The Tailless Tenrec (T/T) is a small, cat-sized, hedgehog-like critter that lives in Madagascar, the Seychelles, Mauritius, and several other islands in the southwestern Indian Ocean.  It gives birth to a litter of as many as 32 young, with an average litter between 15-20 after a gestation of 50–60 days.

The Tailless Tenrec is relevant to this post only because it has something in common, sorta, with the United States Government. The T/T, in order to provide nutrients to 30+ infantiles, has been observed to have as many as 29 teats, thus enabling the sort of mass suckling that has now become the hallmark of the Obama Administration.

Need some numbers?  Okay, how about this from a new John Merline post at Investor’s Business Daily:

Buried deep in a section of President Obama’s budget, released this week, is an eye-opening fact: This year, 70% of all the money the federal government spends will be in the form of direct payments to individuals, an all-time high.

In effect, the government has become primarily a massive money-transfer machine, taking $2.6 trillion from some and handing it back out to others.  These government transfers now account for 15% of GDP, another all-time high.  In 1991, direct payments accounted for less than half the budget and 10% of GDP.

What’s more, the cost of these direct payments is exploding.  Even after adjusting for inflation, they’ve shot up 29% under Obama.

For the full article, worth reading, go HERE.