Guest Posting by Ken Taylor

BARACK OBAMA, SCARING AMERICA INTO SOCIALISM


The House version cost 820 billion dollars. The Senate version, 837 billion dollars. Now the, "compromise," only a measly 789 billion. The bill will have a price tag after interest of well over one trillion dollars awaiting the President's signature. Resulting in Barack Obama having his victory to begin the march to socialism in America.

Whether it is called ,"The Economic Stimulus Package," or, "The Economic Recovery Package, " this bill which will be sent to Obama's desk and soon after we wil witness the greatest transfer of power to the federal government in the history of The United States. Little of this debacle has any chance of creating a job or stimulating any aspect of the economy.

It is loaded with liberal pet projects and massive government spending all of which is designed to give control through spending to the government. Arguments against it are called un-American. Proposals that cost less by removing the pork were not even considered. Proposals that actually put money back into the pockets of the American people through legitimate tax rate cuts were called old and failed ideas.

As the bill began receiving stiff opposition from House and Senate Republicans and especially as the American people started seeing through the garbage and realizing that this bill was nothing more than a liberal wish list of spending and government programs, poll numbers began drastically dropping and the bill was quickly losing favor with the people.

Obama reacted with frustration and anger similar to a child who was not getting his way. The only thing missing was the stomping of feet and tears because we heard the whining and the small tantrums as he spoke to House Democrats during their 100 thousand dollar retreat in Williamsburg, Virginia.

In his press conferences, radio addresses, speeches at various functions Obama has used every opportunity to insight fear in the American people in order to get his way and force this bill down our throats though its passage. His attitude has been, "whether you like it or not we are facing Armageddon and only I can save the day with my bill."

Using phrases like, "the worst economy since the Great Depression, " which it is not, and ,"total economic collapse," also words like, "catastrophe," and , "Armageddon," if the bill was not passed Obama created an atmosphere of fear. He is used this fear as a tool to get the bill passed and literally scare the country into accepting socialism.

In the final analysis that is exactly what this bill is. The beginning of a complete and likely irreversible march to socialism in The United States and Obama is using fear to get his way. He does not care what it costs, he does not care what the ramifications will be, he does not care that this total socialist spending bill is contrary to everything that our Constitution stands for.

He does not care that the bill does almost nothing to stimulate the economy. He only cares about changing the very fabric and foundation of our country from a free Republic of and by the people to a government controlled socialism with Barack Obama as its leader and author. This is what he meant when he campaigned on the mantra of change and the change from freedom to socialism is what he is beginning with the passage of this bill.

In 1981 when Ronald Reagan took office he faced an economy that had 21% inflation, interest rates in the high teens which made purchasing a home and affording the payments nearly impossibly but also not very desirable. The country because of Carter embargoes and windfall profit taxes faced a fuel shortage that had Americans waiting in line sometimes hours to get what little gas was available.

Reagan's response to a far worse economy than we are facing today was to encourage Americans not scare them. He reminded us of who we are as a free people. Spoke of America as, "the shining city on a hill," and the best hope for the world. He encouraged Americans to stand in our freedoms and told us that are best days were before us.

He talked of his faith in the ability of Americans to revive the economy and backed these words up with action as he dropped tax rates for individuals and business returning money to the people from the government knowing that true stimulus comes from the people and not the government.

Reagan never promoted fear but created optimism. He never talked of weakness but stood fast through strength. He encouraged Americans and believed in America. He gave real hope and not fear mongering platitudes. And Americans responded. The economy soon turned around and America experienced the greatest peace time economic growth in our Nations history.

Reagan displayed true leadership and the people responded. Obama does not lead he creates fear. He does not provide an example to follow but uses scare tactics to get his way. While the economy is suffering because of the recent down turn, much of the problem lies in the fear that Obama and others like him are creating through their gloom and doom approach that has Americans afraid to spend and business afraid to hire.

All of this creates a climate of economic failure, job loses and a general atmosphere of gloom throughout the country and the world. I am not saying that optimistic words alone can change the current atmosphere, but continually discouraging Americans does not create an atmosphere of recovery either.

Reagan trusted the American people to promote and finally make the economic recovery of the eighties. He understood the necessity of letting the people control their money and their future. Obama trusts the government and complete social control of the people and every aspect of American life.

And he is succeeding through fear in creating the American socialism he wants. This bill is just the beginning. We are witnessing at the hand of a completely incompetent President the total change of our foundational principles and the creation of a new form of American government. A government of Obama, by Obama and for Obama.

Ken Taylor

From Another Perspective.....Guest Post from TAO

I have read an article on Shaw’s blog at Progressive Eruptions and it triggered some thoughts to come back to me that I had lost over the last few months. We get so wrapped up in the moment that we lose sight of the bigger picture from time to time and I realize that I lost sight of how I saw the election of Barack Obama earlier on.

I know most people still see this election as a fluke; that somehow Americans became infatuated with false hopes from a messiah or it was just a guilt trip over race; that would be fine if we just viewed the voting as only a political act. Most elections are just political events and that is what they will remain.

But every now and then you have an election that is transformational; it represents more than just a political vote, much more.

Think back to 1960 when Kennedy beat Nixon. Kennedy, much like Obama, was a political newcomer who ran in against some pretty established Democratic political warhorses in the primary (Lyndon Johnson, Hubert Humphrey, Adlai Stevenson, and Stuart Symington) and he came out the winner and let’s not forget that he was a Catholic.

Which back in those days was about as foreign of a concept as electing a half black man to the Presidency is today.

Then JFK runs against Richard Nixon, who at the time was Vice President to a very highly respected and popular President and wins. Nixon, in those days was just about as popular with the Republican base as John McCain was to conservatives today. There is no way to compare Eisenhower to George Bush; other than they both served two terms.

Kennedy represented change, he represented about as much to that generation as Obama represented in this election to a whole new generation. Did Kennedy live up to the expectations that his supporters had for him? No, not at all because he actually didn’t accomplish all that much during his short time as President. But we just might have to realize that he represented the ‘first wave’ of the social change that racked this country during the 1960’s and represented a societal transformation.

Transformations, which usually are defined by historians, but realistically, they should be obvious to us, much like recessions and economic experts; historians should only confirm what we already know. Was Kennedy a transformation? Obviously, having been a child during the 60’s it was a totally different society and I would argue that Reagan represented a transformation, but it was less social and more economic; his transformation involved our views of the military, international intervention, and the beginning of the concept of government deficits don’t matter.

Kennedy changed a whole generation and their concept of themselves, society, and government. Reagan did the same. I venture that Obama represents now what those two did then. Of course, back then I am sure that quite a few scoffed at the idea of JFK amounting to anything long term, even within the Democratic Party and lets not forget that George H. W. Bush called Reagan’s economic plans, “Voodoo Economics.”

So, what does that mean? Very simply, it means that besides the Republicans some of the old time Democrats, such as Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, are going to have trouble adapting.

The Republicans picked Barry Goldwater as their 1964 candidate, a real conservative in the very true sense of the word and Lyndon Johnson basically ended any future that the conservative wing of the Republican party may have had of recapturing control of the party until Ronald Reagan in 1980. If history repeats its self then that translates into the re emergence of conservatism in….2028!

Sometimes elections are a lot more than just elections. Sometimes they represent a fundamental change in society that slowly but surely manifests its self on a much broader scale as time goes on.

It might be best to see Obama in this light and deal with that as a potential reality then it is to just consider him a one term fluke.

Guest Post By Ken..... BARRACK OBAMA - SHOULD CONSERVATIVES SUPPORT HIM

Since the votes were tallied and the final election results were in naming Barack Obama winner of the 2008 election, there have been countless discussions and postings concerning conservative support for Obama because he would be the Nation's President. After all whether one votes for the person who sits in the Oval Office or not he is the President of all Americans.

Over the last few days this conversation has come to the fore front again with Obama telling GOP lawmakers that they cannot follow Rush Limbaugh and expect anything to get done. On the other side of this coin Rush has stated that because of his conservative beliefs and principles that if Obama pushes the socialist agenda that he stated during the campaign he does not want him to succeed because of the path it would take the Nation.

Now that Obama is President of the United States, then the question for conservatives is once again, " do we support Obama because he is the President ?" To this question, as a conservative, I would have to follow my conscience and principled beliefs and say emphatically, "NO !"

There are those, who because he is President, that would consider this attitude to be unpatriotic and nothing that I state here will convince them otherwise. But to my fellow conservatives I offer this explanation as to why we cannot support Obama or even state that we do because he is the President.

Though I do not support Obama, I still and always will respect the office of President of The United States. But for me to use that respect for the office and state that because a certain individual is holding that office, I should then support what he does would be hypocrisy on my part.

Nothing that Obama has stated as his policy, goal o the direction he wishes to take this Nation agrees with my political, moral and ideological beliefs or principles. For me to state that I support the President but not his policies is a similar argument that was used by the left concerning the status of our troops and their mission in Iraq.

Throughout that political discord liberals continually stated that they supported the troops but not their mission. Conservatives countered the cry from the left with, " how can you say you support the troops but not what they are doing ?" The same argument holds for Obama. How can we as conservatives state that we support the President but not what he is doing without falling into the same counter accusation from the left that we used during the troop support argument ?

If I am completely honest with myself and my convictions, then I have to admit that I do not want Obama's agenda to succeed and therefore cannot support him just because he is the President. If he insists on continuing the agenda that he has stated and that he has already begun how can I state that I support him and hold true to my beliefs and principles ?

Of course I would hope for the sake of the country that he understands the short and long term ramifications of what he is doing and what he plans to do and the negative impact it will have on the country. Not to mention that the socialist ideas that he presents take this Nation down a path that was never intended by our Founders.

I believe that the moves that he has made and is planning on making weaken this country and make us even more vulnerable to attack from our enemies. He is taking us back to a pre- 9/11 atmosphere and as such the security of this country could be threatened in a way that it has not been since that fateful day in 2001.

His socialist agenda promises to take this country down a path that may never be reversed. I ask you, how many government programs once started have ever been stopped ? The answer is zero and Obama plans expanding government more than any other President including Franklin Roosevelt.

If we do come under attack, as an American I will rally behind the President as we should and pray that he has the wisdom and sense enough to handle the situation in a manner that protects and preserves our Nation. But to state that I will support him just because he is President is not holding true to who I am and those values and beliefs that have formed my ideas, my morals and my principles.

Do I want him to fail ? Absolutely not ! But I cannot support what he plans which will bring failure and insecurity to this country both economically, morally and in the protection of the country and our people.

Did I agree 100% with President Bush ? No, in fact there were numerous times that I did not support what he was doing. His immigration stand, increasing entitlements, bailouts just to name a few were policies that I could not support. But generally I agreed with the direction Bush wanted to take the country and in the way he stood fast in protecting the Nation after 9/11. As a result I could support him while disagreeing with certain policy issues.

Obama presents and entirely different situation. I find nothing that he says or any part of his very liberal agenda that I can agree with. I do not believe that what he is and will do has any possibility of taking this Nation anywhere but Socialism and weakening our security. How then can I support him as President ?

Our Founders faced a similar dilemma when they gathered to ultimately bring about the birth of this country. They respected the British Monarchy, but not the King who held the throne and especially not his policy toward the Colonies. As a result they created a new form of government that was formed from their beliefs and principles which came from the inability to support King Charles and his agenda for the Colonies. Had they supported the King, they would never have signed the Declaration of Independence.

Am I suggesting that we rebel against the Obama Administration and begin a new Nation ? No, but I am suggesting that we take every opportunity to make it known through the blogosphere, discussion with friends and family and especially in constant contact with everyone and anyone in Washington, that we do not support the President's agenda and emphatically know that it will take us the wrong direction and threaten the security of each of us.

This is our responsibility as a citizen. Our Constitution begins with the words, "We the people." These words were not written by James Madison because they had a certain poetic ring to them. They were included at the very beginning of the document that created our government and the laws that formed our Nation as a testament of who we are and what our responsibilities as Americans are to each other and our country.

Those in government do not dictate to us what we are to do, even the President. It is our responsibility as Americans to tell them what we expect and then hold them accountable to those expectations. As a whole we Americans have forgotten this blessed liberty which was instilled in this country from the very beginning.

Is it radical to stand against our leaders when we disagree with them ? Some today consider it to be. But if we truly believe in our Constitution and understand how our Nation was founded and what the words found within this precious document provide in freedom, then we will also understand that we cannot support that which we believe is wrong and it is our duty to stand against it especially if it is the agenda of a President whose ideas and policy promises to change the very foundation of our country and the principles instilled by our Constitution.

Ken Taylor B

A Guest Post From Tao - Part II

To be American used to mean that a man was not judged by the wealth that he exhibited but rather by the standards that he brought to his work. It was more honorable to be considered a good honest person rather than a rich person.

We were once a people that lived with one another but now we have our poor in separate neighborhoods and our rich barricade themselves behind the gates of their country club communities.

We were once a place where your banker worked in an office at the bank and now all decisions are made in another city by someone who you have never met. Customer service and your extended warranty are outsourced to other companies and other countries.

“Our” schools are run by administrators who hide behind regulations and standards that they call “regulations.” “Our” teachers work for the unions and “our” school boards are professional positions who meet and cloak everything in rules, regulations, and procedures.

“Our” churches have grown bigger and more grand where the congregation number in the thousands and yet their influence on our day to day lives is becoming smaller and smaller.

We shop in stores where if you have a question and if you can find store staff willing to help then the most typical response you will get to your question is, “…I don’t know…I just work here…”

It seems that as we have lost control with our own personal lives we seem to have an increased desire to control the events in other countries. We have meddled in the affairs of other countries all over the world since the end of WWII and we have not learned one thing from all that meddling. Then one day we find that the World Trade Center and the Pentagon were attacked (the White House was the third target). Did anyone stop to think that these terrorists attacked the center of our economic power, the center of our military power, and planned to attack the center of our governmental power?

NO! All we thought was, “…how dare they attack us!” Not once did we bother to think that we have been meddling in their world for decades and they have only once attempted to meddle in ours.

Did you ever stop to think that during the election, John McCain announced that “....the foundation of our economic system was sound…” and then for the first time by any Republican acknowledged that the American worker was the foundation of our economic system. In one sentence he debunked 30 years of supply side economics.

In the last 30 years we have watched as massive Agribusiness concerns have pushed families off the land they farmed for generations. We have watched as mega box stores have entered our communities and put the family owned and operated retail establishments out of business. We have watched as locally owned manufacturing concerns were gobbled up by multi national corporations which traded these factories back and forth among themselves for tax and accounting benefits only to eventually move the operations overseas. McDonald’s has replaced the local diner as the place to socialize and eat. Thanks to blogs and social media we are “friends” with more people in the world but know less about the people that we live by and work with.

We gave up being Americans when we became fascinated with “bigness.” We wanted our companies and our economy to get bigger and bigger. We wanted our military to become bigger and more involved in everything throughout the world. Of course then government became bigger because it had to meet all the demands put on it by the people.

We became so arrogant in our bigness and the corresponding righteousness that we felt from being the biggest that we no longer remember what America was all about. We got involved in wars with ideology. We bullied the world in the name of freedom and democracy. We created an enormous amount of wealth for a few and a tremendous amount of consumer goods for all the rest…but now it appears that we have in fact created nothing but illusions.

We have found out that bigger is not better.

It is obvious that the concept of “Too big to fail” is an illusion. It should also be no illusion that this country is “Too big to fail.” There is nothing wrong with being big as long as you maintain the same values that you had when before you were big. We obviously lost our values along the way to gaining “the one and only superpower” status.

Now, we do not need to wait to elect change we can actually begin to implement change ourselves. Shop locally and buy “Made in the USA.” Find local providers of produce and buy baked goods from local bakeries. Find local service providers and use them rather than national chains. Move your banking to independent locally owned banks and or credit unions. Turn the television off once a week and the computer and take the family to the local library. Don’t go to church but rather have your family commit that time to a local charity or cause. Go to the next school board meeting and ask them a very simple question, “..why is this school so far behind the national average…” or better yet, “…why is my kid so stupid?” Then demand an answer because we have to start locally to demand accountability and no place is more local than school boards and city councils. Go to your local city council meeting and demand that all services contracted with local funds be given to local firms. Call this the beginning of an affirmation action program for Main Street. Look around your company, your church, and or your school system and see what goods and services they consume and demand that they be locally produced and or provided and that they be “Made in the USA.”

Will it cost more? Sure! But freedom is never cheap and this is definitely an issue of freedom. We have to free ourselves from big government and big business because they exist to support each other. We will never be able to overcome the interests of lobbyists or the desire of politicians for money and thus there is no other way to combat the ills that affect this country except by changing ourselves. We are not victims but rather we have victimized ourselves. If, as conservatives, we believe in the power of the individual and the concept of small government then lets do something about it and lets start now. It has nothing to do with philosophy or concepts but rather it has everything to do with each and everyone of us taking responsibility for our own actions.

I do not need elected officials or leaders to change things I can do just fine all by myself and I have been doing this since around 2000. I do not shop at Walmart but rather at local stores. I buy American every chance I get. I even invest in only companies that have plants in town, and are companies that I know quite well; .truthfully, I invest mostly in Treasury Bonds, Municipal Bonds, and my favorite, U.S. Savings Bonds. When my banker of 15 years told me he had to check with “corporate” I moved all my banking to a local community bank the next week.

That is why I do not buy into all the typical conservative slogans and it is why I do not get all worked up over Obama and all that. I know what it means to be an American and I know that my actions speak louder than any vote I could offer ever could.

A Guest Post From TAO - Part I

Sometimes you have to look around at the world you find yourself in and you just cannot help but wonder, “...what is going on?”

Just a few short months ago our economy was just chugging along and now when you look around not much looks different but you are now seeing everything from a different perspective. In a matter of months our economy went from being strong and robust (Paulsen, July 2008) to today where we find out that the core of our economic system is rotten and that we are most likely on the verge of a depression. Oh, and it was announced this week that we have actually been in a recession for almost a year (I am not really sure what kind of data the Federal Reserve, the Treasury Department, and or all these economists study but it sure is out of date by the time they get to it if it takes them a year to figure out a recession!). The only real difference between a recession, which most of us are familiar with and, a depression, which very few of us has any experience with, is that the situation is similar except that during a depression you also have deflation.

There are homes empty on your street where once families lived and this is due to the economy. It is not something that affected certain communities but it is affecting all communities; it is just not as obvious of an event in some communities as it is in others.
Between the subprime mortgage fiasco, the absurd mortgages that were proposed, and or the economic downturn many more Americans will lose their homes.

Our children are also beginning to drop out of college because their parents cannot afford the cost of tuition. I am not real sure that our economy can truthfully generate enough jobs, even in the healthiest of times, to justify all the college graduates we turn out in a year but I do realize that without college graduates we sure are not going to be able to create anything.

If you really look at our middle class today, you see people who work very hard and are very capable. But they are fearful for their jobs. They are putting off having children just due to the sheer cost of raising children. They are taking part time jobs or working for temporary agencies just in an effort to stay economically viable. Yet, they cannot seem to achieve anything without credit. As I drive to the office everyday I cannot help but notice that most of the newest businesses that have opened up over the last five years are payday loan centers and rent to own stores.

None of which represents wealth but in actuality represents poverty. In the month of November we lost the most jobs in one month than we have lost in any one month in the last 34 years. Our only gains, in regards to jobs, occurred in schools, government, and health care. All of which are dependent on the government to a large degree for their income.

We need to realize that this economic meltdown began with the speculation in real estate. Ten years ago you could not find a home valued at $500,000 now we have gated communities where the lots alone cost $200,000. With the development of interest only loans any weekend handyman could begin to “flip” houses on the weekend and make big bucks. It’s no different than in the days of the internet bubble when anyone with a couple of hundred dollars could get on the internet and trade stocks during lunch time. You didn’t need to know anything about the stock market, you didn’t need to know anything about the companies whom you were trading their stock; the market always went up.

I was getting telephone service from WorldCom and every month the bill was getting less and less and every month there was another special to save me hundreds of dollars and every month their stock was hitting new levels.

Enron was breaking records with its income but yet under everything they were a utility company and for the most part utilities are a regulated sector.

If you are constantly building homes, remodeling homes, or selling homes for a higher and higher price you need to constantly find more people to sell to if the scheme is to continue.

Our automakers are on the ropes but do not fear, so are all the foreign automakers; I wonder how many millions of their cars are sitting on the docks at our ports. No one is selling cars right now.

Less than six months ago our economy was just fine. Now we have watched our stock market lose almost 50% of its value, we have watched real estate prices plunge and will continue to do so. Next we will see companies folding, those companies that need short term loans to make payroll every week, then those companies that used low interest rates to expand their facilities and then in a short time the REITS will begin to fold under the over leveraged positions they find themselves in.

Then it will be credit card debt that will fold and take down the very same banks that are being bailed out right now. In 2007 banks earned 18 billion dollars in late fees on credit cards debt alone. Trouble is they can call it income but it is only a fee until such time it is collected. In 2009 they will charge all the fees they want but until someone actually pays their bill that income is an uncollected receivable.

Now, conservatives can continue to point at government and blame them, the liberals can point at the rich and blame them but the reality is our government and our economy no longer represent the values of the people of this country. It is not about the values of our Founding Fathers, or of our religious beliefs, but rather the core values that have made this country great.

Our government and our economy lost those values because we lost sight of the importance of our values to our lives. We got wrapped up in dogma of the political parties, we got blinded by the reward of supply side economics, we got cocky about being the “winner” of the battle of superpowers, and we became distracted by issues such as abortion, and gay marriage. As the liberals watched “MSM” which discussed all of the negative news the conservatives hovered over Rush Limbaugh and Fox News who lambasted everyone else and glorified their listeners and viewers for being the “true” patriots.
Some place along the way we forgot what it meant to be Americans. We lost sight of the fact that Americans were liberals, and conservatives. That Americans were the rich and the poor, the gay and straight, the pro life and the pro choice. Someplace over the last 30 years we lost sight of the fact that society, government, and an economic system all exist for one purpose and one purpose only: “…of the people, by the people, for the people.”

A Guest Post From Ken....Baracks's Night Before Christmas

A fantabulous guest post written by Ken at The Liberal Lie, The Conservative Truth

BARACK'S NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS - THE SUNDAY COMMENTARY

Twas just days before Christmas and all through the land, liberals were celebrating the election of their man.

His name was Barack the libs favorite son, they just worshipped this guy and called him, "the one."

He hailed from Hawaii or Kenya or both, the left didn't care they just gave him their vote.

With change as his motto and no substance at all, this guy came from nowhere and they gave him the ball.


Now he has signs which say, "I'm Prez -Elect," he's picking and choosing from rivals to select,

those that work with him as he takes up the reigns, of an office in DC which can be a strain.

Nancy and Harry are up on the Hill, chuckling and dancing, which gives me a chill.

"We've got full control and we think it just swell, though the people who come here surely do smell."

"We'll push through our socialist plan every day, with our messiah, Barack leading the way !"


But wait just a minute, "the one," changed his plan, he's picking some people who differently stand.

He says to Bob Gates, " I want you to stay, since defense in now working we'll keep it that way."

The left is now fuming and feeling betrayed, but don't worry guys you'll still get your way.

You see he's got Hillary and Joe, Eric and Bill, they think as he does from the left with a shrill.

Don't forget Bubba with his wife now at State, he'll find blonds and brunettes to add to his slate.


Barack's in Chicago meeting the press, with his wife named Michelle finding an Inaugural dress.

He stands at his mike with a sign he made up, just telling his minions, "I'll give you a full cup."

"Filled with programs and goodies and government deals, paid for by those with more earnings, those heals !"

"I've got bailouts and credits and loads of green cash, whose mortgage is paid for by those we will tax."


"I'll talk to Iran, Hugo and Castro, we'll sit at a table they'll call me their Bro."

"The UN will be the foreign policy guide, and terrorist need no longer to hide."

"The courts will take over not guns, men and tanks, the troops will come home and give ME their thanks."

"Their mission will be left not finished and undone, but I'll still claim victory and tell you, I'VE won."

"The troops will complain about their relief, but who gives a rip I'm Commander in Chief !"


Barack will soon to Washington go, with plans and agendas taking him to an fro.

They'll dance and they'll sing on inauguration day, but surely our history might show him the way.

When he sees each great icon of George, Abraham and Tom, standing in awe in Washington town.

I pray that the influence these giants created, will give him a pause and he'll see he's overrated.


The greatness of men who have led us through time, may hopefully give Barack the wisdom of mind,

to see that our freedoms came not from the Gov, but from a an idea whose framing was made through strong love.

For a country where everyone achieves and believes, in making our way in this land of the free.

If this happens when Barack takes command, then maybe we'll have bright hope in our land.


If not then the struggle in keeping us free, will reside in the power of you and of me.

In making this guy who thinks Gov is the key, accountable and answerable to each who are free !

If we do then this Christmas of two thousand and eight, will be one in which we the people do great.

In keeping our land from the socialist bug, and fighting for freedom in this land that we love.

Telling this guy who thinks he's the light, Merry Christmas to all, and our country's still RIGHT!!

Guest Post by Patrick.......Death, Taxes and A Holiday

Death, Taxes, and a Holiday

Patrick Murray
Sane Political
Discourse


It's said that there are two things in life that are certain: Death and
taxes. Somehow I'm going to tie them altogether and make it make
sense. For those of you who haven't had the pleasure and insanity (despite
the name) of my blog, that's a bigger challenge than you'd imagine. But
with the $700 billion socialist sickness that I have kindly termed the Dastardly
Bastardly Bailout continuing to fester (and having trillions added), we're in
the process of making mistakes that will eventually cripple our company.

First, Principles First

The idea of the federal government taking taxpayer money to fix problems they
have caused with a myriad of idiotic programs and laws by bailing out companies
who messed up and didn't have sense to see the hole their benevolent Big Brother was digging for them should be anathema to anyone who possesses conservative convictions. We are
(supposed to be) a country that functions on free market principles and
individual responsibility. This means that when you succeed, you rake in
the dough. If you fail, you crash and burn. But since the days of
the Great Depression, the government has increasingly swept in as the
"protector" of people and companies. And the ways they have done this have
gone so far from the Founding Fathers' intent that we could power a city if we
hooked them up to generators. That's how fast they have to be spinning in
their graves.

Of that $700 billion flung out there by Congress, plenty has been happily
abused. But at this point, there's $350 billion still floating out there
uncommitted to specific companies. And to add insult (and the usual
Washington shuffle) to injury, the Bad Three automakers (AKA Oliver G, Oliver F, and Oliver C Twist) were back on the Hill, having spent a day driving their
hybrids up to make up for their private jet ride the first time (commercial
flights do go from Detroit to DC) just so they could stick their hands
out and ask for more (from $25 to $35 billion now). And there are some
lawbreakers... uh, lawmakers that want to tap some of the $350 billion left of
the DBB to do it.

"I Beg to Dream and Differ..."*

Enter Congressman
Louie Gohmert. He came up with a great idea to use up the rest of that
otherwise wasted money:

A TAX HOLIDAY!

Here's the deal. We pay about $160 billion a month in deductions from our
paychecks (Income and FICA). His idea is to take the money already
committed to waste on suckling a failing business and just eliminating
everyone's taxes for January and February.

Imagine the advantages:

1. $160 billion pumped into the economy for those two months-- Instant growth
and debt reduction across the board.

2. There's no administrative costs, because the money never gets to
Washington!

3. In March, taxes come back and people realize how much money Washington is
sucking from them. There's a good chance it will make the Boston Tea Party
look like an ice cream social in comparison.

Now, like government, taxes are a necessary evil, as the legitimate functions of
government do have to be financed. But the temporary elimination the theft
of cash from the weekly wage earner will prime people for a change....

Save the Economy, Abolish the IRS

The change I'm talking about is the FairTax. I'm going to cover it in
brief here, but when you are wondering whether it can work, check out the
site: http://http//www.fairtax.org/ (apologies for having to look at Huck-a-Duck, who's hawking his
book there right now).

I discovered the FairTax through my incessant need to devour hours of talk radio
(Neal Boortz in this case). I heard about it for several months before I
finally got around to the site. I spent a couple of hours reading, and was
converted enough to send them money from my tax refund (and money was tight at
that time). The FairTax (a consumption tax) is absolutely in line with
conservative principles of limiting government and empowering the
individual.

Some highlights:

No paycheck deductions - I start with this one because this feature is
what will sell it come March and people have to pay these. Essentially, if
you get paid $8/hour, you get that much on your check (except state, local, and
personal deductions, of course). And the employers don't have to pay the
matching crap. Which means they can pay more.

23% - This is the absolute maximum amount of your income that will go to the
tax. If you made $2000, spent $2000, and were an illegal alien
(undocumented worker for you PC whiners), you'd pay $460 in taxes. For
those of us with Social security numbers....

The Prebate - This is a check from the government that offsets any
FairTax paid up to the poverty line. So by personal choices, you can pay
no taxes, or a whole lot of taxes. The prebate is paid based on members of
your household. If you have 3, you get the prebate for each
individual.


One-time taxing - The tax only applies to consumer items once. This
means used items are not taxed. Related to this is....



No embedded taxes - Businesses do not pay taxes. They take the tax,
turn it into a cost, and make us pay that. The FairTax eliminates that,
putting all the taxes in one place. This means that prices adjust to
remove the embedded taxes and are only added back in on your receipt.

Transparency - You can look on your receipt and see the FairTax.
$23 of every $100 goes to the FairTax (which is the average amount we pay
now).

Emasculating Washington - While Congress will have the power to adjust the
FairTax, what they won't be able to do is adjust the system to reward some
people while punishing others, control behavior, and deceive the people who
can't afford the accountants to hide their money. The obscene tax code is
one of the greatest powers that they have over all of us. Not so under the
FairTax.

For further info (and clarification of my highlights), here's the FairTax FAQ.

Big Honkin' Finish

One of the first steps to making the government responsible and limited again is
to create transparency, both in spending and taxing. Until we can unify, we'll be caught between our personal benefit and
our principle, and the cluster that lives inside the Beltway will continue to
tentacle out like a demonic octo-pig, with a hand on every shoulder and a teat
in every pot. I believe something as simple and radical as the FairTax is
a first step. The tax holiday would help to accomplish that goal.
And it would be a better use of that thrice-damned** bailout than what our
"leaders" have come up with.

And remember, if we're loud enough, they might figure out that another stimulus
check is really not the answer.


(* bonus points for anyone that can name the song title, artist, and album I
snatched the above quote from)

(**double bonus points if you can get the TV show and character I get that
phrase from)

A Guest Post From: Always On Watch

Always On Watch -

Now that the intitial weeping and gnashing of teeth following the election has diminished a bit, the conservative blogosphere has a task ahead, that of contrarian dissent. In my view, that dissent shouldn't descend into the lowest of the tactics shown by many of the lefties in the blogosphere and the media. On the other hand, being too refined and too dignified won't likely yield results, with either the electorate or the rebuilding of the Republican Party. Certainly, remaining quiet and sulking will have no outcome.
--------

On January 20, Barack Hussein Obama will take the oath of office and become President of the United States. Like it or not, he will become our President. Certainly, based on what we know about him and his political philosophy, he may lead our nation in a leftist direction, as he attempts to keep even some of his pie-in-the-sky campaign promises. And he will have the partnership of a leftist Congress to help him accomplish his goals. Still, we should also remember that often Presidents govern in a more centrist manner than in the manner in which they campaigned. We'll be finding out soon enough in precisely what direction our new President will lead our nation.

Today's electorate apparently responds to and needs a leader who offers "shock and awe." These same voters also seem to respond more to contrarian dissent and derangement syndrome than to the analysis of political philosophies. Say what you will about the importance of political ideology and integrity, the Democratic Party's campaign was successful. Voters may well suffer from Attention Deficit Disorder and respond to sound bites around which to rally!

In my view, the Right needs to begin anew by offering contrarian dissent — patriotic dissent with just a tinge of Leftist Derangement Syndrome. Appeal to the people may be a logic fallacy, but we've just seen that such an appeal is indeed effective, much like the teachable moment in the classroom. The Right needs to learn and to employ some of the same tactics which the Left used to win the election.

Consider the following video, not only from the perspective of observing the apparent idiocy of those interviewed but also from the perspective of how such an electorate can be moved in a different direction:




Perhaps we truly have entered a new era of voters, ones who need a different kind of appeal from the Right. Based on the above video, we may not have the option of or the time for educating the electorate.

Your thoughts?

Estne Alea Iacta........A Guess Post From Mustang!

Estne Alea Iacta?

Given our present political situation, let us consider these words from long ago; opposing voices from the same era:

"Humanity is universally imbued with a desire for liberty, and a hatred for servitude."
— Gaius Julius Caesar

— And

"Only a few prefer liberty—the majority seek nothing more than a fair master."
— Gaius Sallustius Crispus

Upon his return from the Gallic Wars, Caesar decided to cross the Rubicon with his legions. It was a decision that effectively ended the Roman Republic; a period during which, contrary to the romantic notions of undereducated scholars, citizens may have boasted about the values of free speech, private property, and rights before the law but, in truth, only Roman slaves enjoyed equality. After seven-hundred years, the Roman citizen grew tired of antique values, much preferring the comfort of easy slavery and "peace" to a never-ending series of wars. It was more desirable to receive free bread, attend magnificent circuses, and let political masters worry about affairs of state. Accepting bribes from politicians was less stressful than listening to hours' long rhetoric on this or that from a rostrum in the forum.

There are those who criticize my propensity to compare/contrast the Roman Republic/Empire with our contemporary United States. I will allow Dr. Sir Ronald Syme to answer, "Prudent men are won't to say — and this not rashly or without good ground — that he who would foresee what has to be should reflect on what has been, for everything that happens in the world at any time has a genuine resemblance to what happened in ancient times."

We are at that time and place when Americans — like the citizens of Rome more than two-thousand years ago — approach an important crossroad. Our direction henceforth will be important because once the journey has begun, there can be no return sans significant social unrest and the likely destruction of important, long valued institutions. Rome's Republic collapsed, Syme tells us, because "The Roman constitution was a screen and a sham." So too has our Constitution become irrelevant to people whom no longer value it, to politicians who ignore it, and a judiciary who reach to feel its pulse. Like Rome, America will cease to exist when our Constitution no longer serves as the guiding principle of our government; it is our Constitution that protects us from government excesses — without it, there is no protection for the American people.

The beginning of our end started with Franklin Roosevelt's "New Deal.” The Supreme Court overturned several of these programs as "unconstitutional," but let stand others; the high court determined that since the federal government could not force states to provide unemployment insurance, it was within the general power of Congress to levy taxes to support federal programs that would. And like the days of free bread and bribes in Rome, American politicians realized that social programs, properly packaged as liberalism and progressivism, could enslave all manner of men to the good graces of a beneficent government. What they handed to us, however, is simply Marxism, not so cleverly disguised as human services.

The fallacies associated with Roosevelt's "New Deal," and Lyndon Johnson's "Great Society" filled volumes written by those who recognize Marxist ideology when they see it. Few bother to read these works, fewer still are even listening to whispers of dire consequences to progressive-socialist policy. In October 1964, speaking on behalf of presidential hopeful Barry Goldwater, Ronald Reagan told his audience:

"In this vote-harvesting time, they use terms like the "Great Society," or as we were told a few days ago by the President, we must accept a greater government activity in the affairs of the people. But they've been a little more explicit in the past and among themselves; and all of the things I now will quote have appeared in print. These are not Republican accusations. For example, they have voices that say, "The Cold War will end through our acceptance of a not undemocratic socialism." Another voice says, "The profit motive has become outmoded. It must be replaced by the incentives of the welfare state." Or, "Our traditional system of individual freedom is incapable of solving the complex problems of the 20th century." Senator Fulbright has said at Stanford University that the Constitution is outmoded. He referred to the President as "our moral teacher and our leader," and he says he is "hobbled in his task by the restrictions of power imposed on him by this antiquated document." He must "be freed," so that he "can do for us," what he knows "is best." And Senator Clark of Pennsylvania, another articulate spokesman, defines liberalism as "meeting the material needs of the masses through the full power of centralized government."

Well, I, for one, resent it when a representative of the people refers to you and me, the free men and women of this country, as "the masses." We haven't applied this term to ourselves in America. But beyond that, "the full power of centralized government" — this was the very thing the Founding Fathers sought to minimize. They knew that governments don't control things. A government can't control the economy without controlling people. And they know that when a government sets out to do that, it must use force and coercion to achieve its purpose. They also knew, those Founding Fathers, that outside of its legitimate functions, government does nothing as well or as economically as the private sector of the economy."

So even forty-four years ago, honest statesmen warned the American people to exercise care in making political choices, as they carry with them dire consequences. The voices of reason were plain enough, and loud enough, but people didn't listen then; they aren't listening now, either. We have not fully recovered from the psychological and economic maladies of the Roosevelt Era, nor even from the so-called Great Society. We continue to have individuals who demand something in return for nothing. People who have allowed their innate sloth to interfere with good common sense rallied to the Marxist pap of "hope and change," and are frankly too stupid to realize the attendant consequences to our economy and the moral fiber of our people.

Whispering voices continue to speak plainly; mine is one of them. There are hundreds more, each of whom understands the dangerous path ahead, but we cannot speak in hushed tones if we expect anyone to hear — if we expect anyone to pay attention to what we say. "Beware of big brother, for like Marcus Brutus; he does not come to praise us — but to bury us."

It is already late in the day for loud voices; we needed to become alarmed in 2004, but our laziness and an administration inept on too many fronts brought us a Democratic Congress in 2006. Typical of democrats, like the miserable cancer of Marxism, they are spreading out their tentacles and grabbing hold. The fault is clearly ours; our voices were mute or too soft. We have failed to make our case understood to American voters. Republicans have even lost their identity and have joined the socialists — more programs to satisfy the masses.

Our Constitution, our protector, is slipping from our grasp. The administration of Barack Obama fully intends to strip away our right to hard-earned wages, and give it as supplementary income to those who do not pay taxes. The government fully intends to ignore the Constitution as it forces its will upon the American people, much as it has done to supplant state sovereignty and free-market accountability. Government does not have the right to spend our money on corporate bailouts, to offer grants to subversive organizations, or to force Americans to invest in national healthcare.

The question, then, is whether we are going to preserve and protect the Constitution, or accept that the "dye is cast." If we are dedicated to the former, we could begin by copying this essay and sending it to members of the Congress — even Democrats. We must strengthen our conservative effort, and if necessary, support conservative organization financially. If we are not willing to do this, then like Rome's Republic . . . this once-great nation will transform itself into something else; something dangerous to our individual liberty and a place where only the slaves (to government programs) achieve full equality.

© Social Sense