An Elitist Snob's Somewhat Skewed View.

I had the unfortunate opportunity to listen to Michael Medved on his Nationally syndicated radio program today for a few short minutes before turning to another venue when I couldn't stand another sentence about the food stamp program in America and how it is taken advantage of by so many people, that the program is basically useless and had I spent any more time listening to his whining would probably have called for an end to the program. I also, went on a web site with current transcripts of one of his shows about the homeless in America, scanned the material and decided it wasn't worth the complete read. This guy is an example of a conservative rich guy (and in principle there is nothing wrong with either the conservative or rich, personally I'm one but not the other and would like to be both if the opportunity arose)who not only lacks experience with the "ragged ass masses" but is devoid of compassion for his fellow man. Every time Michael opens his mouth and spouts off about the ills in America and criticizes those who are forced to go to the government for aid, just shows his lack of life experience and exposure to real life in America. He always has a pile of statistics and reports to quote from but never any real life examples. I have never been a recipient of food stamps, but, I have lived in a large city, Chicago, in the inner city close to the what suburban people would call "the ghetto" and have observed and interacted with many of the residents there. In the five years my wife and I shopped at inner city food stores that bordered on what was once called "hillbilly heaven" and uptown (that's uptown of the 80's) and stood in many a checkout line, we were able to see quite a few food stamp purchases. In that time we saw only one person who I would classify as a fraud. A woman in a floor length fur coat who split the order between food goods and non program items like cigarettes and liquor which she paid for with cash from a large roll of bills, for some reason that image has stuck with me and helped me look for a better understanding of those less fortunate than myself. The others I have observed have always appeared to be glad to have the assistance so they could feed themselves and their families. It was usually easy to pick them out, aside from the stamps they handed to the cashier in that they all looked like life was dealing them less than a great hand. Now I suppose to the casual elitist observer these downtrodden looking types are all fakes who should get a job and make a contribution to society instead of always taking handouts. The fact of the matter is that not all people are capable of earning higher incomes for a myriad of reasons, and maybe, just maybe they are doing the best they can with what God gave them. I know this may be a novel concept to an over educated elitist, but this is a small taste of real life on planet earth. These are by the way many of the same people who are forced to frequent food banks to again feed themselves and their families. I will readily admit, again, there are abuses in this system but not nearly as many as one radio commentator would think.

As we are being forced to become more of a service economy the wages are by and large lowered. Large service type companies attempt to keep as many workers on part time status as possible to maintain low overhead costs, they do not have to pay benefits to part time help and they can depress wages at the same time, all at the expense of the worker. As fuel goes up and utilities go up, rent goes up then food goes up for various reasons but wages stay the same and it reaches a point where the lower wage earners are basically going backward. I will only shop at a certain chain when it is a last resort as I refuse to shop where American workers are taken advantage of. Ah, the creation of a permanent lower class, but this should be of no surprise to anyone. Well I guess this doesn't have a lot of meaning to someone who makes millions per year as small rises in prices and costs of living don't really affect higher income earners in their daily lives, I only wish they all had to spend some time in another man's shoes and maybe they would gain a better understanding of reality. I don't advocate or for that matter wish a long term exposure to this other guy's shoes experience, as being poor hits home almost instantly and is difficult if not impossible to forget. And for all of you skeptics out there, those who have the ability usually climb out of poverty, as getting out of poverty itself is a great motivator.

The Homeless is something I have quite a bit of experience with and will address it tomorrow at length. I really want to go back and read Mr. Medved's transcript again as I look forward addressing his opinions and views.

Equal Rights For Everyone !

I think that the Reverend Dr Jerimiah Wright, Louis Farrakhan, Barak Obama, Malik Shabaz and all of other whining white haters that the mainstream media continues to put on television night after night trying to convince us that they are the real downtrodden are right, and in fact should have the same rights and privileges that the rest of America has. But before they get to take advantage of all of the same rights we, the white devils, have they are going to have to give up a few of the exclusive rights and privileges they have managed to get from the government in it's efforts to move minorities into the mainstream so they can enjoy all of the same prosperity that the rest of us enjoy. If they want what we have they will have to give up all of the education subsidies that they currently have. You see, by and large white America pays for it's own education without government assistance . Whether outright or in the form of college loans white America pays, sooooo to be like us, have mom and dad indemnify themselves up to their collective necks so junior can get that education and have a better life than they have. It's easy, you only have to go without most luxuries for the period of time it takes to get the kids educated and then pay off their loans for them until they are able to do so themselves when they get that good first job out of school, about four to six years per child. And since they are the children of white people they will have to work like dogs to stay in school, get the course curriculum they want and will have to get some kind of job to help defray their expenses while in school.

Next is affirmative action, a great idea and a way to get minorities into the mainstream workplace and give them a leg up so to speak. Welllllll, in the new system this goes out the window and it's now the guy or gal who gets the job is the one best qualified or whoever impresses the new prospective employer as the most capable. With this comes some of the following;
1. If the boss decided that he or she no longer likes you for some reason they can let you go without fear of a law suit for discrimination.
2. Performance down a little this quarter, well there's the door and don't the door knob hit you in the ass as you leave. That by the way is an old "white" axiom that every "white" guy learns when going into the workplace.
3. Most "white " people start at the bottom and work their up through job performance. In most instances this takes a great deal of time and effort in the form of continuing education to upgrade credentials (that the employee often pays for out of pocket) and taking on responsibility whenever offered.


As the old slogan goes, "There ain't no more free lunch" when we are all equal. Everyone will be on a level playing field. Abortion, pay for it yourself, no government help of any kind. Your house blows away, take what little the government gives you and in most cases it's just a loan guarantee but you still have to repay the loan, then shut your mouth like the rest of middle America and go to work rebuilding your life. And you can't make a public stink when you don't get that coveted job you have been after for some time. You got to move on with you life as little obstacles are put in your path to success.

And now for the last and I hope the best. There will be no redistribution of wealth in America when we are all equal. Socialism has not worked in other countries and will not work here. You could take all of the money that white America has amassed and spread it evenly throughout the total population and within three to five years everything would be back as it was with few exceptions. For the most part wealth and success are earned through working hard and working smart.

Here's how things work in white America from my vantage point. We all have to work hard and smart for each and everything we get. I can only speak for myself when I say that I have never been given anything because I was white. I have been fired by greedy bosses who thought they would benefit completely from my hard work, and I had no recourse. I have had business fall apart as a result of being discriminated against because of gender (heterosexual male) and have been forced to play stupid office politics to remain employed even though I was performing at prescribed levels and above. I have had to work for people who I would not hire on a dare as they were completely incompetent yet somehow ascended to the ungodly high management position that was at least three steps beyond their capability. White people get in trouble if they make racially inflammatory statements and espouse hate rhetoric and in fact are shunned by most white people as this is considered unacceptable behavior and this does not require legislation, most people I know are just that sensible, what do you think of that Rev Dr Wright.

I know, I have harped on this before and will harp on it again today. The only way to end racism, both white and black is through assimilation. This is one of the most feared words of the white or black separatist and really cranks my daughter off, but it is true. If we were all living together we would all pretty much adopt the same viewpoint. Whites would see that blacks and other minorities have the same wants and desires that they do and vise-versa. This is never going to happen as long as the vitriol spewing hate mongers continue polluting the minds of those people they come in contact with under the guise of making a better life for them.

The Morning TV News Or - There's Something About The Smell B _ _ _ S _ _ T In The Air !

I try to catch the news every morning before going to work to get a quick picture of what may be going on in the world that may effect everyone's lives, and so far this week the only real news worthy item has been Tibet. I thought I would run down a list of items from this morning's news that are absolutely worthless in my opinion, and hopefully, later in the day something will appear that will be cause for some kind of meaningful commentary. I am not going to rank these so called news stories but I will tell you I got part from the good people at America's News Room on Fox, they got very animated over these, my best guess is that they were threatened with electric shock if they didn't make these sound really big. And the other information came from Yahoo News on the Internet and the news papers.

1. The Midwest floods. This has to be one of the lamest pieces of coverage ever shoveled through the airwaves. It floods near these rivers every year and has forever. Some years are worse than others, but, the flooding is there year after year. Remedy for all of those whining people that want their fifteen seconds in the TV spotlight - MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND.

2. SLA member getting parole. There's no excuse for what this dummy did when she was young. The police would like to see her finish her full sentence, she's served half a sentence and even though the police union isn't happy I really don't think she's much of a threat. By the time her parole is over, and I can only guess that she better not make any mistakes while on parole, she will be to damn old to cause any more trouble. Since she was involved in a bank robbery where someone was killed I would like to see any proceeds from books, movies etc go to the persons' family and she should never profit as much as a dime.

3. The NY crane incident. Come on now, this was not another 911. Give it a rest, prosecute the inspector and stop with the blow by blow reporting.

4. Tibet - being slowly pushed to the way back burner, I can't stand Nancy Polosi but, she is the only government official who appears to have the balls to confront this issue.

5. Bill Richardson backing Barak Obama - Here's a good guy who couldn't get enough votes in his own state to be elected dog catcher in the primaries and he steps up to the plate for this goof. Bill, Bill, Bill.

6. The bombing of a Spanish Police station. What else is new from the Basque region, smoke out these terrorists and finish them off once and for all would be a good solution.

7. The killer sting-ray. If I have to watch Megyn Kelly on Fox show her phony astonishment and horror for this dastardly act one more time I am going to look for a large ray to take me out. Between her and Bill Hemmer I don't know which one of these Cupie dolls is going to call for the wing clipping of all rays in the ocean. I can only wonder when they will insinuate liberal conspiracy.

8. And the best of the day is the trademark infringement case involving members of the Beach Boys. This doesn't even rate as garbage, what a waste of finger strokes on the keyboard. How can news organizations think something is relevant when they never were relevant, they were a band, not world leaders, they didn't shape policy, end the Vietnam War or cure acne, they wrote songs to dance to, their records (yes records, for those of you to young to remember records-records were disc shaped vinyl recording devices the size of a dinner plate and turned at 33 1/3 rpm providing the same form of entertainment that you get from Cd's and Mp3 players today) entertained us at high school parties and provide some background music while you were trying to get laid in back seat of your fathers 68' Chevy.

Well I guess I'm going to go home early, it is Good Friday and my wife is off early and we are going to lunch then I'll watch some news, read the paper and see if there is some small tidbit of news being overlooked that deserves commentary. I'm sure I'll find something that the mainstream media is overlooking that actually is newsworthy.

Why Would Tibet Want Independence From A Great Country Like China ?

I had the opportunity to travel to China twice in the last three years for business which I feel qualifies me to write about the current state of affairs going on there. The protests in Tibet are what really have caused me to write about this issue. No matter what you hear and how many times the Chinese ambassador to the United States comes on the nightly news telling us that China is our friend, keep in mind that China is a communist country that is ruled with an iron fist, worse, a military that strikes fear into each and every citizen and secret police and propaganda organizations that rival the KGB in old Russia. That the Chinese government would like nothing more than to crush the United States and make us another captive nation and I believe if they stay with their current system will one day try either through economic extortion or a military confrontation. I spent about two weeks there each time, and two weeks seemed to be the absolute number that a freedom loving person like myself could stand. No matter how much those commies try to make things palatable for American businessmen it still is not a free country and is quite noticeable to one who has been raised in a democracy. The media is state controlled, that includes press, radio and television. By controlled I mean the government or some puppet office tells the outlets what they will say and how they will deliver it. They censor all outside material that comes into the country, down to words and phrases in old US produced television shows. The picture that outsiders see is one of prosperity and contentment, this couldn't be further from the truth. There is poverty and disease on a gargantuan scale, remember they have around a billion and a half people and only about one seventh of the population are employed in modern industrial jobs the rest live and work in basically an agrarian society with just above stone age technology. True, their economy is on fire from a growth standpoint but, it is far from a competitive situation in that the Chinese government carefully controls their currency and will not allow it to float with other currencies around the globe. I guess for companies having goods manufactured in China there is a huge cost incentive to being there and I hope that is their only incentive and that they never think they will have any influence over the government. I don't believe the Chinese government has any plan either near or far term for conversion to a market economy, they are communist through and through. Which brings us full circle to Tibet.

Communist countries do not relinquish control over their captive states, they can only exist by wielding absolute control, and this is accomplished through fear, intimidation and outright brutality. Aside from being an independent nation Tibet has been in the hands of the Mongols, the Chinese, the British and then annexed completely in 1951 by the Communist Chinese who by the way proceeded to destroy over two thousand six hundred Buddhist monasteries in the name of the state religion communism and it's principle deity Mao during the cultural revolution in 1966. You see, communist governments like that of China take away all personal freedom, which we in the United States take for granted, outlaw any organized religion because that can lead to individual thought, compassion for one's fellow man, equality, morality, spirituality and a level of enlightenment that may jeopardize their pitiful form of government. It doesn't matter that the religion, Buddhism in this case, preaches and practices non-violence, morality and respect of one and other, to the contrary, these are ideals that are diametrically opposed to the communist ideology. The Chinese have even tried to fake in their own replacement for the Dali Lama to pretty much no avail in an effort to placate the Tibetan people. They, the Chinese government took over the picking and educating the replacement Lamas. Their efforts are seen as the same way they allowed the Shaolin Temples to reopen, the occupants of the Shaolin Temples are by and large military and not real Shaolin Monks, created as a showcase to project some phony cultural thing to the culturally deprived in the west. The big difference in Tibet is that the Tibetan people have apparently lived with this fraud long enough and are willing to risk their lives to try to change the system. The first time the Tibetan people rioted against the Chinese in 1959, eighty seven thousand were killed and with the size and current sophistication of the Chinese army it would be easy to replicate that feat of murderous behavior. Because the Olympics are close at hand the Chinese government will most likely move quickly to quiet this uprising, cut some backroom deals with the governments of the world to buy their silence, leaving only the image of a peaceful orderly country that wants to be friends with the rest of the world. Sadly, as in the past, nothing will be done to pressure the Chinese government to allow for a free Tibet.

No human deserves to live in bondage.

Social Security + Private Retirement Accounts + Bear Stearns + Mumbo Jumbo + Jibber Jabber + Politalk (or Politispeak) = An Impending Screwjob !

After the news of Bear Stearns fall this past week it brought to mind the recent push by the President for private Social Security/Retirement accounts. I am far from a financial guy, probably as far as one can get and maybe that's good for a change. As hard as I try I can't seem to grow wings on this Do Do bird of a concept. Mr. Bush in one of his explanations put it this way one evening on television, I believe he said, (use a drawl when reading this) here's how government economics works-the money comes in and the money goes out, where we need it. Having been a viewer on the evening the President made this statement I decided to read some of the Social Security Act myself. Now, I am also not a lawyer and don't play one on stage or screen, so I read parts of the Act and think I have a basic understanding of what they set out to accomplish in 1935. Social Security was set up as a separate account to be contributed into by working Americans who would in turn be paid monthly by the government, after their 65th birthday, and the amount would be determined by how much they made and paid into their Social Security account. There was something about the money being in interest bearing accounts, probably something safe like savings bonds. Simple and to the point. I did not however, see anything that said the government can take the money as it comes in and spend it as it sees fit and there was also, nothing in the Act that said the government could or would come back later and tell the American people that the system was broke and that it was essentially their (the American people's) fault. Then try to shove an idea, that had not been fully thought through, up the collective rear ends of working Americans by a guy who would never have to rely on Social Security as even a small part of his retirement income, this also, applies to any in Congress or the Senate that backed him up on this one as they get a nice fat retirement package from the government that far exceeds Social Security for far less work than even the laziest of American workers. These by the way are the same legislators who would like to extend Social Security benefits, to illegal aliens and other miscreants who don't qualify for participation in the program to begin with. Which gets me back to how I started thinking about this again to begin with. The great and venerable Bear Stearns, who by the way, you could have an IRA or 401 with until this last week tanked. This would indicate to me that they had less than perceptive managers in their employ which means their 401's and IRA's more than likely took severe beatings or tanked just like the company, they probably did not misuse the actual funds, only mismanaged what they had. So, if the majority of Americans, as the President suggested, had their hard earned pretax dollars with the likes of the great and venerable Bear Stearns what would the outcome have been had say Joe Blaphus (average citizen) been ready to retire today, I think he (Joe Blaphus) would be screwed. He could write the President and tell him what a bad idea this was and beg to bring back Social Security as it was originally laid out only to get a response back about the large volume of email that comes into the White House on a myriad of subjects, that they appreciate hearing from each and every American, but don't expect a response because they are all hiding in a soundproof bunker somewhere working on the next scam. Sometime in the future this concept may be able to be revived , refined to protect the American worker and be really meaningful. But in the current climate of Political corruption and corporate greed it would only result in a no win for those who need the assistance it later on.

Make A Friend It'll Make A Difference

As I am tiring of the Barak Obama circus evolving before America on TV, I have been tossing some ideas around in my head for the last couple of days. I have been trying to come up with ways to bridge the barriers that separate many of us Americans from one and other. Cast ideologies aside for a minute and take a practical look at the world going on around us all. We would all like to be able to live the American dream, for those of you who are clueless they are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Now this may be confusing so I will try in my own way to explain what I think these things mean. Life, an interesting concept in itself. We who are Christians are told that if we are basically good, believe in God, do good things and are sorry for our transgressions we will go to a place called Heaven for eternity and things there will be real gooood. Now there are little twists added by other religions but they all have distinct parallels to one and other and basically preach the same rhetoric. Getting back to life, it's been my experience from talking to different groups of people over the years that we all have the same basic wants and desires, it's true, whether the person I talk to is White, Black, Asian or Hispanic they are all after the same thing, a good life for themselves and their families. They want access to good jobs, good schools and for the most part they are all willing to do whatever is necessary to reach these ends. The way I have approached this with these different people is usually in conversations about our children, which I have found out that right there, we have a great deal in common because all kid's are pretty much the same. Then the conversations usually drift to what we are all after and that is what I have described above. The rest should be givens and I don't know how much I have to elaborate on Liberty means being free and the pursuit of happiness, is well, the pursuit of happiness. If an explanation is needed, comment, and I can add to this blog.

Which gets me to the point of this blog today, Make A Friend, it's kind of a novel ides in that it would probably be the end of racism, racial separatism, supremacist movements, get rotten politicians out of office, reduce crime etc...etc...I have had the good fortune to make friends with a very diverse group of people in my life and credit this with my attitudes towards most people (I will put the caveat in at the end). I have had the opportunity to make friends with a couple of Hispanic people and gained gained great insights into how much the same we are. I had the good fortune to make friends with Black people over the years through my membership in a particular fraternal organization and have had the opportunity to test these relationships over time and they have held up quite well. And again I found out that we have identical wants and desires. I have also, made friends with Asians and had the same results. So, how does one go about making friends with those not like themselves? First I would say, that we should become color blind when it comes to those we come in contact with every day, look at everyone as your equal, if you can't do that right away at least look at them as a member in good standing of this earth that we inhabit. Make a point when you pass people on the street to acknowledge that they exist. A smile goes a long way and maybe one day as you pass one of these people say a simple hello or how are you today. I am not telling you that you have to propose marriage to the person just a simple hello. When you encounter a clerk in a store look them in the eye and smile, a smile really goes a long way. If you are lucky you may actually make friends with someone a little different than yourself and have the same enriching experiences I have been accorded. I will not tell you that I run into the streets trying to make friends with everyone in arms reach, far from it. But turning away from others because of unfounded fears, differences in appearance and speech will only help divisive leaders and their movements to continue to wield power and influence. We should not have to legislate against discrimination of any kind, we should not have to punish one group for what happened before anyone alive in the world today was even thought of. Rights should be equal, we all are of similar intelligence and can all accept blood transfusions from one and other which should be a clear indication we are all from the same mold with little modifications in appearance along the way. This is 2008 and we should all know better by now. There's a catch to all of this, if you make a friend who is "different" than you, you can't do this to just tell others you have a friend who is black, white, hispanic, asian or from whatever racial or ethnic group. Remember the trick is to become "color blind". It isn't easy making good friends and I can attest to that, most of us only have a few in this life, so there is a tough job ahead for anyone who decides to tackle this one.

Now for the caveat; Be vigilant when going out into the world. Though most people are good and decent there are those who will do you wrong.

So you don't get the wrong impression of me and think I have gone soft and headed left, I am all for; Making the tax cuts permanent, a strong military, crushing the Taliban, finding and neutralizing Osama Bin Laden, the Fed's getting Tony Rezko to rollover on Blagojevich and Barak, no new taxes, making politicians accountable, no ear marks and totally against socialized medicine.

Conspiracy Theories And The Bull S _ _ t Artist's That Deliver Them To Us !

I listened to the utube rant by the ever popular Rev, Dr. Jeremiah Wright, you know, Barak Obama's personal minister and confidant, because the topic of today's blog is conspiracy theories, the bull s _ _ t artist's we hear them from and how accurate they actually are. Since he covered most of the big one's from the last forty years I thought I might elaborate on several of them to see if they in fact, hold water. Let's look at AIDS first, Rev, Dr says this was produced by the US government to essentially eradicate the black or African American. The good Rev needs to do some homework on this one. Though many theories abound, one of those that holds a fair amount of water states that is was derived from Hepatitis B vaccine that was administered to Africans (where, by the way Rev Dr., the disease has and continues to be an epidemic, and since we are dealing with a self proclaimed holy guy, biblical in proportion) and homosexual men in New York back in the early to mid seventies if I am correct. I once again have modest experience on a topic, as I worked with many homosexual men in and around the visual merchandising arena when I had the opportunity to run the day to day operations of a textile printing company that dealt with primarily visual people and employed many of the same who were openly "gay"( I for my part though, am happily heterosexual, always have been and see no chance of making a change but may write about this issue sometime in the future to the ire of a few uptight folks out there in blog land). Back to the business at hand, homosexuals or gays as I will call them today, to show how current I am with my thinking, as some of you may recall did not heed the warnings to refrain from unprotected sex in the early days as well as currently, this caused the disease to spread through the gay community like a wildfire in the parched hills of southern California. I worked out there in the late eighties and saw the aftermath of this irresponsible behavior with the unending string of funerals for those who had not listened to the voice of reason. I also, had a next door neighbor, growing up who was gay, and as my sisters said was handsome to the point of being gorgeous. After college he went to San Francisco in the early seventies as an architect, contracted Aids and subsequently died from it's effects. It was a very sad thing as we had all grown up together and he was in fact a good and descent person, I don't know why I actually bring him up other than to underscore that I really don't think his death was part of a government conspiracy. Anyway, historically there has been more IV drug usage in the black community as well as men having multiple sex partners which are two of the principle causes of the spread of Aids. Also, take into consideration lack of protection when having sex and the results are predictable. Soooooooo Reverend without going any further on this one, I say you are full of what you say God is tired of at the end of your sermon/rant.

Next, the number of Blacks, African Americans in our prisons being disproportionate to the numbers of whites in prison is clearly a sign of discrimination and a government conspiracy-----wrong again. There has been some discrimination in the past, possibly in the number of black men being sentenced to death, but the large numbers of black men is the prison system are the most true indication that they commit the most crimes punishable by prison sentences and that's not racism it's a fact. The government actually spends billions on programs attempting to educate people in areas where poverty exists to try to stem the increase of violent crime. Some of the reasons the crime statistics are so high in predominately black areas are, low education levels, single parent households, illegal drugs, gang activity and the list goes on. I will be condemned by many for the next statement but, assimilation is the only answer to ending this problem and people like the good Rev Dr don't want this because that's where his money and power come from, so they preach black theology and some hybrid forms of separatism to their followers as the way for the black man/woman to get ahead. From an observers standpoint I would say that programs such a scattered site housing ( the tearing down of tenements "projects" in the major cities have been far more successful than most other methods in stopping poverty and helping people get ahead) are largely successful in that people mired in poverty and the effects of poverty are moved to non blighted areas, moved into a new home and given an FHA guaranteed mortgage, yes I say given, those who cannot qualify at all are put into a new rental which is heavily subsidized,allowing them the same opportunity to become part of a community and break with the cycle of poverty and the associated ills they have come from. These are new homes to live in and the opportunity to become part of a vibrant community. It has been pretty well proved out that the second generation will assimilate with those around them and adopt the same values as those they associate with daily. Then like most Americans they get on with the pursuit of making a good life for themselves and their families. Soooooooo Reverend without going further, and I can go on and on if mildly pressed, I will move on.

I am getting bored with this guy, he makes one statement after another with only a grain of truth to each and then twists it to fit his particular sermon/rant for the day. The idea that he would place any blame for occurrences like the World Trade Towers on the US or insinuate that God was punishing the US is despicable at best. To side with oppressive regimes in Libya (at the time the world leader and financier in the export of terrorism), Grenada (remember Castro sent his troops there), Panama (the unofficial drug staging point for South American drug cartels) and the ever popular Haiti shows he needs to do some serious studying of real history. He hates Israel and rants that they oppress the Palestinians, that the US conspires with them in their Zionist oppression. Here's a little factoid that he and all of the other Jew bathers never bring up. The US sent billions to the infamous Yasser Arafat to help in the construction of Palestine, to help educate and provide for the people he ruled over with the PLO only to have Mr. Arafat and his cronies steal most of the money and place it safely in Swiss Bank accounts for themselves, also, I should mention that he used significant amounts of the US aid to fund terrorism from his base in Palestine and around the middle east. I will leave this guy on one final note, his comment of the abandoning of the cities in the sixties, only half true. Once again billions have been "dumped" into the great cities of America to no avail. The money falls into the hands of the politicians, is skimmed off and never reaches the people it was intended to help. But the reality of this is that the Rev Dr wants the status quo to remain unchanged because without the followers he has, he would lose his income, power base and bully pulpit to spew more lies and stir more discontent. Although I think a guy like this, had he been straight from the beginning would have been successful and a far better example to "his" people. Remember the old axiom Mr. Obama, birds of a feather flock together. Hey, I wonder if Tony Rezko has ever heard that one.

Sometimes a day off is the best medicine.

Due to family issues I have opted to not write today. There is an old saying we used to recite when I was an Army scout pilot back in my great war (Vietnam). "Sometimes you get the bear and sometimes the bear gets you". Kind of a philosophical approach to life that has served me well over the years. Well, today the bear got me and I have to take it in stride since the bear really doesn't get me very often. It was kind of a slow news day anyway, but, if there's one thing I know for sure, some politician, business mogul, clergy or big shot commentator will make a statement or at the very least do something to shame themselves and everyone around them and that's when I will be inspired to get writing.

Is that an anti-missile-missile in your pocket or are you just happy to see me !

When listening to various commentaries and commentators as in the case of the publisher/editor of The Nation, one would think that as soon as we destroy all of our offensive and defensive systems there will be immediate world peace. That all of the countries of the world will come together as brothers and sisters and we will all walk off into the sunset hand in hand singing songs of love and respect for one and other, OK you can puke now. Though this may be a noble idea and occupy the time of some left leaning ninnies who smoked to much dope during their formative years leaving them with a clouded view of reality, it ain't gonna happen. Here are a few facts that are often overlooked and definitely not addressed in public and private when these peacenik types blow off steam in their attempts to recruit followers to their flawed ideology. The Chinese are increasing spending on their military at astronomical rates, not to catch up with the US as some think but to have the largest and most powerful military in the world (I wonder what for if they are a peaceful nation that respects all life as they claim), I really don't think that our government wants to take on a billion and a half more on our welfare rolls and more importantly China has nothing to really offer us in the form of resources that will benefit us other than possibly some new recipes for Chinese food and we can get them off the Internet for free. Also, the Chinese are developing similar missile systems (they more than likely bought the technology from some traitor scumbag or politician here), evidenced by their successful destruction of one of their old communications satellites recently. Now if that is not enough our good friends, who by the way are not a Democracy in any sense of the word, the former communist and now nationalist Russia (I can't really understand the difference since it operates basically the same as before the "fall"), who wants no part of the missile defense systems we and the Polish government (by the way who really wants the system) are going to put on Polish soil. Do you think that maybe the Polish know something we don't. That they never want to live under an oppressive system again, that they still smart from the beating they took from the Germans in WWII from their complete and total lack of preparation and the subsequent take over by the Soviets after the war. Prior to the Germans rolling over the Polish Army at the beginning of WWII the Polish people thought of themselves as enlightened. The Big One, the War to end all Wars (WWI) had ended and they thought the German's had learned their lesson, that strong armies were no longer needed, wrong. I believe that we, as leaders of the free world, have an obligation to develop defensive systems that in effect neutralize the offensive systems that our "enemies continue to develop. If an enemy cannot use an offensive weapon system to extort concessions from their neighbors they will ultimately be forced to deal with them peacefully. I am not the greatest fan of Ronald Regan, but, he did do some very good things and SDI, now evolved into the Missile Defense Agency, was probably the best. Well it's good to listen to someone who is so far left that they not only miss the small stuff but the big stuff as well, while trying to deliver their message (whatever that is) to anyone who will listen, because without her I wouldn't have come up with a topic like this one for today.

Who do you think you are, The Sultan of Brunei ?

With the revelations yesterday regarding the Eliot Spitzer - aka, The Governor of New York - aka, "Sheriff of Wall Street" - aka, Eliot "Ness" - aka, Client 9 - aka, john I am able to make my plea once again about the really rich and privileged (running for) buying political offices. I have said over and over, before anyone is allowed to run for or hold political office they should be required to work and live like the vast majority of Americans to have a feel for what it is like to make an honest living in America today. These spoiled children of the rich who feel high political office is their birthright could not be more wrong as evidenced with the current administration in Washington and the cast of characters they have assembled. I see nothing wrong with taking an individual who wants to run for political office, making that individual go through the employment process. Start at the bottom, as most Americans do, work their way up the ladder and advance based on their smarts and talent. Get a genuine feel for how it is to live on a budget, interact with fellow workers and then carry out the orders of others regardless of how ridiculous they may be sometimes. After completing this "apprenticeship" they can be cleared to run for public office if they pass a COMMON SENSE test devised by the American public, which would help in preventing elected officials from demeaning the offices they hold and making their country a laughing stock on the world stage. The hardest part of this required toil and the catch if it can be called a catch, is that they would not be allowed to have access to any family contacts or any of their vast wealth while going through this process. They would have to start out like most people do, with nothing. The list of incompetent Politicians not in touch with the American public, in and out of office is almost endless, so I thought I might toss out a few names and you can try to figure how things may have turned if they were never elected, had not taken the place of someone who could have actually made a difference for America and not just themselves and their elite friends. George Bush 1 & 2, Eliot Spitzer, Mitt Romney, Ted Kennedy and all of the Kennedy Heirs are just a few current examples. Wealth does not turn you into royalty, leadership is not a birthright as some think and high office should not be reserved for only those who can buy it.

The Media, when wrong is right----not !

The Prince Harry reporting debacle is one of the latest examples of the irresponsible behavior the media displays almost daily. To intentionally endanger this young man's life is despicable, but the other lives thrown into the mix make the offense even worse. The reality of this situation is that the public really didn't need have a need to know and the whole reason for the leaking of the information was to sell magazines and soap, greed was the total motivation as it is with most media outlets. The media(print, broadcast, etc...etc...)has never been perfect, but the last twenty years or so has seen a slide downward with no end in sight. The latest mess with Mr. Obama is another example of biased reporting. The mainstream media refuses to accept the fact that this guy is bad news and should be avoided like crabs on a toilet seat. The media will do almost anything to keep this anti-American creep in the race because he garners viewers, listeners and readers and that equates to money and power.

Print has finally caught up with television and radio for biased and often inaccurate content as well as whoring themselves for any story, but it's too late for print to recover as the Internet is killing the medium. Reporting continues to become more and more biased either to the right or left depending on the outlet and stories not reported in their entirety to get the story across with a particular lean, accuracy is not paramount. What is equally sad is the quality of the people making the delivery itself, there are more douche bags who should be working the french fry machine at the local McDonald's, sitting in front of cameras and talking into microphones today, than ever before. Writers spin their yarns leaving out as many actual facts as possible, talk radio personalities spew vitriol at anyone who even moderately opposes their far right or left views and when confronted with facts, make quick use of the cut off switch, then rail at the caller for being either a fascist, commie, socialist or just a plain and simple unenlightened moron. Television is populated by similar types only not as intelligent as their contemporaries in print and radio. This group possess certain physical traits that appeal to and attract viewers, they run the gamut from super models to Trolls (I apologize if I have offended any Trolls). They are not in the same league with their contemporaries in radio when it comes to intelligence as their comments are provided to them by writers and twisted by producers who are as bright as the talk show people, thus the name talking heads. The television types occasionally drift off on their own and generally make asses of themselves in the process. What it all boils down to is that we the reading, listening, viewing public rarely get an accurate picture of what is really going on around us. Radio and television are very powerful mediums, and the people who run the outlets really know this. They would like to think they have control over the hearts and minds of their viewers, listeners and readers. As I am unaware of any unbiased outlets I have been trying this simple little exercise for some time and the results have been amazing, it works like this. I listen to several points of view each morning and evening, I don't spend a huge amount of time listening as it is usually easy to get the point they are all trying to get across, then I either sit and think about what I have taken or better yet go for a short walk which in my case, helps me to think. I then come up with my own opinion, not the hysterical far right or left opinion espoused by the media outlets. Sometimes I do a minimum of research if the subject is somewhat complex, and in the end I am normally in disagreement with both sides' extreme views. This also, helps to keep a touch with reality as these organizations have a strong tendency to preach doctrine that is not only unrealistic, most often left or right Utopian and not practical or attainable in the world we live in. In other words be independent, don't let the media do your thinking, think for yourself and form your own opinions, you'll find out that you're right way more often than they are.

Gun Control ? How about laws with real teeth.

I am a gun owner and target shooter. I am also, a member of the National Rifle Association and wasn't until several weeks ago when some goofy politician called for the complete elimination of all guns. What drove me to write today are the number of shootings in the last few weeks and the killing of a real estate broker in Elmhurst , IL yesterday finally broke the proverbial camel's back. Now don't start to salivate quite yet thinking I am going to call for total elimination of guns. In my humble opinion ( even though I go by Not Opinionated) we need laws that are very clear, long preset sentences with no parole and no appeals for those convicted of gun crimes, harsh sentences for dealers, legal and illegal, who sell to people who are not supposed to have guns to begin with. For starters, murder with a gun should be life without the possibility of parole. If the convicted does not want to spend his or her life behind bars they can opt out for a death sentence but with no appeals. Now that would strike fear into a large percentage of potential gun crime wannabes. For armed robbery, say twenty five years with no parole, and for second offense they get life. The lawyers would want to get things over with as quickly as possible since there wouldn't be much to try to deal out with the courts if there was set sentencing. Lawyers don't like this because they would see diminished revenues, but lawyers are smart and would come up with new ways to make money. There should also be laws in place, and I know privacy is important but saving lives is also, to somehow notify the individual states when someone is treated for a mental illness and make it impossible for that individual to purchase firearms of any kind (reference Northern Illinois University, Virginia). The same applies to anyone who has any kind of a restraining order, DUI, drug bust of any kind and I'm sure with a little imagination the states could narrow things down even more. I know, I know, second amendment rights but there are large numbers of people who should not, by their own issues and or bad behavior, not be allowed to posses guns ever. It is my best guess that our founding fathers would have taken such things into consideration. The police should be notified of restraining orders, convictions and or specific treatments, DMV (at least in Illinois) crosschecked (this only takes a minute by computer) and if the individual shows up as a gun owner or having a gun owners card (a good indication he or she owns or possess a gun) they go to the individuals home and confiscate said weapon of destruction. Sounds simple and in reality would be. Now getting around the privacy issue with regards to the mentally ill could be put through on the grounds that we as a great society and looking out for theirs' and our safety. However, this may be very difficult as the ACLU would ban together with the legitimate legal community to block this at every turn. In the legitimate legal community it's all about revenue and the ACLU is all about, whatever. I am an advocate of an armed populace, but only as a responsible armed populace which is what I truly believe we have. This is a case of closing up holes for those who will harm. The NRA doesn't necessarily care for this type of rhetoric, and if given an inch the anti gun people will take everything, but maybe it's time for both sides to take a practical approach.

I'm Dreaming Of A Combined Ticket

There must be an incredible amount of desperation on both sides of the Democratic campaign. Hillary makes the statement and Barak has yet to refute it as stupid. Their collective ego's must be so big that and they must be getting so desperate that they would consider anything and that's just what this idea falls into the classification of -- anything. A split ticket huh? How will this power sharing fiasco play out, Hillary on top, Barak on top, Hillary and Barak sideways with Bill and Michelle in the middle to mediate (interesting idea but probably not constitutionally possible, although then again it would be a Democratic administration and add Howard Dean to the mix and it may be able to be pulled off-back to the sentence and finish off the main thought) but that wouldn't work because Bill would be preoccupied with trying to get Michelle to give him a _ _ _ _ _ _ _ (you fill this one in) whatever.

Picture this, Hillary and Barak as the President and Vice President pushing their highly publicized policies on the American public. Socialized medicine for all, that includes natural born, naturalized, legally here, illegals and any other group you can throw into the mix, this would be better than a David Lynch movie, only more disjointed and way more confusing. However, there are a few little details they have left out, on the campaign trail, when trying to shove this one up the collective a_ _ _ s of America. First, who is going to pay for this one. Not the rich because Hillary and Barak are both rich, really rich. Not the poor, they couldn't manage this one in their dreams. Well, I guess this leaves only one group, the middle class and that includes the following; whites, blacks, Hispanics, Asians, college students Hoping for change ( since they will get decent jobs when they graduate) and all of the others out there trying to make an honest living. As I have only a little experience with socialized medicine, let me relate what I have seen firsthand. First, young people go to the front of the line and in the world of socialized medicine the next logical move is to push those older to the back of the treatment line. For those of you still enamoured with this concept picture this, you in your mid-fifties (for you college students Hoping for Change, your parents are not far from this age-remember this point) have a curable illness but it requires immediate attention and you will fully recover. You call your HMO (that's what socialized medicine will be forget the PPO choose your own doctor concept---if your to young and don't remember ask your parents, HMO is synonymous with bad care and service) they ask for your social security number and the correct spelling of your last name along with the names of your children, wife, partner and last three deceased pets only to tell you it will be several weeks, maybe months before you can get in to see a Doctor or better yet a doctors assistant. This scenario is true, it happens in Canada every day, my wife's uncle was 72, healthy and had cancer, they put him off twelve weeks to start treatment because that is where he fell in the treatment line because of his age (he died). Don't think our system will be any better for a minute, the bureaucracy needed to run this one will be the largest in history. The Doctors that sign on will be bottom feeders whose only motivation will be trying to wring a fortune from collecting government checks, in this system the less a doctor treats, the more he makes, which is very similar to the old HMO system which is why HMO was always less than PPO and other programs that were at least favoring the patient . No amount of screaming, begging, pleading will get you there quicker.

Enough of the above nightmare, back to the combined ticket. First of all, Hillary is over sixty ( sixty one this year) and wants this job now, and I mean now. She ain't no VP and has never indicated any desire to be one. So I guess this means Barak will have to take second place on the ticket because there is no question who will win in a fight, Hillary at least stands and answers tough questions while Barak heads for the hills when the heat is barely on, so four or eight years of endless trips to obscure places and only the annual showing at the State of the Union address will be his fate. One good thing that would come from this VP job is that he would get to do an awful lot of research on his roots, because that is where Hillary would send him for the term/terms. Hey, the upside is the second language he will learn. There is no doubt that Barak is an incredibly bright man and as such sees this idea as really stupid. He knows that during the four or eight years of tax increases and endless investigations into his and her activities in office, let's call them shenanigans, the American public will (if they are elected) be ready for a big change, so big that Dick Cheney who will be around 75 or 76 at that time could run and win by a landslide. Even the most die hard Democratic pundits proliferating the airwaves are having a hard time with this one. Hillary honey, stop dreaming and get back to reality.

The Killings in Israel This Past Week

The killings in Israel this past week are just another example of the type of scum Hamas recruits into their ranks. It also, underscores once again the soulless nature of the very organization itself. One of the odd reactions brought on by this act was the condemnation by the Muslim world and their professing to be peaceful and non-violent, when they continually call for the elimination of anyone who does not share their religious ideology as well as the destruction of Israel, it would be better to say nothing than to lie publicly. There is no justification to these killings whatsoever. To say that the killings were retribution for the neutralizing of a Hamas "commander" is further reason to never award legitimacy to this group, they are terrorist's and nothing more. (I use the word neutralize in place of killed or assassination which are reserved for leaders and members of legitimate country's, governments and organizations. I put "" before and after commander to indicate he was just a piece of s_ _ t and far from what I know, from personal experience, to be leaders of men. As for the Palestinian people reveling in the streets after the news broke of the killings of innocent CHILDREN, only shows the Palestinian people to be pathetic wretch's themselves.