Crazy_Politics

The Silent Majority DOES exist. Snap out of your slumber, pay attention and prepare to VOTE!

2010-09-16T18:29:00.000-07:00

Statewide, voter turnout in the August 17 primary was almost 41%. Better than what the Secretary of State anticipated, but shamefully low for those who have a right and obligation to vote. Check your county's turnout here: vote.wa.gov/Elections/WEI/VoterTurnout.aspx?ElectionID=36

I read the below commentary in the July issue of Gun News and thought I'd share it with you. The author exhorts the "silent majority" of the critical importance to vote in the General Election November 2. "Too many things are at stake for you to sit this one out."

So make sure you are registered to vote (details below) and then educate yourself as to the issues and candidates.

I can't resist this one small editorial comment ...

Critical American Crossroads. Make sure you help decide the direction!
By Dan Frank, Managing Editor, Washington Arms Collectors
Gun News, July 2010

You've heard it before and I'm going to go over it once more right now. You absolutely positively MUST vote this year! Not only will the elections coming up in November of this year be of more importance than you can possibly imagine, the Primary coming up on August 17th is of strategic importance as well. And if you're not registered yet, your opportunity to vote in that election is just about forfeit, your involvement now is more crucial than ever.

It seems that every time I put some conservative thought into this publication, I get a handful of letters or emails complaining that this publication needs to "stick with gun collecting" or "you're dividing the country!" However, I remind those folks of the words of Hillary Clinton on April 28k 2003 when she said that "I am sick and tired of people who say that if you debate and you disagree with this administration that somehow you're not patriotic. And we should stand up and say 'We are Americans and we have a right to disagree with ANY ADMINISTRATION.'" (emphasis ours)

We do have some liberals in our club and it's time for them - and the rest of us - to make some cold and hard decisions. Are we REALLY willing to take the road that the current "powers that be" want us to travel?

The clear majority of the American people were opposed to the Obamacare legislation. We got it anyway. This administration is also contemplating limitations on free speech via regulatory controls on talk radio and the Internet. It is moving in the direction of support for a U.N. treaty on the limitation of small arms. I would ask just who's dividing the country but at this point, that's not the important question. What to do about it is. It is often said that we get the government that we deserve and this year may just provide final confirmation.

This observer does believe that the "Silent Majority" posited by Richard Nixon exists. I also believe that unless they become a little more vocal, the lights of our "Shining City on the Hill" are going to get dim, very dim.

The best and easiest, indeed the most important, way to make your voice heard is to vote.

[snip]

Registering has never been easier, especially if you have internet access. If you have registered somewhere else in the state but have moved, or even if you haven't but have a Washington State drivers license, you can register at www.sos.wa.gov/elections/ and clicking on the "Register To Vote" link. You will end up on a secure web page where you can either update your information or submit new registration. You can also print out a hard copy form there and snail-mail it, the addresses of the various county registrars are also on that form.

[Deadline to register for the General election is October 4 for online and paper applications and updates or October 25 for in-person registration if not already registered in Washington. -mary]

[snip]

Crushing deficits with no end in sight to the spending causing it, the specter of back-door regulation on speech with the resultant inevitable control of "the message" that would go with it, the minimalization of American exceptionalism, and the increasing tendency to tax and regulate everything that moves must be stopped and reversed if Reagan's "Last Stand on Earth" is to remain the beacon of hope and opportunity we have managed to be for two and a half centuries.

Too many things are at stake for you to sit this one out. Make sure you, your friends, and relatives are registered.

(c) http://www.washingtonarmscollectors.org/

9/11 Nine Years Later. HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN?

2010-09-06T18:11:00.000-07:00

Have you forgotten what Islamic jihadist TERRORISTS did on 9/11? They attempted to take the World Trade Center down in 1993 and finally succeeded Sepember 11, 2001.

9/11 is not a day of "National Service" like Barack Hussein Obama, the Community Organizer in Chief, would have us believe. It is a day of REMEMBRANCE of lives lost in a horrific attack on American soil. And it should be a day of REFLECTION on our relationship with the God of the universe who created us.

Do not allow 9/11 to be redefined by those who hate America.

Did you know that the USS New York was made from the steel from the World Trade Center? Do you know what the motto of the USS New York is?

The motto of the USS New York is NEVER FORGET!

NEVER FORGET!

Remind yourself of the timeline of 9/11 events. Watch this video clip that chronicles the unfolding of the events of September 11, 2001.

NEVER FORGET!!!

The United States has ignored Islamic attacks for decades, not recognizing them as an invasion of American sovereignty and dismissing them as unimportant. This has emboldened our enemies and weakened our politicians' collective capacity to protect us. Read "America's Odyssey with Islamic Terror: The Failure to Retaliate" for an historical perspective. "The attacks of 9/11 are witness to the decades of America's mistake in its tragic failure to respond resolutely to Islamic terror."

Americans are not intolerant Islamophobes. Instead, radical Muslims and their Dhimmi dupes are Ameriphobic!

2010-09-02T18:10:00.000-07:00

The Washington Times reports that, "A majority of the Muslim chaplains in the U.S. military were validated by the Graduate School of Islamic and Social Sciences, part of Cordoba University in Leesburg, founded by Taha Jabir Al-Awani, president of the Fiqh Council of North America. A fatwa from this institution on Muslims serving in the U.S. military states, "We abide by every law of this country except those laws that are contradictory to Islamic law."

Wow! So their "religious teachings," their SHARIA, takes precedence over the United States Constitution? Just WHO has a phobia? We're made to believe Americans who protest a Ground Zero middle-finger-in-the-air mosque are Islamophobic. Sorry. Wrong! Those who sling the rhetoric should look in the mirror, for they are Ameriphobic! They are anti-American jihadist BIGOTS!

Islam is not just a religion, it is an entire political and cultural package with the goal of Islamifying the entire Western world. France and other European countries are already under siege. Some parts of the French government give Islam a priveleged status that no Christian group would ever get. As a result Muslims block traffic while they pray in the middle of public streets. They flaunt their protected status. They do this to show they can conquer their host city or nation. They have invaded Western countries not to assimilate, but as an act of jihad.

Look at this burqa. It is symbolic not of refined culture but of 7th Century savagery. Islamification ultimately leads to barbarism.

Why aren't women and pet owners taking this seriously? If Sharia is allowed to trump the United States' Constitution, women become chattel and canine pets are banned.

You think it too outlandish? Then Google "woman's nose cut off" and you'll find over ONE MILLION results. Read how the Quran oppresses women. Google "canine pets islam sharia" and find out how Islam views our furry friends.

Islam is a regressive tyranny of barbarism and savagery. We must not allow ourselves to be intimidated into thinking we are intolerant or anti-Muslim. Those who flip their middle finger at our freedom and the equality of rights of all people before the law are Ameriphobic.

If you don't want your children and grandchildren to grow up in a miserably brutal and ruthless world of medieval tribalism, then click here to find out what actions you can take as individual citizens to stop the radical Islamification of the United States of America.

Hey White House! It's time to put grownups in charge of our economy!

2010-08-27T10:42:00.000-07:00

When things aren't working, perhaps it's time to shift course. But not in Obama's White House. Instead, it's "damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!!!"

With one Rube Goldberg solution after another, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner and National Economic Council Director Lawrence Summers have proved their incompetence. They've given us double-dip recession, trillion-dollar deficits and the bankrupting of several generations of taxpayers. But it's not just their fault. No, the blame can be shared with other Rubes who have NO private sector experience, such as Vice President Joe Biden, who keep insisting prosperity is just around the corner -- and if it's not, George W. Bush is to blame!

The men-children in the White House are moving full speed ahead with a Keynesian madness that is wrecking our economy, industry by industry, job by job.

We need a "fresh start" and at the very least, Geithner and Summers should go. Unfortunately, the danger is that Obama would probably replace them with someone even worse...

You can read the Investor's Business Daily editorial I quoted from here.

NEA Potty Mouth explains why National Education Association has so many enemies

2010-08-19T16:41:00.000-07:00

Robert Chanin, retired National Education Association general counsel spoke last year about how the NEA has changed so much that now he has to defend it against attacks from conservatives and right wing bastards. He says "it's the price we pay for success" as the most effective UNION in the United States.

Listen to his speech, and especially perk up your ears starting about 4 minutes 30 seconds...

Mr. Chanin also spoke about why the NEA and its affiliates are so effective. Because we have power. We have power because there are more than 3.2 million people who are willing to pay us hundreds of millions of dollars in dues each year because they believe we are the unions that can most effectively represent them...the unions that can protect their rights and advance their interests as education employees. While closing achievement gaps, reducing drop out rates, improving teacher quality and the like are goals that guide the work the NEA does, they MUST NOT BE ACHIEVED at the expense of due process, employee rights and collective bargaining. "That is simply too high a price to pay."

Watch:

So to hell with the quality of student education! NEA = union first.

My friend Cindy Omlin of Northwest Professional Educators says the teachers union misleads teachers into thinking none of their dues fund NEA's political machine. The fact is that NEA's voluntarily contributed PAC money only funds candidates. Every other political expenditure comes from teachers' dues. The NEA can brag about the political power it has to advance its "liberal, social and economic agendas" because over 3.2 million people are "willing to send it hundreds of millions of dollars each year."

Contact Northwest Professional Educators at 800-380-6973 or visit nwpe.org/pdf/rights.pdf for more information about teachers’ rights, how to exercise them, and the benefits of NWPE membership. NWPE provides educators with liability insurance, legal services, grants and scholarships, education updates, caring support, networking with like-minded educators, and a voice on education issues.

Is your congress critter a career politician? How about a socialist...er..."progressive?" Find out here

2010-08-17T18:07:00.000-07:00

The American people will never knowingly adopt socialism. But, under the name of 'liberalism,' they will adopt every fragment of the socialist program, until one day America will be a socialist nation, without knowing how it happened. So said Norman M. Thomas, ACLU Founder and American Communist who ran for U.S. president six times. On his sixth and final run for President in 1948, he said, "I no longer need to run as a Presidential Candidate for the Socialist Party. The Democrat Party has adopted our platform."

In 1998, World Net Daily reported the close association between the Democratic Socialists of America and the Congressional Progressive Caucus. At that time, the caucus website was actually hosted by the DSA. Following the revelation in WND, the Progressive Caucus website became an official U.S. government website as it remains today. (www.wnd.com/?pageId=191609)

The Congressional Progressive Caucus has had a long and cozy relationship with the Democratic Socialists of America. The CPC is made up of 82 Democrats from the House and Senate. If you could access the CPC's Links and Resources page, you'd discover a treasure trove of hard-left socialist organizations. Unfortunately, it seems the link is "not working."

Is your congress critter a socialist...er..."progressive?" Review the current (as of June 2010) CPC member list:

Co-Chairs
Raúl M. Grijalva (AZ-07) and Lynn Woolsey (CA-06)
Vice Chairs
Diane Watson (CA-33), Keith Ellison (MN-05), Sheila Jackson-Lee (TX-18), Mazie Hirono (HI-02), Dennis Kucinich (OH-10), Donna F. Edwards (MD-04) and Alan Grayson (FL-08)
Senate Members
Roland Burris (IL), Bernie Sanders (VT) and Tom Udall (NM)
House Members
Tammy Baldwin (WI-02), Xavier Becerra (CA-31), Earl Blumenauer (OR-03), Robert Brady (PA-01), Corrine Brown (FL-03), Michael Capuano (MA-08), André Carson (IN-07), Donna Christensen (VI-AL), Judy Chu (CA-32), Yvette Clarke (NY-11), William “Lacy” Clay (MO-01), Emanuel Cleaver (MO-05), Steve Cohen (TN-09), John Conyers (MI-14), Elijah Cummings (MD-07), Danny Davis (IL-07), Peter DeFazio (OR-04), Rosa DeLauro (CT-03), Sam Farr (CA-17), Chaka Fattah (PA-02), Bob Filner (CA-51), Barney Frank (MA-04), Marcia L. Fudge (OH-11), Luis Gutierrez (IL-04), John Hall (NY-19), Phil Hare (IL-17), Alcee Hastings (FL-23), Maurice Hinchey (NY-22), Michael Honda (CA-15), Jesse Jackson, Jr. (IL-02), Eddie Bernice Johnson (TX-30), Hank Johnson (GA-04), Marcy Kaptur (OH-09), Carolyn Kilpatrick (MI-13), Barbara Lee (CA-09), John Lewis (GA-05), David Loebsack (IA-02), Ben R. Lujan (NM-3), Carolyn Maloney (NY-14), Ed Markey (MA-07), Jim McDermott (WA-07), James McGovern (MA-03), George Miller (CA-07), Gwen Moore (WI-04), Jim Moran (VA-08), Jerrold Nadler (NY-08), Eleanor Holmes-Norton (DC-AL), John Olver (MA-01), Frank Pallone (NJ-06), Ed Pastor (AZ-04), Donald Payne (NJ-10), Chellie Pingree (ME-01), Jared Polis (CO-02), Charles Rangel (NY-15), Laura Richardson (CA-37), Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-34), Bobby Rush (IL-01), Linda Sánchez (CA-39), Jan Schakowsky (IL-09), José Serrano (NY-16), Louise Slaughter (NY-28), Pete Stark (CA-13), Bennie Thompson (MS-02), John Tierney (MA-06), Nydia Velazquez (NY-12), Maxine Waters (CA-35), Mel Watt (NC-12), Henry Waxman (CA-30), Peter Welch (VT-AL)

Is your congress critter a career politician? Find out here: www.firetherulingclass.org/map.asp

The Congressional Progressive Caucus represents about 15 percent of the Congress. Would you be surprised if there are even more socialists hiding in the congressional closet? What these 82 CPC members represent is a formidable socialist bloc of votes that cannot be overcome by popular opinion, good arguments, empirical data or even the rule of law. We need a similar number of solid votes in the Congress dedicated uncompromisingly and unswervingly to the principles upon which this nation was founded – individual rights, limited government, free enterprise and the rule of law under the greatest Constitution ever devised by man. (www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=191625)

Arizona Anti-Immigration Law Billboard Funded by "The Usual Suspects"

2010-08-10T19:21:00.000-07:00

An anti-immigration law billboard in Phoenix, Arizona, warns: Have your papers ready. Racial profiling just ahead.

It was purchased by a California organization called Brave New Foundation. They say they collected the money to buy the billboard through a Facebook page.

What kind of an organization is Brave New Foundation? Who is on the board of the Brave New Foundation? Who are the partners of the Brave New Foundation?

Is the Brave New Foundation just another Left-oriented organization or is it a puzzle piece in the vast network of the political left?

DiscoverTheNetworks.org is a guide to the political left where we can search on individuals and organizations and discover how the puzzle pieces fit together.

One of the board members of Brave New Foundation is Robert Greenwald. Who is he? How is he connected?

Partners of Brave New Foundation include Color of Change (Van Jones' organization; James Rucker is a current staffer), ACORN, ACLU, moveon.org (George Soros), CAIR (Rashid Khalidi), Code Pink, Sojourners (Jim Wallis), SEIU (Andy Stern) and Working Families Party (Joel Rogers).

The Obama Regime is an active participant in this circle of socialist America-haters. The Obama Regime has connections with radical extremists such as Bernardine Dohrn (Code Pink, Free Gaza), Bill Ayers (Miranda International Center) and Jeff Jones (Apollo Alliance). All three were leaders of Weatherman, also known as Weather Underground, a 1960s-70s terrorist organization.

Leftist organizations change their names and make up new ones all the time. But behind the fancy flash, the individuals are the same, mostly made up of radicals from the 60s who have now embedded themselves into positions of power throughout academia and the Obama Regime. When they were young they railed against "THE MAN." Now they ARE "THE MAN."

Don't be deceived. These people hate America and they want to destroy everything that made America "the shining city on the hill." If you like puzzles, bookmark DiscoverTheNetworks.org and look for the connections.

Saul Alinsky said ridicule was man's most potent weapon. The billboard in Phoenix Arizona is laughable. The people behind its creation are merely "the usual suspects" who denegrate what is good and decent about Americans and America.

Cookies. Tantalizing and delicious ... or little bits of spyware spying on you?

2010-08-01T16:16:00.000-07:00

When you hear the term, "cookies," do you think of warm delicious confections from the oven?

Or do you know "cookies" are a way for advertisers on the Web to target you?

It's rarely a coincidence when you see Web ads for products that match your interests. Wall Street Journal's Christina Tsuei explains how advertisers use cookies to track your online habits:

One of the fastest-growing businesses on the Internet, a Wall Street Journal investigation has found, is the business of spying on Internet users. The Journal conducted a comprehensive study that assesses and analyzes the broad array of cookies and other surveillance technology that companies are deploying on Internet users. It reveals that the tracking of consumers has grown both far more pervasive and far more intrusive than is realized by all but a handful of people in the vanguard of the industry.

There is a mind-boggling amount of consumer data now available for sale, and there are no legal limits on how that data can be used.

Read the article here.

So how can you avoid prying eyes? Even though the Internet is rampant with surveillance technology, there are some ways you can cover your tracks:
• Check and delete cookies.
• Adjust browser settings.
• Turn on "private" browsing.
• Monitor "flash cookies."
• Install privace "plug-ins."

For more information, read this.

Anytime we use technology, we have to remember we sacrifice our privacy to do so. Be aware, but go boldly and do not fear!

Netroots Nation and JournoList = Radical Devolutionists

2010-07-25T18:56:00.000-07:00

I had a good chuckle today.

The far-left Netroots Nation just concluded its 5th annual gathering of bloggers, activists and policy makers. Panels and training sessions focused on tactics for organizing and making "progressive" change a reality.

["Progressive" is in quotes because I define it as radical devolution.]

One panel that included authors David Neiwert and John Amato (co-authors of "Over the Cliff: How Obama’s Election Drove the American Right Insane") agreed that if they dismiss the Tea Party movement "because they're nuts," they do so at their own peril. To combat the growing antagonism to Democrats in power, Neiwert said the populist wing of the "progressive" movement must be activated. “That’s the only way we’re going to have a chance to overcome this very threatening and very powerful movement.”

Here comes the chuckle:

“We’ve been studying the right for a long time, and let me tell you, they never give up,” Neiwart said. “They’re relentless.”

WOOT!!!

I don't know about you, but I don't feel "relentless." I wouldn't call many I know "relentless." The Right does "give up," or at least takes a break from time to time, because The Right does not make politics their religion. Neiwart must be looking in the mirror!

Neiwert continues: “After the 2008 election we were all celebrating, but we also became complacent." Netroots activists felt they weren't doing enough to counteract the Tea Party message with one of their own.

Perhaps Netroots Nation wasn't doing enough (I doubt it), but those muckrakers on the JournoList computer network sure were! (You don't suppose Neiwert and Amato were part of that network?)

The liberal Left has not been "complacent." Thankfully most Americans have a built-in B-S detector that warns them not to trust the "mainstream" media. The JournoList scandal merely validates that distrust.

Netroots convention founder, blogger Markos Moulitsas, thinks Netroots is "a key component in mobilizing people online, in funding a lot of candidates, and fueling a lot of grassroots energy that has allowed a lot of remarkable candidates to win a bunch of seats.” But Moulitsas and his followers are disinclined to help Democrat candidates simply to preserve the party's big majorities. Moulitsas even suggested that a smaller Democrat majority in the House might be better for advancing a more "progressive" agenda! (Read the article here.)

In other words, get rid of a few of those "Blue Dogs!"

Heh, heh.

Isn't it nice to know there is dissension among radical devolutionists?

JournoList Scandal: Will it be tied to the fate of the "mainstream" media?

2010-07-24T20:36:00.000-07:00

The Journolist computer network was created by Ezra Klein to be a private clubhouse for several hundred liberal journalists, like-minded professors and activists.
• All members sing from the same hymnal.
• They are group-think oriented. (they can't think for themselves?)
• They coordinate their activities to drive the news.
• They inculcate a philosophy that encourages members to think the same about certain people, certain issues.
• They don't debate, but rather assign labels to define and malign entire groups.
• They are an agenda-driven political movement.
• They are overwhelmingly liberal.
• They are a propaganda arm of the Democrat party.
• They have gotten away with fooling their audience into believing they are objective reporters and journalists.
• Thanks to the JournoList scandal, they are exposed as biased and dishonest.

The American people do not trust the "mainstream" media and the JournoList scandal validates their distrust.

Breaking the story was The Daily Caller, a Web-based news site. Below are links to just a few of the articles that have already been posted on the JournoList scandal. I'm sure more will come. I pulled out a few excerpts for your reading pleasure...

Documents show media plotting to kill stories about Rev. Jeremiah Wright. Jeremiah Wright was back in the news after making a series of media appearances. At the National Press Club, Wright claimed Obama had only repudiated his beliefs for “political reasons.” Wright also reiterated his charge that the U.S. federal government had created AIDS as a means of committing genocide against African Americans. It was another crisis, and members of Journolist again rose to help Obama...

JournoList and the MSM Template: Minimize, Marginalize, and Drop It Down the Memory Hole. [T]he (publicly) unspoken strategy of the MSM mandarins is to support and protect their liberal/left favorite politicians and policies. The minimize-marginalize-memory hole template only works when no one is looking for it. And it only works when all of the pieces work – when one fails, the template falls apart. You can marginalize the storytellers and drop it down the memory hole, but a story like ACORN’s taxpayer-assisted child sex advice simply cannot be minimized. ACORN ended up defunded. You can lie about “N-word” shouting tea partiers all you want, but when they won’t accept marginalization you can’t be marginalized. And all of us can help drag important stories out of the memory hole – on sites like the “Bigs” and others, through talk radio, through fair and balanced news outlets, and through social media like Facebook and Twitter. Understanding the template is the first step to smashing it. Refuse to allow important stories to be minimized – fight back. Refuse to acquiesce to being marginalized – fight back. And refuse to allow important stories about our country be tucked away in the media memory hole – fight back.

Journolist excerpts are a crime scene. The gun is smoking alright, but there before our very eyes, also lies the corpse of feigned objectivity, dead from a self-inflicted wound. Its heart may still be beating, but it’s fading fast. The guilty party’s attempts at pre-emptive damage control reek of desperation. ...something is beginning to stink. It’s the corpse of the mainstream media — decomposing on the front page of The Daily Caller...

Journalists are dishonorable losers. The Journolist was an Internet community of journalists who reinforced each other’s liberal bias and plotted strategies for ensuring the most favorable coverage for the Obama administration. The scandal has revealed again – as if more evidence was needed – that the American media is liberal. But the deeper tragedy involves the self-termination of conscience evident in the Journolists’ boosterism. The real sorrow is the total absence of conscience, and of honor. Honor and conscience. They are what make you give a fair and honest quote to a source you may not like.

Journolist legitimizes corrupt media claims. When news first broke that The Daily Caller had obtained documents and other such evidence asserting that a left-wing journalist listserv had plotted to cover up controversial stories revolving around then candidate Barack Obama’s pastor, as well conspire to destroy the lives of anyone who opposes their agenda, most Americans probably shrugged it off realizing this is simply old news. Not only is this kind of journalism bad for business, it is more importantly dangerous for democracy, not because these so-called journalists harbor far-left views, but because they knowingly and unashamedly bury stories that will hurt public figures who share the same beliefs. Modern journalism in our country today takes a backseat to what was once referred to as a business of integrity. In fact, it ranks up there around that annoying piece of toilet paper stuck to your shoe as you leave the public restroom. In order to get a better picture of the exact level of hatred and disgust American journalists have climbed too, I find myself reflecting back on a very powerful statement a former colleague of mine once said. “Liberalism is not taught in journalism school, it is expected.”

The Manchurian Listserv. In a standard that works rather conveniently for liberals, and has been embraced by much of the media during the post-Obama Tea Party era, white conservatives and their allies are considered racists for merely being white conservatives. No video evidence is necessary to condemn, and no number of repuditations is sufficient to clear conservatives of this taint. On the other hand, when black leaders and liberal allies are caught on tape being racist or hateful, as in the case of Wright, Jones, the New Black Panthers, or NAACP leaders, it is also racist to point out that racism. ... I think we’re finally getting to a point where the overuse of the “racism” charge since Barack Obama became president has weakened its sting. This story should weaken it further, as it reveals how comfortable some of our most passionate racism watchdogs are with sowing racial discord for partisan advantage. ...[J]ust as the JournoList is McCarthyism through a fun-house mirror, it’s also an inversion of the story that almost single-handedly (albeit with a lot of help from Hollywood) created the 1970s-1980s-era incarnation of the crusading, muckraking political journalist. And they’ve already demonstrated that they’re willing to squelch any story, or terminate with extreme prejudice any competing narrative to advance the president’s career...

Rules for racists. A textbook tactic of statist radicals in America is the systematic character assassination of their enemies as racists. Loathe to engage their intellectual opponents in a real discussion of the issues, lest the radicals should be perceived for what they are and lose the fight to bring America under their heel, they prefer instead to slander their opponents, to intimidate and shout them down, and to destroy their credibility with whatever lies or twisted propaganda they can muster in a never-ending witch-hunt. Old Saul Alinsky would have been proud. For Alinskyite radicals you see, racism is not the issue. They don’t actually care about or mind racism, especially not when it comes from or threatens to undo one of their own. Racism isn’t something to stamp out and move past for them; it’s a weapon to bludgeon anybody who stands in their way on the march to power. The Alinskyites have done a swell job of infiltrating and radicalizing the media as a weapon and propaganda tool to subvert the truth, obstruct an open debate, and destroy anyone who dares to show them for what they are; and the false allegation of racism is just one of their many weapons of subversion. But while the Old Media sweeps these examples of genuine racism under the rug, you will hear the truth from bloggers and independent journalists all over the World Wide Web.

Added July 25:
Will wonders never cease! JournoLister Matthew Yglesias INSISTS if the Left does it, so does the Right. He DEMANDS the Right give up their secret listservs! But there is ZERO evidence to support his accusations.
"The fact of the matter is, of course, that the Journolisters are left-wing political activists masquerading as journalists."
AMEN!

Don't feel isolated and alone any more. There are more of "US" than you think!

2010-07-04T15:58:00.000-07:00

Do you feel isolated and alone?

Have you noticed that the vision of who and what we are as a people has changed dramatically over the years...and not for the better? Hollywood used to spread the good of America all over the world. Then they began to preach a new value system. Now the enemy in Hollywood films is YOU; you and everything you believe in.

So, how can we fight back?

In World War II the Japanese owned all of the Pacific. In order to achieve victory the U.S. military created a strategy called "island hopping." Today conservative and libertarian "island hopping" includes PJTV, talk radio, FOX News and conservative blogs -- all are footholds, cultural islands.

The battle for the heart and soul of America isn't just in Washington DC, it's in Hollywood. A new "cultural island" is Declaration Entertainment (http://www.declarationentertainment.com/), a revolutionary movement that empowers everyday Americans to declare our independence from Hollywood and become Citizen Producers who help finance movies that represent our values. It puts production of movies you want to see into the hands of the American people where it belongs.

And isn't that what we really want? To be in partnership with millions of other Americans to help finance movies that represent OUR values?

The heart of America is fundamentally sound. In the heart of America we are the last, best hope on earth...

Visit Declaration Entertainment and see what you can do to help.

Let me leave you with an inspiring song by Josh Thompson -- "Way Out Here."

Are "We the People" up for a little rebellion?

2010-06-28T15:16:00.000-07:00

I hold it that a little rebellion, now and then, is a good thing, and as necessary in the political world as storms are in the physical. … It is medicine necessary for the sound health of government. Thomas Jefferson to James Madison, 1787

The U.S. Constitution gives "We the People" the power to REBEL every 2 years.

Every 2 years EVERY seat in the U.S. House of Representatives is up for grabs, along with one-third of the Senate seats. Every 2 years "We the People" have the opportunity to put every member of the House of Representatives out of a job.

Do we?

Tea Partiers reflect the general public's growing distrust and dissatisfaction of our elected representatives, who no longer serve their constituents, but have become career politicians with a hunger and addiction for power, popularity and privilege. The approval rating for Congress hovers consistently around 19%.

Yet in spite of the pitiful approval rating, history has proven again and again that on election day 90% of incumbents are resoundingly RE-ELECTED! Because of name recognition, bribes to constituents ("PORK") and obscene amounts of campaign cash, incumbents have little trouble holding onto their seats.

There are over 35,000 lobbyists in Washington DC, which amounts to over 60 lobbyists per elected representative and senator! Career politicians are deep in the pockets of the lobbyists every day they spend in Washington DC. Politicians are treated like royalty, wined and dined, given lavish gifts and campaign contributions in exchange for their advocacy. This continual ego-stroking alienates politicians from their constituency and puffs up their sense of self-importance.

Alexis de Tocqueville, an 18th Century French political thinker, historian and writer, observed that the American Republic would endure until the day Congress discovered that it can bribe the public with the public's money. After that, the majority always votes for the candidate promising the most "pork."

Do the majority of "We the People" reflect the greedy self-interest of the political class? Has the moral tie that binds the American people to liberty and common nationhood been broken?

Have we reached the point where we think we are our own masters, no longer held accountable to the God of the universe? Have we reached the tipping point where there is no return to the common values that made the United States unique in the world?

Has the American experiment failed?

The Left is motivated! Are we? Should we be?

2010-06-27T12:42:00.000-07:00

Many people have been roused to the need to "do something" to prevent our country from being dismantled. However, most people don't know what to do or how to start being politically active because the political landscape seems so BIG and OVERPOWERING.

But people WILL respond and act if they are asked.

The Left not only ASKS, but they give instructions and TELL their followers EXACTLY what to do, and when.

The Left is not only highly mobilized, they are fanatical and engaged. Hundreds and possibly thousands in every state are meeting and getting email marching orders with specific talking points. They are being encouraged to contact their friends, neighbors, and first-time voters about the issue of the day, as well as find new voters every week.

The races leading up to the November election are going to be difficult and challenging, and a large and dedicated group of people on the Left are already engaged in the battle. With this kind of dedication there is no guarantee that the "anti-incumbent" atmosphere in today's political climate will carry over to election day, or that it will significantly impact the elections. (This sounds crazy, but nearly 90% of incumbents get re-elected!)

Compare the kind of outreach you receive from Republicans or conservative groups to the effort made by Organizing For America and other left-wing groups. Does it even come close? Are their web sites as effective and full of organizing tools and talking points as My Barack Obama is?

The radical agenda of the left is revealed here: biggovernment.com/sright/2010/06/23/obama-radical-agenda-revealed/

Be sure to click on the link above and read the article. Local Democrats are already marching in lockstep with Organizing For America. Check out this recent letter to Democrats from a local Obama community organizer:

OFA held five house party meetings this month across Mason county focused on (1) sharing the OFA 2010 election strategy; (2) planning the June 5 Kick Off event for each team; and (3) building our organization by inviting new folks. The five meetings took place in Belfair; in Grapeview; in Union; in Shelton #1; and in Shelton #2.
In Union, the meeting to which the most "new" folks came was charged with the commitment to our President's agenda. It was a true meeting of minds. In a nutshell the strategy is to find all of the first time 2008 Obama voters in Mason county and to get them to the polls in November. Since only 50% of first time voters vote in off year elections, if we only increase the percentage by 8% across the country, we get hundreds of thousands more votes. And on a smaller scale, this is what we are going to do in Mason county. We want to increase the percentage of turnout we are aiming for.
At the first meeting in Belfair, the group decided to combine with Grapeview to do a phone bank on the 5th, inviting the first time voters to a BBQ on the 19th. The Union group liked this idea and will first do a phone bank and plan some sort of FTV get together as well. On the 5th the Shelton groups will use the new Mason County Dem HQ as a staging location for a canvass during the forest festival. At all meetings we talked about races and the importance of our senators and representatives and the need to ensure our incumbents' re-election, particularly Patty Murray. We also discussed wall street reform and our local bio digester issue.
If you are interested in joining any of the OFA teams in the county, please get in touch with me and I'll point you to the team leader for your area so you can chat one on one! Gobama!

Vigilance is not passive. It is active. Freedom is not a spectator sport for which we cheer from the stands. We Americans have to get in the game. ... To defend freedom, we must fight for freedom. Zell Miller, former Democrat U.S. Senator from Georgia

The Overton Window and Return2Liberty

2010-06-20T17:58:00.000-07:00

There is a powerful technique called the Overton Window that can shape our lives, our laws and our future. It works by manipulating public perception so that ideas previously thought of as radical begin to seem acceptable over time. Move the Window and you change the debate. Change the debate and you change the country.

At any time, the spectrum of public policy options ranges from "more free" to "less free", where "free" is defined as less subject to government intervention.

The left has masterfully contorted the Overton Window for nearly a century to beguile public opinion into unwittingly accepting fascist concepts.

The objective of Return2Liberty and other similar groups of individuals is to move and expand the Overton Window toward those public policies that are "more free."

At any given moment the “window” includes a range of policies considered to be politically acceptable in the current climate of public opinion, with “acceptable” defined as something a politician can recommend without being considered too “extreme” or outside the mainstream to gain or keep public office.

When the “window” of public acceptance moves or expands, it means that ideas previously not considered politically acceptable have become so, and possibly that ideas previously considered acceptable are no longer.

The degrees of acceptance of public ideas can be described roughly as:

Unthinkable – Radical – Acceptable – Sensible – Popular – Public Policy

The Overton Window is a means of visualizing which ideas define that range of acceptance by gauging where in the range of public acceptance policies lie. Proponents of policies outside the window seek to persuade or educate the public so that the window either “moves” or expands to encompass them. Opponents of current policies, or similar ones currently within the window, likewise seek to convince people that these should be considered unacceptable.

Further reading:
An Introduction to the Overton Window of Political Possibilities, Mackinac Center for Public Policy
Overton Window from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Overton Window, novel by Glenn Beck
Glenn Beck is in on this conspiracy, By Bob Minzesheimer, USA TODAY

Let us be wise as serpents yet harmless as doves

2010-06-01T19:43:00.000-07:00

"You never want a serious crisis to go to waste. And what I mean by that is an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before." Rahm Emanuel

Our Community Organizer in Chief (COIC) and his czars are using every "crisis" to consolidate power. They're working at top speed to consolidate power because they sense a sea change on November 2. Time is rapidly running out and they need a way to gain total executive branch control.

As tea party patriots continue to stand against America-hating tyrants and in support of our Constitution and the country we love, we might consider Mohandas Gandhi as a role model. He was committed to nonviolent protests that eventually freed India from British rule.

We certainly don't want to give the COIC or his czars the opportunity to do things like restrict our freedom to assemble, or worse, declare martial law and perhaps even suspend elections!

Let us be as wise as serpents yet harmless as doves!

The Investor's Business Daily recently published an excellent biographical sketch of Gandhi:

Mohandas Gandhi's Peace And Freedom
By REINHARDT KRAUSE, INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY
Posted 05/26/2010

"A small body of determined spirits fired by an unquenchable faith in their mission can alter the course of history."

Mohandas Gandhi inspired millions to embrace his nonviolence. His method led India to independence from Britain in August 1947.
He died five months later when an assassin, angered by his attempts to halt Hindu-Muslim strife, killed the Mahatma, meaning Great Soul.

Still, his legacy of mass civil disobedience lives on.

Believers in Gandhi's vision used his nonviolence during America's civil rights movement, to end apartheid in South Africa and, at Tiananmen Square in 1989, to challenge China's autocratic rule.

Gandhi practiced what he preached. He weaved his clothes using a spinning wheel to show his commitment to boycotting British-made clothing. He began public lectures sitting at a spinning wheel.

Gandhi taught tolerance and love for all people. Though born into a wealthy Indian family and having worked as a well-paid lawyer in South Africa, he lived in voluntary poverty for much of his life. He treated "untouchables," social outcasts in India's caste system, as his equals.

Gandhi focused on changing people's attitudes. One of his stands: To gain self-rule, Indians had to build national self-confidence through self-control and self-sacrifice.

Besides practicing paucity, he avoided meat while embracing prayer, fasting and meditation.

Aiming For Transformation

"All this means discipline, self-denial, self-sacrifice, organizing ability, confidence and courage," Gandhi said in a speech in 1920. "Our salvation and its time are solely dependent upon us."

Gandhi worked within India's National Congress political party to ensure that civil disobedience became its main strategy. He vowed to step down if the party didn't keep protests from veering toward violence.

Despite failing health, he staged hunger strikes to oppose British supremacy and Hindu-Muslim violence within the country. "An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind," Gandhi said of the religious battles plaguing India.

Gandhi's style at the fore was risky. The British jailed him twice — in 1922 and eight years later.

In 1930, Gandhi called on Indians to refuse to pay Britain's tax on salt and Britain's law that banned Indians from making salt themselves.

Gandhi, 61 that year, went a long way to stand up to the British. He set off with 70 followers from Ahmedabad south to the Bombay coast along the Arabian Sea. Thousands from villages joined the 240-mile march. Though the British tried to beat them off course, Gandhi's people refrained from fighting back.

The trek riveted the country and the world as Gandhi, staff in hand, continued on his quest, giving speeches on the virtues of nonviolent resistance. When he reached Dandi, a coastal village, he scooped up a fistful of salty mud. Then, with movie cameras rolling, he boiled a pan of salty seawater to make salt.

Gandhi, who had founded a newspaper in South Africa and two in India, staged the event to win media coverage, says Dennis Dalton, author of "Mahatma Gandhi: Nonviolent Power in Action."

"He was a sophisticated journalist, a media-savvy person himself and a superb fundraiser," Dalton told IBD. "No one in political leadership up to that time had written more in the media than Gandhi. The (Dandi) march was magnificent drama."

Indian villagers, businessmen, politicians and students began making salt. Some 60,000 were arrested.

Jailed, But Hardly Finished

To shore up its authority, the British-controlled government arrested Gandhi soon after the Dandi march. Even so, he refused to cancel the next protest at the Dharasana Salt Works, a British-run factory.

Gandhi's persistence wore down the British, says Stanley Wolpert, a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles.

"Gandhi won substantial support the world over by his brilliant anti-salt tax march," he said.

Wolpert, who wrote "Gandhi's Passion: The Life and Legacy of Mahatma Gandhi," added that the march "greatly enhanced his national leadership, since the British Raj insisted it was illegal for any Indian to pick up and use salt deposited on any of India's beaches. He was hailed by his followers as their deliverer from British imperial tyranny.

"Enlightened British in London, Liverpool and Manchester, who read about Gandhi's march and his principled protest against the salt tax and his arrest, appreciated the justice of his argument."

Ripples To America

Gandhi's influence spread to the U.S., sparked in 1934 by "The Power of Non-Violence," written by an American who had visited India to learn about Gandhi. The book later inspired Martin Luther King Jr.

It was King, the civil rights leader, who said, "Christ gave us the goals and Mahatma Gandhi the tactics."

Born in Porbandar on India's western coast, Gandhi (1869-1948) grew up in a wealthy, conservative family as the youngest of six children.

Though raised as a Hindu, Gandhi met people of many faiths — Christianity, Islam, Jainism — as a child. He later explored many religions, but remained a committed Hindu.

As a youngster, Gandhi recognized that the British controlled the country. Told by a schoolmate that the British were powerful because they ate meat, while Hindus were weak from a vegetarian diet, he secretly began to eat meat. He soon returned to a traditional vegetarian lifestyle.

In 1883, Gandhi married as a teenager. He fathered five children in the arranged marriage, but often kept apart from his wife and ultimately gave up sex. An average student who barely passed his exam for an Indian college, he left for London in 1888 to study law.

There, Gandhi's lifestyle underwent dramatic changes. He took lessons in French, dancing and playing the violin and began to dress in tailored English clothes.

Gandhi returned to India in 1891. He struggled to establish a law practice in Bombay. So in 1893 he left for South Africa to work for a Indian trading company as a lawyer.

There, Gandhi quickly learned that anyone with dark skin was treated differently than white settlers. He sympathized with mistreated workers from India.

When the South African parliament in 1894 proposed a bill denying voting rights to Indians and imposed a tax on indentured laborers, Gandhi used his lawyering skills to oppose the discrimination.

By now, he was reading books on religion and developing his philosophy of nonviolent resistance. Two specially influential readings were Jesus' Sermon on the Mount and Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy's "The Kingdom of God Is Within You."

"From the works of (John) Ruskin and Tolstoy, Gandhi found powerful Western validation for his own views," Wolpert said.

In 1908, Gandhi translated Ruskin's essay on social justice, "Unto This Last," into Gujarati, an Indian language. The same year, Gandhi organized a protest of a South African law that required all Indians to be fingerprinted and carry identification cards. About 2,000 protesters burned their certificates in an iron pot.

Back Home

When Gandhi returned to India in 1914, he built the rural community Sabarmati Ashram and welcomed India's untouchables.

In the 1920s, Gandhi preached that India's millions could show self-reliance by weaving their own clothes on spinning wheels.

"Gandhi revitalized India's traditional rural handicrafts, insisting that every Indian should learn daily to spin cotton as millions of rural Indians had done before British rule," Wolpert said. "The sweet music of India's spinning wheels, Gandhi argued, would liberate India."

Brainwashing of the American youth is complete

2010-05-23T16:09:00.000-07:00

When George W. Bush said, "I've abandoned free market principles to save the free market system" in the waning months of his presidency, I knew the free market system, unique to America, was doomed.

In May, 2010, the Pew Research Center published the results of a survey that asked participants what they thought when they heard the words "capitalism" and "socialism." Overall, 59% reacted negatively to "socialism" and 52% reacted positively to "capitalism." Not surprisingly, Democrats' reaction to the two words were pretty lukewarm (44% and 47%), while Republicans' reactions were more notable (77% reacted negatively to "socialism" and 62% reacted positively to "capitalism.")

The disturbing part of the study was the reaction of young people under 30, called Millennials, to the terms. They are more negative to "capitalism" and more positive to "socialism" than older generations.

The following graph, extracted from a Pew Research conference paper, shows that each generation -- from Silent to Boomer to GenX to Millennial -- has gotten progressively more liberal. In the 2008 election the level of support for Democrat candidates by the Millennials -- relative to the votes of everybody else -- was greater than it has ever been in the history of exit polling.

What is the common thread that runs through at least three of the four generations?

Public education.

Millennials are more highly educated when ranked with other generations at comparable ages. More than half of Millennials have at least some college education (54%), compared with 49% of Gen Xers, 36% of Boomers and 24% of the Silent generation when they were ages 18 to 28. Millennials, when compared with previous generations at the same age, also are more likely to have completed high school. An analysis of education trends by gender shows that Millennial women surpass Millennial men in the share graduating from or attending college. This reversal of traditional patterns first occurred among Generation X. ... Looking at another dimension of life experience—military service—the share of veterans among Millennial men is notably lower (2%) than it is among older generations when they were ages 18 to 28. The share of veterans ranges from 6% for Gen Xers to 13% for Boomers to 24% for the Silent generation. [1]

In 1985, former KGB agent Yuri Bezmenov, who was trained in subversion techniques, explained the four basic steps to socially engineer entire generations into thinking and behaving the way those in power want them to. Transforming the thinking and behavior of an entire population over generations has nothing to do with espionage, but with changing how Americans perceive reality. The result is, despite an abundance of information, no one is able to come to sensible conclusions. Exposure to the truth doesn't matter anymore because people just refuse to believe it.

The Investor's Business Daily published an editorial on May 21 that illustrates the lunacy:

Universities are sending young achievers out into the world with the words of rabid leftists ringing in their heads. It's a dismal picture, given the future the liberals running Washington have created.

Some day, a Voltaire will emerge to satirize the Panglossian roster of speakers peppering U.S. university graduations in the era of the Tea Parties and multitrillion-dollar government debt, which ironically will end up dumped on the young people graduating from our schools of higher learning.
This year's speakers are big on extolling current orthodoxies instead of questioning them. Inadvertently they reveal a lot about the state of universities, most of which are knee-deep in state funding, hostile to controlling costs and hothouses of political correctness.
This may be why many universities have chosen commencement speakers so irrelevant to reality. Last week, Young America's Foundation released its 17th annual commencement speaker survey and found university officials handing Obama administration officials speaking duties nine times this year, compared with a mere 14 times in the full eight years of the Bush administration."This year's research found that a myriad of speakers were not only White House officials but also liberal ideologues, newsmakers, authors and entrenched Washington insiders, while conservative best-selling authors, business leaders and free-market Nobel laureates were once again absent from the list," the group noted.
Some of the top draws included President Obama, who at the University of Michigan chastised those who question his big-government programs as extremists, and then warned of violence.
Energy Secretary Steven Chu was just as out of it at Washington University, using his soapbox to praise 1960s radicals and then to warn about global warming, a junk-science idea about to go the way of the dodo.
There was also first lady Michelle Obama, who had demanded a shakedown of 100,000 community service hours from George Washington University students before she'd come to speak, as if students ought to be ladling soup instead of studying.
Obama's media supporters featured too — with MSNBC host Rachel Maddow playing the old-time favorite of Blaming Bush at Smith College. Maddow ranted about supposed corruption in the Bush administration while ignoring what's going on today.
It underlines that universities are no longer places to question authority, but cheerleaders for the establishment. It's a sad sight, given that it is graduates who will in the end be forced to foot the bill for these big-government excesses and warped values. [2]

The brainwashing of the American youth is complete.

[1] Millennials, Portrait of Generation Next--Confident, Connected, Open to Change, published February 2010

[2] Graduation Lunacy, Investor's Business Daily editorial, published May 21, 2010

Silence! I kiiiiilllllllllll you!

2010-05-22T13:51:00.000-07:00

SILENCE! I KIIIIILLLLLLLLL YOU!

Free speech in America is increasingly restricted. "Hate speech" is politically acceptable only if it follows the agenda of the Left and its "lapdog" media. Those who criticize Islam or their prophet are targeted and intimidated by any of a multitude of Leftist organizations (and even foreign governments) until they back down (as in the case of the aforementioned Facebook page or Comedy Central’s decision to censor part of South Park’s 201st episode).

Are we surrendering to the intimidation of Muslim extremists regarding "blasphemy" against Islam?

Can you imagine the reaction if the sign said "Kill those who insult Christianity," or "Kill those who insult America?"

Tipping Point: Have We Reached the Point of No Return as a Free Nation?

2010-04-14T19:26:00.000-07:00

Nearly 47% of households are expected NOT to pay federal income tax for 2009. Sure, they probably pay state and local taxes, but during a time of massive increases in federal spending, nearly HALF the country is making NO contribution to it.

There is an ever smaller proportion of citizens paying for bigger and bigger government bureaucracies. The top 10% of taxpayers provide 75% of revenue. The next 40% pay the rest. Nearly half of the citizens are exempt and in one way or another benefit from redistributed money.

By 2012, America could be holding the first federal election in which a majority of the population will be able to vote themselves more government goodies, paid for by the ever-shrinking minority of the population still dumb enough to contribute to the federal treasury.

Income is being redistributed at an ever increasing rate. Obama's policies increase the number of freeloaders while reducing the number of workers. And now, instead of just the lowest of income families, this administration's policies are targeting middle and upper-middle income families too!

According to Scott A Hodge in a recent Investor's Business Daily article, economists have identified a phenomenon they call "fiscal illusion." When people perceive the cost of government is less than what it really is, they will demand ever more government. The $1.5 trillion deficit is making the cost of government look cheap for all of us. So much spending is raining down on us that it now seems like "free money" in a sense ... for a while... (Visualize how much $1 trillion is here)

We all love free stuff, but too many of us will take as much as we can get whether we need it or not! For a nation, isn't this a recipe for fiscal disaster?

A bloated and arrogant government bureaucracy uses "free money" to control its citizens in total disregard to the letter and spirit of our Constitution, and We the People allow it because we love "free stuff!"

Selfishness and greed are unattractive qualities in human nature and the enticement of "free money" encourages it. As a nation, we are reaching a tipping point where freeloaders will soon outnumber taxpayers.

Remember when Americans took pride in being self-reliant and there was a stigma about taking handouts from government? Is there still a majority of Americans who want liberty over servitude, independence instead of dependence on a nanny government? Isn't it time we renewed that sense of pride and reject the notion that we are entitled to handouts from the government?

The nature of Obamacare is to enslave you, not liberate you (an allegory)

2010-04-14T17:48:00.000-07:00

Regardless of whether Clifford A. Wright really wrote this or not, his metaphor is perfect. I hope you will take the time to read it. (By the way, I notice there are a lot of other people who have posted this on their blogs!)

I was in my neighborhood restaurant this morning and was seated behind a group of jubilant individuals celebrating the successful passing of the recent health care bill. I could not finish my breakfast. This is what ensued:

They were a diverse group of several races and both sexes. I heard the young man exclaim, “Isn’t Obama like Jesus Christ? I mean, after all, he is healing the sick.” The young woman enthusiastically proclaimed, “Yeah, and he does it for free. I cannot believe anyone would think that a free market would work for health care. They are all crooks and thieves and don’t deserve all of that money.” Another said, "The stupid Republicans want us all to starve to death so they can inherit all of the power. Obama should be made a Saint for what he did for those of us less fortunate.” At this, I had had enough.

I arose from my seat, mustering all the restraint I could find, and approached their table. “Please excuse me; may I impose upon you for one moment?” They smiled and welcomed me to the conversation. I stood at the end of their table, smiled as best I could and began an experiment.

“I would like to give one of you my house. It will cost you no money and I will pay all of the expenses and taxes for as long as you live there. Anyone interested?” They looked at each other in astonishment. “Why would you do something like that?” asked a young man, “There isn’t anything for free in this world.” They began to laugh at me, as they did not realize this man had just made my point. “I am serious, I will give you my house for free, no money what so ever. Anyone interested?” In unison, a resounding “Hell Yeah” fills the room.

“Since there are too many of you, I will have to make a choice as to who receives this money-free bargain.” I noticed an elderly couple was paying attention to the spectacle unfolding before their eyes, the old man shaking his head in apparent disgust. “I tell you what; I will give it to the one of you most willing to obey my rules.” Again, they looked at one another, an expression of bewilderment on their faces. The perky young woman asked, “What are the rules?” I smiled and said, “I don’t know. I have not yet defined them. However, it is a free home that I offer you.”

They giggled amongst themselves, the youngest of which said, “What an old coot. He must be crazy to give away his home. Go take your meds, old man.” I smiled and leaned into the table a bit further. “I am serious, this is a legitimate offer.” They gaped at me for a moment.

“Hell, I’ll take it you old fool. Where are the keys?” boasted the youngest among them. “Then I presume you accept ALL of my terms then?” I asked. The elderly couple seemed amused and entertained as they watched from the privacy of their table. “Oh hell yeah! Where do I sign up?” I took a napkin and wrote, “I give this man my home, without the burden of financial obligation, so long as he accepts and abides by the terms that I shall set forth upon consummation of this transaction.” I signed it and handed it to the young man who eagerly scratched out his signature. “Where are the keys to my new house?” he asked in a mocking tone of voice. All eyes were upon us as I stepped back from the table, pulling the keys from pocket and dangling them before the excited new homeowner.

“Now that we have entered into this binding contract, witnessed by all of your friends, I have decided upon the conditions you are obligated to adhere from this point forward. You may only live in the house for one hour a day. You will not use anything inside of the home. You will obey me without question or resistance. I expect complete loyalty and admiration for this gift I bestow upon you. You will accept my commands and wishes with enthusiasm, no matter the nature. Your morals and principles shall be as mine. You will vote as I do, think as I do and do it with blind faith. These are my terms. Here are your keys.” I reached the keys forward and the young man looked at me dumb founded.

“Are you out of your freaking mind? Who would ever agree to those ridiculous terms?” the young man appeared irritated. “You did when you signed this contract before reading it, understanding it and with the full knowledge that I would provide my conditions only after you committed to the agreement.” Was all I said. The elderly man chuckled as his wife tried to restrain him. I was looking at a now silenced and bewildered group of people. “You can shove that stupid deal up you’re a** old man, I want no part of it” exclaimed the now infuriated young man.

“You have committed to the contract, as witnessed by all of your friends; you cannot get out of the deal unless I agree to it. I do not intend to let you free now that I have you ensnared. I am the power you agreed to. I am the one you blindly and without thought chose to enslave yourself to. In short, I am your Master.”

At this, the table of celebrating individuals became a unified group against the unfairness of the deal.

After a few moments of unrepeatable comments and slurs, I revealed my true intent. “What I did to you is what this administration and congress did to you with the health care legislation. I easily suckered you in and then revealed the real cost of the bargain. Your folly was in the belief that you can have something you did not earn; that you are entitled to that which you did not earn; that you willingly allowed someone else to think for you. Your failure to research, study and inform yourself permitted reason to escape you. You have entered into a trap from which you cannot flee. Your only chance of freedom is if your new Master gives it unto you. A freedom that is given can also be taken away; therefore, it is not freedom.” With that, I tore up the napkin and placed it before the astonished young man. “This is the nature of your new health care legislation.”

I turned away to leave these few in thought and contemplation and was surprised by applause. The elderly gentleman, who was clearly entertained, shook my hand enthusiastically and said, “Thank you Sir, these kids don’t understand Liberty these days.” He refused to allow me to pay my bill as he said, “You earned this one, it is an honor to pick up the tab.” I shook his hand in thanks, leaving the restaurant somewhat humbled, and sensing a glimmer of hope for my beloved country.

Use reason, it is the closest you are going to get to Godly conduct.

Clifford A. Wright

How To Brainwash A Nation

2010-04-12T18:26:00.000-07:00

This interview was done back in 1985 with former KGB agent Yuri Bezmenov who was trained in subversion techniques. He explains the four basic steps to socially engineer entire generations into thinking and behaving the way those in power want them to. What is shocking about it is the United States has already been transformed in the way Bezmenov outlines here.

HIGHLIGHTS:
Psychological warfare: change the perception of reality

Transforming the thinking and behavior of an entire population over generations has nothing to do with espionage, but with changing how Americans perceive reality. Bezmenov outlines four steps:

1. Demoralization. It takes 15-50 years to demoralize a nation. During that time up to three generations of students are exposed to the ideology of Marxism/Leninism without being challenged or counterbalanced by the basic values of American patriotism. Bezmenov said this process has already been completed in the United States...in 1985! The result of this brainwashing is, despite an abundance of information, no one is able to come to sensible conclusions; exposure to the truth doesn't matter anymore because people just refuse to believe it.

2. Destabilization. Takes 2-5 years. In this stage ideas the influence of Marxism/Leninism has reached the nation's essentials: economy, foreign relations and defense systems.

3. Creating crisis. It could take as little as 6 weeks to bring a country to the verge of crisis, leading to a violent change of structure, power and economy.

4. Normalization. People are promised all kinds of goodies and paradise on earth by benevolent dictators while at the same time the economy is being destabilized, free market competition is being eliminated and Big Brother government is setting up its regime in Washington DC.

Leftists (university professors, human rights activists, etc.) are instrumental in the process of subversion. But when the job is completed they are not needed anymore. They think they will have a place in the new power structure, but it isn't going to happen. Unfortunately they know too much. Once the Leftists realize they've been duped, they could become the most bitter enemies of those "benevolent" Marxist/Leninist dictators. Their "reward" will be death.

This video was posted by the Kick Them All Out Project http://www.kickthemallout.com/. If you want to end this insanity, join them.

America: It is not a place, but an idea that is rapidly becoming an echo of its former self

2010-03-10T18:30:00.000-08:00

I just read an interesting article called "The Idea of America" by David Galland, Managing Director of Casey Research.

Read Part 1 here: www.caseyresearch.com/displayCdd.php?id=360

The author says America is not a place, it is an idea, but today it is becoming only an echo of its former self. In his view, the idea of America is that everyone should be free to succeed or fail as a result of their own efforts. But in reality, today people are weighed down with politically motivated legislation designed to garner more votes for incumbents and mountains of regulation whose supposed purpose is to level the playing field but instead rewards one group of people while disadvantaging others. He asks if it is too late to return to the robust capitalism that made the U.S. what it was.

In Part 2 www.caseyresearch.com/displayCdd.php?id=363 the author shares some of the responses of readers. Some believe the U.S. has evolved and there's no going back. Others think what really counts is whether or not we are individually satisfied in our circumstances (if not, then hit the road), while others believe there is a rising tide of individuals determined to push the country back to its roots, using forceful political action to throw the bums out and start fresh.
Many people (too many in my opinion) view the "new America" as a place where they are ENTITLED to a growing list of positive rights that they often cannot afford on their own. In other words, "From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs."
The author believes businesses, individuals and, yes, the government, need intelligent operating principles in order to assure success and prosperity for the many. Instead, politicians' and bureaucrats' operating principle seems to be focused on getting votes through wealth redistribution.
While there is no reboot button on the idea of America, the author says we as individuals need to assess the political principles that dominate the turf where each of us lives and decide whether they suit us in all the important ways: Can you build and keep your wealth? Are you free from intimidation and coercion? Is your privacy respected? Are there strong private property rights? Individuals need to have a backup plan in case we need to build a life somewhere else.
On a positive ending note, the author says the accelerating rate of growth in the federal government is beginning to break the convention of slowly boiling the frog and American people just might wake up in time to do something to change the trend. "Small hopes, but hope nonetheless."

The Tea Party Movement: what it means to those in the movement; how liberals perceive tea-partiers

2010-02-11T18:04:00.000-08:00

Three recent articles worth reading.

First is Democrats, Meet Your Biggest Nightmare, By Carol Peracchio, published February 09, 2010 in American Thinker.
Paulette is 66 years old. She and her husband are retired. She worked on Scott Brown's campaign in Massachusetts.
"I knew we would win because I lived there. I talk to lots of people. I knew how we all felt about what Obama and the Democrats were doing."
She had NO doubt that Brown would win. It's people like Paulette in Massachusetts who are the democrats' biggest nightmare and who have the most to teach us. Such as:
1. There are a lot of voters out there who agree with us. Poll after poll shows that conservatives make up the largest voting bloc in America. It's high time we conservatives actually believed it.
2. There is no substitute, absolutely none, for personal, grassroots involvement in campaigns. Too many of us want to just "mail in" our support. That way, none of our neighbors will know that we are actually (gasp!) conservative. Go back and reread #1. There's a good chance your neighbors are conservatives, too.
3. Democrat and ACORN fraud cannot overcome a tidal wave of conservative and like-minded independent voters, even in liberal Massachusetts and New Jersey. For far too long we have accepted the inevitability of losing because of Democrat voter fraud. Then we just throw in the towel and don't even try to defeat the entrenched liberals. I'm certainly not saying fraud doesn't exist and that we don't need to be diligent in our efforts to combat it. But ACORN is no match for energized, intelligent, informed conservatives.
4. We have to get involved early. Signing up to make telephone calls the last weekend of a campaign, while better than nothing, isn't good enough. Primaries for this year's congressional elections are starting now. The time for conservative involvement is yesterday. Brown's win taught us that no seat is 100% safe.

Second is It’s the Constitution, Stupid: What the Tea-Partiers Really Want, posted on BigJournalism.com By Ron Futrell On February 9, 2010.
The Democrats and their activist old media are running in circles and working themselves into pretzels trying to define the “Tea Party” movement. It can be quite entertaining to watch. They really have no idea what is happening right in front of their eyes. The media would have an easier time reading Mandarin Chinese than they would deciphering the signs at a Tea Party rally.
You could argue that they don’t want to understand what they are seeing because that means they would have to admit that Democrats have lost the beloved grass roots that they claim to have had forever, and I would not disagree. But, for the moment, let’s just say that they are really trying hard to figure this out and it’s just not sinking in to their brilliant Ivy League minds.
Let me tell you what the Tea Party movement wants. I will make it simple and straightforward and easy for all to understand — I will put it in all CAPS and type slowly:
THE TEA PARTY MOVEMENT WANTS AMERICA TO RETURN TO CONSTITUTIONAL PRINCIPLES.
The Democrats and its activist old media want to find “leaders” for the Tea Party movement. They saw the movements led by Stalin, Hitler and Mussolini and feel that there must be a dynamic personality for people to follow in order for it to be significant.
They also want a “leader” of the Tea Party movement so that they can destroy that person. This is from the play book of Saul Alinsky’s Rules for Radicals:
RULE 13: Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it.
By this I mean that in a complex, interrelated, urban society, it becomes increasingly difficult to single out who is to blame for any particular evil… Obviously, there is no point to tactics unless one has a target upon which to center the attacks.
Once they have a fallible human target they can destroy that person, and thus destroy the movement. That’s the game plan. They will not come out and say they want the destruction of the U.S. Constitution, so it’s very important for the media, Democrats and the American left to get a name and face attached to the Tea Party movement.
This movement needs no leader. With the Constitution as its guide, it is doing just fine, thank you.
While the media tries to marginalize the movement and make it seem insignificant, racist, divisive, angry, trivial, and mean—-the Tea Party movement rolls on. Democrats will twist and turn on a roller-coaster ride of definitions before they ever find the answer. If they really want the answer, I’ll give it to them again in case I wasn’t clear:
THE TEA PARTY MOVEMENT WANTS AMERICA TO RETURN TO CONSTITUTIONAL PRINCIPLES.
Don’t we all want that? Shouldn’t we all want that?
For the last 100 years we have made a strong left turn from those documents, and it’s time to correct it...

Finally, a liberal's view of the tea partiers (be ready to feel insulted!). The Tea Party: Racist, Nativist And Anti-Statist, by E.J. DIONNE JR., posted 02/10/2010 in the Investor's Business Daily.
The ferocity of its opposition to President Obama is mystifying to political progressives. Most of the left simply doesn't see the current occupant of the White House as especially liberal, let alone "socialist." The most popular theory on the left is that Obama's race is a big part of the story, and that we are seeing a reaction among some whites against the multiracial, multicultural political coalition he has brought together. ... At any given time, perhaps 20% to 25% of Americans can be counted on to denounce anything Washington does as a threat to "our traditional liberties." This suspicion of government is not amenable to "facts" — not because it is irrational, but because the facts are beside the point. For the anti-statists, opposing government power is a matter of principle. ... Understanding the principled anti-government radicalism that animates this movement explains why its partisans see the conservative Bush as a sellout and the cautiously liberal Obama as a socialist. For now, their fears of Obama are enough to tether the Tea Partyers to the GOP. In the long run, establishment Republicans are destined to disappoint them.

Liberal tyrannists use an effective technique called "divide and conquer." They work unceasingly to put doubt in our hearts, hoping we'll succumb to their belief that we are just small, ragtag, hate-filled anti-statist, pea-brained, right-wing extremists.
WE ARE NOT!
The battle isn't between Right and Left. It's between RIGHT and WRONG! Tea partiers are the Minutemen of the conservative movement. We are our own leaders and as such we make hard targets for liberal tyrannists to pick off. Take comfort in knowing there are a great many people (more than we know) who think conservatively and love the United States of America! Find them! Network with them! We are not alone!

Be of good cheer!

What a Russian immigrant thinks of what's happening right now in America

2010-02-07T19:41:00.000-08:00

The Investor's Business Daily is running a series of articles by Svetlana Kunin, an IBD subscriber and retired software developer, who lived in the Soviet Union until 1980 and now lives in Connecticut. In the Soviet Union, she was a civil engineer. Below are excerpts and links to her first six articles. The entire series can be read here: www.investors.com/NewsAndAnalysis/SpecialReport.aspx?id=512665

Part 1: The Perspective Of A Russian Immigrant (9/10/2009)
Life in the USSR modeled the socialist ideal. God-based religion was suppressed and replaced with cultlike adoration for political figures. In the USSR, economic equality was achieved by redistributing wealth, ensuring that everyone remained poor, with the exception of those doing the redistributing. Only the ruling class of communist leaders had access to special stores, medicine and accommodations that could compare to those in the West. The rest of the citizenry had to deal with permanent shortages of food and other necessities, and had access to free but inferior, unsanitary and low-tech medical care. The egalitarian utopia of equality, achieved by the sacrifice of individual self-interest for the collective good, led to corruption, black markets, anger and envy. When I came to America in 1980 and experienced life in this country, I thought it was fortunate that those living in the USSR did not know how unfortunate they were. Now in 2009, I realize how unfortunate it is that many Americans do not understand how fortunate they are. They vote to give government more and more power without understanding the consequences...

Part 2: Service.gov And Its Soviet Similarities (10/30/2009)
USSR, 1959: I am a "young pioneer" in school. History classes remind us that there is a higher authority than their parents and teachers: the leaders of the Communist Party. My parents, as all citizens of the USSR, work for state-run companies. All workers are unionized — another way the state controls the citizens. There is no private enterprise in USSR. From school age through adulthood, citizens are called to public service four to five times a year. Activities such as farming, cleaning places of work, and paper/metal scrap collections are mandatory. USA, 2009: "Progressives" control the government. Children in some public schools sing songs about the president and study his directives. Progressives view people not as unique individuals, but as groups. The mainstream media are aligned with the government. Big labor union leadership is fully aligned with the progressives in government. Sept. 11 is declared a day of national service by the administration. It is no longer a day of remembrance for the horrific attack perpetrated by terrorists. Citizens of America, sacrifice your elders and forget your selfish aspirations of prosperity for yourself and your family! Sign onto Service.gov and serve your government!

Part 3: Perspective Of A Russian Immigrant (11/17/2009)
My American friends...don't understand why I am repulsed when I hear the president talk about "sacrificing for the collective good," which sounds so compassionate, as opposed to greedy capitalism. "Sacrifice for the collective good" is one of the founding principles of socialism, where the collective, not the individual, is the basis of society. Why do people born into a free society accept a failed 100-year-old ideology? It seems Americans are simply unaware of modern history. They don't know the theory behind slogans such as "fairness and equality" and "sacrifice for the collective good," much less how it works when implemented. They buy into old utopian slogans masquerading as new progressive ideals for "Hope and Change." In the USSR, they taught us in school that socialism is good and capitalism is bad. That they now teach the same in American schools I find strange...

Part 4: Perspective Of A Russian Immigrant (12/8/2009)
I look at the people who support the transformation of America in disbelief. They are destroying the very land that gave them so much opportunity. Under the pretext of helping the needy, liberals eliminate people's drive to better themselves and their families. Instead, they obsess about events of the past and exacerbate the victim mentality in the very people they claim to help. I see in today's governmental policies a replication of the very things I escaped from. I am afraid these transformers of America are destroying the future of our children. I hope the free spirit of America triumphs...

Part 5: Perspectives Of A Russian Immigrant (1/21/2010)
Visitors to national parks are warned not to feed the wildlife because this interferes with the natural survival ability of the animals. Progressives do not make the same connection with human nature. The image of a country where government takes care of its citizens attracts the liberal mind. Released Soviet archives show how a society can project an image of glory and prosperity, as long as the intended audience is shown only two dimensions. But they also reveal the third dimension: the dimension of cruelty. In such societies, individuals, science, education, art and sport are subservient to ideology. The control of mediocrity over talent is the defining structure of these societies. How do our current political leaders propose to transform America? They ignore the Constitution. They envision a zoolike country where the citizens are assigned a place to live, to work, the medical care they can get and the food they eat. The image of a fair and equal society will be projected, but the third dimension — a bureaucratic cruelty over defenseless individuals — will result. This is not a progressive society; it's an oppressive one. There is no escape from oppressive centralized state control. Those who support this transformation cannot see beyond the flat two-dimensional image of utopia...

Part 6: Perspectives Of A Soviet Immigrant (2/2/2010)
Democratic party leaders speak incessantly of limiting profits and regulating salaries. It brings back to memory another Soviet line: You pretend you are paying us salaries, and we pretend we are working. If bureaucrats predetermine the value of your work, there is no incentive to be productive. This is the quickest way to kill a dynamic economy. American students are brainwashed to despise economic freedom and to yearn for a big government state. ...young Americans look for politicians to show them the way. As someone who experienced real government-approved anti-Semitism in the Soviet Union, I am amazed by the obliviousness of American Jews, the most fervent supporters of left-wing politics. They support a party that is obsessed with pitting one group against another, and that incessantly plays on envy and hatred for bankers, rich people, big business and doctors. Persecutions of Jews throughout history all have one thing in common: a centralized power that manipulates and directs people's anger away from themselves onto an easy target. When the Bolsheviks took power after the 1917 proletarian revolution, their first steps were to take control of the banks and the media. Of course, it is not fair to compare our current American democratic leaders with the Bolsheviks. Yes, they both use the same slogans in their speeches. Yes, they both stir up envy and class warfare to distract from their failures. Yes, both political movements sought control of the banks as the foundation for their new egalitarian vision. And yes, they are both opposed to free speech, as was made clear by the reaction of American leftists to the recent Supreme Court decision. But you would never find a Czar anywhere in the Soviet government...

I'm looking forward to reading more of this immigrant's perspectives of America...

America, now home of the MOSTLY free, but falling

2010-02-03T14:23:00.000-08:00

America's 'Free' Falling Economy
Investor's Business Daily editorial (02/01/2010)

Competitiveness: The latest index of economic freedom shows America falling fast, being ranked for the first time as "mostly free." We've fallen behind Canada, and it's look out below.

Our accelerating descent into a command-and-control economy with government pulling the strings is taking its toll.

The Heritage Foundation's 2010 index of leading economic indicators shows that the land of the free is only mostly free, falling to eighth in the world from sixth last year, now sandwiched between Canada and Denmark.

That Canada, long considered a bastion of socialized medicine, is ranked as economically freer may surprise some. But our neighbor to the north has at least been trying to develop its domestic energy reserves, from hydroelectric to natural gas to oil extracted from its tar sands. Energy is the lifeblood of a free economy.

We have shackled our domestic energy producers with environmental regulations, leaving vast pools of energy lying offshore and in the ground. We regulate what you can build, where you can build it, even how. Endangered critters rank above equally endangered entrepreneurs. Climate change is more important than the business climate.

We have allowed our government to be the engine of stimulus when the only thing that's being stimulated is government itself. The public sector booms while the private sector languishes as the federal government sucks the financial oxygen out of the room. Businesses are afraid to move because they are unable to plan in an environment where government is trying to tax or regulate everything that moves and most things that don't.

Our government has taken upon itself the task of picking winners and losers, instead of letting the free market decide, and as a result we all lose. From car companies to financial institutions, the long arm of government has grabbed freedom by the neck, seeking to decide who gets paid what and how big companies and banks can grow.

Then there are the taxes, which are to business what vampires are to blood banks. A nation's corporate tax rate is important. Its effect on a country's competitiveness and its ability to draw or repel investment has a direct impact on economic health.

Companies are being driven offshore by a combined 39.1% federal and state tax rate that is second only to Japan's. In some states, the combination leads the world. California, which would have the world's eighth largest economy as an independent country, teeters on bankruptcy. If you were a CEO, would you headquarter there or in Switzerland or Ireland, which also rank above us?

The 2010 index shows the U.S. dropping from 80.7 points out of 100 in 2008 to 78 in 2009 and slipping from the "free" category to "mostly free." America's 2.7-point decline is among the fastest ever, ranking right up there with those of such socialist paradises as Bolivia, Libya and Hugo Chavez's Venezuela, whose policies our administration czars are seeking to emulate.

The authors of the Heritage report — Kim Holmes, Anthony Kim and Terry Miller — cite the gargantuan growth of government in both size and power, noting that government spending last year equaled 37.4% of GDP. Spending increases totaled well over $1 trillion in 2009 alone, up more than 20% from 2008.

"Uncertainties caused by ongoing regulatory changes and politically influenced stimulus spending have discouraged entrepreneurship and job creation, slowing recovery," the report states.

"Tax rates are increasingly uncompetitive, and massive stimulus spending is creating unprecedented deficits. Bailouts of financial and automotive firms have generated concerns about property rights."

On these pages last November, former Microsoft COO Robert Herbold and Hoover Institution fellow Scott Powell noted that "ambiguity and the threat of new taxes from Washington, such as cap-and-trade, have already prompted 11 major U.S. companies to move offshore in the past year."

They can be accused of being greedy, but not of being stupid.

We must stop bailing out failure and punishing success through regulation and taxation. Only then can the land of the free be economically free to thrive and prosper.

RELATED ARTICLES:

Lech Walesa's Warning to America, Investor's Business Daily editorial (2/2/2010): The champion of Polish freedom tells America it's no longer that shining city on a hill. As it slouches toward socialism, he warns, those yearning to breathe free in the world can no longer look to the U.S. for help. In a press conference, Walesa commented on an America that seemingly apologizes for everything these days, cajoles rather than confronts the thugs of the world and is embarked on a path to shackle beyond redemption the free economy that led the Free World to victory. "The United States was always the last resort and hope for all other nations. There was the hope, whenever something was going wrong, one could count on the United States. Today, we lost that hope." He sees our quest for redistribution of income as not different from the Marxist credo — from each according to his ability, to each according to his need. In a video-taped interview, Walesa saw a hint of socialism creeping into America's domestic policies. He spoke of "the issue with the banks" and how "the government wastes all the money ... building a bureaucracy — just for itself." Indeed, it seems the only growth sector in the U.S. is its government and the unions that exist not for the prosperity and freedom of their members, but for the power and influence of their leaders. Poland had Lech Walesa. We have the SEIU's Andy Stern, who says that if those who disagree with command-and-control government do not bow to the power of persuasion, they will bow to the persuasion of power. He has witnessed a lot of history and knows when people refuse to learn from it. In Walesa's view, something needs to be done to restore America's strength and leadership. America, in his view, is too big to fail...

Growing Beyond Consent Of The Governed, By BETSY McCAUGHEY (posted 02/01/2010 in Investor's Business Daily): The $3.8 trillion dollar federal budget that President Obama announced Monday is another bruising blow to American freedom. Government is growing beyond the consent of the governed. When government spends so much, less is left for people to spend as they choose. Only once before in American history did government spending cross that 40% threshold — to wage World War II. Nothing today justifies a similar confiscation of nearly half of people's resources. The level of public spending is one indication of the power of government and the loss of individual freedom. Total government spending in the U.S., as a percentage of GDP, is approaching levels found in social welfare states like France and Germany, where life is highly regulated by the state. Another indicator is the hundreds of thousands of federal employees, with more being hired all the time as private sector workers lose their jobs. What's needed is a cap on overall spending.

The Disappearing Private-Sector Jobs, By ROBERT HIGGS (posted 01/20/2010 in Investor's Business Daily): We find that the loss of employment has occurred entirely in the private sector, where employment fell from 115.4 million in 2007 to 109.5 million in 2009, a decline that took private employment back to its level at the end of the 1990s. While private employment was collapsing, government payrolls have been increasing, ticking up slightly from 22.2 million in 2007 to 22.5 million in 2009, an increase of roughly 1.7 million above the 2000 level. From December 2008 to December 2009, total employment fell from 135.1 million persons to 130.9 million, while government employment remained essentially constant at 22.5 million. This situation bears an eerie resemblance to the employment situation during the Great Depression... Keynesians like to suppose that whenever the government undertakes new spending to augment the ranks of its employees a multiplier effect will result, causing private economic activity and employment to follow the same upward course. The jobs data tell a different story...

HR 4500: The Freedom From Rationed Health Care Act

2010-01-27T06:48:00.000-08:00

THE FREEDOM FROM RATIONED HEALTH CARE ACT
Written by Dr. Jack Wheeler, To The Point News
Friday, 22 January 2010

A Special Announcement from To The Point

With the victory of Scott Brown in Massachusetts this week, the Democrats have abandoned their maniacal attempt to pass ObamaCare "health reform" legislation.

Yet it is little known that a significant part of the ObamaCare program has secretly already been voted into law as part of the stimulus bill Congress passed in February, 2009.

Last September, you learned that Sarah Palin's Death Panels Already Exist. (www.tothepointnews.com/content/view/3783/130/ -- must join TTP to read)

They are the Federal Coordinating Council for Comparative Effectiveness Research (www.hhs.gov/recovery/programs/os/cerbios.html), which will set policy, and the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (www.hhs.gov/news/press/2009pres/03/20090320b.html), who will enforce it.

The stimulus bill - Obama's "American Recovery & Reinvestment Act" of $787 billion - authorizes $1.1 billion for the Federal Council and $19.5 billion for the Coordinator, for a total $20.6 billion.

The mortal threat that ObamaCare poses to the health and freedom of all Americans cannot be eliminated until the sections of the stimulus bill authorizing funding for the Federal Council and the Coordinator are repealed.

Today (1/22), Congressman Thad McCotter (R-MI) introduced legislation to do just that: The Freedom from Rationed Health Care Act. (http://mccotter.house.gov/NR/rdonlyres/8A688641-3869-4B6C-B21B-93CFB38FEB68/0/HR4500_JandaBill.pdf) The Bill number is HR 4500.

The Bill rescinds all funding for and repeals all provisions of the ‘‘Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality'' and the ‘‘Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology,'' and directs the money to the Federal Treasury to reduce federal debt.

Rep. McCotter's medical advisor, orthopedic surgeon Dave Janda, MD states:

"The Freedom From Rationed Health Care Act repeals the Democrats' flawed premise for government-run health care - specifically, that cutting costs by denying and rationing care for every American will reduce health care costs. As a practicing physician on the frontline, I believe the Democrats' government-run rationing approach is the most unethical and inhumane means of addressing health care costs."

Rep. McCotter believes that once Americans understand that secret death panel health rationing boards were hidden in the Stimulus Bill, they will be outraged and support his legislation to eliminate them.

He urges that Americans tell their fellow citizens about the secret Stimulus Bill Death Panels and HR 4500. (http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d111:h.r.04500 )

To The Point could not encourage you more to do so.

www.tothepointnews.com/content/view/3940/44/

Health care is unaffordable because of government interference. Here's an alternative

2010-01-27T06:27:00.000-08:00

HEALTH FREEDOM LEGISLATION
Written by Dr. Jack Wheeler, To The Point News
Thursday, 21 January 2010

[I have been asked by a Republican Senator's office to suggest a GOP health reform package that would be in stark contrast to the now-failed attempt of the Democrats. Here it is. Please consider faxing or emailing this to Republican politicians in your state.]

Health care in America has become exorbitantly unaffordable because of government interference in the medical market place. All the Democrats can offer is further government controls, mandates, and trillion-dollar increases in taxpayer-paid costs.

Yet health care costs can only be radically reduced by a radical reduction of regulations that stifle competition and subsidies to special interests. Only genuine free market reforms can substantially increase both the availability and quality of health care.

What the Republicans can offer is Health Freedom as an alternative to the Health Fascism of Democrat ObamaCare.

Ten Specific Means By Which Health Freedom Can Be Achieved

One: Open Enrollments in Medical Schools.

The American Medical Association (AMA) colludes with State Medical Boards throughout the 50 states to severely limit the number of medical and nursing schools, class size, number of teachers, and number of admitted students.

Each year, tens of thousands of qualified students are unable to get into medical or nursing school because of these artificial restrictions. There are an estimated 10 to 20 qualified applicants for every vacancy available in U.S. medical schools. Despite a chronic shortage of nurses, most nursing schools have a two to three year waiting period for admittance.

An instructive question to ask in this regard is: Why is there no shortage of chiropractors? The answer is that chiropractors do not have a medieval guild which has the political power to restrict entry into their profession. Chiropractor colleges accept virtually all qualified applicants. Those who can't complete the curriculum or pass the licensing exams are weeded out. The number of chiropractors is controlled by the market - not by a medieval guild like the AMA.

Health freedom legislation would terminate the AMA's monopoly over the medical profession, allow open enrollment at current medical schools, and the construction of as many new medical schools as the market will bear.

Licensing and testing must, of course, remain strict and reliable. But as the number of physicians and nurses rises, competition between them for patients will concomitantly increase, and thus their fees and salaries will go down with the law of supply and demand.

This also applies to the cost of a medical education in the first place: it will decrease as the number of students and new schools increases.

Further, health freedom legislation would end the AMA's guildification of medical practices.

Most things done by doctors can be done by physicians' assistants, most things done by them can in turn be done by registered nurses, and them in turn by nurse practitioners. You don't need a Ferrari racing mechanic to fix a Toyota. You need free market medicine with several layers of medical practitioners.

Two: Reduce Hospital Administrative Costs

For an average stay in a hospital, fifty to seventy-five percent of the charges are due to administrative costs.

The primary cause of exorbitant administrative hospital costs is the requirements of the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Health Care Organizations -- now known as simply "The Joint Commission" -- a collusion of bureaucratic health care organizations and government regulators. The Joint Commission imposes such a morass of regulations that hospital administrators must focus their efforts on "compliance" with Joint Commission requirements, rather than on the welfare of their patients.

Further, not every patient needs to stay in a tertiary-care hi-tech hospital, replete with MRI and CT scanners, with a capability for coronary by-pass and heart transplant surgery. Some patients merely need a few days of IV antibiotics and rehydration, along with TLC observation. This could be provided by a small low-tech hospital or overnight clinic.

But the Joint Commission requirements, which set the standards of hospital compliance, do not differentiate between large and small hospitals. All must meet the same excessive criteria necessitating huge administrative costs, making low-tech hospitals economically impossible.

A typical example is that computer system/recording needs are not the same for small vs. large hospitals, yet the Joint Commission requirements force all, big or small, to buy big expensive systems.

Health Freedom legislation would eliminate "one-size-fits-all" Joint Commission hospital compliance standards, allowing the operation of "low-tech" small hospitals with minimal administrative overhead.

Three: Eliminate State Mandates and Regulatory Barriers on Health Insurance

One primary reason for the high cost of health insurance today is the monumental number of required benefits health insurance policies must provide imposed by state regulators. Today there are over one thousand mandates on everything from hairpieces to marriage counseling. As a result, insurers are legally prohibited from supplying low-cost basic health insurance.

Health Freedom Legislation would allow insurers to offer low-cost, basic health insurance policies with no state mandated benefits whatever.

Such legislation, according to the National Center for Policy Analysis, would reduce health insurance policy cost by twenty percent or more.

Another major cause of high health insurance costs is the regulatory barriers inhibiting small businesses from forming risk pools. Two-thirds of all employed but uninsured workers are either self-employed or work for firms with fewer than 100 employees, and cannot afford individual or small group policies.

Health Freedom Legislation would eliminate all regulatory barriers such as business commonality and geographic proximity requirements to small businesses from freely combining into common insurance risk pools. It would further allow non-business organizations - churches, unions, or any group of people formed for whatever reason - to form similar pools for their members.

Such "small market" reform would make health insurance dramatically more affordable to millions of Americans. Unfortunately, such reform will be bitterly opposed by the large major insurance companies, because it would result in competition from deregulated small insurance companies.

Four: Give Health Care Providers A Tax Credit For Charity Work

One of the major sources of the "health care crisis" necessitating the ObamaCare plan, its advocates say, is the tens of millions of uninsured Americans who cannot afford medical care. They are regarded by the medical industry as "non-payers" to be "turfed" to the county hospital and receive minimal treatment.

The quality of their medical care would be very different if they were looked upon not as a liability, but as a tax credit.

Health Freedom legislation would allow health care providers - physicians, nurses, medical technicians, pharmacies, and hospitals - to deduct from their personal or corporate income taxes an appreciable amount of the income they would have derived if their charity patients paid the normal fees.

Such legislation would result in physicians, hospitals, and other health care providers fighting among themselves to provide free (to charity patients), tax deductible (to them) health care.

Such an incentive to provide free care would dramatically reduce Medicaid and Medicare costs - more than compensating for loss of income tax revenues. The ultimate savings to the taxpayers would be astronomical.

Five: Restore the 100% Deductibility of Health Care Expenses

Throughout most of this century, individuals were not taxed on the money they spent on health care. When Congress eliminated the tax deductibility of most medical expenses, it made medical care and health insurance prohibitively expensive for individuals to pay for on their own.

As a result, employer-provided health care and insurance - the costs of which corporations can deduct and does not count as income to the employee - is the only option for workers. For them, their choice is restricted to whatever plan(s) the employer offers, and they lose their coverage once they quit or are fired. For those millions of workers who can't get employer-provided insurance, they simply must do without.

The solution is 100% deducibility for medical expenses. One Congressman consulted for this report estimates that "this one simple reform will enable as many as 15 million Americans who cannot now afford it to gain access to healthcare and health insurance."

This measure would greatly expand the health insurance risk pool, enabling insurers to offer more options and coverages while reducing premiums. Further, the Congressman observes, it would "dramatically increase marketplace competition for healthcare and health insurance, as perhaps 100 million more people enter the market to shop for the best among all available services and insurance plans."

Health Freedom legislation would broaden the category of deductible medical expenses to include expenses for alternative and preventive health care. Traditional establishment medicine is limited primarily to medication, surgery, and medical devices. It should more properly be called "disease care." Genuine health care would have its primary focus on prevention of illness and health maintenance, and subsequent focus upon intervention to restore health.

Alternative therapies as acupuncture, nutritional and herbal supplementation, EDTA chelation, and applied kinesiology have this primary focus. Surely, the absolute best way to reduce health care costs is for people not to get sick in the first place.

Health Freedom legislation would grant 100% tax deductibility to individual taxpayers for all healthcare expenses, including health insurance, and medical, pharmaceutical, and alternative/preventative expenses. It would further encourage insurers to include alternative/preventative therapies in their coverage.

Health Freedom Legislation would also create tax-exempt Medical Savings Accounts (MSAs, or Medical IRAs), allowing individuals to set aside tax-free up to $3,000 per year for medical expenses.

In addition, Health Freedom Legislation would make health insurance portable, through minor changes in existing COBRA legislation, by allowing workers between jobs to pay (tax-deductible) premiums directly to the insurer.

Many employees feel trapped in their jobs today because they cannot afford to lose their employer-provided medical coverage. These proposals would liberate them to seek their own coverage, give them the opinion of taking their coverage with them after they leave their job, and provide them with tax incentives for life-long savings for their health care needs.

Six: Reduce Malpractice Insurance Costs

Malpractice insurance costs are a major source of higher health care expenses. The insurance premiums have skyrocketed due to multi-million dollar awards made for "pain and suffering," which are orders of magnitude beyond the plaintiff's medical expenses.

Health Freedom legislation would eliminate "pain and suffering" malpractice settlements; limit malpractice settlements to all costs of the patient's malpractice-related medical bills; and limit payment to patient attorneys to normal fees, prohibiting attorney commissions of a substantial percentage of the total settlement.

This legislation would cause a drastic reduction of malpractice premiums, enabling doctors and other health care providers to lower fees. (Remember that the increase in competition via proposal #1 above gives the incentive to do so.)

In addition, physicians should be encouraged to forego buying malpractice insurance at all, supplanting it with: legally-binding agreements with their patients to purchase their own malpractice insurance (as an airline passenger, prior to a flight, may purchase flight insurance). If the physician performed malpractice, the patient's own insurance company would pay him.

Seven: Repeal the Kefauver Amendment

Prior to 1962, for a pharmaceutical company to gain FDA approval for a new drug, it had to prove that the drug was safe. But in the wake of the Thalidomide scare, the Kefauver Amendment was passed, requiring that a new drug, to gain FDA approval, must be proven not only safe but effective in curing or ameliorating a specific disease.

Proving a drug's safety is not that difficult or costly. It is proving its effectivity that is primarily responsible for the current situation: it now costs an average of over $800 million, takes up to twelve years and requires an average of 40,000 pages of documentation to get one new drug approved by the FDA.

The primarily public concern should, appropriately, be with the safety of given medication. But the individual patient, in consultation with his doctor or health professional, should be the judge of whether the medication is working out or not.

Health Freedom legislation would repeal the Kefauver Amendment, making proof of a drug's safety the only requirement for FDA approval.

No legislative act could more contribute to reducing pharmaceutical costs than this.

Further, the Kefauver Amendment is the primary bottleneck in the flow of medicinal progress. It creates an enormous logjam delaying for years getting new drugs on the market which could have been saving countless lives during those years. It creates such impossible expenses and regulatory disincentives that many promising drugs are never developed at all.

Thus, no single legislative act could save more lives and contribute more to the health of Americans than the repeal of the Kefauver Amendment.

Eight: End the FDA's War on Nutritional Supplements

The evidence that such nutrients as Vitamin C, Vitamin E, and selenium can radically reduce the incidence of heart disease and cancer - the two diseases which cause more deaths and are responsible for more health care spending than anything else - is simply overwhelming.

Yet the FDA has - let it be stated candidly - a perverse bias against nutritional supplements. The "knife-and-fork" mythology prevails: that "you can get all the nutrients you need from a well-balanced diet." Getting several grams of Vitamin C daily (the optimal amount for reducing risk of heart disease and cancer) from oranges would require eating dozens and dozens of oranges - and be far more expensive than taking one or two capsules.

The FDA enforces this bias by threatening a nutrient manufacturer who supplies information about the health value of his products with prosecution if he does so without FDA's express approval. No matter how truthful and supported by scientific evidence are the health claims, the FDA will attempt to fine or imprison the manufacturer for making an "unapproved health claim."

This policy is such an egregiously clear violation of the First Amendment protection of free speech that it was severely restricted by a January 1999 decision of the Ninth Circuit Federal Court, Pearson v. Shalala (http://lw.bna.com/lw/19990202/985043.htm).

The FDA's implementation of the ruling has been slow and begrudging ever since. Its latest attack on the nutrition industry is to require the same "good manufacturing practices" (GMP) requirements as for pharmaceutical companies. The purpose is to make it too expensive to produce supplements. The solution is to replace GMPs entirely with purity standards. All that should matter is the purity of the supplement or pharmaceutical, however that purity is achieved.

Current estimates are that widespread dissemination through nutritional advertising of how 400 i.u. of E and 2,000 mgs. of C per day via supplements can reduce one's chances of heart disease or cancer by over 40% would save hundreds of thousands of lives and save billions of dollars in health care costs each year.

This is just one example with two nutrients. The savings in lives and money applied to all nutrients is far greater.

Health Freedom legislation would, therefore, prohibit the FDA from prosecuting any nutritional or medicinal manufacturer or supplier for making an "unapproved health claim" if that claim is truthful and non-misleading. And it would replace GMP requirements with purity standards.

Nine: Remove Government Restrictions Regarding the Importation of Foreign Drugs.

While not widely known, it is currently legal for an individual to import a "reasonable" amount (e.g., a three-month supply) of a medication for personal use. Yet it remains illegal to promote or profit from such importation.

Most Americans are consequently unaware of their drug importation rights and do not know how to obtain medication overseas. Further, those who do are frequently harassed by the Postal service, DEA, FDA, and Customs.

Health Freedom legislation would allow the promotion of and profit from importation of foreign pharmaceuticals. It is important to note that most medications sold in the U.S. are sold overseas for pennies on the dollar over the U.S. price. These medications are manufactured by foreign divisions of the same companies that make them here in the U.S.

Quite often, in fact, many medications sold in the U.S. are actually relabeled foreign-manufactured drugs.

Ten: Allow the Purchase of Non-Controlled Medications Without Prescriptions

An American visiting a pharmacy overseas, say in Europe, for the first time, is astounded to discover that the medications he needs cost a fraction of their U.S. cost - and that he can purchase them over the counter without a prescription. Medications requiring a doctor's prescription is the exception, not the rule, in most countries in the world.

The incidence of adverse drug reactions is no higher in these countries than in the U.S. Nor is medication abuse. What is different is that in America, you must schedule an appointment with a doctor, take the time to see him, pay him $40 to $75 for an office visit, so that you can get a prescription.

And because you can only get the medication needed by prescription, the pharmaceutical company may charge much more money for it. Over-the-counter medications usually cost much less than prescription medications.

Health Freedom legislation would allow all non-controlled, non-addictive medications to be purchased over the counter without a prescription.

Dramatically reducing unnecessary doctor visits, and reducing prescriptions prices to over-the-counter prices, would greatly contribute to lowering health care costs.

Conclusion

Government programs and regulations are not the solution to health care problems. They are the cause of the problems in the first place.

What must be avoided absolutely is capitulation to the demand for free lunch entitlements such as "universal coverage." Such capitulation to fascist intrusion will guarantee the destruction of the health insurance industry and pave the way for government seizure of the entire U.S. health care system.

Only by offering a genuine alternative to the Democrat ObamaCare plan can the threat it poses to America's health care system be removed.

Only be offering genuine free market solutions can America's health care system be improved and be made affordable.

The Democrats are advocates of Health Fascism. Will the Republicans be advocates of Health Freedom?

America's health - and freedom - hangs in the balance.

http://www.tothepointnews.com/content/view/3935/2/

2010-01-17T19:27:00.000-08:00

Empower freedom-loving Americans to push back! Pay in cash!

Here is a simple, safe and effective suggestion that will allow you to empower other Americans to strike back against a bloated federal government:

Pay cash for all small business transactions.

This empowers recipients to decide for themselves whether the federal government deserves any part of their cash income.

This is a zero-cost, zero-risk strategy for you.

This won't work when you purchase from a big business or a chain. If you purchase lumber at Lowes, for example, their income will be reported whether you pay by credit card, debit card, check, or cash.

The situation is entirely different when you are dealing with a small business. When you purchase a dinner at an independent small restaurant, pay cash (both the meal and the tip). If you pay with credit card or check, there will be a paper trail that requires the wise owner to report the income.

By paying cash, you empower small business people to decide for themselves if they want to fund the socialistic cancer that is devouring America. Whether or not they take advantage of the option you have given them depends on whether they think taxes on that income is morally legitimate. You are merely giving them a choice!

A recent Rasmussen poll found that 71% of Americans are angry at the current policies of the federal government, and 46% are very angry. And the anger is increasing.

Now you can empower other freedom-loving Americans to push back! Pay in cash!!

Thanks to Skye and To The Point Forum for this great idea.

Expanding on the Double-D Strategy: Pay cash for all small business transactions

2010-01-04T15:18:00.000-08:00

This is such a good idea! I hope Jack Wheeler won't mind that I posted this follow-up article to his Double-D strategy...

THE DOUBLE-D CASH OPTION
Written by Skye
Friday, 01 January 2010

Jack's Double-D strategy - Defund and Disobey - requires positive actions to make it a reality. Here is one simple, safe, costless, and effective step that you can personally take every day:

Pay cash for all small business transactions. This empowers the recipient to decide for himself whether the Federalies deserve any part of that cash income.

This is a zero-cost zero-risk strategy for the payor. When you pay cash to a small business, you empower them to decide for themselves whether to fund the cancer that is devouring America.

This won't work when you purchase from a big business or a chain; if you purchase a case of paper at Staples, their income will be reported whether you pay by credit card, debit card, check, or cash.

The situation is entirely different when you are dealing with a small business. When you purchase a dinner at an independent small business restaurant, pay cash, both for the tip and for the meal. If you pay via plastic or check, there will be a paper trail that will require the wise owner to report the income.

If you pay cash, you empower the owner (and the waitress) to defund and disobey.

Will he take advantage of the option that you have given him to defund and disobey? That depends on whether he thinks that the taxes on that income are morally legitimate.

Consider this Rasmussen poll, which finds that 71% of Americans are angry at the current policies of the federal government - and 46% are very angry.

The anger has increased since then. Empower angry Americans to strike back! Pay in cash!!

As the cancer of the Federalies is progressively delegitimatized, more and more freedom loving people will Double D - when they have the option:

Offer them that option! Pay in cash!!

Skye is the resident genius of the To The Point Forum. He will be a featured speaker at the San Antonio Rendezvous.

www.tothepointnews.com/content/view/3910/44/

The Double-D Strategy for Rescuing America (Defund and Disobey)

2009-12-21T16:04:00.000-08:00

Spread this message far and wide. This is a free article, so send the link to everyone for whom you have an email address. Troll every bulletin board website you know and post the link. Go to your Congresscritter's homepage and send them the Defund Pledge. Print out a copy and snail-mail it to their office. If they refuse to sign it, they will be run out of office. Go to their local office and hand deliver a copy. This will work. We must spread the word.

THE DOUBLE-D STRATEGY FOR RESCUING AMERICA
Written by Dr. Jack Wheeler
Thursday, 17 December 2009

A friend of mine lives in Kona on the Big Island in Hawaii. He has a fishing boat which he proudly named the 44-DD after a spectacular feature of his wife's anatomy. This is not about that sort of Double-D.

While it may be difficult to keep your mind off what that spectacular feature might look like - just as it's hard to comply with the demand that you not think of a pink elephant - let's try and focus on a Double-D that can rescue our country from the clutches of the Fascist Democrat Party and the destruction being wrought upon it by President Zero.
So - what does this Double-D stand for? It's a strategy for any Republican wanting to get elected or re-elected to Congress in 2010, and for any Tea Partyer wanting to take individual action now against a government that ignores the Constitution. Double-D stands for Defund and Disobey.

Let's talk about the Defund D first. The Founders in their usual brilliance place the power of the purse in the House, whose members must face election every two years - for if they become profligate with this power the voters can throw them out within months (24 max) rather than wait years (6) like the Senate.

All Appropriation bills authorizing any branch of the federal government (legislative, judicial, executive) to spend any money for any program must be initiated in and passed by a majority of the House. The Senate can only agree or disagree, and the same with the President.

The obverse of this appropriation authority is that if the House doesn't authorize money for something, then no money can be spent on that something by anyone in the federal government.

This was Senator Jim Inhofe's point when he announced (12/13) that "Obama has no power to make a deal in Copenhagen." Unless the House appropriates the money for any deal he makes, there's no deal at all.

A conservative group in DC, Americans for Tax Reform run by Grover Norquist, has had a successful program for some years called the Tax Protection Pledge. It is a pledge signed by a candidate for public office to his constituents that (s)he will oppose any and all tax increases.

Thus it has been helpful in not increasing the burden of government on taxpayers - but it does nothing to actually decrease that burden.

Currently, this is the best that can be done at the federal legislative level. That is, the key goal of House & Senate Republicans is to block the passage of Dem legislation that will expand government and make our economy so much worse than it already is. There is no way for the Pubs to pass legislation that will make things better - and this is true even if the Republicans gain majority in the House in 2010 due to Zero's veto power.

There is another way. One key solution to solving our problems, economic and social, is to get the federal government out of the way. To the extent that this requires positive legislative remedies - such as eliminating capital gains taxes, the depreciation schedule for capital expenses, and Sarbox - these will have to wait until we get a pro-capitalist president instead of a pro-socialist in 2012.

This means we must focus on negative legislative remedies that the Pubs can effect with a House majority right after 2010 and not wait until 2012. They can simply refuse to fund Zero's programs. The Zero Administration is adding some 10,000 new federal employees to government payrolls every month? Eliminate the funding to pay them, requiring that their jobs be terminated.

ObamaCare is passed by the House & Senate and is made law, providing for a government seizure of one-sixth of the economy? Refuse to appropriate the money to fund the administrative apparatus required.

The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) wants to conduct a carbon jihad and seize control over the economy by regulating carbon dioxide as a pollutant? Gut the EPA's budget and thus its ability to do so.

NASA and other government agencies continue to conduct climate fraud? Zero out all funding for global warming research.

Thus, in order to gain the support of TeaPartyers and plain normal voters for their candidacy, Republicans wishing to get elected or re-elected to the House should be required to sign The Defund Pledge:

"Should I be elected, I solemnly pledge to my constituents that I will consistently vote to defund, or vote against appropriating any money for, any federal program or activity not specifically authorized by an enumerated power in the United States Constitution. For any federal program or activity I do vote to fund, I will provide the specific enumerated power constitutionally permitting it."

It's the only "purity test" conservatives need.

Just as the "Contract with America" enabled Republicans to gain a House majority in 1994, so the Defund Pledge will ensure they do so in 2010. The voting public is increasingly fed up with the Dems. But they are still wary of the Pubs who refused to shut off the spending spigots during the Bush years.

The Defund Pledge can reassure voters that the GOP will in fact dismantle Democrat fascism by committing to a concrete and simple way to do so: defund the Dem programs and on a Constitutional basis.

It provides the starkest contrast to the insufferably outlaw arrogance of Dems, epitomized by Nancy Pelosi, who when asked where in the Constitution was it allowed for the federal government to force people to buy something (e.g., health insurance), angrily responded, "Are you kidding me? Are you kidding me?"

And it gives the TeaPartyers the single uniting electoral message they are searching for. Right now, the TeaParty movement is inchoate, more emotion than focus. As this article points out, "the biggest challenge facing the movement is how to organize hundreds of local groups, and dozens of Tea Party leaders nationwide with divergent interests, into a force that can influence elections."

The Defund Pledge solves the challenge.

And yet... the 2010 elections are next November and the new Congress, presumably with a Republican majority, won't take office until the end of January 2011. The amount of damage Zero and the Dems can do until then is monumental - on top of the damage they have already done this year. How can that be prevented and undone? What can be done now?

The answer is the second D: Disobey. Disobey the Ghandi Way. Peaceful civil disobedience. No violence. Just the refusal to obey fascist and unconstitutional laws.

There are only three federal crimes in the Constitution: treason (Article III section 3), piracy, and counterfeiting (Article I, section 8). Yet Congress has passed laws making over 4,000 activities a federal crime now, and federal regulatory agencies have issued tens of thousands of rules and regulations the violation of which constitutes a jailable offense.

Ever hear of the Aquatic Nuisance Prevention and Control Act? Under it, anyone who transports water hyacinths across state lines for "interstate commerce" can be put in jail for six months and fined thousands of dollars.

Suppose a group of TeaPartyers, with press in tow, walked across a state line wearing water hyacinth flowers in their hair, and met another group of TeaPartyers waiting for them who proceeded to buy the flowers for a penny apiece?

The Federal Register contains some 85 thousand pages of rules and regulations, most all of which are unconstitutional. TeaPartyers have a lot to choose from.

Or they could focus on, say, ObamaCare. If it's passed with the mandate to buy health insurance or pay a $1,000 fine - what if tens of thousands, what if hundreds of thousands of TeaPartyers refused to do either? Perhaps a few might be prosecuted - but there is no way all but a tiny fraction could. There are not enough prosecutors nor judges and it would tie the fed courts up in knots.

And that's the goal. For so many people to disobey so many rules that it becomes impossible for the rules to be enforced.

Call this The Revolution of Disobedience. A Mass Movement of Conservative Civil Disobedience that empowers every participant who knows he or she is actually doing something specific and concrete to bring down Fedzilla.

The anger among TeaPartyers is growing to such an extent that one hears "lock and load" talk, implying they are ready to physically fight against the federales with guns and violence. If they have the guts to do this, then surely they have the guts to simply disobey fascist laws non-violently and peacefully, to fight in the courts and not the streets. Yet it's a far safer and more effective way to cripple Leviathan.

Ghandi knew this. He saw where the Brits were vulnerable and went after them with disobedience. After building railroads in India, the Brits couldn't run the place without them. And they couldn't run the railroads by themselves, for they required many thousands of Indian railroad workers. So he persuaded the railroad workers to go on sitdown strikes. They did, the Brits shouted and screamed that such strikes were illegal, Ghandi and the workers said "So what?" - and British rule of India was over.

If the EPA conducts a Carbon Jihad, if the Dems enact a Cap & Tax bill penalizing energy production in the US, it would take no more than 50,000 energy workers to go fishing next winter, shutting down refineries, coal plants, pipelines et al, for the entire east coast to freeze in the dark.

What Ghandi knew - what TeaPartyers need to know - is that the key to success of any mass movement is the opponent's loss of moral legitimacy. The goal, then, of The Revolution of Disobedience is to deligitimize the moral obligation to obey fascist laws.

There is no such obligation - any more than there is a moral obligation not to lie to a mugger holding you up at gunpoint about money hidden on you and not in your wallet. You may have a practical obligation to obey what he says, but no moral duty.

Just like the mugger, Fedzilla may have power and guns - but no moral authority unless its rules and laws are enumerated constitutionally.

So - expect to see at TeaParty demos and meetings signs that declare Just Say No To Fascists - We Won't Obey Your Fascist Rules - For The Health of America, Break At Least One Fascist Law A Day.

Expect to see public demonstrations of federal rule breaking, initially with mass arrests - and the arrestees all demanding a jury trial. Expect to see courthouse protests with protestors making sure the jury members understand jury nullification (for info on a jury's right to nullify the law under which a defendant is being prosecuted, see the Fully Informed Jury Association). Expect to see them acquitted with rare exceptions, then the prosecutors and judges give up under the onslaught of mass disobedience.

We don't need guns, we don't need violence in any way to rescue America. We just need to say no. No to funding fascism. No to obeying fascism. The Double-D - Defund and Disobey - will save our country.

http://www.tothepointnews.com/content/view/3897/2/

COMMENTS

This, coupled with increased pressure on state legislatures to assert their Tenth Amendment rights and to "nullify" unconstitutional laws will go a long way to getting this country back on track. We need something we can latch on to, something that is unifying, and I believe this is it.

This is an effort that many can get behind. I hope that the Teaparty groups can organize around this idea.

Thriving on Less: Simplifying in a Tough Economy

2009-10-26T19:21:00.000-07:00

You can download this 27-page e-book by Leo Babauta for free. Chapters include:
A Simple Lifestyle
Focus on the Essentials
Thriving on Less, not Struggling
Focus on Enough, not More
Make Small Financial Changes First
Look at Large Expenses for the Long Term
Changing Your Spending Habits
A Guide to Getting Out of Debt
Tools for a Frugal Life
Download the book here: http://media.thepowerofless.com/ThrivingonLess.pdf

Have Americans failed the prosperity test?

2009-09-30T14:04:00.000-07:00

Over the past few years, there has been an erosion in the country’s -- AND individual's -- financial values. Government-approved gambling, personal and public debt explosion, grossly huge compensation packages to executives.... These and more have become acceptable practices.

The solution is to restore an economic value system, but that may be impossible because it would have to take on "we the people's" greedy, self-indulgent demand for low taxes and high spending -- don't tax you, don't tax me, tax that man behind the tree!

Economic self-restraint would require taking on the current entitlement attitudes exhibited by lobbyists and "we the people" and embracing national policies like energy taxes and spending cuts, as well as personal virtues such as discipline, restraint and self-reliance.

John Adams said human nature couldn't handle prosperity. I think he was right...

See article that inspired my comment here: www.nytimes.com/2009/09/29/opinion/29brooks.html?_r=1

The power of an icon; the cult of personality

2009-08-18T18:09:00.000-07:00

Have you seen this very powerful video on PJTV? It's only 8 minutes long, but it clearly demonstrates the power of logos and icons. The Power & Danger of Iconography: The Resistance Steals Obama's Weapons.

The president of the United States has a seal, an icon, and every president has the privilege of using it.
But our 44th president continues to use his personal icon. It shows up everywhere.

Many forms of the O icon can be found, but here is the one I love the most!

Dog days of summer are coming and your public servants are coming home. They need to hear from YOU

2009-08-01T20:00:00.000-07:00

"We the People" are riled up about Obama's rationed healthcare plan and most of our so-called "representatives in Congress are apprehensive about talking to us face-to-face!

A group of retirees refused to leave Sen. Dianne Feinstein's West Los Angeles office until she talked to them about health care reform. They were ultimately escorted out by police. www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/07/30/state/n184320D61.DTL.

Town halls across the country "go wild" with people demanding their "representatives" listen to them for a change (and politicians fearing for their safety!) www.politico.com/news/stories/0709/25646.html.

What exactly is in the bill? While House Judiciary Chairman John Conyers (D-Mich.), questioned the point of lawmakers reading the health care bill, many bloggers have taken the time to read the 1000+ pages and are documenting what they are finding, and it ain't pretty www.economicpolicyjournal.com/2009/07/whats-in-healthacre-bill.html.

Betsy McCaughey says the bill will affect EVERY individual in the United States www.youtube.com/watch?v=--DbIZlJyvo.

Mark Levin and others are encouraging people to "turn up the heat" on their representatives in Congress during their August recess www.youtube.com/watch?v=4IKlSKWM8j0.

Acton Institute discusses the problems with socialized government health care www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4f-rftBek8.

John Stossel comments on health care reform www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdx_2cuPgQQ.

Investor's Business Daily says government-run health care is a prescription for FAILURE www.ibdeditorials.com/series26.aspx.

Here is a conservative action plan for the August recess www.examiner.com/x-3704-Columbia-Conservative-Examiner~y2009m7d30-A-conservative-action-plan-for-the-august-recess.

Dog days of summer are coming. Time to nip at the heels of our congress critters!

The Blue Dog Days of Summer, Blue Dog Days of Rage by L.L. Brown IV

2009-07-25T20:41:00.000-07:00

In 1969 Obama's buddies and ideological predecessors in The Weather Underground organized the "Days of Rage" in Chicago. The SDS resolution which ultimately led to these planned riots was titled "The Elections Don't Mean S**t—Vote Where the Power Is—Our Power Is In The Street".

When Congress comes home for their August recess during the dog days of summer we need to make it clear to the Blue Dogs and other vulnerable Dems, where the power is. We shouldn't riot like lefties but we must make this a VERY HOT summer for the doggies.

In order to defeat Obama and derail his radical agenda we must pursue a two part assault: 1) Undermine Obama and the Democrat leadership (Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, et al) through ridicule, mockery and by exposing their policies, shortcomings, ineptitude, lies, and broken promises. 2) Terrify Blue Dog Democrats (and others who are vulnerable) in Congress. Put the fear of God into them and DON'T LET UP. Call, harass, write, intimidate, protest, e-mail, and hit up local media with memes about how massive the backlash will be in 2010 against anyone who supports cap-and-trade, government takeover of health care, or any of the other radical agenda items being pushed by the left wing. But of course be polite and civilized. We're not lefties so we don't act like animals or unruly children.

Congress works on fear, not math. By pressuring the representatives and senators and driving down approval ratings for the President and his policies Congress can be made to back away from the far left.

"When a president loses the approval of the majority of the voters and polls reflect that his ratings have fallen substantially below 50 percent, he loses his power. In this context, polls are like parliamentary votes of no confidence in European systems. While the government does not fall if it loses in the polling, it limps on until either its ratings improve or it is voted out of office at the next election." - Dick Morris.

Here is a great example of how to communicate to your elected officials. The guy at 3:37 in is particularly good.

Below are the Dems in the House of Representatives who need to feel the most heat. Each website contains the contact information (phone, email, fax, address) for their local district offices rather than calling the D.C. number. This is where you should encourage others to focus their efforts. Also, you can find information about upcoming town hall meetings and other opportunities to interact with your representatives.

Blue Dogs In Districts McCain Won (These people are top of the hit list. They are both members of the Blue Dog Coalition AND represent districts that McCain won.)
Bobby Bright (AL-2) http://www.bright.house.gov/
Parker Griffith (AL-5) http://griffith.house.gov/
Harry E. Mitchell (AZ-5) http://mitchell.house.gov/
Gabrielle Giffords (AZ-8) http://giffords.house.gov/
Marion Berry (AR-1) http://www.house.gov/berry/
Mike Ross (AR-4) http://ross.house.gov/
John T. Salazar (CO-3) http://www.house.gov/salazar/
Allen Boyd (FL-2) http://www.house.gov/boyd/
Jim Marshall (GA-8) http://www.house.gov/marshall/
Walt Minnick (ID-1) http://minnick.house.gov/
Brad Ellsworth (IN-8) http://ellsworth.house.gov/
Baron P. Hill (IN-9) http://baronhill.house.gov/
Ben Chandler (KY-6) http://chandler.house.gov/
Charlie Melancon (LA-3) http://www.melancon.house.gov/
Frank Kratovil (MD-1) http://kratovil.house.gov/
Collin C. Peterson (MN-7) http://collinpeterson.house.gov/
Travis W. Childers (MS-1) http://childers.house.gov/
Gene Taylor (MS-4) http://www.taylor.house.gov/
Mike McIntyre (NC-7) http://www.house.gov/mcintyre/
Heath Shuler (NC-11) http://shuler.house.gov/
Earl Pomeroy (ND-1) http://www.pomeroy.house.gov/
Charlie Wilson (OH-6) http://charliewilson.house.gov/
Zachary T. Space (OH-18) http://space.house.gov/
Dan Boren (OK-2) http://www.house.gov/boren/
Jason Altmire (PA-4) http://altmire.house.gov/
Christopher Carney (PA-10) http://carney.house.gov/
Tim Holden (PA-17) http://www.holden.house.gov/
Stephanie Sandlin (SD-1) http://hersethsandlin.house.gov/
Lincoln Davis (TN-4) http://www.house.gov/lincolndavis/
Bart Gordon (TN-6) http://gordon.house.gov/
John S. Tanner (TN-8) http://www.house.gov/tanner/
Jim Matheson (UT-2) http://matheson.house.gov/

Democrats In Districts McCain Won (These people are not officially Blue Dogs but they do represent districts that went for McCain)
Ann Kirkpatrick (AZ-1) http://kirkpatrick.house.gov/
Vic Snyder (AR-2) http://www.house.gov/snyder/
Betsy Markey (CO-4) http://betsymarkey.house.gov/
Susan Kosmas (FL-24) http://www.kosmas.house.gov/
Ike Skelton (MO-4) http://www.house.gov/skelton/
Harry Teague (NM-2) http://teague.house.gov/
Michael McMahon (NY-13) http://mcmahon.house.gov/
Eric Massa (NY-29) http://massa.house.gov/
John Boccieri (OH-16) http://boccieri.house.gov/
John P. Murtha ( PA-12) http://www.murtha.house.gov/
John M. Spratt Jr. (SC-5) http://www.house.gov/spratt/
Chet Edwards (TX-17) http://edwards.house.gov/
Tom Perriello (VA-5) http://perriello.house.gov/
Rick Boucher (VA-9) http://www.boucher.house.gov/
Alan B. Mollohan (WV-1) http://mollohan.house.gov/
Nick J. Rahall Jr. (WV-3) http://www.rahall.house.gov/

Blue Dogs In Districts Obama Won (These people are generally less vulnerable but still can be pressured to live up to their rhetoric of moderation and fiscal responsibility.)
Mike Thompson (CA-01) http://mikethompson.house.gov/
Dennis Cardoza (CA-18) http://www.house.gov/cardoza/
Jim Costa (CA-20) http://costa.house.gov/
Adam Schiff (CA-29) http://schiff.house.gov/
Jane Harman (CA-36) http://www.house.gov/harman/
Joe Baca (CA-43) http://www.house.gov/baca/
Loretta Sanchez (CA-47) http://www.lorettasanchez.house.gov/
Sanford Bishop (GA-02) http://bishop.house.gov/
John Barrow (GA-12) http://barrow.house.gov/
David Scott (GA-13) http://davidscott.house.gov/
Joe Donnelly (IN-02) http://donnelly.house.gov/
Leonard Boswell (IA-03) http://boswell.house.gov/
Dennis Moore (KS-03) http://moore.house.gov/
Mike Michaud (ME-02) http://michaud.house.gov/
Mike Arcuri (NY-24) http://arcuri.house.gov/
Kathy Dahlkemper (PA-03) http://dahlkemper.house.gov/
Patrick Murphy (PA-08) http://patrickmurphy.house.gov/
Jim Cooper (TN-05) http://www.cooper.house.gov/
Henry Cuellar (TX-28) http://cuellar.house.gov/
Glenn Nye (VA-02) http://nye.house.gov/

Dems In Districts That McCain Lost But Bush Won In 04 (These folks rode the Obama wave and they are going to be in a difficult position in 2010.)
Jerry McNerney (CA-11) http://mcnerney.house.gov/
Alan Grayson (FL-8) http://grayson.house.gov/
Mark Schauer (MI-7) http://schauer.house.gov/
Tim Walz (MN-1) http://walz.house.gov/
Dina Titus (NV-3) http://titus.house.gov/
Carol Shea-Porter (NH-1) http://shea-porter.house.gov/
John Hall (NY-19) http://johnhall.house.gov/
Larry Kissell (NC-8) http://kissell.house.gov/
Steve Driehaus (OH-1) http://driehaus.house.gov/
Mary Jo Kilroy (OH-15) http://kilroy.house.gov/
Kurt Schrader (OR-5) http://schrader.house.gov/
Steve Kagen (WI-8) http://kagen.house.gov/

These are the Dem Senators up for re-election:
Blanche Lincoln (AR) http://lincoln.senate.gov/
Barbara Boxer (CA) http://boxer.senate.gov/
Michael Bennet (CO) http://bennet.senate.gov/
Chris Dodd (CT) http://dodd.senate.gov/
Daniel Inouye (HI) http://inouye.senate.gov/
Evan Bayh (IN) http://bayh.senate.gov/
Barbara Mikulski (MD) http://mikulski.senate.gov/
Harry Reid (NV) http://reid.senate.gov/
Kirsten Gillibrand (NY) http://gillibrand.senate.gov/
Charles Schumer (NY) http://schumer.senate.gov/
Byron Dorgan (ND) http://dorgan.senate.gov/
Ron Wyden (OR) http://wyden.senate.gov/
Arlen Specter (PA) http://specter.senate.gov/
Patrick Leahy (VT) http://leahy.senate.gov/
Patty Murray (WA) http://murray.senate.gov/
Russ Feingold (WI) http://feingold.senate.gov/

CONGRESSIONAL GUIDE: Is mass resignation too much to ask?

2009-07-17T20:23:00.000-07:00

From: Jimmy L. Cash, B/G, UFAF, Retired, Bigfork, MT
Sent: 7/16/2009 9:39:09 PM

Folks, I have finally reached the exalted position of extreme disgust. Would it be OK if I just vent for a bit? To those who have websites, feel free to post this as you see fit, and to all, forward at will. I am totally convinced conservatives must become even more vocal. I see a crack in the far-left insanity. They are going too fast and too far. I have a feeling the American people are beginning to question and are about to awaken. Power crazed incumbents beware!!! I think your days are numbered.

CONGRESSIONAL GUIDE: Is mass resignation too much to ask?

One of the things I learned a long time ago, is that I am so average that my thinking is very similar to at least 75% of the American people, regardless of political party affiliation. Let's see if that holds true in this case. If so, politicians beware!!!

You know, I am not a Bush fan. However, I am really tired of hearing his name still repeated over and over by the far-left, and always associated with something bad. If President Obama is as astute as the far-left would have us believe, he would never mention the name Bush, or refer to "the mess he inherited" again. George Bush is history. Nothing can be done to change history. Might as well get over it, and let's look to the future, the only thing that can be changed or controlled. In my opinion the damage to this nation by the Obama insanity in his first 130 days is 100-fold worse than everything both Bush Presidents did combined.

We must get a grip on our government. We are beginning to resemble the chaos I observed in the Philippines while attending Snake School enroute to Vietnam in the 1967.

That was an unpleasant memory! Have you ever seen a 12-foot King Cobra? ... but, that is another story...

The current path chosen for our country is more dangerous that I have observed in my lifetime. That is saying something, as I was trying to command a F-15 Fighter Squadron when Jimmy Carter was President. I thought times were bad then!!!

After observing the most far-reaching far-left changes in our country's history occur in the past 130 days, there are a few things I would like to see changed again, and very soon. How about you, Mr. and Mrs. America?

* I just want Obama's insane spending to stop. We must stop listening to the far-left politicians and staff members who are paid to support this nonsense. Our debt is already beyond ever being repaid, unless the dollar is devalued to the point where it is worthless. Maybe that is the plan. If not, there is no plan.

* I would like to see our President stop apologizing for America. It makes me believe he does not understand and appreciate the enormously positive role this country has played in maintaining freedom around the world. For example, Europe would be speaking German twice over, if it were not for American blood and treasure. The WWII generation was the last generation to truly understand sacrifice for freedom. We should treasure them, and never apologize for their contribution to saving those to whom our President appears to be constantly apologizing to.

* I would like to see the majority of both Democrats and Republicans voted out of office, and replaced with young patriots who support term limits. A good place to look for replacements is our returning soldiers who have served in the Middle-East. They understand and appreciate life in this country. They were willing to die to protect that way of life. How may of our present elected officials can make that statement?

* I would like to see strict term limits set at six two-year terms for the House and two six-year terms for the Senate. And for goodness sake, leave the President's term limit alone at two four-year terms.

* I would like to see even the mention of ear-marks and pork-spending become a felony!!!

* I would like to see our military rebuilt so strong that no country on this planet would dare attack us. Deterrence prevents war. And while we are at it, let's insure this nation buys the right stuff. For example, I would like to see the buy on our new F-22 fighter increased to the point of maintaining air-dominance for the next 50 years, as it has been for the past 50 years. I like lots of insurance when it comes to protecting this great nation. Boy, will that one burn Obama and his cronies' whiskers!!! They are destroying our military as we speak, as they are convinced Obama is gifted to the point of talking his way out of anything. North Korea, Iran, China and Russia are all laughing their butts off over that one.

* I would like to see us completely pull out of Afghanistan. The Soviet Union proved many points there, and none were good. It is a totally different situation than Iraq. To win in Afghanistan, first we must win in Pakistan, and the American people are not willing to pay that price. It will become Obama's Vietnam, and for what reason? Enough of our young have died in the Middle-East. Please see the above concerning building our military strong enough that it will never need to be used.

* I would like to see our health care system left alone. Let's offer a plan for those not covered, but do it through the private sector. Government should be kept as far away from this program as possible. I lived under a socialized medical program for over 30 years. It was called military health care and it sucked.

* I would like to see our government severely limited and forced out of the auto and banking business. If a company can't cut it, let them use bankruptcy as our law allows. Who came up with this idea of too big to fail? It had to be someone in government drawing a salary far too large for their level of thinking.

* I would like to see taxes reduced and in proportion to what is paid. If we want to reduce unemployment and see the economy soar, reduce tax rates on small business and provide assistance at that level, as opposed to General Motors. Where do we get these Harvard lunkheads who can only suggest government intervention and massive spending? This is not Rocket Science. They just want you, the American people, to think it so.

* Did I say already that even the mention of pork-spending by our Congress should be considered a felony---and retroactive?

* I would like our guns left alone. There is no controversy here. We have an Amendment to our Constitution clearly giving gun rights to American citizens. By the way, did I already say that to even allude to a "living Constitution", or suggest any deviation to our Constitution should be considered a felony offense?

* I think we should maintain separation of Church and State. But, we should fully understand what that means. It does not mean that we cannot post the Ten Commandments anywhere we wish, use white crosses to mark the graves of our fallen soldiers, use the word "God" on our coins, and let those among us worship as they please. Does that not ring a bell even for those who skipped high school and went directly to Harvard? One of the factors leading to the founding of this nation was the search for religious freedom. I often wonder what is really being taught in our schools, when basic thought like this is not understood.

Well, there is so much more I would like to add, but I am already worried about the far-left, attack and destroy tactics being planned for me, and Hobbs (my Chinese Pug). However, those guys had best be careful. Those high-paying government jobs are probably going to no longer be available when Sarah is elected President. They might want to start hiding in the woodwork now.

Did the Washington Post’s plan for money-making, off-the-record sessions violate White House ethics rules?

2009-07-15T10:14:00.000-07:00

You've heard about the controversy over The Washington Post’s abortive attempt to hold “salons” with lobbyists and Obama administration officials at the home of publisher Katharine Weymouth? Here's just one of dozens of stories about it: Washington Post cancels lobbyist event amid uproar.
The White House, while trying to distance itself from the controversy, did state that the meetings would not violate Obama's ethics executive order, which he boasted to be the "strictest government ethics policy ever" when he signed it on his first full day in office.
But less than three weeks later, according to an article at Politico.com, the independent agency tasked with implementing the order, the Office of Government Ethics, in consultation with the counsel’s office, issued a little-noticed memo inserting a number of exemptions into the order’s provision banning gifts – including meals and tickets – from lobbyists. Among the exemptions were gifts from media organizations – even those that employ lobbyists, like the Post does. The memo cited “the unique constitutional role of the press in gathering and disseminating information” but also the desire to protect administration official’s ability to attend “certain press dinners,” presumably referring to the annual black-tie soirees thrown by the White House Correspondents' Association and the Radio and Television Correspondents' Association.
The most ethical, transparent administration? Guess it depends on how Obama's cabal of lawyers defines it...

U.S. Health Care System may need changes, but it should not be socialized

2009-07-14T15:02:00.000-07:00

The majority of Americans agree the U.S. health care system needs major changes, but nearly half believe the quality of care would deteriorate if the government were put in charge. Based on the track record of other government run programs, such as Medicare, Veterans Administration and Social Security, Americans are right to be just a little skeptical that government bureaucrats can do a better job than the private sector.
Obama insists the U.S. health care system must be transformed. Yet, even though flawed, it still remains the envy of the world. Folks in Canada hurry up and wait and wait for even basic health care. And this is what Obama wants to implement here? ObamaCare Yay Or Nay? The Truth About Canada!
So how can health care be "transformed," made more affordable?
How about an a la carte health insurance, similar to vehicle insurance? I'm over 60. I sure don't need insurance for pregnancies. Neither does my husband. But, being older, we need insurance that covers the aging process. Younger people might like catastrophic health insurance, where they pay out-of-pocket for regular health maintenance, but if they suffer a serious ailment or accident, their insurance covers it.
The important thing is, let individuals and families be the decision makers in their health care, not politicians and bureaucrats in Washington DC. Such a system, Heritage Foundation believes, would promote personal ownership, give Americans more health choices, and force health plans and providers to compete directly for their dollars. The end result would lower costs and guarantee better quality.
We are in great danger of being subjected to "reform" that will yield socialized medicine. The only prescription that will protect the public is a large dose of information. Start here with Heritage Foundation's health policy ideas: fixhealthcarepolicy.com/key-documents/.
Knowledge is power...

We are mind-numbed trying to visualize ONE TRILLION DOLLARS. Does this help?

2009-07-14T10:57:00.000-07:00

We can all comprehend how much $100 is, or $1,000, or even $1 million. But just exactly how much is $1 trillion? We hear Congress and Obama's administration casually toss around the number "one trillion" as if it's commonplace or inconsequential.

But how much is $1,000,000,000,000?

The graphic below helps visualize one trillion, and the following videos should help too:

* How Much is a Trillion, Anyway? Part 1
* How Much is a Trillion, Anyway? Part 2
* How Much is a Trillion? by Chris Martenson

Now ask yourself. Who will pay for this?

Got kids? Grandkids?

I guarantee it won't be that man behind the tree...

Shocking Revelation: Politicians share same personality traits as serial killers!!!

2009-06-29T14:34:00.000-07:00

Violent homicide aside, politicians often show many of the exact same character traits as criminal psychopaths, according to Jim Kouri in a recent article.
Criminals are psychologically capable of committing their crimes without any concern for social, moral or legal consequences and with absolutely no remorse. "This allows them to do what they want, whenever they want," Kouri wrote. "Ironically, these same traits exist in men and women who are drawn to high-profile and powerful positions in society including political officeholders."
THIS IS PRICELESS! We vote for 'em, pay their salaries and perks and trust them to spend our money wisely... Who are the fools?
Politicians exhibit traits such as superficial charm, an exaggerated sense of self-worth, glibness, lying, lack of remorse and manipulation of others. These traits, according to Kouri, are common to psychopathic serial killers. "While many political leaders will deny the assessment regarding their similarities with serial killers and other career criminals, it is part of a psychopathic profile that may be used in assessing the behaviors of many officials and lawmakers at all levels of government."
This causes me to wonder... Will Janet Napolitano show the same exuberance profiling and marginalizing career serial politicians as she did radical "right-wingers?" Her job will be made easier if this report on mind reading is true. Within the next 3-5 years the ability to know what we common folk are thinking will be in hands of our "big brother" government. Then the Homeland Security czar will just have our minds scanned to determine if we are a threat to the "Obama Nation," then administer the appropriate "treatment."
You know what? I think I'll pop some popcorn, grab a beer and watch Minority Report, followed by Conspiracy Theory.
See ya.

Going back to the roots that made this country great

2009-06-20T16:44:00.000-07:00

Just saw an article in NewsMax entitled "Reader's Digest: We're Not Going Conservative." That title really caught my eye. I felt a little disappointed at first because Reader's Digest has always been a family-oriented, traditional values kind of magazine and I feared it was going to the dark side.

So it did my heart proud to read what the RDA president said: To clarify, neither the magazine nor the company is going in any direction other than what we are doing now. Reader's Digest has always been about the values of home, family, community, optimism and country, and certainly our values today are more than ever in step with America, especially during these recessionary times as people focus on the "back to basics" of family and home. What we did with the relaunch and redesign of the magazine and websites was to go back to the roots that made this company great."

And it made me realize that I'm way more than just a "conservative." The fundamental and traditional values of God, family, home, community, optimism, self-reliance and love of the USofA are my values. And my values are "in step with America."

I am not alone!

You, Me and the Guy Behind the Tree

2009-06-15T06:18:00.000-07:00

A recent Rasmussen survey found that 59% of voters nationwide are opposed to federal bailout funds for states like California that are encountering “serious financial problems.” Even given the most extreme example of bankruptcy, voters oppose federal subsidies to keep state governments going and they are quite supportive of spending cuts.

I thought this was a pretty positive reflection on voters, but a good friend had a different point of view. I think my friend may be right...

People aren't against taxes, just against being taxed. They fully support making someone else pay for what they desire. (Don't tax you. Don't tax me. Tax that man behind the tree.) This is a mindset that perpetuates our taxation problem. Those on the front side of the tree favor taxing those on the back side of the tree, while those on the back side strongly support taxing those in front. From this scenario we recognize the real problem and get a different set of poll results. You see, when you add both sides of the tree together, you end up with a super majority in favor of taxation!

"A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of governement. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy, always followed by dictatorship. The average age of the world's greatest civilizations has been 200 years." Alexis de Tocqueville

Article headlines create whatever spin the writer wishes, and here's an example

2009-06-07T16:37:00.000-07:00

Just read a short article in the Parade weekend magazine titled Despite Recent Violence, Gun Laws Are Softening. The title bothers me. Does it bother you?
The beginning of the article details the horrors of recent gun shootings. It made me wonder how many lives could have been saved if a law-abiding citizen with a gun had been able to dissuade the bad guy...
Then there were the usual statistics: There are currently more than 11,500 [gun-related murders] each year, and America has one of the world's highest firearm homicide rates. Per capita, our rate is 39 times greater than that of England, 13 times Australia's, and 6 times Canada's.
That's pure spew, but the last paragraph really angered me:
"We have the equivalent of a Virginia Tech massacre every day in this country. It's just not all in one place," says Daniel Webster of the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research. "It's what happens when a person gets mad and has easy access to a gun. Someone is shot over a game of dice. Had the gun not been in their hands, no one would have died."
How dramatic!
Here's what the writer was really saying:
"Let's all give peace a chance!" ... If we make those half-witted American gun owners give up their guns, no one will die!
How stupid is that? An armed society is a civil society. Take weapons out of the hands of the law-abiding citizens and only the criminals -- and government -- will have guns.
"Arms discourage and keep the invader and plunderer in awe, and preserve order in the world as well as property . . . Horrid mischief would ensue were the law-abiding deprived of the use of them." - Thomas Paine, Thoughts on Defensive War (1775).
The only good thing about the article is it has an accompanying poll asking "Should states loosen restrictions on guns" and 93% say YES.

Can you trust the people around you in a public place?

2009-05-11T11:18:00.000-07:00

You and a couple friends are sitting in a booth at your local restaurant. You're talking politics, which happens to revolve around the multi-TRILLION DOLLAR accumulating debt since THE ONE became president. You're hoping his policies FAIL so that Americans wake up and realize big sugar daddy federal government is not "we the people's" friend.

Unbeknownst to you, sitting in the next booth is a fanatical Obama supporter who is lapping up every word you are saying and determining in his (or her) mind that you are plotting to KILL the "messiah." The individual is so fixated that he (or she) surreptitiously takes a picture of your group with a cell phone, then rushes over to the local constabulary to report that someone is PLOTTING to KILL the president!!!

You have just become a target.

This is chilling. Our freedom is severely restricted when we can't trust that people around us aren't going to report us to federal authorities for "anti-Obama" talk. There is already a web site for people like this fanatic to report what THEY think are anti-Obama activities http://report-anti-obama-activity.ning.com/.

What's next? Roaming "brown shirt"* bullies who will delight in terrorizing anyone they think is "anti-Obama?" How "fortunate" for them the Department of Homeland Security has already defined and identified "rightwing extremists." http://www.fas.org/irp/eprint/rightwing.pdf

*The Sturmabteilung, abbreviated SA, (German for "Storm detachment" or "Assault detachment" or "Assault section", usually translated as "stormtroop(er)s"), functioned as a paramilitary organization of the Nazi Party. It played a key role in Adolf Hitler's rise to power in the 1920s and 1930s. SA men were often called "brownshirts" for the colour of their uniforms... After Hitler took power in 1933, the SA became increasingly eager for power and saw themselves as the replacement for the German army. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_shirts

In Germany they came first for the Communists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist. Then they came for the Jews, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist. Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn't speak up because I was a Protestant. Then they came for me, and by that time no one was left to speak up. Rev. Martin Niemoeller

Freedom is lost when you can't trust the people around you

2009-04-26T18:45:00.000-07:00

This is creepy...a web site where you can report your friends and neighbors for thinking or saying anti-Obama thoughts. Or report "anti-Obama" web sites and blogs. And what do they consider anti-Obama "activities?" Does that mean Tea Parties are anti-Obama activities? Check out American Network for Monitoring Anti-Obama Activities.
Americans' rights hang by the thread of their vigilance. That vigilance requires dissent when they disagree with their government, such as when it invades their lives or curtails their rights. Charlie Gay, small-town newspaper editor/publisher

More than 90% of guns recovered in Mexico come from the US (yeah, sure)

2009-04-23T15:59:00.000-07:00

"This war is being waged with guns purchased not here, but in the United States . More than 90 percent of the guns recovered in Mexico come from the United States , many from gun shops that line our shared border," the president said on the subject in his joint press conference with Mexican President Felipe Calderon on Thursday (4.16.09). Quoted by Fox News, Major Garrett reporting as being said by President Obama.
In 2007-2008, according to ATF Special Agent William Newell, Mexico submitted 11,000 guns to the ATF for tracing. Those 11,000 firearms were part of the 29,000 firearms Mexican officials recovered at crime scenes. According to the ATF, of the 11,000 submitted to U.S. officials for tracing, 6,000 could be traced somewhere because of the serial numbers or other distinctive markings. Of those 6,000 firearms, 5,114 or 90 percent, were found to have been smuggled from the U.S. The facts from ATF as reported by Fox News, Major Garrett reporting in the same article.
According to unbiased math, 5,114 divided by 29,000 equals 17.6%. Just a small difference that is within the political margin of error.

New Marketing Plan for the Public Sector--Teddy Kennedy's "Serve America Act"

2009-04-18T16:44:00.000-07:00

Obama wants to "make government cool again" and bring talent AND money to the public sector. What this bill could do is further increase the hostile attitude many are already showing toward earning a profit and certainly kill the entrepreneurial spirit. See "A Higher Calling?" editorial in the Investor's Business Daily: www.ibdeditorials.com/IBDArticles.aspx?id=324602421399414
Follow the bill here: www.opencongress.org/bill/110-s3487/show

Tax Day Tea Party in Bremerton Washington

2009-04-16T10:53:00.000-07:00

I attended a tea party in Bremerton yesterday. I parked a few blocks away and with a little trepidation, made my way to the event. I felt alone as I carried my camouflaged sign. But I was quickly overjoyed when I arrived at the event and found there were nearly 200 people like me who are frustrated that their government is spending OUR money, guaranteeing our progeny will live in poverty or at worse, slavery to their government masters.

I was gratified to see the diversity of age groups attending the tea party, from young children to young adults to gray-haired folks. Everyone was polite, friendly and talkative. Most, like me, had not been to a "protest" before. Many of us carried signs acknowledging the elitists' view that we who dare disagree with their anointed view are "rightwing extremists." We should consider ourselves in the good company of our rebellious founding fathers!

Leftwing koolaid drinkers desperately want to believe these tea parties are organized events by loser Republicans or talk radio hosts. But it is not. It is a totally grassroots, bottom-up phenomenon. AS IT SHOULD BE! After all, "we the people" are INDIVIDUALS, and common, everyday individuals stood up and made things happen. I was proud to take part in this amazing movement.

After everyone who wanted to speak to the crowd had their say, we all sang the Star Spangled Banner (ON KEY!) and then, after throwing our tea into the harbor (tea only--not teabags), dispersed into small groups to visit and exchange contact information.

The key to making this movement grow to a fire storm is to stay connected with others of like mind and not be afraid to speak up! We must not be silent about things that matter. Silence is consent! And we do not consent to the insane spending by an out-of-control, power-mad government!

As I walked back to my vehicle, I did not hide my sign. I realized I was not alone in the way I feel and think. And I smiled!

What does "spelling....its a way of life" have to do with "supportyourlocalsheriff?"

2009-04-02T09:38:00.000-07:00

Interesting blogs on blogspot. I found one with a URL of "supportyourlocalsheriff" but it appears to be a blog about spelling. I'm sure there are other interesting and unique blogs. After all, we ARE individuals, with our own unique point of view.
Thought for the day: "The smallest minority on earth is the INDIVIDUAL!"
Rock on!

The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed!

2009-03-29T16:14:00.000-07:00

"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed." 2nd Amendment of the Bill of Rights

The Blair Holt's Firearm Licensing and Record of Sale Act of 2009 (H.R. 45) is an attempt by Congressman Bobby Rush (D-IL) to use the "commerce clause" to override the Second Amendment. Thankfully, no one has been willing to co-sponsor this bill...so far. But it is one more example of why it is time for a tea party and for individual citizens to defend their right to "keep and bear arms."

H.R. 45 would effectively eliminate firearms from private ownership, but Section 801 exempts government employees operating in an official capacity. If I read that correctly, any government employee who takes an oath or affirms to "support and defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic" would have the unrestricted right to arms ownership, but not "We the People."

Have we, as Americans, become so enamored with letting government do everything for us, and so ignorant regarding our form and process of government that we would even allow an elected official to enter such a bill into the record?

United in Hate, The Left's Romance with Tyranny and Terror

2009-03-24T14:04:00.000-07:00

Book review from my sister...

I just started reading United in Hate, The Left's Romance with Tyranny and Terror by Jamie Glazov and it's hard to put down. I can't comprehend how people can believe the lies of tyranny. How people within our own country...heck, our own government...want to see freedom fail.
"United in Hate" analyzes the Left's contemporary romance with militant Islam as a continuation of the Left's love affair with communist totalitarianism in the 20th Century. Just as the Left was drawn to the communist killing machines of Lenin, Stalin, Mao, Pol Pot, and Castro, so too it is now attracted to radical Islam. Both the radical Left and radical Islam possess a profound hatred for Western culture, for a capitalist economic structure that recognizes individual achievement, and for the Judeo-Christian heritage of the United States. Both seek to establish a new world order, leftists in the form of a classless communist society, and Islamists in the form of a caliphate ruled by Sharia law. To achieve these goals, both are willing to 'wipe the slate clean' by means of limitless carnage, with the ultimate goal of erecting their utopia upon the ruins of the system they have destroyed.
One of the foundations of the Left's romance with militant Islam, as with communism, is the lust for death ... for others.

Progressive...the new advertising slogan for Liberals

2009-03-23T18:37:00.000-07:00

Just some random thoughts about liberals.

What a liberal claims about himself is usually the exact opposite in reality.
Liberal policies continually fail public schools, children, minorities. When the same thing is done over and over and over, isn't that a sign of insanity?
Liberals are incapable of making decisions. They cannot discriminate against anything.
Diversity is not a virtue. It just means something or someone is different. To be diverse, a person must be accepting of that which is rare. Does that mean a liberal would accept criminals, perverts, disrespecters of persons in order to be "diverse"?
Without the ability to use critical, rational judgment, are liberals living in a 5-year-old's fantasy world?

Ruin Your Health With the Obama Porkulus Plan

2009-03-17T16:58:00.000-07:00

Do you know that the Senate version of the porkulus bill includes provisions for extensive rationing of health care for senior citizens? In this article, Tom Daschle says health-care reform “will not be pain free.” Seniors should be more accepting of the conditions that come with age instead of treating them. The elderly will be hardest hit. If that isn't bad enough, remember that Senators and Congressmen have their very own low co-pay healthcare plan that they are guaranteed to the remainder of their lives. They are not subject to this new law if it passes!
The next election is a year and nine months away. (Exact time here). We can change the dangerous direction the socialists in charge are taking us, but only if we are willing to address the issues, starting with family, friends and neighbors and not bury our heads in the sand.

Glenn Beck's The 912 Project

2009-03-15T17:11:00.000-07:00

Did you watch Glenn Beck's show Friday? It was very powerful. If you haven't taken a look at the web site he's created, I encourage you to do so. http://theglennbeck912project.com/

*** Note From Glenn Beck - March 15, 2009 ***
I think one of the problems we have not only in the media but in our own discussions is the fact that we concentrate too much on the other guy.
I would like to challenge each user of this site to avoid falling into the trap of ‘bashing’ the other side. Instead, let’s make this a forum about us and what we believe. We can challenge those beliefs but let’s do it in the spirit of growth. We cannot grow if we only fight straw men arguments and I believe the same is true if we get pulled off the track of our principles and into an argument about what the other side or party is doing.
Let the questions be: What do I believe is true?
What principle does this problem or solution violate or embrace?
How can I wake others up to the truth of natures principles?
Let this quote settle in you:
“Question with boldness even the very existence of God, for if there be a God, he must surely rather Honest Questions over blindfolded fear.” From a letter to Peter Carr from Thomas Jefferson.
Jefferson was speaking on the subject of religion but I have applied this to all things. Be someone that no longer asks questions to bait, trap or trick. Ask HONEST QUESTIONS. Really seek the truth and then be brave enough to accept it no matter where you find it. We must not be married to parties, politics or people but rather the truth. Let us seek it together and when we find it, defend it pledging our lives, fortunes and sacred honor.

Gadsden Flag

2009-03-15T10:58:00.000-07:00

I didn't realize rattlesnakes are exclusive to the U.S. and North America. The settlers to the American colonies were surprised by their abundance. Thus, the rattlesnake became the symbol of the colonies. The origin of the slogan (Don't Tread On Me) pertains to the snake's deadly strike and the idea that it is best to leave them alone. Read about the Gadsden flag here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gadsden_flag
I think I will display the Gadsden flag. If you see it, stop by, say hi.