Rants and Raves........

On President Obama....

Is this guy an idiot or what??? Says no way Israel has the “green light” to takeout Iran’s nuclear enrichment facilities......

On Joe Biden....

Is this guy an idiot or what??? Says Israel has “the right” to deal with Iran any way it sees fit......I think these guys better get on the same page.

On Al Franken....

A true show of class.....this is what we really need in the Senate...a guy pictured in a diaper....zero political experience unless you call really bad scripts for SNL politics.....

On Alec Baldwin.....

The word is he wants to add “Senator” to his resume which includes movie star, TV star, radio talk show host...uh...well...scratch that....nobody listened. Hopefully this holds true with regard to his political aspirations.

On Sarah Palin........

Time to climb out of the igloo if she wants a national stage....good move to resign with plenty of time to remake herself for 2012. Unfortunately, she is not the answer to what ails our country, unless she runs as a Libertarian, which she isn’t and won’t......

On Michelle Obama.....

“You’re getting $600. What can you do with that?.......buy a pair of earrings.” Is she serious? Her remark is not unlike the mantra of the left with respect to persons of wealth...”They don’t need that much money....” BTW, her selection of outfits for the Russian trip was outstanding, perhaps a bit risqué with a bold selection of accessories.........

On Global Warming, I mean Cooling, I mean.......

I’m not that smart, but at a time when 90% of the world’s glaciers are growing, and 46 out of the 57 states have reported record low temperature for the month of June, and the average temperature has fallen nearly a degree (F°) since 2006, does this mean global warming or global cooling? Man, oh, man, were we duped. Do you think the U.S. Senate will read this in time to toss out Cap and Tax?

On Michael Jackson and Rep. King.....

Please, JUST SHUT THE HELL UP!!! What makes the Republican King better than the Democrat King when it comes to talking about the King of Pop? I think the GOP is just about done. Can we please focus on public policy and 86 the commentary on Jacko? WGAF, anyway.

End of the World Update........

It seems the ancient Egyptians and Chinese are concurring with the Mayans regarding December 12, 2012. OMG, get your affairs in order. On the plus side, Obama won’t serve another term......

On the War on Terror, or Whatever It’s Called Now.......

(7) GI’s killed in Afghanistan a couple of days ago. Obama pledged to pull out of Iraq, but what he didn’t tell us is that he was going to ship them to the land of the Taliban. The Soviets gave up after (10) years...sooo.....how long will it take for us to come to the same conclusion.........

On the War on Terror, or Whatever It’s Called Now Part 2.......

The Iraquis had parades and fireworks and celebrations when our troops pulled out of Baghdad. How long will it take for them to beg us to return? When will the bloodbath begin? How long will it be after our complete exodus that the Iranians move in? How about the Syrians? Al-Qaeda? Taliban? Hezbollah? Hamas? Hari Krishna’s?

On Gitmo.........

Guantanamo Bay has been ordered to close, and I think there are still some residents who disposition is undecided. Obama thought this was a great idea for the advancement of humanitarianism, but didn’t think about where to send the occupants. Discovering there aren't many takers internationally, perhaps he could move them into a co-op in Chicago. I don’t think anybody would notice........just blame it on the Crips..........

On Economic Stimulus.....

Laura Tyson, a member of President Obama’s crack staff of economic advisors, recommended a second round of “stimulus” to re-jumpstart the economy. The logic is: a) the first round was a rousing success that has saved the country from the depths of depression, or b) the original “stimulus” package has been an abysmal failure. I think “b”.

On the NFL and extra-marital affairs..........

Don’t make promises you can’t keep.......including being a father to four children........and a faithful husband, let’s not forget that........rest in peace, Steve.....

On Universal Healthcare.......

Perhaps the greatest idea to come down the pike.......history shows this to be the best healthcare system if you don’t have to use it......stay healthy........die before you turn 60.........Will members of Congress have the same healthcare plan that the rest of us will be stuck with? Tee Hee.......

Thought for the Day......

Are camels in Iraq kind of like our squirrels?

Quote for the Day......

"Freedom had been hunted round the globe; reason was considered as rebellion; and the slavery of fear had made men afraid to think. But such is the irresistible nature of truth, that all it asks, and all it wants, is the liberty of appearing."

--Thomas Paine, Rights of Man, 1791

1984 (or 2009)

"From where Winston stood it was just possible to read, picked out on its white face in elegant lettering, the three slogans of the Party:
WAR IS PEACE
FREEDOM IS SLAVERY
IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH."

George Orwell-1984

Written in 1948, George Orwell’s 1984 was a prophetic look in to the future regarding Totalitarianism. Many phrases in this book are widely used today, such as “Big Brother”, “doublethink”, “Newspeak”, and “Orwellian”.

As I was perusing The Drudge Report, an article jumped out at me regarding the federal gasoline tax. A federal commission has determined a “mile-by-mile tax would be the best way to keep dollars flowing to maintain interstates. This would mandate GPS units in every car driven in the U.S. The rationale revolves around the need to increase revenues for road maintenance. The fact that each state has its own fuel tax PER GALLON in addition to the 18.5 cents per gallon already collected by the Feds is, apparently irrelevant.

"There was of course no way of knowing whether you were being watched at any given moment. How often, or on what system, the Thought Police plugged in on any individual wire was guesswork. It was even conceivable that they watched everybody all the time. But at any rate they could plug in your wire whenever they wanted to. You had to live—did live, from habit that became instinct—in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard, and, except in darkness, every movement scrutinized."
George Orwell-1984

As I have said in the past, incrementalism is a dangerous concept, and one that has been utilized to perfection by our elected officials in Washington. Consider the USA Patriot Act, enacted under the guise of national security to root out terrorists and evildoers. This legislation was passed with virtually no debate, and continues to violate your fundamental freedoms by giving the government the power to access to your medical records, tax records, information about the books you buy or borrow without probable cause, and the power to break into your home and conduct secret searches in direct contradiction to the Fourth Amendment protecting us against illegal search and seizure. The fact that any of us could fall victim to eavesdropping on private conversations on our telephone or computers doesn’t seem to be an issue that is a concern for the populace at large.

“Big Brother is watching you” - George Orwell-1984

Incremental increase in the power of surveillance is analogous to legislation that outlawed smoking on domestic airlines. While this wasn’t a bad idea, it was the first installation in a long line of building blocks that have, incrementally, enacted legislation outlawing smoking in ALL public places. While this is being done on a state level, which falls in line with this author’s beliefs, it was a direct result of a federal campaign to reach all 50 states through extortion and intimidation. An example is the federal bill just signed into law giving the FDA, essentially, carte blanche authority to regulate manufacturing and marketing of all tobacco products. Incrementally, from domestic flights to complete federal control, the federal government’s ability to force the states to cede power should be a concern for those of us who love and believe in personal freedom, responsibility and the 10th Amendment to the U.S Constitution.

“‘Don’t you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought?” In the end we shall make thoughtcrime literally impossible, because there will be no words in which to express it.’’- George Orwell-1984

With the advent of 24 hours a day “news”, from CNN to Fox, with viewership at record highs, one must understand the power of broadcast news. The last election cycle is a case in point with regard to the statement “ignorance is strength”. President Obama has the full support of all the networks news channels, as well as a large portion of cable news. The talking heads assured Americans that “Senator Obama is campaigning to the left for votes, but will most certainly govern from the middle”. Ouch. Wrong is right. Right is wrong. Unfortunately, there are a plethora of ignorant Americans who fall prey to and worship from the alter of The Church of Cable News, where the truth is derived from distorted history and revisionism.

"He who controls the past commands the future. He who commands the future conquers the past." – George Orwell-1984

Historical revisionists remain a plague to a free society, in large part, because current social norms and legislation are created based on historical significance. What history shows to be injustices, moral, ethical, or otherwise, mold current thinking to right perceived wrongs. If history can be distorted, a false foundation can be structured in such a way to meet the criteria of any modern agenda. One example is FDR’s “New Deal”. Another is LBJ’s “Great Society”. Current occupants of the Whitehouse and the Capital have spoken of these programs as “a victory on the war of poverty”, “creating racial equality”, etc. This is a perfect example what happens when history is revised to fit a particular ideology. While espousing the ‘resounding successes of these programs, a political party, in essence, holds an entire generation hostage. Real history shows that these programs did the complete opposite, that is they created generations of Americans dependent upon the monthly checks mailed from Washington. The “Great Society”, should be referred to as the “Great Tragedy”. As millions of Americans believe the history created by our leaders, they effectively cede more and more power and liberty to those who sole existence is driven by the need to be reelected.

"The Party seeks power entirely for its own sake. We are not interested in the good of others; we are interested solely in power. “
George Orwell-1984

The Soviet Union, Nazi Germany, North Korea, Cuba, Cambodia, Uganda, etc. are examples of regimes the exemplify Orwell’s above quote. The Politburo’s members had mansions on The Black Sea, luxury automobiles, all the toys and extras that come with the positions of power. Meanwhile, the rest of the Soviet Bloc lived a hand-to-mouth existence, surviving day to day, with a bleak future devoid of hope. This is true of any totalitarian regime, whereas the central power structure controls more and more, until the vast majority of the population is completely dependent on the government for the very basics and necessities just to survive. Sound familiar? As a government take control of private concerns and contends “they know what is best” for there constituents, and when these smaller government entities cede power to the next level up, we are incrementally moving toward that Utopia that Orwell spoke of. The American Communists referred to that very same Utopia as they attempted to grow their own movement.

It's the one thing they can't do. They can make you say anything - anything - but they can't make you believe it. They can't get inside you. –George Orwell 1984

If we commit this to memory, and believe what it really means, all is not lost. No controlling power can speak to your heart. No agency or entity can tell you what to feel, can empower you to abandon the basic fundamentals of “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”. As a political body, there is still time to recover the liberties that are incrementally eroding day by day, all in the name of Big Brother. Do we continue to relinquish personal freedoms for the sake of road maintenance? Are we content to allow the Feds to monitor our internet usage and telephone conversations due to “national security? The only GPS I want in my car is to give me directions to a restaurant. “1984” was fictional, the characters and ideals straight from the imagination of a writer who, perhaps, had a vision of things to come. Imagine how “safe” we would be if the Feds really could monitor our thoughts as well as internet traffic.

"We shall meet in the place where there is no darkness."

"Until they become conscious they will never rebel, and until after they have rebelled they cannot become conscious."

"Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows."
George Orwell-1984

Rants and Raves

More U.S.S.A......

So Maxine Waters is conducting a hearing with some oil company executive and responds to a plea to allow for domestic oil exploration and drilling. Her reply was a very transparent threat to “social------“ oops, for the Feds to “take over the oil industry...” At least she’s honest. As I have said before, outlaw smoking on airplanes, and incrementally, well, you know the rest.

Cap and Tax.....

It's a very thinly veiled tax to pay for universal healthcare. The problem is Ohio, W. Virginia, and other high coal usage states would be hurt the most. Electricity is about 90% coal fired, and there is no way the power plants can meet the standards that the EPA would mandate. The power plants (or steel plants) will be forced to pay extortion to the companies that stay within their carbon "footprint", to purchase the unused emissions. What this means is Ohio will become "Ghost Town, USA", and the "Green" manufacturers will be raking in carbon credits. Our taxes will skyrocket, along with gas and electricity bills. Just another piece of the Socialist puzzle. The United Socialist States of America is almost reality......

On “W”.......

You notice that the longer “W” keeps quiet, the more heat the current Prez has to bear? The media doesn’t even mention him anymore.....

On Happiness.....

There is no one on earth happier that the King of Pop has died than Governor Sanford......

On Hollywood......

Did O.J. ever find that guy?

On Jurisprudence...........

"Judges, therefore, should be always men of learning and experience in the laws, of exemplary morals, great patience, calmness, coolness, and attention. Their minds should not be distracted with jarring interests; they should not be dependent upon any man, or body of men." --Johns Adams

“Jarring interests” include any emotional issue, racially or sexually sensitive case that may sway a Supreme Court judge to rule for any other reason than one that is constitutionally driven. See Ginsburg, Souter, Stevens, et al. Can you pronounce “Sotomayor”?

On Religious Freedom.....

The Southern Baptists and the Roman Catholic churches are experiencing alarming defections. Pews are empty, collections plates bare, and parochial schools are shutting down faster than Chrysler dealerships. While it may be understandable that Muslims and Christians and Buddhists and Zens and whoever may argue “my God is better than yours”, the divide within the Christian community is interesting at best, shameful at worst. Trying to select a “Christian” faith in our great country is more difficult than ordering from a menu in a Chinese restaurant...........

"Dependence begets subservience and venality, suffocates the germ of virtue, and prepares fit tools for the designs of ambition." Thomas Jefferson

Is it just me, or was Mr. Jefferson a prophet, or just smarter than everyone else. The Great Society was the most damaging program ever to emanate from Washington D.C. This is the kind of government Jefferson was afraid of. Obama’s stimulus is a close second, neck and neck with FDR’s New Deal. Government giveaways didn’t work then, and won’t work now.

On the End of the World.......

The Mayans aren’t backing off of there prediction of December 21, 2102 as the beginning of the end of the world.

Right to Life...

So anti-abortion activists call abortion providers killers, but pick them off, sniper style in then name of life..............?

On Michael Jackson.....

Trans-racial surgery may be hazardous to your health................

On Farrah Fawcett......

That poster was awesome.......

North Korea? Not again..please...

Mama take this badge from me
I can't use it anymore
It's getting dark too dark to see
Feels like I'm knockin' on heaven's door

I am not a pacifist. Nor am I an anti-war wacko protester. I do not hate my country. I hate what my country has become. I despise the deaths of young soldiers for the sake of politics. I cringe every time I hear a politician speak of “instilling democracy on a global scale”. My throat gets dry when our leadership speaks of “the importance of western culture and values” with respect to despotic nations.” In short, is it so difficult for our talking heads in Washington to open up a history book and just peruse? From the murderous crusades of the middle ages to the Ottoman Empire to the Arab-Israeli conflicts to the Palestinians, from the 38^th parallel in Korea, to the Ho Chi Minh trail in southeast Asia, to Iraq, to Afghanistan, from the halls of Montezuma to the shore of Tripoli. Yikes!

The Korean conflict was the launching pad for the United Nations to make a statement. Senator Tom Connally, of Texas, summing up Congressional opinion of the Korean crisis three days after the invasion:

"[Korea is] the clearest test case that the United Nations has ever faced. If the United Nations is ever going to do anything, this is the time, and if the United Nations cannot bring the crisis in Korea to an end, then we might as well wash up the United Nations and forget it."

This conflict was clearly a test case for the new United Nations, kind of like assessing the functionality of a new model of automobile. The only problem with this analogy is the chess pieces were young soldiers half a world from home fighting for a phantom cause to ”stop Communism in its tracks”. This was the original “Domino Theory”, which predated the Vietnam War. The goal of the aggressor in both conflicts was to unify the communist north and the “democratic” south under one, communist ruled country. This quickly became a proxy war, with the North Koreans supported by the Red Chinese, and the North Vietnamese armed by the Soviets. Each time the peace talks resumed, and the Chinese retreated, the UN/US would gain a few paltry miles of ground. When the Chinese decided to reenter the fray, the UN/US would lose the gains, and more blood was spilled.

"On the other side of every mountain was another mountain."

Lieutenant Colonel George Russell, a battalion commander with the Twenty-third Regiment of the Second Infantry Division, describing conditions in Korea.

Prior to the Korean War, the 38^th parallel was the separator between the north and the south. After the armistice, the 38^th parallel still delineated the border. So, after the untimely death of some 60,000 U.S. soldiers, what changed? What did we gain or lose? We lost 60,000 young lives. Vietnam was a carbon copy of the Korean War, with very similar results. The difference was we lost in Vietnam and not because of any lack of courage or heart from the guys on the ground, but a lack of political will precluded any chance of victory. After an estimated 2 million civilian deaths and over 1 million soldiers KIA (not including the 60,000 U.S. soldiers), we are left with the very same questions regarding the good and the bad, the ying and the yang, the positives and negatives associated with post war analysis. What was so unique about Vietnam that set it apart from Korea? We had the benefit of history on our side, refused to consider the consequences of entering a conflict so fundamentally similar, and as a result have lost so many lives needlessly. The same could be said about Iraq, and to a lesser degree, Afghanistan.

At the end of the day, the “Domino Theory” was just that, a theory that didn’t pan out. Fifty-six years after the cease fire in Korea, and (24) years after the fall of Saigon, we have normalized relations with a unified Vietnam, and have successfully isolated a backwards and Communist regime in North Korea. North Korea has one of the largest standing armies in the world, is poised just north of the 38^th parallel, is test firing long range missiles, and have successfully completed an underground nuclear weapons test.

What does all of this mean? It means we should close down military bases in South Korea and Japan, get the hell out of there, and finally let those in the region take care of their own business. Let’s face it, we, as a nation are not well liked or respected globally, for reasons unfathomable to this author. How many more will die for nothing? How many sleepless nights will there be for those who have lost a loved one to a cause they just can’t quite figure out? Is it going to be different this time? Our federal government is like the alcoholic who says “tomorrow will be different, tomorrow I will be able to just have a couple of drinks and that will be all....” Is this all about some warped sense of absolution or expiation? Is the promise of valor and freedom enough to line up the body bags in a neat and orderly fashion? Not when it is meaningless. Bring 'em home. Bring 'em ALL home. Alive.

History is merely a list of surprises. It can only prepare us to be surprised yet again. - Kurt Vonnegut

We learn from history that we learn nothing from history. - George Bernard Shaw

Mama put my guns in the ground
I can't shoot them anymore
That cold black cloud is comin' down
Feels like I'm knockin' on heaven's door

-Bob Dylan-

The New (Old) Declaration of Independence

"But what do we mean by the American Revolution? Do we mean the American war? The Revolution was effected before the war commenced. The Revolution was in the minds and hearts of the people; a change in their religious sentiments, of their duties and obligations... This radical change in the principles, opinions, sentiments, and affections of the people was the real American Revolution."

--John Adams, letter to H. Niles, 13 February 1818

The American Revolution was as much a state of mind as it was a military conflict. This revolutionary attitude was conveyed quite succinctly in The Declaration of Independence as grievances against the Crown were addressed. The authors were quite clear and left nothing to chance as this historic document was written. With a few subtle edits, this document could be sent to Washington today, and be as relevant as it was 233 years ago. What if......?

“When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bonds which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.”

“Political bonds” should read “political bondage”. As our Federal system decides, by executive authority to seize private entities on the basis of “Recovery”, we climb higher and higher on the slippery slope.

“....That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any form of government becomes destructive to these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness.”

I’ll keep this portion verbatim. The right of each sovereign state to determine its own destiny is all but gone.

“He has made judges dependent on his will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.”

The Supreme Court has morphed into the last word as an extension of the Oval Office. The Court is nothing more than an expediter of political agendas as opposed to an unbiased interpreter of the U.S. Constitution. This body will continue to siphon away the rights and guarantees as succinctly outlined in the aforementioned document.

“For imposing taxes on us without our consent...”

Just look at your phone bill, or cable bill, or liquor, cigarettes, gasoline, electricity, pay stub, etc. “Our consent” falls into the hands of our elected officials, which, in theory, are the basis of a “Republic”. The Founders didn’t count on lobbyists to line the pockets of our congressional representatives.

“For taking away our charters, abolishing our most valuable laws, and altering fundamentally the forms of our governments...”

This is a big one. The very basis and foundation of our form of government has been usurped by power and greed, with very little emphasis on what is best for the masses. While on the surface, our system functions in its original form, but we must only have to scratch the surface to reveal the cancerous underbelly of the system which doesn’t reflect the original intentions of the Founders.

“He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavored to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian savages, whose known rule of warfare is undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.”

Substitute “Indian savages” with “ACORN”.

“A prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.”

Our current resident of the White House, who has been referred to as “The Messiah”, has no business sitting in the chair that oversees the free world, because tyrants and egomaniacs care nothing about freedom, and free people get in the way of personal agendas (see Supreme Court).

“We, therefore, the representatives of the United States of America, in General Congress, assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the name, and by the authority of the good people of these colonies, solemnly publish and declare, that these united colonies are, and of right ought to be free and independent states; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the state of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as free and independent states, they have full power to levy war, conclude peace, contract alliances, establish commerce, and to do all other acts and things which independent states may of right do. And for the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor.”

I’ll keep the “United States of America”. This great moniker has been replaced by the “United Socialist States of America” (see the Late, Great U.S.S.A. posted below). We’ll replace “British Crown” and “Great Britain” with “U.S.S.A.” I’ll keep the balance of the above summary as is.

Article I, Section 10 would consider this an act of treason, unless each state acted independently, for Section 10 forbids any alliance or confederation between states. We’ll take our chances. The system is broken, and one little act of perceived treason shouldn’t keep us awake at night. After all, Jefferson Davis and his associates got a pass after the War Between the States.

Not to digress, but the fact that is has been done before, and despite the 700,000 or so deaths recorded during this conflict does little to assure me that it couldn’t happen again. This would be the worst of all scenarios, because war as a tool for conflict resolution really has not worked since WWII.

There are those who believe the issue of states rights became a dead issue after of the U.S. Civil War. While the abolition of slavery was absolutely the right and moral thing to do, the whole concept of state sovereignty was only hidden from public view.

As the libertarian philosophy experiences increased exposure, the ranks of the Democratic Party and the GOP have dropped. “Independents” comprise a larger portion of the voting populace than either of the two main parties. Let’s take that enormous body of “undecideds”, give them a bonafide and qualified reason to support a new/old political philosophy which is all about personal freedom through personal responsibility so I don’t have to send the edited version of the Declaration. We, as a body, can declare our Independence through the ballot box. Last time, we got what we asked for. There is still time to take it back.

‘What if politicians were all good guys
Oh Lord don’t we wish they were
We would not be so dependent
On courts of laws that make us all feel like defendants sometimes
If we want freedom we’ve got to amend it
On our way down
There’s nobody left to crown”.

-Richie Havens from Nobody Left to Crown

Christian Nation? Uh, No.

"In politics, as in religion, it is equally absurd to aim at making proselytes by fire and sword. Heresies in either can rarely be cured by persecution." --Alexander Hamilton
"If you cannot control the heart, you cannot control behavior...Religion deals with the heart."-Thomas Jefferson

To put in proper context, Messrs. Hamilton and Jefferson were referring to what may be described as dangerous “ideologies”, generated by emotion and passion that would be detrimental to the formation, evolution, and preservation of a republic. The Church of England was formed for the sole purpose of allowing divorce, as opposed to Catholicism, which forbade it. Martin Luther, through the Edict of Worms, suggested that there was a better way to practice faith than what the Pope had to offer. What followed became known as the “dark ages”, and for good reason.

To put a number on deaths attributed to religious conflicts is difficult at best, but up to and including the end of the 18th century, it is estimated that nearly 24,000,000 deaths were a direct result from ideological differences with respect to faith. This includes the (10) Crusades, The Thirty Years War, the French Wars of Religion, etc. I use the European conflicts because I believe the founders used this history as a basis for the U.S. Constitution.

The common thread, whether it be “divine approval” to slaughter as many Muslims as possible during the Crusades, or making a date with 72 virgins through Islamic martyrdom, is religious fanaticism, or “my God is better than your God”. As Mr. Hamilton alluded to in his writings; this doesn’t work. Converts are not generally made “by fire and sword”. Religious doctrine tends to make widows and orphans, and at the end of the day, “my God is STILL better than your God”.
Genocide is certainly not limited to religion. World War II produced anywhere from 40-70 million deaths, mostly due to differences in geographical boundaries and ethnic hatred. Add Cambodia, Stalin’s Soviet Union, Amin’s Uganda, Rwanda, Vietnam, et al, and the number rise into the 100+ million range.

(More on that at another time.) The history of martyrdom reaches around the globe, but the focus will be on European history, because that is primarily the piece of history that the founders were interested in.

The Catholic Church, during the thousand years or so prior to the birth of our nation, controlled Europe with an iron fist. The church controlled the land, the money, dictated state policy, and provided the Crusaders with “divine protection” during the march to annihilate the Islamic warriors. This was the main goal, but as a sidebar, the crusaders did their best to persecute and slaughter pagan Slavs, Jews, Russian and Greek Orthodox Christians, Mongols, Cathars, Hussites, Waldensians, Old Prussians, and political enemies of the popes. Crusaders were granted “divine immunity” for “past discretion’s”. History remains divided on whether or not this was a “noble” cause, or simply one of aggression and barbarism. This author believes the latter.

The Thirty Years War was largely fought in the Germanic states, and was, for the most part, a battle between Catholics and Protestants. Nearly 30% of the Germanic population was lost, and 50% of the male population. The region was devastated, and, as a result the region was carved up into political and religious states.

The founders took note. The Church of England was oppressive and prejudicial, outlawing virtually any faith outside of the Church of England. The New World, long before the U.S. Constitution, became of refuge for Jews, Huguenots, and any other faith that was being persecuted in the Old Country.

As the First Amendment says, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…”

Pretty clear, and for good reason. The founders envisioned a country free from the religious conflict that paralyzed Europe and others for the better part of a thousand years. While the founders were largely men of faith, (the debate continues whether or not they were Deists), and used the phrases “The Creator”, and “God Almighty”. Nowhere within the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, or the Federalist Papers is there a mention of Jesus Christ, Mohammed, Buddha, the Hindu Gods, Moses, Martin Luther, or Jim Jones. As painful as this may sound to Christians, The United States of America is NOT a Christian nation. That our country was founded on “Judeo-Christian” values will be debated forever. But what should not be controversial is the notion that the usage of “God” in founding documents, currency, government buildings, etc., is one based on cultural values taken from the Old Testament, and was not intended to be perceived as theological in nature. This, taken with hundreds of years of English Common Law, the historical nature of religious conflicts, and the concept of personal freedom and self-government was what inspired these great men to establish a secular government, leaving the masses to worship as they pleased. To refer to the USA as a “Christian nation” is at least revisionist, and at best a slap in the collective faces of Madison, Jefferson, Hamilton and company.

I offer no apologies to the religious right, for they are the one group that would take the very basis of the U.S. Constitution, twist it and distort it for political influence and accentuate agenda items that have nothing to do with politics and the Federal government. Abortion and gay marriage come to mind when I think of the religious right. These are just two of many, many issues that should be, must be handled at the state level.

Faith and Religion are two, entirely different matters. Faith was a personal feeling the founders understood. Religion was a cancer that has caused the deaths of countless millions. The founders knew this to be true.

On the dogmas of religion, as distinguished from moral principles, all mankind, from the beginning of the world to this day, have been quarreling, fighting, burning and torturing one another, for abstractions unintelligible to themselves and to all others, and absolutely beyond the comprehension of the human mind." --- Thomas Jefferson 1816

A person’s faith is their own. A person’s lack of faith is also their own. There is not a place in public life for religion. There is room for faith, not religion. As long as we bang our drums and exploit religious issues in political arena, we will stagnate and quite possibly regress as a nation. I think we have begun that dark journey. The Libertarians understand that. Students of history that have their eyes open understand that. We, as a nation, have to understand that. Worship as you please, but allow others not to. The founders would be proud.

Specter's Folly

“Society in every state is a blessing, but government, even in its best state, is but a necessary evil; in its worst state an intolerable one; for when we suffer or are exposed to the same miseries by a government, which we might expect in a country without government, our calamity is heightened by reflecting that we furnish the means by which we suffer.“ Paine, Thomas Common Sense-1776

After the infiltration of a Nikita Khrushchev speech by the Israeli Mossad, and the information obtained was digested by the world, the American Communist Party imploded, sending out shrapnel in heavy direction. The New Left was organized as a direct result, and, my friends, after nearly fifty years of tireless protests, canvassing, filling our universities with Marxist professors, and paying off their constituents in the form of welfare, they may be able to declare victory. The defection of one Arlen Specter from the GOP to the party of Stalin has completed the trifecta in American Politics.

The White House is occupied by one of its own, by virtue of the immense wisdom of the electorate, the House of Representatives is listing farther and farther to the left, almost to the point of capsizing, and the U.S. Senate has obtained the Holy Grail of protocol, The Filibuster-Proof majority. Al Franken’s seat is being kept warm by Ms. Pelosi via a huge bag of ACORNs, and his victory in Minnesota is a given. This political party has been tireless, focused, and united.

The GOP, by contrast, has been anything but. The RNC abandoned Gingrich’s Contract with America, fired Haley Barbour (or asked him to quit), who at that time was the architect primarily responsible for gaining majorities of both houses of congress for the first time on forty years. That proved to be the apex of the GOP, the top of the bell curve, and ever since that day have been flying on fumes.

The Iraq debacle is a microcosm of GOP strategy; limited vision, reactionary and fluid strategy, rules of engagement determined by non-military officials, and no plan for withdrawal of troops. Sound like Vietnam?

The Left jumped on mistake after mistake, and have a clear mandate to govern accordingly. Yes, I said mandate. We, as Americans, ultimately get what we ask for and deserve.

I attended a Tea Party “protest” in Cincinnati, and was witness to the attendance of Comrade Obama’s paid leg breakers. It cold have been a Crips reunion. The sad thing is, these thugs are paid for with taxpayer dollars, yet another example of our esteemed elected officials in Washington seizing control of another segment of society.

We can realistically equate current events with the tobacco conspiracy. Once smoking was eliminated from domestic flights, Katy bar the door, the end result was inevitable. The health factor means nothing if people choose to smoke. You would think that the Feds would have learned from the time of Prohibition that Americans don’t respond well to edicts originating in Washington.

But, Joyce, you are all over the place on this one. Not really. I have pointed out events that are grossly mismanaged, and are part of a much larger agenda that has been in place since the early sixties. It could be argued that this agenda has its origins in the days of the New Deal. We are experiencing increased control by a central government and the steady and rapid decline of state sovereignty. If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck.....?

The Republicans have thrown principle out the window for the security of elect ability, not unlike Senator Specter of Pennsylvania. We now have one, big, happy family in D.C., with Republicans masquerading as Democrats, and Democrats wearing the cloaks of conservatives.

“The natural progress of things is for liberty to yield and government to gain ground.”- Thomas Jefferson, letter to E. Carrington May 27, 1788

Our president should be indicted for treason and abuse of power by using the U.S. Constitution as toilet paper, seizing banks, automakers, and soon, the privately owned healthcare system. The ball is rolling, and it may be impossible to stop.

“The pump don’t work ‘cause the vandals took the handles.”

Bob Dylan-Subterranean Homesick Blues

Regulatory Extortion

"To take from one, because it is thought his own industry and that of his fathers has acquired too much, in order to spare to others, who, or whose fathers, have not exercised equal industry and skill, is to violate arbitrarily the first principle of association, the guarantee to everyone the free exercise of his industry and the fruits acquired by it."

--Thomas Jefferson, letter to Joseph Milligan, 6 April 1816

Thomas Jefferson was most certainly not born with the gift of prophecy. I’m fairly sure he did not consult an ancient seer residing in some cave far up in the Blue Ridge mountains. He did not read tea leaves, depend on Tarot cards, or employ an astrologer to assist him in day to day decisions.

Jefferson was born with the gift of forward thinking based on personal experience and more importantly, the historical significance derived from the decisions and policies of our predecessors. He may have been referring to what had already transpired during the young and brief history of our nation.

Alexander Hamilton feared anarchy, and as a result took a very liberal view of the U.S. Constitution, most notably granting broad powers to the Federal government. Jefferson, on the other hand, felt that the Constitution’s 10^th amendment was very clear, granting powers not specified to the states. This disagreement led to the formation of the two-party system which we know so well today. Hamilton, Adams, John Jay, et el, were “loose constructionists”. There political philosophy dictated more power to the central government for the “Greater Good”; hence the party was called the Federalists.

Jefferson couldn’t have disagreed more with this thinking. The U.S. Constitution was written with the express purpose of granting the central government with a very limited roll in governing, while allowing each sovereign state to decide what would be more advantageous for them. Jefferson’s party was called the Democratic Republicans.

Jefferson could see very clearly what would and could happen if the Feds were granted expansive powers to usurp the rights of each sovereign state. Fast forward to modern America, and we have the Feds doing exactly what Jefferson feared. For example, The Uniform Drinking Age Act (1984) gave each state a five year window to change their laws to the minimum age of 21. If not, interstate highway funding would be cut off. Another example is to pay off states with a highway slush fund that lowered the legal alcohol blood limit to .08.

How about the “Tobacco Settlement”? The Feds blackmailed the tobacco companies through regulatory extortion by “allowing” them to stay in business if they paid a few hundred millions dollars to lawyers, plaintiffs, federal, state and local governments.

The Mother of All Shakedowns may be the Community Reinvestment Act, in which the Feds mandated private banks to loan mortgage money to those who had no intention of repaying it. For those banks who declined to participate, the Feds would regulate them out of business. The CRA has brought us to this point in history where we all face an uncertain future, largely because of our leaders in Washington using political muscle and employing figurative leg breakers to apply pressure to those in private industry who really didn’t want to play the game. Did I mention Microsoft?

There are many more examples of Federal Blackmail, but I think you get the point. Jefferson saw this as a possibility 200 years ago, when Hamilton wanted to start a national bank. Since then, the two party system has morphed into essentially one enormous political machine where right is wrong and wrong is right. We live in a country where 65% of the citizenry believe our current administration is on the right track. We live in a society that would allow for the redistribution of wealth, “because it’s the right thing to do”, where the clever and industrious are punished, where those who go to work everyday to provide for family are penalized. Complacency is the rule, so long as we are “provided for”.

It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires in people's minds. – Samuel Adams