A CALIFORNIA DEMOCRAT HISTORY LESSON ... RE-LEARNING THE 3 R's: REPEAL, RECALL, REVOLT!

In the past we have seen radical left activists infiltrate the halls of higher learning as well as the educational unions that dominate so much of what is being taught to our children today.

In case-after-case we have seen the tenets of multi-Culturalism, diversity and political correctness alter the very nature of the educational process.

In reading, where the substitution of “whole language” learning concepts replaced the sounding out of words (“phonics”) and produced a generation of functionally illiterate children who were more inclined to read pop-culture magazines and comic books than more stimulating fare.

In writing, where grammar, language and spelling use no longer counted; as long as the ideas being expressed were politically correct.

In mathematics where the correct answer was not as important as self-esteem. Where the ability to add, subtract, multiply and divide without the use of a calculator has gone the way of a dodo bird. Where repetitive drills and pop-quizzes give way to mathematics illustrated with pop-stories.

In history, where revisionism was the watchword and cultural biases were eliminated as moral equivalency was stressed. Good and evil were taught to be no more than just two concepts competing against other ideas. Where evildoers were celebrated as freedom fighters instead of terrorists and where patriotism was just another form of nationalism – something to be shunned in our global world. Where our forefathers whose wisdom produced our great nation were reduced to some old rich white guys who exploited the masses and just happened to occupy a particular time in history.

In behavior, where good citizenship and appropriate behavior gave way to the tolerance on insubordination and outright thuggish behavior. Where individualism was shunned and collectivism was the operative rule of the day.

An generation compromised by those activists who spouted far left liberal propaganda, demonized and punished anyone that did not agree with them and then destroyed the ability of today’s young citizens to think critically – against a solid background of historical context of right and wrong.

A generation compromised by those who needed to dumb down classes to accommodate non-English speakers being mainstreamed into inappropriate grade-levels based on their chronological age. Not to mention the dumbing down of the educational requirements to support a class of teachers who tried to game the system by teaching to the test, rather than simply teaching the required basics.

And now that the democrats have been so infiltrated by the radical left activists, perhaps it is time for the citizens of America to stand up and teach these political special interests our own version of the 3 R’s:

  • REPEAL

  • RECALL

  • REVOLT

Repealing a decade or more of politically correct programs that conferred citizenship rights on those who were illegally in the United State and were complicit en mass for the destruction of our healthcare, educational, judicial, retirement, social and cultural infrastructure. Repealing legislation which is confusing, conflicting and which contains the loopholes designed to further the aims of special interests who provided campaign funds to legislators who proven they could be bought for very little money. Repealing older legislation before replacing it with newer legislation so as to eliminate the patchwork of conflicting rules, regulations, laws, loopholes, grandfathered rights and such other legislative folderol.

Recalling those who have led us into unsustainable budgets, whose profligate spending produced nothing of lasting value while our utility systems were in desperate need of repair or replacement. Recalling those who have acted as surrogates for corrupt special interests – and especially those who attempted to breach the sovereignty of the United States by pandering to illegal aliens and others outside of our country.

Revolting against those taxes and surcharges which will surely bankrupt our nation, our states, our cities and ourselves as the accumulated result of our labors is transferred to those who refuse to work and whose claim to our bread and butter is based on their friendship with the people in power. Revolting against celebrities who, while dumb as rocks, manage to spew pre-written lines with believable sincerity. The ones who pretend they are intellectuals and yet cozy up to dictators and despots.

I must be a racist …

So before the name calling starts, let me warn you I do not care what you may call me. Because I refuse to pander to illegal aliens of Mexican decent, I must be a racist. Because I openly oppose Barack Obama, I must be a racist. Truth be known, everybody is a racist: preferring to be with their own tribe rather than somewhere more uncomfortable. It’s not right or wrong, but it is human nature.

But this is the tactic of the far left liberal democrat activist: to divide the masses by class, race, ethnicity, sex or any other category which can be used to promote the democrat concept of victimhood. For without victimhood, why would anyone lead democrat leaders to seek redress from “the man.”

Consider our politicians today …

The are almost thoroughly corrupt. Bought and paid-for by the unions and private sector special interests whose entire being rests upon being able to tap the public treasury and aided and abetted by those who are allowed to dictate how funds are spent.

Boy was I wrong …

I once admired what I thought was a principled politician. A man who openly spoke his mind on matters, especially those related to profligate spending and budgetary manipulations. Unfortunately, I learned a hard lesson in politics. When termed out, this man simply ran for another public office, a professional politician pursuing his career of living off the public teat. I was also surprised to learn that he was not a neighbor, living in my community. But an established resident of a suburb of the state Capitol. The house in the neighborhood belonged to his parents. Further disillusionment followed when I learned that a vote, which  I thought very odd for a fiscal conservative, was placed in context when I discovered the issue’s backers had spent millions of dollars on my representative’s campaign.

Most  politicians no longer represent the people …

We are living in an age where the politicos no longer listen to the public. They act solely in their best interests based on campaign funding, bloc voting and appearances in the media. We have lost control of our politicians – and by extension, our government on the local, state and federal levels.

Direct action: repeal, recall and revolt …

Thus we are faced with the prospect of taking direct action: by demanding the repeal of harmful legislation which will sink us further into debt and obligation to foreign nations. By demanding the recall of those who openly flout the public’s wishes by contesting legislation which has already been approved by the majority of the voters. Not to mention those who appear to be either corrupt or beholden to toxic special interests; especially those who do not wish the United States well or want to violate our sovereignty for economic or political power. And by revolting against those who are destroying America with their self-interest, self-serving policies.

There is absolutely no reason why we should tolerate the enlargement of government until the reach the critical mass of self-perpetuating and ever-increasing funding. Where we become the slaves to the elite rulers and their faceless bureaucrats. Damnit – they are supposed to work for me, not me for them.

Consider what I have said before you cast that next vote or write a contribution to a politician based on their celebrity appeal. Before you buy that next newspaper, magazine or listen or watch those who have sold America short. Before you bank with companies who were complicit in destroying our retirement funds. And before you trust those who have paid off our politicians with pennies on the dollar and then have surcharged our purchases to cover the expense of our own demise.

Disagree? You are welcome to argue your point. Either by commenting at the end of this blog entry or by sending an e-mail. Prove me wrong, I dare you!

Be well and be safe.

-- steve

A reminder from OneCitizenSpeaking.com: a large improvement can result from a small change…

The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane. -- Marcus Aurelius

flag


“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it!
"Acta non verba" -- actions not words

“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw

“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”

“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS

"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius

“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell

“Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar

“Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS


THE OBAMA $TIMULU$: STIMULATING THE CYCLE OF CORRUPTION?

Where is our money going?

There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that one of the greatest reasons that governments on the local, state and federal levels are running major deficits is because they not only have to fund ongoing public safety, education and social programs, they must also fund ever-growing employee wage and benefit programs which offer the average government worker lifelong employment, above average wages and almost obscene health and retirement benefits when compared to the private sector.

"We have far less to spend on core services, such as public safety, education, parks and senior centers," Mayor Michael Bloomberg wrote in December of the city's pension costs. "That defies common sense, and it's hurting our city."                     -- F0rbes

And the reason for this outrageous behavior is because the public has very little input into the process. They have been frozen out of the picture by the unholy alliance between politicians and the unions.

A perfect illustration of the cycle of corruption …

Capture2-10-2009-7.02.08 PM

Politicians pander to the unions to obtain the financing and votes to gain or maintain political office. Then they are reluctant to vote against union demands for higher wages and better health and retirement benefits. And because the union can put additional sums of money into paid advertising during election campaigns, is it any wonder that the unions come first and the electorate comes in dead last?

Socialism …

I do not know what disturbs me most about unions …

  • The apparently socialistic roots and support for Marxist organizing tactics;
  • Their unholy alliance with organized crime in some cities;
  • Their leadership which seems to run the union for their own benefit;
  • Their acceptance of illegal aliens in their ranks while knowing full well that other illegal aliens are depressing wage rates and taking jobs from their members;
  • That the members may have little or nothing to say about which political parties or politicians are supported;
  • Their nefarious dealings with government leaders knowing that they have the advantage of possessing “inside knowledge” provided by their membership;
  • Their onerous and detailed work rules which have employees sitting idly by while other employees perform the work – or even worse, make a requester wait while employees of more than one union are required to complete a single job;
  • A grievance process which makes it almost impossible to fire a poor performing worker;
  • A grievance process which intimidates members of middle management to the point where they will simply walk away from egregious behavior because it isn’t worth the trouble of tangling with union representatives;
  • A system which rewards seniority over merit and accomplishment and which often results in productive workers being chastised by their slower counterparts for making them look bad or setting a superior standard of accomplishment;
  • Their propensity to strike at the most inopportune times to force the general population to suffer mightily as to coerce the politicians to settle the strike on terms favorable to the unions;
  • Their association with the democrats, especially in one-party governments, where a disproportionate portion of the waste, graft and corruption can be associated with unionized projects; or
  • Their latest flirtation with union organizing: the card-check program which denies American workers the right to a secret ballot and exposes the individual worker to coercion and thuggery.

Look around at most cities controlled by the democrat party and which feature an active union presence. Note the level of decay and political corruption. In my mind, cause and effect.

Why are public sector unions even necessary?

What was wrong with civil service? In many ways, it was almost as cumbersome as union representation – but without the propensity to strike.  For years unions have claimed they were necessary to fight against the excesses of the capitalistic private sector. So why are they necessary to protect the rights of public sector employees when a civil service arrangement would suffice? With the added benefit of allowing the public sector employee to keep more of their money as a real stimulus to the economy? Not to mention a corresponding reduction in political corruption?

It is about time to set aside the old myths …

The myth that public service workers are provided with guaranteed employment because they receive substantially lower pay than employees in the private sector has long been disproven.

“In public-sector America things just get better and better. The common presumption is that public servants forgo high wages in exchange for safe jobs and benefits. The reality is they get all three. State and local government workers get paid an average of $25.30 an hour, which is 33% higher than the private sector's $19, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Throw in pensions and other benefits and the gap widens to 42%.”           --Forbes

The myth that public safety personnel deserve significantly better benefits because they put their lives on the line is also mostly untrue. Especially when you consider what our volunteer soldiers are actually paid. True first responders and those who risk their lives daily are a relatively few in number when you consider cubicle workers with similar benefits. Yet is is this group of dedicated employees which are always featured in position advertising whenever anyone attempts to cut salaries, overtime or benefits.

The myth that it’s for the children and that we have underpaid union teachers is mostly that: a myth. Paying teachers outrageous sums for non-teaching administrative jobs is also out of control. There is something wrong with the picture of a  teacher forced to buy classroom supplies out of their pocket while the school district spends $320 million dollars for a monstrosity of a modern art high-school to soothe the ego of a politically-active billionaire. Especially when the teachers unions complain about crowded classrooms -- when three high schools could have been built for the cost of that modern art monstrosity.

And the worst and mostly false myth of all: that government knows what is wrong and can provide a solution with legislative controls and stimuli.

What Obama has done …

By not demanding work standards and competitive bidding from both union and non-union sources, he has increased the cost of all government projects and subjected them to the usual type of waste, fraud, corruption and mismanagement that plagues most government contracts. Projects which are sure to feature cost overruns and additional funding to complete the project.

By not demanding hiring controls, Obama has promoted another class of government employee who will stay employed long after the stimulus funding has run out – and another 20-30 years of guaranteed employment with wage, benefits and retirement funds which will further cripple government operations. Further draining the treasury and placing a burden upon us all.

“Four in five public-sector workers have lifetime pensions, versus only one in five in the private sector. The difference shifts huge risks from government to private-sector workers.”                        --Forbes

By enlarging government, Obama has contributed to a critical mass of government employees, many of them union-controlled, that can simply override the public’s input and continue with their self-interest programs to increase their benefits.

By bailing out state and local governments, Obama has rewarded those who spent profligately on special interest projects and social engineering. Perhaps, pumping new life into the political careers of poseurs such as California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

And most importantly, by acting in this egregious manner, Obama has provided aid and comfort to our enemies who want to see our economy and military decimated. If Obama had only studied history, he would have seen that it was Russia’s inability to finance further military and economic actions that led to their downfall. Obama is in the process of insuring that we meet the same fate.

Solutions …

We need to get government costs under control. One, by eliminating unions in favor of civil service programs. Two, by imposing work rules and requirements (for non-sworn personnel) that eliminate any disparity with the private sector. And three, by eliminating politicians from selling their votes – however subtle their actions are. We need to prosecute transgressing politicians and not simply allow them to file amended reports and returns.

We need to educate the people into seeing what corrupt losers their politicians have become and the damage they have done to their community, their state and the country.

Another solution is to separate those first-responders and others who have risky lives or an increased probability of harm from those who live their lives as cubicle functionaries and are more likely to die choking on a donut than while engaged in life-saving activities.

And even these benefits should be capped at some reasonable amount that does not count overtime and other such factors when computing retirement.

Public service people should be employed at will – with no guarantee of life-long employment – and the ability to double dip in the retirement pool.  They should be hired for their abilities and fired when they are no longer productive. They should have the same type of 401(k) retirement programs of the private sector.

Remove the employee unions and you eliminate much of the waste and corruption in government. We will deal with the waste and corruption involved with private sector special interests also.

Talk about working for the man …

Here were are, the American public, now forced to work to provide wages, benefits and retirements to an expanding cadre of government workers – benefits which will include healthcare and retirement that will not be available to the average American under an Obama-driven socialized healthcare plan and with the meager amount of money remaining in our retirement plans.

Welcome to the third-world where government and its friends enjoy life and everybody else struggles to make do. 

-- steve

A reminder from OneCitizenSpeaking.com: a large improvement can result from a small change…

The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane. -- Marcus Aurelius

Reference Links:

The Employee Suppression Of Choice Act|Forbes

Gilt-Edged Pensions|Forbes


flag


“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it!
"Acta non verba" -- actions not words

“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw

“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”

“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS

"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius

“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell

“Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar

“Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS


OBAMA: THE STEVIE WONDER* PRESS CONFERENCE?

It was a boring press conference where Barack Obama gave a 10-minute head-swiveling answer to an unasked question. Obama did not look into the camera as his head continuously swiveled back-and-forth (right-left-right-left) as he read from his TelePrompTers. Never looking directly at the camera and the American people.

And perhaps that is the real answer: looking Presidential as he spews lofty words penned by others. The ultimate empty-suit performer. Worthy of an Emmy for a momentous speech by someone who says absolutely nothing.

The fact that the President is engaging in fear-mongering and telling only part of the story should be condemned. But not as much as a complicit mainstream media which can no longer be trusted to “tell truth to power” as they jockey for corporate privileges.

The short answer …

  • “The plan is not perfect.”
  • "At this particular moment, with the private sector so weakened by this recession, the federal government is the only entity left with the resources to jolt our economy back to life."
  • "My bottom line is to make sure that we are saving or creating 4 million jobs."

The biggest lie …

“But when they start characterizing this as pork, without acknowledging that there are no earmarks in this package -- something, again, that was pretty rare over the last eight years -- then you get a feeling that maybe we're playing politics instead of actually trying to solve problems for the American people.”

What would you consider $4 BILLION FOR COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS LIKE ACORN (Which is allegedly complicit in improperly and illegally registering democrats)?

The toughest question …

The single toughest question, in my opinion, was when  Associated Press reporter Jennifer Loven asked:

“Mr. President. Earlier today in Indiana, you said something striking. You said that this nation could end up in a crisis without action that we would be unable to reverse. Can you talk about what you know or what you're hearing that would lead you to say that our recession might be permanent when others in our history have not? And do you think that you risk losing some credibility or even talking down the economy by using dire language like that?”

My highlight …

When the cute Bloomberg reporter, Juliana Goldman, asked “Many experts from Nouriel Roubini to Senator Schumer have said that it would cost the government more than a trillion dollars to really fix the financial system. During the campaign, you promised the American people that you won’t just tell them what they want to hear, but what they need to hear. Won’t the government need far more than $350 billion remaining in the financial rescue funds to really solve the credit crisis?

Obama’s answer revealed the fact that the government really doesn’t know how to solve the problems at hand and what they will cost. It is against this background that I find that I have little or no confidence in the Obama Administration to solve the underlying crisis of trust.

“Well, the credit crisis is real, and it's not over. We averted catastrophe by passing the TARP legislation. But, as I said before, because of a lack of clarity and consistency in how it was applied, a lack of oversight in -- in how the money went out, we didn't get as big of a bang for the buck as we should have.”

“My immediate task is making sure that the second half of that money, $350 billion, is spent properly. That's my first job. Before I even think about what else I've got to do, my first task is to make sure that my secretary of the treasury, Tim Geithner, working with Larry Summers, my national economic adviser, and others are coming up with the best possible plan to use this money wisely in a way that's transparent, in a way that provides clear oversight, that we are conditioning any money that we give to banks on them reducing executive compensation to reasonable levels and to make sure that they're not wasting that money.”

“We are going to have to work with the banks in an effective way to clean up their balance sheets so that some trust is restored within the marketplace, because right now part of the problem is that nobody really knows what's on the bank's books. Any given bank, they're not sure what kinds of losses are there. We've got to open things up and restore some trust.”

“We also have to deal with the housing issue in a clear and consistent way.”

“I don't want to preempt my secretary of the treasury. He's going to be laying out these principles in great detail tomorrow.”

“But my instruction to him has been: Let's get this right. Let's create a template in which we're restoring market confidence.”

“And the reason that's so important is because we don't know yet whether we're going to need additional money or how much additional money we'll need until we've seen how successful we are at restoring a sense of confidence in the marketplace that the federal government and the Federal Reserve Bank and the FDIC, working in concert, know what they're doing.”

“That can make a big difference in terms of whether or not we attract private capital back into the marketplace. And ultimately the government cannot substitute for all the private capital that has been withdrawn from the system. We've got to restore confidence so that private capital goes back in.”

The lowlight …

In my oh so humble opinion, the lowest point of the press conference came when Helen Thomas, the old hag in the red dress who should have been retired after John Kennedy’s last press conference, stupidly asked:

“Mr. President, do you think that Pakistan and -- are maintaining the safe havens in Afghanistan for these so-called terrorists? And, also, do you know of any country in the Middle East that has nuclear weapons?”

So-called terrorists? Trying to out Israel as having nuclear weapons? How many people know that Helen Thomas’ parents were Lebanese immigrants? Her time has long been over and this is one long-standing tradition that should be scrapped. The time would have been better spent taking more important questions.

The unasked and unanswered questions …

If your previous promise to bring cooperation and bi-partisanship back into the government, why did you ask Senator Harry Reid and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, among the most liberal ideologues in Congress, to  write the stimulus package – which wound up packed with projects having nothing to do with the creation of jobs?

How do you account for the future cost of all of the new government employees whose cost will continue for twenty to thirty years, with ever mounting salaries and benefits – and a retirement obligation that exceeds all but the top executives in the nation?

How do you account for the lack of the stimulus bill’s provisions for cost-effectiveness when obviously one needs to employ union workers with their outrageous, non-competitive salaries and work rules? Not to mention, a provision which prohibits the use of undocumented illegal aliens. And a provision which provides criminal penalties with mandatory imprisonment for fraud and corruption.

Why should we believe you and not the Congressional Budget Office when they say that “no action” might be preferable to implementing this bill?

And the biggest unasked questions of all:

Where are we going to get the money to pay for this program and will it finally end in an inflationary nightmare?

How can we trust a government, which cannot accurately count votes or account for monies spent on past and present government programs, to be responsible for the trillions of dollars which are about to be spent in governmental programs.

How can we trust a government who wants to institutionalize health care and deny care to an aging population?

Most dangerous …

What he said …

“The same applies when it comes to information technologies in health care. We know that health care is crippling businesses and making us less competitive, as well as breaking the banks of families all across America. And part of the reason is, we've got the most inefficient health care system imaginable.”

“We're still using paper. We're still filing things in triplicate. Nurses can't read the prescriptions that doctors -- that doctors have written out. Why wouldn't we want to put that on -- put that on an electronic medical record that will reduce error rates, reduce our long-term costs of health care, and create jobs right now?”

What’s really in the bill …

According to an analysis by Bloomberg News (page numbers provided for reference)

The bill’s health rules will affect “every individual in the United States” (445, 454, 479). Your medical treatments will be tracked electronically by a federal system. Having electronic medical records at your fingertips, easily transferred to a hospital, is beneficial. It will help avoid duplicate tests and errors.”

“But the bill goes further. One new bureaucracy, the National Coordinator of Health Information Technology, will monitor treatments to make sure your doctor is doing what the federal government deems appropriate and cost effective.”

“The goal is to reduce costs and ‘guide’ your doctor’s decisions (442, 446). These provisions in the stimulus bill are virtually identical to what Daschle prescribed in his 2008 book, “Critical: What We Can Do About the Health-Care Crisis.” According to Daschle, doctors have to give up autonomy and “learn to operate less like solo practitioners.”

“Keeping doctors informed of the newest medical findings is important, but enforcing uniformity goes too far.”

“New Penalties”

Hospitals and doctors that are not ‘meaningful users’ of the new system will face penalties.  ‘Meaningful user’ isn’t defined in the bill. That will be left to the HHS secretary, who will be empowered to impose ‘more stringent measures of meaningful use over time’ (511, 518, 540-541)

“What penalties will deter your doctor from going beyond the electronically delivered protocols when your condition is atypical or you need an experimental treatment? The vagueness is intentional. In his book, Daschle proposed an appointed body with vast powers to make the ‘tough’ decisions elected politicians won’t make.”

“The stimulus bill does that, and calls it the Federal Coordinating Council for Comparative Effectiveness Research (190-192). The goal, Daschle’s book explained, is to slow the development and use of new medications and technologies because they are driving up costs. He praises Europeans for being more willing to accept “hopeless diagnoses” and “forgo experimental treatments,” and he chastises Americans for expecting too much from the health-care system.”

Elderly Hardest Hit

“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. That means the elderly will bear the brunt.”

“Medicare now pays for treatments deemed safe and effective. The stimulus bill would change that and apply a cost- effectiveness standard set by the Federal Council (464).”

A staged event …

You had your part to play, the press theirs. Unfortunately, many people will not go beyond the “celebrity” factor and analyze exactly what was said and what was left unsaid.

Yes, you looked good, spoke well, and said precious damn little. The press corps did not do their job. No follow-up questions. No wonder while you were jawboning and mugging for the cameras.

Bottom line: This was a speech – with the press as props. Obama is still in campaign mode – promising something which he may not be able to deliver. And a mainstream media unwilling to challenge the President and ask the hard questions.

What can YOU do?

Consider President Barack Obama as you would a Trojan Horse. Provoking curiosity until the fateful act of allowing his programs inside the gated walls of society.

Obama admits that they really don’t know if this will work or what the long-term consequences of this program will be. Therefore, why the rush towards oblivion. We need to allow this stimulus bill to go through the normal bi-partisan legislative process – including committee hearings.

I do not believe that this program will encourage people to spend, spend, spend to stimulate the economy. With the current atmosphere in the country, people are more likely to use stimulus funds to pay down debt or put the money aside for the rainy day most believe will be forthcoming.

Ask yourself if you want you doctor to deny the care you need because he is afraid of violating governmental care guidelines enforced with civil money penalties and possibly the loss of practice privileges.

Perhaps you should reconsider your support of AARP which allegedly represents seniors, but in reality is a portal to profit from selling travel, medical insurance, pharmacy services to the senior community. Lobbying for liberal democrat causes which support dangerous medical legislation such as that contained in the ill-defined stimulus bill.

We need also to stop electing people who are insulated from the results of their legislative decisions by reason of wealth, power or position. We need to insure that the average American is treated as well as members of Congress and government employees.

Be well, be safe – and remember: the bastards are not looking out for the average American.

-- steve

* No disrespect to Stevie Wonder

Quote of the day: “when the day comes for you to receive that life-saving treatment, don’t be surprised when your doctor simply says ‘Next!’”  -- steve

A reminder from OneCitizenSpeaking.com: a large improvement can result from a small change…

The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane. -- Marcus Aurelius

Reference Links:

H.R. 1 -- American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009|U.S. Government

Ruin Your Health With the Obama Stimulus Plan|Bloomberg News


“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it!
"Acta non verba" -- actions not words

“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw

“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”

“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS

"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius

“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell

“Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar

“Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS


Representative John Conyers: a pattern of promoting victimhood for political advantage?

This is not the first time …

This is not the first time that Representative John Conyers (D-Michigan) has utilized the Marxist tactic of dividing the population into classes of victims which can then be pitted against each other for political advantage.

Proposing special legal protections for those whose religion commands them to kill  or enslave “infidel” non-believers …

Once again, we find our enemies using our own freedoms and laws against us as they plot and prepare to attack the United States from within. There have been numerous accounts of radical hate speech being preached in Mosques, some of which are being funded by foreign radical Wahabist elements emanating from Saudi Arabia. One need only open their eyes to observe what happens when the Islamic community grows to critical mass in a Country – and then starts demanding the implementation of Sharia law and creating areas which are not welcoming of existing civil authority. Another instance of the demographic bombing of a nation leading to the creation of foreign-dominated influence within communities. Leading, of course, to gaining sufficient political power to ride roughshod over the original community’s laws. To the end of forcing those who do not agree to move away from the community and thus concentrating political power in the hands of those who advocate a radical philosophy.

According to Conyers’ own words …

“Text of My Resolution Regarding Religious Intolerance”

“I received a large number of comments, and quite a spirited debate, concerning my resolution opposing religious intolerance, including desecration of the Quran. I appreciate all of the comments, both those supporting and opposing my actions. I continue to believe that given recent events, it is worthwhile for the Congress to actually express its support for the freedom of religion.”

The resolution was drafted to oppose all religious intolerance. To the extent it mentions the Quran and Islam specifically, that is obviously to respond to those who believe our nation would tolerate disrespect of that religion or its holy book. Clearly we should not, at least in my opinion.”

“Anyway, below in the extended entry is the full text of H. Res. 288. I hope you agree that read in its totality, it is a fair and appropriate resolution.”

“Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives condemning bigotry and religious intolerance, and recognizing that holy books of every religion should be treated with dignity and respect.”

We are definitely living in an Orwellian world, when up is down, white is black and right is wrong. You need only ask yourself a single question: What other modern religion openly promotes religious  intolerance and bigotry as does Islam?

“Whereas believers of all religions, including the Abrahamic faiths of Christianity, Judaism and Islam, should be treated with respect and dignity;”

Right off the bat, we can see the democrats fondness for moral equivalency and their treatment of good and evil. Nowhere in the Judeo-Christian philosophy does it encourage those to kill non-believers and spread the religion at the point of a sword. At least, not in modern times and using modern weapons of mass destruction.

(And am I the only one to note that the Quran does not apparently have any reference to the creation and seems to be a selective mixing of existing Judeo-Christian principles with self-serving rules promulgated by a then local warlord?)

Whereas the word Islam comes from the Arabic root word meaning “peace” and “submission”;

Whereas there are an estimated 7,000,000 Muslims in America, from a wide variety of ethnic backgrounds, forming an integral part of the social fabric of America;

Whereas the Quran is the holy book for Muslims who recite passages from it in prayer and learn valuable lessons about peace, humanity and spirituality;

How conveniently Conyers overlooks toxic passages which urge its followers to commit barbarous acts of horror over the centuries to support the “religion of peace.”

    • “The only reward of those who make war against Allah and His messenger
      and strive after corruption in the land will be that they will be murdered or crucified,
      or have their hands and feet on alternate sides cut off, or will be expelled out of the land.
      Such will be their degradation in the world, and in the Hereafter theirs will be an awful doom; 005.033 [AL-MAEDA (THE TABLE) HOLY QURAN]”
    • “Strongest among men in enmity to the believers wilt thou find the Jews and Pagans; and nearest among them in love to the believers wilt thou find those who say, "We are Christians": because amongst these are men devoted to learning and men who have renounced the world, and they are not arrogant.” 005.082 

Hardly peace and religious tolerance for other non-Muslim peoples.

“Whereas it should never be official policy of the United States Government to disparage the Quran, Islam, or any religion in any way, shape, or form;”

It is already the policy of the United States to open accept all religions – it’s codified in the Constitution as the First Amendment. “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

“Whereas mistreatment of prisoners and disrespect toward the holy book of any religion is unacceptable and against civilized humanity;”

What would a radical agenda be if it did not attack the government’s treatment of prisoners? 

The prisoners are not American citizens, protected by the Constitution and, in almost all cases, are not subject to the Geneva Convention due to their conduct on the battlefield. Conyers’ resolution does not mention that the prisoners have no compunction against killing, beheading, torturing, maiming, raping anyone that does not accept their religion. Or that the prisoners Conyers wants to be treated with religious respect were taken from the battlefield where they were engaged in attempting to kill or actually killing Americans. In my opinion, this “prisoner issue” is part and parcel of the democrats disregard for America as they attempt to regain and maintain political power. 

Restating the obvious …

“Whereas the infringement of an individual’s right to freedom of religion violates the Constitution and laws of the United States:

And creating another legally protected class enabling the enemy to self-fund their operations through extortionate lawsuits …

Now, therefore, be it  Resolved, That the House of Representatives–

(1) condemns bigotry, acts of violence, and intolerance against any religious group, including our friends, neighbors, and citizens of the Islamic faith;

The clause “and citizens of the Islamic faith” is totally unnecessary and should be stricken. In fact, the entire clause should read: “condemns bigotry, acts of violence, and intolerance against any religious group.” But that would hardly suit Conyers’ political agenda.

(2) declares that the civil rights and civil liberties of all individuals, including those of the Islamic faith, should be protected;

Again, the phrase “including those of the Islamic faith” should be stricken as being totally unnecessary.

(3) recognizes that the Quran, the holy book of Islam, as any other holy book of any religion, should be treated with dignity and respect; and

Here I disagree … any book, holy or otherwise, which urges believers to kill non-believers or force them into submission is not to be treated with dignity or respect – even if it forms the basis of a religion. If the book advocates violence and the suppression of God-given human rights and freedoms and demands fealty, it should be treated as any other political book.

(4) calls upon local, State, and Federal authorities to work to prevent bias-motivated crimes and acts against all individuals, including those of the Islamic faith.

<Source>

And, once again, the phrase “including those of the Islamic faith” should be stricken.

Is Conyers a racist or simply a self-promoting politician?

One may ask yourself, is Conyers’ reinforcing the rights of all American citizens, acting as a politician with a self-promoting agenda or is openly perpetrating an act of divisive racism by urging the separation of a single class of people, based on nothing more than their religion, as alleged victims of some overarching government or civil conspiracy?

Now consider Conyers’ current proposal: rewarding those for the actions of our ancestors …

Commission to Study Reparation Proposals for African-Americans Act (H.R. 40 Introduced in House)

“To acknowledge the fundamental injustice, cruelty, brutality, and inhumanity of slavery in the United States and the 13 American colonies between 1619 and 1865 and to establish a commission to examine the institution of slavery, subsequently de jure and de facto racial and economic discrimination against African-Americans, and the impact of these forces on living African-Americans, to make recommendations to the Congress on appropriate remedies, and for other purposes.”

In literature, law and other areas of life, the abominable actions relating to the practice of slavery have been denounced. However, it appears to be the democrat’s dream to somehow create another level of “victimhood” out of the ancestors who may have suffered under slavery and then create another entitlement program to compensate the “aggrieved descendents” for the actions of people long dead. All for the political advantage of gaining the votes of a large class of current American citizens who have been traditionally treated by the U.S. government as a class of victims and worthy of special privileges.

Considering the amount of money that has gone into the war on poverty, affirmative action and other social programs which have not yielded broad reforms – I believe that we have already paid any debt owing to those who were enslaved by historical precedence. As for their modern descendents, I believe their grievance should be with the democrat party who has siphoned off monies that were legitimately owing to the American people and who have promoted egregious racists policies that have resulted in the breakup of the black family. By insisting that those requiring financial assistance not have a black male or father present in the house and by the upwards scaling of benefits to those who have a larger number of unaffordable children, I believe that the democrat party has wreaked havoc on black society and are the ones that should be punished for their actions.

Truth-be-told, it seems that it was the democrats who opposed racial equality and promoted racist policies at every turn of the political path. And were the most complicit in denying those American citizens who happen to be black decent housing, employment, education and other necessities of life – as they stole their birthright in an orgy of political and personal corruption. It is hard to think of a single major democrat-controlled predominantly black area that does not feature waste, fraud, corruption and a staggering crime rate.

My thoughts …

Why should any money be given to any citizen for the past actions of people long dead?

Why should I, the average American taxpayer, be taxed or surcharged for the actions of those over whom I exerted no control and, in fact, were not be related to me at all?

If society did owe a debt to some class of oppressed people, be they indigenous natives or people brought here against their will, has it not been long extinguished by the creation of “special” social programs like affirmative action. We have now spent trillions of dollars on the so-called democrat “Great Society” and the “War on Poverty.” There programs were abject failures and the democrats want to spend even more money.  

The problem is democrats not slavery …

We seem to have created a society where the average American citizen will go out of his way to avoid being labeled as a racist. A condition which has led to the rise of corrupt black leaders who feel that they are entitled to special privileges because of their skin color.

What we have inadvertently done to destroy much of the individualism and personal initiative that was championed by our forefathers is to create a sense of entitlement in those who are being portrayed as victims by those who want to secure and maintain power by creating an unbreakable bond of social benefits that can never be breached by the opposition party – a battle between those who offer opportunity to achieve and those who offer payments to the terminally lazy.

Obama’s change …

To those who can see clearly, consider that Barack Obama’s program of change and hope is really one of smoke and mirrors; put forth by a charismatic, telegenic and well-spoken (at least with a TelePrompTer) individual. Look behind the scenes and you will find an opportunist who has, by sheer luck, found himself in the Office of the President of the United States – not by popular acclaim, but by being the antithesis of one of the most maligned Presidents in modern history. An historical fluke. Consider Obama’s associations with radical anti-American, anti-Semitic, terrorist and corrupt people. People in and of the corrupt Chicago political machine. Now consider the number of corrupt democrats who are coming out of the woodwork.

Furthermore, consider the radical agenda of the democrats who seem to be willing to do or say anything to secure their future power. Especially by promoting “victimhood” and further entitlements.

One need only took at the so-called “stimulus” bill which was an amalgam of democrat pork barrel spending and social measures guaranteed to reward those who voted for democrats.

Institutionalized democratic crime?

Closer to home, consider Conyers’ wife, who appears for all intents and purposes to come from the Cynthia McKinney “crazy as a loon” branch of the democrat party.

According to the Detroit News

“Bribe probe ensnarls Conyers”

“Feds: Surveillance evidence suggests councilwoman took money tied to waste pact”

Federal investigators have electronic surveillance evidence that allegedly links Detroit City Council President Pro Tem Monica Conyers with receiving a payment or payments in connection with a city-approved sludge contract, two people familiar with the investigation said.”

“Conyers -- who changed her position from speaking in opposition to the sludge contract to voting in favor of it -- and at least one other council member are under FBI investigation in connection with possible bribes related to the $47 million contract with Synagro Technologies Inc. of Houston, one of the people familiar with the investigation said Friday. Bribes allegedly paid to people connected with the city but not members of the City Council also are under investigation, one person said.”

Of course, Conyers has professed innocence, but remains absent from her position. \

See Monica Conyers in action …

What can YOU do?

Study your history of civil rights and notice it was the Republicans and not the democrats who were fully engaged in promoting civil rights and the appointment of qualified blacks to positions of high office.

See if you can find a major city that is being run by democrats (one-party rule) that is not is serious trouble in terms of housing, employment, crime and poverty? Along with a disproportionate number of corrupt politicians.

Consider the democrat’s Marxist propensity for dividing people into various classes of victims along class, ethnic and racial lines for the purposes of political manipulation.

Vote for politicians who seem honest, ethical and who promote individual achievement over Marxist collectivism and further enslaving entitlements.

Demand that your elected officials punish corrupt politicians from both sides of the political aisle.

For the democrat victims among us, remember, you are an American first. Not a hyphenated-American who is somehow diminished by history. Our country guarantees equality of opportunity, not equality of outcomes. Suggested reading material: “While African Americans Slept: Leadership by Parasites” by Dr. Lenton Aikins.

Perhaps we should follow the army’s prescription for harmony: everybody is green, everybody is treated equally – like crap -- and rank, when not abused, has its privileges.  And incorporate the Navy’s command philosophy” everybody has a boss, everybody is accountable – and if it happened on your watch, you will be held responsible! 

-- steve

Quote of the day: “Know your enemy and you won't be defeated." -- Sun Zi

A reminder from OneCitizenSpeaking.com: a large improvement can result from a small change…

The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane. -- Marcus Aurelius

Reference Links:


“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it!
"Acta non verba" -- actions not words

“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw

“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”

“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS

"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius

“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell

“Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar

“Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS


Financial Crisis: The Pretense of Knowledge

Yesterday’s blog entry, “Global Warming: The Pretense of Knowledge” was inspired by Nobel Laureate Friedrich August von Hayek and his 1974 Prize Lecture in Computational Economics titled “The Pretense of Knowledge”

Hayek’s lecture pointed out that …

“The theory which has been guiding monetary and financial policy during the last thirty years, and which I contend is largely the product of such a mistaken conception of the proper scientific procedure, consists in the assertion that there exists a simple positive correlation between total employment and the size of the aggregate demand for goods and services; it leads to the belief that we can permanently assure full employment by maintaining total money expenditure at an appropriate level. Among the various theories advanced to account for extensive unemployment, this is probably the only one in support of which strong quantitative evidence can be adduced. I nevertheless regard it as fundamentally false, and to act upon it, as we now experience, as very harmful.”

Which brings us to the assertion …

The Assertion …

Those who believe the democratic economic stimulus plan  are putting forth the assertion that there exists a simple, positive correlation between the amount of taxpayer money that can be spent by the government, both federal and state, and the nation’s level of unemployment.

And by extension …

And by extension, if we can spend the taxpayer’s money on infrastructure projects, we can exert a positive control over the recovery as well as to produce sorely needed employment.

Supported by nothing …

This assertion is seemingly supported primarily by pointing to historical anecdotal evidence relating to Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s handling of the Great Depression. And what we “popularly” now know is wrong.

According to UCLA economics researchers

“Two UCLA economists say they have figured out why the Great Depression dragged on for almost 15 years, and they blame a suspect previously thought to be beyond reproach: President Franklin D. Roosevelt.”

Policies signed into law prolonged the recovery by 7 years …

“After scrutinizing Roosevelt's record for four years, Harold L. Cole and Lee E. Ohanian conclude in a new study that New Deal policies signed into law 71 years ago thwarted economic recovery for seven long years.”

"Why the Great Depression lasted so long has always been a great mystery, and because we never really knew the reason, we have always worried whether we would have another 10- to 15-year economic slump," said Ohanian, vice chair of UCLA's Department of Economics. "We found that a relapse isn't likely unless lawmakers gum up a recovery with ill-conceived stimulus policies."

“In an article in the August issue of the Journal of Political Economy, Ohanian and Cole blame specific anti-competition and pro-labor measures that Roosevelt promoted and signed into law June 16, 1933.”

"’President Roosevelt believed that excessive competition was responsible for the Depression by reducing prices and wages, and by extension reducing employment and demand for goods and services,’ said Cole, also a UCLA professor of economics. ‘So he came up with a recovery package that would be unimaginable today, allowing businesses in every industry to collude without the threat of antitrust prosecution and workers to demand salaries about 25 percent above where they ought to have been, given market forces. The economy was poised for a beautiful recovery, but that recovery was stalled by these misguided policies.’"

In the three years following the implementation of Roosevelt's policies, wages in 11 key industries averaged 25 percent higher than they otherwise would have done, the economists calculate. But unemployment was also 25 percent higher than it should have been, given gains in productivity.

Meanwhile, prices across 19 industries averaged 23 percent above where they should have been, given the state of the economy. With goods and services that much harder for consumers to afford, demand stalled and the gross national product floundered at 27 percent below where it otherwise might have been.

Research acclaimed by other economists …

"This is exciting and valuable research," said Robert E. Lucas Jr., the 1995 Nobel Laureate in economics, and the John Dewey Distinguished Service Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago. "The prevention and cure of depressions is a central mission of macroeconomics, and if we can't understand what happened in the 1930s, how can we be sure it won't happen again?"

And did I mention that this seminal work wasn’t published yesterday with foreknowledge of the current economic crisis, it was published in 2004 when we were still experiencing the effects of the real estate boom and our economy appeared to be chugging along at acceptable levels.

Policies unconstitutional …

“NIRA's [National Industrial Recovery Act] role in prolonging the Depression has not been more closely scrutinized because the Supreme Court declared the act unconstitutional within two years of its passage.”

The deleterious affects of the unions …

“NIRA's labor provisions, meanwhile, were strengthened in the National Relations Act, signed into law in 1935. As union membership doubled, so did labor's bargaining power, rising from 14 million strike days in 1936 to about 28 million in 1937. By 1939 wages in protected industries remained 24 percent to 33 percent above where they should have been, based on 1929 figures, Cole and Ohanian calculate. Unemployment persisted. By 1939 the U.S. unemployment rate was 17.2 percent, down somewhat from its 1933 peak of 24.9 percent but still remarkably high. By comparison, in May 2003, the unemployment rate of 6.1 percent was the highest in nine years.

Recovery came only after the Department of Justice dramatically stepped enforcement of antitrust cases nearly four-fold and organized labor suffered a string of setbacks, the economists found.”

Sound familiar?

"’The fact that the Depression dragged on for years convinced generations of economists and policy-makers that capitalism could not be trusted to recover from depressions and that significant government intervention was required to achieve good outcomes,’ Cole said. ‘Ironically, our work shows that the recovery would have been very rapid had the government not intervened.’"

The conclusion that the recovery was delayed by government intervention is not what the government wants to hear – especially as they attempt to capitalize on the current crisis to enlarge the size of government, raise taxes, chip away at our personal freedoms – and reward all of their fellow travelers who help elect them to office.

Why can’t the democrats understand history …

American Philosopher George Santayana claimed “Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” So why do all of the smart people assisting Barack Obama not know more about historical precedent as they quote historical guidelines as a precedent for their current actions? 

Two thoughts come to mind. One, they apparently ignore history because they are busy rewriting it to their advantage, it has become the party line. And the second one, and more malevolently, they care little about the long-term consequences of their actions as they go about gaining and maintaining their leftist power base.

The triumph of perception over reality …

For some of you, it might be hard to accept that you have been deceived. You have been fooled by the media into believing what was being portrayed as substantive fact by a credible source although it was nothing more than a political platitude and far from the truth. There are those who have allowed their minds to be manipulated by the media; which itself was manipulated by political forces driven more by their hatred of the Bush Administration and the Republican failure to curtail military and financial excesses than they were motivated by the innate character of the candidates being presented by both parties. This provided the tipping point to elected what is beginning to appear as a corrupt and inept Administration. Something that was readily apparent to those who considered the toxic associations with anti-American rogues, crooks and unrepentant Marxist terrorists who surrounded the candidate. And those who anointed this telegenic, well-spoken man offering nothing more substantive than the words change and hope as the nation’s savior – even though the observed facts belied the conclusion.

Don’t do as I do, do as I say …

One of my friends, upon reading one of my blog entries, sent me an e-mail containing the following lines …

“Perhaps you've forgotten what the word ‘liberal’ means:  ‘generous; open-minded; of a political party, favoring changes making towards democracy.’ [Webster's New Dictionary -- no doubt very subversive]”

“Now that sure smacks of the ‘un-Americanism’ that you so easily and foolishly tout about anyone who doesn't believe that Capitalism is the be-all/end-all answer to all of human needs ... “

Even though her missive was signed by “xxx,” I responded with …

“That is the textbook definition. In practice it is synonymous with Marxism, corruption, waste, fraud and securing lifelong political advantage so you come out as the ruling elite rather than the mass of victims you have created.”

And that seems to be the basis of the argument. That what the democrats cite as the political answer to our economic woes is far different from what they are putting into practice. One need go no further than the new head of the Department of Justice, Eric Holder, who will take an oath to uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States from its enemies, both foreign and domestic – and who famously argued against the Second Amendment, asserting it was not an individual right, but a collective one. An attempt to impose unconstitutional gun control on those who were guaranteed access to weapons solely for the purpose of preventing government tyranny. Not hunting, no target shooting, not even to uphold the God-given right of self-defense; but as a means of preventing our government from ever enslaving the population.

Which points out why the rich and the powerful allow this political folderol to exist …

Because by wealth, power, privilege or position they are exempt from the consequences of the legislative actions which will affect us lesser mortals.

Not to mention that self-interest demands that they support those who will continue to confer special treatment to the very people who consider themselves “special.”

Look closely at the so-called “stimulus” package …

I defy you to tell me that this package is not simply democrat pork and earmarks writ large. While I could cite, line by line, spending which will not create jobs, spending which will allow the fat cats to get fatter and provisions that will allow the unions to gain an inordinate degree of control over the government and private industry, it is not necessary. One need only consider that the great majority of legislators who are voting on this complex document written in legislative gibberish have not even read the full document, let alone understand what it contains. Written by the democrats, famous for being the party of lawyers and loopholes, this singular piece of legislation is characteristic of democrat ideals: reward our special interest friends and secure our position by buying the votes of a rather naive population which can be persuaded to come along with ever increasing entitlements and freebies. Entitlements and freebies which demand a larger bureaucracy for administration and which portend complex machinations which allow significant chunks of money to fall into select private pockets.

They must scream CRISIS!

“Rule one: Never allow a crisis to go to waste,” Mr. Emanuel said in an interview on Sunday. “They are opportunities to do big things.” <Source: New York Times>

The entire purpose of capitalizing on a crisis is to persuade the American taxpayer/citizen to overlook common sense, prudent and sound financial management – and their native patriotism – to allow legislation which stinks of the possibility of waste, fraud and continued corruption to be passed without significant political consequences by those who are selling out their constituents – if not their country.

Dare I say TREASON …

In my humble opinion, there are those who do not wish America well. A fifth column of Marxists, Communists, Anarchists and others who have infiltrated our educational and government institutions. Hell bent at promoting policies which weaken the United States both militarily and economically. To reduce the power of the United States towards those who are militarily and economically weaker than ourselves. All conditioned on some false belief that the United States  is a bad actor on the world stage and that we need to pursue a more “civilized” approach when it comes to dealing with other nations and their people of  different color, races and ethnicities. A country with a higher regard for the leftist United Nations with a preponderance of corrupt despots in attendance all pretending to respect human rights as they enslave and oppress their people. I believe that there are those who are actively working against America’s interests – and they will be emboldened by the passage of this “stimulus” legislation. Funded by its provisions which allow them to grow stronger and further metastasize, like a spreading cancer, into the body politic of the American people.

What can YOU do?

Tell your elected officials that they are going to be held responsible for their actions. For the first time, the American people will not let the issue die and the malefactors escape with their ill-gotten gains.

Discuss this issue with your relatives, friends, co-workers and consider what this legislation might contribute to the end of the United States as we know it.

Do not trust the mainstream media without applying both common sense and the “smell” test to what they are saying. Considering their overwhelming support for the democrats, Obama in particular, they, with very few exceptions, have lost all pretense at journalistic integrity in favor of political pandering and fawning.

Do what is necessary to protect yourself from the ravages of an out-of-control Administration. Remember: they want you to incur debt as you spend, spend, spend our service-oriented economy to health. If you are already in debt, common sense tell you that you are already in trouble and about to make it worse – whether you are a real person or a government entity. Again, do what is necessary to protect yourself. We are a strong nation based on strong individuals – not a collection of weaklings that require the government to manage every facet of our daily lives.

Be well and be safe.

-- steve

Quote of the Day: “History repeats itself because no one was listening the first time.” --Anonymous

A reminder from OneCitizenSpeaking.com: a large improvement can result from a small change…

The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane. -- Marcus Aurelius

Reference Links:

Global Warming: The Pretense of Knowledge |One Citizen Speaking...

The Pretense of Knowledge | Nobel Laureate Friedrich August von Hayek (1974 Prize Lecture in Economics)

New Deal Policies and the Persistence of the Great Depression: A General Equilibrium Analysis; Harold L. Cole and Lee E. Ohanian (doi: 10.1086/421169); Journal of Political Economy August 2004, Vol. 112, No. 4: pp. 779-816

Abstract:  “ There are two striking aspects of the recovery from the Great Depression in the United States: the recovery was very weak, and real wages in several sectors rose significantly above trend. These data contrast sharply with neoclassical theory, which predicts a strong recovery with low real wages. We evaluate the contribution to the persistence of the Depression of New Deal cartelization policies designed to limit competition and increase labor bargaining power. We develop a model of the bargaining process between labor and firms that occurred with these policies and embed that model within a multisector dynamic general equilibrium model. We find that New Deal cartelization policies are an important factor in accounting for the failure of the economy to recover back to trend.”

Cited by:

Gauti B. Eggertsson. (2008) Great Expectations and the End of the Depression. American Economic Review 98:4, 1476-1516 Online publication date: 1-Oct-2008. CrossRef

Tom Nicholas. (2008) Does Innovation Cause Stock Market Runups? Evidence from the Great Crash. American Economic Review 98:4, 1370-1396 Online publication date: 1-Oct-2008. CrossRef

D.W. MacKenzie. (2008) Supercapitalism – By Robert Reich. American Journal of Economics and Sociology 67:2, 381-389 Online publication date: 1-May-2008.
CrossRef

V. V. Chari, Patrick J. Kehoe, Ellen R. McGrattan. (2007) Business Cycle Accounting. Econometrica 75:3, 781-836
Online publication date: 1-Jun-2007. CrossRef

Luca Pensieroso. (2007) REAL BUSINESS CYCLE MODELS OF THE GREAT DEPRESSION: A CRITICAL SURVEY. Journal of Economic Surveys 21:1, 110-142 Online publication date: 1-Mar-2007. CrossRef

Gregor W. Smith. (2006) The spectre of deflation: a review of empirical evidence. Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'economique 39:4, 1041-1072 Online publication date: 1-Dec-2006. CrossRef

Edward C. Prescott. (2006) Nobel Lecture: The Transformation of Macroeconomic Policy and Research. Journal of Political Economy 114:2, 203-235 Online publication date: 1-Apr-2006. Citation-Full Text-PDF Version (530 kB)

ALEXANDER J. FIELD. (2006) Technological Change and U.S. Productivity Growth in the Interwar Years. The Journal of Economic History 66:01, Online publication date: 1-Apr-2006. CrossRef

Sergio Rebelo. (2005) Real Business Cycle Models: Past, Present and Future. Scandinavian Journal of Economics 107:2, 217-238 Online publication date: 1-Jul-2005. CrossRef

PRICE V. FISHBACK, WILLIAM C. HORRACE, SHAWN KANTOR. (2005) Did New Deal Grant Programs Stimulate Local Economies? A Study of Federal Grants and Retail Sales During the Great Depression. The Journal of  Economic History 65:01, Online publication date: 1-Apr-2005. CrossRef


“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it!
"Acta non verba" -- actions not words

“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw

“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”

“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS

"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius

“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell

“Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar

“Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS


The Evil Empire Strikes: The demographic bombing of their enemies?

Consider the United Nations …

What is the real agenda of the United Nations, a consortium of third-world nations that seems preoccupied with an environmental policy that starts and ends with population control?

The problem is the Earth’s population …

It was bad enough when the United Nations’ wildly optimistic population growth numbers were based on the faulty assumption that population growth was linear and the numbers were climbing so drastically as to endanger the planet. But it was their prescription: limit population growth by any means before we destroy the planet, that I found objectionable.

A matter of food …

Then it was on to the problem of feeding the world. Again, being short-sighted and not fully pressuring those despotic rogue nations to release the food received via international aid societies to starving people rather than diverting the food to the friends and military of the DIP (despot in power); with the surplus sold on the black market. Of course, the United Nations blamed the problem of commodity shortages on the rampant population growth – and once again their prescription was: limit population growth by any means before all of the world’s people starve. Unfortunately, there was enough food to go around and those who were being denied sustenance were in areas controlled by evildoers. Something the United Nations does not recognize as they promote diversity, multiculturalism and worst of all, the moral equivalency between good and evil, freedom and enslavement.

Global warming …

Now comes global warming. Dire predictions of population dislocation and rampant hunger as our planet’s ability to produce food is severely compromised by the weather. The prescription: limit population and its impact on the global climate. This time by a scheme to control the energy production of industrialized nations to reduce their prosperity and increase the financial impact of having additional children.

Idiot politicians …

So why am I not surprised when I read in London Sunday  Times …

  “Two children should be limit, says green guru”

“Couples who have more than two children are being ‘irresponsible’ by creating an unbearable burden on the environment, the government’s green adviser has warned.”

“Jonathon Porritt, who chairs the government’s Sustainable Development Commission, says curbing population growth through contraception and abortion must be at the heart of policies to fight global warming. He says political leaders and green campaigners should stop dodging the issue of environmental harm caused by an expanding population.”

“A report by the commission, to be published next month, will say that governments must reduce population growth through better family planning.”

“ ‘I am unapologetic about asking people to connect up their own responsibility for their total environmental footprint and how they decide to procreate and how many children they think are appropriate,” Porritt said.”

“ ‘I think we will work our way towards a position that says that having more than two children is irresponsible. It is the ghost at the table. We have all these big issues that everybody is looking at and then you don’t really hear anyone say the ‘p’ word.”

“The Optimum Population Trust, a campaign group of which Porritt is a patron, says each baby born in Britain will, during his or her lifetime, burn carbon roughly equivalent to 2½ acres of old-growth oak woodland - an area the size of Trafalgar Square.”

“The British population, now 61m, will pass 70m by 2028, the Office for National Statistics says. The fertility rate for women born outside Britain is estimated to be 2.5, compared with 1.7 for those born here. The global population of 6.7 billion is expected to rise to 9.2 billion by 2050.”

Demographic bombing …

Has anyone noticed that population control is exactly what our enemies, those who do not wish us well under our present political system, want. To be able to massively grow their population base while the “concerned” people reduce the very population growth needed to sustain their own culture – that which makes the people of the region unique.

By granting citizenship to those who give birth within a nation’s geographical borders, by overtly or covertly encouraging the migration of illegal aliens, and by promoting policies granting amnesty and citizenship to those who have broken the law, you are complicit is destroying the character of your nation.

Which is not a problem for the United Nations with their aspirations to serve as the seat of a “One World Government” and the arbiter of all things political, social and financial.

Eurabia: a convenient illustration is at hand …

“Europe is undergoing two profound changes. The first is the weakening of Christianity. The second is demographic decline. Presently, across Europe, there are only two-thirds the number of children born necessary to sustain the population. The consequent drop in population has mostly been made good by immigration of Muslims. The fast-growing Muslim population is generally not integrated into the host societies nor politically acculturated to its norms. To the contrary, radical Islamic movements are gaining in strength among these émigré populations. In addition, European governments, especially the French, have developed foreign policies aimed at winning the favor of Middle Eastern regimes.”

“The question arises: is this a temporary aberration or is Europe on the road to losing its historic identity? The latter: Europe is rapidly being transformed into ‘Eurabia,’ a cultural and political appendage of the Arab/Muslim world that is fundamentally anti-Christian, anti-Semitic, anti-Western and anti-American.” <Source>

Israel …

Israel faces much the same problem as other industrialized nations and it will be only a matter of time until the Israelis vanish from their land – especially when listening to a regime who wants to give up land for peace and remove self-contained and fertile settlers from the land promised by God.

In fact, had it not been for the meddling of certain muddle-headed Brits; the very people who, on a Sunday afternoon, reshaped the Middle East by drawing lines on a map to provide an aggrieved Prince Abdullah with a country (Jordan) because his brother, Faisal, was granted an arbitrary patch of sand now known as Iraq; much of the Middle East tribal conflict would have reduced as indigenous trade and cooperative governments developed. <Source: Kingmakers: the Invention of the Modern Middle East>

Los Angeles, California …

And across the pond, here in America, we are experiencing much the same thing. Consider that in the core of California’s largest city, Los Angeles, it appears as if you are in Little Tijuana: the signs are in Spanish, the dominant language is Spanish, a large number of the politicians are Hispanic and cater to their Hispanic constituency: legal citizens and illegal aliens alike – and law enforcement is extremely reluctant to enter certain areas without heavy reinforcements and advance planning. Vicious gangs, mostly comprised of illegal aliens, is slowly tightening their grip on the immigrant population with occasional spill-over into traditional society. This very demographic is pushing hard to create so-called anchor babied which, upon their birth in the United States, become automatic U.S. citizens. One wonders exactly how long it will be before the U.S. experiences a de facto annexation by Mexico or is forced by exigent circumstances (including the possible collapse of the Mexican government and infrastructure) to assume Mexico as either a protectorate or some other legal form of confederation?

The “elites” know best …

The point being: while the so-call intellectual elites and limousine liberals spout drivel about reducing population growth and saving the planet, we are being demographically being forced out of our homes and into accepting a foreign culture. Incrementally, of course, but it is happening. Of course, those limousine liberals who visibly support these policies are the very ones who are insulated, by wealth, power and position, from the consequences of the policies they foist on others in order to make some of them feel that they are contributing members of society instead of the wastrels, clowns and dilettantes they are in reality.

Who are our enemies?

Other than the radical Islamists and power-hungry dictatorships, why are we so afraid of pointing out that our enemies walk among us as they do their best to convert, co-opt and coerce those “do good – feel good” liberals into becoming fellow travelers in a nefarious plot to weaken Western civilization and the freedoms it holds dear.

“Porritt, who has two children, intends to persuade environmental pressure groups to make population a focus of campaigning.”

“Many organisation think it is not part of their business. My mission with the Friends of the Earth and the Greenpeaces of this world is to say: ‘You are betraying the interests of your members by refusing to address population issues and you are doing it for the wrong reasons because you think it is too controversial,” he said.

And just what are the interests of the members of Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth in addition to the normal ones of providing a social meeting ground for the disaffected, increasing their funding, expanding their leadership and allowing the members to “feel good about themselves” by associating with a cause bigger than their individual lives – saving their planet for future generations.

I wonder just how many of their members have noted that the old “cold warriors,” the Marxists, the Communists and the Anarchists have infiltrated the environmental movement to obtain tax-free funding from gullible people who can be easily fooled and led about like sheep. Not to mention pushing their political agenda while they aggregate political power by pointing the way to electing their fellow travelers for elective office. And appointing their cohorts when the arrive “on station.”

Let them die: it’s good for the planet …

“Porritt, a former chairman of the Green party, says the government must improve family planning, even if it means shifting money from curing illness to increasing contraception and abortion.”

“He said: ‘We still have one of the highest rates of teenage pregnancies in Europe and we still have relatively high levels of pregnancies going to birth, often among women who are not convinced they want to become mothers.”

To be fair, perhaps Porritt did not mean that we should ignore curing illness as a means for limiting population – or then again, maybe he did. There is no doubt in my mind that there are those who look towards pestilence, disease and weather-induced famine as means for achieving their goal of limited population.

A failure of religion?

Here in Los Angeles, under the direction of open borders advocate, Cardinal Roger Mahoney, the church is attempting to revive its flagging fortunes (dissipated by the international pedophile scandals) and declining membership. Since the Church is responsible to Rome, rather than Washington, D.C., it should be no surprise that they are welcoming illegal aliens into their flock and advocating an open borders policy – based, of course, on humanitarian grounds. As with the Cardinal’s apparent obstruction of justice in moving known pedophiles around his fiefdom, he appears not to concern himself with the destruction and decay that is slowly rotting Los Angeles and turning it into the equivalent of a third-world nation. Where productive and creative people are abandoning California for more business friendly and culturally attuned climes – and states which do not spend a massive amount of money catering to illegal aliens at the expense of their own legal constituency. One might ask, where is the morality in all of this? Is the Church also complicit in allowing our nation to be demographically bombed by illegal aliens who are pumping out anchor babies with abandon, not even mindful of the financial consequences of having unaffordable children as they seem to be well taken care of by California’s social benefits system. An entitlement system that will be greatly expanded by Barack Obama has he consolidates his “entitlement” constituency.

What can YOU do?

Decide for yourself whether or not you can afford to have, nurture and support children without state assistance. It is a personal God-given freedom that should not be abridged by church nor state.

If you disagree with the direction our elected officials are taking us, consider working with a grass-roots group to recall them or elect ones more beneficial to the constituency. Demand that those politicians who have committed crimes be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. For those who have committed acts that are short of criminal prosecution and have been allowed to file retroactive reports, turn them out of office.

It is time we take back our country from the political elites who believe they are entitled to dispense the taxpayer’s hard-earned money for their personal political benefit and personally profit from the results of  their actions.

It is also time to dial back the adoration of celebrity, knowing that most of these people are trained actors who are quite unlike the people they may portray on stage. Many of these “respected” people are sick puppies and would be shunned by decent people had the truth about their private actions become public. But then again, maybe not, as our culture is beginning to reward both the famous and the infamous.

As for the United Nations, consider the consequences of removing them from our shores and de-funding their initiatives. In my opinion, the UN is comprised of too many self-righteous, self-indulgent political hacks who pander to the worst among them.

As for the future, and at this point in time, it seems that our politicians and their special interest friends have temporarily doomed us to additional suffering – all in the name of the “quick buck” and political power play. Can you even imagine, in any other historical time, when politicians like Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, George Bush (41 &43) and Jimmy Carter could be considered leaders? Or when the political parties would sacrifice their principles on the altar of political office – just to obtain access to the power to dole out funding to their friends?

We are screwed. Or as my best friend puts it, “doomed.” That is, unless we start to right the ship of state and stem the tide of liberalism that surely will become our downfall. If we continue to progress as is, those receiving entitlements will continue to vote for bigger and bigger entitlements and the political party that doles out the treats. Until we bankrupt ourselves and find the fruits of our labors accruing to the Chinese, the Indians, the Japanese and others who have not embraced the type of silly, superficial liberalism that is being spewed by our political leaders and celebrities – and widely publicized by a media that has compromised its journalistic ethics for corporate privileges doled out piecemeal by the politicians they pretend to cover.

Bottom line: take care of yourself and your family first. Be well and be safe.

-- steve

Quote of the Day: “Freedom is not a laughing matter, nor can it be bought from those who do not have the right to sell it.” – steve

A reminder from OneCitizenSpeaking.com: a large improvement can result from a small change…

The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane. -- Marcus Aurelius

Reference Links:

Two children should be limit, says green guru - Times Online


“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it!
"Acta non verba" -- actions not words

“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw

“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”

“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS

"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius

“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell

“Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar

“Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS


White House: Middle Class Task Force or a diversionary "Project FEEL GOOD" to aid the unions?

Ignoring the government failure of the democrat “War on Poverty” initiative, it’s on to building “A Strong Middle Class …”

It is no secret that the democrat “War on Poverty” has been an abject failure and that the billions of dollars which have been spent on social engineering schemes to improve housing, education and employment opportunities have been severely compromised by a government riddled with waste, fraud, corruption and cronyism – not to mention politicians who act in their own self-interest to achieve their own political or personal profit goals.

It is against this failed democrat initiative that the democrats, once again, attempt to enlarge government and reward their special interest friends under the guise of improving the lives of middle class Americans.

Rewarding the unions who supported Obama?

According to CNSNews.com …

“Vice President Joe Biden says the goal of a new White House task force is to raise middle-class living standards.
At the request of President Barack Obama, Biden will chair the Middle Class Task force along with other Cabinet members and Obama advisers. President Obama announced the task force on Friday.”

““Over the upcoming months, we will focus on answering those concerns that matter most to families,” says the task force Web site, called AStrongMiddleClass.gov. ‘What can we do to make retirement more secure? How can we make child and elder care more affordable? How do we improve workplace safety? How are we going to get the cost of college within reach? What can we do to help weary parents juggle work and family? What are the jobs of the future that we can begin to create?’”

YOU BET!

“The goals of the task force are plums for the labor unions that supported Obama’s presidential bid. Those goals include:

  • Expanding education and lifelong training opportunities
  • Improving work and family balance
  • Restoring labor standards, including workplace safety
  • Helping to protect middle-class and working-family incomes
  • Protecting retirement security”

PROOF …

“At the same press conference where he announced the Middle Class Task Force, President Barack Obama signed three several executive orders intended to  ‘level the playing field’ for labor unions in struggles with management.”

" ‘I do not view the labor movement as part of the problem. To me, it's part of the solution,’ Obama said, prompting applause. ‘You cannot have a strong middle class without a strong labor movement.’"

Sounds like typical Marxist labor union rhetoric to me! An the last statement, “You cannot have a strong middle class without a strong labor movement" is an outright lie!

Obama rewards the unions with favorable executive orders …

  • “Require federal contractors to offer jobs to current workers when contracts change.”
  • “Reverse a Bush order requiring federal contractors to post notices telling workers they can limit their financial support of unions serving as their exclusive bargaining representatives.”
  • “Prevent federal contractors from being reimbursed for expenses intended to influence workers deciding whether to form a union and engage in collective bargaining.”

The first executive order appears to limit the flexibility of a government contractor to re-staff with personnel with specific experience to meet the demands of the new contract.

The second executive order is probably unconstitutional on the grounds that it limits an employer’s right to free speech regarding political activities.

The third executive order is probably ineffective, since government contractors have evolved billing practices to hide everything from offering special favors and perks to government employees and politicians (yes, I know this might be an illegal activity – but it still occurs) and to creating fictitious overhead accounts to hide expenses.

Weakening America?

While Obama is eulogizing the benefits of trade unions, let us consider a happening event. Trade unions threatening the peace, prosperity and functioning of sovereign governments.

“The gloom surrounding this year’s World Economic Forum descended into confrontation yesterday as international labour leaders launched a withering attack on the 1,400 business executives and 41 heads of government at Davos over what the labour leaders alleged was their failure to respond effectively to a deepening crisis of their own creation.”

“Guy Ryder, the general secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), said that the current financial turmoil had triggered a social time bomb that would lead to deepening civil unrest and soaring crime.”

“The comments from the confederation, which represents 168 million workers in 157 countries, are the most ferocious example yet of a backlash that has persuaded many who attend frequently to stay away from Davos this year.”

Scared Politicians …

“Yesterday Alistair Darling, the Chancellor, became the latest political figure to stay away from the meeting, after a similar move by David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary.”

“Mr Ryder, speaking as strikes involving hundreds of thousands of workers erupted across France and Germany, told The Times: ‘We are on the road to serious social instability, which could be extremely dangerous in some countries to democracy itself.’”  <Source>

While these European trade unions could not manage a strike to shut down multiple countries in the European Union, they did manage to cause the government to spend additional sums of money on security and contingency planning.

Obama: Ignoring a clear and present danger to America?

An ever-expanding government along with an ever-expanding public employee’s union and an ever-expanding union presence in the private sector presents a clear and present Marxist-style danger to America and the American way of life. All aided and abetted by far-left liberal democrat politicians like Barack Obama, Teddy Kennedy, John Kerry, Hillary Clinton and their fellow travelers like George Soros.

This, folks, is the fifth column, the enemy from within who will most likely be a participant in the trashing of America. These insiders with access to political and financial power – and the very secrets which are used to protect this nation from evildoers – is an unprecedented threat. Want proof? Just consider the damage done by spies who leaked our nuclear secrets and those who enabled others to gain access to our classified information and computer systems. This is nothing more than the institutionalization of foreign spying under the guise of union fellowship and collective bargaining.

And while there are many patriotic union workers who have made tremendous sacrifices for their country, one must wonder about the union’s leadership and their potential role in compromising the nation’s security in times of labor unrest.

Suggestions for fulfilling the Administration’s leadership role …

On the assumption that President Obama is sincere about his middle class initiative, let us play along.

If President Obama and Vice President Biden were truly serious about fulfilling their leadership roles in strengthening the middle class, they would ignore the rantings of the far left anti-nuke, anti-war, open borders pro-union and anti-America crowd and proceed with a plan so simple that even government personnel can understand it …

Solution One:


To: White House Middle Class Task Force

If you were serious about your goals: you would immediately fast track nuclear power plant constructions. Thus solving the need to provide good paying jobs, relive us of energy dependence and mitigate global climate concerns. This solution will result in lower energy costs for the middle class and is a total win-win solution.

Forty plus years of new technology has rendered many of the old concerns about nuclear energy moot. Of course, there are those activists left over from the cold war who have infiltrated the environmental movement and continue to spew out-of-date horror stories and other anti-nuke, anti-war and anti-American propaganda to the media. There is no doubt in my mind that nuclear energy can and will fulfill all of our needs for a clean, sustainable and low-cost source of energy. Not only will this benefit all Americans, but it will also allow the United States to pursue a rational foreign policy that will allow the United States to deal with overbearing  two-faced funders of terrorist activities such as Saudi Arabia – but will also reverse our complicit funding of those who do not wish us well.

However, because many of the foreign nations have partially-owned subsidiaries in the United States and employ a legion of lawyers, lobbyists and public relations counsel, it is unknown if the needs of the American public can transcend traditional democrat machine politics.

Solution Two:


To: White House Middle Class Task Force

If you want to improve middle class life, remove the burden imposed by illegal aliens who are destroying our healthcare, education, judicial, retirement, social and cultural infrastructure. Prevent the balkanization of our nation along class, ethnic, racial and sexual divides.

The democrats are traditionally associated with the balkanization of American citizens into separate victimhood constituencies along class, racial, ethnic and sexual lines. It is then by developing a coalition of these victim fringe groups do they gain enough votes to swing an election. Democrats are traditionally dividers, not uniters – in spite of their loft rhetoric. And the time, effort and money to reward these fringe groups heavily impinges on the middle class American who does not regard themselves as a victim of anything but their government.

There is no doubt that we are being demographically bombed by foreign nations who are attempting to subvert our traditional values by a preponderance of illegal aliens who hope to become naturalized citizens with a stroke of the democrat pen. In Los Angeles, it is not unusually to see candidates for office and elected officials pander to the illegal alien activists; thus resulting in some sections of Los Angeles looking and behaving like little Tijuana. Our California State budget has been crippled by special interest spending on the public employee unions and social engineering in favor of illegal aliens. It appears that it may only be a matter of time when the middle class citizens of California are driven from their homes by an alien culture in which they are a minority.

Solution Three:


To: White House Middle Class Task Force

It would be reasonable to assume that a reduction in government size, reducing the bureaucratic paper-shuffling and administrivia that passes for government business would speed up government oversight and reduce the paperwork burdens on American business and the individual citizen. It would also go a long way to reducing the fraud, corruption, waste and cronyism that we seen in a hyper-partisan Administration.

I have personally witnessed the creation and processing of paperwork which serves little or no practical purpose. Reports and studies which are produced weekly, monthly, quarterly and annually which are never read or used for public policy decisions. “Just in case” paperwork to cover the sorry asses of government employees who are seeking plausible deniability or insulation from the consequences of their actions.

On numerous occasions we find that millions – and even billions of the taxpayer’s hard-earned money has gone missing in a plethora of accounting systems, none of which seem to be able to keep an accurate record of monies received and authorized amounts expended. Especially when government funds are used to fund community or state initiatives. This lack of accounting – both of money and responsibility – is unduly impacting all citizens, not just the poor and middle class.

Solution Four …


To: White House Middle Class Task Force

We need to overlook the input of celebrities and those who are financially and socially insulated from the consequences of their silly "feel good" policies which waste time, effort and money rather than provide a tangible, measurable benefit to the American public. Enough of the "feel good" media-related projects which do absolutely nothing to improve life and are used only to show government in action.

The reason much of the silliness exists in governmental programs, is that celebrities who can provide campaign donations and free media face time push initiatives from which they are financially and socially insulated. Most celebrities have deep-rooted psychological problems which make them fight for recognition and pursue programs which make them feel both relevant and good. Is it any wonder that they hold any number of self-celebratory fundraising ceremonies and awards programs. I personally know of one prestigious award that was decided more on the basis of who could underwrite the evening’s celebration and bring in the largest number of large contributors than for any real individual achievement.

So while someone like famed director Rob Reiner, said to have had aspirations to be the governor of California, managed to push through an initiative to use the proceeds of tobacco taxes for the benefit of children; his efforts resulted in personal embarrassment (for the alleged misuse of collected funds) and billions of interest bearing dollars diverted to accounts which are now being eyed by Arnold Schwarzenegger and other California politicians as a means for helping erase part of California’s budgetary woes. Many regarded this effort as nothing more than the standard California democrat liberal fare of building a day-care/baby-sitting infrastructure to benefit illegal aliens and union members. 

I responded, will you?

The strength of our great nation lies in the contributions of the individuals which productively contribute to society – and not the energy-sapping victim/entitlement crowd that seems to dominate today’s politics. Surely there are any number of competent and knowledgably individuals that can provide ideas to this task force.

Even though the Task Force and their web site might be just another democrat ploy to attract favorable media attention and to coerce the public into believing that they can influence government policy making, and on the theory that there might really be someone that is looking at their web-based idea submissions, rather than using an electronic calculation of the most frequently appearing words, I took the time to submit these solutions on the task force’s official website. Although it has been my experience that the Administration’s minions regularly ignore citizen input in favor of lobbyists, campaign contributors and the special interests who can deliver funding and voters, perhaps if a number of like-minded individuals also participate, they might get the message.

Lipstick on a pig: websites, flashy graphics and audio files …

To be sure, repackaging old concepts with modern technology does not prove that the original premise that governmental interference in one’s life is either necessary or beneficial. In fact, it resonates with a message of “don’t do as we do, do as we say” that is often prevalent in an increasing “nanny” state.

But if we don’t try to influence public policy and fail to create a grass-roots response to an ever-increasing government whose actions are becoming increasingly self-serving, we have no one to blame other than ourselves.

What can YOU do?

Recognize that government initiatives are often not what they seem. They are little more than media events to portray the Administration and individual politicians in a positive light. In this case, the single most important question to ask those who spout twaddle about the “middle class.” HOW DO YOU DEFINE THE MIDDLE CLASS? All the while noting that they will resist providing a definition lest someone accidently assume that they are a part of the middle class and may be entitled to additional government-sponsored benefits. It is also wise to note that it has traditionally been the middle class that is soaked for financial support to be distributed to those said to be of an impoverished class. But then again, President Obama warned you that he did believe in the Marxist concept of wealth redistribution.

Get involved. Even if all you do is cast an informed vote, you need to get involved. Talk to your family, neighbors, co-workers and others about how you believe government should be run and try to obtain a consensus voting block – based not on party politics, telegenic and well-spoken candidates – but those candidates who appear to be knowledgeable and have a record of tangible achievement.

Put celebrities in their proper perspective. Paid performers who are well-compensated to entertain, inform and divert your attention from life’s little problems. Sean Penn may be a great actor/director, but does anyone believe that his cozying up to malevolent dictators such as Fidel Castro or Hugo Chavez should be taken seriously. Penn, the son of an ardent leftist, is not the face of America; he is just another citizen entitled to his opinion – no more and no less. Listening to Penn on political matters would, if taken to the obvious conclusion, result in a Marxist/collectivist state. Unfortunately, Hillary Clinton, with somewhat of the same leftist views is now our Secretary of State under a President who may share similar views. You need to get involved lest these people destroy the character of American and help turn the United States into the American Union.

Vote for candidates who have a record of speaking the truth and a positive record of accomplishment. Forget the political parties which have wreaked havoc on the United States in their quest to gain or retain their political power – plundering the U.S. Treasury at will on behalf of their political friends.

Take care of yourself first, be well and be safe.

-- steve

Quote of the day: “We have met the enemy and they is us.” – Walt Kelly, Creator of the Pogo cartoon

A reminder from OneCitizenSpeaking.com: a large improvement can result from a small change…

The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane. -- Marcus Aurelius

Reference Links:

CNSNews.com - Obama Administration Aims to Raise ‘Middle Class’ Living Standards

Unions condemn delegates on crisis - Times Online


“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it!
"Acta non verba" -- actions not words

“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw

“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”

“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS

"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius

“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell

“Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar

“Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS


Democrat Stimulus: Rewards to their radical political friends, special interests, unions and institutionalizing the type of corruption seen in democrat-controlled venues ...

This is pork barrel spending, pure and simple …

This is no stimulus package, it is a thinly disguised $825 BILLION (+347 billion in interest if paid off by 2020) rip-off of the American taxpayer in favor of the labor unions, radical leftists and socialists, the special interests and those who do not wish America to prosper.

This egregious piece of legislation, the largest single piece of economic law in history was crafted by a single party, did not go through any of the normal congressional committee hearings, was not subject to serious challenge and was passed with about one hour of discussion. Although the Republicans refused to vote for the stimulus program, the democrats pushed the bill through the House.

This is a more egregious example of democrats buying votes and financial support with their earmarks and social engineering programs.

Consider for a moment exactly how the following items will bring us our of our financial recession …

$1 BILLION for Amtrak which continues to require increasing subsidies to operate

$2 BILLION for childcare subsidies (expensive babysitting)

$2.4 BILLION for carbon capture demonstration projects

$650 million for digital television coupons (so the content owners can enforce copyright controls and bring you the latest pro Obama government propaganda)

$600 million for new government vehicles (over and above the direct bailout funds to the automakers and the money already allocated for their fuel-efficiency conversion efforts.)

$400 million for global warming research (provided the results are politically correct)

$50 million to the National Endowment for the Arts which produces little or nothing of tangible economic value.

$335 million for the Pelosi STD (sexually transmitted disease) program which will have a negligible effect on the economy.

Including money for such left-wing radical groups such as ACORN who were at the heart of the financial crisis with their “affordable housing initiatives” and who attempted to subvert the election process in favor of the democrats. Also money for educational activism groups which further push the liberal victimhood agenda of political correctness, multi-Culturalism and diversity by the numbers.

None of these items will repair our crippled financial institutions or  move our economy out of the doldrums ...

Bailing out Mexico and the illegal aliens …

The democrats are clearly sending a message to the unions and those who wish open borders that they are willing to assist illegal aliens …

The legislation, which now contains tax credits of $500 per worker and $1,000 per couple, appears to expressly disqualifies nonresident aliens, but contains a loophole which would allow people who don't have Social Security numbers to be eligible for the checks.

The bill would allow anyone with an ITIN (Individual Taxpayer Identification Number) to qualify for the tax credits – even if they paid no income tax. ITINs are provided by the IRS without regard to citizenship to enable those who work illegally in the United States to open bank accounts and access other social services.

One should remember that one of Mexico’s greatest source of hard-currency income are the remittances from thousands of illegal aliens living in the United States and sending money back home.

Why the rush …

According to the Congressional Budget Office, almost half of the stimulus package would not be spend until 2011, so the jobs they are proposing to create would come years after the passage of this particular bill.

“Spending Under H.R. 1. H.R. 1, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, as introduced in the House of Representatives on January 26, 2009, would result in additional spending of $604 billion over the 2009-2019 period, CBO estimates. About 15 percent of that spending would occur in the remaining several months of fiscal year 2009; another 37 percent would be spent in 2010. A total of almost 80 percent of the cumulative 11-year spending would occur from 2009 through 2011. (In addition to that spending, H.R.1 would reduce [tax and other] revenues by an estimated $212 billion over the 2009-2019 period.)”

Double or triple funding of existing programs …

“Moreover, under H.R. 1, some programs would receive funding that is significantly above (double, triple, or more) the amounts provided for existing or similar programs in recent years.”

My conclusion is that most of the job growth would occur in the public rather than the private sector – and what jobs may be directly be attributable to infrastructure funding would probably be under the control of the union, with all of its wage, benefits and work rules siphoning off both dollars and productivity. We can rest assured, based on historical projects, that any union project is likely to involve significant delays, massive cost overruns and an end-product which is somewhat less than first imagined.

Progress bound to be impeded by bureaucratic inertia …

“Frequently in the past, in all types of federal programs, a noticeable lag has occurred between sharp increases in budget authority and the resulting increases in outlays. Based on such experiences, CBO expects that federal agencies, along with states and other recipients of that funding, would find it difficult to properly manage and oversee a rapid expansion of existing programs so as to expend the added funds as quickly as they expend the resources provided for their ongoing programs.”

This is the type of government program which encourages waste, fraud, abuse, cronyism and results in the corruption of government workers. Historically, massive amounts of money (in the billions) have remained unaccounted for in fast-track government programs which featured expediency over prudent management. And with the democrats, one can rest assured that graft and corruption will follow the money.

Legislating governmental corruption …

“Actions that Could Accelerate Spending. CBO has not analyzed the various programs in detail in order to identify the specific steps that might be taken in each case to speed up spending. Some possibilities for accelerating spending in infrastructure and other grant programs include changing federal standards and requirements by:

    • Waiving requirements for environmental and judicial reviews;
    • Allowing contracts and grants to be awarded outside the normal competitive bidding process;
    • Waiving maintenance-of-effort requirements for state and local governments; and
    • Changing the way funds are distributed. For example, spending for some education programs might be sped up if the federal government used formulas instead of competitive processes to distribute funds. In the case of transportation projects, it could mean waiving formulas and instead giving priority to those grantees that are able to get to contract most quickly.”

Remember when the liberal left democrats excoriated President Bush over the Halliburton “no bid” contracts which were issued when Halliburton appeared to be the only company that could perform the required services in an accelerated time frame … well here is the exact same thing that is being considered to be legislatively implemented by the democrats. Hypocrisy, to say the least.

More of the same …

“Some funds for infrastructure projects might also be spent more quickly if recipients were:

    • Offered financial incentives for work completed within one to two years of enactment;
    • Given deadlines for obligating funds;
    • Given the authority to ‘pre-award’ contracts (that is, award contracts before all of the currently required approvals and certifications are obtained); and
    • Allowed to self-certify compliance with certain standards (federal agencies would then review paperwork and documentation after projects have begun).”

Financial incentives without controls often results in hasty, shoddy work which is a clear and present danger to the safety of American citizens. Pre-awards involve monies advanced to entities which can be spent on other projects, and should the project fail to get the necessary approvals, be irretrievably lost as the “special purpose” limited liability company formed for a particular venture simply files for bankruptcy – while the rest of the company moves on. And we all know that self-certification without controls, and severe penalties (not just money paid by the corporation but mandated jail time for its executives) is bound to result in further corruption of the system.

The scariest chart ever ...

Capture1-29-2009-6.02.31 PM

This chart, courtesy of the St. Louis Federal Reserve, shows the amount of currency in circulation. As you can plainly see, the largest early recessions/depressions (shown as gray bars) did not require huge stimulus injections. Now look at the sharp rise in money ... this is the prescription for future inflation which will rob us of purchasing value and sink future prosperity.

What can YOU do?

Observe the monumental hypocrisy of the democrats who are excoriating executive for their multi-million dollar bonuses while they dole out billions to their friends.

Considering that much of this money will be spent over a number of years, the democrats appear to be buying votes which require the recipients of these funds to vote democrat to keep the funds flowing, are you willing to cede political power to the democrats on the basis of special interest spending?

Consider also that it is unlikely that the democrat-controlled Justice Department would prosecute those who flagrantly abused the process or diverted funding as it would reflect poorly on the Administration’s oversight activities.

Consider that it is also unlikely that the mainstream media would report such events as it would run counter to their tacit support during the election cycle.

Consider that it is improbable that all of the politicians who are supporting this bill have thoroughly read and understand its 647 pages along with the supplementary materials.

You need to write your Republican Congressional representatives to thank them for remaining strong in the face of an ill-conceived, ill-advised and ill-timed program that would simply institutionalize democrat pork-barrel politics instead of providing a needed stimulus to our economy. 

You need to write to your democrat Congressional Representative to remind them that you will hold them responsible for the results of this package in 2010 and 2012.

Recessions rarely last long compared with cycles of prosperity and are often over before we see the benefits of Congressional remedies or stimulus efforts.  So consider also that this stimulus package is likely to promote disastrous inflationary or deflationary results since much of the money might be spent after the economic recovery is under way.

This stimulus package is a naked power grab by the democrats and one that is likely to move the United States down the road to socialism at a pace which may preclude remedy and mitigating action. Ask yourself, are you are willing to sell out America for a paltry $500 and the promise of future entitlements.

And consider that this governmental power grab is likely to be accelerated by the next fake crisis – global warming.

This is nothing short of an economic apocalypse!

-- steve

Quote of the Day: “If the politicians can monetize the political process and control the direct distribution of money, they can turn our nation over to our enemies without so much as single shot being fired.” – steve

A reminder from OneCitizenSpeaking.com: a large improvement can result from a small change…

The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane. -- Marcus Aurelius

Reference Links:

An Assessment of How Spending from the Economic Stimulus Proposals Currently Before the Congress Could Be Accelerated|Congressional Budget Office

H.R. 1 - American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009

“Making supplemental appropriations for job preservation and creation, infrastructure investment, energy efficiency and science, assistance to the unemployed, and State and local fiscal stabilization, for fiscal year ending September 30, 2009, and for other purposes.”

“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it!
"Acta non verba" -- actions not words

“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw

“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”

“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS

"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius

“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell

“Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar

“Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS


AL GORE: A FEW MORE INCONVENIENT QUESTIONS ABOUT HIS APPEARANCE BEFORE A CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEE ...

Today, Congress and the media were complicit in providing a forum to former Vice President Al Gore in order to commercially advertise and advocate for his global warming initiative. All of which leads me to ask a few inconvenient questions:

Question One: Why the Senate Foreign Relations Committee  and not the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works?

While a case may be made for hearing Al Gore’s speechifying before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the basis of their oversight of international treaties that would be used to implement any foreign agreements relating to global climate change, it is my contention that this presentation would have been more carefully considered under the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, whose Ranking Member, James Inhofe (R-OK) has done extensive work to shed light on the issue of global climate change and which is more than a rubber stamp for majority democrat positions which lead to bigger government, higher taxes and the incremental reduction in the freedoms of the average United States Citizen. 

Question Two: While it is widely assumed that you cannot lie to a Congressional Committee, why was Al Gore’s so-called testimony not submitted under oath?

It seems prudent to me that if any Senate Committee accepts what they widely characterize as “testimony,” that such information be submitted in a sworn statement by someone who is administered an oath to “tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.”

Question Three: Where the scientists who can refute Al Gore’s one-sided view of global climatology and why were the American people denied access to such testimony in order to present the issue in a fair and balanced manner?

The purpose of solicited testimony is to present Congress and the American people with the background information needed to develop effective, efficient and informed public policy legislation. It is not to promote the positions of a single political party or advocate for the self-serving enlargement of government; at least not without be subject to further scrutiny.

Question Four: Why is nobody questioning Al Gore’s apparent conflict of interest since he owns an interest in an enterprise which will be the recipient of any government funding for global warming?

Congress is known to cast a jaundiced eye on oil company executives when they are testifying, under oath, for the need to increase offshore drilling or executives and others who testify for the need to greatly expand our nuclear energy capabilities if we are ever to achieve some measure of energy independence.

Question Five: Why is Al Gore’s commercial enterprise based off-shore and out of reach of United States regulatory agencies which regulate financial offerings of a commercial nature?

Here is a former Vice President of the United States seeking billions of dollars for his pet project and yet his main commercial enterprise, Generation Investment Management, LLP  is based in London where it is regulated by the Financial Services Authority rather than the more stringent United States Regulatory Agencies and Commissions. For all intents and purposes, this company appears to be just another unregulated hedge fund that is preparing to capitalize on “cap and trade” programs as well as manage a global pool of capital in making so-called “green” investments. It should be noted that the brains behind the enterprise is David Blood, formerly the chief executive of Goldman Sachs Asset Management. Amusingly, the firm is nicknamed “Blood and Gore” based on the founder’s last names.

Gore’s other major effort,the Alliance for Climate Protection, is based in the United States and by their own literature is “aiming to persuade people of the importance, urgency and feasibility of adopting and implementing effective and comprehensive solutions for the climate crisis" Of course the Alliance for Climate Protection is a 501(c)3 organization and contributions made to the Alliance are tax deductible.

Question Five: Why is no one challenging Gore’s assertion that Carbon Dioxide is the prime trigger and/or contributor to global warming when CO2 is more plant food than pollution?

Statement to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee As Prepared

The dangerous and growing threat – a crisis (of course nobody would listen if there were not an artificially induced panic over a crisis)

“We are here today to talk about how we as Americans and how the United States of
America as part of the global community should address the dangerous and growing
threat of the climate crisis
.”

Need for immediate action … (quick, before you have time to think about it or adverse scientific facts are revealed)

“We have arrived at a moment of decision. Our home – Earth – is in grave danger. What is at risk of being destroyed is not the planet itself, of course, but the conditions that have made it hospitable for human beings. Moreover, we must face up to this urgent and unprecedented threat to the existence of our civilization at a time when our country must simultaneously solve two other worsening crises.”

Linking real problems with artificial ones … (a prime example of the left’s attempting to create equivalency between clear and present dangers and not-so-clear and not-so-present dangers)

“Our economy is in its deepest recession since the 1930s. And our national security is endangered by a vicious terrorist network and the complex challenge of ending the war in Iraq honorably while winning the military and political struggle in Afghanistan.

Truth be told, the current effects of this recession are less than those that occurred under another democrat administration, that of Jimmy Carter. And, of course, we need to gratuitously throw in “ending the war in Iraq” to appease those who do not wish us well – but continue to fund the democrat party.

“As we search for solutions to all three of these challenges, it is becoming clearer that they are linked by a common thread – our dangerous over-reliance on carbon-based fuels.”

“As long as we continue to send hundreds of billions of dollars for foreign oil – year after year – to the most dangerous and unstable regions of the world, our national security will continue to be at risk.”

“As long as we continue to allow our economy to remain shackled to the OPEC rollercoaster of rising and falling oil prices, our jobs and our way of life will remain at risk.”

I wonder if Al Gore has noticed that the current economic crisis was caused by the Wall Street Wizards who were playing games with the type of derivatives Al Gore and others propose for the energy markets, the extreme leverage of the banks as they sought to juice their investments, the unregulated non-insurance insurance that was sold to the ratings agencies to convince them to place an “investment grade” rating on junk securities, and the actions of unregulated hedge funds like the one he is currently running in England?

“Moreover, as the demand for oil worldwide grows rapidly over the longer term, even as the rate of new discoveries is falling, it is increasingly obvious that the roller coaster is headed for a crash. And we’re in the front car.
Most importantly, as long as we continue to depend on dirty fossil fuels like coal and oil to meet our energy needs, and dump 70 million tons of global warming pollution into the thin shell of atmosphere surrounding our planet, we move closer and closer to several dangerous tipping points which scientists have repeatedly warned – again just yesterday – will threaten to make it impossible for us to avoid irretrievable destruction of the conditions that make human civilization possible on this planet.”

Not only is this hyperbole of the worst kind … but he could have just said – implement a nuclear solution for power and 80% of your problem disappears, but nooooooo…. that would not serve the interests of the anti-war, anti-nuke, anti-America crowd.

“We're borrowing money from China to buy oil from the Persian Gulf to burn it in ways that destroy the planet. Every bit of that’s got to change.”

“For years our efforts to address the growing climate crisis have been undermined by the idea that we must choose between our planet and our way of life; between our moral duty and our economic well being. These are false choices. In fact, the solutions to the climate crisis are the very same solutions that will address our economic and national
security crises as well.”

Al Gore is dead wrong: these are correct choices – we should not cede our sovereignty, our economic future and our personal freedoms to benefit Gore and his fellow travelers as they make billions on the road to converting American into socialism. Our moral duty is to make America stronger, not weaker. And to base our actions on unproven and inaccurate “computer models” marks Gore as a self-serving dupe of those who do not wish the United States well. (Think George Soros whose funding is behind major initiatives to destroy American infrastructure)

“In order to repower our economy, restore American economic and moral leadership in the world and regain control of our destiny, we must take bold action now.”

Yes, I agree. We must take back our government from corrupt and self-serving politicians. We should tell Gore and those of his ilk to pound sand – preferably in Saudi Arabia.

“The first step is already before us. I urge this Congress to quickly pass the entirety of
President Obama’s Recovery package
. The plan’s unprecedented and critical investments in four key areas – energy efficiency, renewables, a unified national energy grid and the move to clean cars – represent an important down payment and are long overdue.”

“These crucial investments will create millions of new jobs and hasten our economic recovery – while strengthening our national security and beginning to solve the climate crisis.”

This is not true – and there are severe unintended consequences to allowing the democrats unfettered access to these funds – most of which are giant pork barrel projects for those who helped the democrats to win office.

And still no mention of nuclear energy …

“Quickly building our capacity to generate clean electricity will lay the groundwork for the next major step needed: placing a price on carbon. If Congress acts right away to pass President Obama's Recovery package and then takes decisive action this year to institute a cap-and-trade system for CO2 emissions – as many of our states and many other countries have already done – the United States will regain its credibility and enter the Copenhagen treaty talks with a renewed authority to lead the world in shaping a fair and effective treaty. And this treaty must be negotiated this year. Not next year. This year.”

Out credibility comes from our combined strength and resolve … not for appeasing European Socialists who are on their way to becoming the next conquest of IslamoFascists.

“A fair, effective and balanced treaty will put in place the global architecture that will place the world – at long last and in the nick of time – on a path toward solving the climate crisis and securing the future of human civilization.”

Complete and utter bullshit …

What chutzpah – solving the climate crisis, securing the future of human civilization? This man is corrupt, stupid and delusional. Of course, this is all aimed at the Messiah, the political deity who will either save us from extinction or move us down the road to socialism and a dictatorship. Where is this asshat’s proof of what he is saying. At this point it time it is all conjecture posed by those who have a self-serving agenda and whose scientific opinions have been compromised by political machinations.

“I am hopeful that this can be achieved. Let me outline for you the basis for the hope and optimism that I feel.”

“The Obama Administration has already signaled a strong willingness to regain U.S.
leadership on the global stage in the treaty talks, reversing years of inaction. This is
critical to success in Copenhagen and is clearly a top priority of the administration.

Developing countries that were once reluctant to join in the first phases of a global response to the climate crisis have themselves now become leaders in demanding action and in taking bold steps on their own initiatives. Brazil has proposed an impressive new plan to halt the destructive deforestation in that nation. Indonesia has emerged as a new constructive force in the talks. And China’s leaders have gained a strong understanding of the need for action and have already begun important new initiatives. Heads of state from around the world have begun to personally engage on this issue and forward-thinking corporate leaders have made this a top priority.”

This is complete and utter crap …

“More and more Americans are paying attention to the new evidence and fresh warnings from scientists. There is a much broader consensus on the need for action than there was when President George H.W. Bush negotiated – and the Senate ratified – the Framework Convention on Climate Change in 1992 and much stronger support for action than when we completed the Kyoto Protocol in 1997.”

Where are the non-political scientists testifying under oath? Where is the proof? In the mathematical models of an ethically-compromised computer modeler who is manipulating the raw data?

“Retired senior NASA atmospheric scientist Dr. John S. Theon, the former supervisor of James Hansen, NASA’s vocal man-made global warming fears soothsayer, has now publicly declared himself a skeptic and declared that Hansen ‘embarrassed NASA’ with his alarming climate claims and said Hansen was ‘was never muzzled.’ Theon joins the rapidly growing ranks of international scientists abandoning the promotion of anthropogenic global warming fears.”

“Theon declared ‘climate models are useless.’ ‘My own belief concerning anthropogenic climate change is that the models do not realistically simulate the climate system because there are many very important sub-grid scale processes that the models either replicate poorly or completely omit,’ Theon explained. ‘Furthermore, some scientists have manipulated the observed data to justify their model results. In doing so, they neither explain what they have modified in the observations, nor explain how they did it. They have resisted making their work transparent so that it can be replicated independently by other scientists. This is clearly contrary to how science should be done. Thus there is no rational justification for using climate model forecasts to determine public policy,’ he added.

“As Chief of several of NASA Headquarters’ programs (1982-94), an SES position, I was responsible for all weather and climate research in the entire agency, including the  research work by James Hansen, Roy Spencer, Joanne Simpson, and several hundred other scientists at NASA field centers, in academia, and in the private sector who worked on climate research.”

“Award-winning NASA Astronaut and Physicist Walter Cunningham of NASA’s Apollo 7 also recently chastised Hansen. ‘Hansen is a political activist who spreads fear even when NASA’s own data contradict him,’ Cunningham wrote in an essay in the July/August 2008 issue of Launch Magazine. ‘NASA should be at the forefront in the collection of scientific evidence and debunking the current hysteria over human-caused, or Anthropogenic Global Warming (AGW). Unfortunately, it is becoming just another agency caught up in the politics of global warming, or worse, politicized science,” Cunningham wrote.”  <Source>

According to Cunningham …

“NASA should be at the forefront in the collection of scientific evidence and debunking the current hysteria over human-caused, or Anthropogenic Global Warming (AGW). Unfortunately, it is becoming just another agency caught up in the politics of global warming, or worse, politicized science. Advocacy is replacing objective evaluation of data, while scientific data is being ignored in favor of emotions and politics.”

“There are excellent correlations between the regular fluctuations of the Sun and the Earth’s temperature, while scientists cannot find a relationship between industrial activity, energy consumption, and global temperatures. But global warming is an issue no longer being decided in the scientific arena.”

“Saying the Earth is warming is to state the obvious. Since the end of the ice age, the Earth’s temperature has increased approximately 16 degrees Fahrenheit and sea levels have risen a total of 300 feet. That is certain and measurable evidence of warming, but it is not evidence of AGW—human-caused warming.”

“We can track the temperature of the Earth back for millennia. Knowing the temperature of the Earth, past or present, is a matter of collecting data, analyzing it, and coming up with the best answer to account for the data. Collecting such data on a global basis is a NASA forte.”

I believe in global climate change, but there is no way that humans can influence the temperature of our planet to any measurable degree with the tools currently at their disposal.”

“Any human contribution to global temperature change is lost in the noise of terrestrial and cosmic factors.”

“Our beautiful home planet has been warming and cooling for the last 4.8 billion years. Most recently, it has been warming—be it ever so slightly—but there is nothing unusual about it! The changes and rates of change in the Earth’s temperature, just since the Industrial Revolution, have occurred many times in our climatic history. While climate scientists generally agree that the Earth’s temperature is always changing, not many of them would say that humans are responsible for those changes.”

None of this is to say there are not legitimate reasons to restrict emissions of any number of chemicals into the atmosphere. We should just not fool ourselves into thinking we will change the temperature of the Earth by doing so.” <Source>

According to AL Gore’s “testimony …”

“The elements that I believe are key to a successful agreement in Copenhagen include:

  • Strong targets and timetables from industrialized countries and differentiated but binding commitments from developing countries that put the entire world under a system with one commitment: to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other global warming pollutants that cause the climate crisis; 

Binding commitments which institutionalize control over our respective economies and populations.

  • The inclusion of deforestation, which alone accounts for twenty percent of the  emissions that cause global warming;

The halt to industrialization in third-world countries.

  • The addition of sinks including those from soils, principally from farmlands and grazing lands with appropriate methodologies and accounting. Farmers and ranchers in the U.S. and around the world need to know that they can be part of  the solution;

Further control over the world’s food supply and a possible move to legislate “vegetarianism.”

  • The assurance that developing countries will have access to mechanisms and resources that will help them adapt to the worst impacts of the climate crisis and technologies to solve the problem; and,

Wealth redistribution from the United States to other countries to either mitigate the financial impact of our policies on their economies and possibly as reparations for our damage to their portion of the planet with our outrageous and profligate behaviors.

  • A strong compliance and verification regime.”

The creation of an extra-judicial, world-wide police force that can bridge sovereignty issues as they interfere with the economies (and military) of other sovereign nations.

“The road to Copenhagen is not easy, but we have traversed this ground before. We have negotiated the Montreal Protocol, a treaty to protect the ozone layer, and strengthened it to the point where we have banned most of the major substances that create the ozone hole over Antarctica. And we did it with bipartisan support. President Ronald Reagan and Speaker of the House Tip O’Neill joined hands to lead the way.”

Cite bi-partisanship and throw in the work of a few revered conservative icons.

The Al Gore dog and pony show: Earth in the Balance – Part II … 

“Let me now briefly discuss in more detail why we must do all of this within the next year, and with your permission Mr. Chairman, I would like to show a few new pictures that illustrate the unprecedented need for bold and speedy action this year.”

The blind leading the blind …

“Thank you Mr. Chairman. I am eager to respond to any questions that you and the
members of the committee have.”

The questions should come from climate scientists not politicians who rarely read and/or understand the legislation they are voting on. Most politicians are vain, stupid and motivated by self-interest. And while they pretend to represent their constituencies, in reality, they represent the power players and special interests who funded their campaign and the groups who could turn out large vote counts.

Question Six: Why are those who have mismanaged our economy pushing so hard to allow stimulus and other governmental funds to be used to combat as yet unproven climate change public policy initiatives?

There is no doubt in my mind that billions of dollars of the taxpayer’s money have been siphoned off by nefarious corporations and individuals for uses never intended by Congress or the taxpayers whose pocket is being plucked by those of dubious character. By distracting and confusing the public about the exact use of these so-called bailout or stimulus funds, those who are complicit in the crime of the century will escape scot-free; and with enough money to faithfully reward those politicians and bureaucrats that enabled the theft; either through campaign contributions, honorariums and future employment for them and their relatives. 

Question Seven: Why do the global climate change poobahs never mention nuclear energy as the most effective way of curbing pollution and achieving energy independence which would strengthen our nations and insulate us from foreign domination by oil and gas blackmailers?

The short answer is that the “peace at any price” appeasers, the anti-nuke brigade of the Marxist/Communist party and others who do not wish us well have co-opted the environmental movement as a source of funding and as a political action weapon against the United States. Our enemy has learned how to generate funding from weak-minded individuals who profess to be “do-gooders” and to use our own laws against us – whether to cripple our economy by reducing water flow to Southern California (to save the delta smelt) or to cripple our military (by disallowing the use of sonar that is necessary to protect our coastlines from foreign vessels). Occasionally, these people will mention nuclear energy – which is green, sustainable and scalable – in the same breath as wind power, wave power, solar power and other unreliable, unscalable energy generators which require government subsidies to be commercially viable. Citing of course, forty-year old reactor technology and hoary tells of nuclear terror from the Chernobyl days.

In the same way low-level conflict is promoted by arms dealers, we find our enemies, the energy companies and the politicians complicit in milking the productivity of the American citizen for their own personal purposes. Wealth transfer to the rich and powerful while weakening the United States.

And the most important final question: How does one maintain accountability for funds when the very character and nature of global climate change precludes measuring and tracking any so-called progress improvement?

It is a fact that any man-made effort to control climate change cannot be directly measured as the global temperature measurements are little more than extrapolated estimates in regional areas and that any true effect on the global mean temperature will not be seen, if ever, for hundreds of years – long after we are dead and the money has disappeared into the pockets of a few wealthy families which will continue to control local and global politics through their purchased politicians.

Of course, there are artificial measures, such as tons of CO2 allegedly eliminated which are all based on corrupt reporting systems run by those with the most to gain from fudging the numbers.

The quiet revolution – funded by us!

Before we consider the traitorous nature of our politicians who are ceding political control to environmentalists and freebooters who are attempting to loot our treasury and enslave us in more government regulation and lifelong debt, perhaps we should open our eyes and stop this craziness before it continues past the tipping point: when we have lost control of our government to those who purchased it for a pittance and those who we are forced to serve via our everyday labor.

As never before, we face an enemy that is close to conquering the United States without a single shot being fired. By using our own politicians and citizens as a culpable fifth column who are willing to sell out America in exchange for campaign dollars, a comfortable lifestyle and the chance to feel good about themselves.

Funded by our enemies and those who do not wish us well, evildoers have infiltrated education, the government, the media and other critical infrastructure. It is these people who, wittingly and unwittingly, are advancing the causes of worldwide socialism. A threat far greater than IslamoFascism as it is not a clear and present danger – it is hidden among the many words and deeds of our corrupt and possibly well-meaning politicians as they continue to pursue a policy of fiscal neglect and social change.

Even the media cannot be trusted to sound the alarm – they are smitten with celebrity and the sound of their oh so politically correct voices. Imagine John Wayne meeting with Fidel Castro, Hugo Chavez or any other dictator and proclaiming that one one hand they appear to be murderous thugs, but on the other hand they appear to want the best for their people? Hard to imagine, unless you see an unrepentant Marxists-like liberals  like Sean Penn and Danny Glover spout such nonsense.

We are doing it to us. Middle America is being compromised by those from Manhattan to Malibu by way of Washington, D.C..

The acid test is simple: nuclear energy will provide us with energy independence, dramatically lower pollution, abundant and cost effect electrical power and will solve many of the problems that are claimed to be associated with global warming. So why are these global warming alarmists and others not pushing this solution.

Could it be that what I said about the infiltration of our infrastructure by the Marxists/Socialists/Communists and their old-style anti-war and anti-nuke agenda is running rampant in the United States – funded by a variety of liberal sources, both foreign and domestic – and being advanced by their fellow travelers? 

That’s the way I see it. Prove me wrong.

What can YOU do?

Am I the only one who noticed that we are proposing to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on climate research and computer modeling -- even though Al Gore tells us that the science is settled and that the majority of the scientists concur with his conclusions. Either the models are flawed and cannot be relied on to support a $6 TRILLION dollar policy decision -- or Al Gore is right and everything has already been determined. In my opinion, Al Gore is nothing but a jumped up grifter arrogantly demanding action and hoping nobody important calls "bullshit."

Before we spend more of our hard earned dollars on speculative climate ventures promoted by the socialists, communists, anarchists who have infiltrated the environmental movement in order to weaken the economy and military posture of the United States; before we cede our sovereignty to foreign-based organizations, panels and commissions which would be allowed to use the United States Courts to enforce their will upon American companies and people – let us prove, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that global climate change is more than just the natural variability of natural weather cycles and that the money that will be used to mitigate its effects would not be better spent on curbing pollution and becoming energy independent which will do more to improve our climate that the bullshit carbon cap and trade system that will only benefit the politicians, the Wall Street Wizards and our enemies.

You will notice that Senator John Kerry and other politicians and those with a vested interest, for either personal, professional or for profit reasons, speak in terms of certainty, of established scientific fact, in terms of crisis, catastrophe and the cost in human lives. With little more than climate models and supposition, these people want to, for their own purposes, dominate the United States and push it toward European socialism. They speak of the catastrophe that will be fall Earth if temperature rises only four degrees. And yet, it should be taken with a grain of salt. For those of you who are only enough to remember the United Nations’ dire predictions for a world beset with unbridled population growth – our nation, as well as the rest of the world, would have already experienced catestrophic breakdowns in social order and massive starvation. The United Nations was wrong then and they are wrong now. The difference is that nobody will be able to prove that our carbon reductions are having a climate effect, now, in our lifetime, and not for hundreds – if not thousands – of years. You must ask yourself, do we want to cede control of our nation to a group of politicians and special interest entities? The fruits of our labor, or more importantly, our freedoms? I think not.

Do not elect ideologues or political hacks that spout self-serving nonsense merely to get elected. Avoid those Marxists who, in the guise of liberal democrats, would sell out the United States to gain even a modicum of personal wealth and power.

Before we can do good for the world, let us consider doing good for ourselves.

Be well, be safe, and protect your life and money – nobody will do it for you unless they are on your payroll.

-- steve

Quote of the day: “Congress is like the weather, with a purpose that changes from day-to-day and can be predicted over the short term by taking the temperature of the surrounding public.” – steve

A reminder from OneCitizenSpeaking.com: a large improvement can result from a small change…

The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane. -- Marcus Aurelius

Reference Links:

Watch Gore’s “testimony” – Note: there is a late start to the committee hearing and you might want to scroll forward to 21:35 where the action commences and the sound begins. (Talk about wasted bandwidth)

Statements:

Senator Kerry's Opening Statement
Senator Lugar's Opening Statement

Witnesses:

The Honorable Albert A. Gore, Jr, Former Vice President of the United States, Nashville, TN


“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it!
"Acta non verba" -- actions not words

“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw

“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”

“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS

"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius

“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell

“Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar

“Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS


Republicans: Scared to do their jobs?

An imagined catastrophe …

The greatest catastrophe which can befall a politician is not getting elected or maintaining the office to which he holds or aspires. And the greatest catastrophe that can befall a political party, other than a severe imbalance in fundraising, is for its individual members to become professional, perpetual politicians who are afraid to do anything which might impact their candidacy in the next election cycle. Thus is born a cadre of gutless wonders who speak loudly and we all know where they keep their big stick.

You don’t win the hearts and minds of your constituents by abandoning your principles …

There is no doubt in my mind that the Republican Party’s Rockefeller wing has abandoned the conservative principles of Ronald Reagan. And that they listened to some political consultant who advised them that the American people were tired of strident rhetoric, continual strife and that the Republican Party needed to moderate its stance to attract those in the middle and those voters who were already sliced and diced by democrats into identifiable constituencies by race, ethnicity, class and citizenship. In essence, become the lite version of liberal democrats.

End result: disaster!

We all saw how that worked out. We got a Presidential Candidate who, when not openly disagreeing with his own party, was bed-hopping into the democrat camp in a display of bi-partisanship. Bi-partisanship which cost us the election and gave us some of the worst legislation ever to be crafted.

Mc-Cain Feingold opened up campaign finances to a Pandora’s box of evil outsiders, some of whom were foreign and precluded from financing an American election.

McCain-Kennedy immigration reform which was little more than amnesty for the illegal aliens who were already destroying our healthcare, education, judicial, retirement, social and cultural infrastructure.

McCain-Lieberman which attempted to institutionalize the myth of global warming and which would have led to a severe disruption in our economy and military affairs. Like man is responsible for the global weather and can change it by empowering the Wall Street Wizards to create and trade carbon credits. 

And even though he was denied the Presidency, McCain and his democrat pal Joseph Lieberman and his RINO (Republican In Name Only) Lindsey Graham continue to provide aid and comfort to the democrat party.

The Republican Leadership is upset …

  Now we find that the Republican Leaders are turning on conservative radio talk show hosts who are criticizing their leadership, or lack thereof, and pointing out the obvious: there are fewer Republicans in office due to their failed election strategies. They talk tough about how talk radio is only confusing the base and helping to erode their efforts to re-constitute the party’s brand. In essence, the continue to support the democrat position that conservative talk radio must be silenced, perhaps by a return of the so-called “Fairness Doctrine” under the guise of establishing a new concern for “localism.” Eschewing the nationally syndicated powerhouse talkers in favor of local talkers who are unable to command such a major audience as to influence party politics.

The cowards whine …

While these politicians whine that talk radio show hosts are making their leadership roles difficult, the truth is they are afraid. Afraid that attacking a sitting President with high approval numbers will alienate them from their constituency which will ultimately affect their candidacy in the next election cycle.

Too bad they don’t have the smarts to understand that you are not attacking the President or even the democrat party – you are describing the principles for which you stand and the positions you are willing to support in the face of fierce opposition.

It is not so much the need to attack the democrats as it is to put forth a fair, honest and ethical platform and invite all those in agreement to help you achieve your political goals. The trick is to pick issues that resonate with the people and point out that those who simply offer more and more entitlements in return for political support are bankrupting the nation.

In addition, it is time to put aside the “old club” rules which forbid attacks on fellow politicians. It is time to point our hypocrisy and corruption wherever it is found. It is time to say no to the special interests who tell the politicians that they can’t win without their tainted money and votes.

It is time for the people to take back their government …

It is time that we told the politicians, face-to-face, that they will be thrown out of office if they continue to engage in political maneuvers which hurt their constituents and support the special interests. That the people would rather see an ethical politician from the other party rather than a hypocritical and corrupt one from their own party in office.

Rush, Hannity, Levin …

The conservative talk show hosts are merely facilitators of the conversation. They are mirrors which reflect back their audience’s opinions on a variety of subjects, some important and some not so important. The hosts help to clarify the subjects being discussed.

And the reason they are hated by the opposition is because they give rise to a national discussion of the issues. Callers who disagree with the host’s position are often given quicker access to the host than those who agree. For it is only when the host challenges those who disagree with the host’s position, does the entire story unfold on the national stage. Silliness and stupidity are exposed and the American people can develop an informed opinion. No doubt why politicians in both political parties want to mitigate the power of talk radio.

These hosts are made more powerful by the mainstream media which either deliberately shades the truth in order to mix unacknowledged political commentary into their reporting or try to fit complex subjects into 3-minute segments. There is no doubt that the mainstream media skews left in favor of liberal democrats. And there is no doubt that they compromised their journalistic ethics to support an unknown candidate; one who has not been fully vetted to this day.

Suspicions of a stalking horse …

Some are beginning to believe that Obama and his fellow Clintonistas were the best thing to happen. It provides the Republican party with a plausible reason for the continued failure of democrat policies and takes the sting out of a Republican Administration which abandoned conservative principles – leading to domestic economic chaos and somewhat a failure of foreign affairs. Yes, they did keep the nation safe after 9/11 – but in the minds of many Americans, it was the way they went about it that rankled. How stupid must you be to consider waterboarding torture after watching Daniel Pearl or Nick Berg beheaded on video by the terrorists?

Never forget …

Who cares what the cheese-eating surrender monkeys in France think about America? Who cares what nations, who owe their existence and economies to America, thinks about our politics. Only those who do not wish us well, the democrats and their media friends. And unfortunately, they were able to parlay a confluence of stage-managed events into an election winning coalition. But, as we can easily anticipate, they will return to their ethical roots and be quickly mired in a cesspool of waste, fraud and corruption.

For those requiring an object lesson, see if you can view the following two videos – and then condemn America for its actions.

The first strike …

The second strike …

I purposely did not include the footage of the terrorist beheading of journalist Daniel Perl or communications worker Nicholas Berg.

Torture and atrocities which kill and maim their own citizens are commonplace in Islamic Countries. And while there are those who condemn those in the United States for betraying our national principles and engaging in torture – this is a media-driven story put forth by those who hate America. These are the people who are siding with an enemy who would rather kill every man, woman and child that has not sworn allegiance to the Islam faith and the mullahs who administer it.

These are the people who really want to shut down talk radio …

Before you condemn talk radio and claim that it is doing a disservice to America, consider exactly who is left to speak the truth to the American people and those who lead this great nation.

What can YOU do?

Realize that the truth is often repugnant to those politicians who are complicit in wrongdoing. People like Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid and the ilk want only their spin-doctored and tested viewpoint to be carried to the American people. So it is in our best interests to demand that our elected officials keep their hands off the media, especially talk radio.

The mainstream media, typified by NBC, is in the tank for Obama and the far left liberal democrats. Whether for the purposes of securing a corporate advantage, funding or simply following their leaderships liberal left viewpoint, the journalistic ethics of the mainstream media have been severely compromised and one can hardly regard the failing New York Times as the newspaper of national record. 

Be careful when listening to politicians. They will lie, cheat, steal and say or do anything to obtain and remain in office.

Be safe, be well – and vote for YOUR interests and those of AMERICA first. You can no longer trust your political party or their leadership.

-- steve

Quote of the Day: “Freedom of Speech means listening to those things you abhor in order to develop your own viewpoint of events which others see differently.” -- steve

A reminder from OneCitizenSpeaking.com: a large improvement can result from a small change…

The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane. -- Marcus Aurelius

Reference Links:


“Nullius in verba”-- take nobody's word for it!
"Acta non verba" -- actions not words

“Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”-- George Bernard Shaw

“Progressive, liberal, Socialist, Marxist, Democratic Socialist -- they are all COMMUNISTS.”

“The key to fighting the craziness of the progressives is to hold them responsible for their actions, not their intentions.” – OCS

"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius

“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell

“Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt." (The people gladly believe what they wish to.) ~Julius Caesar

“Describing the problem is quite different from knowing the solution. Except in politics." ~ OCS