I guess we have to learn a new language for words now have the meaning that any mealy mouthed politician wants to give it. The purpose of obfuscating the meaning of words is so that the annointed can control you. Refuse to play their game and call things what they are!
The most dangerous words you'll ever hear a politician say is: "We must do something" because it's real meaning is they want to take over the economy and dictate to you and control your actions and thoughts. But here are more Newspeak terms that you must learn if you want to follow the circus going on in the American and European governments.
War on terror is now called Overseas Contingency Operations
Terrorism is now Man Made Disasters (this is my favorite)
Child abandonment is now Remote Parenting
Appeasement of dangerous enemies is now New dialogue
Socialism is now 2nd stimulus (my second favorite-now politicians can rob us and call it a stimulus)
Enemy Combatants are now Displaced Freedom Fighters (Muslim killers and rapists are now the equivalent of our Founding Fathers.
Campaigning, winning and cashing in on a bad economy = Obama testifying how he has "Inheriting Bush’s bad policies"
Tax Cheat = An Obama appointee not being made aware of the problem by an accountant
Impeached and disbarred is now an Elder Statesman
Bank Robber is now a Stimulation recipient-(government stealing money from one group to give it to another.)
Fascist takeover of private business is now called New Fairness Doctrine -Government dictating and running a company via their cronies and sycophants.
Fascist takeover of redistricting is now the White House census office - which now means the President gets to redraw districts so that your party wins elections and the President can be President for life (remember the census office has always been totally separate from the White House and was made so intentionally by our Founding Fathers)
War (under liberal’s watch) is now a situation - which means you have to invite the enemy over for tea.
War (under Republican watch) = unwinnable disaster - which means you fight with one hand tied behind your back.
Higher Taxes = Fair Share - which means no amount of taxation of the populace is too much when the politicians can figure out a way to do it without you realizing that they are robbing you blind.
Fundamentally strong economy (please define party affiliation first) but essentially means gobbledygook as they find new ways to tax the hell out of you and scare businesses away.
Blaming America First is now called Global View - It's nice to have a fall guy to blame for a countries own descent into socialism, fascism and religious primitivism as in Afganistan/Pakistan/Iran etc. etc.
Victory = What's that? (No such word) (Also go to here). There are no moral vs immoral countries.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
The Result of Appeasement Always Ends In Emboldening The Enemy
We now face a more dangerous emboldened enemy in the Middle East. They are not afraid of Obama because he has declared that he wants to be friends. Let's play patty cake- patty cake with the enemy and get them to like us. Flash news!!! Syria and Iran hate us and in order to be able to defend ourselves Obama must accept that fact. This is not La-la land this is life and death! Read below to see how this man has made our world a more dangerous place.
Syrian Reactions to Renewal of Dialogue with U.S.: Syria has No Intention of Changing Its Policy and will Continue to be Part of Resistance camp; It is the U.S. that Must Change Its Policy.
After the commencement of the U.S.-Syria dialogue, spokesmen of the Syrian regime and articles in the Syrian press expressed the following positions:
· Syria has no intention of changing its policy and will continue to be part of the resistance camp. The U.S. is the one that must change its policy by lifting the sanctions imposed on Syria, appointing an ambassador to Damascus, and launching a dialogue with the resistance forces.
· In starting a dialogue with Syria, the U.S. has capitulated to the resistance and acknowledged the importance of Syria and Iran.
· The advent of the Obama administration does not herald an improvement in the relations with Syria.
Following are excerpts from some of the statements and articles:
Assad's Political Advisor: "It is Time to Stop Telling Syria and Iran to Sever Their Relations with Hizbullah, Hamas, and the Other Resistance Organizations"
Most of the reports that have been published in the Syrian and Arab press to date indicate that Syria generally rejects the U.S. demands, and stresses that its policy has remained unchanged. In his meeting with Senator John Kerry, Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad called on the U.S. to relinquish the policy of dictates that has proven to be ineffective, stating that dialogue is the only way to identify the real problems and formulate a comprehensive vision for resolving them. [12]
Assad's political and media advisor Buthaina Sha'ban said in a talk at London's Westminster University that improved relations with the U.S. would not be at the expense of Syria's relations with Iran, and added, "It is [also] time to stop telling Syria and Iran to sever their relations with Hizbullah, Hamas, and the other resistance organizations." [13] Knowledgeable sources in Damascus told the Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar that Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Al-Mu'allem had told U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Jeffrey Feltman that Syria is determined to maintain its tight relations with Iran, and that it is the West that had to change its policy towards Syria. [14]
Articles in the Arab press likewise expressed reservations about the preconditions presented by the U.S. for improving its relations with Syria. Responding to the demands conveyed by Senator Benjamin Cardin, the editor of the Syrian daily Al-Watan, Wadhah 'Abd Rabbou, wrote: "If the two [U.S.] delegations that are coming [to Syria, i.e., the Berman and Kerry delegations] … have the same positions and the same demands [as Cardin], maybe they should spare themselves the tiring trip to Damascus, since they obviously won't find anyone in Syria who will listen to the American dictates." 'Abd Rabbou added: "The Syrians are now waiting for a change in the policy of the U.S., not in the policy of Syria." ...
Article in a Syrian Government Daily: The U.S. Is the Enemy of All the Peoples on the Face of the Earth. (Read the rest here)
Syrian Reactions to Renewal of Dialogue with U.S.: Syria has No Intention of Changing Its Policy and will Continue to be Part of Resistance camp; It is the U.S. that Must Change Its Policy.
After the commencement of the U.S.-Syria dialogue, spokesmen of the Syrian regime and articles in the Syrian press expressed the following positions:
· Syria has no intention of changing its policy and will continue to be part of the resistance camp. The U.S. is the one that must change its policy by lifting the sanctions imposed on Syria, appointing an ambassador to Damascus, and launching a dialogue with the resistance forces.
· In starting a dialogue with Syria, the U.S. has capitulated to the resistance and acknowledged the importance of Syria and Iran.
· The advent of the Obama administration does not herald an improvement in the relations with Syria.
Following are excerpts from some of the statements and articles:
Assad's Political Advisor: "It is Time to Stop Telling Syria and Iran to Sever Their Relations with Hizbullah, Hamas, and the Other Resistance Organizations"
Most of the reports that have been published in the Syrian and Arab press to date indicate that Syria generally rejects the U.S. demands, and stresses that its policy has remained unchanged. In his meeting with Senator John Kerry, Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad called on the U.S. to relinquish the policy of dictates that has proven to be ineffective, stating that dialogue is the only way to identify the real problems and formulate a comprehensive vision for resolving them. [12]
Assad's political and media advisor Buthaina Sha'ban said in a talk at London's Westminster University that improved relations with the U.S. would not be at the expense of Syria's relations with Iran, and added, "It is [also] time to stop telling Syria and Iran to sever their relations with Hizbullah, Hamas, and the other resistance organizations." [13] Knowledgeable sources in Damascus told the Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar that Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Al-Mu'allem had told U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Jeffrey Feltman that Syria is determined to maintain its tight relations with Iran, and that it is the West that had to change its policy towards Syria. [14]
Articles in the Arab press likewise expressed reservations about the preconditions presented by the U.S. for improving its relations with Syria. Responding to the demands conveyed by Senator Benjamin Cardin, the editor of the Syrian daily Al-Watan, Wadhah 'Abd Rabbou, wrote: "If the two [U.S.] delegations that are coming [to Syria, i.e., the Berman and Kerry delegations] … have the same positions and the same demands [as Cardin], maybe they should spare themselves the tiring trip to Damascus, since they obviously won't find anyone in Syria who will listen to the American dictates." 'Abd Rabbou added: "The Syrians are now waiting for a change in the policy of the U.S., not in the policy of Syria." ...
Article in a Syrian Government Daily: The U.S. Is the Enemy of All the Peoples on the Face of the Earth. (Read the rest here)
Monday, March 30, 2009
Appeasing Iran Will NOT MAKE US SAFER
Michael J. Hurd author of "Grow Up America" points out how absurd it is to call Iran a great civilization AND that it has our respect! I mean come on ...Mr Obama ... too much is too much. You have crossed the line and made living our lives more dangerous by your appeasement of this evil regime. Please wake up sir and smell the coffee! (Read at Capitalism Magazine).
The current American President called terrorist-sponsoring Iran a "great civilization" and proclaimed it has "earned the respect of the United States and the world."
Here's an alternative view from Iranian dissident Kianoosh Sanjari. "Mr. President," wrote Sanjari last January 20, "You marked your first day in the White House by ordering the closure of the Guantanamo Bay prison. But in our country, many Guantanamos exist, only our Guantanamos are home to students, women's rights activists, labor organizers, political activists, and journalists. We, as former student activists who spent time in Iranian prisons under inhumane conditions, call on you and all those who defend human rights, freedom and equality to express solidarity to the people of Iran as they wage their struggle for freedom. "There's one problem with Sanjari's statement.
The President of the United States doesn't care about the rights of individuals. He only cares about the power of governments.
For whatever bizarre reasons, he likes the Iranian government. He thinks that by telling the Iranian government we like them, they will stop hurting their own citizens, and never hurt us. Of course, just the opposite will prove true, because appeasement only makes irrational men bolder.An American President who ignores the rights of dissidents in Iran will not long tolerate opposition in America. The United States has survived as long as it has because its system, and its basic philosophical premises, are superior to many of those who have governed. This has never been more true than at present. America needs a President worthy of its origins, and of its Constitution--not one who considers a totalitarian religious dictatorship hellbent on nuclear destruction a great nation.
For some comic relief from the hyperventilation in Washington as Obama is meddling in everything from taking over our economy to playing with terrorists.
The current American President called terrorist-sponsoring Iran a "great civilization" and proclaimed it has "earned the respect of the United States and the world."
Here's an alternative view from Iranian dissident Kianoosh Sanjari. "Mr. President," wrote Sanjari last January 20, "You marked your first day in the White House by ordering the closure of the Guantanamo Bay prison. But in our country, many Guantanamos exist, only our Guantanamos are home to students, women's rights activists, labor organizers, political activists, and journalists. We, as former student activists who spent time in Iranian prisons under inhumane conditions, call on you and all those who defend human rights, freedom and equality to express solidarity to the people of Iran as they wage their struggle for freedom. "There's one problem with Sanjari's statement.
The President of the United States doesn't care about the rights of individuals. He only cares about the power of governments.
For whatever bizarre reasons, he likes the Iranian government. He thinks that by telling the Iranian government we like them, they will stop hurting their own citizens, and never hurt us. Of course, just the opposite will prove true, because appeasement only makes irrational men bolder.An American President who ignores the rights of dissidents in Iran will not long tolerate opposition in America. The United States has survived as long as it has because its system, and its basic philosophical premises, are superior to many of those who have governed. This has never been more true than at present. America needs a President worthy of its origins, and of its Constitution--not one who considers a totalitarian religious dictatorship hellbent on nuclear destruction a great nation.
For some comic relief from the hyperventilation in Washington as Obama is meddling in everything from taking over our economy to playing with terrorists.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Has Your State Introduced Resolutions To Uphold US 10th Amendment to Constitution?
Walter Williams ever the defender of our liberties writes at Capitalism Magazine:Our Colonial ancestors petitioned and pleaded with King George III to get his boot off their necks. He ignored their pleas, and in 1776, they rightfully declared unilateral independence and went to war. Today it's the same story except Congress is the one usurping the rights of the people and the states, making King George's actions look mild in comparison. Our constitutional ignorance -- perhaps contempt, coupled with the fact that we've become a nation of wimps, sissies and supplicants -- has made us easy prey for Washington's tyrannical forces. But that might be changing a bit. There are rumblings of a long overdue re-emergence of Americans' characteristic spirit of rebellion.
Eight state legislatures have introduced resolutions declaring state sovereignty under the Ninth and 10th amendments to the U.S. Constitution; they include Arizona, Hawaii, Montana, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, Oklahoma and Washington. There's speculation that they will be joined by Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Nevada, Maine and Pennsylvania. (Walter Williams).
Here are some examples of the language used in writing these resolutions from both the State House and Senate:
- ARIZONA
House : HCR2024 "[T]he State of Arizona hereby claims sovereignty under the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States over all powers not otherwise enumerated and granted to the federal government by the Constitution of the United States...."
Senate : SCR1038 "[T]he State of Arizona hereby claims sovereignty under the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States over all powers not otherwise enumerated and granted to the federal government by the Constitution of the United States." First reading on February 2, 2009. - MICHIGAN
House: HCR4 "A concurrent resolution to affirm Michigan's sovereignty under the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States and to urge the federal government to halt its practice of imposing mandates upon the states for purposes not enumerated by the Constitution of the United States." January 22, 2009.
Senate: SCR4 "[W]e affirm Michigan's sovereignty under the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States over all powers not enumerated and granted to the federal government." Referred to Judiciary Committee on March 3, 2009.
Daniel Hannan, A Hero For Our Times, Speaks Truth About Government Made Crisis
We live in times defined by the mealy mouthed politician. It is quite remarkable and encouraging to find ONE politician who speaks the truth. Maybe more American politicians should follow this brave man's honest courage.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
"If we cannot put solar power plants in the Mojave desert, I don't know where the hell we can put it."
So exclaimed Arnold Schwarzenegger, governor of California in response to the Feinsteins of the world that NOW proclaim that it would ruin Mojave desert ecosystem after giving the go ahead to renewable energy companies to exploit the region. You can never satisfy these environmentalists because it's not that they love nature and want to conserve it so much as they hate man and his activities. (READ)
California's Mojave Desert may seem ideally suited for solar energy production, but concern over what several proposed projects might do to the aesthetics of the region and its tortoise population is setting up a potential clash between conservationists and companies seeking to develop renewable energy.
Nineteen companies have submitted applications to build solar or wind facilities on a parcel of 500,000 desert acres, but Sen. Dianne Feinstein said last Friday that such development would violate the spirit of what conservationists had intended when they donated much of the land to the public.
Feinstein said she intends to push legislation that would turn the land into a national monument, which would allow for existing uses to continue while preventing future development.
California's Mojave Desert may seem ideally suited for solar energy production, but concern over what several proposed projects might do to the aesthetics of the region and its tortoise population is setting up a potential clash between conservationists and companies seeking to develop renewable energy.
Nineteen companies have submitted applications to build solar or wind facilities on a parcel of 500,000 desert acres, but Sen. Dianne Feinstein said last Friday that such development would violate the spirit of what conservationists had intended when they donated much of the land to the public.
Feinstein said she intends to push legislation that would turn the land into a national monument, which would allow for existing uses to continue while preventing future development.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Dissing All Our Friends and Allies - Obama Now Disses North Carolina
Obama dissed India, dissed England's Gordon Brown and now he has dissed Governor Sanford of South Carolina (Read below). He is cozying up to China has angered Japan, our friend and wants to talk to Iran. What's the matter with this man?
...If we're going to spend money we don't have at the federal level, it becomes all the more important that our state balance sheet is in good order -- particularly if this is a protracted downturn. But many people do not realize that the stimulus money runs out in 24 months -- at which point South Carolina will be forced to find a new source of funding to sustain the new level of spending, or to make sharp cuts. Sure, I could kick the can down the road; in two years, I'll be safely out of office. But it would be irresponsible.
If South Carolina could use stimulus money to pay down debt, in two years we will be able to spend, cut taxes or invest even if the federal government can no longer provide more money -- not a remote possibility. In fact, paying debt related to education would free up over $162 million in debt service in the first two years and save roughly $125 million in interest payments over the next 13 years -- just as paying off a family's mortgage early frees up money for other uses.
When you're in a hole, the first order of business is stop digging. South Carolina is in a hole, and it's not a shallow one. Spending stimulus money on ongoing programs would mean 10% of our entire state budget would be paid for with one-time federal funds -- the largest recorded level in state history.
Also, spending stimulus money will delay needed state restructuring. General Motors recently found itself in a similar spot. It needs to be restructured if it is to prosper, but a federal bailout enabled it to put off hard decisions. Likewise, taking federal stimulus money will only postpone changes essential to South Carolina's prosperity. Though well-intended, it forestalls hard choices we must make.
One of Mr. Obama's central campaign themes was his pledge to do away with politics of the past. In his inaugural address, he proclaimed "an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn-out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics."
This idea connected with millions of voters, myself included. I've always believed ideas should rise and fall on their merits. In fact, I saw such historical significance in his candidacy and the change he spoke of that I published an op-ed on it before South Carolina's presidential primary last year. It was not an endorsement, but it did note the historic nature of his candidacy and the potential positive change in tone it represented. That potential may now be disappearing.
Last week I reached out to the president, asking for a federal waiver from restrictions on stimulus money. I got a most unusual response. Before I even received an acknowledgment of the request from the White House, I got word that the Democratic National Committee was launching campaign-style TV attack-ads against me for making it.
Is this the new brand of politics we were promised? Instead of engaging with me and other governors on the merits of our dissent, I am to be attacked in television ads? In the end, I just don't believe a problem created by too much debt will be solved by piling on more debt. This doesn't strike me as an unreasonable or extremist position...
...If we're going to spend money we don't have at the federal level, it becomes all the more important that our state balance sheet is in good order -- particularly if this is a protracted downturn. But many people do not realize that the stimulus money runs out in 24 months -- at which point South Carolina will be forced to find a new source of funding to sustain the new level of spending, or to make sharp cuts. Sure, I could kick the can down the road; in two years, I'll be safely out of office. But it would be irresponsible.
If South Carolina could use stimulus money to pay down debt, in two years we will be able to spend, cut taxes or invest even if the federal government can no longer provide more money -- not a remote possibility. In fact, paying debt related to education would free up over $162 million in debt service in the first two years and save roughly $125 million in interest payments over the next 13 years -- just as paying off a family's mortgage early frees up money for other uses.
When you're in a hole, the first order of business is stop digging. South Carolina is in a hole, and it's not a shallow one. Spending stimulus money on ongoing programs would mean 10% of our entire state budget would be paid for with one-time federal funds -- the largest recorded level in state history.
Also, spending stimulus money will delay needed state restructuring. General Motors recently found itself in a similar spot. It needs to be restructured if it is to prosper, but a federal bailout enabled it to put off hard decisions. Likewise, taking federal stimulus money will only postpone changes essential to South Carolina's prosperity. Though well-intended, it forestalls hard choices we must make.
One of Mr. Obama's central campaign themes was his pledge to do away with politics of the past. In his inaugural address, he proclaimed "an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn-out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics."
This idea connected with millions of voters, myself included. I've always believed ideas should rise and fall on their merits. In fact, I saw such historical significance in his candidacy and the change he spoke of that I published an op-ed on it before South Carolina's presidential primary last year. It was not an endorsement, but it did note the historic nature of his candidacy and the potential positive change in tone it represented. That potential may now be disappearing.
Last week I reached out to the president, asking for a federal waiver from restrictions on stimulus money. I got a most unusual response. Before I even received an acknowledgment of the request from the White House, I got word that the Democratic National Committee was launching campaign-style TV attack-ads against me for making it.
Is this the new brand of politics we were promised? Instead of engaging with me and other governors on the merits of our dissent, I am to be attacked in television ads? In the end, I just don't believe a problem created by too much debt will be solved by piling on more debt. This doesn't strike me as an unreasonable or extremist position...
Sunday, March 22, 2009
The Hypocrisy in Hollywood is Stunning!
Alec Baldwin appears to be talking like a supply sider now that he will have to pay higher taxes for filming in New York. Apparently, the saying "what's good for the goose is good for the gander" only applies to hollywood celebrities if it affects their lives or pockets. I would suggest for these so called "elite" to come down to where regular folks live and see this Obama sham from our point of view.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
You Don't Make Deals With the Devil Or The Government
Well, it seems that you can fool all of the bankers some of the time but not some of the bankers all of the time. Some of the banks that received TARP money and bailouts are now wishing they hadn't chummed with our lovely government because now they cannot run their businesses as they see fit. They are obliged to kow-tow to political hacks who have never run a business in their lives. The government is raging mad that AIG would dare give the bonuses promised to their top managers in contracts signed and sealed. Imagine that - honoring a contract! Well, AIG and other banks were fools to agree to accept money from our government. Now these banks have to check with government officials for every action they wish to undertake? Is that any way to run a corporation? I don't think so. One does not make deals with the devil - er I mean politicians!
A bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives to tax employee bonuses at companies getting $5 billion or more in government bailout funds could send bank employees rushing to the exit sign if it becomes law.
The largest banks in the United States would be affected by the legislation, approved on Thursday, which would add a 90% tax on bonuses for people earning more than $250,000.
The result of public and government outrage over $165 million in bonuses paid to employees of American International Group Inc's Financial Products unit, some sources said the legislation would have repercussions far beyond the insurer, which is getting up to $180 billion in public funds...(READ)
"It's terrible public policy with respect to trying to bring institutions back to health," said Robert Sedgwick, head of the executive compensation practice at law firm Morrison Cohen in New York.
"These institutions are under siege and their primary asset is their people," Sedgwick said, explaining that adding taxation to shrinking compensation for bankers will drive people from the business.
A bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives to tax employee bonuses at companies getting $5 billion or more in government bailout funds could send bank employees rushing to the exit sign if it becomes law.
The largest banks in the United States would be affected by the legislation, approved on Thursday, which would add a 90% tax on bonuses for people earning more than $250,000.
The result of public and government outrage over $165 million in bonuses paid to employees of American International Group Inc's Financial Products unit, some sources said the legislation would have repercussions far beyond the insurer, which is getting up to $180 billion in public funds...(READ)
"It's terrible public policy with respect to trying to bring institutions back to health," said Robert Sedgwick, head of the executive compensation practice at law firm Morrison Cohen in New York.
"These institutions are under siege and their primary asset is their people," Sedgwick said, explaining that adding taxation to shrinking compensation for bankers will drive people from the business.
Friday, March 20, 2009
Obamanomics Is Nothing But Redistribution Of Wealth
See Obama paint the pretty pig's lips. But no matter how he tries to spin this dreadful situation we're in - ultimately history will tell the tale of the tragedy and decline of the United States during the closing years of the first decade of the 21st century. This tragedy will be placed at the foot of the Democrats and mostly on Obama himself for appointing these fools to positions of power. No appearance on Jay Leno's show or political talking heads like Bernanke pretending to put a smile on "60 Minutes" regarding this sham that they are committing or crying bloody murder against AIG for daring to give bonuses to their top people will deflect history's assessment of Obama and his minions in Washington as they oversee the collapse of the greatest country ever seen.
It appears from my take of the news that on Wednesday at 3pm Bernanke gave the go-ahead to print an additional 1 TRILLION dollars - out of thin air.
Remember the dollar used to be backed by gold. The dollar is after all only paper and last I heard paper is not worth very much compared to gold. Nixon took us off the gold standard. Yup you heard it right - a conservative. Our dollar has withstood these past decades soley because of the productivity of the American People and lately because China has bought up our debt.
Obamanomics is all about wealth redistribution -- "from each according to his ability, to each acording to his need," said Karl Marx. Obama views the government's role as the great Robin Hood, which completely blurs the relationship between morality and work, and ultimately between financial productivity and consequences. (READ).
For those of us who are in the lower income brackets and the middle class redistribution of wealth is nothing to be happy about. Where do you think your jobs come from? THE WEALTHY class. Thank God we have a wealthy class!
Obama Makes Orwell's "1984" Come True in "2009"
President Obama IS NOT a defender of freedom. The sooner we all realize this the sooner we can get back out country. The economist George Reisman has an article at his blog explaining Obama's fondness for collective bargaining and Unions in general. He explains that this is COERCION pure and unadulterated. We must understand whats going on before we can know the solution to our erosion of freedom. "The Employee Free Choice Act" is Orwellian double speak and is straight out of the famous novel "1984". But we are living Rand's novel - "Atlas Shrugged". Pick up a copy of both and you'll know what I mean.
...The reader should keep in mind the coercive nature of collective bargaining. Then he should consider Mr. Obama’s observation that “If you’ve got workers who have decent pay and benefits [as the alleged result of collective bargaining], they’re also customers for business.” This statement makes about as much sense as declaring that people who are successful at sticking up gas stations are also customers of gas stations.
Moreover, the workers who are unemployed by collective bargaining are not customers of business, or not very good customers (they can’t afford to be). And the products offered by business to its customers are poorer and more expensive because of collective bargaining. This is something, it must be stressed, that reduces the buying power of the wages of workers throughout the economic system, i.e., reduces what economists call their “real wages.” Mr. Obama needs to forget the nonsense he believes about collective bargaining and paying extortionate wages somehow benefiting business and learn to understand how it harms wage earners, how it harms every wage earner who must pay more and get less as the result of legally enforced collective bargaining. He must learn to understand how it also harms every worker who must earn less as the result of being displaced by collective bargaining from the better paying jobs he could have had if wage rates in those lines had not been driven artificially still higher by collective bargaining and thus reduced the number of workers who could be employed in them and thereby forced those workers into lower paying jobs.
Unfortunately, it does not seem very likely that Mr. Obama will ever learn any of this. He appears to be so charmed by the use of compulsion and coercion that he and his supporters in Congress are ready to unleash a reign of outright mass intimidation against American workers.
In a bow to Orwell’s 1984 and its world filled with such slogans as “war is peace,” “freedom is slavery,” and “love is hate,” Obama and his henchmen are readying “the Employee Free Choice Act.” This is an act designed precisely to end employee free choice, by depriving workers of the benefit of a secret ballot in deciding whether or not they want to join a union. In the words of The Times article, this is “a bill that unions hope will add millions of new members by giving workers the right to union recognition as soon as a majority of employees at a workplace sign pro-union cards. The bill would take away management’s ability to insist on a secret ballot election.”
...The reader should keep in mind the coercive nature of collective bargaining. Then he should consider Mr. Obama’s observation that “If you’ve got workers who have decent pay and benefits [as the alleged result of collective bargaining], they’re also customers for business.” This statement makes about as much sense as declaring that people who are successful at sticking up gas stations are also customers of gas stations.
Moreover, the workers who are unemployed by collective bargaining are not customers of business, or not very good customers (they can’t afford to be). And the products offered by business to its customers are poorer and more expensive because of collective bargaining. This is something, it must be stressed, that reduces the buying power of the wages of workers throughout the economic system, i.e., reduces what economists call their “real wages.” Mr. Obama needs to forget the nonsense he believes about collective bargaining and paying extortionate wages somehow benefiting business and learn to understand how it harms wage earners, how it harms every wage earner who must pay more and get less as the result of legally enforced collective bargaining. He must learn to understand how it also harms every worker who must earn less as the result of being displaced by collective bargaining from the better paying jobs he could have had if wage rates in those lines had not been driven artificially still higher by collective bargaining and thus reduced the number of workers who could be employed in them and thereby forced those workers into lower paying jobs.
Unfortunately, it does not seem very likely that Mr. Obama will ever learn any of this. He appears to be so charmed by the use of compulsion and coercion that he and his supporters in Congress are ready to unleash a reign of outright mass intimidation against American workers.
In a bow to Orwell’s 1984 and its world filled with such slogans as “war is peace,” “freedom is slavery,” and “love is hate,” Obama and his henchmen are readying “the Employee Free Choice Act.” This is an act designed precisely to end employee free choice, by depriving workers of the benefit of a secret ballot in deciding whether or not they want to join a union. In the words of The Times article, this is “a bill that unions hope will add millions of new members by giving workers the right to union recognition as soon as a majority of employees at a workplace sign pro-union cards. The bill would take away management’s ability to insist on a secret ballot election.”
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Cap and Trade Is Bad For Industry and Therefore For Humans
Let's get something straight once and for all. Every living thing on earth breaths out CO2 - carbon dioxide. That is a fact and if you want to get rid of CO2 in the air then you have to get rid of all living things. It is one of the basic constituents of the atmosphere and a substance all living things breath out even plants. How can you call that a pollutant? This is nothing more than a power grab by the government - Americans have been losing their freedoms for decades but now the game is getting stepped up a notch. One of the biggest attackers of freedom, the EPA, has industry in their sights and unless we start understanding the consequences of this Cap and Trade scheme we will be living sorrier lives in the near future.
Robert Tracinski at The Intellectual Activist writes:
"But following the implication of this "everything is pollution" premise, the court concludes that the "EPA can avoid promulgating regulations only if it determines that greenhouse gases do not contribute to climate change." If emitting carbon dioxide is not explicitly permitted by the EPA-then it is assumed to be forbidden. As Jack Wakeland put it to me, the upshot of this ....is that "industrial civilization is guilty until proven innocent."
"This ominous decision overturns the basic rule of a free society. In a free society, that which is not explicitly forbidden is permitted. As philosopher Harry Binswanger once put it, in a free society we live in a sea of liberty, a vast realm of actions that cannot be impeded by government-with only a few small islands marked "off limits," a strictly delimited set of evil actions like armed robbery and check-forging that are banned by government."
Robert Tracinski at The Intellectual Activist writes:
"But following the implication of this "everything is pollution" premise, the court concludes that the "EPA can avoid promulgating regulations only if it determines that greenhouse gases do not contribute to climate change." If emitting carbon dioxide is not explicitly permitted by the EPA-then it is assumed to be forbidden. As Jack Wakeland put it to me, the upshot of this ....is that "industrial civilization is guilty until proven innocent."
"This ominous decision overturns the basic rule of a free society. In a free society, that which is not explicitly forbidden is permitted. As philosopher Harry Binswanger once put it, in a free society we live in a sea of liberty, a vast realm of actions that cannot be impeded by government-with only a few small islands marked "off limits," a strictly delimited set of evil actions like armed robbery and check-forging that are banned by government."
Monday, March 16, 2009
Obama's Budget Is An Alice In Wonderland's Ilusion
Finally! Our legislatures are waking up to Obama's proposed fantasy for America. The belief that we can live happily ever after on trillions of dollars of borrowed money. The Examiner (dcexaminer.com) has a VERY interesting piece about the rebellion brewing on Capitol Hill concerning Obama's budget. Republican senators were careful to throw some token praise at Geithner even as they ripped the administration’s 2010 budget proposal at a hearing.
And Democrats waited until the embattled secretary left the room before signaling that President Barack Obama’s major budget initiatives, including nationalized health care and global warming fees, will be too hard to pass without changes.
Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., who is chairman of the Budget Committee, had a friendly chat with Geithner at the dais after the conclusion of the two-hour grilling. Geithner exited the hearing room, then Conrad leveled with reporters.
“This is not going to be easy,” Conrad said, in reference to the $3.6 trillion budget plan. “There are so many crises we are dealing with — the housing crisis, the financial crisis, two wars.”
Conrad said he has been beset by senators on the floor of the chamber, and they have not been heaping praise on Obama’s budget plan. In fact, they are lodging threats.
Conrad said he has been beset by senators on the floor of the chamber, and they have not been heaping praise on Obama’s budget plan. In fact, they are lodging threats.
“There are so many things in it where I have colleagues coming up to me and saying, ‘If this is in, I’m out,’ ” Conrad confessed. “And I’ve heard that on both sides.”
Conrad, who will be a chief architect of whatever compromise is crafted, has already made public his belief that the budget in its present form does not have enough support to pass the Senate, where it is difficult to stroll down any corridor without hearing either a Democratic or Republican declaring their firm opposition to one of its provisions.
One of the biggest nonstarters for a group of senators in both parties is Obama’s “cap and trade” proposal, which would require polluters such as coal power plants and manufacturing companies to pay for their carbon emissions. Such a plan would cause much higher energy prices, particularly in regions that derive most of their power from coal-fired plants.
Conrad is also skeptical about Obama’s plan to fund a major health care reform initiative in an effort to stave off massive costs that will burden the government in future years.
“Is this really a move to save money or is it just going to cost more money?” Conrad said.
At the hearing, Republicans were less delicate, declaring the budget some kind of economic fantasy plan that would bankrupt the country.
“Is this really a move to save money or is it just going to cost more money?” Conrad said.
At the hearing, Republicans were less delicate, declaring the budget some kind of economic fantasy plan that would bankrupt the country.
“The argument that this budget doesn’t have tax increases is, I think, an Alice in Wonderland view of the budget,” said the top Republican on the committee, Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., who nearly took a job as Obama’s commerce secretary. (READ here).
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Obama's Regime Is Making Things Worse For America
Yea Jim Cramer! An honest guy, (host of Mad Money on MSNBC) even if he is a Democrat and voted for Obama, has had his eyes opened about the kind of man he picked to lead this country. While Obama has been busy wiping out the wealth of millions of Americans - we are waking up to the fact that we voted for a SOCIALIST. More of the same is coming with Obama's health care overhaul". Again- Government stay out of our lives - leave the economy alone!
When I come to work each day, whether as a commentator for TheStreet.com or a host of Mad Money With Jim Cramer, I have only one thought in mind: helping people with their money.
...The lines are drawn pretty clearly: If you can help people make money to be able to retire, enjoy life, pay for college, pay down debt, etc., you are a "good guy," so to speak. If you take the other side of the trade, you are, well, let's say, a less favored fellow. And if you gun for the gigantic investor class that is out there that includes 90 million people in one form or another, whether it be 401(k)s or individual stocks or pension plans, then you are on my enemies list.
Now some, including Rush Limbaugh, would say I am on another enemies list: that of the White House. Limbaugh says there are only a handful of us on it, and if I am on it for defending all of the shareholders out there, then I am in good company. Limbaugh -- whom I do not know ..;
...But Obama has undeniably made things worse by creating an atmosphere of fear and panic rather than an atmosphere of calm and hope. He's done it by pushing a huge amount of change at a very perilous moment, by seeking to demonize the entire banking system and by raising taxes for those making more than $250,000 at the exact time when we need them to spend and build new businesses, and by revoking deductions for funds to charity that help eliminate the excess supply of homes.rsonally, but having been in radio myself, know professionally as a genius of the medium -- says, "They're going to shut Cramer up pretty soon, too, but he'll go down with a fight."
We had a banking crisis coming into this regime, but now every area is in crisis. Each day is worse than the previous one for this miserable economy and while Obama's champions cite the stimulus plan, it's really just a hodgepodge of old Democratic pork and will not create nearly as many manufacturing or service jobs as we hoped. China's stimulus plan is the model; ours is the parody.
... Most important, I believe his agenda is crushing nest eggs around the nation in loud ways, like the decline in the averages, and in soft but dangerous ways, like in the annuities that can't be paid and the insurance benefits that will be challenging to deliver on. (Read Cramer here)
When I come to work each day, whether as a commentator for TheStreet.com or a host of Mad Money With Jim Cramer, I have only one thought in mind: helping people with their money.
...The lines are drawn pretty clearly: If you can help people make money to be able to retire, enjoy life, pay for college, pay down debt, etc., you are a "good guy," so to speak. If you take the other side of the trade, you are, well, let's say, a less favored fellow. And if you gun for the gigantic investor class that is out there that includes 90 million people in one form or another, whether it be 401(k)s or individual stocks or pension plans, then you are on my enemies list.
Now some, including Rush Limbaugh, would say I am on another enemies list: that of the White House. Limbaugh says there are only a handful of us on it, and if I am on it for defending all of the shareholders out there, then I am in good company. Limbaugh -- whom I do not know ..;
...But Obama has undeniably made things worse by creating an atmosphere of fear and panic rather than an atmosphere of calm and hope. He's done it by pushing a huge amount of change at a very perilous moment, by seeking to demonize the entire banking system and by raising taxes for those making more than $250,000 at the exact time when we need them to spend and build new businesses, and by revoking deductions for funds to charity that help eliminate the excess supply of homes.rsonally, but having been in radio myself, know professionally as a genius of the medium -- says, "They're going to shut Cramer up pretty soon, too, but he'll go down with a fight."
We had a banking crisis coming into this regime, but now every area is in crisis. Each day is worse than the previous one for this miserable economy and while Obama's champions cite the stimulus plan, it's really just a hodgepodge of old Democratic pork and will not create nearly as many manufacturing or service jobs as we hoped. China's stimulus plan is the model; ours is the parody.
... Most important, I believe his agenda is crushing nest eggs around the nation in loud ways, like the decline in the averages, and in soft but dangerous ways, like in the annuities that can't be paid and the insurance benefits that will be challenging to deliver on. (Read Cramer here)
Weighing Michael Phelps Down With Weights
Quote of the week!“If you bound the arms and legs of gold-medal swimmer Michael Phelps, weighed him down with chains, threw him in a pool and he sank, you wouldn't call it a ‘failure of swimming'. So, when markets have been weighted down by inept and excessive regulation, why call this a ‘failure of capitalism'?”
It's not Capitalism that has failed - it's government intervention and regulations that have ruined our economy. (Read Eamon Butler at Timesonline.com).
Saturday, March 14, 2009
"Atlas Shrugged" Warned Us 50 Years Ago
Even as the economy worldwide is tanking, people and governments think we can spend our way out of this implosion of capital-that the answer to all our current economic problems is more government meddling and more sacrifice. The only way to turn this catastrophe around is to find reason again and to adopt the morality of rational selfishness and NOT altruism. The best seller novel- Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand warned us fifty years ago as she wrote of a country where the best and brightest decide to leave society to create their own rational oasis amid a United States going down the tube because of the morality of altruism - the sacrifice of all to a zero. Read Yaron Brook's article "Is Rand Relevant?"
...There's a reason. In "Atlas," Rand tells the story of the U.S. economy crumbling under the weight of crushing government interventions and regulations. Meanwhile, blaming greed and the free market, Washington responds with more controls that only deepen the crisis. Sound familiar?
The novel's eerily prophetic nature is no coincidence. "If you understand the dominant philosophy of a society," Rand wrote elsewhere in "Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal," "you can predict its course." Economic crises and runaway government power grabs don't just happen by themselves; they are the product of the philosophical ideas prevalent in a society -- particularly its dominant moral ideas.
Why do we accept the budget-busting costs of a welfare state? Because it implements the moral ideal of self-sacrifice to the needy. Why do so few protest the endless regulatory burdens placed on businessmen? Because businessmen are pursuing their self-interest, which we have been taught is dangerous and immoral. Why did the government go on a crusade to promote "affordable housing," which meant forcing banks to make loans to unqualified home buyers? Because we believe people need to be homeowners, whether or not they can afford to pay for houses.
The message is always the same: "Selfishness is evil; sacrifice for the needs of others is good." But Rand said this message is wrong -- selfishness, rather than being evil, is a virtue. (Read "Is Rand Relevant?")
...There's a reason. In "Atlas," Rand tells the story of the U.S. economy crumbling under the weight of crushing government interventions and regulations. Meanwhile, blaming greed and the free market, Washington responds with more controls that only deepen the crisis. Sound familiar?
The novel's eerily prophetic nature is no coincidence. "If you understand the dominant philosophy of a society," Rand wrote elsewhere in "Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal," "you can predict its course." Economic crises and runaway government power grabs don't just happen by themselves; they are the product of the philosophical ideas prevalent in a society -- particularly its dominant moral ideas.
Why do we accept the budget-busting costs of a welfare state? Because it implements the moral ideal of self-sacrifice to the needy. Why do so few protest the endless regulatory burdens placed on businessmen? Because businessmen are pursuing their self-interest, which we have been taught is dangerous and immoral. Why did the government go on a crusade to promote "affordable housing," which meant forcing banks to make loans to unqualified home buyers? Because we believe people need to be homeowners, whether or not they can afford to pay for houses.
The message is always the same: "Selfishness is evil; sacrifice for the needs of others is good." But Rand said this message is wrong -- selfishness, rather than being evil, is a virtue. (Read "Is Rand Relevant?")
Government - Get OUT OF THE WAY!
It seems like a fairly tale that Presidents think they can continue, ad infinitum, to spend and spend money we don't have on every dark desire in their heart. I think deep down every American knows that government is no different from each individual living in America: You cannot continue spending what you don't have and what you cannot repay. The current President thinks he has an unlimited pot of gold from which he can tap to "fix the economy". The economy can only be fixed by us, the American people - by our hard work, ingenuity and perseverance. Government should get out of the picture and leave us alone to fix our nation. GET OUT OF THE WAY!.
WASHINGTON -- To those who believe that Barack Obama is a different kind of politician -- more honest, more courageous -- please don't examine his administration's budget. If you do, you may sadly conclude that he resembles presidents stretching back to John Kennedy in one crucial respect. He won't tax voters for all the government services they want. That's the main reason we've run budget deficits in 43 of the past 48 years.
Obama is a great pretender. He repeatedly says he's doing things that he isn't, trusting his powerful rhetoric to obscure the difference. He has made "responsibility" a personal theme; the budget's cover line is "A New Era of Responsibility." He says the budget begins "making the tough choices necessary to restore fiscal discipline." It doesn't.
With today's depressed economy, big deficits are unavoidable for some years. But let's assume that Obama wins re-election. By his last year, 2016, the economy presumably will have long recovered. What does his final budget look like? Well, it runs a $637 billion deficit, equal to 3.2 percent of the economy (gross domestic product), projects Obama's Office of Management and Budget. That would match Ronald Reagan's last deficit, 3.1 percent of GDP in 1988, so fiercely criticized by Democrats.
As a society, we should pay in taxes what it costs government to provide desired services. If benefits don't seem equal to burdens, then the spending isn't worth having (exceptions: deficits in wartime and economic slumps).
If Obama were "responsible...(Real Clear Politics).
Sunday, March 08, 2009
Saturday, March 07, 2009
Atlas Shrugged Tells Obama: Hands Off The Economy!
The Economist has an interesting article about the rise in sale of Ayn Rand's very famous book "Atlas Shrugged" about the disappearance of the creators, inventors and businessmen from society as Socialism takes of America. They go to a secret location where they forge a capitalist society based on individualism, self-reliance and mutual respect for their abilities. It was and is an astounding novel that lit my life up at the age of 18 as I found in its pages a new way of looking at my life and the possibilities that were open to me if government left people alone to follow their dreams of achievement. The book is full of philosophical ideas - altruism versus individualism; capitalism vs government control of the economy and the idea that a government's role is the commitment to protecting Americans and the homeland and NOT meddling in our lives.
...Tellingly, the spikes in the novel’s sales coincide with the news (see chart). The first jump, in September 2007, followed dramatic interest-rate cuts by central banks, and the Bank of England’s bail-out of Northern Rock, a troubled mortgage lender. The October 2007 rise happened two days after the Bush Administration announced an initiative to coax banks to assist subprime borrowers. A year later, sales of the book rose after America’s Treasury said that it would use a big chunk of the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Programme to buy stakes in nine large banks. Debate over Mr Obama’s stimulus plan in January gave the book another lift. And sales leapt once again when the stimulus plan passed and Mr Obama announced a new mortgage-modification plan.
Whenever governments intervene in the market, in short, readers rush to buy Rand’s book. Why? The reason is explained by the name of a recently formed group on Facebook, the world’s biggest social-networking site: “Read the news today? It’s like ‘Atlas Shrugged’ is happening in real life”. The group, and an expanding chorus of fretful bloggers, reckon that life is imitating art.
Some were reminded of Rand’s gifted physicist, Robert Stadler, cravenly disavowing his faith in reason for political favour, when Alan Greenspan, an acolyte of Rand’s, testified before a congressional committee last October that he had found a “flaw in the model” of securitisation. And with pirates hijacking cargo ships, politicians castigating corporate chieftains, riots in Europe and slowing international trade—all of which are depicted in the book—this melancholy meme has plenty of fodder. (READ HERE)
...Tellingly, the spikes in the novel’s sales coincide with the news (see chart). The first jump, in September 2007, followed dramatic interest-rate cuts by central banks, and the Bank of England’s bail-out of Northern Rock, a troubled mortgage lender. The October 2007 rise happened two days after the Bush Administration announced an initiative to coax banks to assist subprime borrowers. A year later, sales of the book rose after America’s Treasury said that it would use a big chunk of the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Programme to buy stakes in nine large banks. Debate over Mr Obama’s stimulus plan in January gave the book another lift. And sales leapt once again when the stimulus plan passed and Mr Obama announced a new mortgage-modification plan.
Whenever governments intervene in the market, in short, readers rush to buy Rand’s book. Why? The reason is explained by the name of a recently formed group on Facebook, the world’s biggest social-networking site: “Read the news today? It’s like ‘Atlas Shrugged’ is happening in real life”. The group, and an expanding chorus of fretful bloggers, reckon that life is imitating art.
Some were reminded of Rand’s gifted physicist, Robert Stadler, cravenly disavowing his faith in reason for political favour, when Alan Greenspan, an acolyte of Rand’s, testified before a congressional committee last October that he had found a “flaw in the model” of securitisation. And with pirates hijacking cargo ships, politicians castigating corporate chieftains, riots in Europe and slowing international trade—all of which are depicted in the book—this melancholy meme has plenty of fodder. (READ HERE)
Friday, March 06, 2009
Obama Talks and Talks and Talks-But Nothing Gets Better
The one thing Obama can do is talk that's for sure. He comes out in front of the audience of the day and out of one side of his mouth he spouts how bad things are and out of the other his cure to fix it - which is throwing money at the problem - money we don't have. Thomas Sowell addresses this issue and puts forth Hitler a man who could sure talk a nation into evil and sacrifice and murder.
They say talk is cheap. But in fact it can be devastatingly expensive. Among the generation of Germans who were enthralled by Hitler's eloquence, millions paid with their lives and their children's lives for empowering this demagogue to lead them to ruin and infamy.
Germany before Hitler was one of the more tolerant nations in Europe. That was what attracted so many Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe-- tragically, to their doom...
Do not for one moment think that we are either intellectually or morally superior to those Germans who put Hitler in power. We have been saved by our institutions and our traditions-- the very institutions and traditions that so many are so busy eroding or dismantling, whether in classrooms or court rooms or in the halls of Congress and the White House.
Talk matters for good reasons as well as bad. Anyone familiar with the desperate predicament of Britain in 1940, when it stood alone against the Nazi juggernaut that had smashed whole nations in weeks or even days, knows how crucial Winston Churchill's command of the English language was to sustaining the national will, which was the margin between survival and annihilation.
Unfortunately, people on the make seem to have a keener appreciation of the power of words, as the magic road to other power, than do people defending values that seem to them too obvious to require words.
The expression, "It goes without saying. . ." is a fatal trap. Few things go without saying. Some of the most valuable things in life may go away without saying-- whether loved ones in one's personal life or the freedom or survival of a nation.
Barack Obama is today's most prominent example of the power of words. Conversely, the understated patrician style of country club Republicans is no small part of their many problems.
It is no accident that by far the most successful Republican politician of our lifetime-- Ronald Reagan-- was a man who did not come from that country club background but someone who was born among the people and who knew how to communicate with the people.
Words can shield the most blatant reality. Legislation to take away workers' rights to a secret ballot, when deciding whether or not they want to be represented by a labor union, is called the "Employees' Freedom of Choice Act." (Read the rest here)
Thursday, March 05, 2009
Taxes, Taxes and more Taxes
Actual 'Letter to the Editor' from the February 5th edition of the
Wichita Falls , Texas Times Record News...
Dear IRS,
I am sorry to inform you that I will not be able to pay taxes owed April
15, but all is not lost.
I have paid these taxes: accounts receivable tax, building permit tax,
CDL tax, cigarette tax, corporate income tax, dog licence tax, federal
income tax, unemployment tax, gasoline tax, hunting licence tax, fishing
licence tax, waterfowl stamp tax, inheritance tax, inventory tax, liquor
tax, luxury tax, medicare tax, city, school and county property tax (up
33 percent last 4 years), real estate tax, social security tax, road
usage tax, toll road tax, state and city sales tax, recreational vehicle
tax, state franchise tax, state unemployment tax, telephone federal
excise tax, telephone federal state and local surcharge tax, telephone
minimum usage surcharge tax, telephone state and local tax, utility tax,
vehicle licence registration tax, capitol gains tax, lease severance tax,
oil and gas assessment tax, Colorado property tax, Texas, Colorado,
Wyoming, Oklahoma and New Mexico sales tax, and many more that I can't
recall but I have run out of space and money.
When you do not receive my check April 15, just know that it is an honest
mistake. Please treat me the same way you treated Congressmen Charles
Rangle, Chris Dodd, Barney Frank and ex-Congressman Tom Dashelle and, of
course, your boss Timothy Geithner. No penalties and no interest.
P.S. I will make at least a partial payment as soon as I get my stimulus
check.
Wichita Falls , Texas Times Record News...
Dear IRS,
I am sorry to inform you that I will not be able to pay taxes owed April
15, but all is not lost.
I have paid these taxes: accounts receivable tax, building permit tax,
CDL tax, cigarette tax, corporate income tax, dog licence tax, federal
income tax, unemployment tax, gasoline tax, hunting licence tax, fishing
licence tax, waterfowl stamp tax, inheritance tax, inventory tax, liquor
tax, luxury tax, medicare tax, city, school and county property tax (up
33 percent last 4 years), real estate tax, social security tax, road
usage tax, toll road tax, state and city sales tax, recreational vehicle
tax, state franchise tax, state unemployment tax, telephone federal
excise tax, telephone federal state and local surcharge tax, telephone
minimum usage surcharge tax, telephone state and local tax, utility tax,
vehicle licence registration tax, capitol gains tax, lease severance tax,
oil and gas assessment tax, Colorado property tax, Texas, Colorado,
Wyoming, Oklahoma and New Mexico sales tax, and many more that I can't
recall but I have run out of space and money.
When you do not receive my check April 15, just know that it is an honest
mistake. Please treat me the same way you treated Congressmen Charles
Rangle, Chris Dodd, Barney Frank and ex-Congressman Tom Dashelle and, of
course, your boss Timothy Geithner. No penalties and no interest.
P.S. I will make at least a partial payment as soon as I get my stimulus
check.
Tuesday, March 03, 2009
The Phoney Baloney In Washington
This administration is the biggest phoney baloney we've ever had. They stand for nothing American. They have no American values whatsover and they are leading us down the road to serfdom. Read Dr. Miklos K. Radvanyi's at impassioned article at FRONTIERS OF FREEDOM, decrying the destruction that Obama is bringing to America. We need to stand up and be counted NOW. Read "America's Dangerous Political Paralysis".
Destructive political idiocy is spreading like wildfire in Washington, D.C. Conversely, common sense is missing even – or perhaps especially – where it is needed most: in formulating new ideas, coherent policies, and workable strategies. Indeed, almost three decades after the utterly failed presidency of the former governor of Georgia, and nearly ten years after the politically lackluster performance of another democrat in the White House, Americans and foreigners alike are witnessing the spectacle of the rapidly advancing political suicide of another democrat president and his administration.
The financial mess rooted in the century-old desire of irresponsible representatives of the Democratic Party, anti-capitalist academics, incompetent media personalities and resentful bureaucrats in the United States to artificially engineer a “better world” in which the state must attend to every need of the citizenry, quickly mushroomed into a full-blown economic recession that by now has turned into a global political crisis. This idea of lifting all reasonable limits on the boundaries of the “quality of life” by political fiat has also infected the majority of republicans at the turn of the millennium. The bipartisan rush to income redistribution and social justice has brought the United States and the rest of the world on the verge of economic bankruptcy and political upheaval.
To add insult to injury, the new President of the United States, whose campaign promised change, and his colleagues in Europe and Asia are busy to protect their respective status quos. Meanwhile, the hitherto stable financial, business and economic institutions are disintegrating and the political-institutional frameworks of free societies are experiencing the most perilous decline in recent world history. Although they are in full denial, but the inevitable consequences of this chaotic situation must be steeply raised taxes, runaway inflation, more debts, increased protectionism, and unimaginable plight of the peoples in the developing world. In short, 2009 will challenge the future progress of mankind and reawaken the political and moral demons of the past.
Borrowing the title of Sir William Harcourt’s proclamation almost hundred years ago, Newsweek triumphantly declared on February 16, 2009: “We are all socialists now.” In dealing with the domestic crisis, President Obama and congressional democrats too appear to be guided by the already discredited socialist idea that the fundamental economic interests of the masses are continuously threatened by the existence of free markets and that only government can ensure that the “exploiters” do not hurt the majority’s rights to the constantly expanding entitlements. (Read the entire article here).
Destructive political idiocy is spreading like wildfire in Washington, D.C. Conversely, common sense is missing even – or perhaps especially – where it is needed most: in formulating new ideas, coherent policies, and workable strategies. Indeed, almost three decades after the utterly failed presidency of the former governor of Georgia, and nearly ten years after the politically lackluster performance of another democrat in the White House, Americans and foreigners alike are witnessing the spectacle of the rapidly advancing political suicide of another democrat president and his administration.
The financial mess rooted in the century-old desire of irresponsible representatives of the Democratic Party, anti-capitalist academics, incompetent media personalities and resentful bureaucrats in the United States to artificially engineer a “better world” in which the state must attend to every need of the citizenry, quickly mushroomed into a full-blown economic recession that by now has turned into a global political crisis. This idea of lifting all reasonable limits on the boundaries of the “quality of life” by political fiat has also infected the majority of republicans at the turn of the millennium. The bipartisan rush to income redistribution and social justice has brought the United States and the rest of the world on the verge of economic bankruptcy and political upheaval.
To add insult to injury, the new President of the United States, whose campaign promised change, and his colleagues in Europe and Asia are busy to protect their respective status quos. Meanwhile, the hitherto stable financial, business and economic institutions are disintegrating and the political-institutional frameworks of free societies are experiencing the most perilous decline in recent world history. Although they are in full denial, but the inevitable consequences of this chaotic situation must be steeply raised taxes, runaway inflation, more debts, increased protectionism, and unimaginable plight of the peoples in the developing world. In short, 2009 will challenge the future progress of mankind and reawaken the political and moral demons of the past.
Borrowing the title of Sir William Harcourt’s proclamation almost hundred years ago, Newsweek triumphantly declared on February 16, 2009: “We are all socialists now.” In dealing with the domestic crisis, President Obama and congressional democrats too appear to be guided by the already discredited socialist idea that the fundamental economic interests of the masses are continuously threatened by the existence of free markets and that only government can ensure that the “exploiters” do not hurt the majority’s rights to the constantly expanding entitlements. (Read the entire article here).
ATlas Shrugged Depicted What's Happening Today
The power lusters, non-producers and parasites are taking over the country and Ayn Rand wrote about the mess we're headed in decades ago in her famous novel Atlas Shrugged. Obama could be a character in her book - you know, the guy that wants to control everything because he hasn't an innovative bone in his body. Rob Tracinski has a great article posted at Real Clear Politics called "The Ayn Rand Factor in The Santelli Revolt".
...In defending his stance against the bailouts, Rick Santelli referred to himself as an "Ayn Rander" a reference to the great 20th-century novelist and philosopher Ayn Rand, who is most famous for her ideological defense of laissez-faire capitalism. Similar references seem to be lurking behind nearly every expression of resistance to big government. Rush Limbaugh" whose coining of the term "porkulus" helped galvanize the right's resistance to the so-called "stimulus" bill" has frequently recommended Ayn Rand's magnum opus Atlas Shrugged in recent months, as has conservative talk show host Glenn Beck.
In January, Stephen Moore caused a stir by arguing, in the Wall Street Journal, that the current crisis is turning Atlas Shrugged "from fiction to fact." And those who are warning that increased government restrictions will cause the nation's most productive workers to withdraw their talents have taken to calling this the "John Galt Effect," a reference to the hero" and the main plotline" of Atlas Shrugged.
It is no coincidence that the strongest resistance to a government takeover of the economy is coming from people influenced by Ayn Rand. She has long functioned as a stiffener of resolve and as the fountainhead of pro-free-market ideas.
I have written about this at greater length, but Ayn Rand's contribution to the philosophical defense of capitalism can be summed up in one central idea: individualism. Ayn Rand demonstrated that the ultimate source of all wealth "everything from steel mills to microchips" is the individual reasoning mind. Thus, a society that wants to prosper has to ask what is required by its thinkers and producers, the "prime movers" who originate and implement new ideas. And the first thing that is required for these thinkers to function is that they be free from coercive interference by bureaucrats, by blowhard legislators, or by federal "czars."
Ayn Rand was an individualist in the fullest sense: she regarded the unfettered individual, not just as a source of wealth, but also as an end in himself with the right to profit from and enjoy the wealth he creates, without being forced to sacrifice his happiness for the allegedly greater good of the collective. The issue, as she once put it, is not whether or not you give a dime to a beggar. The issue is whether you have a right to exist if you don't" and whether you have to buy your life, one dime at a time, from every moocher who comes along asking for a handout. She gave the clearest and most consistent "no" to that standard of morality, and the clearest and most consistent "yes" to the moral rights of the creators and producers. (Read the rest here)
...In defending his stance against the bailouts, Rick Santelli referred to himself as an "Ayn Rander" a reference to the great 20th-century novelist and philosopher Ayn Rand, who is most famous for her ideological defense of laissez-faire capitalism. Similar references seem to be lurking behind nearly every expression of resistance to big government. Rush Limbaugh" whose coining of the term "porkulus" helped galvanize the right's resistance to the so-called "stimulus" bill" has frequently recommended Ayn Rand's magnum opus Atlas Shrugged in recent months, as has conservative talk show host Glenn Beck.
In January, Stephen Moore caused a stir by arguing, in the Wall Street Journal, that the current crisis is turning Atlas Shrugged "from fiction to fact." And those who are warning that increased government restrictions will cause the nation's most productive workers to withdraw their talents have taken to calling this the "John Galt Effect," a reference to the hero" and the main plotline" of Atlas Shrugged.
It is no coincidence that the strongest resistance to a government takeover of the economy is coming from people influenced by Ayn Rand. She has long functioned as a stiffener of resolve and as the fountainhead of pro-free-market ideas.
I have written about this at greater length, but Ayn Rand's contribution to the philosophical defense of capitalism can be summed up in one central idea: individualism. Ayn Rand demonstrated that the ultimate source of all wealth "everything from steel mills to microchips" is the individual reasoning mind. Thus, a society that wants to prosper has to ask what is required by its thinkers and producers, the "prime movers" who originate and implement new ideas. And the first thing that is required for these thinkers to function is that they be free from coercive interference by bureaucrats, by blowhard legislators, or by federal "czars."
Ayn Rand was an individualist in the fullest sense: she regarded the unfettered individual, not just as a source of wealth, but also as an end in himself with the right to profit from and enjoy the wealth he creates, without being forced to sacrifice his happiness for the allegedly greater good of the collective. The issue, as she once put it, is not whether or not you give a dime to a beggar. The issue is whether you have a right to exist if you don't" and whether you have to buy your life, one dime at a time, from every moocher who comes along asking for a handout. She gave the clearest and most consistent "no" to that standard of morality, and the clearest and most consistent "yes" to the moral rights of the creators and producers. (Read the rest here)
Sunday, March 01, 2009
Are Americans Quietly Accepting Less Freedom?
Thomas Jefferson and Ayn Rand are arguably America's greatest defenders of freedom and they wrote much about government tyranny. Americans would be wise to read our Constitution and the writings of these two people to understand how we have deviated from freedom and are on a collision course with tyranny. Are we to continue to be the land of the free and the brave or are we going down the path of the majority of countries on this planet - the path of tyranny and subjugation by government. As Ayn Rand (author of Atlas Shrugged) wrote more than 40 years ago: We are fast approaching the stage of the ultimate inversion: the stage where the government is free to do anything it pleases, while the citizens may act only by permission; which is the stage of the darkest periods of human history, the stage of rule by brute force. What our government is doing today under Obama is a travesty of our wise Founding Fathers who gave of their lives and fortunes to fight tyranny and founded a nation of freedom. Obama is the last of a line of Presidents from both parties that have sold our nation's principles down the river to the highest bidder.
Thomas Jefferson, one of our Founding Fathers, promoted a "wise and frugal government which shall restrain men from injuring one another, which shall them otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned. This is the sum of good government."
The spirit of resistance to government is so valuable on certain occasions that I wish it to be always kept alive. It will often be exercised when wrong, better so than not to be exercised at all. I like a little rebellion now and then. It is like a storm in the atmosphere. (Thomas Jefferson)
WHEN ARE AMERICANS GOING TO REBEL against this continuous loss of freedom to run our lives the way each of us sees fit. The following is just a partial list of all the ways government attacks our liberty.
Thomas Jefferson, one of our Founding Fathers, promoted a "wise and frugal government which shall restrain men from injuring one another, which shall them otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned. This is the sum of good government."
The spirit of resistance to government is so valuable on certain occasions that I wish it to be always kept alive. It will often be exercised when wrong, better so than not to be exercised at all. I like a little rebellion now and then. It is like a storm in the atmosphere. (Thomas Jefferson)
WHEN ARE AMERICANS GOING TO REBEL against this continuous loss of freedom to run our lives the way each of us sees fit. The following is just a partial list of all the ways government attacks our liberty.
- Taxing some to give to others and taxing and taxing
- bailing out losers in the economy with our money
- regulating industry and businesses which is unconstitutional and raises the cost of goods
- laws against ingesting things government deems harmful or wants to control (drug laws)
- meddling in our economy by creating things like Fannie Mae and her brother
- monopolizing our education system
- accusing Big Business or Wall Street (whatever is in fashion on that day) as the cause of all our problems instead of policing themselves
- zoning laws
- eminent domain
Rights are not subject to a public vote; a majority has no right to vote away the rights of a minority; the political function of rights is precisely to protect minorities from oppression by majorities (and the smallest minority on earth is the individual).
Government "help" to business is just as disastrous as government persecution... the only way a government can be of service to national prosperity is by keeping its hands off.
The only power any government has is the power to crack down on criminals. Well, when there aren't enough criminals, one makes them. One declares so many things to be a crime that it becomes impossible for men to live without breaking laws. Ayn Rand
If we love this country and want to remain free we must stand up and be counted. Government is not the source of all that is good. It is the freedom loving productive individual. If we let go of the reins that holds government in then we let go of our freedom. This has been proven over and over again since man instituted government. America was a bastion of liberty...the question is - will she remain so. America the beautiful - she deserves to be saved.
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