Excluded Middle by Michael Cochrane

The Constitution of the United States is such a fundamental and influential document that it is completely understandable that it would be the center of attention and controversy with respect to the nature of what we believe to be true and significant as a people. As such, the Constitution is subject to a scrutiny that suggests that its propositions and proscriptions are open to interpretation.

Over the last two centuries, there has arisen a concept of political ideology that appears to dispose itself along a spectrum from extreme to extreme – extreme right (facism) to extreme left (communism). Well meaning people from both “extremes” have attempted to make their case for the truth of their position. The so-called “moderate” individual might “split the difference”, and find a middle position that seems to be reasonable and truthful at the same time.

Thus, a common response to the daily back and forth of views on the left and the right is to think that the “Truth” lies somewhere in the “reasonable” middle; the centrist viewpoint. Such a position is considered unassailable and more than likely where the real answers to problems lie. That mode of thinking may pass the test of political correctness, but it doesn’t pass the test of philosophical scrutiny.

The Truth lies where it is – objectively – regardless of where we are positioned on the spectrum of political or ideological views. I’m reminded of the concept of statistical sampling: The mean of the population is a parameter one can never know exactly, but it is “true”. We take a random sample of that population and derive the statistic, the sample mean, which is an estimate of the “true” population mean. From there we can build a 95% confidence interval for the location of this true value. But this interval may or may not enclose the true population parameter. All this tells us is that if we were to construct 100 intervals from 100 random samples, that 95 of them would enclose the “true” population mean. It’s possible (with a 5% chance) that we’re wrong.

Therefore a search for Truth should not be driven to the center from the “extremes”; it should be undertaken objectively, without regard for what society deems far right or left. The Founders, in their wisdom, created a document that attempted to derive a basic set of laws for the nation based on the objectively true principles of liberty and justice as authored by God. But, since it is a creature of man, the Constitution is not perfect. So it allows for amendment. Even the Declaration suggests that a free people reserve the right to overthrow a government destructive of those basic God given rights and start over.

The notion of a “living” Constitution suggests to me that it is possible to ascribe more or less (or different) power and authority to the words of the document based on the exigencies of a particular societal problem. To return to my statistics analogy, this is like constructing a 100% confidence interval: we fit the “Truth” to a space between the extremes we have settled on. The problem with this is that there is no such thing as a 100% confidence interval (unless, of course, your “sample” is the entire population, in which case you would *know* the truth because you had perfect information).

Truth exists. It may actually lie outside the boundaries with which human beings have constrained it. The truly virtuous person will pursue it wherever it may lead, and will not be constrained by boundaries imposed by a fickle society.

Copyright 2010 by Michael Cochrane.  Used with permission.  All rights reserved

Vote Them Out

Let me start this article by repeating something I have been saying for 18 months now. Whether you like it or not, we lost the election. We have a democratically elected President and Congress that are very liberal. We must live with them until November or beyond. They are in power. They can do whatever they want until they are voted out. And, that should be our goal: To vote them out before they do irreparable damage to the country and our freedoms. And, before they succeed in destroying what is left of the Constitution.

Frankly, I am getting sick and tired of all the whining about what the Progressive Liberals are doing. I do not care about Obama’s birth certificate. He is President and baring someone proving he is ineligible to hold that office, he will remain our President. I do not care about his Progressive Agenda. I do not care about the behavior of his cabinet or the behavior of Congress. They are in power. We can only do one thing: Vote them out in November.

The only thing I would like to see investigated more are the allegations made by Congressman Sestak in Pennsylvania in which he said he was offered a position by the Obama Administration to get out of the race against Arlen Spector. Attorney General Eric Holder should hire a special investigator immediately in this regard. This is a story that should not go away and if proven could be an actual impeachable offense if the President was behind it.

So, our goal should be to “Vote Them Out.” In the next six months we should do whatever we can to “Vote Them Out.” We should take all of the energy that is going into complaining about the Democrats, Progressives, Lefties or whatever you want to call them, and put that same energy into voting them out.

And, let me continue by saying, “the process of getting rid of them has started.” That should make us enthusiastic and get our collective energies flowing. On Saturday, we won a special election in Hawaii that puts a Republican into President Obama’s home seat for the first time in decades. Of course, the Democrats will argue that they also won a Special Election last week. They managed a win Pennsylvania 12. However, this is far from an upset as Pennsylvania 12 is registered almost 2-1 Democrat. The fact that the race was close at all is a good sign for the Republican Party.

Last Tuesday, we got rid of the traitor Arlen Spector whom I mentioned earlier. He is no longer running for reelection as he lost his primary to Congressman Sestak. If current polls mean anything (which they may or may not), we should be able to put that Senate seat into the Republican column in November. The Republican nominee is currently polling ahead.

A true conservative, Rand Paul won his primary in Kentucky last Tuesday defeating the Republican establishment candidate. Before Mr. Paul committed a major flub on Friday, he was over 20% ahead in all polls to take the Senate seat. The flub which may come back to haunt him in November has been adequately explained away. But, it still may be costly. Thus far, no polls have been released since his stupid comment about the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Is Mr. Paul, the future of the Republican Party or just an anomaly of the Tea Party movement? We do know he is more of a Libertarian than a Republican. Is that where our party is going?

Attorney General Blumenthal of Connecticut who is running for Senate has been caught “misspeaking.” Or, should I say what it really truly was, an out and out lie. Yesterday, he finally apologized to the real Vietnam vets. Apparently, the apple does not fall too far from the tree in Connecticut. One liar, Chris Dodd, is retiring and should be in jail; another liar is trying to gain Dodd’s Senate seat. I say, the Republican National Committee should make an all out play for this seat in Connecticut. Picking this one up should not be an issue.

A similar situation is going on in Nevada. Apparently, our good friend Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is very vulnerable. In fact, most Nevadans look upon him unfavorably. Recent polling has shown that he loses to almost anyone running against him. Again, RNC, this is one to put money behind.

I could go on and on about the good news, but I don’t want to. What I really want to talk about is what we need to do in order to “Vote Them Out!”

And, for once Michael Steele, are you listening? Stop trying to be PC and start talking about really what is going on in this country. The current Democratic Administration is spending our country into bankruptcy. In the process, they are creating a socialist country and destroying what is left of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. There is a tremendous amount of anger out there and it should be channeled for the next five months into ending their majority rule in Congress.

The Tea Party is just a small sign of the anger. The anger is festering in the Reagan Democrats whose jobs are disappearing and whose 401K’s are disappearing and whose home values are floundering. Just this morning a statistic came out that showed housing prices dropped last month another .5%. Do you think it is any coincidence that this happened after another entitlement program, the $8,000 tax credit for buying a home, ran out at the end of April? Of course, not. Prices of homes were being jacked up falsely again by a bubble with no air. Look for housing prices to drop in the next few months without the government handout.

The Anger is festering in our Senior Citizen population. What are you doing to get their votes Mr. Steele? They are also seeing their savings depleted in the current economy. They are afraid that the new health care bill will put the final nail in the coffin of Medicare. They are afraid that Social Security will collapse when the out-of-control spending comes home to roost.

The legal immigrants are angry that the current administration is doing nothing to control the flood of illegal immigrants. They are angry because they know why: Mr. Obama, Mr. Reid and Ms. Pelosi are going to do nothing to hurt a potential voting block in November. Do not be afraid to say it Mr. Steele. Tell the Hispanics what is really going on. Tell them that once these Liberals get re-elected, they are going to come down on illegals.

The country is definitely at a cross-road. Now, is our chance to get out country back. But, it is not going to be easy. We are going to have to use every one of these crises in order to do it. We are going to have to steal from the playbook of Rahm Emmanuel. After all, isn’t he the one who said, “Never let a crisis go to waste?” Let us stop being whimps and do whatever we have to do. Our country needs us. We must make sure we “Vote Them Out.” Tomorrow is not the time. Now, is the time.

Thank you for listening to this angry rant.

By the way, a song I wrote for the movie “Prince and Me 4” has just been released as a single. If you want to buy it, it is called “Someone I Can Love” and you can find it at:

http://amzn.to/aem8SJ

or

http://www.itunes.com/johndang

© 2010 by Frank T. DeMartini. Permission to copy will be granted freely upon request.

Of Free Speech, Illegal Immigration and Border Wars

As all of my friends, relatives and acquaintances know, I have just returned from Bangkok, Thailand where I have been since January prepping and shooting a film called “Elephant White” with Djimon Hounsou and Kevin Bacon. On the whole, the experience was rewarding. Working with Prachya Pinkaew, the internationally acclaimed Director was both a treat and a learning experience. I know it will continue as such during the post-production period.

However, while in Thailand, I also was a student: A student of free speech and the right of assembly and tolerance. Three items that I used to believe we had here in America. Thailand, the country were a military coup took over control of the government a few years ago is now on the verge of a civil war. Even though it is a military run country, its people have more freedom of expression than we have here in the United States thanks to the PC movement, the ACLU and our friends on the Far Left.

The political situation in Thailand can be considered fragile at best. The two political parties are on the verge of what may be a violent and bloody civil war. When I left there about ten days ago, the Red Shirt Party had taken control of downtown Bangkok and, for all intents and purposes, had occupied it. The party in control, The Yellow Shirts, has allowed this to happen.

What started as a peaceful protest against the government is on the verge of becoming violent. Already, there have been minor skirmishes in which guns have been fired, grenades have been launched and a small group of people on both sides have been killed.

However, for the most part, the military and local police have exercised restraint and did not permit the situation to get out of control. They were ready to defend the populace by being fully armed and patrolling the streets, but they did not do anything to take away the rights of the protestors. Freedom of Speech and Assembly were respected by both sides.

Unfortunately, this is not what is happening in the United States. The Far Left, as stated in some of my prior articles, has been doing everything in its power to take away these freedoms in our country. In fact, Nancy Pelosi has actually called the Tea Party protestors the equivalent of Nazis. She has stated that she would like them to cease from all activities and simply does not want to give them the right to protest.

The same also seems to be true of a large portion of our country in response to the Arizona Immigration Law. In fact, the City of Los Angeles and other organizations are calling for a boycott of Arizona in response instead of recognizing that Arizona has a right to protect itself if the Federal Government refuses to do such. Arizona is merely exercising its Tenth Amendment Rights.

A careful reading of the Arizona Law shows that it is nothing more than a state codification of the current federal law; all legal immigrants and legal non-immigrants are required to show proof of their right to be in the country if requested by proper authorities. The law is not fascist nor a return to Nazi Germany as has been suggested by those who oppose it. And, it is not an affront on the Hispanic Community. It is simply an affront on illegal aliens. It is an affront on those who have no right to be in the United States, whether they be Hispanic, Eastern European or Asian. I am the grandchild of immigrants. My grandparents came through Ellis Island at the turn of the last century. They followed the law and became American in the proper manner. They did not hold onto the Old Country. In fact, my parents barely spoke any Italian at all. They were told to become American. They were no longer Italian.

Arizona is dealing with a problem that must be dealt with. In fact, the immigration statute is so popular that a number of other states, including Texas and Michigan, that’s right liberal Michigan, are considering similar statutes. A poll released today shows that 64% of the population approves the law.

The illegal immigration situation in Arizona and other states on the Border has reached crisis proportions. Arizona State Senator Sylvia Allen explains the law and her reason for supporting it in her commentary on why she voted for the statute. You can find a full text of her commentary at: http://tucsoncitizen.com/the-cholla-jumps/2010/05/01/state-senator-sylvia-allen-responds-to-sb1070/. In that article, she explains the problems on the Border; the uncontrollable influx of illegals and, drug traffickers using the border in Arizona as the principle means of bringing drugs into the United States.

The facts are clear. Illegal immigrants are filling up both state and federal prisons; they are a drain on federal and state welfare; and, they are a drain on our education system. They are responsible for a large portion of the murders and other felonies throughout the country. In fact, the situation on the Arizona Border has gotten so bad that it can almost be considered a war zone. People are being murdered on both sides of the border daily. That’s right, daily. The Federal government is doing nothing to stop the situation and would grant illegals amnesty if permitted. The states must take the matter into their own hands. They are going bankrupt and must do whatever is necessary and legal to protect their citizens and budgets.

You may wonder why the Federal Government is not doing anything to curb the tide of illegal immigration. The answered is simple. The party in power sees illegal immigrants as a potential voting block that would support them. If the Democratic Party cannot get votes from naturally born and/or naturalized citizens, then it will get them from wherever it can, especially in Arizona and Texas which lean heavily to the right. Imagine giving illegal immigrants the right to vote in these two states. It could be just enough to tip them to the left.

Cinco de Mayo was celebrated a few days ago. This is a national holiday in Mexico. In some states with large Mexican populations including Arizona and California, it is becoming a day of celebration too. A group of students in a Southern California High School decided that they were going to celebrate America on Cinco de Mayo by wearing shirts with the American Flag on them. The administrators in the school decided that this was inappropriate behavior and demanded that the students change their shirts or turn them inside out. It must have been the administration’s viewpoint that the American Flag should not be displayed on Cinco de Mayo.

The students were then subjected to discipline by the school board when they refused to remove their shirts. When the parents of these students found out what was happening, they went to Fox News with the story. Fox News chose to air it. It was later picked up by both NBC, CBS and @ yahoo. In my opinion, the school district is clearly violating these students Right to Assembly and Free Speech. To date, the school district has not apologized for its actions. However, they have ceased the disciplinary proceedings against the students.

Since when did it become bad to love the United States? Since when did it become in bad taste to be a dissenter? Don’t the Federalist Papers and the Equal Protection Clause state that protection of the minority is one of the guarantees of the Constitution? Apparently, in this school district the non-Mexicans are the minority and they are being disciplined for exercising their Constitutional Rights and showing love for their country.

In similar story, a grammar school student in another part of the country was stopped from drawing an American Flag with the words God Bless America on it by her teacher. The teacher felt that this drawing was inappropriate content. I guess the teacher felt that God shouldn’t bless America or that the American Flag, a symbol that millions have fought and died for, was not a proper art project for a student at the elementary school level.

It appears that the Administrators in the Southern California school district and the grammar school teacher have less tolerance than the military controlled government and people of Thailand. This also appears to be unfortunately true for most of the left leaning people in this country, including our current President. We all need to remember this in November when we cast our votes to take our country back.

© 2010 by Frank T. DeMartini. Permission to copy will be granted freely upon request.

"Passionate Conservatives Versus Radical Progressives Versus Anarchists, What's the Difference?" by Craig Covello

A few days ago was April 15th; tax day. If you are among the 50% who actually pay federal income taxes, you might consider this a day of sadness regardless of whether you're getting a tax refund. After all, the government has your money and a significant portion has been given to those who don't pay taxes.

But by now we all know that a growing number of people who actually do pay taxes have formed an organization called the Tea Party Patriots with the express purpose of protesting the socialization of America. Last year, they turned out in numbers by attending over 800 events around the country. This year probed to be the same. The political left and the media have unsuccessfully tried to paint this organization as racist, artificial, homophobic and uninformed. They have also implied that Tea Party Patriot rallies create a climate for potential violence. If you've read my articles in “The Obama White House Diaries” dated February 24 and April 6, you know that nothing could be further from the truth. Despite that, some people probably still believe that all activist organizations, regardless of polarity, are pretty much alike because they are comprised of people who appear to be on the fringe of society. That assessment would be wrong.

Gallup poll confirmed earlier this month that Tea Party participants truly represent the larger demographics of our country. They are not "fringe". They are simply standing up for constitutional principles upon which this nation was founded. Tea Party Patriots play by the rules, obey the laws and express their views in a straightforward, honest manner. They don't believe in any form of violence. This is demonstrated by the fact that there have been virtually no arrests at any Tea Party gatherings to date, which have numbered close to 1000. Here is a statement taken from The Tea Party Patriots website which expresses the tenor and tone of the movement:

"Last year on April 15, 2009, millions of hard-working Americans stood in unison at over 800 protests around the country. These protests, which became known as the Tax Day Tea Party, expressed real concerns against reckless government spending and spawned millions of Americans to get involved in their local Tea Parties which today are holding elected officials accountable."

Let's compare that with some recent events and statements made by those who presumably oppose conservative politics.

Example 1 - Last Friday night in the New Orleans French quarter, a group called Iron Rail rallied some protesters of their own in order to crash a Republican dinner fundraiser for Gov. Bobby Jindal. The group assembled in front of Brennan's restaurant and shouted obscenities at patrons, many of whom were families having dinner and not part of the Republican event. The crowd tried to rush the restaurant doors, but were driven back by police. Later that evening around 11 PM after the crowd had dispersed, it appears that a group of men stalked Jindal's chief campaign fundraiser Allee Bautsch and her boyfriend Joe Brown as they left the restaurant. Both were beaten savagely. Both are in the hospital, One had to undergo surgery. There were conflicting stories whether or not the attack was politically motivated, but Bautch's purse was not taken. I'll let you draw your own conclusions. Here is the charter statement from Iron Rails' website:

"Founded in December 2003, the Iron Rail is committed to an anarchist, antiauthoritarian, feminist, anti-racists, queer positive and class conscious politics... as an anarchist collective, the Iron Rail has no bosses or managers. Group decisions are made collectively in weekly meetings and members are encouraged to be creative in initiating individual projects."

Example 2 - A recent letter was sent to over 17,000 school employees by a teachers union known as the New Jersey Education Association. The association's president, Joe Coppola, jokingly prayed for the death of New Jersey Republican Gov. Chris Christie.

"Dear Lord this year you have taken away my favorite actor, Patrick Swayze, my favorite actress, Farrah Fawcett, my favorite singer, Michael Jackson and my favorite salesman Billy Mays. I just want you to know that Chris Christie is my favorite governor."

Example 3 - On March 26, 2010, someone shot a bullet into Congressman Erik Cantor's campaign office in downtown Richmond Virginia. Police have judged this to be "a stray bullet as part of random gunfire". No suspects have been found. Cantor is a Republican, and many have speculated this violence was in response to Republican opposition towards health care bill. But again, that's speculation.

Example 4 - There is a new movement called "Crash the Tea Party" which was founded by a middle-school teacher from Beaver Oregon named Jason Levin . The following statement was taken from their website:

"Who We Are: A national network of Democrats, Republicans, and independents who are all sick and tired of that loose affiliation of racists, homophobes, and morons; who constitute the fake grassroots movement which calls itself "The Tea Party."

“What We Want: to dismantle and demolish the Tea Party by any nonviolent means necessary.”

“How We Will Succeed: by infiltrating the Tea Party itself! In an effort to propagate their pre-existing propensity for paranoia and suspicion... we have already sat quietly in their meetings, and observed their rallies.”

“Whenever possible, we will act on behalf of the tea party in ways which exaggerate their least appealing qualities (misspelled protest signs, wild claims in TV interviews, etc.) To further distance them from mainstream America and damage the public's opinion of them. We will also use the inside information that we have gained in order to disrupt and derail their plans.”

“Sound like fun? It is!! If you'd like to join us, just click on the word "crash!" Below...”

Sounds like fun? This guy is teaching our kids. So let's review. We have beatings, shootings, jokes about killing political rivals and covert activity, all directed towards conservatives.

I think I've made my point.

http://www.crashtheteaparty.org/

http://www.teapartypatriots.org/

http://thehayride.com/2010/04/the-brennans-beatdown-piecing-together-a-story/

http://biggovernment.com/kolson/2010/04/13/death-prayer-for-nj-gov-christie-is-yet-another-tasteless-attack-on-reform-minded-state-leaders/

© 2010 by Craig Covello. Used with permission. All Rights Reserved.

America Rising by Ira Schwartz

"We must, indeed, all hang together, or most assuredly we shall all hang separately."

Ben Franklin 1776

Welcome to 2010 everyone, the year of the second American Revolution. This will be the year “we the people” take our country back. Sounds good doesn’t it. Sounding “good” is one thing, making it happen is another?

The unhappiness in this country is on the rise; the slow rate of recovery of the economy; record setting unemployment; the expanding debt; healthcare issues; two wars and the list goes on. The people’s patience has reached an end and the government continues on as if nothing is happening. A “clean Sweep” in November is what most Americans are talking about. That’s all well and good but who are we going to replace them with and what will their values be?

The loudest voices are those of a conservative nature. They want to bring America back from the abyss of corruption and moral depravity and back into the arms of conservative moral values. But what exactly are those conservative moral values? We need to know this before we can proceed.

Most of the conservatives I’ve talked to are not shy about what they believe in. To list them all would take too long so a link to Conservative vs. Liberal values can be found at the end of this article. Most of those issues have been “hot topics” for quite some time and a large section of this country does not subscribe to all of those beliefs. Americans are indeed angry but they are also NOT stupid. We are not prepared to put people in office who do not represent ALL Americans just to remove those that are presently in power. We already made that mistake once.

For this “Second Revolution” to work, all Americans must be heard and all our concerns MUST be taken into consideration. If the conservative section refuses to budge then they will be forced to go it alone and they will fail and they will be blamed for allowing the present administration to continue. The burden will be theirs alone.

So what’s the answer? The answer is what this country is all about. The answer is what we call ourselves…The UNITED States of America. We need to stop the political rhetoric and start searching for those candidates that will help this country move forward. Not on a conservative agenda or a liberal agenda or a Republican agenda or Democratic agenda but on as I said in my first article 7 months ago a true bi-partisan American agenda. We need to carefully scrutinize all the candidates and make sure they will really be working for “The People” not their own political parties.

The power is in our hands and we need to wield it wisely for we may never get a second chance. This country is at the crossroads and what we do in the next 10 months will decide its fate for decades to come. There will be no do over’s so we need to do it “together” and we need to do it right. Not for Republicans; not for Democrats but for all AMERICANS.

Quote from “An American President” 1996-written by Aaron Sorkin-Michael Douglas as President Andrew Shepherd.

“America isn't easy. America is advanced citizenship. You gotta want it bad, 'cause it's gonna put up a fight. It's gonna say "You want free speech? Let's see you acknowledge a man whose words make your blood boil, who's standing center stage and advocating at the top of his lungs that which you would spend a lifetime opposing at the top of yours. You want to claim this land as the land of the free? Then the symbol of your country can't just be a flag; the symbol also has to be one of its citizens exercising his right to burn that flag in protest. Show me that, defend that, celebrate that in your classrooms. Then, you can stand up and sing about the "land of the free".

http://www.studentnewsdaily.com/other/conservative-vs-liberal-beliefs/

©2010 by Ira Schwartz. Used by Permission. All rights reserved.

Applause by Craig Covello

The Saturday before Christmas was a very good day. It was the day that my youngest son was flying home from the University of North Texas, where he studies jazz. We've been very proud of Cameron's academic career as an excellent musician playing both the stand up and electric bass. Even though he just started college as freshman, his knowledge of jazz history and his ability to interpret and play very complex jazz compositions is impressive. And on Saturday he was coming home for Christmas break.

My wife Karen and I climbed into the car with our 10-year-old dog Cooper. The dog is part of our family and the only "child" left in the house these days, so it seemed fitting that Cooper should be a part of the reunion with Cameron. We arrived at Sacramento International Airport about a half-hour early, which was perfect timing because we were treated to a local jazz combo playing inside the terminal. I guess this was the airport's way of saying Merry Christmas to passengers and their families. Karen waited by the escalators, anxiously hoping to see Cameron among the slow parade of holiday travelers making their way to baggage claim. Cooper and I stayed near the jazz combo and enjoyed the music. The combo, coincidentally, featured Cameron's former bass teacher who was pleased to hear that my son had decided to continue jazz at UNT. What a small world.

Then an interesting thing happened. About every two or three minutes there would be applause coming from somewhere near the escalators. Loud applause. So loud that it could be heard over the jazz combo. This cycle of applause must a continued for about 30 minutes. Finally, Karen walked over with a very tall, lean college student who resembled my son except for the scraggly beard. I gave Cameron a big hug, grabbed his bags and we proceeded to the parking garage. As we walked, my wife asked me if I'd heard the applause. "Yes", I said, "but I didn't see any performers near the escalators". She explained to me that the applause wasn't for the entertainers. It was an expression of gratitude for our military men and women who were coming home for Christmas.

A lot of thoughts raced through my head at that moment.

• This was the first time I had heard applause for the Armed Forces at the airport.

• It was sincere and unscripted.

• It represented a sense of patriotism and national pride which seemed contrary to the messages coming from Washington these days.

• It was a reality check.

If you have watched most major television network news since January, you would get the impression that the sun rises and sets on the Democratic Congress and the Obama White House. They appear to be the center of all conversation. Meanwhile, the military has been virtually ignored in favor of the domestic discussion. But here at Sacramento International Airport at Christmas, this was a slice of real life: A slice free from the spin of self-appointed social architects such as Barney Frank, Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi and the chief architect, Barack Obama. It gave me hope that this unscripted public applause was perhaps a validation that the American patriotic spirit is continuing its renascence. Consider the juxtaposition of this outpouring of love and gratitude in stark contrast with the popular behavior in 1969. That was a year that people in uniform returning from Vietnam were being disrespected and spat upon by the radical left. The same radical left who have recently taken political control, Constitution be damned, and are now attempting to reinvent America and rewrite history. Their narcissism has led them to believe that only they have the intellectual understanding to comprehend what needs to be done, without bipartisan debate, without public input and without government transparency. To add insult to injury, they also have contempt for the military based upon their spoken and unspoken words as well as their passive-aggressive inaction.

Obama, however, may unwittingly have given us one of the best Christmas presents ever this holiday season: Patriotism. This radically liberal administration and its complacent congress have brought our free and blessed nation to the edge of the abyss in terms of our national security, our financial stability, our government ethics and our leadership among world nations. As a result, Americans have rekindled their passion for freedom. Americans have rediscovered the Constitution. It is no longer politically incorrect to publicly express patriotism. We have strengthened our belief that this is a good and just nation with a proud past, despite its blemishes and shortcomings. We understand that America is a world leader because of our love of democracy. We think it is okay to believe in God without forcing others to do the same. We don't believe that terrorists have the same legal rights as citizens and we don't believe that our brave solders should be put on trial for "punching" the enemy. We have renewed our resolve to take this country back in 2012 if not by 2010 in order to pursue the principles that founded this nation. Those principles include respect for those who give military service.

Queue the applause for our returning soldiers. Then watch this video and give a moment of silence in remembrance of those who won't be returning, ever.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KoZ9Rc-W7Wk&feature=youtube_gdata

© 2009 by Craig Covello. Used with permission. All rights reserved.

Projection by Michael F. Cochrane

The older I get, the more I am convinced of the truth that we tend to project onto others those faults and foibles we ourselves struggle with. There is a liberal columnist whose syndicated column appears in my local paper a couple of times each week. I disagree with him on virtually every topic, but what really galls me is his self-righteous, finger-wagging attitude. In every one of his columns he climbs on his high horse and acts as if he is the sole possessor of the moral high ground.

Why does this bother me so much? Why should I even care?

I think it’s because, as much as I hate to admit it, he and I are probably very much alike. As a Christian, I understand that both of us share humanity’s fallen nature – we are all sinners. But it’s deeper than that. Why do I sense pride and self-righteous egotism oozing from his writing? Like most liberals, he writes passionately about social justice issues, particularly race. I’m sure many of his readers admire this passion and concern, whether they completely agree with him or not. Perhaps the reason I get so incensed when I read his columns is because where others see passion and concern, I see moral superiority, and there’s no way I’m going to let someone with the “incorrect” positions on the issues get away with acting as if he is morally superior to me!

But , if I’m honest, I’d have to admit that I’m no different than him.

My natural tendency is to bristle at and criticize people who act as though they are superior (in other words people who tend to bristle at and criticize others!). If I were a man of true humility, I would be more concerned with getting the log out of my own eye before trying to point out specks in the eyes of others. But there is a little policeman inside of me that sees it as his duty to “call out” those who don’t follow the rules and who behave as though the rules don’t apply to them. Here’s how idiotic it can get: on my drive home from work, I often take the carpool lane (because I carpool), but I am keenly aware of single drivers who try to “get away with” driving in the carpool lane. So what do I do? If I see a “single ship” driver coming up behind me in the carpool lane I will slow down to match the rest of the traffic. I do this intentionally to frustrate him, but more importantly, to make sure he knows that I know that he is a jerk and a lawbreaker!

Again, I have to ask myself the question, “why is this so important to me?” Why is it important that I be right? Why do I chafe at the notion that there is someone who thinks they are “better” than me?

The answer is that I am a sinner who does not rightly acknowledge the dominion and authority of the Most High God. I have often identified with the psalmist when he says, “I was envious of the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked… they are not stricken like the rest of mankind… pride is their necklace… their hearts overflow with follies” (Psalm 73). He even goes on to say, “in vain have I kept my heart clean and washed my hands in innocence”. Yet the author of Psalm 73 also goes on to say, “when my soul was embittered, when I was pricked in heart, I was brutish and ignorant; I was like a beast toward you”. In other words, my indignation is nothing more than envy of those whom God alone can and will judge. God’s Holy Spirit “pricks my heart” and causes me to realize my sin. That God in His mercy would discipline me to be aware of my own pride and sinfulness is truly a blessing!

In one sense I am no different than my antagonist columnist. Yet, by God’s grace, I can become more aware of my own failings, and instead of driving me into bitterness and anger, He will turn my heart to repentance and an acknowledgment of His sovereign goodness. I will still struggle with pride and arrogance, but I know the victory has already been won.

It is only God’s grace that differentiates me from my antagonist; nothing inherent in my own self-righteousness. I pray God may deal as mercifully with him as He has with me!

© 2009 by Michael F. Cochrane. Used with permission. All Rights Reserved.

Intangible Added Value by Craig Covello

Here is a short articles written by Craig Covello that I found very interesting.  Let me know what you think.

Intangible Added Value

A liberal friend of mine posted to Facebook what he considered to be an interesting and entertaining speech. It was made by Rory Sutherland, who is in advertising and not to be confused with the professional bicycle racer. In fact, Rory is the Executive Creative Director and Vice-Chairman, OgilvyOne London and Vice-Chairman, Ogilvy Group UK. The 15 minute video clip posted on this link was indeed entertaining, as testament by the laughter coming from his live audience. Rory made several assertions about public behavior based upon observations in his long career in advertising, but the over-arching point was rather unsettling. He contends that there are limited resources in the world which require all of us to do with less material things. In order to achieve a reduction in product innovation which fuels consumption, the masses need to be taught to see existing goods and services from a new perspective. A perspective not based in reality or objective analysis, but on spin. He calls this idea "Intangible Added Value", which asserts that you do not need to change the actual product to add value. You simply need to readjust the consumer thought process so that they believe the product has more value than it really does.

It can be argued that politics and advertising are interchangeable at times, so it is natural to view this concept in the context of liberal ideology. Rory's very notion of "Intangible Added Value" is really the celebration and advocacy of manipulating people under the assumption that the majority are stupid and need to be "tricked" into "desired behavior". (As opposed to Bill Maher's philosophy that you will never get popular consensus, so you must "drag them to it!" His words, not mine.) The desired behavior proposed in this clip can be summed up as making do with less without complaining or worse, rioting. But there is more. The clip also purports that perception is more important than reality if the desired objective is met. In this case, the objective is getting people to like something that they normally would reject.

So the next question is obvious. Who decides what people should want? Rory's rather disturbing assertion represents an elitist philosophy that only the few know what is best for the many. Sound familiar? We are to accept that the world's evils come from consumption. We are to accept that the earth cannot sustain us. We should believe that innovation in the tangible, material world is now secondary to advertising spin. Rory contends that it is much easier to change someone's perception than to create something of tangible value. Great stuff, right? We can all move this great nation forward by simply imagining things are good instead of working hard to create something new, something of value. There is only one problem with this. Many of the liberal elite in Washington and the entertainment industry seem to be hooked on consumption. Private jets, multiple homes, fine restaurants, new cars and the best, most innovative health care. These things are born of incentive which fosters innovation and entrepreneurism. Take the incentive away from the masses and these things eventually dry up. So why do the liberal elite think the rest of us should do with less while they continue living what some would term as extravagant lifestyles? Don't they realize that what goes around comes around? Perhaps they feel immune, but if they are wrong, perhaps their potentially diminished lifestyle can be embraced through "intangible value added" perception.

Here is the clip. Come to your own conclusions...

http://www.ted.com/talks/rory_sutherland_life_lessons_from_an_ad_man.html

© 2009 by Craig Covello – All Rights Reserved

Obama's Liberalism Boosts Republicans

Obama's Liberalism Boosts Republicans


Here is a real interesting article from Real Clear Politics Today about the current trends in the country.

Shared via AddThis

The Ideology of a Liberal

Since the health care debate has wound down a little as a result of President Obama’s speech on Wednesday which, by the way, was pure rhetoric and seen by the General Public and pundits as a failure because of its lack of new ideas and detail, I have decided to tackle a subject other than health care reform in this article. What makes a liberal tick? Why are there such major differences between the two parties in this country?

The other day I was playing on Facebook and saw a number of posts from my liberal friends regarding health care. The comments posted were all similar. No one should go without health care in this country and no one should go broke because they got sick. Why only liberals would post this amazes me, because there are not too many people in the world that disagree. However, it is just not that simple.

In response, I posted a few comments. The majority of them were along the line of “Yes, I agree too, but who is going to pay for it and how is it going to work?” Almost universally, the liberal responses were either “The Rich,” or “Bring the Troops Back from Iraq and Afghanistan.” I then realized that most thinking from Liberals is not based upon logic. In fact, from these responses, it appears liberal thinking is idealist and based upon emotion. This has been argued in the past by both Ann Coulter and Dennis Prager among others. I now agree.

Whether you agree with the War on Terror is not the issue. The troops are committed. You cannot simply bring them back. To think bringing them back can be accomplished overnight is not to think realistically. You must leave them there as long as necessary to accomplish your goals or to train the local military to do it themselves. In Iraq because of the surge, this is quickly happening. In Afghanistan, it is a different story.

The Afghanistan situation is beginning to look like Vietnam. Either we make the commitment to beat the Taliban or we will be involved in a war of attrition which cannot be won. President Obama must take the steps necessary to accomplish the goal. Anything short of that will give the Taliban and Al Qaeda the foothold they need to take over the Afghanistan government again and to possibly move on Pakistan to get control of Pakistan’s nuclear weapons. This is unacceptable.

The second response “The Rich” is also idealistic. How much more taxation do you think the rich are going to take before they completely revolt? The middle class and blue collar workers at the Tea Parties on Saturday show that they are fed up. And, they are not paying nearly as much of their income as the rich. If you add another 5% to the marginal tax rate as proposed in HR 3200, most of The Rich will be paying almost 50% of their income in taxes before state income taxes are even considered. In California and New York, that is more than 10%. (This analysis includes sales taxes, property taxes, luxury taxes, etc., as well as income taxes and other income withholding). And, you wonder why people are leaving California for Nevada, Arizona, Washington and other low tax states by the thousands. People; rich, middle class or poor, will just not tolerate more.

As shown by the previous examples, both responses given me last week by the liberals are just not realistic. They are based upon emotion. There is no logic behind them. Hence we have the major difference. Conservatives think logically and based upon the reality seen in facts and figures. Liberals think emotionally and from idealistic goals and ambitions. The two do not mix.

Let us examine a few other examples:

What about the current Administration’s outlook on foreign affairs? President Obama, during his campaign, said that he would talk and negotiate with the radicals in Iran, Venezuela and North Korea. Since he has become President, what has this policy gotten him; nothing. Iran continues its nuclear ambitions unabated. Venezuela continues poking its nose at the United States and its President. And, North Korea does whatever it wants and will soon, not only have nuclear weapons, but will also have missiles capable of delivering them.

Most recently, the tape from Osama Bin Laden is just another example of the failure of President’s Obama’s policy. After his speech in Egypt, everyone on the left believed the Radical Moslems would change their attitude towards the United States. All one has to do is listen to Bin Laden’s tape released in the last two days to realize that the emotional based thinking of the left is a far cry from the realism of the situation.

In the Palestinian/Israeli conflict, the President says that Israel should cease building settlements. The Prime Minister of Israel agrees in principle provided that the Palestinians agree to recognize Israel’s right to exist. The Palestinians say ‘no’ and Israel continues its expansion into the West Bank. Another failure of idealism on the Administration’s part

Those that truly understand foreign affairs could have predicted these outcomes. Learning from the past and the use of logic as done by conservatives, works. The emotion and idealism of the left does not. The Left’s desire for everything to be right and for everything to be fair controls their policy. Unfortunately, this is not reality. And, hopefully, President Obama is beginning to get it now too. All evidence however is to the contrary.

The same is true with “Cap and Trade” and Health Care Reform. Both liberal positions are based upon idealism and emotion. Everyone would like to lower carbon emissions and make the environment a better place. Everyone would love universal health care. But, the fact of the matter is that “Cap and Trade” will cause many businesses in this country to fail and for those that do not fail, there will be many lost jobs. The realism behind Health Care Reform or any of the plans under consideration by Congress now would bankrupt the country. There is no plan that is revenue neutral at this point.

In all of these situations, the liberal agenda is fueled by idealism and emotion. Maybe, if liberals started thinking logically and based upon the realities of the world, there would be less partisanship in Congress and more could be accomplished. Emotion is no way to govern this or any other country.

© 2009 by Frank T. DeMartini. Permission to be copied will be freely granted upon request.

“Cap and Trade” is Dangerous

The American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009, more commonly known as the Cap and Trade Bill is dangerous for the country and potentially disastrous for the economy. I cannot say this more simply. This bill which is designed to lower emissions and stop global warming will do nothing except raise the average Americans’ expenses and cause the loss of many American jobs.

The bill passed in the House last week by a margin of less than ten votes. The vote was mostly among party lines. However, many Democrats sensing its disastrous consequences actually voted against it. In fact, if it were not for eight liberal minded Republicans, the bill would have failed. It is going to the Senate shortly and must be stopped there at all costs. As for those eight Republicans, I suggest they start looking for employment themselves.

Global warming is allegedly caused by the burning of fossil fuels. This Cap and Trade bill is supposed to lower emissions caused by such energy sources. It is the dream of former Vice President Al Gore who has made a mini-industry out of global warming and who does nothing personally to stop it. This typical Democratic hypocrite burns more carbon based fuels than 10 average Americans and yet he claims that we, as a country, are not doing enough to stop this potential disaster to the planet. I wonder when the last time he flew on a commercial airline was. But, that’s another column completely.

“Global Warming” is a rather controversial subject. There are many reputable scientists that believe it is the next major ecological disaster. In fact, some go so far as to say that it may lead to the extinction of the human race. However, there are other reputable scientists who say that it does not even exist. In fact, there was some controversy in the last two weeks about whether the EPA had suppressed a report that denied the existence of global warming at the request of the President. If that report is to be believed, then it is quite clear that the current President will do anything to get his agenda through Congress.

The liberals in control of Congress are using their substantial majorities to ram this “groundbreaking” clean air legislation through at a time when a bill that will stunt economic growth is not in the best interests of the country. As you know, President Obama said during the 2008 election, we are in the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. Of course, Vice President Biden, just last week, said that the stimulus was not working because the economy was worse off than the Administration believed. How you can reconcile those two statements is pretty much beyond me. But, again that is the topic of another column.

Why is this bill a disaster and how will it stunt economic growth? The answer is very simple, but first an explanation is required about what exactly “Cap and Trade” means. This bill will put serious limitation upon carbon and other types of emissions. Businesses which pollute will be penalized for their pollutants in the form of higher taxes. However, those businesses that are exceeding the emission allotments (“caps”) will be able to buy or “trade” tax credits earned by the non-polluting companies in exchange for cash or other forms of remuneration. Hence the phrase, “cap and trade.”

On its face, this may seem like a good idea. But, what will happen in reality? Companies that pollute will have a few choices: one, meet the standards and pass the increased cost onto the consumer; two, buy credits from companies that do not pollute and pass the increased cost onto the consumer; or three, shut down in the United States and move their business to another country that does not have such regulations. In all three circumstances, the United States population suffers, either by increased costs or loss of employment.

How is this good for our country? Its not! How is it good for the world and the environment? Again, its not. Sending companies to foreign nations without any restraint on emissions will most probably increase the carbon based pollutants and not lower them. Accordingly, the whole bill is a sham. The only thing it will do is appease the liberal tree huggers that believe we are destroying the world.

So, here we are faced with a bill that will increase costs to the consumer and cause the loss of jobs in the United States. Just the thing we need in a time of the worst economic turndown since the Great Depression (which is not as bad as the Administration thought). This bill should be voted down and voted down quickly.

There are other reasons why this bill is a disaster. How about the fact that this 1,000 page “novel,” had approximately 300 pages added to it the day before its passage in the House so that the authors of the bill Reps. Henry Waxman and Edward Markey, both Democrats, could buy the additional votes they needed to get the bill passed. These three hundred pages that were added were earmarks pure and simple. Additionally, I can guarantee you that almost none of the House members read the entire bill. Maybe, a handful actually glanced at it. In all seriousness, how can anyone read a “novel” like this overnight? I must admit, I have not read it either. But, I have, at least, read summaries.

Based upon the above, it is imperative that you all call your Congressmen and Senators and make sure this disaster is stopped dead in its tracks before it causes whatever progress is being made by the ill advised stimulus package to cease. A double dip recession and/or another stock market crash will make this the worst economy since the Great Depression and that can be worse than anyone has thought. Nest week, maybe I will talk about Obama’s next disaster, health care!

©2009 by Frank T. DeMartini. Permission will be freely given to copy upon request.