Words and numbers got us to where we are today, if applied corectly words and numbers get us out of this mess

Two words have gotten us to where we are today, Electability and Likeability, these two words should be stricken from the American language. Numbers have also played a major role is getting us to where we are the numbers I refer to are Poll Numbers and are constantly touted by the media. The only polls that matter are the elections and the results. Government is a necessary evil and no politician should ever be elected based on popularity, it is not a popularity contest it is only a necessary evil.

Words that should matter and get this country righted are illustrated in the following:

Core Values. Core values begin to form from birth and continue through adulthood and become what you hold near and dear. They do not continue to develop till death, long before you die your core values are set, set in stone. They are what you believe to be true, right and just and never waver. There are not many, if any, politicians who have the same core values that I have. I make my selection based on their core values and how near they match mine and vote accordingly not by political party affiliation.

Accountability and Responsibility. Accepting responsibility for your actions as well as those you have entrusted by delegating them some of the tasks or functions they may be better suited for than you. Delegate responsibility but accept the blame. It is not accept the responsibility(unless there happens to be someone standing nearby that you can pin that on) but delegate the blame as is illustrated by the current administration. BHO seems to accept neither the responsibility or the blame, that is about detached as one can get and still get paid.

Disclosure. And by this I mean full disclosure, upon deciding to enter public service there is no room for secrets of any kind. Upon announcement of your potential candidacy for public office you must be ready disclose and reveal your life, college and university records including subjects studied, test scores and any affiliation with any group or fraternity, voting records if any public office was held prior to your seeking of a new office, tax records, real estate records, birth certificate, passport, arrest record, military service record if you served and any other document the public has an interest in examining or scrutinizing. The people will determine if you are qualified to hold public office and vote accordingly. We as American citizens have a duty, right and obligation to know who and what you are and about before entrusting you with any public service or political office. Upon taking office the disclosure must continue, visitor logs are a must if you want two fine, one for official visitors and the other for unofficial visitors, if you combine the two that is also fine. Not a shadow should cross the threshold without being in the log. They must be ready to present on request at any time, no one should have to sue for information that is not a matter of national security. Protest the request under national security if you must, but explain why a visitor is a matter of national security. Upon leaving office you must disclose your personal wealth and the manner it was acquired. Your visitors log or logs must be surrendered for audit. Your voting record must be revealed for scrutiny. Your personal wealth will be matched to your visitor log or logs and voting record. If you voted for or introduced any legislation that became law that increased your personal wealth or protected you in any shape, manner or fashion without being of the same benefit of the public at the same time the money any interest it would have accumulated would be forfeited and placed in the national treasury as well as facing possible criminal charges. Lobbyists must petition Congress as a whole not on a one on one basis. As to the matter of bills that are introduced make them simple and addressing only one issue at a time, stop hiding pet projects or other issues in the legislation and post the bill as written for the public to read if they so choose, many of us have an interest in politics and the future of America but have no interest in becoming a politician. There should never have been a time when these words were uttered “you have to pass it to find out what is in it”, but there was and those words should never be heard again.

There are many more words that could be applied, Moral Courage, Moral Character, Honesty, Loyalty, Allegiance, Faithful, Integrity, Trust are just some examples of the many traits that so many of the politicians of today lack, but that is the fault of us the American voter who keep electing and then re-electing them.

If you wonder why so few on the right and almost none on the left stand up to and against BHO, the answer is simple they have waited their entire political careers for him or someone like him to arrive, some waited so long that they died of old age in office. You may have noticed some on the right have just starting to stand up to challenge BHO and are doing so only because of public opinion and for no other reason. The proof is this if they truly objected they would have raised objection and took action when it started. What took so long BHO did not just start doing what BHO does? Face it, they were swayed by public opinion and public opinion alone.

If a politician has constant rising or falling poll numbers he or she does not hold true and faithful, they are merely changing with the wind and trying to be all things to all people at different times. If a politician is capable of lying to themselves what makes you think they will ever be truthful to the people. Poll numbers are a matter of opinion formed before the facts come in, opinions change with the facts, facts do not change because of opinion. Todays politicians are more concerned with what is popular than what is right and just or factual. Power is what they crave and will change to whatever is needed at the time to keep it and will even change right back if their old position becomes popular again.

Numbers that I really like:

One. The number of vacations taken during the year. The average American working a full-time job usually earns 2 weeks paid vacation a year, some more, some less. Very few Americans are given a vacation at company expense, that would be like being paid 54 weeks for 52 weeks work, most pay for their own vacation. That is the idea behind a paid vacation receiving 52 weeks pay for 50 weeks work, the extra two weeks pay is intended to help pay for your vacation. Some politicians seem to be on a permanent vacation stopping by the office occasionally. There is no such thing as a working vacation, working is not a vacation. Company cars, the average employee that has that perk is given just one not a fleet of them and it is for company business only not pleasure, vacations, fund-raising or just to get away from it all, if it is used for pleasure or personal business the employee is responsible for expenses. This is a good plan for the following reason, the politicians are sent to congress and yes even the presidency to do the will of the people, what is best for the country or state as a whole, representing the people and should not be treated or demand more than the average citizen. The politicians claim to be looking out for the middle class try living like them.

Ten. The first 10 amendments to the Constitution, known as The Bill of Rights are strictly off-limits to any form of limitation or restrictions by the Federal Government and no person should be harassed or intimidated in any way while lawfully exercising their rights.

Sixteen. Repeal the 16th amendment to the Constitution and effectively abolish the IRS. A flat rate tax is an option, come up with a percentage each person pays into the Treasury, no deductions no exemptions, but this is a tax placed on legal and lawful income. A better option would be to implement a consumption based tax, this taxation would cause all people to pay into the treasury no matter how they came by their money legal or otherwise.

Seventeen. Repeal the 17th amendment to the Constitution. Return the appointments to the Senate to the States and remove them from the political parties. The States would be able to recall and replace any Senator who failed to represent the State and its interests.

Twenty Eight. Introduce and ratify the 28th amendment to the Constitution allowing for the recall and of Representatives that have wavered from the intent of the citizens who sent them to Congress. This alone would return the House of Representatives to its original intent and purpose, which was to represent the interest of the people and mot the political party or their own special interests.

Fifty. The number of States to recall and replace any Senator if he or she places political party affiliation or their own personal ego and interests above the States interests.

One Hundred. The percentage of people who each law that is passed applies to, no exemptions or exceptions.

Politicians and Government Agency Employee Pay. This will be determined by the citizens in your Hometown, District or State. The formula is simple; Take the highest and lowest hourly wage earned, then add the two together and divide that number by two that will determine your hourly wage multiply that number by 40 and that will determine your weekly pay. Any overtime must be approved, if you can not get your job done in 40 hours see numbers 17, 28 and 50. I like this part best, since you are a public servant and are supposed to be looking out for the people for every person who loses their job because of laws and regulations you passed or enacted will be fined one cent per hour to be paid into the treasury to help fund the programs that you voted for. The way you have managed the government and the country will soon have your sorry butts paying just to have your office. Raising the minimum wage will not help you, while one person may make more money per hour, others may lose their jobs, the best you can hope for is a net gain of zero. The only way you can hope to lessen the fines you will pay and quite possibly increase your hourly pay is to create and environment that spurs more people to work and possibly increase their hourly pay. We win you win, we lose you lose. This is perhaps the best part if you sponsor, introduce or regulate any measure that causes a person to lose their job you must pay their unemployment checks directly out of your personal wealth, the unemployed become a personal leech on you and not on America. Not only must you pay the unemployment checks you must pay for all the social programs they will qualify for and receive, food stamps and the rest. Why should American citizens pay for your choices and blunders. By the way, abandon your retirement system and join the one that you forced us into. Good luck in your golden years, you will need it. If you can not or will not join the one we are forced into then at least give the common folks an opportunity to join yours or do you consider yourselves better than the common folks. By the way, can we join your healthcare plan the one you designed and forced on America really sucks?

Let’s just say the Founding Fathers got the Constitution right and quit trying to interpret what they meant. They meant exactly what they wrote. Read the preamble they did not try to create the perfect government, only a more perfect one. We can only imagine the kind of tyranny, abuse and hardships that were endured in Colonial America, and may God prevent us living here today having to endure such a life as the Colonials. But, I say this, if the American voters do not change their voting patterns and habits there may come a time when a man or woman is elected as president that will view themselves as above the law and can change the laws on a whim and view themselves as a king or queen.

The tipping point and economics

Recently there was a post about a congressman who wanted to raise gas taxes, then abolish them and implement a miles driven tax, to this man I say lift your head out of the trough and look around then think about what you are saying. If you are unable to think let me do that for you, but the odds of you seeing this are slim at best, that is unless you have friends in the NSA.

This and no nation on earth can tax itself out of debt, the same as no family can spend itself out of poverty. What we have here is another government agency, this time the DOT that has run out of money and the account will be empty by the end of summer. I can not understand why the welfare programs never run out of money. The roads, highways, byways and bridges are used by every American at sometime or another even if just to get to a store to support the local economy. More importantly the avenues of travel provide the working Americans a way to get to work, so they can pay the taxes that support your welfare programs. I might as well clear this up for you now, Welfare is supposed to be a helping hand during times of hardship, it was never meant to be a lifestyle or a career. I may as well clear this up for you while I am at it, social welfare programs are not an entitlement, with the exception of true disability social security is an old age and survivor benefit program or at least that was the intention.

I never received a formal education beyond High School so I never studied economics, but I learned economics the hard way having more month than money. If you have more month than money you need to make some changes and prioritize your spending covering the needs, saving a little to cover emergencies and to hell with the wants if there is not enough to cover them. This is called having a budget, try making one and sticking to it. But you will not do that, since you landed your ass in congress you have done as all the rest have done, you stuck your face in the trough and began feeding on the sweat and labors of others and spend money like there is no end to it. The voters elected you to do the people’s business, if the business of the people was to mooch off the labors of others and spend money wildly you must be a splendid congressman.

Maybe this slipped past you there are still many Americans who are willing to work but your social programs have done nothing to spur job growth. If these people had jobs they would be going to work buying fuel for their vehicles and paying into the DOT coffers. So if you and your ilk truly want things to improve focus on the economy and loosen the stranglehold and let the capitalist system take off. More jobs equals more cars on the road which replenish the DOT. More taxes will equal fewer cars on the road which will equal less money for DOT.

Now back to your idea of a mileage tax. The goods people buy in the stores of America must first get to the stores, most come by truck from distribution centers. The distribution centers may or may not be near a rail hub either way they will a some point be moved by truck. The mileage tax paid by the trucking company will be passed on to the consumer in higher prices, then the consumer will be assessed a mileage tax just to get to the store to purchase the goods. Just think of the cash you will have coming in, or maybe not. The producers will only drive as much as necessary and your cash cow will start thinning down. To prove that you did not think any of this through before opening your mouth, what about people who fill gas cans to run generators during power outages, generators go zero miles so they will be gas tax-free, as a matter of fact a person could walk to the gas station to fill a gas can how would that be taxed again it used the roads zero miles to get to the gas station. Maybe you and your ilk should focus on getting more vehicles on the road by spurring the economy and job growth.

And finally think on this, I work now because I want to not because I have to and there are many like me. I have multiple vehicles because I want to and they all burn fossil fuels and each one uses the roads and must be refueled and you get highway taxes from me. As I pointed out I work because I want to, but how many people have a job because I support the local economy. They must get to work somehow most get there by private transportation and they to pay gas taxes. If the mileage tax is ever implemented my vehicles will be refueled before implementation, remain idle, placed on blocks so as not to flat spot the tires and started occasionally to keep things lubed. While they remain idle there will be no need to renew the tags so the county coffers will lose money. There will be no need for insurance as they will not be driven the insurance company will lose money. There will be not need to repair or perform routine maintenance so I will need no parts or pieces especially those expensive tires, and the automotive repair industry will lose money. And lastly since I will not be driving everyday doing my part to spur the local economy so the person who has a job because I have one will no longer be needed and then his vehicle will sit idle and the process repeats itself and there may just be a person who has a job because that person had one and again it all repeats. The economy will only sink farther into the toilet. The trough you feed from may have less in it because you took the wrong approach to keep it full. So genius you need to think on just how much one part of economics relies on another.. When I must go to resupply on the things I can not get from the land I will simply ride a “grass burner”.

The taxation on mileage will not lower the price of gas the price will remain the same as the fuel delivery companies will pass their operating costs on to the consumers. Paying the same amount for gas just to get to a job to pay taxes on my income and then paying a separate tax just to get there is not going to happen. I will simply leave my job and live off of what I have, making adjustments as necessary, you know the budget thing. I am taxed enough already. This is called checking out and off the financial grid, I know some that have already done this and will wait for better times and a more sensible government before checking back in.

So genius I close with this raising taxes or implementing new taxes is not the answer, getting America back to work will solve most of the problems. Another thing that would help to lessen the burden on the producers of America would be if you and your ilk could do a little some thing about securing the southern border, we already had enough people out of work and hungry. Oh before I forget quit saying its a humanitarian effort for the kids, you are from the side that is okay with abortion and don’t give a damn about kids.

An out of control and lawless government

BHO has set the dangerous precedent of not enforcing laws, changing laws on a whim, selectively enforcing laws and even worse encouraging and in some cases allowing unlawful behavior, not only BHO but his entire administration. America is supposed to be a nation of laws and citizens living by the rule of law. We as citizens are expected to obey and follow the letter the law 100% of the time or face the consequences for breaking the law. To prove this fact there are thousands of jails and prisons spread across this country to house and punish the law breakers. Forfeiting one’s freedom should be enough incentive to follow the law but it is not, the same as the possibility of forfeiting one’s life should be incentive enough but again it is not. This would be a good time to point out that we now live under the law of man because man stopped living under the law of God. The 10 original laws written on two stone tablets covered every thing that now consumes volumes and thousands of laws and are covering the same ground and yet the jails and prisons stay full.

Criminal behavior is not only tolerated by BHO and his administration it is encouraged and rewarded and possibly even ordered. The illegal immigration issue that has the nation consumed at the moment did not just happen, it was planned. The administration is dispersing the illegals across the country and even allowing them to fly without identification. When they get to where they are going there will be no accountability and they will simply be let loose on the cities and towns of America. The administration has no idea who these illegals are nor do they care, they are only a tool for BHO and his administration. Busing them can cause a problem as was demonstrated by the good citizen of Murietta, Ca. They will overcome this by flying them to closed military bases around the country where civilians have no access.

The problem and the question is if they were allowed, encouraged, and rewarded for breaking at least one law by being here illegally, how can you expect them to obey any laws especially if they follow the example of the president? Then add in the fact that BHO says they will begin deportations if congress gives the money to do it, that amounts to blackmail, especially given the administration created this mess to begin with. BHO even wants to be rewarded for bad behavior. Where will the money come from? Will one of the redundant and un-needed social welfare programs be cut or will the military take another cut to pay this demand. It amounts to America being taken hostage and having to pay its own ransom, but will not be released and there is no one to rescue us. As ugly as this illegal immigration, actually an invasion, is BHO set another dangerous precedent earlier this summer.

BHO traded 5 Taliban commanders from Gitmo for 1 military deserter without notifying congress as required by law, breaking yet another law, one that he signed. Trading 5 for 1 is to say the least a lopsided trade. There is one U.S.M.C. Sergeant being held in a Mexican prison, are the illegals being traded for the Sergeant. Since none of our allies can trust America to keep its word and no one outside the Muslim world trusts BHO, he may be taking the illegals first before the Sergeant is released, they probably set the terms. After all they saw the results of the last trade and he does trade lopsided.

The illegal border crossings may be providing cover for his next violation of law. Gitmo is still open even though it was one of his first executive orders to have it closed. Keep your eyes on Gitmo.

Staying independent on Declaration of Independence Day

Tomorrow we celebrate our Declaration of Independence from Great Britain and the British Crown and the tyranny associated with it. Some call it the Fourth of July, some call it America’s Birth Day, still others call it Independence Day. There will be fireworks displays, barbeques and family outings, but few will stop to give thanks to the brave patriots that won our freedom from a tyrant king. The best guess by the best minds suggest that only 3 percent of the colonials actually engaged in the fight to gain independence at the onset, and fewer than 12 percent actually provided financial and material support and only about 20 percent of the total population wanted to be free of the British Throne and the tyranny associated with it. The issue of being free or being subservient remains the same today.

Being Free and Independent comes with a massive amount of responsibility. The Free and Independent citizen must rely on his or her own skills and resources to provide for the family the basic needs of food, clothing and shelter. They must be frugal never wasteful, living by the motto waste not want not. They also are the first to lend a hand when a neighbor is facing great challenges. They also know that they are responsible for the protection and safety of their home and family. They know and accept the fact that they are responsible for their lives including retirement and healthcare. They only want enough government to look after national business and even then as small a government as possible. They also live within their means creating as little debt as possible, if you can not afford it you do not need it. They never blame others for their failures, each failure is an opportunity to be successful the next time, living and learning. They are mindful of what is in their pockets and keep their eyes and hands out of other people’s pockets, while trying to keep the government out of their pockets. These are the people who understand Independence and deserve to celebrate and give thanks.

Being subservient has no responsibility. The subservient citizen relies on the skills and resources of others to provide the basic needs of food, clothing and shelter for themselves and their families. They are wasteful never frugal living by the motto of easy come easy go. They never help a neighbor in times of trouble, unless there is something in it for them. They rely on and call on others to protect their home and family. They expect others to provide for every aspect of their lives including retirement and healthcare. They want a large government to ensure that the big government has enough resources to take from others and give to them, the bigger the better. They live well beyond their means, if they can not afford it they look for yet another government program to provide it. They constantly blame others and call themselves victims. They constantly look in other people’s pockets to make sure they have at least as much, if not then they will expect the government to stick in its greedy hand and take some or all. They spend it even though they never earn it. These are the people who do not understand Independence and have no right to celebrate and will never give thanks. These are the people who celebrate every month when the checks come in and never say a word of thanks to ones who provided it, the government only sent it after they took it from the pockets of others who earned it. Talk about ungrateful, they should at least thank the Patriots for providing the Freedom needed for the productive to support the moochers.

If America was at this point in time fighting to gain independence and throw off the yoke of imperial tyranny, there would be more than 3 percent who would actually engage in the fight, but the support would be much less and the total number of citizens who actually cared one way or another I fear would be much lower.

What will you celebrate tomorrow and who will you thank? I will be celebrating our Declaration of Independence and giving thanks to the Patriots who wrested this great nation from tyranny, being especially thankful that our Independence was won in 1781 at the conclusion of the Revolutionary War and not trying to win it in these times.

How did we get to this point?

We now are witness to the collapse and impending fall of Iraq and BHO takes time to give a speech on “climate change” fundraise, golf and vacation in California. The decision on what military action to take in Iraq will take days, and then only if the Iraqis can work out their political differences. Once again he has “telegraphed” his strategy to the insurgents when he said no “combat troops” will be involved. The Iraqis can not work out their political differences until they can work out their religious differences, and BHO knows this. In fact this latest outbreak of violence in Iraq is their way of working out their political differences based on religion. In the coming days the news media will call the increased violence and fighting in Iraq a “civil war” but it is actually a “religious war”. The Iraqi politicians are not labeled with a (D), (I) or an (R) behind their name, the are either Sunni, Shia or Kurd, therefore the religious beliefs of the elected officials dictate and are dictated in any legislation passed. They do not represent the political party and certainly not the people or the country only the religious beliefs of their sect.

There has even been talk around about breaking Iraq into three separate countries giving each of the three groups in Iraq their own country to curb and possibly prevent further violence and for political expediency. The Sunni, The Shia and the Kurds would have their own countries separate of the others. This insane idea has already been tried and has before almost brought the world to the brink of war. At the conclusion of World War 2 both Korea and Vietnam were divided, the city of Berlin was divided into four parts, Germany itself was divided, even Europe was divided, all for the cause of political expediency. These divisions that were for political expediency created a policy of containment. What was being contained Communism or Capitalism or simply just the people? The division of Iraq will not lead to peace, never has never will, and will not contain the religion or the violence.

The divisions of the nations of the world in the name of political expediency caused a stagnation in some parts of the world, some countries of the world have remained at their stage of development at the conclusion of World War 2. This is demonstrated by their lack of advancement in science and technology, they must rely upon advanced nations of the world for their mere existence with most unable to feed themselves. With few exceptions most notably Israel, South Korea, Japan and China, the only nations of the world to advance past the 1940’s are the victors of World War 2 as demonstrated by the rest of the world calling on them.

Still other nations of the world are stagnated by religious differences and remain in the same stage of development they were in at the outbreak of their religious wars. Culturally they have not advanced beyond killing one another in the name of religion, they have stagnated themselves in the name of religious expediency.

There have been many foreign policy attempts made by many leaders of the world. The policy of appeasement gave us World War 2. The policy of containment gave us the Korean War, The Vietnam War, the First war with Iraq, the war in Afghanistan, the second war with Iraq and numerous other hostile actions. But of late we see a new and dangerous foreign policy of destabilization and abandonment. The best example of destabilization is the unprovoked attack on Libya. The best example of abandonment is Iraq. With the foreign policy of destabilization and abandonment if you add in the providing of arms and equipment to insurgents you get the new policy of confusing enemies with allies. Add in the idle threats made with no intent to act you get Syria. Add in the “there will be consequences” you get the Crimea and the Ukraine. The best examples of providing arms, equipment and training to insurgents would be Libya and Syria. The best example of confusing enemies with allies would be the muslim brotherhood in Egypt. Now add in the policy of not wanting to offend you get boko haram.

The foreign policy of destabilization, abandonment, providing arms, equipment and training to insurgents, confusing enemies with allies, making idle threats, there will be consequences and not wanting to offend has changed the landscape of the world. The destabilization of Libya by supporting the insurgents with arms and equipment and U.S. airstrikes led to the death of the Libyan dictator, the convenient leaving of more arms and equipment for the rebels to steal and all that combined led to the murder of four Americans at Benghazi. The very same weapons and equipment from Libya were used in the latest insurgency victories in Iraq, where more weapons and equipment were seized including helicopters, surface to air missiles, air to air missiles, anti-tank ammunition, wheeled vehicles and who knows what else. While the insurgents were overrunning town after town they stopped long enough to rob the banks of millions of dollars and gold, raise their flag and invoke sharia law. Abandonment of Iraq has led to destabilization and was an open invitation for al-Qaeda and their splinter groups to take over. Even if the government forces regain their composure and take the fight to the insurgents, which is unlikely, the insurgents still have all the weapons and equipment they already seized not to mention the millions in dollars and gold. If the insurgents take Baghdad they will get more arms and equipment and will have more banks to rob. What will be the next target for the al-Qaeda splinter groups? The U.S. will abandon Afghanistan in two years. Syria still has chemical weapons that have not yet been destroyed and quite possibly biological weapons left over from the first war with Iraq, that would be a great prize for any terrorist group. Iraq is a large country and offers many places to hide chemical and biological weapons left over from the old regime and some of those men from the old regime still live and might just know where to find them.

If America has to engage the al-Qaeda splinter groups in battle it will be a much different engagement, our country will be fighting men armed with our equipment and with the same level of training as our own military. Airpower would be used but at what cost, two forces fighting and using with the same equipment would be disastrous, wrong targets could be taken out, and correct targets could be missed. Friendly fire, mistaking allies for enemies and enemies for allies.

Two quick questions.
1. Did the latest insurgent victories in Iraq come before or after the five Taliban commanders were swapped for one deserter?
2. Has the missing airliner been found?

The best example of non-stagnation is America, there was a time when America even tried to divide itself for political expediency, the north would not let the south out of the union. The American “Civil War” more aptly called the “War of Northern Aggression” was not about slavery as much as it was about the preservation of the Union. The south wanted out for political reasons the north attacked the south for economic and self-preservation reasons. The south did not seek to rejoin their previous rulers, as was the case with the Crimea rejoining mother Russia, the yoke of tyranny had already been forcibly removed and would not be voluntarily worn again. The south viewed the life under the north as tyrannical and oppressive as life before under the rule of the British Crown. Our nation is relatively young but since the civil war we have made many advances in science and technology, we have not remained in the nineteenth century. America have moved on because America was not a victim of the same political expediency that the victors of World War 2 inflicted on the rest of the world.

Reward or Payback?

The swap of one deserter for five Taliban fighters, or more accurately Taliban commanders, was to serve which reward or payback. If the deserter was a prisoner of war and an exchange was agreed to why not one for one? Negotiating is give and take, the weaker your position the more you have to give, unless you wanted one thing now and another later. Is BHO trying to empty Gitmo so it can be closed as he promised? One of his first executive orders was to close Gitmo. No , he still has two years to fulfill that promise, the “high value” terrorists held at Gitmo may have another value. I do not at all buy the statement that the deserters health was failing. Even if it was how did you know? Why are there talks with terrorists? What negotiations are going on behind the scenes? All of this crap will surely be classified and we common citizens will never be privy to what decisions are being made and why.

The answer to why the five Taliban were released from Gitmo and sent to Qatar may well be that Qatar is closer to Syria than Cuba is. Cuba is to far from Syria and the incoming and outgoing mail is censored, thereby making tactical operations and orders to fighters in the field impossible. That is remedied by moving the Taliban commanders closer to the fighters in the field and removing the censorship. The NSA is to busy spying on Americans to worry about the Taliban. Qatar is no more going to keep the five Taliban commanders in check than the man in the moon will.

Recently Assad was re-elected president of Syria. The insurgency in Syria was and is failing and Assad remains in power. The narcissistic one still sees Syria as his big embarrassment, his idle threats and the “red line” failed to help him achieve his goal, what ever that was. Russia stuck its thumb right in the eye of BHO and his foreign policy. The five Taliban commanders may well be returning to the battlefield soon, but they will show up in Syria, not in Afghanistan at least not yet. Over the coming weeks and months we may well see the news reports of renewed fighting in Syria. BHO did recently say that training and support would be provided to the “moderate insurgents” in Syria.

Another embarrassment for BHO was the Ukraine with the Crimea rejoining mother Russia, another instance of Russia sticking its thumb in the eye of BHO and his foreign policy. The Ukraine is still very much volatile. BHO did say there would be consequences.

Syria is another financial basket case that must be propped up, Russia will do the propping and Russia has a naval base in Syria. The five newly freed Taliban commanders may provide what the insurgency was lacking, leadership, a chain of command if you will. If the five Taliban commanders take to the battlefield in Syria, and begin to gain the upper hand Russia will have to intervene to protect its interests. History would repeat itself with Russia and a puppet government facing the Mujahideen, aka the Taliban, in Syria not in Afghanistan. Courtesy of BHO and his foreign policy of there will be consequences. Afghanistan will come later.

Were the five Taliban commanders released as a reward for promising not to engage in terrorist activities again? What will they do after their one year of probation is up? What, if any, job skills did they learn at Gitmo? Was the deserter rewarded for being a deserter? Was he just used as an excuse to release the five Taliban commanders to aid the insurgents in Syria as payback to Russia?

Will the five Taliban commanders remain in Qatar for one year as promised? In Islam it is acceptable to tell an infidel a lie, and the Islamist is not bound to honor an agreement with an infidel.

Ever wonder why BHO continually lies to the American public and does not follow the letter of the law? Going to a Christian church does not make one a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes one a car.

Incentive or coercion

One has to wonder why now are so many restaurants, fast food and sit down, are posting no fire arms allowed signs, and why banking institutions are deciding to close accounts for firearms retailers or are refusing to open accounts for fire arms retailers.

The decision by the restaurant owners may be tied to Obamacare. The employer mandate exemption sought by many restaurant chains may have “strings” attached. Was the “exemption” only a “deferral”? What are the restaurant chains forced to do to continue to qualify for the exemption? The restaurant chains know that if they comply fully with the Obamacare mandates they will have to raise their prices as their overhead costs rise, or that they will be forces to fire or layoff workers to get below the threshold. They also know this, the placement of no firearms signs will invite criminals. This is called “making a deal with the devil”. Remember it was the politicians that forced their will upon you, removing your freedom of choice as how to conduct your business and what benefits you must provide or what restrictions you must make on your patrons. Remember them by voting their sorry asses out of office. You have the right to conduct your business as you see fit, not how the government forces you conduct your business. I will see and remember the sign on your door and you can rest assured that my shadow will never cross your threshold and my money will never cross your palm. I will never check to see if you took down that stupid sign, for me it will be up forever.

The decision by the banks may be tied to the bank bailouts and continued borrowing from the Federal Reserve. The firearms retailers seem to have been labeled as “high risk”. Insuring “high risk” occupations and borrowing against “high risk” business ventures come with a much higher premium for insurance, and a much higher interest rate for borrowing. The banking institutions may even get a “sweeter deal” from the fed if they refuse to serve certain accounts, this used to be called discrimination.

WE may even soon see the start in business insurance policy cancellations and denials for the “high risk” firearms retailers, after all the Insurance Industry was “bailed out” by the government(taxpayers) also. A business can not remain in business with out insurance, one “slip and fall” can wipe out a small business.

Labeling the firearms retailers as “high risk” will surely make its way to ownership of firearms as “high risk” to home owners insurance, health insurance, dental insurance, life insurance and even auto insurance. As pointed out above, the higher the risk the higher the premiums.

Which one of our Constitutional Rights will next be labeled “high risk”?

The Second Amendment is a guarantee that the federal government shall not infringe on the right of the people to keep and bear arms, it does not guarantee that private companies and individuals, including yourself even if forced to for economic reasons can not. We may be “forced” to “voluntarily” give up our Constitutional and Second Amendment rights for affordability.

Now is the time for the Pro-Gun groups to fix their differences and join forces to establish gun friendly banking institutions and insurance companies. You will get my business.

Was it another pesky video?

BHO has ordered a U.S. Naval ship and 1,000 Marines to the shores of Libya and ordered that all Americans leave Libya. 4 quick questions.
1. Did the administration receive information about another anti-muslim video being released on you tube? No it won’t be this one the administration has already used it and soon will have a lot of explaining to do, or maybe they won’t. The only people who care about the murders at Benghazi are the same ones that always cared and wanted the truth. The administrations supporters even quit blaming the video and followed the “what difference at this point does it make” chorus.
2. Did the administration receive credible intelligence of a credible threat to Americans? If this was the case the administration must have missed the first Benghazi attack.
3. Did the embassy staff ask to be evacuated because the violence in Libya has become so widespread that no foreigners are safe? If this is the case the whole Benghazi cover-up will explode. The ambassador, Christopher Stevens had repeatedly asked for additional personnel and resources in the weeks and days leading up to him and three other Americans Sean Smith, Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty being murdered. The requests were denied or ignored. No help was sent prior to or during the attack.
4. Or could it be that they must be evacuated to prevent more Americans being killed with weapons provided to terrorists by the administration, kind of fast and furious 2.0? If the administration does not evacuate and lets it happen, it will bring us all the way back to the point where Brian Terry, a U.S. Border Patrol agent was murdered with weapons provided by the administration to Mexican criminals, and that has yet to be answered for.

For now I believe the worry in question #4 is correct for the following reasons:
1. There is no suspect video, and if a video was made of the attack on the embassy it would show the use of weapons and equipment supplied by the administration being utilized to kill Americans. A public relations nightmare that could never explained away, and no one, not even the staunchest supporters could say “what difference at this point does it make”.
2. The “telegraphing” to the enemy that the Marines are coming and then we are leaving, don’t shoot. The terrorists have won. Libya was destabilized by the administration and will now be abandoned, much like Somalia was in the 1990’s. The world has seen what the foray into Somalia left the world, a terrorist pirate haven. This may not have been what was intended, but this was the gift to the world by a failed foreign policy.

I believe that Libya is being abandoned for the following reasons and they are intentional and sinister:
1. The muslim brotherhood has no home. Egypt caught many of them after their ouster from power, threw them in prison, tried, convicted and sentenced to them death. The ones that escaped are spread across Northern Africa and the Middle-East. Libya is their best choice for gathering and a resurgence in power. Libya is lawless and open for occupation.
2. The brotherhood is broke, no cash the assets they had were mainly in Egypt and are unavailable. Libya has energy resources that can be converted into cash.
3. The administration stood by the brotherhood when they were oustered and demanded that they be reinstated to power. If they can not have Egypt, then why not give them Libya.

The staunchest supporters of this administration remind me of the people who were used as advertising props for the old Tareyton cigarettes ads, sporting a black eye and saying “Us Tareyton smokers would rather fight than switch”. Personally I found the taste terrible and the two part filter lacking in substance, a bad combination terrible with no substance. Never could understand how any one could stand by that brand. Bought a pack once opened it, lit one, put it out, field stripped it and bought a pack of Camels. Never bought Tareytons again. Kept the Tareytons to give to anyone who asked if they could “borrow” a smoke, I’d give them one, they never asked for another. Those 19 people either gave up smoking or gave up bumming smokes.

Inheritance, ownership, responsibility and denial

You would think that after nearly 6 years the liberals would quit blaming the former President and his administration for all that is wrong in America, the government and the world, sadly this is not the case.

BHO did not inherit the office of President of The United States of America. He actively campaigned for the office, he wanted to be president no one made him take the job and it was not forced upon him. He wanted to be president for the perks and rewards, but wants and accepts none of the responsibility. The liberal media refuses to lay the failures at his feet and by this, they have aided him in his role as a president who can not be held accountable, and therefore none of his administration is accountable. Everything rolls right off of them much like water rolls off a ducks back. BHO became president of a nation engaged in 2 wars, wars being waged in the open not in secret, he knew they were ongoing while campaigning for president. The VA has been having troubles for years, everyone knew that, everyone promises to fix the VA, but no one does. BHO was even awarded the Nobel Peace Prize after becoming president of a nation at war, based on what, promising to end the wars. A war that was won in Iraq was lost, and that nation has erupted in violence. Libya was attacked without provocation and that nation has erupted into violence that mat escalate into a civil war. Four Americans were killed in Benghazi, that would be Libya, the very same Libya that was attacked without provocation and destabilized. Syria was threatened with military action for the alleged use of chemical weapons, the threats were thwarted by the intervention of Russia and the fact no allies would join in. The liberal media occasionally reports on the renewed violence Iraq and Libya but will not lay the blame at the feet of those responsible for the failures in foreign policy and will certainly not say the truth, that there is no foreign policy in this administration. Complete ownership of Libya and Syria is with the BHO administration, but since there was no one to “inherit” these two disasters from there is no one to blame.

In addition to having total ownership of Libya, Benghazi and Syria, BHO and his administration has complete ownership of Fast and Furious, NSA spying, Obamacare, the use of the IRS to target the opposition, the BLM land grabs and the VA secret waiting list, these and many more have happened on the watch of the BHO administration and still no one accepts the responsibility or has been blamed for the failures and the liberal media remains silent. Why, the same as before there was no one to “inherit” these disasters from and therefore there can be no blame or responsibility. Although there have been liberals that blame the VA scandal on the waging of two illegal wars. Soon there may even be some “buffoon” who will blame the VA patients themselves for being wounded. Bureaucrats at the IRS and the VA have received bonuses for poor or no service. How can one receive bonuses for poor service unless that was a requirement to receive the bonus in the first place. Were the bonuses at the IRS dependent on how many of the opposition you could silence? Were the bonuses at the VA dependent on how many veterans you could deny services or lie about how much service was given?

The failed foreign policy, or better the lack of a foreign policy of this administration has cost more than the loss of Iraq, the impending loss of Afghanistan, the destabilization of Libya and the latest, the crisis in the Ukraine, it may well cause the collapse of NATO. Iraq was lost and Afghanistan will be lost for the same reasons, the failure of this administration to negotiate a Status of Forces Agreement(SOFA) with either country. How could this happen? BHO has no experience and is unwilling to negotiate, look at his record of negotiating with the republicans in congress where his policy is my way or the highway. Now we come to the latest foreign policy blunder, Russia, the Ukraine and the Crimea. Still no blame for BHO. Now BHO wants to clarify his foreign policy, frankly I do not see how the non-existent can be any clearer.

Think on this if you will. At a will reading you learn that you have been given a house, the same house that you always wanted and now you have it. You have just been given ownership of a house, the previous owner is no longer responsible for the house you are. It is a nice looking house so you decide to move in. Shortly after moving in and getting settled in your new home it begins to rain, as the rain becomes a downpour you discover that the roof leaks. You gather buckets, pots, pans and anything you can to catch the water to minimize the water damage. After the rain subsides you dispose of the captured water and climb on the roof for a look. You discover that the roof is corrupted and must be either repaired or replaced. You are angry about the condition of the roof, you forget for a moment that the corrupted roof is your roof, you begin to complain that the house you “inherited” has a corrupted roof and demand that the previous owner be held accountable. After all it is not your fault, all of your “friends” agree with you and together all blame the former owner. Then you remember that the corrupted roof is your roof and the former owner is not responsible for the roof you are. Then you make a really bad decision, even you have no roofing experience you decide to do it yourself. The harder you try the worse you make it, you are in over your head. The small corruption that was is now big corruption and the clouds are gathering. You again began to complain about the roof which had only a small leak will now have a big leak, all your “friends” agree that the leak is going to be bigger, because there was a small leak to begin with and the small leak was not your fault. Your “friends” will not tell you that it was you who made it worse than it was. You begin to gather buckets, pots and pans to catch the impending rain, but you discover that you do not have enough to catch the rain, your “friends” give you their buckets, pots and pans to catch the water to minimize the water damage. This process will continue on and on until you have completely corrupted the roof and nothing will keep the rain out, there will not be enough buckets, pots or pans in the world that can save the house from ruin. And still you and your “friends” will blame the former owner for the original leak, and you will even claim that the leak was getting worse anyway and your attempting to fix it without experience had nothing to do with it growing and ruining the house. What you needed from the start, when the leak was small and could be contained was a friend that did not always agree with you and would tell you the truth even if your feelings were hurt. He may even have said, hey you are no roofer you need a professional roofer, you will only make it worse. Your true friend would have also told you that your house is deeply in debt and that the whole house was your responsibility, the good and the bad. But you do not now or have you ever had such a friend as this. You will instead sit in the rain with no roof over your head and blame others for the rain, the water damage and the fact that you now have no roof, in a constant state of denial with all of your “friends”. Give the jet a rest and find a friend that will tell you the truth, your roof still leaks, your house is deep in debt, many of your neighbors are unemployed and the clouds are gathering.

Post_Turtle

Dangerous times ahead

The old adage, The ends justify the means, may come into play as the VA scandal unfolds. The secret waiting lists at the various VA Centers and Hospitals could have been purposeful. It was not all that long-ago that some liberal members of Congress openly stated “anyone who served in the military needed their heads examined”. The deaths that occurred while waiting for treatment at the VA will be divided into two groups, 1 those that died while awaiting medical treatment or procedures, 2 those that committed suicide while waiting for psychological counseling or treatment. Then the numbers will come into play. The numbers of veterans seeking medical treatment will be higher than veterans seeking psychological treatment, therefore the percentage of deaths by suicide will be greater. The numbers will be adjusted to raise the percentage, 1% of 100 is 1%, 1% of 10 is 10%, this is easily done, using smoke an mirrors, using these numbers a 10% suicide rate among veterans waiting for psychological help must be addressed. The various ways a person chooses to end their life will not be broken down into separate groups. Do you see where this is going yet? Yet another arm of the administration of BHO is going to be enabled by the Congress to make law. Congress will make no law requiring a psychological screening of veterans using VA psychological services, the VA will do it in the name of care. If a veteran fails the psychological screening, or refuses to submit to psychological screening, he or she could be placed on a list prohibiting the purchase or possession of firearms until such time the screening was passed. This requirement could be easily expanded to require all VA patients to undergo psychological screening. Would anyone pass? There may be a decline in the number of suicides by firearms, but the suicide rate would remain the same. The liberal politicians and the media would tout the success of mental health identification and restriction of firearm possession as a key element in reducing suicide by firearm. The NRA even said it is not a gun problem it is a mental health problem. Why the VA you ask? As a percent of the total population veterans are a very small part and our numbers drop daily. Where next would this lead? Do not think this can not happen.

Veterans are highly trained, motivated, skilled, disciplined and have a very strong sense of right and wrong. Think on this, many veterans are law enforcement officers or security personnel and are required to qualify with and carry firearms. They are required to do so to ensure continued employment. Could any of them pass an impassable test? I and many others do not use the VA, but I am sure they are working on that matter. The VA may even use the DOD to force us into coming to the VA for a screening, after all, the retirees are still subject to recall to duty up to a certain age. All the information they need to locate and identify retired veterans is available from the IRS, by way of a 1099R. The other veterans are also easy enough to find.

This is not about mental health, it is about gun control using a tactic straight out of Nazi Germany and the Enabling Act, attacking the smallest group first, then moving to the next. The VA could be used to disarm all of the veterans starting with the patients at the VA. All in the name of mental health. Why the veterans you ask?

I see many types of people at the local public shooting range, shooting all types of rifles and handguns, the veterans stand out. The shooters with military training as mentioned above are highly trained, motivated, skilled and disciplined and it shows in their shooting ability and accuracy. The shooters who have no military training empty the magazine as fast as they possibly can rarely hitting the target, and can barely control the gun. We refer to them as “spray and pray”.

There are many stories in history of a small group of highly trained, determined and motivated men and/or women bringing a much larger force to a complete halt on the battlefield. There are even stories of a single person stopping a much larger force in their tracks.

Now I will answer the question of why disarm the veterans first. The government is arming and preparing for who knows what. But if they are up to no good who would they rather face well-trained, highly motivated and determined or “spray and pray”.

Another old adage goes, “You can’t see the forest for the trees”. If the trees are everywhere you are in the forest. Let’s not lose sight of the “big picture”. This administration deserves to be watched like a hawk. Don’t be so focused on one scandal that we miss the real plan. I am still skeptical of the timing of all these revelations coming out of and about this administration.