Pacific Rim, World War Z, and Elysium. However, when you combine the power of the brand and the timing of its release, I predict Iron Man 3 will be the top grossing film of 2013. The previous two finished as the second and third highest-grossing films of the year when they came out, and as the first major summer movie it gets a coveted spot on the release calendar like The Avengers had this year.

9. No substantive federal “gun control” legislation.

After the coming cave on the so-called fiscal cliff before the end of this year, the Republican Party leadership in Washington, D.C. will be on the thinnest of thin ice with its base. If there’s one group you don’t mess with its defenders of the Second Amendment. So regardless of all the attempts to politicize the recent tragedy in Connecticut (and too many other places), Republicans in Congress will hold the line on more federal restrictions on the God-given right to self-defense—in the interest of their own self-defense.

8. A chain reaction on Right-to-Work

The danger of losing business to Indiana after it enacted Right-to-Work certainly helped apply pressure on the political class in Michigan to follow suit. Look for a similar sentiment to start a domino effect in places like Wisconsin and Ohio, competing rust belt states with Republican governors and legislatures. And don’t be surprised if the unions push to bring this issue to the forefront as well to find out where their GOP opposition truly stands heading into the 2014 election cycle.

7. Rubio and Ryan Polish Their Establishment Credentials

The Republican Party establishment was pinning its 2016 hopes on New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, but he’s toast after his gushing over President Obama during Hurricane Sandy right before the election. Jeb Bush is a non-starter for everyone not named Bush, and they know that, too. They need to sink their claws into someone younger and more palatable to the base after consecutive defeats. Sensing an opportunity, two men liked by many grassroots conservatives, but who have also shown at times they are willing to do business with the party establishment, will vie to fill that void with an eye toward 2016—Marco Rubio and Paul Ryan. Both will look to cash in on their conservative street cred by campaigning for solutions (see that as moderation) on key issues like taxes and spending and immigration, in an effort to appease the beltway culture and insiders. Case in point: Rubio’s already hired a senior adviser whose previous employers were establishmentarian moderates/RINOs John McCain, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Jeb Bush.

6. Syria Goes the Way of Egypt

With his allies in Russia conceding he’s doomed, it’s obvious Bashar al-Assad’s days as Syria’s dictator are numbered. Look for the two-year civil war he has waged with rebels to finally topple him in 2013, but look for something even worse to take his place. With al-Qaeda operatives infiltrating the ranks of the Syrian “freedom fighters,” and with the American people suffering from Middle East nation building fatigue, another Muslim Brotherhood-type regime will emerge in Syria just as we saw in Egypt.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Editorial
KEYWORDS: banglist; guncontrol; iranman3; marcorubio; paulryan; righttowork; syria
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1 posted on 12/22/2012 8:11:12 AM PST by Kaslin
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To: Kaslin

The Mayans get busy carving out another calendar.


2 posted on 12/22/2012 8:19:06 AM PST by TADSLOS (I took extra credit at the School of Hard Knocks)
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To: Kaslin

The election on November 6 2012 had been the mortal blow to the ideal of America. The stakes could not have been higher or more straightforward: a choice between freedom or coercion, individualism or collectivism, modern civilization or uncivilized brutalism.”


3 posted on 12/22/2012 8:21:36 AM PST by Neoliberalnot (Marxism works well only with the uneducated and the unarmed.)
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To: Kaslin

1. Impending depression forces Dems to take austerity measures and make substantial cuts to entitlement programs.

2. Radical leftist, enraged over entitlement cuts, attempts to assassinate Obama. Attempt fails because assassin forgets to pull the pin from the grenade before throwing it.

3. Republicans lobby for clearer operating instructions on all grenades.


4 posted on 12/22/2012 8:21:41 AM PST by csmusaret (I will give Obama credit for one thing- he is living proof that familiarity breeds contempt.)
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To: Kaslin

..guns sales reach record numbers, California goes bankrupt, secession becomes a serious topic, Israel hits Iran hard—that’s just a few...


5 posted on 12/22/2012 8:27:08 AM PST by WalterSkinner ( In Memory of My Father--WWII Vet and Patriot 1926-2007)
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To: Kaslin

Top ten lists of predictions will no longer stop at six.


6 posted on 12/22/2012 8:38:36 AM PST by DaveyB (Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. -John Adams)
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To: csmusaret
4. Media blames the National Grenade Association for the attempt on their comrade.
7 posted on 12/22/2012 8:44:01 AM PST by ASA Vet (There are 10 kinds of people in the world. Those who understand binary, and those who don't.)
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To: Neoliberalnot; vette6387; gonzo; unkus; Kaslin; MamaDearest

No one wants to discuss the “massive voter fraud” that re-elected the Marxist!

Until corrupt RAT voter fraud is investigated, documented, exposed, and prosecuted, we’re in the toilet and to be flushed.


8 posted on 12/22/2012 8:51:58 AM PST by ExTexasRedhead
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To: Kaslin

One of the Obama daughters will rebel against her parents but will be censured by both the administration and state-run media.


9 posted on 12/22/2012 9:14:21 AM PST by equaviator
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To: ExTexasRedhead

Don’t forget the ignorant that reelected him


10 posted on 12/22/2012 9:18:55 AM PST by Kaslin ( One Big Ass Mistake America (Make that Two))
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To: DaveyB

I am curious about part II


11 posted on 12/22/2012 9:21:22 AM PST by Kaslin ( One Big Ass Mistake America (Make that Two))
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To: equaviator
One of the Obama daughters will rebel against her parents but will be censured by both the administration and state-run media.

She'll admit she's a dittohead?

12 posted on 12/22/2012 9:26:31 AM PST by Disambiguator (America chose...poorly.)
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To: Kaslin

Some “Anonymous”-like entity will begin hacking state and federal pensions as well as EBT and other public assistance, wiping or greatly reducing available benefits. Goodness knows it’s wrong, certainly illegal and I would never condone such a thing, but I’ll have a hard time getting all that distraught about it.


13 posted on 12/22/2012 9:26:59 AM PST by RegulatorCountry
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To: Kaslin
Rare footage of Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's childhood emerges ...


14 posted on 12/22/2012 9:57:21 AM PST by shove_it (the 0bama regime are the people Huxley, Orwell and Rand warned us about)
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To: Kaslin

My prediction for 2013: You’ll never hear, see, or read about the biggest stories, because the communist media will cover it up; just as they have been doing the last 4 years.


15 posted on 12/22/2012 10:06:45 AM PST by hawaiianninja (Palm note to self: Pray for the America!)
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To: Kaslin

1. Harry Reid quits Senate to star in Mary Poppins remake.
2. Nancy Pelosi is Miss July......in The Worm Growers Gazette.
3. Debbie Whatsherface Schultz manages to string together a coherent sentence.
4. No zombie films made in 2013 as people realize they can watch reruns of the Democrat national convention and see the same thing.
5. Michael Moore trips over own lip and swallows himself.
6. New reality series highest rated ever! MIDDLE CLASS TAXPAYER PORN STARS is number 1! Middle Class says, “The Democrats screw us so much, we thought we’d film it and make some money.”
7. Barney Frank becomes Queen of Libya.
8. Madonna devoured by feral cats.
9. Hillary Clinton becomes spokeswoman for Old Razorback White Lightning. “Old Razorback....it’ll knock you on your a**!”
10. Marcia and Jan Brady enter into polygamous union with blueunicorn6. FReepers celebrate as blueunicorn6 is never heard from again. Blueunicorn6’s last post is “Here’s the story of a happy unicorn who is living with two very lovely girls. Both of them have hair of gold, and, oh brother! They’re only wearing pearls!”


16 posted on 12/22/2012 10:27:20 AM PST by blueunicorn6 ("A crack shot and a good dancer")
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To: blueunicorn6

3. Debbie Whatsherface Schultz manages to string together a coherent sentence.

come on some things really are not going to happen


17 posted on 12/22/2012 10:40:32 AM PST by genghis
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To: Kaslin

The biggest story of 2013 will, as always, be something no one anticipated, and probably some sort of natural disaster, such as the tsunami a couple years back - an earthquake, a flood, a tornado or something of that nature.


18 posted on 12/22/2012 10:41:03 AM PST by Jack Hammer
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1’ll go with mass murder, North America , Professor plum!


19 posted on 12/22/2012 10:53:21 AM PST by Jakarta ex-pat
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To: ExTexasRedhead

It’s not a question of “discussion.” It’s a matter of conducting American elections in a diligent manner equal to or surpassing what an average corporation would endure in a professional audit. There’s NO accountability for illegal votes and democrats would have it no other way.


20 posted on 12/22/2012 3:29:45 PM PST by MamaDearest
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