Wednesday, July 29, 2009

The Deuce Really Was The Man

In my previous post I described how Harvard Professor Louis Gates and President Barack Obama think, because I'm white, that I'm The Man. For two years I really was The Man, volunteering as a reserve police officer in my home town. I wore the uniform, I wore the badge, and I wore the gun. I had full authority to make arrests. The only difference between me and regular police officers was that I was unpaid. I want to tell you all something...when you're wearing the badge, the sense of responsibility is incredibly heavy.

In my previous post I said, "I love it when assholes get arrested." That's still true. But I said that as a civilian, with no duty or responsibility to enforce the law. When I was a cop, I never had a situation occur where I was in a hurry to arrest anyone, no matter how big an asshole they were being. If anything, I felt a necessity to be more lenient than a good cop would be. By lenient, I mean not arresting them. But I didn't mean I didn't want to get physical with them... which is one of the reasons I ultimately resigned after two years of service.

When I was a cop, my best friend at the time, a regular paid cop, asked me why I didn't apply to join the force as a regular officer. I told him, " You guys have to take too much shit. I don't think I could take all that shit and keep my cool...I'd do something stupid." What I meant was that I might not arrest someone for being an asshole, but I would want to fuck them up a little. In my mind, arresting someone was a big deal...cuffing a loudmouth drunk to get their attention and facilitate their obedience was not. An arrest meant the perp was cuffed and stuffed and taken to jail for booking. It meant the perp had to make bail if he could, had to hire a lawyer if he wanted to fight the charge, had to miss work for days or weeks and potentially lose his job. If I could put a knot on his head and make him shut up enough to listen to reason and possibly avoid arrest, that seemed to me to be the better of two bad choices in most of the situations I found myself in. I still think I had a big city cop mentality in a small town. Those two don't go together very well.

My buddy replied that as a cop, you take as much shit as you're willing to take. Some officers take a lot of shit before they drop the hammer and arrest someone for 'disorderly conduct', or 'interfering with official acts' or 'public intoxication'. What he said was true. My friend took a fair amount of shit from the public...more than I wanted to. Another officer on our small force took no shit what so ever and would arrest someone for one of the above named offenses at the drop of the first "fuck you!", or when someone was too slow in obeying his orders ( cops are authorized by law to give you orders which you must obey or be subject to arrest...most adults don't respond well to being given orders ).

Police officers have a huge amount of discretion in how they do their jobs. The Gates event is a perfect example. The cop could have held Gates at gunpoint and cuffed him before he started asking questions. When cops aren't sure what the situation is and the person they're dealing with is being uncooperative and belligerent, they often will cuff that person "for every one's safety" until they figure out what is going on. Their not kidding when they say it's for every one's protection. An uncooperative man in cuffs is generally no threat to the cop or bystanders ( like wives or children who may be present ), but the same man uncuffed could be a significant threat...could be high on God knows what...could be mentally unbalanced...could be a convicted felon on parole who's facing a third strike should he be convicted of another felony. The cop just doesn't know. Ultimately the cop goes with his instincts and his training. Better to cuff an innocent man while you're figuring things out than not cuff him and end up shooting him when he rushes at you with fists raised in anger. Gates got off easy.

Not too many years ago I was pulled over by a deputy sheriff. I was seven mph over the limit. I had my two kids in the car, teenagers at the time. When I got my car stopped I told my kids to keep their hands in plain view and to sit still. I kept both my hands on the steering wheel until the deputy asked for my drivers license and registration. While the deputy was in his cruiser running my info ( checking for wants or warrants and probably checking for prior traffic violations ) my kids asked me why I told them to sit still with their hands in plain view. I told them, "because he has a gun, and I don't want him to feel threatened."

I was a white cop when I said that.

Gates wasn't "profiled" as a black man...he simply acted like an asshole. You may think that being an asshole isn't against the law, but the fact is that being an asshole may be against the law depending upon the situation...and the cop who's dealing with you.

As I said in the first post, if you're going to fight a cop, fight him in court, not on the street. In court you have a chance. On the street you have no chance at all. So be smart, and live to fight another day. Cops just want to do their jobs. If you're innocent of any crime, be cool, do what the cop says, and 99% of the time you'll be on your way in a few minutes, no harm done. Do what Gates did, and I can just about guarantee you a bad day...regardless of the color of your skin.

Sunday, July 26, 2009

The Deuce Is Still The Man

I am The Man. It's not a position I asked for or pursued...it was apparently handed to me when I was born. I'm a white man...please forgive my sins against the red man, the black man, the yellow man and women of whatever color. I didn't know what I was doing. Honestly. You should also cut me a little slack because I also have been victimized by slavery...just like every other person on the planet.

Consider this; please name a race, a culture, a society that didn't practice slavery at some time. Maybe the Eskimos. But besides them, EVERY race on this planet has made slaves of it's fellow man at one time or another. Babylonians enslaved the Jews and God knows who else. The "first" civilization, the Greeks, held slaves. The Romans held slaves. The Germanic tribes held slaves. The Franks held slaves. The Arabs, the Chinese, the Slavs...and even the Africans held slaves. Yep...when European and American slavers went to Africa to buy slaves, they bought them from Africans. Black people sold black people...to white people, or whoever else was in the market. Despite what you might have learned watching Roots back in the golden haze of the '70's, middle-aged white fat men didn't run through the African bush with nets ensnaring Kunta Kinte. Instead, those middle-aged white fat men simply sauntered up to the local slave bazaar and put their money down. Done deal.

I can hear you..."But slavery was an Old World thing. Amerindians weren't so barbaric as to engage in the slave trade." Pa-leeze! The Incas, the Mayans and the Aztecs were all into slavery, not to mention sacrificing those slaves to the local gods. So were the North American Amerindians, though they had their own special spin on slavery. Only women and children were taken as slaves, and they were ultimately assimilated into the tribe if they were willing. Adult men of other tribes were killed outright, because they would rather die than be slaves to another man.

White European Americans held slaves...right up to the time when close to a half million white men died in the Civil War, ending slavery. Jim Crow followed...right up until the 1950's. Brown v Board of Education was decided by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1954...55 years ago. That's when the civil rights movement for Blacks began. In the scope of world history, 55 years is just a blink of the eye.

That's probably why I am still The Man...and why professor Henry Louis Gates Jr., esteemed tenured Harvard professor and friend to the first Black American president Barack Obama, believes I'm still The Man. And when The Glorious Leader proclaimed that Gates was a friend of his, and that he didn't know all the facts of Gates' arrest, but still damned the Cambridge police as "acting stupidly", Obama showed that he also thinks I'm still The Man. The president thinks I'm still The Man. I feel so empowered.

Go back far enough in history, and just about all of us all have ancestors who were slaves. We have all been victimized. Where do I go to collect my reparations? Where's my affirmative action? Oh. My victimization was too long ago to count. Okay. Fair enough. The question now is how long do I have to suffer people like Sharpton and Jackson and Reverend Wright and Louis Farrakhan and Charlie Rangell and Maxine Waters...and Barack Obama? When will I be cleansed of the sin of slavery? Never mind that I never owned a slave, or that my ancestors never owned slaves ( my Scots-Irish ancestors that lived from 1695 to 1965 in the hills of Virginia, the Carolinas, Georgia and Tennessee were way too poor to own slaves ), or that I have ever discriminated against someone because of the color of their skin.

Unlike most Americans, I'd actually heard of professor Gates prior to his recent dust up with the Cambridge Massachusetts police. He hosted a PBS TV show some years ago that depicted the African city Timbuktu ( yes, there is such a place ) as the epicenter of black culture in Africa prior to the arrival of white Europeans. He walked through countless mud huts pointing to the books and scrolls rotting on decrepit mud shelves saying, "this is the proof of black science, medicine, history, philosophy and literature in Africa." All the manuscripts were written in Arabic. Truth be told, Timbuktu was the southern most outpost of Arab culture in Africa, not the northern most outpost of black culture in Africa. Professor Gates is a liar and a fraud. Just another example of the largess of affirmative action.

By now most of you are aware of the facts surrounding the recent arrest of Professor Gates. You know he refused to show I.D. when initially asked to by Sgt. Crowley, the investigating officer first on the scene. You know he berated Crowley, calling him a racist, rogue cop. You know he mentioned Crowley's 'mama'. You know he said, "this is what a black man gets in America." You know he attempted to call the Cambridge Chief of Police to report he was dealing with a "racist cop." All this because a neighbor called the police when she saw two men breaking into a house and the police came to investigate.

Despite all the reports in the MSM and on the 'comedy' shows of HBO and Comedy Central, Gates was not arrested for being a black man in his own home. Gates was arrested for being an asshole. He not only played the race card, he played the class card, asking Sgt. Crowley, "Do you know who I am? You don't want to mess with me!" Yes, the famous tenured Harvard professor, published author and personal friend of the president, cried racial profiling and "getting what a black man gets in America", and in the next breath bragged that he was a baaaaaaad maaaaaaan.

When you have a dispute with a cop, you don't fight your battle on the street. Cops win street battles every time. You fight your battle in the courtroom. Professor Gates fought his battle in his foyer, which he got away with. It was after the issue had been settled and the cop was leaving that Gates just couldn't let good enough be. Gates followed the cop out onto his porch and continued to yell at the cop and berate him for being a racist that the cop ran out of patience and warned Gates that he was being disorderly and needed to calm himself or face arrest. Gates apparently did more of his baaaaaad maaaaaan act, and found himself being cuffed and stuffed.

HUZZAH! I love it when assholes get arrested. Yes, the local District Attorney dropped the charges, but not until the baaaaaad maaaaaan did the perp walk and got himself booked and his mug shot broadcast all over America. Now Obama has invited both Gates and the arresting officer to the White House for beers and a "teachable moment", translated as "come to the White House white fascist cop and get schooled on the realities of black nationalism in MY America."

If Sgt. Crowley has half the brains I think he has, he won't go anywhere near the White House.

But hey...as a white man...I'm still The Man. I think I'll have that printed on a T-shirt. I'd be proud to wear it, and I bet there's a huge market for it.

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

The Deuce and NASA

Once again, I can not bring myself to comment on the current political scene in any significant way. The Sotomayor hearing is so maddening I find myself with an overwhelming desire to clean my Glock and buy mass quantities of ammo in preparation for the coming dystopian extravaganza that is Obama's America. Why can't just one member of the judiciary committee say to this "wise Latina"..."Who the hell do you think you're bullshitting? You said the 'wise Latina' thing six times over the last ten years, but now you claim it was just a "rhetorical flourish that fell flat." Did it fall flat the first time? The second time? Is it just that now that you're in front of this committee nominated for the Supreme Court that the statement has fallen flat? And if you're such a wise Latina why did you repeat said flat flourish six times? Arrrrrrrrgh!

To take my mind, and yours, off the insanity and cowardice of the wise Latina hearing, did you know there are gay penguins? Did you know that there are ex-gay penguins? Did you know there's a big dispute over the whole penguin sexuality question? Where do you suppose this dispute is happening? Did you say San Francisco? Cha-ching! For pathetically comedic relief I give you this.

But seriously folks...in just a few days the 40th anniversary of the first Moon landing will be here. July 20, 1969, Americans Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the Moon, with Michael Collins orbiting above them. The mission was named Apollo 11, the landing craft was the Eagle and the landing zone was Tranquility Base, and I watched it live with Walter Cronkite providing the color commentary. 40 years ago! The last time men walked on the Moon was in 1973. What the hell have we been doing since then?

In 1957 the Russians put the first man-made object into orbit...Sputnik. Shortly after that, the Russians put the first man in space too. In 1957 America had squat for a space program, but in the depths of the Cold War we couldn't let the Russians have the high ground all to themselves, so in 1961 President John F. Kennedy proclaimed that America would land a man on the Moon and return him safely to Earth by the end of the decade. And we did.

America has owned space ever since. Countless unmanned craft have explored our solar system; Explorer, Mariner, Pioneer, Voyager, Voyager II, Galileo, Viking and Cassini. We put up the perhaps the greatest unmanned craft of all...Hubble. This space based telescope has given us all images of the universe of such profound majesty that it boggles the human mind. We did these things. Americans did these things. Who else?

On April 12, 1981, the first Space Shuttle launched to orbit. It was Columbia. We've been launching shuttles ever since as our only manned space flight, not counting riding the International Space Station. While the shuttle program made Hubble and the ISS possible ( along with an unknown number of classified satellites ), the shuttle program was unable to carry man farther than low Earth orbit. No more manned trips to the Moon or any of the other planets or moons.

Did we do the right thing? No American, or any other human, has been farther than 350 nautical miles from Earth since 1973. Unmanned space exploration is critical to science, and to feed humanities sense of wonder. Have you seen the pictures of Jupiter and Saturn and the other gas giants taken by our unmanned probes? Simply amazing. But manned exploration has lain dormant for decades as we went about putting satellites in orbit and building the ISS. Let's face it...as cool as unmanned exploration is, nothing gets the attention of people like a manned flight, and NASA needs the fervent support of Americans, if not the whole world.

We should have been on Mars 20 years ago. If not us, who?

I, for one, would like to see our species live on. Sooner or later the human population on Earth will reach an unsustainable level. Even if we manage not to destroy ourselves with some nuclear holocaust or other as yet unforeseen extinction event, and God doesn't wipe us out with an asteroid strike, there will come a time when there is simply not enough room or resources to sustain us all. If we're to survive as a species, WE HAVE GOT TO GET OFF THIS ROCK! We have to establish colonies on other worlds, or on man-made environments in space.

Manned space flight is expensive and risky. America has spent hundreds of billions of dollars and lost 17 astronauts and three spacecraft since our manned flight program began, but Americans continue to support our space program and would-be astronauts continue to apply for work with NASA despite the risk to their lives. Daniel Boone, Lewis and Clark, and John Kennedy would be proud. I know I am.

NASA is currently planning on retiring the shuttle program next year after more than 100 flights. The next generation spacecraft is called the Orion, and the program is named Constellation. This is the program that is very loosely scheduled to put an American on Mars by the late 2020's or early 2030's. If 2030 is the year, I'll be 73 years old if I should be so lucky as to still be alive then.

Having been born in 1957, the year space exploration began, I would dearly love to watch the first man set foot on Mars before I die. And I would dearly love for that man to be an American. If not us, who?

For God's sake...please hurry. I'm running out of time. Maybe we all are.

If it looks like a duck....

By Conservative Ken

One of the interesting aspects of the current political landscape is the incredible stonewalling that is going on regarding our president's true citizenship and eligibility to serve as president. Now, before you label me as a right-wing zealot, racist, and conspiracy-nut, please understand the lay of the land as it exists today....

There are currently in excess of forty lawsuits pending that are challenging the legal citizenship status, and subsequent eligibility to serve as president, of Mr. Obama. That's not an opinion - that's simply fact.

Mr. Obama has spent upwards of $1 million to thwart any effort to have these lawsuits move forward through our legal system, and has had, among others, the State of California, support his efforts to suppress these cases from ever seeing the light of a courthouse. That's is not an opinion - that's simply fact.

The constitution of the United States requires that a person be a naturally born citizen of the United States to be eligible to serve as president. That is not an opinion - that's simply fact.

Mr. Obama has not provided the documentation that would clarify his citizenship status one way or the other. During his campaign, in an effort to address the citizenship question, he posted a document on his website that was proven to be a forgery. These are not opinions - that's simply fact.

Mr. Obama, acting in the role of president, has put forth an aggressive liberal legislative agenda that will put our nation in debt at unprecedented levels. Mr. Obama, acting in the role of president, is changing the role of our military and has consistently apologized for the past actions of our nation, despite our nation's long and wonderful history of being the world's most staunch defender of freedom - ours and other nations. These are not opinions - that's simply fact.

I could continue on in this vein, but the most salient point is that we the people have the right to know that our government is being led by a person legally entitled to serve as president. Instead, that person is stonewalling and aggressively defames anyone with the temerity to question or challenge him or his administration on this issue. The issue itself is never addressed - the one presenting the issue is simply ridiculed in the public mass media. This is very dangerous, and we must know the answer to this most fundamental question regarding Mr. Obama.

Regardless of your personal politics, just ask yourself this question: who would spend upwards of $1 million of their own money to keep such lawsuits out of court, when the entire issue could be addressed and resolved permanently in less than 2 minutes - if the person being questioned, in fact, had the necessary documentation to substantiate their claim? I keep coming to the disturbing conclusion that only someone that doesn't have the necessary documentation is the correct answer.

I might be right - I could be wrong about Mr. Obama. One thing I know is that I've written to every Supreme Court justice individually; to my two US senators individually, and to my congressman, urging them to resolve this most critical of issues. I urge you to write to your elected officials as well. We the People have the right and the need to know.

Oh yes; please don't bother writing to Mr. Obama; he's not interested in this issue.

Monday, July 13, 2009

Sarah Palin - Independent Candidate

By Conservative Ken

Much has been written in the past two weeks about Sarah Palin's political and financial future since she announced her resignation as Governor of Alaska. Now, I'm not on Mrs. Palin's speed-dial list (to my knowledge), so she hasn't called me to talk things through. That disclaimer aside, I'd like to speculate as to her plans....

As with any politician leaving any significant office, the option for a book-writing deal is most probably out there, especially since Mrs. Palin was the Republican party's nominee for Vice-President in the last election. I'm sure there are plenty of publishers that would offer her upwards of $1 million dollars to pen a "behind the scenes" look at what transpired from the time Mrs. Palin received the call from Senator McCain until her decision to resign the governorship. So, that might be considered choice number one.

Choice number two, given the society in which we live, could be a pending offer to host a television show, much like was offered to Governor Huckabee after his failed presidential campaign. In my mind, that's a bit more risky for Mrs. Palin, as she would constantly be attacked by the Left in a sure-to-be-mounted effort to drive her from the airwaves. She resigned as governor in large part due to the constant attacks upon her, and although somewhat different in nature, she doesn't strike me as someone who particularly wants her family to be under constant attack. All things being equal, who can blame her? So, I don't think the TV route is a likely scenario.

For some reason, I just keep thinking that Mrs. Palin is thinking about forming a new political party. She's seen first-hand how she was sold down the river by the McCain people, and I think she's lost her interest in the Republican party. I would suspect that her new party would be designed to represent what the Republican party used to stand for: conservative fiscal policy, strong military, low taxes, minimal government involvement in our daily lives, pro-life, equal opportunity, and strong foreign policy. I don't think Mrs. Palin thinks the Republican party represents those values very well anymore, and quite honestly, I think she's right. I think the Republican party has been lost for a couple of years, and certainly nominating Senator McCain demonstrated that. Senator McCain is an honorable man, and clearly I supported him during the last election. That said, McCain is not, nor ever has been, a conservative. His campaign was in the tanks until he tapped Mrs. Palin on the shoulder, and suddenly his campaign had life. Sadly, the McCain people succumbed to petty jealously of Mrs. Palin, and the campaign imploded. Oddly enough, while I think an effort to create a viable third national party is admirable, I'm also wondering if Mrs. Palin is considering becoming a Libertarian. There might be an interesting discussion among existing Libertarians and Mrs. Palin, as the Libertarians have struggled mightily to put forth a credible national candidate. Mrs. Palin, regardless of what one may think about her credibility, would draw large crowds, help raise millions of dollars, attract countless frustrated Republicans, and help move the Libertarian party forward in the mainstream. Of course, it would also subject her to the endless attacks she so loathed during the past year, which might be the reason I'm off-base in my speculation.

Whatever Mrs. Palin decides, she will be fun to watch. She's that independent-thinking, strong-willed, self-sufficient woman that the Left always dreamt of - except they never envisioned that woman being a conservative.

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

The Deuce and National Review Online

On April 17, 2009, I posted a piece entitled, The Deuce On Power ( see the April archives for this post ).

On July 7, 2009, David Kahane writing for National Review Online expressed much the same view as I did regarding the Republicans unwillingness to exercise political power. Kahane uses the relentless attacks on Gov. Sarah Palin to demonstrate the willingness of Democrats to exercise political power in order to drive from office a hated Republican enemy.

In short, Republicans can not hope to win the the national gunfight with Democrats when all they bring to the fight is a knife.

Sunday, July 5, 2009

The Deuce and ABC News

We all know the MSM is in love with The Glorious Leader. That's bad. But the MSM has another problem that is, to me, equally worrisome...they're in love with tabloid journalism.

On Wednesday, July 1, 2009, these were the stories that aired, in order, on ABC Evening News, and the amount of air time devoted to each story. "Long" means greater than two minutes; "Medium" means between one and two minutes; "Short" means less than one minute.

1. Michael Jackson's Will and Supposed Drug Use ( long ).

Seriously? This is ABC's lead story? Can you imagine Walter Cronkite leading with this story, or the Huntley-Brinkley Report, or Edward R. Morrow? ABC might as well put out a paper edition that they can sell at the super market checkout line right next to the National Enquirer and Star. I can see a short story later in the broadcast, but to make this your lead and devote so much air time to it is just selling out. What's next? Angelina Jolie Adopts Bigfoot?

2. American Obesity "Crisis" Gets Worse ( medium ).

What the hell is the mystery? Lets see, American kids spend way too much time sitting in front of screens; TV, video games, computers and cell phones. They eat too much fast food because their parents are too busy seeing their shrinks and going to support groups to prepare real meals. Said parents, wanting to be 'friends' with their kids, are too weak to tell their kids to get off their butts and go outside and play. All the 'experts' agree on the needed action; reduce ( tax ) the consumption soft drinks and snack foods; outlaw fast food joints in neighborhoods hit hardest by fatness ( minority 'hoods ); press criminal charges of child endangerment on parents whose kids are obese. Here's the real fix. Parents, severely limit the time your kids spend sitting in front of screens. Problem solved.

3. The California Budget Crisis ( short ).

The most populated state is a few weeks from going broke, and this is the third story...and given less than a minute of airtime? When the Golden State ( no pun intended ) goes bankrupt what do you think they're going to do? They're going to beg Obama for a bailout...and they're going to get it, and the rest of America will be on the hook for another $100 billion in debt. New York to follow in a few months. We should pay for the insanity of these two bastions of liberalism? LET THEM FAIL! It's the only way the respective state houses will be forced to bow to reality.

4. The Soap Opera that is Gov. Sanford of South Carolina ( long ).

Oprah, Dr. Phil and Maurry Povich begged him to come on their TV shows. The MSM loves a political sex scandal. Gov. Sanford couldn't keep his johnson in his pants...and then when the scandal broke, he couldn't keep his mouth shut. He gave interviews to every media outlet except Entertainment Tonight. What a moron. The story deserved about fifteen seconds of air time, which is about fourteen seconds longer than Sanford should have remained in office.

5. The "Coup" In Honduras ( medium ).

First, it wasn't a coup. The sitting president tried to ignore the constitutional limits of his term and so the military ousted him and the new president was allowed to take office. Second, why do we care about what's going on in Honduras? South of the Rio Grande there's nothing but banana republics anyway...that effects America not a whit. It's been that way since the Spanish and the Portuguese gave up their colonies. The MSM loves dictators, God knows why, and they spend an inordinate amount of time chronicling their lust for power. Castro, Chavez or whoever, let them pretend to be democratically elected presidents if that's what they want. Never fear, former president Jimmy Carter will show up down there soon enough to ensure the commies retain their grip on power.

6. Marine Offensive In Afghanistan ( very short ).

This should have been the lead story, but the MSM are tired of stories of the Taliban and Bin Laden. They're so 'yesterday'. Who wants to hear about America's bravest fighting the most backwards and ignorant terrorists on the planet, to keep yet another Muslim country from becoming a safe haven for them? It's not like the war effects America. After all, the Jacko story is much sexier.

7. Fourteen Year Old Girl Survives Yemeni Plane Crash ( short ).

I'm glad she survived. I wish more people had survived. But this is worth air time on the evening news?

8. Americans Overdosing On Over The Counter Acetaminophen Medicines ( long ).

I read the directions and warning labels on all the medicines I take, over the counter or prescribed by my doctor, and adhere to the dosage levels. Apparently a lot of people don't. You can't fix stupid.

9. June Auto Sales ( long ).

Ninth? This should have been in the top three. The auto sector is a huge engine of economic strength and vitality in America. It's health, or lack thereof, is a good indicator of the health of the entire U.S. economy, especially when two of the big three are trying to recover from bankruptcy filings. But hey...fat kids are...well...they're kids!

10. The Sears Tower See-Through Ledge ( short ).

Yawn. I'm more interested in the occupancy rate of the building and what's wrong with the Cubs offense.

11. Actor Karl Malden Dies ( long ).

Well, at least it was last. Karl was a good actor and deserved the send off ABC gave him. And there wasn't one negative thing about how Karl was just a white, heterosexual man who wasn't a vegetarian, polar bear saving, racist, sexist homophobe. Remarkable.

Someone once said that history is written by the winners. Remember, news is written by the elites...and at this point in American history, the elites are not our friends. Pay attention to what is reported and what is not. Pay attention to what is emphasized and what is not. Don't rely on one news source. And remember...EVERYONE has an agenda.

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Happy Birthday.....America?

By Conservative Ken

You know, the 4th of July has always been one of my favorite holidays. I'm a long-time historical nut and grew up in suburban Washington, DC. As such, I spent considerable time in my childhood with my family visiting historical places that were prominent in the birth of our nation. We went to Mount Vernon, Williamsburg, Jamestown, and Yorktown, Virginia; Valley Forge and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and of course numerous sites in Washington, DC and suburban Maryland. Later, Boston, New York, Trenton, and others. My father was very focused upon making sure that his children understood the history of our nation (past and present), and didn't hesitate to spend some time in a car to take us to these places so we could see what we were reading about in school. He wanted us to understand the courage, conviction, passion, and determination of our Founding Fathers and to never forget the sacrifices that they made - and others have continued to make - to provide us an opportunity to live in the greatest nation on earth. This weekend, we celebrate the 233rd birthday of our nation. Our Founding Fathers would hardly recognize their work.

If one spends some time reading The Federalist Papers and contrasts those writings with the functional manner in which the government administers our lives, it's not too difficult to imagine John Adams, Sam Adams, George Washington, or Thomas Jefferson asking us, "what part of liberty don't you understand?" Is that Ben Franklin saying, "guys, we were trying to give you a country in which the government didn't intervene in every part of your lives". I think I can picture Thomas Payne saying, "the name of my publication was "Common Sense". And, I'm pretty sure that Patrick Henry didn't say, "give me an overbearing government or give me death".

Sadly, the truth is that our nation is moving farther and farther away from its history and roots. Our history is being hijacked by the politically correct crowds as part of an effort to demonize the concepts of self-reliance, self-determination, sacrifice, and risk; and to replace them with concepts such as cradle-to-grave protection, socialism, popularity, and guaranteed equality of results. To those of us for whom our heritage remains an important aspect of the American life, a new awakening must take place that will focus the values and relevance of our past and effectively bind them to our present and future as a viable nation and society. For in the absence of such an awakening, the intellectual laziness and political cowardice of today's politicians may well condemn our nation to a second-class status later in this century.

Happy birthday, America.

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

It's Saturday Night.....Live

By Conservative Ken

Even Hubert Humphrey must be turning over in his grave....

Well, the Courts have ruled, and the great state of Minnesota has elected a comedian to the United States Senate. Al Franken, United States Senator. Has a nice ring to it, doesn't it? Now, it would be interesting to me to have a poll conducted in Minnesota to see if the people, eight months after the election, think that sending this comedian to the United States Senate is in their best interests - and in the best interest of the country. For with this decision, the Supreme Court of Minnesota has given our imposter president a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate. While there will be dancing in Georgetown, New York, Chicago, San Francisco, LA, and, oh yes, Duluth, for a few days, the rest of the country will go about its business and not pay too much attention to this event.

Do you think that Al really has a grasp on the issues of the day? If you ever heard his short-lived radio show, you'd have realized pretty quickly that the show was nothing but a stage from which Al continued his comedy-writing career. He took two hours worth of one-liner shots at conservatives and called it "political discourse". Obviously, his national appeal was limited as the show was yanked off the air after losing millions of dollars.

Now, Al will sit in the great halls of the Capital, along side the places where people such as Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, and countless others have worked to make our country the very model of democracy for the world to envy. I can just imagine future generations looking back with wonderment at the legislation authored by the new junior senator from Minnesota. Then again, maybe I can't.

They say we get the government we deserve. If that's true, and I tend to think that it is, then this event is just another reminder that conservatives have much work to do to recapture the political soul of the nation before the great imposter and his minions have the chance to complete their work.