Black, white or pink with purple polka dots

I hear a lot these days about racism, particularly as it is directed against Republicans and Conservatives. Seems that so many people are more than willing to buy into the typical liberal mantra of when you are losing an argument based on the facts, start calling names. The facts are that throughout our history as a nation, it has been the conservative Republican party and not the Democrat party that has brought about change in civil rights. While these are facts not in dispute, our liberal, progressive population continues to try to hang the racism bib around our necks. The most current example is the Tea Party movement protest recently held in D.C. The major liberal media are attempting to get all the mileage they can out of a non-issue. Does anyone out there with half a brain believe that if racial slurs had been vocalized, they would not have been caught on camera? That said, as a realist, do I believe that racism in our society is extinct? No, I don’t. There are and always will be those who hate just because they want to hate. But, those people are a minuscule part of our population and on both sides of the aisle. Most people today, if they have racial prejudices, choose to keep them to themselves and practice live and let live.

We all have our biases, our likes and dislikes, even our prejudices. To say we don’t is to say that we thoroughly do not understand our human nature. Each and every one of us likes our self better than we like the other guy. If we don’t, we need help. Most of us like our country better than any other. Most of us think our race or ethnic origin is better than others. After all, isn’t racial superiority what started the whole slavery thing? And before you start blaming America for slavery, acquaint yourselves with these few facts. Slavery as we know it, began on the north coast of Africa within the Muslim faith. It was the Portuguese who were the main slave runners. Of all the Africans captured and sold into slavery, only 6% came to the United States. The other 94% went elsewhere. Because of the Civil War we get the main blame. Finally, Lincoln did not free all the slaves, only those in the combative states and cities.

So it is not that we have our individual likes and dislikes, it is the manner in which we deal with them that is important. As for me personally, I would never stand in anyone’s way of advancement or obtaining their dreams. I will compete to the best of my ability and let the more qualified person win. On the other hand, I don’t believe that I should give anything to anyone who did not earn it. No one gave me what I earned and I have a better respect for what I earned because of my struggles. I make my choice as to whom I lend my hand and I reserve the right to withdraw it any time I choose. I don’t like whiners, snivelers and complainers. I have no use for those who think that they are entitled to what others worked hard to get. Those who have no respect for the law or those who enforce it irritate me. People who disrespect our servicemen and women and emergency responders disgust me. Bad neighbors, bad and abusive parents, people that abuse children, deadbeat husbands, people that don’t take personal responsibility are not my favorites either.

Other than that, if you are responsible for your self and position in life , if you work hard and take care of your family, respect those who protect you and our way of life, if you like your country and respect its Constitution, are informed and think for yourself, are a good neighbor and friend, etc,etc, then you are my kind of countryman and I applaud you.

I make note here that both sides of the above descriptors are represented by all races, genders, nationalities, political persuasions, sizes, shapes and religions. Other than that, I don’t care if you are black, white or pink with purple polka dots.

Being thankful . . .a rallying call

I constantly strive to be a better person. I read books on self-improvement and how to be positive in deed and thought. I try to forgive those who have harmed me, past and present, and I try to be a grateful and giving person. All this, only because it is the right thing to do. I am not pro-war, in fact I hate violence, but I keep my options open and if we must go to war, then I believe that we should give everything we have to the cause until the enemy capitulates. There is no other way to prosecute a war. War is for the purpose of killing and breaking, no other. The side that kills and breaks the most wins. There is no pulling back, cease fires or off limits targets. Everything that can be considered an implement or accessory of war whether for housing, training or harboring the enemy is a legitimate target for destruction. Collateral damage, while tragic is a real possibility and should be avoided if possible and accepted if not. Any country who wishes to declare war on these United States or harm any of its citizens should be prepared to feel the full economic and military wrath of this country. I believe in open debate, dialog, discussion and even turning the other cheek in an effort to avoid violence. There is a time, however, when one must realize that the other half of the discussion is not sincere and is only testing our will and resolve. It is here that we must draw a firm line in the sand, on the one side of which is peace and harmony, and on the other side is death and destruction. The enemy must know in his heart that we sincerely wish the former, but will go to the latter under the above criteria of prosecuting a war. There can be no other way. We will not give up our sovereignty, our freedom, our land, our Constitution or our government under any circumstances, to any country, at any time.

All that said, I am grateful to my left of center American counterparts for a number of lessons they have taught me over the last couple of decades. They’ve shown me how to stretch the truth beyond any form of recognition. I now recognize that oral sex in the oval office, while on the phone with a Foreign Head of State, is acceptable behavior; that “is” has many definitions; that pulling and hiding 900 FBI files is no big deal, but that looking at candidates passport data is. I’ve learned that racial hatred from a white person is despicable, but racial hatred from a black minister or black politician is ok. I’ve learned that a woman from Arkansas moving to New York and being elected Senator is ok, but a State Senator from Riverside, California who has a home in Elk Grove and wants to run for Congress in that District is a Carpetbagger. I’ve learned that questioning a liberal candidate’s voting record is off limits and a personal attack, but smearing a conservative candidate’s character is ok. I’ve learned that when conservative officials gets caught in an embarrassing situation, they are removed from office, but when a liberal politician gets caught doing the same thing or worse there are a number of reasons it’s not so bad. I’ve learned that there is a conservative definition of illegal and a liberal definition of legal. But wait, there’s more.

I’ve learned that one President can have a failed attempt at rescuing American hostages in Iran costing the lives of American service men because someone failed to check the weather. That this same President can completely fail at resolving the conflict between Palestine and Israel and go on to win the Nobel Peace prize. That the next President brings the hostages home without a shot, and engineers the fall of the Soviet Union and the reuniting of Berlin and is considered an old fool. That the next President serves only one term because he made a promise he didn’t keep, but our current president has already broken all of his campaign promises with no retribution. I learned that one president bombs an aspirin factory, lets our soldiers die in Somalia and their bodies desecrated with out so much as a whimper, goes to war in Bosnia stating our troops will be home in a year and they are still there. This same President has Bin Laden in his sites and fails to kill him, but the next President is blamed for the war and 3000 deaths on 9-11 and 4000 deaths in the current war. I’ve learned that when a democrat candidate for President lies about her and her daughter dodging sniper fire in Bosnia on a trip there as First Lady, it is called a mistake even though it was stated more than once. I’ve learned that there are more important things to talk about than a presidential candidate’s moral values, character and propensity for lying. I’ve learned that the Constitution is a dusty old document that has no current value, And I’ve learned that if you are a conservative you must prove your qualifications to run for the office, but if you are a liberal you don’t. I could go on like this for two more pages, but there must be a point to all this.

The point is the people always get the type of government they want. They express that want in either a positive or negative fashion. Unfortunately, elections, at least in my time, have always been between the not so good and the really bad. Rarely do we have a choice between bad and good, I believe that Reagan was one of those rare choices. By sitting out an election merely because the not so good candidate fails to completely float your boat, you are in fact casting a ballot for the really bad candidate. Remembering back to the early nineties, certain conservative segments of the electorate sat out the 1992 election because George H.W. Bush raised taxes when he said he wouldn’t. What did we get? Bill Clinton and all of the above lessons. In 1996 that same segment sat out the election because Bob Dole was not conservative enough. Again, we got four more years of Bill Clinton. To be honest, George Bush II did not completely float my boat, but by comparison, Gore? Kerry? Oh my.

In November of this year we are going to be faced with another choice between another two years of a Pelosi/Reed Congress and Senate, or whether we will stand up, be counted and change it. Are we to be treated to more of the same lessons? Perhaps yes, if we have not learned those of the past. With our country on the edge of social, financial and fiscal take-over it must be clear that the liberal side offers nothing but more of the same. The same elitist philosophy of knowing what is best for us, cradle to grave care, more spending on social programs that don’t work and less freedom for us. My buddy Thom has a story about how to catch wild pigs. It is a good lesson in what is happening to us. “First, you find where wild pigs frequent, and then you put out free grain. When the pigs get used to the free grain and are no longer wary of it you put up one side of a rectangular enclosure and continue the free grain. Again, when they are no longer wary, up goes the second, and then the third side. Finally, you put up the fourth side with a gate in it and when the pigs go in, you close the gate. The pigs realize that they are trapped, but heck, there is all that free grain.”

So, the question is, what kind of country do you want and what are you willing to do to get it? What kind of country do you want for your children and grandchildren? If you are conservative more or less, or very, are you going to sit this one out and get more lessons in the liberal way or are you going to get involved and make sure that our country is safe from those who would see this experiment in a representative republic ended. Currently, we still have our Constitution, freedom of speech, the right to defend our selves and the rest of the Bill of Rights. Two or three Supreme Court appointees by the wrong President and confirmation by the wrong Congress could change all that. If and when that happens and you watch your children and grandchildren suffer under a different form of government without the freedoms we now enjoy, will you find comfort in that you did everything you could or will you be one of those wretched souls who, deep inside, suffers doubly because they know they could have done so much more? Your choice, I’ve made mine, I hope you make yours correctly and soon. God Bless America

If it ain’t broke, we’ll fix it till it is

Recently I was asked to research and write an article about the Progressive majority in both the California legislature and the US Congress. My initial thought was this is not only a huge research task, but it could fill several months worth of articles. What with the massive debt we have now incurred, unemployment at well above 10%, health care, energy, global warming (oops, climate change), two wars, terrorists getting Miranda Rights and civil trials, never mind the falling dollar and world opinion. My God, who would want to own all that and how do we deal with them? Then it occurred to me that the answer is in the mind set. On one hand, conservatives as well as some center-thinking liberals recognize that as of today we still live in a Constitutional Republic with a representative government. To conservatives, the Constitution is our guiding principle in every matter that is non-spiritual. Every law, regulation or ordinance must pass Constitutional muster.

Several years ago the parents of my daughter’s Australian friend stayed with us for a couple of days while on vacation from down under. One morning over coffee and politics, the husband asked me, “What’s with you Americans and this Constitution thing?” I had never been asked that, but I told him that’s who we are. Our Constitution determines our form of government and who we are as Americans. It is our founding document and we have fought and died for it. It is the Law of the Land. He just could not understand that devotion to a document. So then, here is how it breaks down, Constitutional Americans, regardless of what letter they put in front of their political affiliation, believe that the Constitutional guarantees of freedom and the placement of the ultimate power in the hands of the people, is the reason for this country’s wealth and success. Progressives do not see it that way. Progressivism is a political movement that believes in political or social reform by continuing steps or stages or degrees (Webster). They look way into the future and see the world the way they think it should be according to their beliefs and then, by incrementalism, set out to create that world. It makes very little difference whether or not their methods are Constitutional. The fact of the matter is they see the Constitution as a dusty old document that has out-lived its purpose.

Look at our recent history; seat belts, every year here in California after every holiday weekend the CHP publishes the number of traffic fatalities that occurred over that weekend. Invariably, the percentages are that 49 to 51% or so were not wearing their seat belts. Sounds like a significant percentage until you flip it and realize that 49-51% of those killed were wearing their seat belts. Smog control, as I recall it, was 1967 when the first smog devices were put on our vehicles. Since that time we have put more and more vehicles under mandated smog control as well as paid more for expensive smog devices and smog checks. Certain vehicles that were said to produce no hazardous smog in 1967 (diesels) are now being required to retrofit at a very outrageous cost to the owner. Certain engines are not sold in California (lawn mowers and tractors) and still we are told we need more. I submit that if our air is still that bad, then just maybe all we have done since 1967 hasn’t worked and maybe we should scrap it. Global Warming (Climate Change), we were told that there was a hole in the Ozone layer, then it got smaller, then the earth was heating and the glaciers were disappearing and we were all going to drown because some scientists said it was so. Well it is getting colder and the glaciers aren’t disappearing and the polar bears aren’t endangered and the earth has warmed and cooled many times in the past and man’s contribution to the so-called greenhouse gases is less than 1/3 of 1% or .028 hundredths for those “Spocks” out there. Logging, we were told that all logging was bad and we would denude our country and create an environmental catastrophe. People were sitting in trees, the Sierra Club was challenging every logging plan and mills were closing left and right. The result was that our forests became, in a short time, overgrown and a fire hazard. Witness the catastrophic fires of the last two decades. Oh! Don’t forget the spotted owl fiasco, water shortages, gas shortages, power shortages and the medical scares, ad nauseum.

The point to all this was that each time the progressives find any imagined catastrophe, they exploit it for all it is worth and we lose a little more of our rights as individuals. Whether it is your house, your vehicle, what you wear, what you eat or how you care for and teach your children there is a progressive telling you that he or she knows better. Never mind that they have never succeeded at anything they have tried. They still know better than you. We need to change our mind set.

I read an interesting set of statistics the other day about oil. Of all the oil pollution in the world, 47% of it is natural seepage, 2% is from drilling off- shore, 4% is from pipelines and the remaining 47% is from oil tankers. Considering that the majority of our oil comes to us in tankers and we have ample supplies right here offshore and inland, maybe we ought to rethink that offshore drilling ban. Furthermore, considering that gangs, recidivists and illegals commit a significant percent of all violent crimes, maybe we ought to rethink our intelligence gathering, parole and immigration policies. Considering that the Department of Education and the Department of Energy, both established in 1979 under the Progressive Administration of Jimmy Carter have both failed in their mission for 33 years and cost the taxpayer approximately 100 billion per year, maybe we ought to reconsider the necessity of these two departments. Considering the billions of dollars we give in foreign aid to countries that hate us and use it to fund terrorist activities, maybe we should stop doing that. And finally, considering all the federal grants that go to progressives who don’t work and use their grants to slander and bite the hand that feeds them, maybe they should just do their progressive, anti-capitalist, anti-American, pro-socialism handiwork on their own dime and not ours.

In California, we can’t drill offshore or anywhere else, we can’t build refineries, our cars cost more because of smog devices that don’t work, our gas costs more because of special treatment, our state is controlled by political correctness, illegals cost us 14 billion each year, the Department of Education in California consumes more than half the total budget and produces a student in the bottom of the 50 states, the Police and other EMS personnel are understaffed and underpaid and over-worked, our logging and mining industries have all but disappeared, businesses suffer from over-regulation and are leaving the state in droves and as a result, state revenues are down and the state can’t pay its bills. Oh! By the way, did I mention, the California legislature (both houses) has been under total liberal, progressive control for the past 30 plus years? The same is true for the Federal Government. Liberal Progressives with an R or D in front of their name have controlled Congress for at least 50 out of the last 54 years that I can remember. They own today’s difficulties.

The problem is we, the people, must change our mindset and vote for those who respect our roots. We must defeat those who don’t. By the way, did you know that a one-term member of either house in the Federal Government does not pay social security and gets his full salary and benefits for life? We need to change that. We need to remind ourselves that our votes do count, that we can be an informed electorate, that we need to get involved and stay involved and that our Constitution is the Law of the Land. We, the people, need to speak up and confront progressives at every opportunity, letting them know that we know their plan, and it ain’t going to happen, not on our watch. Otherwise, they’ll fix it till it’s broke.

Thinking it Through

What is the infantile lack of ability to think things through that afflicts a considerable number of people these days? For instance, spreading the wealth, Robin Hoodism if you will. Taking from the rich to give to the poor or more bluntly Socialism. This, at first blush, may sound like a good scheme. After all don’t the rich have more than enough money to fully support at least some of those less fortunate? The answer is probably in the affirmative. Sure they do. So, how is it that we manage this massive transfer of wealth? We know that if the government manages it, a whole new bureaucracy will be needed and the cost of that alone will consume the majority of the transferred wealth. How much do we take from the rich and how much do we give to the poor? Who decides who is rich and who is poor? How many people who are close to the poor line and working 40 plus hours a week would quit their job and take a little less money not to have to work at all? All these folks not working will definitely affect the job market as there is less people to hire and when a business hires it will cost them more to pay the employee so their profit margin either goes down or they must raise their prices. If the business owners accept a lower profit margin then they have less wealth to transfer so they must lower their standard of living. The employee who will no longer get his annual COLA or any raises must now accept his place in life and soon he will see the merits of not working at all for less money.

It is not difficult to see the vortex that is created here. Sooner or later the system reaches the point of diminishing returns, where it can no longer support itself and falls apart, leaving those on the dole with no income whatsoever; hungry and on the street, they will have no skills and they won’t be happy.

If you think any government program through, you wind up with similar results. Why? Well, one reason is because the government has no money of its own. Whatever the source, the funds eventually come from the consumer. Import, export taxes, income taxes, sales taxes, property taxes, etc, etc, etc. And don’t forget fees that are taxes by another name that require a smaller percentage of votes to pass on to us. Any money the government has, either directly or indirectly, comes from us. Even if they print more of it, our debt increases and who is responsible for that? You guessed it, you and me. The only money the government has originates with you and me. This cannot be anymore clear. Any time the government gets involved in any program, the price of that program goes up, if for no other reason than the bureaucracy that must be created to manage it. Even as small a business as I own, when gasoline prices went to $4.00 per gallon, I didn’t pay for the increase, my hourly rate went up appropriately. When larger businesses receive cost increases, they pass it on to the consumer. It doesn’t work any other way.

There is no such thing as a government funded program. There are only consumer/ taxpayer funded programs, period. The next time some politician talks about a program to benefit a certain group of people, grab your wallet. If he is bringing to this state large money for special projects, grab your wallet. It is all our money and we deserve better management of it. Think it through.

It’s Not About Us

Most of us, in these days of high unemployment and economic recession, are very concerned about where our meals are coming from and how we are going to pay our rent, let alone some of the niceties of life. If we are of retirement age, we wonder if what we have will last or if we must find some other form of income. A lot of Americans have just given up looking for work and this is not just mainstream work force people. It is especially hard on young, first-time job seekers.

In the meantime, our government continues to give themselves raises (5.3%) to run their individual congressional offices this next year; this in a time of a strong recession. The unemployment rate is almost 10% and rising. Some say that if you count those who have given up and are no longer looking for work, the unemployment rate would be about 19%. That is not a recession, but a depression.

Add to all this that we have a person seated in the White House holding the most powerful office in the world and is, at best, totally incompetent, a socialist surrounded by America haters, and unvetted commissars bent on the ruin of this great nation, and at the worst, a person ineligible to hold that office and determined to change us from a Constitutional Republic to an Oligarchy of some sort. He continues to blame the prior administration for his failures, has already spent more and increased our debt more than any other administration or maybe all of them combined. Our grandchildren and their children will be paying for our mistakes.

When I say our mistakes, I mean all of us and not just the ones who voted for the hope and change they will never get, but also those of us who are uninformed and did not vote and those who think that all they have to do is vote and their job is done. Not So!!! Starting with those who are retired and those, like me, who would like to be. It is no longer enough that you vote and then sit back and go on your vacations abroad, while this nation that you worked hard to build, goes down the drain. You have the wisdom of life and the country needs that from your letters, your blogs and your involvement in organizations that support this country. You need to be vocal when you are not on that well deserved vacation. Those in the younger brackets working for their future retirement and still raising kids, you are the ones who need to over see the school boards, audit classes as concerned parents, study with your kids and teach them how to research and question, write letters to the editor and your representatives, show your children what it is to be involved with government. Finally, the youngest group, those just starting out, recently graduated, getting married and starting a family, settling into a career. Yours is the toughest group. You can, however, research, write and get involved with conservative groups that need young people and young ideas.

I want to tell you a brief story of a man that I met when he was 85 or so years old. At the time I was the publisher of a small magazine. This fellow was a retired WWII Naval Lt. Commander. He was aboard the North Carolina in the 1930’s. He left the navy in the mid to late thirties then re-entered in 1941 going aboard the submarine USS Narwhal for WWII. Then came Korea and he was aboard Cruisers and finally left after some time in the Mediterranean aboard Destroyers. He returned to be involved with fire fighting, becoming a high-ranking fire officer before his retirement. Since then he has been involved with a variety of groups that work for the benefit of this country, giving of his time, research and money. I could write a book on this true American hero, but he would not want that. As he would say, “I was just doing what had to be done.” He passed away a few weeks ago in his mid 90’s. Among his final concerns was that he made sure that his research papers and other information that he had accumulated over the years of defending this nation went to the appropriate person who he believed would carry on. (That person is the force behind CABPRO-www.cabpro.com) The point of all this is this great American never gave up the fight and neither can we.

It is not about us. It is about our children, their children and their children yet to be. Any thinking American knows that. If not us who, if not now, when? It is no longer enough to vote every election and then sit back and watch. Now is the time for involvement and commitment. Time, money and energy on your part are the only commodities that will save this country from the destruction that the left has planned for it. They are organized, funded and on the move and most of us just sit. No more. Now is the time to determine what kind of country our descendants will inherit and what legacy we will leave them. The man I talked about earlier never quit, neither will I nor will I let my family quit in the fight for this country that has given me so much.

It is not about me, it is not about you and it is not about us.

It’s Tough To Be A Patriot

We live in a state where most of the coastal counties and cities are liberal. Most of the state’s population lives in these counties and therefore, liberals hold the large majority of our legislative offices. The fact that, of the 58 counties in the state, less than 10 are blue and the rest are red, makes no difference, since the majority of the population lives in those blue counties. It is also a fact that in the counties where we hold the edge we don’t do our part and get out the vote. Not only do we fail in our job to get out the vote, we fail to get out the message or support those who are trying to do just that. The same is true across this nation, with the large urban areas holding most of the population and being mostly liberal. Liberals are liberals and we know what they do and we know what they say and how they act. They never take responsibility for their failures and indeed (according to the liberal play book) it is always someone else’s fault, namely anyone who is not liberal. Have you ever heard a liberal say either that he was wrong, made a mistake or that one of his own fell into either of those categories? I’ll bet not. We know this and yet we fail to combat it.

I know that it is tough to be a patriot, particularly when most of those around you drive Volvos or Subarus with Obama and Charlie Brown bumper stickers. They are also the folks who are anti everything you stand for. They expect you to dig into your pocket and give money to every transient, liberal cause and nonsense art project they can come up with. If you don’t, they will dig into your pocket for you. These are the people who spend their day applying for grants so that they can get more money to apply for more grants. They don’t really work unless it is for someone else and then they have fixed it so that they cannot be fired even if they wear a tutu to work. Liberals are anti God, marriage, self-employment, entrepreneurial efforts, the death penalty, smaller government, lower taxes, stronger military, law enforcement, the flag, meat, cars, trucks, any form of growth (with the exception of government), logic, truth in science, paying their taxes, defending your free speech, the two party system, equality, national sovereignty, secure borders, legal immigration, private property rights, second amendment rights, the Constitution, fair elections, you keeping the profits of labor, national security, using natural resources, living where you want to live, your pursuit of your own happiness, and many more. In this atmosphere it is tough to be a patriot. Emotion will almost always win out over logic and truth. What you must remember is that almost the entire liberal platform is an emotional one and the liberals largest fear is that their own will discover the truth. Should this happen and the liberal base discover that their hardcore leaders do not have their best interests at heart, rather paramount is their own self interest, power and the destruction of this great nation, the base will be in a much deserved dither.

This is where conservative patriots have a great opportunity and duty to get the word out. It will not be easy and it will take some of your hard earned money. You have four choices; stand by and do more of the “nothing” a significant portion of conservatives have been doing and watch as the liberals have their way and the country of our founders ceases to exist, or you can donate time, words, or money. It you don’t have the time to get involved, or like some that I mentioned in previous articles you can’t bring yourself to identify yourself as a patriot and speak the words, then give the money to those who are looking out not only for your best interests but the interests of your children and grand-children.

We have enemies in this country who want to see the end of this great experiment in self-government we call a Republic. Some are religious fanatics from the outside and others are our own, from the inside. Both groups are hungry for power and control over us. There are two other groups here in this country; those who quietly sit by and acquiesce, letting whatever happens happen, and those who realize that the troubles facing this nation are bigger than each of us as individuals and are willing to defend this nation against all enemies, foreign and domestic. Which group do you belong to? It is indeed tough to be a patriot.

In Our Country

Anger cannot describe my feelings toward the liberal left at this time in history. While watching the Fox News channel this evening (1/7/09) the main topic was, of course, the conflict between Israel and the Hamas controlled Palestine State particularly in the area of Gaza. In the past year, 3000 plus rockets have been fired into Israel from Palestine. Finally, having had enough, Israel has retaliated. Already the liberal left has been questioning the retaliation in terms of its appropriateness. What is this nonsense? The object of war is to make the enemy surrender without conditions and whatever force is necessary to accomplish this is appropriate. Where do the liberals come up with this crap about appropriate response?

Following up on this topic, there was a video sequence showing Palestinian people in their native garb shouting “down with Israel, death to the Israelis, Israel should be eliminated” and other niceties regarding the destruction of the State of Israel. This is a common sight in the area now considered Palestine. The problem is, this was not in Palestine, it was in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Yes, you read it right, this was in our country. Why were the liberals in all their pompous, self-serving ideology not screaming foul, hate speech, hate crimes, etc?

You see, I’ve noticed a pattern when regarding liberals. First, they never answer a question. They always deflect the answer with a response that transfers the question to the put down of the conservative philosophy. Secondly, they never acknowledge any fault with their side of the issue. All their people are perfect and all ours are flawed. On the very face of this, they fear that if a question is answered directly, or a flaw admitted to, their Achilles heal will be discovered and all will be lost. They are right in this fear. For when anyone discovers that their platform is an emotional one not based on fact and truth, that person will walk away from them and go elsewhere.

It becomes clear to me that emotion will always trump facts and truth. What is unclear is how any intelligent, thinking person who seeks the truth and wants the best for his/her country can listen day after day to the party line and never question it in any form. Does that mean that liberals are mindless, un-thinking lemmings following their leadership blindly into the sea? I fear so. The difference between Liberals and Conservatives is the intestinal fortitude to go against the grain. Maybe that explains why liberals are for big government, more taxes, weaker military, bashing America, bashing the military, a weaker America, pro-terrorist and a variety of other items not in the best interest of this country. I would like to ask a liberal what color the sky is in their world and how it got to be that way? But, alas, they wouldn’t answer the question.

The Cowards Amongst Us

Although I’ve written about this before, the other evening it was brought dramatically home to me again. I was talking to some Republicans leaders who also own businesses. The issue became fear of outing themselves as conservatives and openly becoming engaged in the cause of saving our country from the socialism of the far left. A few years back, when I was trying to sell advertising for The Republic News and Issues Magazine, store after store and business after business, that I knew had conservative owners, would respond the same, “I really believe in what you’re doing and I read the magazine every month, but, I can’t advertise because I would offend my liberal customers and I would lose business and I can’t do that.” This philosophy irritated me then and it irritates me now.

But this is not new to this brand of Rino, neo-con cowards. Thomas Paine referred to them as Sunshine Patriots and Summer Soldiers during the Revolution. George Washington had them in his Continental Army and they caused him nothing but grief and almost lost the War of Independence, which gave us this free land. This country was bought with the blood of patriots who understood that the cause was bigger than themselves, their families or their businesses. Even so there was a segment of colonial society that was ready to surrender it all for the promise of 1000 English pounds, a pardon and the ability to keep their home and business. When Lord Howe, the British Commander, made just such an offer, thousands of these sunshine patriots took him up on it.

Nothing seems to have changed today. The same type people, who talk big at a conservative gathering, fall short when asked to speak up or stand up or lend support in a public manner. They feel they might out themselves as conservatives. These are the same people who allowed Hitler to gain power, Stalin to commit his atrocities, the better red than dead crowd. These are the same people who will stand by and watch as the Governor of this state sells out his principles because he lost a battle a few years back and wanted to get re-elected and be liked. These are people who, as elected representatives, will admit privately that that there are billions of dollars of waste in the state budget but remain silent publicly. They will use the phrase “it was the best deal we could get.” The truth is they were afraid that if they stood their ground they would not get elected again and might lose their gravy train. What in the world has happened to principle? Certainly very little of it remains in the Republican Party.

It occurs to me that when one is too weak to stand on a piece of ground and say this is mine to stand on, regardless of the consequences, then that person stands for nothing. When a business owner is so afraid of his liberal customer base that he allows that base to force him to remain silent except when in the company of other conservatives, then he has no real business. By his own admission he only has a business by the permission of the liberal left. That’s not having a business, that’s cowardice and hypocrisy. Cowardice, because you are void of the fortitude to stand for your beliefs; hypocrisy, because you spout the conservative mantra only when you are safely surrounded by real conservatives.
I could go on and name names, but to what avail? These people won’t change and they know who they are and probably the reader knows who they are. I do wonder though what it must belike to be devoid of personal courage. I cannot imagine what it would feel like to be so lacking in fortitude that I would not stand up for my principles and the needs of my Country. What must it be like to stand down in the face of adversity? Do you lie to your children or grand-children when they ask questions about why your organization or you don’t stand up for the truth or do you teach them that it’s better to say nothing because to get involved might hurt your business? What do you see when you look in the mirror? Well, consider yourself lucky that there are those of us who will stand up as we always have for the undeserving likes of you. There are brave young men and women around the world and on our local streets who are defending your right to be a coward and a hypocrite. Enjoy the freedoms and rights that you and your ilk have done nothing to earn. One day when the likes of our soldiers, police, fire and emergency service personnel are too few in number to do much to keep the gangs, terrorists, socialists, liberals and corrupt politicians from your door, remember you once had the chance to stand bravely and show courage. You chose not to.

Right Simply Because It’s Right - Part II

Recycling

Most would identify recycling with the left side of the continuum. Not so. It is neither left or right, conservative or liberal. It is simply the right thing to do, it is simply common sense. We as a people do in fact, have a very large waste issue. It is not as large as some would have us think, but it is large enough to support a thriving industry, if the powers that be would just get out of the way.

As I see it, there is nothing that we use today that could not be recycled. Let’s start with the house we live in. It is made of concrete, wood, tin, wire, steel, porcelain, glass, other man made products and plastic. Concrete can be ground up and used for a variety of products. So can the wood. Steel and tin can be melted down and remanufactured. Wire can be stripped and the copper re-used, the wire insulation, mostly plastic, goes into the plastic category. Glass, porcelain and cultured marble get ground up and used for abrasives, if nothing else. Insulation causes the most difficulty, but even it can, theoretically, be washed and reused as insulation. Even the roofing. mostly tar, could be used as, well, re-manufactured roofing.

The automobile is no different, steel, wire, fabric, glass, synthetic rubber and plastic. Household waste, mostly the same products as above can be similarly recycled. Former unregulated dumpsites as well as the new highly regulated sites produce methane gas that is a source to be tapped as a source of energy. I’m not a scientist so I can’t say for sure that it pollutes more or less than fossil fuels. What I do know is that it is escaping into the atmosphere anyway and it seems only logical to get some use of it while on its way.

Finally, the very sensitive subject of the use of human waste. For centuries we have been using animal waste as fertilizer for our farm produce and while I am not suggesting that we do the same with human waste, I am reminded that in the Eastern part of the world and in the Orient the same was used to grow rice under the name of “night soil”. Years ago I had the opportunity to discuss the purity of human waste water returned to the creeks after processing as well as the use of solid waste processed at a local sanitation plant. The answers I received did not surprised me. The wastewater returned to the creeks was 98% pure and cleaner than standard drinking water. The solid waste after treatment was free of dangerous biohazards and used in the landscaping of some of our road projects.

So the question is, if my logic is correct and this is all possible and would help with our energy difficulties, relieve the pressure of the waste problem and promote new businesses, then why are we not full throttle into it? I suggest several possible answers; government interference, environmental organizational interference, over-regulation from both of the above and the failure of recycling programs in the past, again because of the above. In my opinion neither the government nor the so-called environmentalists have ever solved a problem. Rather they have both stood in the way of solutions by the entrepreneurial spirit of this great nation. It is time for us to stand up to both and reinstate common sense to the solutions of the issues of our time. It’s right simply because it’s right.

Right Simply Because It’s Right

Everyday I hear things that make me wonder what we, as Americans, hold dear. It seems that most of the time there isn’t a nickel's worth of difference between the way Republicans act and the actions taken by the Democrats. One party would take everything away from us and the other would give everything that is ours away. And, there isn’t any consistency as to which party is which. I happen to be a pro-choice Republican. Not that I think abortion is right, I don’t, but I believe in the sanctity of a person's body and the decision making process belongs to the individual. I must answer to my God for my actions, not yours. That is your responsibility. Pregnancy occurs in this day only for four reasons; force, stupidity, want or God's will. In only force or mother’s health, do I support abortion as a solution. Society offers too many alternatives. Still, it remains the woman’s right to choose her course of action. Some things are right simply because they are right.

I am also very pro 2nd Amendment. I believe, as did the founders, that it is my right to defend my family and myself if necessary from my enemies and my government. The founders felt the same way. (Am I smart or what?) An individual's right to self-defense is not to be tampered with in any fashion. Some things are right simply because they are right.

The same truth can be applied to our border situation. Closing it to unwanted or undocumented is right simply because it’s right. No country with an open border policy ever held its sovereignty for long. Furthermore, dangerous people are coming across our borders by the hordes and the current administration is doing nothing about it but talk. But alas, both sides of the isle are leery of touching such a hot button issue for fear of offending someone. I can only surmise that popularity in the polls and desire to win their next election, trumps doing what is good and right for our country. Just once I would like to hear a politician of either party stand and support the closing of the border because it is the right thing to do and if Canada and Mexico are offended, oh well. Maybe they should control their people and offer them a reason to stay in their own country. How long would you put up with me if I moved into your house, spread my political rhetoric, religion and ill will about your property? How long would you put up with me if I complained about the way you treated me, if I demanded that you share your income with me, give health care to me and my extended family, educate me, cloth me and tolerate the way in which I attack the standard of living you provide for me. If you would do that for me or anyone else, then open the door, here I come.

Recently I spoke with some southern California Republicans about supporting the idea of a resolution demanding that our leaders close the border. Most did not return my calls, a few wanted to see the Resolution and a couple wanted nothing to do with it. The reasons given were without a doubt the lamest I have heard in a while. "Closing the border at this time will hurt business in my county. We hire a lot of Hispanics to fill our labor force. Such a resolution would offend our Hispanic workers", and the most absurd of all, "we are trying to build the Republican Party here in this county and that Resolution would hurt our efforts." Where did love and loyalty to country go? What happened to intestinal fortitude? Spine? Backbone? Grit? If this had been the attitude during the Second World War, we currently would be speaking a different tongue. Oh, excuse me, we already provide for that.

Close the Border Now. Demand this of your politicians. Join others who love this country, across party lines. Write letters, insist on a response, and insist on action. It is our country. We are the people. Make this an issue and hold feet to the fire. Let’s take back this country. Let me know what you think while you still have free speech.