There's a reason this blog title references common sense. It's a very simple concept that usually keeps those who practice it out of trouble whether they be individuals or even whole nations. Whether it's a frat guy being challenged in a binge drinking game, or a girl asked out on a date alone with a stranger without telling her friends or family, or even a country punishing it's heroic defenders while trying to appease it's enemies, the loss of common sense can have devastating consequences.
Lest anyone forget, we as a nation have given more to the world than any other country in history. Though we are not perfect, we are as a whole a caring, compassionate, and generous people who have been a beacon of freedom and hope and a fountain of prosperity and advancement. We have defeated armies and nations in the past, only to immediately help them and lift them up to be better than they were before. We have welcomed with open arms those looking to make a better life for themselves (as long as they come through the front door), and we have shared our good fortunes with unmatched charity to the less fortunate of the earth. America truly has much to be grateful for and proud of. We are a great nation, but we are in danger of losing ourselves. Common sense seems to be slowly being replaced with a poisonous, twisted logic that if we continue to tolerate, could lead to our destruction.
The logic I refer to goes something like this: America has been a bully. We have been the world's lone superpower too long and we've arrogantly trampled and meddled too much. Our own military has been abusive and inconsiderate of foreign lands and customs, and that is why the terrorists and others hate us so much. Islamic extremists and communist dictators are simply misunderstood. They are the true victims of American imperialism!
How did common sense get so completely abandoned? I think, like many horrific things of the past, this logic started out with good intentions. Fueled by policitical correctness, the "cast the beam out of our own eye first" approach does on the surface have validity, and surely I don't suggest that every person or nation not in lock step agreement with us be considered the enemy. Trying to understand other's point of view, and checking our own interests before we act can only be a good thing, but it has gotten way beyond that to the point now where PURE evil is cast as the victim, and heroes as the aggressors.
Two recent cases illustrate this point; First off, Nidal Hasan, the islamic extremist US military officer who killed 13 people in a murderous rampage in Texas. The media and others were quick to cast this guy as a victim suffering from traumatic stress, when in reality he was a flat out evil terrorist. In case one thinks i'm overreacting, consider the facts:
-Hasan has been linked to the same radical Iman that taught 3 of the 9-11 hijackers.
-Emails were discovered linking him to islamic extremist clerics.
-He gave a horrific speech to fellow medical providers defending scuicide bombers.
-Many co-workers described him as a ticking time bomb, but were too afraid to speak out in the fears of being labeled a racist.
-He never actually saw combat, so i'm not sure what sort of traumatic stress he was supposed to be a victim to.
And after all this, the American public was told not to "jump to conclusions". In other words being vigilant about our security would make us racist. It's like were being told that we're too stupid to know that most muslims are good, peaceful people and to not start a witch hunt. The fact is we know that most muslims are good, peaceful people. But political correctness got in the way of common sense and 13 people died. Let me be clear. I am not suggesting any kind of witch hunt. Not only do I think that no race or ethnic group should be needlessly harrassed in the name of national security, but I do think that our diversity of cultures is truly a strength and blessing to our country. What I am suggesting is a return to COMMON SENSE. While no particular race or ethnicity is evil, some individuals are, and we need to be on our guard to stop them. If a van full of muslims with tinted windows pulls into a dark alley at nite, maybe you should pay more attention to them than a van full of boy scouts pulling into a McDonalds at lunchtime. And if a doctor, or nurse, or construction worker in the future hears a co-worker, whether they be muslim, white, black, or whatever, calling for the death of the infidels and defending scuicide bombers, hopefully common sense will trump political correctness and lives can be spared.
Second, the Navy Seals being charged for roughing up a terrorist. Once again, the evil SOB is painted as a victim of American brutatlity and our heroes who put their lives on the line in ways we can't even comprehend are labeled as thugs. Ahmed Hashim Abed, a true scumbag and mastermind of the capture and murder of 4 American contractors, recently complained that he was punched by his captors, a small team of Navy Seals. Let me give you the details again. No this was not some random innocent Iraqi street vendor picked on by some testosterone filled SEALS and beaten to near death for the thrill of it. This was a known terrorist and murderer of Americans who claims he was punched in the mouth and got a freakin bloody lip and cried like a little baby. These terrorsists are not stupid. They have figured out they can bang their face against the wall during a prisoner transport for instance, when no American laid a finger on him, come out banged and bruised, and get sympathy from frankly idiots in our own media and in Washington who care more about our image to the world and appeasing those with unfavorable opionions of us than of backing up our own troops. These heroes just apprehended a major threat to our national security. I personally couldn't care less if they did hit the guy a couple times, but my point is it doesn't matter if they did or didn't. Poor Abed has a bloody lip and because PC has trumped common sense, the Seals are gonna pay!
We cannot afford to underestimate the threats against us. The terrorists are smart, well organized, and very patient. They have infiltrated our communities and even our military ranks for crying out loud. They know how to use our compassion and our cultural sensitivity against us. We cannot abandon those great principles, but we can't abandon common sense either. JRD
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Monday, December 7, 2009
The will of the......people?
It appears some of our leaders in Washington are on the verge of passing health care reform literally like a thief in the night, but why has it been so difficult for them? How is it that legislation aimed at literally insuring millions, and practically advertised and campaigned for by the main stream media is still having so much difficulty passing? It would take pages and hours of typing to go into this topic and depth, but for starters, let me be bold enough to say that the reason is simply that Americans know it just doesn't add up. I can't think of a single person with half a soul that doesn't want every American insured. Yes, even heartless conservatives care deeply about this problem, but I believe the average citizen knows deep down that a government with such an abysmal record of inefficiency, so massively in debt, and so severely bound by special interests probably can't possibly deliver better, cheaper health care than the free market (especially a free market that's truly free of all of it's current ridiculous regulation shackles).
The American people are pretty clear. They didn't want Hillary Care, and they're not that much more thrilled with Obama care either. A Rasmussen national telephone survey from a few days ago finds that 62% are opposed to a single-payer system and another 12% are undecided. Most Democrats (54%) favor this type of system, though 37% are opposed. Most Republicans (87%) and voters not affiliated with either party (64%) are opposed to the idea. That last tidbit should be a big wake up call for Obama and Congress: It isn't just "hearltess right-wingers" opposing this; Independents oppose it by almost 2 to 1. Oh, and for those that say this bill is only to introduce competition into the market, and it's not about replacing the private market with a single-payer system........uhh yeah. That's like saying I only drove a little drunk, or she sort of consented....either the private market delivers health care or the government takes it over. That's it. One way is constitutional and the reason we enjoy the hight quality care that we do, and the other way involves the government stepping in to fix every little problem, which inevitably makes every little problem into an even bigger problem. Don't be fooled by the middle ground...there is none. The president and other liberals in key positions have one agenda in mind: universal health care.
But while our president isn't letting that annoying little thing called the will of the people get in the way of his agenda, some Senators are. Even many Democrats are actually trying this crazy thing called "listening to their consituents" and Obama & friends are having to resort to less than ideal tactics to get their way. In order to even bring the health care bill to debate on the senate floor, Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu was bribed to the tune of $100 million of federal money for her state in exchange for her vote. And Senator Reid has been going off on tirades that make Howard Dean look like Mother Theresa claiming that those opposed to this health care bill were akin to those opposed to the civil rights movement.
These tactics are nothing less than disgusting, and they will NOT go unnoticed. Congress' and Obama think they'll be vindicated in the end by ramming this leglislation through by whatever means necessary. If there's one theme over the last year, it's "the end justifies the means." In the end, if this bill passes, it will lead more to buyer's remorse than vindication. This may give them a short term boost, but long term it will not be the cure to their abysmal approval rating. For the first time in history, the majority of Americans (55%), rate members of Congress as having low or very low integrity. And while Obama is technically still in the "not bad" range at 47%, every President enjoys a honeymoon period after being elected. To dip down this low in less than 1 year is the fastest decline since Harry Truman.
Translation: Washington, we don't trust you. You cannot continue to give the perverbial finger to the American people and the Constitution and expect it to end well. And that advice won't even cost you any money, which i'm sure you'll need more of in the days ahead as some Senators may need some more "convincing". JRD
The American people are pretty clear. They didn't want Hillary Care, and they're not that much more thrilled with Obama care either. A Rasmussen national telephone survey from a few days ago finds that 62% are opposed to a single-payer system and another 12% are undecided. Most Democrats (54%) favor this type of system, though 37% are opposed. Most Republicans (87%) and voters not affiliated with either party (64%) are opposed to the idea. That last tidbit should be a big wake up call for Obama and Congress: It isn't just "hearltess right-wingers" opposing this; Independents oppose it by almost 2 to 1. Oh, and for those that say this bill is only to introduce competition into the market, and it's not about replacing the private market with a single-payer system........uhh yeah. That's like saying I only drove a little drunk, or she sort of consented....either the private market delivers health care or the government takes it over. That's it. One way is constitutional and the reason we enjoy the hight quality care that we do, and the other way involves the government stepping in to fix every little problem, which inevitably makes every little problem into an even bigger problem. Don't be fooled by the middle ground...there is none. The president and other liberals in key positions have one agenda in mind: universal health care.
But while our president isn't letting that annoying little thing called the will of the people get in the way of his agenda, some Senators are. Even many Democrats are actually trying this crazy thing called "listening to their consituents" and Obama & friends are having to resort to less than ideal tactics to get their way. In order to even bring the health care bill to debate on the senate floor, Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu was bribed to the tune of $100 million of federal money for her state in exchange for her vote. And Senator Reid has been going off on tirades that make Howard Dean look like Mother Theresa claiming that those opposed to this health care bill were akin to those opposed to the civil rights movement.
These tactics are nothing less than disgusting, and they will NOT go unnoticed. Congress' and Obama think they'll be vindicated in the end by ramming this leglislation through by whatever means necessary. If there's one theme over the last year, it's "the end justifies the means." In the end, if this bill passes, it will lead more to buyer's remorse than vindication. This may give them a short term boost, but long term it will not be the cure to their abysmal approval rating. For the first time in history, the majority of Americans (55%), rate members of Congress as having low or very low integrity. And while Obama is technically still in the "not bad" range at 47%, every President enjoys a honeymoon period after being elected. To dip down this low in less than 1 year is the fastest decline since Harry Truman.
Translation: Washington, we don't trust you. You cannot continue to give the perverbial finger to the American people and the Constitution and expect it to end well. And that advice won't even cost you any money, which i'm sure you'll need more of in the days ahead as some Senators may need some more "convincing". JRD
Monday, November 30, 2009
Yet another argument against universal health care
We can't afford it. Period. We as a nation are already so beyond bankrupt it's almost laughable if it wasn't so incredibly terrifying. Our unfunded liabilities by some estimates exceed $100 Trillion. That's about $300,000 PER AMERICAN! Our politicians are truly living in fantasy land. In 1965 when Medicare was enacted, it was estimated that by 1990 it would be costing about $9 billion/year............uhhh...no....try $67 billion. We know our government cannot be trusted to be fiscally responsible, yet we as a nation are considering allowing it to run our healthcare?
On the official site of the congressional budget office you will find their long term budget projections by clicking here: http://www.cbo.gov/doc.cfm?index=10297 , then click on PDF or whatever file. Not an exciting read, but a terrifying one for sure.
Another interesting read is an article from back in 2000 discussing the possible expansion of Medicare, which of course did happen. Well researched and worth reading:
http://www.forhealthfreedom.org/Publications/MedicareMedicaid/RxDrugPlan.html
Bottom line. The quality of healthcare in this country will decline (see the UK for more details), and it will cost us through the roof. Enough said. JRD
On the official site of the congressional budget office you will find their long term budget projections by clicking here: http://www.cbo.gov/doc.cfm?index=10297 , then click on PDF or whatever file. Not an exciting read, but a terrifying one for sure.
Another interesting read is an article from back in 2000 discussing the possible expansion of Medicare, which of course did happen. Well researched and worth reading:
http://www.forhealthfreedom.org/Publications/MedicareMedicaid/RxDrugPlan.html
Bottom line. The quality of healthcare in this country will decline (see the UK for more details), and it will cost us through the roof. Enough said. JRD
Monday, November 23, 2009
Another argument against universal health care
Our family recently had two experiences that illustrate a concept very relevant to the current healthcare debate. It's a concept well understood by both modern day conservatives and the conservatives of 200+ years ago (aka the founding fathers), but completely lost on progressives: I speak of the power of incentive.
Recently someone in our family needed a consult with one of the specialty clinics at the hospital, so Shell and I each tried for day after day to call, but no answer. Only after a Sherlock Holmes like effort was the current contact info discovered and the appointment scheduled. So what's the point. This would NEVER happen in a private clinic's office. As we all know, private clinics have an incentive to have great customer service, including being easy to contact, schedule etc, or they go under. But everyone in this government run clinic gets paid the same whether patients get seen or not.
Second example; Shell had yet another frustrating visit to the base grocery store (called the Commissary) to find them once again out of the most popular items of many different products. In the real market, things a store quickly sells out of would not only be quickly re-stocked, but likely the inventory of those items would increase to wisely supply the increased demand. But since this is a government run grocery store, we find all those common sense economic principles, like the desired items, remaining on back order.
If you've read my previous posts, you know that I believe the liberal agenda is full of emotion-fueled knee-jerk reactions to problems that while allegedly well intentioned do far more harm than good. The perfect example of this is the current debate over health care. According to progressives, the only solution to the current problem (millions of uninsured Americans) is the same solution to every problem: a government program. Universal health care is a bad idea for many reasons, but the loss of free market competition, or incentive, is among the biggest.
Proponents of universal health care might argue that the free market had it's chance to deliver health care efficiently to the American people but has failed. But for years now our government has strangled true competition among health insurance companies with illogical regulations like preventing these companies from competing accross state lines, leaving the market anything but free. It's like someone punching out the tires on pizza delivery truck, blindfolding the driver, and then when the pizza fails to be delivered in 30 minutes, claiming the whole system has failed. The free market has NOT failed. It has proven itself over and over again as the way to deliver goods and services better, faster, cheaper. The answer is for government to get out of the way, not step in and take over. Let capitalism work. Less government, more incentive! JRD
Recently someone in our family needed a consult with one of the specialty clinics at the hospital, so Shell and I each tried for day after day to call, but no answer. Only after a Sherlock Holmes like effort was the current contact info discovered and the appointment scheduled. So what's the point. This would NEVER happen in a private clinic's office. As we all know, private clinics have an incentive to have great customer service, including being easy to contact, schedule etc, or they go under. But everyone in this government run clinic gets paid the same whether patients get seen or not.
Second example; Shell had yet another frustrating visit to the base grocery store (called the Commissary) to find them once again out of the most popular items of many different products. In the real market, things a store quickly sells out of would not only be quickly re-stocked, but likely the inventory of those items would increase to wisely supply the increased demand. But since this is a government run grocery store, we find all those common sense economic principles, like the desired items, remaining on back order.
If you've read my previous posts, you know that I believe the liberal agenda is full of emotion-fueled knee-jerk reactions to problems that while allegedly well intentioned do far more harm than good. The perfect example of this is the current debate over health care. According to progressives, the only solution to the current problem (millions of uninsured Americans) is the same solution to every problem: a government program. Universal health care is a bad idea for many reasons, but the loss of free market competition, or incentive, is among the biggest.
Proponents of universal health care might argue that the free market had it's chance to deliver health care efficiently to the American people but has failed. But for years now our government has strangled true competition among health insurance companies with illogical regulations like preventing these companies from competing accross state lines, leaving the market anything but free. It's like someone punching out the tires on pizza delivery truck, blindfolding the driver, and then when the pizza fails to be delivered in 30 minutes, claiming the whole system has failed. The free market has NOT failed. It has proven itself over and over again as the way to deliver goods and services better, faster, cheaper. The answer is for government to get out of the way, not step in and take over. Let capitalism work. Less government, more incentive! JRD
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Burden of Proof
Ponder the following advice: "For a long happy healthy life, smoke, drink, eat fast food at least 90% of the time, and above all buy a bullet bike. If it were some fat guy on the corner dressed in robes preaching this insanity you'd probably laugh. But what if that person was not some nobody on the corner, what if it was someone in a position of importance, like the local high school health teacher? You'd probably feel a little miffed huh? Let's take it one step further. Let's say you're the principal of a private school and that health teacher was someone you just hired. Then when you confront him in class to remind the students of the true principles of health, he attacks you as old fashioned, tells you that times have changed and that "old school thought" is outdated, and the burden of proof is on you to prove your point to the kids, but until then they're gettin McDonalds and cigarettes every day in class. Frustration wouldn't even begin to describe it. Not only is this person dead wrong, but they're mocking something they're supposed to be protecting (in this case promoting a healthy lifestyle), and betraying your trust and the trust of all the parents involved in the school.
That pretty much sums up the frustration many Americans are feeling at our so called leaders in Washington. We hired them to protect and defend the Constitution, and they are preaching and practicing the very things the constitution not only doesn't support, but strictly forbids. It's as simple as this: the vast majority of everything Washington's doing is flat out unconstitutional. Please read up on not only the constitution itself, but the founding fathers and their thought process and intentions surrounding this sacred document. Thomas Jefferson said the very foundation of the Constitution is the 10th amendment. This clearly and unmistakably declares that the power of the federal government is strictly limited. Any power not specifically granted it in the constitution is reserved to the states and the people. Republicans and democrats alike have trashed the constitution. George W with Tarp and the first bailouts, and Obama with virtually every major action since taking office, have made a mock of the principles that founded this nation; those same principles that made it great.
Just like the poor health habits mentioned above, big government, especially government merging with business has always proven disastrous. It's not just our economic stability that's at stake, but our very liberty as well. The burden of proof should not be on free market capitalism and limited government. It has proven itself, over and over as the key to freedom and prosperity. History and common sense shows that. Conservatives are not the ones out of touch. Washington is. Recent polls show that Independents are growing rapidly, and most of them are not happy with the insane spending and government control. Everyone has a "tipping point", a point where enough is enough. Admittedly conservatives hit that long ago, even long before Obama took office. Hopefully enough Americans are hitting that point that 2010 will be a real housecleaning. Now that would be a very healthy change. JRD
That pretty much sums up the frustration many Americans are feeling at our so called leaders in Washington. We hired them to protect and defend the Constitution, and they are preaching and practicing the very things the constitution not only doesn't support, but strictly forbids. It's as simple as this: the vast majority of everything Washington's doing is flat out unconstitutional. Please read up on not only the constitution itself, but the founding fathers and their thought process and intentions surrounding this sacred document. Thomas Jefferson said the very foundation of the Constitution is the 10th amendment. This clearly and unmistakably declares that the power of the federal government is strictly limited. Any power not specifically granted it in the constitution is reserved to the states and the people. Republicans and democrats alike have trashed the constitution. George W with Tarp and the first bailouts, and Obama with virtually every major action since taking office, have made a mock of the principles that founded this nation; those same principles that made it great.
Just like the poor health habits mentioned above, big government, especially government merging with business has always proven disastrous. It's not just our economic stability that's at stake, but our very liberty as well. The burden of proof should not be on free market capitalism and limited government. It has proven itself, over and over as the key to freedom and prosperity. History and common sense shows that. Conservatives are not the ones out of touch. Washington is. Recent polls show that Independents are growing rapidly, and most of them are not happy with the insane spending and government control. Everyone has a "tipping point", a point where enough is enough. Admittedly conservatives hit that long ago, even long before Obama took office. Hopefully enough Americans are hitting that point that 2010 will be a real housecleaning. Now that would be a very healthy change. JRD
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Another warning siren
Check out the following, forwarded by Kathy. "Fact check" websites dispute who wrote this, so we'll leave it as author unknown, but it really doesn't matter. This guy (or gal) expresses our concerns well. This, to me, is what the tea parties were about. It wasn't just protesting taxes, it's this more comprehensive threat of government expansion so beautifully described below. Here it is:
I am a student of history. Professionally, I have written 15 books on history that have been published in six languages, and I have studied history all my life. I have come to think there is something monumentally large afoot, and I do not believe it is simply a banking crisis, or a mortgage crisis, or a credit crisis. Yes these exist, but they are merely single facets on a very large gemstone that is only now coming into a sharper focus. Something of historic proportions is happening. I can sense it because I know how it feels, smells, what it looks like, and how people react to it.. Yes, a perfect storm may be brewing, but there is something happening within our country that has been evolving for about ten to fifteen years. The pace has dramatically quickened in the past two. We demand and then codify into law the requirement that our banks make massive loans to people we know they can never pay back? Why?
We learned just days ago that the Federal Reserve, which has little or no real oversight by anyone, has "loaned" two trillion dollars (that is $2,000,000,000,000) over the past few months, but will not tell us to whom or why or disclose the terms. That is our money. Yours and mine. And that is three times the $700 billion we all argued about so strenuously just this past September. Who has this money? Why do they have it? Why are the terms unavailable to us? Who asked for it? Who authorized it? I thought this was a government of "we the people," who loaned our powers to our elected leaders. Apparently not. We have spent two or more decades intentionally de-industrializing our economy. Why? We have intentionally dumbed down our schools, ignored our history, and no longer teach our founding documents, why we are exceptional, and why we are worth preserving. Students by and large cannot write, think critically, read, or articulate. Parents are not revolting, teachers are not picketing, school boards continue to back mediocrity. Why?
We have now established the precedent of protesting every close election (violently in California over a proposition that is so controversial that it simply wants marriage to remain defined as between one man and one woman.. Did you ever think such a thing possible just a decade ago?) We have corrupted our sacred political process by allowing unelected judges to write laws that radically change our way of life, and then mainstream Marxist groups like ACORN and others to turn our voting system into a banana republic. To what purpose? Now our mortgage industry is collapsing, housing prices are in free fall, major industries are failing, our banking system is on the verge of collapse, social security is nearly bankrupt, as is medicare and our entire government. Our education system is worse than a joke (I teach college and I know precisely what I am talking about) - the list is staggering in its length, breadth, and depth.. It is potentially 1929 x ten... And we are at war with an enemy we cannot even name for fear of offending people of the same religion, who, in turn, cannot wait to slit the throats of your children if they have the opportunity to do so. And finally, we have elected a man that no one really knows anything about, who has never run so much as a Dairy Queen, let alone a town as big as Wasilla, Alaska All of his associations and alliances are with real radicals in their chosen fields of employment, and everything we learn about him, drip by drip, is unsettling if not downright scary. (Surely you have heard him speak about his idea to create and fund a mandatory civilian defense force stronger than our military for use inside our borders? No? Oh, of course. The media would never play that for you over and over and then demand he answer it. Sarah Palin's pregnant daughter and $150,000 wardrobe is more important.) Mr. Obama's winning platform can be boiled down to one word: Change. Why? I have never been so afraid for my country and for my children as I am now. This man campaigned on bringing people together, something he has never, ever done in his professional life. In my assessment, Obama will divide us along philosophical lines, push us apart, and then try to realign the pieces into a new and different power structure. Change is indeed coming. And when it comes, you will never see the same nation again. And that is only the beginning.. As a serious student of history, I thought I would never come to experience what the ordinary, moral German must have felt in the mid-1930s. In those times, the "savior" was a former smooth-talking rabble-rouser from the streets, about whom the average German knew next to nothing. What they should have known was that he was associated with groups that shouted, shoved, and pushed around people with whom they disagreed; he edged his way onto the political stage through great oratory. Conservative "losers" read it right now. And there were the promises.. Economic times were tough, people were losing jobs, and he was a great speaker. And he smiled and frowned and waved a lot. And people, even newspapers, were afraid to speak out for fear that his "brown shirts" would bully and beat them into submission. Which they did - regularly. And then, he was duly elected to office, while a full-throttled economic crisis bloomed at hand - the Great Depression. Slowly, but surely he seized the controls of government power, person by person, department by department, bureaucracy by bureaucracy. The children of German citizens were at first, encouraged to join a Youth Movement in his name where they were taught exactly what to think. Later, they were required to do so. No Jews of course. How did he get people on his side? He did it by promising jobs to the jobless, money to the money-less, and rewards for the military-industrial complex. He did it by indoctrinating the children, advocating gun control, health care for all, better wages, better jobs, and promising to re-instill pride once again in the country, across Europe , and across the world. He did it with a compliant media - did you know that? And he did this all in the name of justice and .... . .. change. And the people surely got what they voted for. If you think I am exaggerating, look it up.. It's all there in the history books. So read your history books. Many people of conscience objected in 1933 and were shouted down, called names, laughed at, and ridiculed. When Winston Churchill pointed out the obvious in the late 1930s while seated in the House of Lords in England (he was not yet Prime Minister), he was booed into his seat and called a crazy troublemaker. He was right, though. And the world came to regret that he was not listened to. Do not forget that Germany was the most educated, the most cultured country in Europe It was full of music, art, museums, hospitals, laboratories, and universities. And yet, in less than six years (a shorter time span than just two terms of the U. S. presidency) it was rounding up its own citizens, killing others, abrogating its laws, turning children against parents, and neighbors against neighbors.. All with the best of intentions, of course. The road to Hell is paved with them. As a practical thinker, one not overly prone to emotional decisions, I have a choice: I can either believe what the objective pieces of evidence tell me (even if they make me cringe with disgust); I can believe what history is shouting to me from across the chasm of seven decades; or I can hope I am wrong by closing my eyes, having another latte, and ignoring what is transpiring around me..
I choose to believe the evidence. No doubt some people will scoff at me, others laugh, or think I am foolish, naive, or both. To some degree, perhaps I am. But I have never been afraid to look people in the eye and tell them exactly what I believe-and why I believe it.
I pray I am wrong. I do not think I am. Perhaps the only hope is our vote in the next elections. Kathy
I am a student of history. Professionally, I have written 15 books on history that have been published in six languages, and I have studied history all my life. I have come to think there is something monumentally large afoot, and I do not believe it is simply a banking crisis, or a mortgage crisis, or a credit crisis. Yes these exist, but they are merely single facets on a very large gemstone that is only now coming into a sharper focus. Something of historic proportions is happening. I can sense it because I know how it feels, smells, what it looks like, and how people react to it.. Yes, a perfect storm may be brewing, but there is something happening within our country that has been evolving for about ten to fifteen years. The pace has dramatically quickened in the past two. We demand and then codify into law the requirement that our banks make massive loans to people we know they can never pay back? Why?
We learned just days ago that the Federal Reserve, which has little or no real oversight by anyone, has "loaned" two trillion dollars (that is $2,000,000,000,000) over the past few months, but will not tell us to whom or why or disclose the terms. That is our money. Yours and mine. And that is three times the $700 billion we all argued about so strenuously just this past September. Who has this money? Why do they have it? Why are the terms unavailable to us? Who asked for it? Who authorized it? I thought this was a government of "we the people," who loaned our powers to our elected leaders. Apparently not. We have spent two or more decades intentionally de-industrializing our economy. Why? We have intentionally dumbed down our schools, ignored our history, and no longer teach our founding documents, why we are exceptional, and why we are worth preserving. Students by and large cannot write, think critically, read, or articulate. Parents are not revolting, teachers are not picketing, school boards continue to back mediocrity. Why?
We have now established the precedent of protesting every close election (violently in California over a proposition that is so controversial that it simply wants marriage to remain defined as between one man and one woman.. Did you ever think such a thing possible just a decade ago?) We have corrupted our sacred political process by allowing unelected judges to write laws that radically change our way of life, and then mainstream Marxist groups like ACORN and others to turn our voting system into a banana republic. To what purpose? Now our mortgage industry is collapsing, housing prices are in free fall, major industries are failing, our banking system is on the verge of collapse, social security is nearly bankrupt, as is medicare and our entire government. Our education system is worse than a joke (I teach college and I know precisely what I am talking about) - the list is staggering in its length, breadth, and depth.. It is potentially 1929 x ten... And we are at war with an enemy we cannot even name for fear of offending people of the same religion, who, in turn, cannot wait to slit the throats of your children if they have the opportunity to do so. And finally, we have elected a man that no one really knows anything about, who has never run so much as a Dairy Queen, let alone a town as big as Wasilla, Alaska All of his associations and alliances are with real radicals in their chosen fields of employment, and everything we learn about him, drip by drip, is unsettling if not downright scary. (Surely you have heard him speak about his idea to create and fund a mandatory civilian defense force stronger than our military for use inside our borders? No? Oh, of course. The media would never play that for you over and over and then demand he answer it. Sarah Palin's pregnant daughter and $150,000 wardrobe is more important.) Mr. Obama's winning platform can be boiled down to one word: Change. Why? I have never been so afraid for my country and for my children as I am now. This man campaigned on bringing people together, something he has never, ever done in his professional life. In my assessment, Obama will divide us along philosophical lines, push us apart, and then try to realign the pieces into a new and different power structure. Change is indeed coming. And when it comes, you will never see the same nation again. And that is only the beginning.. As a serious student of history, I thought I would never come to experience what the ordinary, moral German must have felt in the mid-1930s. In those times, the "savior" was a former smooth-talking rabble-rouser from the streets, about whom the average German knew next to nothing. What they should have known was that he was associated with groups that shouted, shoved, and pushed around people with whom they disagreed; he edged his way onto the political stage through great oratory. Conservative "losers" read it right now. And there were the promises.. Economic times were tough, people were losing jobs, and he was a great speaker. And he smiled and frowned and waved a lot. And people, even newspapers, were afraid to speak out for fear that his "brown shirts" would bully and beat them into submission. Which they did - regularly. And then, he was duly elected to office, while a full-throttled economic crisis bloomed at hand - the Great Depression. Slowly, but surely he seized the controls of government power, person by person, department by department, bureaucracy by bureaucracy. The children of German citizens were at first, encouraged to join a Youth Movement in his name where they were taught exactly what to think. Later, they were required to do so. No Jews of course. How did he get people on his side? He did it by promising jobs to the jobless, money to the money-less, and rewards for the military-industrial complex. He did it by indoctrinating the children, advocating gun control, health care for all, better wages, better jobs, and promising to re-instill pride once again in the country, across Europe , and across the world. He did it with a compliant media - did you know that? And he did this all in the name of justice and .... . .. change. And the people surely got what they voted for. If you think I am exaggerating, look it up.. It's all there in the history books. So read your history books. Many people of conscience objected in 1933 and were shouted down, called names, laughed at, and ridiculed. When Winston Churchill pointed out the obvious in the late 1930s while seated in the House of Lords in England (he was not yet Prime Minister), he was booed into his seat and called a crazy troublemaker. He was right, though. And the world came to regret that he was not listened to. Do not forget that Germany was the most educated, the most cultured country in Europe It was full of music, art, museums, hospitals, laboratories, and universities. And yet, in less than six years (a shorter time span than just two terms of the U. S. presidency) it was rounding up its own citizens, killing others, abrogating its laws, turning children against parents, and neighbors against neighbors.. All with the best of intentions, of course. The road to Hell is paved with them. As a practical thinker, one not overly prone to emotional decisions, I have a choice: I can either believe what the objective pieces of evidence tell me (even if they make me cringe with disgust); I can believe what history is shouting to me from across the chasm of seven decades; or I can hope I am wrong by closing my eyes, having another latte, and ignoring what is transpiring around me..
I choose to believe the evidence. No doubt some people will scoff at me, others laugh, or think I am foolish, naive, or both. To some degree, perhaps I am. But I have never been afraid to look people in the eye and tell them exactly what I believe-and why I believe it.
I pray I am wrong. I do not think I am. Perhaps the only hope is our vote in the next elections. Kathy
Thursday, May 7, 2009
The history of the world, in a few paragraphs
I strongly believe that to understand what's happening in our world today, we have to look at history. Many of the problems we face are not new on the world stage. As we look at events, and what solutions work best, it's amazing how the pieces of evidence all start to come together. I could go on forever, but to sum it up, here's how I see it:
Throughout world history, mankind has suffered under different forms of the same theme: government oppression. From medieval Europe through today, monarchies, dictatorships, fascism, communism....too few people have truly lived free. Then the founding fathers changed the world. The constitution was born. People were free to create, work hard, and achieve the impossible. It is no coincidence that America, though only a tiny fraction of the world's population, literally, for a time was giving the world almost everything: electricity, the car, the airplane, the computer. People left everything to come here to live "the American dream."
But what made us so special? I think it's because this nation was born of a people that valued liberty over convenience, that had to prove they treasured freedom because of the sacrifices they had to make for it. Because of this they carefully, with the aid of heaven, crafted a system of government that would put personal liberty above all else, above convenience, above arbitrary notions of "fairness". A government that would protect equal opportunity, not equal results. A government that is above all LIMITED.
Please take time to read the words of the founding father's. They were very leery of government power. They for the most part looked at it as a necessary evil. Think of government power on a scale from 0-10. 0 is no government (anarchy), and 10 is total government (think communist Russia or Nazi Germany). Most of the world, throughout most of history, have flirted somewhere 7 or higher. The founding fathers wanted just enough government for a civil society (police, roads, schools etc) but not much more. Think of the founding fathers having a goal of being like a 3 on the scale. The founding fathers simply believed our freedom came from God, not government. It was up to each individual to choose for himself his path in life: success thru hard work, education, taking risk, or even having the freedom to fail. Keep the government out of people's way. Unless one citizen is depriving the rights of another (murder, theft etc), be very cautious about interfering.
Then in the early 1800's, a philosophy called progressivism took root and spread thru both the republicans (Teddy Roosevelt) and democrats (Woodrow Wilson, FDR). Essentially progressives believed that society was fast evolving. True, governments in the past were sort of barbaric, but progressives felt mankind was now evolving past the human nature of craving power, and thus government could step in to help move society "along". In other words, Government can now break the bonds of an old-fashioned constitution to speed up things that society on it's own was just taking too long doing, like ridding the nation of rich and poor, and giving everyone everything from healthcare to education. This reasoning helps us understand why progressives feel so comfortable about "spreading the wealth around" and pushing for universal health care, and recently, free college education. It's all about the guarantee. It's OK for government to grab power from private companies (fire GM's CEO), or meddle in personal contracts (AIG execs), or spread the wealth around (Obama), because the government is helping people. Kinda like your Mom trying to "help" your love life by setting you up on blind dates...thanks but no thanks. Progressives erroneously assume that because America's great, more government means America gets even better. They could not be more wrong. It is the people, not the government that make America great. It's like a teenage goth druggie boy who falls in love with a sweet, kind, pure christian girl. "Wow she's somethin" he thinks, "if only I can get here into drugs, rebel against her family and her faith, and drop out of school with me she'll be even better."
Progressives have duped so many Americans into an vicious cycle of addiction. The government gains power, gives more handouts to the people, they become more entitled, less willing to risk for gain because now it's freely given to them, so they demand more, thus giving the government more power to provide for them, and it goes on and on, gaining momentum all the way.
But the problem is a government cant just give and give without taking from somewhere else. People (the private market) create wealth, government simply redistributes it, which always leads to the unintended destroying of it. Think about it: Microsoft, Ebay, Disney. These all started from nothing to create thousands of jobs and millions in wealth. Yes Gates and Disney made more than their employees, but they created the jobs for those employees and many people along the whole economic spectrum are reaping financial benefits from these companies. Contrast that with government programs. For instance the proposed "green jobs". One thing Washington has got to learn is that most of the time you don't have to blindly guess the impact of your policy ideas, because somewhere some other country has tried it already. In the case of green jobs, our friends in Spain have already been guinea pigs in that disastrous experiment, but that doesn't seem to be deterring Obama. Paraphrasing a recent CNSnews article: According to a recent study by Dr. Gabriel Calzada, an economics professor at Juan Carlos University in Madrid, every “green job” created with government money in Spain since 2001 came at the cost of 2.2 regular jobs, and only 10% of the newly created green jobs became permanent. President Obama, in fact, has used Spain’s green initiative as a blueprint for how the United States should use federal funds to stimulate the economy...(end article).
Government programs do not create wealth. This simple fact helps explain why the great depression lasted so much longer here than in the rest of the world. It was almost a perfect correlation in the experiment which the whole industrialized world participated. The more a country's government meddled in the economic recovery, the longer and deeper the great depression affected them. The statistics prove it.
Washington has many weaknesses, but a BIG one is that many of our politicians have about ZERO business experience. They've never run so much as a lemonade stand, yet we let them make multi-billion dollar decisions, most of which are disastrous, on a very regular basis. Good intention + bad economic sense doesn't equal successful economic policy. The progressive movement can be summed up perfectly with this very familiar saying: "the road to hell is paved with good intentions." JRD
Throughout world history, mankind has suffered under different forms of the same theme: government oppression. From medieval Europe through today, monarchies, dictatorships, fascism, communism....too few people have truly lived free. Then the founding fathers changed the world. The constitution was born. People were free to create, work hard, and achieve the impossible. It is no coincidence that America, though only a tiny fraction of the world's population, literally, for a time was giving the world almost everything: electricity, the car, the airplane, the computer. People left everything to come here to live "the American dream."
But what made us so special? I think it's because this nation was born of a people that valued liberty over convenience, that had to prove they treasured freedom because of the sacrifices they had to make for it. Because of this they carefully, with the aid of heaven, crafted a system of government that would put personal liberty above all else, above convenience, above arbitrary notions of "fairness". A government that would protect equal opportunity, not equal results. A government that is above all LIMITED.
Please take time to read the words of the founding father's. They were very leery of government power. They for the most part looked at it as a necessary evil. Think of government power on a scale from 0-10. 0 is no government (anarchy), and 10 is total government (think communist Russia or Nazi Germany). Most of the world, throughout most of history, have flirted somewhere 7 or higher. The founding fathers wanted just enough government for a civil society (police, roads, schools etc) but not much more. Think of the founding fathers having a goal of being like a 3 on the scale. The founding fathers simply believed our freedom came from God, not government. It was up to each individual to choose for himself his path in life: success thru hard work, education, taking risk, or even having the freedom to fail. Keep the government out of people's way. Unless one citizen is depriving the rights of another (murder, theft etc), be very cautious about interfering.
Then in the early 1800's, a philosophy called progressivism took root and spread thru both the republicans (Teddy Roosevelt) and democrats (Woodrow Wilson, FDR). Essentially progressives believed that society was fast evolving. True, governments in the past were sort of barbaric, but progressives felt mankind was now evolving past the human nature of craving power, and thus government could step in to help move society "along". In other words, Government can now break the bonds of an old-fashioned constitution to speed up things that society on it's own was just taking too long doing, like ridding the nation of rich and poor, and giving everyone everything from healthcare to education. This reasoning helps us understand why progressives feel so comfortable about "spreading the wealth around" and pushing for universal health care, and recently, free college education. It's all about the guarantee. It's OK for government to grab power from private companies (fire GM's CEO), or meddle in personal contracts (AIG execs), or spread the wealth around (Obama), because the government is helping people. Kinda like your Mom trying to "help" your love life by setting you up on blind dates...thanks but no thanks. Progressives erroneously assume that because America's great, more government means America gets even better. They could not be more wrong. It is the people, not the government that make America great. It's like a teenage goth druggie boy who falls in love with a sweet, kind, pure christian girl. "Wow she's somethin" he thinks, "if only I can get here into drugs, rebel against her family and her faith, and drop out of school with me she'll be even better."
Progressives have duped so many Americans into an vicious cycle of addiction. The government gains power, gives more handouts to the people, they become more entitled, less willing to risk for gain because now it's freely given to them, so they demand more, thus giving the government more power to provide for them, and it goes on and on, gaining momentum all the way.
But the problem is a government cant just give and give without taking from somewhere else. People (the private market) create wealth, government simply redistributes it, which always leads to the unintended destroying of it. Think about it: Microsoft, Ebay, Disney. These all started from nothing to create thousands of jobs and millions in wealth. Yes Gates and Disney made more than their employees, but they created the jobs for those employees and many people along the whole economic spectrum are reaping financial benefits from these companies. Contrast that with government programs. For instance the proposed "green jobs". One thing Washington has got to learn is that most of the time you don't have to blindly guess the impact of your policy ideas, because somewhere some other country has tried it already. In the case of green jobs, our friends in Spain have already been guinea pigs in that disastrous experiment, but that doesn't seem to be deterring Obama. Paraphrasing a recent CNSnews article: According to a recent study by Dr. Gabriel Calzada, an economics professor at Juan Carlos University in Madrid, every “green job” created with government money in Spain since 2001 came at the cost of 2.2 regular jobs, and only 10% of the newly created green jobs became permanent. President Obama, in fact, has used Spain’s green initiative as a blueprint for how the United States should use federal funds to stimulate the economy...(end article).
Government programs do not create wealth. This simple fact helps explain why the great depression lasted so much longer here than in the rest of the world. It was almost a perfect correlation in the experiment which the whole industrialized world participated. The more a country's government meddled in the economic recovery, the longer and deeper the great depression affected them. The statistics prove it.
Washington has many weaknesses, but a BIG one is that many of our politicians have about ZERO business experience. They've never run so much as a lemonade stand, yet we let them make multi-billion dollar decisions, most of which are disastrous, on a very regular basis. Good intention + bad economic sense doesn't equal successful economic policy. The progressive movement can be summed up perfectly with this very familiar saying: "the road to hell is paved with good intentions." JRD
Must read books
When a book gets recommended, the phrase "must read" is often used. It's probably been grossly overused by now, and certainly doesn't guarantee great written work. But to my family, friends, anyone who happens to be reading this post, I am telling you I have 2 "MUST reads". The first is a profoundly powerful book called "The 5,000 year leap" by Cleon Skowsen. The reason it's so important is because it covers in detail the forging of the Constitution. Anyone who knows me knows how sacred I hold that document to be, and the danger that it's currently in. Both Democrats and Republicans have abused their powers and have left the constitution literally hanging by a thread. We are slowly losing our liberty to a goverment that is growing more powerful at an unprecedented rate, and the abuse of power by both the democrats and republicans have left the constitution literally hanging by a thread. The only way it can survive is if the people EDUCATE themselves on this document, and the founding fathers, and put our current events into proper perspective. The 5,000 year leap helps you understand HOW the constitution was created. The founding fathers didn't just sit down like screenwriters trying to come up with a really cool plot for a movie. They very carefully, with divine intervention and unparalleled wisdom, brought forth a system of government that truly gave power to the people. Please read this book.
My second recommendation is a very well researched book on the great depression called New Deal or Raw Deal. Author Burton Fulsom did his homework to powerfully outline the destructiveness of progressivism in FDR's policies. We need to learn the lessons of history so we don't repeat the mistakes. Massive government programs and high taxes make struggling economies WORSE. FDR's policies protracted and deepened the great depression, a lesson we would do well to heed right now. It's not the most entertaining read in the world, but I guarantee it's well worth your time. JRD
My second recommendation is a very well researched book on the great depression called New Deal or Raw Deal. Author Burton Fulsom did his homework to powerfully outline the destructiveness of progressivism in FDR's policies. We need to learn the lessons of history so we don't repeat the mistakes. Massive government programs and high taxes make struggling economies WORSE. FDR's policies protracted and deepened the great depression, a lesson we would do well to heed right now. It's not the most entertaining read in the world, but I guarantee it's well worth your time. JRD
Friday, April 17, 2009
Can't get a pulse........
If anyone needed further proof that the media is completely out of touch with the American people, then look no further than their coverage and response to the recent Tea Parties. I couldn't believe my eyes as I watched CNN, and then read Frank Krugman of the NY Times analysis of these historic events. In case you missed it, they portrayed the parties as all out right-wing nut job fests patronized by "milita-wannabe" anti-Obama GOP goons. Actually the 300,000+ tea party attendees were from all political parties, some were even Obama voters, they were completely peaceful and not there to attack any political party or figure. (see Kathy's personal account of the tea parties in the post directly below this one) The party attendees were average, everyday citizens of all political parties deeply concerned at the direction of this country. I just can't fathom how the media can't get a pulse on America and the frustration we're feeling at a government out of control. Dems and Repubs are both craving COMMON SENSE and integrity restored to Washington. That's why this blog is called a common thread, because the majority of Americans do share a common desire for responsibility, common sense, and honesty from our politicians. We just want our representatives to actually REPRESENT US!!! I'm not saying the whole country is headed for happy unity, but I see glimmers of hope that maybe Democrats and Republicans will stop blaming EVERYTHING on each other, and start holding our politicians more responsible for behavior that can only be described as reckless and completely void of common sense. Here is just a very light surface-scratching of evidence:
Congress just recently passed the largest spending bill in History WITHOUT EVEN READING IT!!! That's like coming home from work at 530pm and your spouse yelling at you in full panic that you have to buy a second home today or it may be too late, and you have to sign all the papers before the bank closes at 600! Would you EVER consider that??? No way, but our Congress did just that! We were told it just HAD to be done RIGHT AWAY. Not only is it reckless and foolish, it's also completely inneffective. If anyone is still duped into thinking the so called stimulus will actually stimulate the economy, a January 2009 WSJ article helps paint the real picture quite well. According to the article, some of the not so stimulating items in the bill include: "$1 billion for Amtrak, the federal railroad that hasn't turned a profit in 40 years; $2 billion for child-care subsidies; $50 million for that great engine of job creation, the National Endowment forthe Arts; $400 million for global-warming research and another $2.4 billion for carbon-capture demonstration projects. There's even $650 million on top of the billions already doled out to pay for digital TV conversion coupons".This bill was over 800 billion, but not all the atrocities have happened under Obama. George W and the GOP congress of a few years back, and the Dems in congress now, they're all mortgaging our future (i.e. enslaving our children) with debt we can't even come close to afford. In just the last year, the government spending spree amounts to over 12 trillion. That's approximately 40,000 per person!!! This bipartisan fiscal suicide has got to stop.
For a second piece of evidence, Washington can't even fill it's job slots with honest people! We're not talking one or 2 isolated events, this disease of dishonesty is a pandemic. For instance BOTH nominations for Sec of HHS, Daschle and Sebelius, as well as Tresury Secretary Geithner (who ironically now heads the IRS) were all evading taxes! And then there's longtime tax cheaters too like Charlie Rangel, head of the ways and means committee (that means he helps write the tax code). Is there an irony contest in Washington i'm not aware about? All this is like a local scout troop continually hiring new scout leaders except every one of them is on the sex offender registry, yet they want you to still trust them with your boy.
Then there's education. This is a great example, because no matter you're political party, we all want a high quality education for our kids, but Washington is so tied to special interests and teacher's unions that kids take the back seat. Case in point, the DC voucher program is being cancelled next year. Look at the #'s and you tell me if Washington has any common sense: Right now the DC public school system spends more per child than anywhere in the country, over 12,000 year! (this is yet one more piece in the giant pile of evidence that Washingtons assumption that throwing money at every problem will solve it is fundamentally flawed, but that's for another day) Back to the issue at hand: In this voucher program the government gives families 7,500 yr to give them a choice of schools, most of which have double the reading and math proficiency as the public. So, to review. Kid stays in public school costing the taxpayer over 12,000, or picks a charter school TWICE as good for almost 5,000 less to the taxpayer, which means the public school literally still gets paid without the kid!!! Despite this no brainer set-up, Washington is giving the program the axe. Why?? It's the same reason government has problems with home-schooling despite the powerful supporting statistics, it takes control away from them. Power, control, and special interests hold higher priority than the quality of the child's eductation. Shameful.
Need more evidence? As mentioned above, the government directly harms us by spending billions of our tax dollars, and indirectly by banning proven energy solutions like off shore drilling and nuclear power, all because of some bogus theory called man-made global warming. (Here's a tip global warmers, if you're going to continue this ridiculous theory, you may want to get the Earth to cooperate. In case you missed it, the earth hasn't even been warming in the last few years..it...ahh nevermind. I've rambled on about this long enough (see my other blog). Look Washington, all of us, even the staunchest conservative is totally on board with cleaner energy and taking care of the environment. We all deeply care about our planet, but for crying out loud let's not use bogus, harmful myths to re-distribute wealth under the false premise of protecting the planet from phony future doom like melting polar caps...lets actually do something crazy and protect the planet for a real reason like, I dunno.....wanting our kids to enjoy the same beautiful planet we enjoy???? Common sense works Washington...you should try it sometime.
Finally, in a post-9/11 world, our government still is doing almost nothing to secure our borders, despite the violence on our southern border being to the level where more people have been killed there than in Iraq and Afghanistan combined. It's insane. People who protect us, like hero border agents Ramos and Compean, get punished and imprisoned, while people who are breaking the law by sneaking into our country are rewarded with "amnesty", or at least that's what Washington is attempting.....once again not really followin your logic Washington.
When checking for a pulse, there's really only 2 main reasons you just can't get it. If you're the mainstream media, it's cause your checking in the wrong place..in this case it's like they're feeling the bottom of America's shoe. And if your most Americans trying to get the pulse on Washington's common sense...well...it may we can't cause it's just plain DEAD. We can bring it back though. The Tea Parties were just an inkling of that. JRD
Congress just recently passed the largest spending bill in History WITHOUT EVEN READING IT!!! That's like coming home from work at 530pm and your spouse yelling at you in full panic that you have to buy a second home today or it may be too late, and you have to sign all the papers before the bank closes at 600! Would you EVER consider that??? No way, but our Congress did just that! We were told it just HAD to be done RIGHT AWAY. Not only is it reckless and foolish, it's also completely inneffective. If anyone is still duped into thinking the so called stimulus will actually stimulate the economy, a January 2009 WSJ article helps paint the real picture quite well. According to the article, some of the not so stimulating items in the bill include: "$1 billion for Amtrak, the federal railroad that hasn't turned a profit in 40 years; $2 billion for child-care subsidies; $50 million for that great engine of job creation, the National Endowment forthe Arts; $400 million for global-warming research and another $2.4 billion for carbon-capture demonstration projects. There's even $650 million on top of the billions already doled out to pay for digital TV conversion coupons".This bill was over 800 billion, but not all the atrocities have happened under Obama. George W and the GOP congress of a few years back, and the Dems in congress now, they're all mortgaging our future (i.e. enslaving our children) with debt we can't even come close to afford. In just the last year, the government spending spree amounts to over 12 trillion. That's approximately 40,000 per person!!! This bipartisan fiscal suicide has got to stop.
For a second piece of evidence, Washington can't even fill it's job slots with honest people! We're not talking one or 2 isolated events, this disease of dishonesty is a pandemic. For instance BOTH nominations for Sec of HHS, Daschle and Sebelius, as well as Tresury Secretary Geithner (who ironically now heads the IRS) were all evading taxes! And then there's longtime tax cheaters too like Charlie Rangel, head of the ways and means committee (that means he helps write the tax code). Is there an irony contest in Washington i'm not aware about? All this is like a local scout troop continually hiring new scout leaders except every one of them is on the sex offender registry, yet they want you to still trust them with your boy.
Then there's education. This is a great example, because no matter you're political party, we all want a high quality education for our kids, but Washington is so tied to special interests and teacher's unions that kids take the back seat. Case in point, the DC voucher program is being cancelled next year. Look at the #'s and you tell me if Washington has any common sense: Right now the DC public school system spends more per child than anywhere in the country, over 12,000 year! (this is yet one more piece in the giant pile of evidence that Washingtons assumption that throwing money at every problem will solve it is fundamentally flawed, but that's for another day) Back to the issue at hand: In this voucher program the government gives families 7,500 yr to give them a choice of schools, most of which have double the reading and math proficiency as the public. So, to review. Kid stays in public school costing the taxpayer over 12,000, or picks a charter school TWICE as good for almost 5,000 less to the taxpayer, which means the public school literally still gets paid without the kid!!! Despite this no brainer set-up, Washington is giving the program the axe. Why?? It's the same reason government has problems with home-schooling despite the powerful supporting statistics, it takes control away from them. Power, control, and special interests hold higher priority than the quality of the child's eductation. Shameful.
Need more evidence? As mentioned above, the government directly harms us by spending billions of our tax dollars, and indirectly by banning proven energy solutions like off shore drilling and nuclear power, all because of some bogus theory called man-made global warming. (Here's a tip global warmers, if you're going to continue this ridiculous theory, you may want to get the Earth to cooperate. In case you missed it, the earth hasn't even been warming in the last few years..it...ahh nevermind. I've rambled on about this long enough (see my other blog). Look Washington, all of us, even the staunchest conservative is totally on board with cleaner energy and taking care of the environment. We all deeply care about our planet, but for crying out loud let's not use bogus, harmful myths to re-distribute wealth under the false premise of protecting the planet from phony future doom like melting polar caps...lets actually do something crazy and protect the planet for a real reason like, I dunno.....wanting our kids to enjoy the same beautiful planet we enjoy???? Common sense works Washington...you should try it sometime.
Finally, in a post-9/11 world, our government still is doing almost nothing to secure our borders, despite the violence on our southern border being to the level where more people have been killed there than in Iraq and Afghanistan combined. It's insane. People who protect us, like hero border agents Ramos and Compean, get punished and imprisoned, while people who are breaking the law by sneaking into our country are rewarded with "amnesty", or at least that's what Washington is attempting.....once again not really followin your logic Washington.
When checking for a pulse, there's really only 2 main reasons you just can't get it. If you're the mainstream media, it's cause your checking in the wrong place..in this case it's like they're feeling the bottom of America's shoe. And if your most Americans trying to get the pulse on Washington's common sense...well...it may we can't cause it's just plain DEAD. We can bring it back though. The Tea Parties were just an inkling of that. JRD
Mom's first protest!
In the 60's, I was a teenager when all the hippie protests were going on, but I was never a part of that. I wanted to support those soldiers fighting in Viet Nam and couldn't understand why others didn't. However, things in Washington have gotten out of hand, so the other day, April 15th, I, with three friends I recruited, went to my first tea party. It was a great experience and I felt a pride for and love of this nation that I had not been feeling for a while. The people gathered at the tea party I attended (police and firefighters there estimated the crowd at between 4 and 5,000) were well behaved, and very patriotic. There were speeches, patriotic songs sung, signs waving, thousands of flags (U.S. and Texas state) and families of all ages. Little children carrying signs, old grandmas and grandpas carrying signs, moms and dads. All there because we love our country and want what is best for her and don't think government taking over our lives is the answer to our problems. There was no angry screaming or anything being thrown or burned, just people wanting to express their frustration peacefully as this country's constitution allows us to do. There was a feeling of camaraderie (probably misspelled) and even family. There was cheering and clapping and flag waving. I looked around in awe at all the people who felt much as I do and was grateful to know I am not alone. There were hundreds of these gatherings throughout our country on April 15th. It is time for the silent majority to speak up, peacefully, but together for the country we love, before we have that right taken from us and we can only remember the rights we once had that our Grandchildren will not know. Yes, that may sound extreme, but I think that is where we are headed if we don't wake up and stand together and speak out and hope to heaven that Washington will hear, or if not, that we can vote in some people who will hear us, "the people". I encourage you to go to these gatherings if your circumstances allow and just stand and be counted and do what you can to make a difference and stand up for our Constitution. Thanks for all you do to serve in our communities and our country. Kathy
Monday, April 13, 2009
Make your voice heard!!
Unless you've been living under a rock, you've heard about the "tea party" fever spreading across the country. This Wednesday April 15th (tax day), there will be many different tea parties nationwide. These obviously reference the original Boston Tea Party, where local citizens protested taxation without representation. How fitting for today. Our so called representatives in Washington are taxing and spending us into the ground, and it's time to stand up and fight by letting your voice be heard! Democrats, Republicans, it doesn't matter...we're all fed up with Washington and we can stand together to send a powerful message. That's what this blog is all about, that we Americans are all united by a common thread, a love of our country and a desire for our leaders in Washington to govern with common sense and respect for the constitution! And there is no better place to start than this tax day. Stand up for fair, nay....even just SANE taxation principles back. If at all possible, take time out of your day on April 15th. Click on the link below to find a tea party near you and get more info on the tea parties:
http://taxdayteaparty.com/
And in case you're not motivated enough, here's Thomas Paine to help us put it all in perspective: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1YE_N91ZQc
I wish so bad I wasn't on the other side of the planet or i'd be at one. Let your voice be heard!
JRD
http://taxdayteaparty.com/
And in case you're not motivated enough, here's Thomas Paine to help us put it all in perspective: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1YE_N91ZQc
I wish so bad I wasn't on the other side of the planet or i'd be at one. Let your voice be heard!
JRD
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Socialism - Good on Paper, Not in Reality
An economics professor at Texas Tech said he had failed very few students but had, once, failed an entire class. That class had insisted that socialism worked and that no one would be poor and no one would be rich, a great equalizer. The professor then said, "Ok, we will have an experiment in this class on socialism.""All grades will be averaged and everyone would receive the same grade meaning, obviously, no one will receive an A." They all agreed to this. After the first test the grades were averaged and everyone got a C. The students who studied hard were upset and the students who studied little were happy. But, as the second test rolled around, the students who studied little had studied even less and the ones who studied hard decided they wanted a free ride too, so they studied little. The second test average was a D! No one was happy. When the 3rd test rolled around the average was an F. The scores never increased as bickering, blame and name calling all resulted in hard feelings and no one would study for the benefit of anyone else. To their great dismay the professor failed them all. Then he sent all of them this note: "A socialistic government will also ultimately fail - because when the reward is great, the effort to succeed is great, but when government takes all the reward away, no one will try or want to succeed." - Original author unknown. Submitted by Jeff.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
The conservative who cried wolf
To accurately judge the path this country is on, you have to put it in the context of history. It doesn't take a rocket scientist, just people willing to look at the big picture by educating themselves in history and economics among other things, but above all not looking at every new thing we hear about as a snapshot, or isolated event. We have to get the big picture on how our freedom and way of life is slowly slipping through our fingers. To know where we're headed, we have to know where we've been. For instance, let's say a doc's been concerned about a patient's weight. The patient reports they've followed a strict diet and exercise regimen over the last 6 months, so what would the doctor want to know? Obviously taking that day's weight alone is insufficient. If they weighed 500 last time for instance, but today they're 350 with a 30% decrease in BP and cholesterol then everyone should feel pretty good. If on the other hand the patient was 295 six months ago, sound the sirens!
Conversatives are sounding the warning sirens too, claiming our country is heading towards socialism, (technically it's more like progressive facism but that's for another day)....regardless, does the claim have merit? To answer that we have to look back, way back, to the founding of the nation and then forward to now to put in all in proper perspective. I truly believe the founding fathers had incredible insight and wisdom, and they truly designed the constitution for the long haul, for our day as well, and if we stray too far from the intended purpose of that sacred document it will be the end of freedom and prosperity as we know it. And, oh are we straying.
As the founders began drafting the Constitution, they of course had many intents, but arguable the most important goal was keeping the government power limited. The founders were very concerned that the government would slowly grow in power and consequently the citizens would begin to lose freedom, because that is indeed what happens EVERY TIME government power increases. Thomas Jefferson said the 10th amendment is the foundation of the Constitution. That amendment makes it very clear that any power not expressly granted the federal government by the constitution did not belong to them. The phrase "power to the people" comes to mind. All this madness of just the last few months is terrifying. To continue the analogy above, the government has been gaining weight for awhile. It gave up diet and exercise way back, but lately it's having fried oreo eating contests and there's no sign of stopping! I could go on forever (anyone who knows me can attest to that), but Thomas Paine (well, a guy playing him at least) says it far better, so PLEASE click on the link below for the 6 min video. This guy says it perfectly. Amen Thomas, Amen.... JRD
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jeYscnFpEyA
Conversatives are sounding the warning sirens too, claiming our country is heading towards socialism, (technically it's more like progressive facism but that's for another day)....regardless, does the claim have merit? To answer that we have to look back, way back, to the founding of the nation and then forward to now to put in all in proper perspective. I truly believe the founding fathers had incredible insight and wisdom, and they truly designed the constitution for the long haul, for our day as well, and if we stray too far from the intended purpose of that sacred document it will be the end of freedom and prosperity as we know it. And, oh are we straying.
As the founders began drafting the Constitution, they of course had many intents, but arguable the most important goal was keeping the government power limited. The founders were very concerned that the government would slowly grow in power and consequently the citizens would begin to lose freedom, because that is indeed what happens EVERY TIME government power increases. Thomas Jefferson said the 10th amendment is the foundation of the Constitution. That amendment makes it very clear that any power not expressly granted the federal government by the constitution did not belong to them. The phrase "power to the people" comes to mind. All this madness of just the last few months is terrifying. To continue the analogy above, the government has been gaining weight for awhile. It gave up diet and exercise way back, but lately it's having fried oreo eating contests and there's no sign of stopping! I could go on forever (anyone who knows me can attest to that), but Thomas Paine (well, a guy playing him at least) says it far better, so PLEASE click on the link below for the 6 min video. This guy says it perfectly. Amen Thomas, Amen.... JRD
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jeYscnFpEyA
Saturday, March 21, 2009
A simple lesson in Economics
Bar Stool Economics
Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:
The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.The fifth would pay $1.The sixth would pay $3.The seventh would pay $7.The eighth would pay $12.The ninth would pay $18.The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.
So, that’s what they decided to do.
The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until on day, the owner threw them a curve. “Since you are all such good customers,” he said, “I’m going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20.”Drinks for the ten now cost just $80.
The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes so the first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free. But what about the other six men - the paying customers? How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his ‘fair share?’ They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody’s share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer. So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man’s bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay.
And so:
The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings).The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33%savings).The seventh now pay $5 instead of $7 (28%savings).The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings).The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings).The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings).
Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to drink for free. But once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings.
“I only got a dollar out of the $20,”declared the sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man,” but he got $10!”
“Yeah, that’s right,” exclaimed the fifth man. “I only saved a dollar, too. It’s unfair that he got ten times more than I!”
“That’s true!!” shouted the seventh man. “Why should he get $10 back when I got only two? The wealthy get all the breaks!”
“Wait a minute,” yelled the first four men in unison. “We didn’t get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!”
The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.
The next night the tenth man didn’t show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn’t have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill!
And that, boys and girls, journalists and college professors, is how our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start drinking overseas where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.
For those who understand, no explanation is needed. For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible.
Original author unknown. Contributed by Jeff
Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:
The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.The fifth would pay $1.The sixth would pay $3.The seventh would pay $7.The eighth would pay $12.The ninth would pay $18.The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.
So, that’s what they decided to do.
The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until on day, the owner threw them a curve. “Since you are all such good customers,” he said, “I’m going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20.”Drinks for the ten now cost just $80.
The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes so the first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free. But what about the other six men - the paying customers? How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his ‘fair share?’ They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody’s share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer. So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man’s bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay.
And so:
The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings).The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33%savings).The seventh now pay $5 instead of $7 (28%savings).The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings).The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings).The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings).
Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to drink for free. But once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings.
“I only got a dollar out of the $20,”declared the sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man,” but he got $10!”
“Yeah, that’s right,” exclaimed the fifth man. “I only saved a dollar, too. It’s unfair that he got ten times more than I!”
“That’s true!!” shouted the seventh man. “Why should he get $10 back when I got only two? The wealthy get all the breaks!”
“Wait a minute,” yelled the first four men in unison. “We didn’t get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!”
The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.
The next night the tenth man didn’t show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn’t have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill!
And that, boys and girls, journalists and college professors, is how our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start drinking overseas where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.
For those who understand, no explanation is needed. For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible.
Original author unknown. Contributed by Jeff
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Knowledge is indeed power
How does a parent "prove" to their teenager that living moral, chaste, and drug free is better than a life of wild experimentation? How does a loving family member, friend, or doctor prove to a failing diabetic that the principles of diet and exercise are true practices for good health? And how do conservatives prove to liberals that the conservative movement is simply the preservation of the founding father's vision, of continued freedom and the solution to the problems facing our nation today? The answer to all 3 scenarios is the same, the people have got to embark on a sincere search for truth to learn for themselves. I strongly believe that if people truly "did their homework" and studied the constitution and the important issues of our day for themselves, that the truth would emerge and conservatism would gain momentum.
This can be applied to any major issue of the day. For instance I WISH kids in school were getting BOTH sides of the Global warming debate, cause almost ANY exposure to the counter argument of Gore's propoganda almost instantly exposes it for the distorted crap that it is. Even more important than "social" issues though are debates over constitutional ones. Each topic is like a fire; used correctly and can provide warmth, comfort, and safety, wielded incorrectly and it can burn and destroy the fabric of this nation. For instance it is so vitally important to correctly understand the separation of church and state. Please take a moment to read the 2 articles by clicking the links below. This 2 part series should set the record pretty darn straight on the separation of church and state. Some would have us believe it's a blank check to mandate atheism across the land, but it's actually more of a PROTECTION for religion from an oppressive government. You will notice this conservative argument contains frankly what is typical of most conservative arguments, historical facts, logic, strict adherence to the constitution, and plain ol common sense. Never again should a child be punished for praying out loud in a public school (and it does happen). It's an outrage, it's unconstitutional, and it only pervades because people, yes, even teachers, remain uneducated in these crucial matters. Please read the linked articles and leave your comments too. JRD
Part 1 link:
http://townhall.com/columnists/ChristopherMerola/2008/11/27/what_is_the_separation_of_church_and_state
Part 2 link:
http://townhall.com/columnists/ChristopherMerola/2008/12/29/the_separation_of_church_and_state_-_reloaded
This can be applied to any major issue of the day. For instance I WISH kids in school were getting BOTH sides of the Global warming debate, cause almost ANY exposure to the counter argument of Gore's propoganda almost instantly exposes it for the distorted crap that it is. Even more important than "social" issues though are debates over constitutional ones. Each topic is like a fire; used correctly and can provide warmth, comfort, and safety, wielded incorrectly and it can burn and destroy the fabric of this nation. For instance it is so vitally important to correctly understand the separation of church and state. Please take a moment to read the 2 articles by clicking the links below. This 2 part series should set the record pretty darn straight on the separation of church and state. Some would have us believe it's a blank check to mandate atheism across the land, but it's actually more of a PROTECTION for religion from an oppressive government. You will notice this conservative argument contains frankly what is typical of most conservative arguments, historical facts, logic, strict adherence to the constitution, and plain ol common sense. Never again should a child be punished for praying out loud in a public school (and it does happen). It's an outrage, it's unconstitutional, and it only pervades because people, yes, even teachers, remain uneducated in these crucial matters. Please read the linked articles and leave your comments too. JRD
Part 1 link:
http://townhall.com/columnists/ChristopherMerola/2008/11/27/what_is_the_separation_of_church_and_state
Part 2 link:
http://townhall.com/columnists/ChristopherMerola/2008/12/29/the_separation_of_church_and_state_-_reloaded
The Writing on the Wall
Imagine for a second you and your spouse are outside doing yard work while your son and daughter play inside. You instructed your son that while you were outside there was to be no TV, as he needs to watch his sister. But when you wrap up and come inside you hear him quickly turn off the TV in the back room and waltz out into the hall like nothing happened. Then as you start to express your suspicions, he begins to panic, but his eyes lite up as he looks into his sister's room and yells "look, look at what she's done!" You turn to see the walls covered in crayon and marker, while the sister runs and hides in the closet. Encouraged that your focus is no longer on him, your son continues to direct your anger toward his sister. "Look at what she's done, it's a crime" he cries. "Something needs to be done, she needs to be punished." As you begin scolding your daughter for her crayola fiasco, your son quietly breathes a sigh of relief as he retreats slowly into his room, hoping all the time you forget that it was he who actually gave her the crayons so she wouldn't bother him while he watched TV, and it was he who truly let you down. Guys, the dirty misdirection and deflection of responsibility carried out by the boy in this story is EXACTLY what our politicians in Washington are doing right now with this AIG bonus fiasco. They are the ones who, in what amounts to a basically a money laundering scheme, squandered BILLIONS into AIG over the past months, knowing all along about the AIG bonuses. They"supplied the crayons" and watched AIG spiral downward while it served their political purposes. The public, like the suspicious parents, were starting to call the politicians out on their reckless irresponsibility, so they trumped up phony outrage at AIG execs to divert the anger of the American public. Yes it's despicable that these execs get multi-million dollar bonuses, and I wish they weren't getting a dime either, but it's our politicians that are committing the far greater sin. First off, as much as I despise those greedy corporate execs, those bonuses do belong to them. They are binding with a VALID CONTRACT, and the tactics Washington is threatening right now should absolutely outrage every single American. If the government can simply overturn any valid contract at will, their power over all of us will have reached a point that would make Hitler jealous. Retroactive taxation! Are they out of their minds?? We cannot allow the constitution to be trampled on like this. The government has no right, no matter how big a scumbag their target is, to break a valid contract. That is literally the foundation...nay, the cornerstone of free-market capitalism. And the millions being "wasted" on these bonuses is NOTHING compared to the billions the government has squandered away to special interests and foreign countries thru the AIG laundromat. It's despicable. And the icing on the politicians-destroying-our-country cake is the trillion plus dollars the Fed just printed print this week to "buy bonds and mortgage-backed securities." Translation: our dollar will be worth about toilet paper soon if we keep this up. Washington, you have got to stop treating us like idiots. The American public, like the parents in the story, are slowly catching on. Trying to distract our anger towards business executives to hide your own sins, while threatening to expand your power to terrifying, unconstitutional levels, is a new low for you....and that's saying something! JRD
Sunday, March 15, 2009
good intention + false assumption = bad outcome
When Michelle had her C-section, she was counseled as all other women recovering from this procedure are to get walking around as soon as possible to ensure the quickest healing and the best possible outcome. Now someone with no medical background and no previous experience with c-section, or even general delivery may question the wisdom of having the patient get up and move around. One might think: "large, deep slice in abdomen, painful when moving = good to stay still". While it's true that a period of rest is needed immediately after the procedure, persistent rest and immobility while tempting in it's avoidance of pain, would put the woman on a much slower, more complicated recovery path. If one has good intentions (wants Mom to be comfortable and heal), but a wrong or false assumption (rest is always best, or if it hurts to move it must mean it's not good to do so), this can lead to a much worse outcome, including a slower, more complicted recovery. Or take a kid who watches Mom give a sick little brother some medicine. Hmmm, he thinks, if one spoonful will help him get better in a few days, maybe the whole bottle will make him better right now!!! If you're logic and assumptions are flawed, even the best of intentions can lead to disaster. I have said this before, but it's certainly worth repeating: this is the essence of the entire liberal agenda. In almost every case, their programs/ideas do far more harm than good, but continue to pervade because they make sense at first glance, and are well intentioned.
The complete list is exhaustive, but right off the top of my head let's go with "building nuclear power plants and drilling for domestic oil is bad" and "destroying the 2nd ammendment" aka, "gun control" will make us safer. Bad, bad ideas, but they pervade without a foudation of logic and facts to support them. But probably the prime example of them all is the liberal love affair with welfare. Liberals erroneously assume that giving handouts to those in poverty (and in many cases not so impoverished) will help them rise out of it. Not only does welfare not help, it destroys people, neighborhoods, and communities. Back when I didn't know (or care) a thing about politics and policies, I spent several months in the inner city of Milwaukee. It didn't take long to realize something was VERY wrong, and politicians assumptions that they were helping these people was not only foolish, it was dangerous. My personal observations didn't end there. Being here in Guam, an island rampant in welfare, has only added to the overwhelming evidence that welfare destroys people. But enough from me. Far more intelligent people have spoken on the subject:
First, a quote from Benjamin Franklin. Spoken so long ago, but as relevant as today's headlines:
"I am for doing good to the poor, but I differ in opinion of the means. I think the best way of doing good to the poor, is not making them easy in poverty, but leading or driving them out of it. In my youth I traveled much, and I observed in different countries, that the more public provisions were made for the poor, the less they provided for themselves, and of course became poorer. And, on the contrary, the less was done for them, the more they did for themselves, and became richer."
Benjamin Franklin, On the Price of Corn and Management of the Poor, November 1766
Second, a Reader’s Digest article from many years ago followed by analysis by Marion G Romney. It reads:
“In our friendly neighbor city of St. Augustine great flocks of sea gulls are starving amid plenty. Fishing is still good, but the gulls don’t know how to fish. For generations they have depended on the shrimp fleet to toss them scraps from the nets. Now the fleet has moved. …
“The shrimpers had created a Welfare State for the … sea gulls. The big birds never bothered to learn how to fish for themselves and they never taught their children to fish. Instead they led their little ones to the shrimp nets.
“Now the sea gulls, the fine free birds that almost symbolize liberty itself, are starving to death because they gave in to the ‘something for nothing’ lure! They sacrificed their independence for a handout.
“A lot of people are like that, too. They see nothing wrong in picking delectable scraps from the tax nets of the U.S. Government’s ‘shrimp fleet.’ But what will happen when the Government runs out of goods? What about our children of generations to come?
“Let’s not be gullible gulls. We … must preserve our talents of self-sufficiency, our genius for creating things for ourselves, our sense of thrift and our true love of independence.”2
The practice of coveting and receiving unearned benefits has now become so fixed in our society that even men of wealth, possessing the means to produce more wealth, are expecting the government to guarantee them a profit. Elections often turn on what the candidates promise to do for voters from government funds. This practice, if universally accepted and implemented in any society, will make slaves of its citizens. -Excerpt from March 2009 Ensign.
Need further evidence? Look across the country. Communities targeted by liberals and their war on poverty who have received heavy doses of welfare year after year are almost universally worse off as measured by a variety of economic indicators. Conservatives fierce opposition to welfare isn't because we love to see the poor suffer, it's because we understand that when you give someone a handout, you're actually robbing them of something far more valuable than food stamps. Chris Gardner, the man played by Will Smith in the movie Pursuit of Happiness, recently explained (paraphrasing) that if he'd been given handouts during his darkest times, he would never have pulled himself up by the bootstraps and enjoyed the experience of truly becoming a successful person. And by successful he didn't just mean financially.
I think welfare persists because of the myth that we still live in Robin Hood times. That the system is rigged for the rich in this country and there are families that have money and families that don't. The facts however, completely refute that. First off, intra-familial income disparities almost perfectly mirror income disparities nationwide. Look at any family where the children are now bread winning adults and you will see stark differences in income. They started off in the perfectly controlled equal opportunity setting...the same family!!!! But their individual choices and talents led to different economic circumstances. And in family"empires" like the Hilton's or Ford where massive wealth is passed down, they found they actually don't last much longer than 2 or 3 generations before the grand kids and great-grand kids squander the wealth. I was actually just sitting in the airport with a professor of family studies who taught at the Harvard Business School who has spent his career studying this. He explained that the children of the "empire builder" grow up watching their father (or mother) build a powerful business from the ground up, so they appreciate the hard work and usually follow suit and retain or even expand the wealth. Their kids however (the builder's grand kids) grow up from babes with massive wealth and know nothing of the "pull yourself up by the bootstraps" principle, so they squander their inheritance (think Paris Hilton). Then by the time THEY have kids, the wealth is gone and they find themselves back in the middle class. What is the point of this very common, very real trend? It shows us that when people simply receive money without the personal experience to understand the sacrifice, work ethic, and discipline behind the earning of that money, then wealth is not built. Standards of living are not raised, and most importantly, children are not taught correct principles and work ethic is replaced with entitlement. Just forget politics for a second and really ask yourself, is giving handouts really the answer? For the VAST VAST majority of these people they do have the ability to pull themselves up...and we shouldn't rlob them of that invaluable experience. JRD
The complete list is exhaustive, but right off the top of my head let's go with "building nuclear power plants and drilling for domestic oil is bad" and "destroying the 2nd ammendment" aka, "gun control" will make us safer. Bad, bad ideas, but they pervade without a foudation of logic and facts to support them. But probably the prime example of them all is the liberal love affair with welfare. Liberals erroneously assume that giving handouts to those in poverty (and in many cases not so impoverished) will help them rise out of it. Not only does welfare not help, it destroys people, neighborhoods, and communities. Back when I didn't know (or care) a thing about politics and policies, I spent several months in the inner city of Milwaukee. It didn't take long to realize something was VERY wrong, and politicians assumptions that they were helping these people was not only foolish, it was dangerous. My personal observations didn't end there. Being here in Guam, an island rampant in welfare, has only added to the overwhelming evidence that welfare destroys people. But enough from me. Far more intelligent people have spoken on the subject:
First, a quote from Benjamin Franklin. Spoken so long ago, but as relevant as today's headlines:
"I am for doing good to the poor, but I differ in opinion of the means. I think the best way of doing good to the poor, is not making them easy in poverty, but leading or driving them out of it. In my youth I traveled much, and I observed in different countries, that the more public provisions were made for the poor, the less they provided for themselves, and of course became poorer. And, on the contrary, the less was done for them, the more they did for themselves, and became richer."
Benjamin Franklin, On the Price of Corn and Management of the Poor, November 1766
Second, a Reader’s Digest article from many years ago followed by analysis by Marion G Romney. It reads:
“In our friendly neighbor city of St. Augustine great flocks of sea gulls are starving amid plenty. Fishing is still good, but the gulls don’t know how to fish. For generations they have depended on the shrimp fleet to toss them scraps from the nets. Now the fleet has moved. …
“The shrimpers had created a Welfare State for the … sea gulls. The big birds never bothered to learn how to fish for themselves and they never taught their children to fish. Instead they led their little ones to the shrimp nets.
“Now the sea gulls, the fine free birds that almost symbolize liberty itself, are starving to death because they gave in to the ‘something for nothing’ lure! They sacrificed their independence for a handout.
“A lot of people are like that, too. They see nothing wrong in picking delectable scraps from the tax nets of the U.S. Government’s ‘shrimp fleet.’ But what will happen when the Government runs out of goods? What about our children of generations to come?
“Let’s not be gullible gulls. We … must preserve our talents of self-sufficiency, our genius for creating things for ourselves, our sense of thrift and our true love of independence.”2
The practice of coveting and receiving unearned benefits has now become so fixed in our society that even men of wealth, possessing the means to produce more wealth, are expecting the government to guarantee them a profit. Elections often turn on what the candidates promise to do for voters from government funds. This practice, if universally accepted and implemented in any society, will make slaves of its citizens. -Excerpt from March 2009 Ensign.
Need further evidence? Look across the country. Communities targeted by liberals and their war on poverty who have received heavy doses of welfare year after year are almost universally worse off as measured by a variety of economic indicators. Conservatives fierce opposition to welfare isn't because we love to see the poor suffer, it's because we understand that when you give someone a handout, you're actually robbing them of something far more valuable than food stamps. Chris Gardner, the man played by Will Smith in the movie Pursuit of Happiness, recently explained (paraphrasing) that if he'd been given handouts during his darkest times, he would never have pulled himself up by the bootstraps and enjoyed the experience of truly becoming a successful person. And by successful he didn't just mean financially.
I think welfare persists because of the myth that we still live in Robin Hood times. That the system is rigged for the rich in this country and there are families that have money and families that don't. The facts however, completely refute that. First off, intra-familial income disparities almost perfectly mirror income disparities nationwide. Look at any family where the children are now bread winning adults and you will see stark differences in income. They started off in the perfectly controlled equal opportunity setting...the same family!!!! But their individual choices and talents led to different economic circumstances. And in family"empires" like the Hilton's or Ford where massive wealth is passed down, they found they actually don't last much longer than 2 or 3 generations before the grand kids and great-grand kids squander the wealth. I was actually just sitting in the airport with a professor of family studies who taught at the Harvard Business School who has spent his career studying this. He explained that the children of the "empire builder" grow up watching their father (or mother) build a powerful business from the ground up, so they appreciate the hard work and usually follow suit and retain or even expand the wealth. Their kids however (the builder's grand kids) grow up from babes with massive wealth and know nothing of the "pull yourself up by the bootstraps" principle, so they squander their inheritance (think Paris Hilton). Then by the time THEY have kids, the wealth is gone and they find themselves back in the middle class. What is the point of this very common, very real trend? It shows us that when people simply receive money without the personal experience to understand the sacrifice, work ethic, and discipline behind the earning of that money, then wealth is not built. Standards of living are not raised, and most importantly, children are not taught correct principles and work ethic is replaced with entitlement. Just forget politics for a second and really ask yourself, is giving handouts really the answer? For the VAST VAST majority of these people they do have the ability to pull themselves up...and we shouldn't rlob them of that invaluable experience. JRD
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Can we get secret service to protect the constitution?
The constitution is under attack, I think, like never before in our nation's history. As I present the evidence please observe who seem to be responsible.
Topping the list of evidence is the madness going on in Conneticut right now. Rep Michael Lawlor and Sen Andrew McDonald introduced a bill that would turn control of the finances of the local Catholic parishes in Connecticut to lay councils. You read that right, the government would step in to take control of certain business of the Catholic church. Thankfully this legislation is temporarily shelved after facing a wrath of public outcry, but we've only begun to see the assaults on religion and thereby the first amendment.
Second on the list of evidence involves, appropriately, the second amendment. This assault on the constitution involves an Illinois state lawmaker, Rep Ken Dunkin who is proposing that gun owners be required to carry personal liability insurance of at least $1 million "covering any damages resulting from negligent or willful acts involving the use of such firearm while it is owned by such person." I'm thinking finding a cheap insurance policy for this is about as easy as getting congress to stop spending money. This has NOTHING to do with protecting people and everything to do with attacking the 2nd amendment by putting undue burden on law abiding gun owners. Strange, Illinois has such a good track record with politics lately......
Then there's California. Disagreements over law is nothing new. There are constitutional, democratic ways to change law, the purest form of which is arguably by popular vote. Whether state or federal, this is as good as it gets in the democratic process. But in the case of Prop 8, those pesky stupid peasants, whom we shall refer to as "the public" or "the voters" decided they wanted marriage to be defined as one man and one woman......the nerve. Liberals followed their tried and true formula and responded by suing to overturn the will of the people. Currently this is being debated before the California Supreme Court, but whatever the outcome, the point remains: liberals care more about their agenda than that annoying document that's always getting in the way called the Constitution. JRD
Topping the list of evidence is the madness going on in Conneticut right now. Rep Michael Lawlor and Sen Andrew McDonald introduced a bill that would turn control of the finances of the local Catholic parishes in Connecticut to lay councils. You read that right, the government would step in to take control of certain business of the Catholic church. Thankfully this legislation is temporarily shelved after facing a wrath of public outcry, but we've only begun to see the assaults on religion and thereby the first amendment.
Second on the list of evidence involves, appropriately, the second amendment. This assault on the constitution involves an Illinois state lawmaker, Rep Ken Dunkin who is proposing that gun owners be required to carry personal liability insurance of at least $1 million "covering any damages resulting from negligent or willful acts involving the use of such firearm while it is owned by such person." I'm thinking finding a cheap insurance policy for this is about as easy as getting congress to stop spending money. This has NOTHING to do with protecting people and everything to do with attacking the 2nd amendment by putting undue burden on law abiding gun owners. Strange, Illinois has such a good track record with politics lately......
Then there's California. Disagreements over law is nothing new. There are constitutional, democratic ways to change law, the purest form of which is arguably by popular vote. Whether state or federal, this is as good as it gets in the democratic process. But in the case of Prop 8, those pesky stupid peasants, whom we shall refer to as "the public" or "the voters" decided they wanted marriage to be defined as one man and one woman......the nerve. Liberals followed their tried and true formula and responded by suing to overturn the will of the people. Currently this is being debated before the California Supreme Court, but whatever the outcome, the point remains: liberals care more about their agenda than that annoying document that's always getting in the way called the Constitution. JRD
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
