As the year 2010 comes to it's inevitable end, I am reminded that one is never to old to learn or to form and share opinions. I guess I have never been shy about sharing what I think is truth with others, and as I get older I imagine that I will be even more willing to give all of you "young-uns" out there the benefit of my years of living and learning. So here, with some randomness, are some of the things that have achieved clarity in "Dave's world":
Politicians, whether Republican or Democrat, are often narcissistic, non- caring, lifelong bureaucrats. If you (including me) think that kicking a bunch of Liberals out of Government will solve all of our problems, you are sadly mistaken. We need to change the way that politicians think, by holding their feet to the fire, and throwing them out the next time that they are up for reelection.This whole process will take time, perhaps a generation or two, but it needs to happen starting now.
The "x" in the term "xmas" comes from the Greek letter "chi" or "xi". It is often used to abbreviate the name "Christ" and combined with the letter "Rho" it is called the 'labarum" and is used to represent the person of Jesus Christ.
Lee Harvey Oswald was not the lone shooter of JFK on November 22, 1963. I have vacillated and struggled with this whole scenario over the years. The assassination has all of the earmarks of a Mafia triangulation hit. In fact, Oswald may have not been involved at all as a shooter; he may have indeed been the ideal "patsy". I am convinced that the hit was substantially planned and carried out by the Mafia.
Whether you or I want to believe it or not, there is a "God" or higher being responsible for the creation of what we call the "Universe". The concepts of time, creation, life and death are far beyond our ability to comprehend. We can only accept these things by faith, or choose not to believe in all of this "fairy tale" stuff.
I choose to be a believer, but also choose not to try to make you a believer if you are not!
Political correctness is the bane of our existence. I am not saying that everyone does not deserve equal rights and the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. What we don't need is our Government trying to tell us how to accomplish these ideals, live our lives, what to eat, whether or not we can smoke (I choose not to), and giving certain protected minorities a non level playing field; all in the name of political correctness and at the expense of the majority of Americans. I am sorry that slavery occurred, that Native Americans were mistreated, that people in other Countries don't have it as good as we in America do. I wonder when all of this insanity will end. I am afraid that I know the answer: NEVER!!
Our Nation's educational system is in total disrepair. We are striving for mediocrity and ignoring the brightest and best students, in the name of..wait for it.. POLITICAL CORRECTNESS!! Everyone does NOT need an education, everyone does NOT deserve special treatment at the expense of those students who will be our leaders in the future. Throwing money at educational problems and deficiencies will NOT solve these problems; it only adds to those problems. The Department of Education needs to be dismantled. States need to take control of their CITIZENS' education. Children of illegal aliens (I know it's politically incorrect to refer to them as illegal aliens, but I don't care) do NOT deserve to be educated for free in our still somewhat great country. The U.S. ranks, depending on the survey, well out of the top ten, when compared to other Countries, in educational achievement. This is shameful and has happened because of.. here we go again.. POLITICAL CORRECTNESS!!
The Government does not create ANY money. The revenue available to run the Government comes from overburdened American taxpayers! Local and State Governments can be quite creative in raising money. Fines for breaking the law, user fees, tolls, professional fees, licenses, property and sales taxes are some common examples of how Government entities fund their operations. When all is said and done, the average citizen pays over 50% of their income in taxes and fees. Holding the line on the Bush income tax rates is commendable and Obama had no choice but to support this policy. It is laughable to me to hear him try to take the lion's share of the credit for this move. I never met a Democrat, or socialist, as in Obama's case; that didn't think that they couldn't tax their way out of debt or financial difficulties. This was a desperate attempt to try and save his rapidly- fading Presidency. Oh, and notice the "crisis averted" language that is coming from the White House spin machine regarding the tax cuts. If they really believed in tax cuts they would have acted years ago!
Now, let me state another undeniable fact of life. Economic prosperity is "trickle down" and economic poverty is "trickle up." Jobs are created by employers and entrepreneurs who have a product or service to sell to a customer, make a profit, and they then hire people to help make, sell or service that product. When the Government taxes this class of people unreasonably, they make less of that product, lay employees off and keep as much of their investment as they can in order to live their everyday life, all at the expense of their business.It's a pretty simple concept, right?? Apparently it is not, from what I see happening to our business and manufacturing sector in the past decade or so. Paying unemployed people up to three years of unemployment payments is NOT the answer, either! The "trickle up" poverty theory is not as well known. This involves the Government creating a dependency class through entitlement programs such as the following:
Combined Federal, State and Local Welfare Budget, 1992 (millions) Medicaid $118,067 AFDC 24,923 Food Stamps 24,918 Supplemental Security Income 22,774 Lower income housing asst. 12,307 Earned Income Tax Credit 9,553 Veterans medical care 7,838 Stafford loans 5,683 Social Services (Title 20) 5,419 Pell Grants 5,374 Low-rent public housing 5,008 General medical assistance 4,850 Foster Care 4,170 School Lunch 3,895 Pensions for needy veterans 3,667 General Assistance 3,340 Head Start 2,753 Food supplements, Women, infants and children 2,600 Training for disadvantaged youth and adults 1,744 Low-income energy assistance 1,594 Rural housing loans 1,468 Indian Health Services 1,431 Summer youth employment 1,183 Maternal and child health 1,059 JOBS and WIN 1,010 Job Corps 955 Child care block grant 825 School Breakfast 782 Child care for AFDC 755 Nutrition Program for Elderly 659 Housing interest reduction 652 Child and adult care food program 624 "At risk" child care 604
Source: Library of Congress, Congressional Research Service, "Cash and Noncash Benefits for Persons with Limited Income: Eligibility Rules, Recipient and Expenditure Data, FY 1990-92," Report 93-832 EPW and earlier reports.
I have no problem with deserving (again what constitutes "deserving") citizens (I said citizens) receiving help from the Government. We have thrown trillions and trillions of dollars into our "Great Society" programs and have created a permanent underclass of people who will vote for those who will keep them them feeding from the public trough. That, in a nutshell, is how "trickle up poverty" works (or doesn't work.)
If the United States is to continue to exist as a Representative Republic, we need to get back to basics: follow the Constitution, elect or appoint judges who will not legislate from the bench, quit pandering to special interest groups, restore the work ethic and elect people at every level who believe in, and will stand up for, the principles that once made America a great Nation.
I have tried to share some of my thoughts and beliefs with you. I know that you will agree with me on all, some or none of the above. It doesn't matter, as we live in a country where open and frank discussion of issues is one of our basic freedoms. I am fearful that our Government is on the brink of trying to take some of these basic rights away from us. That, however, is fodder for discussion at another time!
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