Showing posts with label government. Show all posts
Showing posts with label government. Show all posts
Thursday, May 18, 2017
Ousting Trump With The 25th Amendment Is A BAD Idea
Using the 25th Amendment, as many are talking about today to take the Presidency away from Donald Trump, is a nightmare. (Read more about it here.)
Hate Trump, love Trump, it doesn't matter. There are ways to legally remove a President. Investigations that reveal he did something wrong, illegal, treasonous and leading to impeachment is the only SANE way to do it.
If those in power decide to use the 25th Amendment it would not only be DANGEROUS for America today, it would set a PRECEDENT for future elections that could eventually erode the people's right to choose their leadership.
THE DANGEROUS PART
America's leadership in upheaval would be a sign for everyone from Russia and North Korea to ISIS and corporate entities worldwide to dig in their claws and complete their desires to bring America down. Many of these countries, groups and organizations have been working in various subtle ways to destabilize, destroy and/or take control of America. If the 25th Amendment were to be used, subtlety would go out the window.
It would be a sign to the financial world that America is a "bad investment" and our economy would deteriorate below the point of sustainability. Its is bad now, despite what our government would like us to believe. But with that government in turmoil, the truth will be public knowledge and it would spiral, with international financial groups taking their piece of the pie while it is in freefall. And the people will be the ones to suffer. All the thin veiled realities of the low paying, no benefit, part time work that replaced good stable paying jobs with benefits would crumble and people would lose hope. This later torn psyche of the American people would be difficult to rebound from.
THE FUTURE OF OUR DEMOCRACY PART
The use of the 25th Amendment would now have a precedence that would be a cliff we could not un-fall off of. Any popular candidate would have to worry about the entrenched powers in DC deciding he was unfit for the office and removing him for any number of reasons, so long as they all decide to do it. That is 536 voices overriding hundreds of millions who participate in the election process.
There are those who say that the people don't really get to choose. But if the Trump election shows nothing else, it shows the fallacy of THAT argument. Whether you were the half of the country who voted for Trump and declared victory in ever increasing hate rhetoric or the half that voted against him that cried in their collective beers afterward and searched out their "safe spaces", the truth is that the election process was not governed by the powers that be. If it were, then we would be looking at a different Presidency right now.
If the people lose the perception that THEY are the ones who choose their leaders, voter turnout will be even more abysmal that it currently is. Apathy on a grand scale would set in American leadership will finally, once and for all, truly be decided by those in power, those with money, those with an agenda that does not match the best interests of the country at large.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The use of the 25th Amendment in this fashion will be the final nail in the coffin for the 241 year experiment in freedom and democracy would come to a dismal end.
But hey, thats just my thoughts on the matter. Don't listen to me. Use the gray matter between your ears and look at ALL the facts, not just the ones that people want to tell you, and decide for yourself. Think for yourself. Don't be sheep.
Anyway, this is just me, Thinking Out Loud.
Have a great day.
Friday, July 8, 2016
Really? Cop Killing to Protest? Stupid!
COMMENTARY - You all know I am a vocal opponent to most of our elected officials and often call them out on their blowhardedness. And you know I have been outspoken about some of the stupid things Tom Marino has said. But on this one thing (despite the fact I know he has an agenda for everything he does), I have to agree.
Here is what Marino sent out to press:
But I will go a step further than him by saying that if there weren't so many lawless people who feel they have a right to be as asinine and disgusting and disrespectful of life and authority, cops wouldn't be so on edge. If parents weren't so lacking in teaching their kids respect and responsibility, we wouldn't have a generation who thinks they can tell cops to "F" themselves or think its open season on our law enforcement members.
Sure there are bad cops, I am not so naive to think that there aren't bad ones out there. However, that is just like there are bad teachers and bad retail sales people and bad you name it. But the percentage of cops who are bad are a small number. Most are there to protect and serve and keep our society from de-evolving into chaos.
And if you think that any person has a right to just go blow away a cop in protest of what some other cop has done, then you have to believe that I am justified in blowing away any black person because a group of them mugged me once. Or that I have a right to just go blow away any neighbor because one raped a young girl I knew and destroyed her life. Or maybe I am justified in blowing away a car salesman because one screwed me over and left me on the brink of bankruptcy. Or a blow up the home of some random bank employee because a bank foreclosed on my house and left me homeless.
Your justification are stupid, so just SHUT UP with your racist BS. Yes, I told you to SHUT UP! Why? Because all the babble out there and raised voices of gang members and poor people and Hollywood types and a President who is so out of control he doesn't know when a leader should NOT add to the babble, are not doing anything to FIX THE PROBLEM, just add to the disease that is spreading across this country like leprosy.
Yes, some cops are racist. And so are some grocery store clerks. So are gang bangers. So are lots of others. But the numbers of ACTUAL racist people is small compared to the number of compassionate and caring people in America. SO STOP LUMPING people into a category just because someone with an agenda tells you to.
This is the worst case of BEING SHEEP I have seen in years. If you used your brain, you would remember the cop who gave you directions when you were hopelessly lost and on the verge of tears. Or the cop who held the little old lady's hand who had just been t-boned and was waiting for an ambulance. Or the the cop who caught the scum who stole your purse, broke into your house, raped your daughter's best friend. You would remember the feeling of relief as you walk at night from your job to your care when you saw the cop on the street or in the parking lot. Because you felt safer.
And you would remember the people who are afraid of cops are those who have a reason to be afraid of cops. (And I don't mean because they were brainwashed into thinking all cops are bad. Those poor kids turned into adults who feared cops for NO REASON. Only because bad people told them to afraid of cops.)
Okay by now the rabid crowds are slathering at all I have been saying. Calling me a racist. (Go stuff it because you don't know me or my life.) Calling me whatever pops into their little pea brains. But here's the thing.
I think if a cop has a bad shoot, they should be investigated and punished. If it was a legitimate mistake (someone with a BB gun points it and they kill the person, they STILL POINTED A WEAPON), then they should be punished accordingly - reprimand, re-training, dismissal, whatever a review board decides is appropriate. If a cop kills someone and it is manslaughter, murder, whatever, they should be punished accordingly. BY AN APPROPRIATE REVIEW BOARD. And if you disagree with the board, then complain to the person who appointed them. But DO NOT - I repeat for emphasis - DO NOT TAKE IT OUT ON ANY COP YOU SEE ON THE STREET!
This is anarchy. This is BS. These good cops you are lumping with the few bad ones have families. They have saved lives. They have protected you and your family. And deserve respect for putting on that badge everyday to go to work knowing they might not be coming home each night. They have lives just like you. They go to the store just like you. They want to see their parents 50th anniversary, they want to see their kids graduate and get married, they want to see the joy on their spouses' when they open that special Christmas gift they have been saving up for all year.
THEY are not the problem.
The ANGRY MOBS causing chaos are the problem. People venting anger and frustration at the wrong people are the problem. Politicians - and yes I am pointing my finger at the President specifically - who have an agenda or abuse their office, are the problem. Not letting justice take its course, not changing a system if you feel it is corrupt or broken, lazy people in general who will not do the work to fix things . . . THIS IS THE PROBLEM! Scumbags and cowards who take pot shots at cops who are just out there doing their jobs ARE THE PROBLEM! A culture of hate and violence and crime and irresponsibility for their own actions IS THE PROBLEM!
Advocating killing cops is the criminals solution, because it suits them! Blaming some poor guy out there doing his job because they don't want you to see they are not doing their's is the politicians solution, because it suits them!
I am angry. So this edition is angry. But you don't see me taking it to the streets and saying "kill all the protesters". And you don't see cops doing this either. I am trying to educate you so you thin k for yourselves, so that you are honest with yourselves. You are looking for someone to take out your anger and fear and frustration on. But you are targeting the wrong group. You are venting your hate in the wrong direction.
Just stop reacting with hate and start thinking. Fix the problems instead of adding to them.
Agree or disagree, its up to you. After all, this is just me - one person - Thinking Out Loud.
Charles
Here is what Marino sent out to press:
Rep. Marino Responds to Dallas Attack
Washington D.C.—Congressman Tom Marino (PA-10) issued the following statement after the attack on Dallas law enforcement officials that left 5 dead and several injured:
“Yesterday our nation experienced the deadliest attack on law enforcement since 9/11. The senseless loss of life this week is horrific and my thoughts are with the families of those who have been tragically taken. Instead of unifying and bringing our country together, too many of our leaders, including our president, have been the driving force in dividing us and pitting our citizens against one another. Some of this rhetoric has vilified our law enforcement to the point where individuals believe it is ok to commit mass murder against this community. The Dallas police chief said it himself - most days he and his team do not feel support. The very people who have dedicated their lives to protect us feel ostracized. Still, these officers ran headlong into danger and risked their lives so that the people around them and the city of Dallas would remain safe. My heart goes out to the injured officers, the victims’ families and their communities. There is absolutely no place for this type of violence. This divisiveness must stop.”
But I will go a step further than him by saying that if there weren't so many lawless people who feel they have a right to be as asinine and disgusting and disrespectful of life and authority, cops wouldn't be so on edge. If parents weren't so lacking in teaching their kids respect and responsibility, we wouldn't have a generation who thinks they can tell cops to "F" themselves or think its open season on our law enforcement members.
Sure there are bad cops, I am not so naive to think that there aren't bad ones out there. However, that is just like there are bad teachers and bad retail sales people and bad you name it. But the percentage of cops who are bad are a small number. Most are there to protect and serve and keep our society from de-evolving into chaos.
And if you think that any person has a right to just go blow away a cop in protest of what some other cop has done, then you have to believe that I am justified in blowing away any black person because a group of them mugged me once. Or that I have a right to just go blow away any neighbor because one raped a young girl I knew and destroyed her life. Or maybe I am justified in blowing away a car salesman because one screwed me over and left me on the brink of bankruptcy. Or a blow up the home of some random bank employee because a bank foreclosed on my house and left me homeless.
Your justification are stupid, so just SHUT UP with your racist BS. Yes, I told you to SHUT UP! Why? Because all the babble out there and raised voices of gang members and poor people and Hollywood types and a President who is so out of control he doesn't know when a leader should NOT add to the babble, are not doing anything to FIX THE PROBLEM, just add to the disease that is spreading across this country like leprosy.
Yes, some cops are racist. And so are some grocery store clerks. So are gang bangers. So are lots of others. But the numbers of ACTUAL racist people is small compared to the number of compassionate and caring people in America. SO STOP LUMPING people into a category just because someone with an agenda tells you to.
This is the worst case of BEING SHEEP I have seen in years. If you used your brain, you would remember the cop who gave you directions when you were hopelessly lost and on the verge of tears. Or the cop who held the little old lady's hand who had just been t-boned and was waiting for an ambulance. Or the the cop who caught the scum who stole your purse, broke into your house, raped your daughter's best friend. You would remember the feeling of relief as you walk at night from your job to your care when you saw the cop on the street or in the parking lot. Because you felt safer.
And you would remember the people who are afraid of cops are those who have a reason to be afraid of cops. (And I don't mean because they were brainwashed into thinking all cops are bad. Those poor kids turned into adults who feared cops for NO REASON. Only because bad people told them to afraid of cops.)
Okay by now the rabid crowds are slathering at all I have been saying. Calling me a racist. (Go stuff it because you don't know me or my life.) Calling me whatever pops into their little pea brains. But here's the thing.
I think if a cop has a bad shoot, they should be investigated and punished. If it was a legitimate mistake (someone with a BB gun points it and they kill the person, they STILL POINTED A WEAPON), then they should be punished accordingly - reprimand, re-training, dismissal, whatever a review board decides is appropriate. If a cop kills someone and it is manslaughter, murder, whatever, they should be punished accordingly. BY AN APPROPRIATE REVIEW BOARD. And if you disagree with the board, then complain to the person who appointed them. But DO NOT - I repeat for emphasis - DO NOT TAKE IT OUT ON ANY COP YOU SEE ON THE STREET!
This is anarchy. This is BS. These good cops you are lumping with the few bad ones have families. They have saved lives. They have protected you and your family. And deserve respect for putting on that badge everyday to go to work knowing they might not be coming home each night. They have lives just like you. They go to the store just like you. They want to see their parents 50th anniversary, they want to see their kids graduate and get married, they want to see the joy on their spouses' when they open that special Christmas gift they have been saving up for all year.
THEY are not the problem.
The ANGRY MOBS causing chaos are the problem. People venting anger and frustration at the wrong people are the problem. Politicians - and yes I am pointing my finger at the President specifically - who have an agenda or abuse their office, are the problem. Not letting justice take its course, not changing a system if you feel it is corrupt or broken, lazy people in general who will not do the work to fix things . . . THIS IS THE PROBLEM! Scumbags and cowards who take pot shots at cops who are just out there doing their jobs ARE THE PROBLEM! A culture of hate and violence and crime and irresponsibility for their own actions IS THE PROBLEM!
Advocating killing cops is the criminals solution, because it suits them! Blaming some poor guy out there doing his job because they don't want you to see they are not doing their's is the politicians solution, because it suits them!
I am angry. So this edition is angry. But you don't see me taking it to the streets and saying "kill all the protesters". And you don't see cops doing this either. I am trying to educate you so you thin k for yourselves, so that you are honest with yourselves. You are looking for someone to take out your anger and fear and frustration on. But you are targeting the wrong group. You are venting your hate in the wrong direction.
Just stop reacting with hate and start thinking. Fix the problems instead of adding to them.
Agree or disagree, its up to you. After all, this is just me - one person - Thinking Out Loud.
Charles
Friday, February 12, 2016
Trump, Trumpism, Charles Murray and the Anger of Americans
COMMENTARY - Trump vs Murray?? Charles Murray wrote this back in October 2015: "It could be the 1850s and the Know Nothings. Same fear, same rhetoric, same fascist tendencies. And I don’t use “fascist” loosely."
Yet today Murray writes in the Wall Street Journal (online - which you can only read the full story by logging in or subscribing) "If you are dismayed by Trumpism, don’t kid yourself that it will fade away if Donald Trump fails to win the Republican nomination. Trumpism is an expression of the legitimate anger that many Americans feel about the course that the country has taken, and its appearance was predictable. It is the endgame of a process that has been going on for a half-century: America’s divestment of its historic national identity."
So which is it, Mr. Murray? Is Trump and all he stands for the same rhetoric as the 1850's Know Nothings, representing fear and fascism? Or is it an "expression of legitimate anger"?
Like most "pundits" and politicians today, they just don't understand the appeal of someone like Donald Trump. Do people ACTUALLY want to elect The Donald as President of the United States of America? Mostly not. But what other choice do they have to vent their anger and frustration at a government intent on lying to (poorly) and dividing (convincingly) the entirety of the American people? What other choice do they have when there are so many incompetent people in power who really don't get the economy like a businessman of The Donald's obvious skills in that area? What choice do they have when the other choices are people who are cowards in the face of international mayhem?
With the damage this current president has done to not only the fabric of American society by the psyche of the American spirit, not to mention the nilly willy way in which he consistently violates the separation of powers with his use (or misuse) or executive orders, the people are frustrated.
Its also why Bernie Sanders on the Democrat side engenders so much support. Even though he has been a part of the problem for decades, he "says" the right things to a people who would not support ANY Republican. He is their ONLY choice to vent.
So what is the answer? Do away with parties. At least for President. Everyone can run on their own merit, their own ideas, their own platform. The person with the most votes (by the people, not some elusive "Electoral College") gets the job. The person with the second most votes becomes vice president. Its the only fair way in today's environment of political shenanigans and payoffs via party PACs and donations.
The American people are neither Republican nor Democrat nor Green nor Socialist as a whole. And neither should the President be. The President is NOT the leader of his respective party. He is the duly elected Executive for ALL the American people.
But you know what? This is just my opinion and thoughts on the matter. You can have your own opinion and thoughts on the matter. But thats what is great about our country. We can each have our own opinion and try to convince others of our ideas being the . . . .okay, I was going to say the right ideas. But in truth, as in governmental structure, there is no "right" and "wrong" idea. Its the BEST idea among all the competing ideas out there. Whats best for US. And I do mean US as in the capitalization "us".
Bottom line, though, is that America is pissed. And it will continue to be pissed long after whoever is elected president is sworn in. Because none of the damage done in the past 70 years can be corrected overnight. Or even in four years. But even if it doesn't, and even if Americans stay angry, if something isn't done to make corrections NOW, it will just keep getting worse. And THAT is the appeal of Trump and Trumpism. So Murray might finally have it right. Not sure because I will not be paying for a subscription of the Wall Street Journal to rad the conclusion of this article of his. I just can't afford it.
So, as I always say here, agree or disagree, thats up to you. Just do your research and think for yourselves. Don't be sheep and think what the pundits or your "betters" in politics tell you what to think. Not even me. Because this is just me, Thinking Out Loud.
Have a great day.
Charles
Tuesday, April 21, 2015
Stalking is bad . . . unless you are a union worker?? Really Pennsylvania??
Can't believe this is just now being fixed in the Pennsylvania legislature. Is this 2015 or 1960??
Kudos to the FBI for finding this and for Pennsylvania's lawmakers who are fixing this.
But I do have to wonder . . . 84 people voted against this? So 84 legislatures thinks its okay to harass, stalk and threaten??
Kudos to the FBI for finding this and for Pennsylvania's lawmakers who are fixing this.
But I do have to wonder . . . 84 people voted against this? So 84 legislatures thinks its okay to harass, stalk and threaten??
Bill Ending Exemption Allowing Stalking, Harassment and Threats of Violence Heads to Senate
HARRISBURG – Highlighting a special state criminal code exception for business management and labor unions in the Commonwealth, the House voted to prohibit stalking, harassment and threats of violence for everyone, House Majority Leader Rep. Dave Reed (R-Indiana) said today.
By a vote of 109-84, House Bill 874 passed the House and heads to the Senate for consideration.
“Without exception, stalking, harassment or intimidation is wrong and should never be tolerated – especially in law,” Reed said. “The majority of business managers and workers work together honorably and effectively, yet the laws of this state should protect all Pennsylvanians from stalking or threats of harm.”
Currently, Pennsylvania’s criminal code, Title 18, exempts management and organized labor from prosecution for harassment, stalking and threatening to use weapons of mass destruction. It is illegal to call in a bomb scare, or stalk people or their kids, except if the caller or stalker is involved in a labor dispute.
This exception was brought to light last year when the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) arrested 10 members of Philadelphia Ironworkers Local 401, including union leadership, for aiding racketeering and arson, and indicted them under the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act.
According to the indictment, union members repeatedly threatened non-union construction employers with violence unless they hired a certain amount of union members. The indictment noted violence was “deeply ingrained in the structure of their organization.” Federal prosecutors brought charges against 12 members of Philadelphia Ironworkers Local 401, and most pled guilty before trial.
“It’s unfortunate, but by allowing intimidation, such as harassment, stalking and threats of violence in state law, it took the FBI and United State Attorneys to charge and prosecute under the federal law the criminal actions of some members of Philadelphia Ironworkers,” Reed said.
Well, guess we can just look at the voting record on this bill and find out who should NOT be working for the people come next election, eh?
Just me, as usual, Thinking Out Loud.
Have a great day.
Charles
Monday, November 3, 2014
Thinking Out Loud - Straight Line Voting is killing America
“Tucked deep in North Carolina's
election revision law that has stirred great passion is a provision
that barely gets noticed.”
That's how an August article on the
News Observer website begins. Gee, I wonder where this is leading? And as predictable, it rambles on how this is the Republican's way of
keeping voters from having “a handy way to participate in many
contests with a single mark for a party’s slate of candidates.”
Really? This is how you want your
voters voting? In a handy way? I read that as a lazy way. And why
this country is in such a shambles as it is. Instead of voting for
the best person to represent them, they just lazily vote for the
party that they think represents their values.
Yeah, right. The only values a
political party cares about is one, how they can get elected /
re-elected and two, how their “money” wants them to vote. Years
ago, the Republican Party was the party of caring and the Democrats
were the greedy corporate types. Somewhere along the lines, the
Democrats convinced the people that they were the party of social
change and caring and that the Republicans were the greedy SOB's. (And it became true. But then it changed again - but not in a good way.)
But, as always, the truth is somewhere
else.
Today, the political party system is
all about staying in power, catering to special interests and letting
the less than scrupulous big money people frame the laws in their
best interest.
The people are nowhere to be seen in
the equation of modern government.
Gone is the government “of the
people, for the people and by the people.” As much as we'd like to
think otherwise.
So whats the answer?
Vote them all out!
Yeah, nice sentiment, but that doesn't
really work, does it. Not only do they never get “all voted out”,
the people who actually vote in numbers are the ones who are too lazy
to look at all the candidates on the ballot.
So its just a popularity contests
influenced by a media that is bought and paid for by the political
parties they are supposed to be watchdogging.
Its a vicious circle. Truly it is.
But I have the answer. Not a perfect
answer. But an answer thats better than allowing the 14 states out
there that still have it. Do away with ALL straight party voting.
Make the voters choose their candidates wisely and not through skewed
news and campaign ads.
Okay, so the first part is easy. States
need to do away with the straight ticket voting and their courts need
to stop giving in to BS lawsuits trying to get it back.
Making people accountable for WHO they
vote in is NOT racist. It is NOT a ploy by one party or another to
gain an advantage. Its about making the voters do their homework
before they get into the voting booth.
Wow, an informed electorate! What a
concept.
But its the second part that is going
to take work. There needs to be a law banning all negative ads. If
you want people to vote for you tell them why they should vote for
YOU. Don't tell them why NOT to vote for the other candidate. That's
their decision. Anyone flooding the airwaves and the newspapers and
billboards and mailings who stoop to negative campaigning should be
ripped off the ballot.
And before you say that candidates
would just sue their opponents claiming negative ads, there needs to
be accountability. Have a strict set of guidelines on what is a
negative campaign strategy and what would constitute a valid lawsuit.
And in the second part of that, make the consequences of a spurious
lawsuit be having the person bringing it ripped off the ballot.
Contrary to this article in the News
Observer, and all the whining out there being done by both parties
over this matter, straight ticket voting hurts America. It hurts all
of us. And it is the lazy man's way to vote.
I know of people in the Democratic
party that are really concerned citizens wanting to make a
difference, wanting to serve their country and represent their
constituents. I also know of republicans who are that way. And Green
party and independents and people of every stripe and color.
They care. They work hard. But they
cannot do their jobs if the people keep voting a straight party down
the line without doing their due diligence before stepping into the
voting booth.
If they vote straight Democrat than
they are voting on the PARTY Agenda. Which means the republican on
the ballot who is better than the Democrat doesn't get in. And
America suffers. Same with the Democrat who deserves a chance but is
wiped out by the straight Republican voter.
And then there are all those
independent candidates out there who realize the party system is
broke, but can't even get in the door to fix it because of the lazy
voter.
Just take for example the guy in Texas
who should never have been elected but was voted in because of the
straight line voters. If the voters had done their homework on this
guy they would have said “whoa, no way!”
In 1994, Steve Mansfield was elected to
the state's highest criminal court . . . with no criminal court
background, despite claims to the contrary, and a very dubious past.
Part of that included being fined in Florida for practicing law
without a license. Mansfiled himself said he didn't expect to win and
said his campaign would have been “dead in the water” had anyone
looked into his background.
This kind of thing will happen every
time you vote straight line and do not KNOW who the heck you are
voting for.
Stop being lazy! Stop being sheep and
believing the lies the political parties feed you! You're not babies
who need to be spoon-fed pablum, you're responsible adults who not
only have a right vote but you have a duty to be informed. And for
heaven's sake, stop being brainless masses for the irresponsible
media to fill up with whats popular at the moment and spewing out the
words of who's got the most power! I feel shame for my colleagues who
don't have the backbone to stand up to the corporate bean counters
who worry about ratings and access. They are shirking their duties as
the fourth estate, the watchdogs they are supposed to be. (But that's
a rant for another time.)
And don't just take my word for any of
this. Look around. Research. (Lots of places to do this - but don't pick just one. Like PolitiFact and Snopes. And you can check voting records at GovTracks and Project VoteSmart.) Be responsible adults. Do whats right, not whats easiest or laziest or popular.
But hey, who am I right? This is just
me, Thinking Out Loud! Have a great day!
Charles
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Take that, Mister President
BAM! Mr. President! WE built this stuff. And most times had to struggle through tons of red tape to do it. But,a s the video shows, Americans build things. And its the tax dollars form what WE build that pays for the salaries AND RETIREMENT PAY of all those lame, do-nothing politicians. Including YOU, Mr. President! What the hell did YOU build?!
"So," you may ask, "what got you riled this time?"
Not riled up, JAZZED!
Bristol Palin asked for and received photos of things and businesses Americans built. Without government help. In fact, many times with government interference.
What she received was an incredible trove. She made a video with just a sample of what was sent. It is inspiring. AND its an "in-your-face-Mr-President" moment.
AS you can see, I am still annoyed at the arrogance and ignorance of such basic truths about America that President Obama just doesn't appear to get. I outlined in a recent blog post all the problems with that particular speech. But this one thing still gets me peeved because Obama is so completely oblivious to it. He doesn't even get what he said was wrong. And neither do his blind supporters.
I understand people who are passionate about their choices in political office. Really, I do. But to so BLINDLY follow everything they say and be a complete air-headed cheerleader for them is just so beyond me.
Thats my biggest problem with the people I like to term Obama-nites. They're SHEEP, plain and simple. Mindless, drones who re-spout the party line without any thought of their own rattling around in their head. If they actually knew what the hell they were spouting and did it anyway, I could respect that. America is made up of diversity, including of opinion. But if these echo machines of the liberal party stopped and said "oh wait, thats not right", I would respect them more. But they don't. They blindly follow whatever SPIN is sent their way. They do not question what the "great one" says or his SPIN-masters pass along.
Here is a fact. Government is supposed to provide an environment for businesses and people to succeed. AN ENVIRONMENT! Not the give away whole freaking she-bang! Government is not supposed to be a cradle-to-grave hand out system. James Madison argued that government would NEVER become this way because the people would not allow their liberties to be usurped (Federalist No. 46).
Guess he was wrong. Because we are creating and evolving a nation of SHEEP. A nation where they think the government will solve all their problems. A nation of CHILDREN. Children who not only can't think for themselves, but who can't do for themselves either.
No wonder the President thinks the government did and does all these things. He never ran a business. Never had to build anything. And he was given everything . . . including the Presidency. In 2004 he was a nobody junior Senator from Illinois. Someone gave him the speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention. From there he just kept campaigning and was given all the resources that kept getting him elected and running again. From state Senator to US Senator to President in just six short years. Who does that? Nobody . . . . without help from a machine.
So of course HE thinks government does everything for you. He's never had to do for himself. But his followers are out here in the real world. And they still don't get it either.
Well, I am just going on. I'll stop my rant and just remind you all that whether you agree or not, I just want it to be YOU who is agreeing or disagreeing. I would prefer you think for yourself and STOP BEING SHEEP. I would hope to help you AVOID THE SPIN. And really, don't even take my word as gospel (not that anyone does), look at everything going on and decide for yourself how you feel about it. But heck, either way, this is just me - as usual - Thinking Out Loud.
Have a great day.
Charles
"So," you may ask, "what got you riled this time?"
Not riled up, JAZZED!
Bristol Palin asked for and received photos of things and businesses Americans built. Without government help. In fact, many times with government interference.
What she received was an incredible trove. She made a video with just a sample of what was sent. It is inspiring. AND its an "in-your-face-Mr-President" moment.
AS you can see, I am still annoyed at the arrogance and ignorance of such basic truths about America that President Obama just doesn't appear to get. I outlined in a recent blog post all the problems with that particular speech. But this one thing still gets me peeved because Obama is so completely oblivious to it. He doesn't even get what he said was wrong. And neither do his blind supporters.
I understand people who are passionate about their choices in political office. Really, I do. But to so BLINDLY follow everything they say and be a complete air-headed cheerleader for them is just so beyond me.
Thats my biggest problem with the people I like to term Obama-nites. They're SHEEP, plain and simple. Mindless, drones who re-spout the party line without any thought of their own rattling around in their head. If they actually knew what the hell they were spouting and did it anyway, I could respect that. America is made up of diversity, including of opinion. But if these echo machines of the liberal party stopped and said "oh wait, thats not right", I would respect them more. But they don't. They blindly follow whatever SPIN is sent their way. They do not question what the "great one" says or his SPIN-masters pass along.
Here is a fact. Government is supposed to provide an environment for businesses and people to succeed. AN ENVIRONMENT! Not the give away whole freaking she-bang! Government is not supposed to be a cradle-to-grave hand out system. James Madison argued that government would NEVER become this way because the people would not allow their liberties to be usurped (Federalist No. 46).
Guess he was wrong. Because we are creating and evolving a nation of SHEEP. A nation where they think the government will solve all their problems. A nation of CHILDREN. Children who not only can't think for themselves, but who can't do for themselves either.
No wonder the President thinks the government did and does all these things. He never ran a business. Never had to build anything. And he was given everything . . . including the Presidency. In 2004 he was a nobody junior Senator from Illinois. Someone gave him the speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention. From there he just kept campaigning and was given all the resources that kept getting him elected and running again. From state Senator to US Senator to President in just six short years. Who does that? Nobody . . . . without help from a machine.
So of course HE thinks government does everything for you. He's never had to do for himself. But his followers are out here in the real world. And they still don't get it either.
Well, I am just going on. I'll stop my rant and just remind you all that whether you agree or not, I just want it to be YOU who is agreeing or disagreeing. I would prefer you think for yourself and STOP BEING SHEEP. I would hope to help you AVOID THE SPIN. And really, don't even take my word as gospel (not that anyone does), look at everything going on and decide for yourself how you feel about it. But heck, either way, this is just me - as usual - Thinking Out Loud.
Have a great day.
Charles
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Responding to Obama's "You didn't build that" speech
Glomming onto a particular statement may work well for political campaigns and news sound bites, but the reality is so much more scarier.
A recent speech by President Obama was attacked for one small section of it being anti-business, pro-cradle-to-the-grave government interference and “slap in the face of the American Dream” (Romney attack emails).
But it is so much worse than that. It is a shinning example of political spin and weaselly word warping. It is an example of not only naivete but a complete distortion of the facts. It shows an arrogance and an ignorance that should make one shake in dismay and fear. This is, after all, the President of the United States. If he can 1) get away with lying this badly and 2) afford the best speech writers in the business and NOT employ them, we need to be very worried about everything else he is, and has been, doing.
The following is a dissection of the speech that has politicos up in arms.
“We’ve already made a trillion dollars’ worth of cuts. We can make some more cuts in programs that don’t work, and make government work more efficiently…We can make another trillion or trillion-two, and what we then do is ask for the wealthy to pay a little bit more …”
Not only has the government not made a trillion dollars worth of cuts, it is not just programs not working that need to be cut. That is irresponsible leadership and fiscal management. Redundant government agencies need to be cut. Outrageous government (and I mean the politicians not the people in the trenches) salaries and pensions that need to be cut. It is the bloated government structure that needs to be cut. And asking people who already pay the lion's share of the burden to pay more is NOT the answer. Make everyone pay the same amount – and I mean everyone, including those who don't pay anything now – and that will be 1) fair and 2) make more coming in that asking “the wealthy to pay a little bit more.”
“There are a lot of wealthy, successful Americans who agree with me, because they want to give something back. They know they didn’t -look, if you’ve been successful, you didn’t get there on your own. You didn’t get there on your own. I’m always struck by people who think, well, it must be because I was just so smart. There are a lot of smart people out there. It must be because I worked harder than everybody else. Let me tell you something – there are a whole bunch of hardworking people out there.”
First, the wealthy, successful Americans who “agree” with him want something out of it. Whether its some kind of absolution for a past wrong or a political favor down the road, they want something out of agreeing with the President. It is naïve to think otherwise. But Obama's naivete goes on in this section because he just doesn't get it – and if not by now, he never will – how a successful business happens. Yes, there are a lot of smart people out there. But it is not just smart as in intelligence, it is smart as in street smart, business smart and idea smart that makes a success.
It is not just hard work and working hard, it is putting in the sweat equity that leads to something. A man can work hard all day at the factory – work his tail off day in and day out – and only have stiff hands and a small pension to show for it after forty years. There's no knocking a hard worker. That is not my intent. But a man who works hard – knocking on doors, building the factory floor, dealing with investors and engineers, promoting his ideas and business into the wee hours of the morning – will, if he does it right, see his business thriving and be able to pass it along to his sons and daughters after forty years. That's the type of hard work success demands.
So being a hard worker and smart is all well and fine, commendable even, but it is not just hard work and smarts that make a success happen.
“If you were successful, somebody along the line gave you some help. There was a great teacher somewhere in your life. Somebody helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that allowed you to thrive. Somebody invested in roads and bridges. If you’ve got a business. you didn’t build that. Somebody else made that happen. The Internet didn’t get invented on its own. Government research created the Internet so that all the companies could make money off the Internet.”
This is the big one that everyone glommed onto. This is the section that, frankly, even got me ticked off. Not just for the “slap in the face of the American Dream,” as Team Romney put it. But for the bold faced lie / arrogance / ignorance of the entire passage.
First off, yes, there are great teachers out there, inspirational people that have given drive to someone's ambition to succeed. Whether it literally was a teacher who saw that little Johnny could be great with the right guidance, or if it was a parent who inspired young Susie to do big things. The fact is, there are great and inspirational people around lots of us. But not all of us go on to succeed. That drive, that discipline, is in those individuals who do succeed. Bill Gates did not succeed because of a great teacher. He succeeded because he took whatever inspiration he was exposed to inside and built on his dream.
But the part that made me boil – the lie or the arrogant ignoring of the facts or just the blatant ignorance of not knowing history – is where the President said the government research created the internet “so that all the companies could make money off the Internet.” This is just so untrue. The government “created” the internet as part of a self serving experiment. So government agencies, and the educational institutions they partnered with, could share information. They wanted to created access to a combined database. It was someone in business (namely the British Post Office, Western Union International and Tymnet – followed closely by CompuServe, AOL and Prodigy) that came up with its commercial uses. It was someone who came up with an idea on how to be successful, worked hard to make it happen and did it. That is how business works. That is how success works. Yes government is supposed to allow an environment for success (regulations, interstate and international trade negotiations, legislation), but it is the individual who succeeds. As pundit Charles Payne pointed out in a recent editorial, “If President Obama thinks successful people only got that way because of paved roads and the Internet, how come everyone isn't successful?” [1]
“The point is, is that when we succeed, we succeed because of our individual initiative, but also because we do things together. There are some things, just like fighting fires, we don’t do on our own. I mean, imagine if everybody had their own fire service. That would be a hard way to organize fighting fires.”
Again, the President's naivete is showing. Fighting fires is what a reactionary does. Preventing fires is what an innovator does. We do not succeed because we do things together in the way he is expressing. What he has espoused up to this point and this statement leads to socialized (and I didn't say “socialism”) thinking. Equating creating a business together with fighting fires is a poor example of speech writing. You build a business, in an environment the government has fostered that is conducive to creating a business, to succeed. Many times that business is beneficial to many. If it were not, then it will not succeed anyway. But most times it was built with the purpose of being successful for the owner. I might want to start a business that creates widgets that will reduce car accident injuries to near zero. I may have done that to help people because I had someone seriously injured in an accident. But I will have made the business successful, through my own hard work and dedication, in order to give my children a better life and to pass it along to them when I die / retire. To think it is otherwise is naïve.
“So we say to ourselves, ever since the founding of this country, you know what, there are some things we do better together. That’s how we funded the GI Bill. That’s how we created the middle class. That’s how we built the Golden Gate Bridge or the Hoover Dam. That’s how we invented the Internet. That’s how we sent a man to the moon. We rise or fall together as one nation and as one people, and that’s the reason I’m running for president – because I still believe in that idea. You’re not on your own, we’re in this together.”
In this conclusion, the President blends together – and this is the politico spin of how politics works – bipartisan legislative work, patriotism, public projects paid for by tax payer dollars and a repeating of misinformation.
We went to the moon because Russia was about to beat us there and it would have been economically and politically (internationally) disastrous for us to have allowed that. And it was so masterfully wrapped in patriotism that the public was inspired (which itself led to technical advances beyond simply extra-terrestrial exploration).
“We” built the Hoover Dam and the Golden Gate Bridge because they were needed. Public projects paid for by taxpayer dollars, like the roads that are needed for inter- and intrastate commerce. (Look it up, that's why roads were first built and paid for by taxpayers.)
(Repeat) The internet was not created by government for business. Business determined that the internet would be a rally useful tool and adapted it for commercial use. (Again, don't take my word for it, look it up.)
The middle class was not created by the United States government. It is a simple fact of social layering that occurs [2] in every free society. Taking credit for this is both irresponsible and inaccurate. The term “middle class” is not even an American invention. (Either in its original coining [3] or its modern [4] usage, attributed to T. H. C. Stevenson.)
Finally, it is ironic, that the President who has done the most damage in recent history of dividing this nation, should use the concept of “united we stand, divided we fall.” We do stand better together, as a nation. There is no denying this fact. But it is a nation of individuals standing tall and firm. It is a nation where we can be as different as night and day – in color, beliefs, culture, economic footing, and taste in entertainment – yet we are joined by a common history of saying “No” to injustice, “No” to tyranny and “No” to someone who would tell us what to do, how to live and when to die. We are joined by a common thread of wanting to live in a country where we enjoy so many freedoms. Freedom to speak our minds, freedom to live our lives, freedom to worship, to protect our loved ones, to succeed or fail on our own merits.
This is why we should worry. This is why we deconstruct what our leaders say to us. Because when someone, so high up, with so much power to affect our day to day lives, makes so many mistaken and naïve statements, we have to wonder how we could have been so naïve to have allowed it.
James Madison believed that a central federal government could never become so powerful and so out of touch with the people because the people would stop it dead in its tracks. He argued [5] for ratification of the Constitution that would create such a federal government because he felt, in his heart, that the people would side with the states, would stand united and firm against any and all overreaches of that central government as to render them powerless to continue. How sad Madison would be today to see that the people sat idly by as it happened.
As always, you can agree or disagree. I just ask you look at ALL there is to look and decide for yourself – don't take the word of anyone else, not even me. Just STOP EBING SHEEP and AVOID THE SPIN. But either way, its all good. Because this is just me, Thinking Out Loud.
Have a great day.
Charles
(These are links in the above post, in case you can't get to them. Just copy and paste to your browser)
[1] http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/charlespayne/2012/07/18/you_didnt_do_that
[2] http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/middle+class
[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_class
[4] http://books.google.com/books?id=h93ru6Ou4bcC&pg=PA64&lpg=PA64&dq=T.H.C.+Stevenson+middle+class&source=bl&ots=8VOwCweKGO&sig=ykkM7Qi_olXPxo50SkshommKrV0&hl=en&sa=X&ei=VLEGUP6bGejr6wG_ovn-CA&ved=0CFoQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=T.H.C.%20Stevenson%20middle%20class&f=false
[5] James Madison, Federalist Papers No. 46 http://www.constitution.org/fed/federa46.htm
A recent speech by President Obama was attacked for one small section of it being anti-business, pro-cradle-to-the-grave government interference and “slap in the face of the American Dream” (Romney attack emails).
But it is so much worse than that. It is a shinning example of political spin and weaselly word warping. It is an example of not only naivete but a complete distortion of the facts. It shows an arrogance and an ignorance that should make one shake in dismay and fear. This is, after all, the President of the United States. If he can 1) get away with lying this badly and 2) afford the best speech writers in the business and NOT employ them, we need to be very worried about everything else he is, and has been, doing.
The following is a dissection of the speech that has politicos up in arms.
“We’ve already made a trillion dollars’ worth of cuts. We can make some more cuts in programs that don’t work, and make government work more efficiently…We can make another trillion or trillion-two, and what we then do is ask for the wealthy to pay a little bit more …”
Not only has the government not made a trillion dollars worth of cuts, it is not just programs not working that need to be cut. That is irresponsible leadership and fiscal management. Redundant government agencies need to be cut. Outrageous government (and I mean the politicians not the people in the trenches) salaries and pensions that need to be cut. It is the bloated government structure that needs to be cut. And asking people who already pay the lion's share of the burden to pay more is NOT the answer. Make everyone pay the same amount – and I mean everyone, including those who don't pay anything now – and that will be 1) fair and 2) make more coming in that asking “the wealthy to pay a little bit more.”
“There are a lot of wealthy, successful Americans who agree with me, because they want to give something back. They know they didn’t -look, if you’ve been successful, you didn’t get there on your own. You didn’t get there on your own. I’m always struck by people who think, well, it must be because I was just so smart. There are a lot of smart people out there. It must be because I worked harder than everybody else. Let me tell you something – there are a whole bunch of hardworking people out there.”
First, the wealthy, successful Americans who “agree” with him want something out of it. Whether its some kind of absolution for a past wrong or a political favor down the road, they want something out of agreeing with the President. It is naïve to think otherwise. But Obama's naivete goes on in this section because he just doesn't get it – and if not by now, he never will – how a successful business happens. Yes, there are a lot of smart people out there. But it is not just smart as in intelligence, it is smart as in street smart, business smart and idea smart that makes a success.
It is not just hard work and working hard, it is putting in the sweat equity that leads to something. A man can work hard all day at the factory – work his tail off day in and day out – and only have stiff hands and a small pension to show for it after forty years. There's no knocking a hard worker. That is not my intent. But a man who works hard – knocking on doors, building the factory floor, dealing with investors and engineers, promoting his ideas and business into the wee hours of the morning – will, if he does it right, see his business thriving and be able to pass it along to his sons and daughters after forty years. That's the type of hard work success demands.
So being a hard worker and smart is all well and fine, commendable even, but it is not just hard work and smarts that make a success happen.
“If you were successful, somebody along the line gave you some help. There was a great teacher somewhere in your life. Somebody helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that allowed you to thrive. Somebody invested in roads and bridges. If you’ve got a business. you didn’t build that. Somebody else made that happen. The Internet didn’t get invented on its own. Government research created the Internet so that all the companies could make money off the Internet.”
This is the big one that everyone glommed onto. This is the section that, frankly, even got me ticked off. Not just for the “slap in the face of the American Dream,” as Team Romney put it. But for the bold faced lie / arrogance / ignorance of the entire passage.
First off, yes, there are great teachers out there, inspirational people that have given drive to someone's ambition to succeed. Whether it literally was a teacher who saw that little Johnny could be great with the right guidance, or if it was a parent who inspired young Susie to do big things. The fact is, there are great and inspirational people around lots of us. But not all of us go on to succeed. That drive, that discipline, is in those individuals who do succeed. Bill Gates did not succeed because of a great teacher. He succeeded because he took whatever inspiration he was exposed to inside and built on his dream.
But the part that made me boil – the lie or the arrogant ignoring of the facts or just the blatant ignorance of not knowing history – is where the President said the government research created the internet “so that all the companies could make money off the Internet.” This is just so untrue. The government “created” the internet as part of a self serving experiment. So government agencies, and the educational institutions they partnered with, could share information. They wanted to created access to a combined database. It was someone in business (namely the British Post Office, Western Union International and Tymnet – followed closely by CompuServe, AOL and Prodigy) that came up with its commercial uses. It was someone who came up with an idea on how to be successful, worked hard to make it happen and did it. That is how business works. That is how success works. Yes government is supposed to allow an environment for success (regulations, interstate and international trade negotiations, legislation), but it is the individual who succeeds. As pundit Charles Payne pointed out in a recent editorial, “If President Obama thinks successful people only got that way because of paved roads and the Internet, how come everyone isn't successful?” [1]
“The point is, is that when we succeed, we succeed because of our individual initiative, but also because we do things together. There are some things, just like fighting fires, we don’t do on our own. I mean, imagine if everybody had their own fire service. That would be a hard way to organize fighting fires.”
Again, the President's naivete is showing. Fighting fires is what a reactionary does. Preventing fires is what an innovator does. We do not succeed because we do things together in the way he is expressing. What he has espoused up to this point and this statement leads to socialized (and I didn't say “socialism”) thinking. Equating creating a business together with fighting fires is a poor example of speech writing. You build a business, in an environment the government has fostered that is conducive to creating a business, to succeed. Many times that business is beneficial to many. If it were not, then it will not succeed anyway. But most times it was built with the purpose of being successful for the owner. I might want to start a business that creates widgets that will reduce car accident injuries to near zero. I may have done that to help people because I had someone seriously injured in an accident. But I will have made the business successful, through my own hard work and dedication, in order to give my children a better life and to pass it along to them when I die / retire. To think it is otherwise is naïve.
“So we say to ourselves, ever since the founding of this country, you know what, there are some things we do better together. That’s how we funded the GI Bill. That’s how we created the middle class. That’s how we built the Golden Gate Bridge or the Hoover Dam. That’s how we invented the Internet. That’s how we sent a man to the moon. We rise or fall together as one nation and as one people, and that’s the reason I’m running for president – because I still believe in that idea. You’re not on your own, we’re in this together.”
In this conclusion, the President blends together – and this is the politico spin of how politics works – bipartisan legislative work, patriotism, public projects paid for by tax payer dollars and a repeating of misinformation.
We went to the moon because Russia was about to beat us there and it would have been economically and politically (internationally) disastrous for us to have allowed that. And it was so masterfully wrapped in patriotism that the public was inspired (which itself led to technical advances beyond simply extra-terrestrial exploration).
“We” built the Hoover Dam and the Golden Gate Bridge because they were needed. Public projects paid for by taxpayer dollars, like the roads that are needed for inter- and intrastate commerce. (Look it up, that's why roads were first built and paid for by taxpayers.)
(Repeat) The internet was not created by government for business. Business determined that the internet would be a rally useful tool and adapted it for commercial use. (Again, don't take my word for it, look it up.)
The middle class was not created by the United States government. It is a simple fact of social layering that occurs [2] in every free society. Taking credit for this is both irresponsible and inaccurate. The term “middle class” is not even an American invention. (Either in its original coining [3] or its modern [4] usage, attributed to T. H. C. Stevenson.)
Finally, it is ironic, that the President who has done the most damage in recent history of dividing this nation, should use the concept of “united we stand, divided we fall.” We do stand better together, as a nation. There is no denying this fact. But it is a nation of individuals standing tall and firm. It is a nation where we can be as different as night and day – in color, beliefs, culture, economic footing, and taste in entertainment – yet we are joined by a common history of saying “No” to injustice, “No” to tyranny and “No” to someone who would tell us what to do, how to live and when to die. We are joined by a common thread of wanting to live in a country where we enjoy so many freedoms. Freedom to speak our minds, freedom to live our lives, freedom to worship, to protect our loved ones, to succeed or fail on our own merits.
This is why we should worry. This is why we deconstruct what our leaders say to us. Because when someone, so high up, with so much power to affect our day to day lives, makes so many mistaken and naïve statements, we have to wonder how we could have been so naïve to have allowed it.
James Madison believed that a central federal government could never become so powerful and so out of touch with the people because the people would stop it dead in its tracks. He argued [5] for ratification of the Constitution that would create such a federal government because he felt, in his heart, that the people would side with the states, would stand united and firm against any and all overreaches of that central government as to render them powerless to continue. How sad Madison would be today to see that the people sat idly by as it happened.
As always, you can agree or disagree. I just ask you look at ALL there is to look and decide for yourself – don't take the word of anyone else, not even me. Just STOP EBING SHEEP and AVOID THE SPIN. But either way, its all good. Because this is just me, Thinking Out Loud.
Have a great day.
Charles
(These are links in the above post, in case you can't get to them. Just copy and paste to your browser)
[1] http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/charlespayne/2012/07/18/you_didnt_do_that
[2] http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/middle+class
[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_class
[4] http://books.google.com/books?id=h93ru6Ou4bcC&pg=PA64&lpg=PA64&dq=T.H.C.+Stevenson+middle+class&source=bl&ots=8VOwCweKGO&sig=ykkM7Qi_olXPxo50SkshommKrV0&hl=en&sa=X&ei=VLEGUP6bGejr6wG_ovn-CA&ved=0CFoQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=T.H.C.%20Stevenson%20middle%20class&f=false
[5] James Madison, Federalist Papers No. 46 http://www.constitution.org/fed/federa46.htm
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Egypt Constitution not for Ginsburg to discuss
There seems to be a bit of an uproar in the conservative community about Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's comments to an Egyptian television station.
Seems Justice Ginsburg did not extoll the value and virtue of the US Constitution to the middle eastern country who is seeking a new one. When asked what type of government Egypt should look to in when rebuilding their country, Ginsburg said "“I would not look to the U.S. Constitution, if I were drafting a constitution in the year 2012.”
As much as I hate to disagree with Rep. Bachmann (R-MN) - okay you can stop laughing - I will have to do so here, on this point.
In a "diary" article posted on Erik Erickson's RedState website, Rep. Bachmann states "I am deeply saddened and disappointed in Justice Ginsburg’s answer. As a Supreme Court Justice who daily delves into the U.S. Constitution looking for answers to the nation’s top cases, I would hope she would have developed a love for this crucial founding document. Yet instead, she implied its irrelevancy! Why would our Constitution not be just as good a foundation for a nation’s government today as it was in 1788?"
I must say, I think the U. S. Constitution is a beautiful document. It is a magnificent example of words being used in the finest light. And it has been a cornerstone and benchmark for America to be proud of. It was a document, unlike any at the time, which allowed for future tuning without losing its basic fundamentals.
And I must also say, for the record, that I think any country that truly looks to the Constitution as guidance can not be served any better for an example.
BUT - and I mean this with all the love and compassion for my fellow human beings around the world - these nitwits and twits and thick headed illiterates could never truly grasp the fundamental and founding concepts of the U. S. Constitution. Hell, there are tens of millions of Americans who fail to grasp it. Including, ESPECIALLY, most of our political leaders. And I would rather they not say they are framing their document based on ours because they will get all the essentials wrong, blame us for their failures and have even more weapons and ammunition (imagined, of course) to use in their campaigns of hate and violence.
Back to Ginsburg for a moment. While the right wing (and I use that here instead of conservative, because there is a difference) is upset, the left - like Media Matters - is "freaking" at what they say is the "freak out" by the right. But here is the thing. Ginsburg both misspoke and should not have even been in the conversation.
As a member of a body that is supposed to measure all US law through the prism of the US Constitution, she should phrase her comments through that prism as well. The US Constitution IS relevant - to the US. It is NOT relevant to those who do not understand it nor to those who, at their very core, despise it. But the question was one of what type of government, not what type of constitution they should have. She was right that they need to form one that reflects their country and their needs, just as our founding fathers did. She was wrong not to express the core foundation of the US Constitution, which would be relevant to any freedom loving people.
As always, you are free to agree or disagree with my assertions here. But don't form your views through what I say, through what Rep. Bachmann or RedState or Media Matters or ANYONE else for that matter. You need to stop listening to the SPIN of those who wish to control what and how you think. You need to STOP BEING SHEEP. And think for yourselves. But, whatever, this is just me Thinking Out Loud.
Have a great day.
Charles
Seems Justice Ginsburg did not extoll the value and virtue of the US Constitution to the middle eastern country who is seeking a new one. When asked what type of government Egypt should look to in when rebuilding their country, Ginsburg said "“I would not look to the U.S. Constitution, if I were drafting a constitution in the year 2012.”
As much as I hate to disagree with Rep. Bachmann (R-MN) - okay you can stop laughing - I will have to do so here, on this point.
In a "diary" article posted on Erik Erickson's RedState website, Rep. Bachmann states "I am deeply saddened and disappointed in Justice Ginsburg’s answer. As a Supreme Court Justice who daily delves into the U.S. Constitution looking for answers to the nation’s top cases, I would hope she would have developed a love for this crucial founding document. Yet instead, she implied its irrelevancy! Why would our Constitution not be just as good a foundation for a nation’s government today as it was in 1788?"
I must say, I think the U. S. Constitution is a beautiful document. It is a magnificent example of words being used in the finest light. And it has been a cornerstone and benchmark for America to be proud of. It was a document, unlike any at the time, which allowed for future tuning without losing its basic fundamentals.
And I must also say, for the record, that I think any country that truly looks to the Constitution as guidance can not be served any better for an example.
BUT - and I mean this with all the love and compassion for my fellow human beings around the world - these nitwits and twits and thick headed illiterates could never truly grasp the fundamental and founding concepts of the U. S. Constitution. Hell, there are tens of millions of Americans who fail to grasp it. Including, ESPECIALLY, most of our political leaders. And I would rather they not say they are framing their document based on ours because they will get all the essentials wrong, blame us for their failures and have even more weapons and ammunition (imagined, of course) to use in their campaigns of hate and violence.
Back to Ginsburg for a moment. While the right wing (and I use that here instead of conservative, because there is a difference) is upset, the left - like Media Matters - is "freaking" at what they say is the "freak out" by the right. But here is the thing. Ginsburg both misspoke and should not have even been in the conversation.
As a member of a body that is supposed to measure all US law through the prism of the US Constitution, she should phrase her comments through that prism as well. The US Constitution IS relevant - to the US. It is NOT relevant to those who do not understand it nor to those who, at their very core, despise it. But the question was one of what type of government, not what type of constitution they should have. She was right that they need to form one that reflects their country and their needs, just as our founding fathers did. She was wrong not to express the core foundation of the US Constitution, which would be relevant to any freedom loving people.
As always, you are free to agree or disagree with my assertions here. But don't form your views through what I say, through what Rep. Bachmann or RedState or Media Matters or ANYONE else for that matter. You need to stop listening to the SPIN of those who wish to control what and how you think. You need to STOP BEING SHEEP. And think for yourselves. But, whatever, this is just me Thinking Out Loud.
Have a great day.
Charles
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Its about middle America, stupid!
I would have said "its about the economy, stupid!" but that wouldn't get across the real problems these knuckleheads in DC just don't seem to get. Billions of dollars to create jobs and stimulate the economy and they just don't get it. And it is not about the poor and the illegal immigrant and the wealthy CEOs. Its about the middle class of America!
The poor, the indigent, the illegal immigrant and their bleeding heart liberal supporters, the wealthy CEOs and Wall Street cronies, and the Beltway insiders are the only ones whining. The stuck in the rut, been there too long, hands in the pockets of every special interest from unions to community organizers members of the US government are whining and complaining and strutting about what they've done and what they plan on doing.
And none of them get it.
Its the middle class of America who are silently suffering. They were doiong fine with their house payments until Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac blew up under Barney Frank and the rest of Congress' eyes. Then they started struggling. They were making their car payments just fine, until two of the Big Three needed bailout money and the big bankers were brought into secret meetings at gun point and told they had to both take the money and get super regulated by Big Brother. Then they continued to struggle. health care changes made companies like AT&T report their bottom line was going to tumble, layoffs continued unabated (despite the Summer of Recovery being touted) and credit was impossible to get.
And the middle class of America struggle daily. They are upside down in their cars (which they could afford before but cannot now), they are upside down in the homes (which they could afford but cannot now), they are watching their health care premiums being raised and set to slam them for getting the best plan to care for their family but now is a crime (which they are having trouble being able to afford both premiums and taxes). The middle class makes up a large portion of America but they are struggling silently. They are making $200, $300, $500 less a month than they were before (due to slow downs at work or outright layoffs) and are having to decide between food on the table a roof over the head or the means to get from point A to point B.
And they have no voice, save that of the TEA party groups, talk radio or independent bloggers. Which, of course, no one in government is listening to. In fact, government is doing its best to paint these groups as being not important, not relevant and nto worth their time.
But come November, the middle class WILL have its say. They will be ready to explain to the ever expanding, rapidly disconnecting government that ENOUGH is ENOUGH!
Until then, Obama, Pelosi, Reid and all the politicians that are refusing to listen will keep trying to re-manufacture America to their nanny-state preferences. However, they will then find out just how powerful the silently struggling middle class can be. Many of them, Democrat and Republican alike, will be looking for new eployment.
The poor, the indigent, the illegal immigrant and their bleeding heart liberal supporters, the wealthy CEOs and Wall Street cronies, and the Beltway insiders are the only ones whining. The stuck in the rut, been there too long, hands in the pockets of every special interest from unions to community organizers members of the US government are whining and complaining and strutting about what they've done and what they plan on doing.
And none of them get it.
Its the middle class of America who are silently suffering. They were doiong fine with their house payments until Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac blew up under Barney Frank and the rest of Congress' eyes. Then they started struggling. They were making their car payments just fine, until two of the Big Three needed bailout money and the big bankers were brought into secret meetings at gun point and told they had to both take the money and get super regulated by Big Brother. Then they continued to struggle. health care changes made companies like AT&T report their bottom line was going to tumble, layoffs continued unabated (despite the Summer of Recovery being touted) and credit was impossible to get.
And the middle class of America struggle daily. They are upside down in their cars (which they could afford before but cannot now), they are upside down in the homes (which they could afford but cannot now), they are watching their health care premiums being raised and set to slam them for getting the best plan to care for their family but now is a crime (which they are having trouble being able to afford both premiums and taxes). The middle class makes up a large portion of America but they are struggling silently. They are making $200, $300, $500 less a month than they were before (due to slow downs at work or outright layoffs) and are having to decide between food on the table a roof over the head or the means to get from point A to point B.
And they have no voice, save that of the TEA party groups, talk radio or independent bloggers. Which, of course, no one in government is listening to. In fact, government is doing its best to paint these groups as being not important, not relevant and nto worth their time.
But come November, the middle class WILL have its say. They will be ready to explain to the ever expanding, rapidly disconnecting government that ENOUGH is ENOUGH!
Until then, Obama, Pelosi, Reid and all the politicians that are refusing to listen will keep trying to re-manufacture America to their nanny-state preferences. However, they will then find out just how powerful the silently struggling middle class can be. Many of them, Democrat and Republican alike, will be looking for new eployment.
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