The Peaceful Revolution's First 100 Days

"A republic, if you can keep it." --Benjamin Franklin

The Peaceful Revolution's First 100 Days

By Mark Alexander

Last fall, Barack Hussein Obama pledged that his administration would carry out a "fundamental transformation of the United States of America." Today, as we reflect on the first 100 days of the Obama regime's occupation of the executive branch, with Party allegiance in the legislative branch, it pains me to report that he has exceeded the wildest expectations of his Socialist constituencies.

In the wake of last year's "October Surprise" (the catastrophic meltdown of the nation's largest financial institutions), his chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, said of Obama's strategy, "Rule 1: Never allow a crisis to go to waste. They are opportunities to do big things."

Indeed, Obama has done BIG things. In the words of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, "Obama's first 100 days have been spectacularly successful. Obama is the strongest domestic Democratic President since Lyndon Johnson. ... In just 100 days, Obama has been devastatingly effective in moving forward swiftly the most radical, government-expanding agenda in American history."

How did that happen?

Some political scientists argue that democracy is a conduit for "peaceful revolutions," including radical shifts in political ideology, without a shot being fired.

I agree, except that our nation is not a "dumbocracy." It is a republic, or at least it was before the once proud Democrat Party became infested with Socialists, who masterfully co-opted the education system along with the modern "opiate of the masses" (television and print media), and re-educated those masses.

So successful has this Leftist strategy been that their dumbed-down constituencies now follow their messianic leader like dullard lemmings.

Consequently, here is an account of a few notable events from the first 100 days of "hope and change."

Under the aegis of "economic stimulus," Obama promptly raided the Treasury and doled it out to his constituencies -- at terrible expense to this and future generations. Asked how one might evaluate the effectiveness of his plan, Obama replied, "I think my initial measure of success is creating or saving four million jobs." Not even Bill Clinton had the hubris to suggest something as slick as "saving four million jobs."

Remarkably, Obama managed to ram that one through Congress without a single Democrat claiming to have read it.

As for his cabinet, a long list of Obama nominees agreed to pay back taxes in return for rubber stamp appointments, including Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, who, despite owing more than $40,000 now oversees the IRS.

Poor nominee Tom Daschle, who in a previous life as Demo Senate Majority Leader proclaimed, "Tax cheaters cheat us all, and the IRS should enforce our laws to the letter." He was all but confirmed as HHS Secretary until we learned that he had cheated us out of $130,000 in back taxes. Apparently even Obama's hypocrisy knows some limits.

Obama last fall repeatedly promised to end the practice of special interest earmarks. Then, he signed an appropriations bill with more than 8,000 earmarks, including $2 billion for House Appropriations Chairman David Obey's lobbyist son's projects, $3.7 billion for contracts to Sen. Diane Feinstein's husband's company, and $4.19 billion for Obama's favorite voter fraud outfit, ACORN.

When the pork-laden bill passed, Obama had the audacity to proclaim, "I'm proud that we passed a recovery plan free of earmarks."

Obama also converted the Federal Reserve and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation into instruments for nationalizing the banking system.

Under the pretense of responding to "global warming," Obama has plans to impose almost $2 trillion in cap-and-tax energy taxes -- this despite his oft-repeated pledge that 95 percent of Americans wouldn't see their taxes increased.

Obama's $3.5 trillion 2010 budget includes projections for more than $9 trillion in near-term increases of national debt. Feigning fiscal integrity, Obama demanded budget cuts of $100 million -- which is to say that even while obscenely expanding the size of government, he targeted some spending that was out of line with his ideology. For the record, $100 million represents three one-thousandths of one percent of Obama's FY 2010 budget, or approximately what the central government redistributes every 13 minutes of every hour of every day of every week of...

Harvard Economist Greg Mankiw also offered some perspective on this $100 million spending cut, noting that it's the equivalent of a family with a $100,000 income cutting a $3 latte from their budget.

Of Obama's budget, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi exclaimed, "[F]or the first time in many, many years, we have a president's budget ... that is a statement of our national values. ... It's a very happy day for our country."

Meanwhile, according to The Wall Street Journal, in February, the price of single-family homes in 20 major metropolitan areas fell 18.6 percent from the previous year, after a record 19 percent drop in January.

In the first quarter of 2009, the U.S. economy contracted at a seasonally adjusted 6.1 percent annual rate, and Americans lost more than two million jobs. No doubt Obama's bold and swift action saved four million other jobs.

Perhaps the most dangerous of all the Obama policy shifts, however, is his framing of our foreign policy with atonement for America's past, which he says has been "arrogant," "dismissive" and "derisive." In doing so, he lends credibility to the anti-American attitudes and actions of our enemies.

Some of the most telling examples of Obama's ideology are apparent in the last few of his first hundred days. For example:

Day 97: Obama's White House Military Office appointee, former Clintonista Louis Caldera, authorized a photo shoot of Air Force One over Manhattan, an event which involved the low flight of a large jet plane with two F-16s in pursuit over Ground Zero and points nearby. Because the public wasn't told, many feared another 9/11 attack was in progress.

Indeed, an FAA memo prior to the flight warned of "the possibility of public concern regarding DoD aircraft flying at low altitudes." To which Obama responded, "It, uh, was, uh, a mistake. It, uh, will never, uh, happen again."

The Air Force reported that the flight of the VC-25 (customized Boeing 747) and its two attendant F-16s cost $328,835. However, the actual cost associated with the operation of VC-25 alone, when considering all support and planning for this photo folly, was closer to $775,000 (and who knows how many Al Gore carbon credits had to be purchased to offset this operation).

On the other hand, the one-time purchase of Adobe Photoshop costs around $600.

In January, Obama chastised private sector executives for using corporate jets to commute, most of which cost $3-$5 thousand per hour to operate. The plane we taxpayers fund for Obama costs $260,000 per hour to operate, and Monday, it was cruising around without him.

Day 98: Obama's EPA administrator, Lisa Jackson, in an NPR interview about Obama's Orwellian cap-and-tax policy, remarked, "The president has said, and I couldn't agree more, that what this country needs is one single national roadmap that tells automakers, who are trying to become solvent again, what kind of car it is that they need to be designing and building for the American people."

The interviewer asks, "Is that the role of the government? That doesn't sound like free enterprise."

Jackson, obviously in need of her ObamaPrompter, replied, "Well, it, it, it is free enterprise in a way. Um, ah, you know, first and foremost, the free enterprise system has us where we are right this second. And so some would argue that the government has a much larger role to play then we might've when Henry Ford rolled the first cars off the assembly line."

Some might argue that "we are where we are" because government has played "a much larger role since Henry Ford rolled the first cars off the assembly line."

Day 99: After the media fanned the flames about a "swine flu pandemic," Obama warned, "This is obviously a serious situation, serious enough to take the utmost precautions." He then promptly applied his "Rule 1" and asked Congress for $1.5 billion in emergency funding.

Day 100: The Obamaprompter addressed the nation yesterday, and not only did he claim, "We inherited a $1.3 trillion deficit. That wasn't me," but once again trotted this one out: "[My recovery act] has already saved or created over 150,000 jobs."

We checked, and Congress sets budgets, the Democrats have controlled the Senate and House for the last two years (which coincides with the housing and financial market collapses) and Obama was in the Senate for two of those years.

â?¨As for jobs, I am sure that Obama has "saved" all our jobs! Hail Obama! Let's us all bow down to "The One."

House Minority Leader John Boehner correctly surmises, "The president's first 100 days can be summed up in three words: spending, taxing, and borrowing."

Suffice it to say, the list is as long as it is absurd, and you can bask in a litany of examples we've compiled for your reading displeasure at "The First Hundred Days."

As for "peaceful revolutions," John F. Kennedy declared in 1962, "Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable."

I would argue this case: "Those who undermine our republican rule of law make violent revolution inevitable."

To that end, there is some good news on the "checks and balances" front, though some may find this a bit disconcerting.

There are now more than 65 million gun-owning Patriots across this nation, many of whom have taken sacred oaths "to support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic."

We stand ready to honor that oath, understanding that, in the words of John Adams, "A Constitution of Government once changed from Freedom, can never be restored. Liberty, once lost, is lost forever."

And the ranks of Patriots are growing.

In the last three months of 2008, Americans bought enough guns to arm the national armies of both China and India -- a total of 12.7 million guns last year. Gun sales in the first three months of 2009 were 27 percent higher year-over-year than the first three months of 2008 (which also recorded record sales).

Perhaps all these gun purchases are coincidental, not consequential. But I doubt it. As Americans begin to awaken to the reality of Obama's Socialist agenda, it will be interesting to see how his next 1,361 days unfold.

At the close of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, Benjamin Franklin was asked if the delegates had formed a republic or a monarchy. "A republic," he responded, "if you can keep it."

We will see.

Quote of the Week

"There's something very curious -- even laughable -- about watching the media assemble to offer President Obama a grade after the first 100 days. They weren't exactly a team of dispassionate scientists in a lab. They continue to be what they've been all along -- a rolling gaggle of Obama cheerleaders -- only before it was a campaign, and now it's an administration. So now they're assessing whether their awe-inspiring historic candidate still glows with the luster of victory. Hmm ... let's see. They applied the luster, they boasted of the luster, and you can bet your bottom dollar they'll continue doing both. ... After 100 days, the media still look more like the president's advertising team than the people's watchdog." --Media Research Center president Brent Bozell

On Cross-Examination

"Barack Obama is the frivolous man who concocted his own presidential-looking Great Seal before he was elected. An ego big enough to publicly display a ridiculous 'Vero Possumus' ('Yes, we can' in Latin) motto and a regal eagle with the Obama campaign logo emblazoned on its chest is an ego capable of far more reckless things. Obama orchestrated a grand photo-op in Berlin, Germany, to declare his world citizenship at the Siegessaule -- the Victory Column -- a soaring monument of arrogance championed by Adolf Hitler and Third Reich architect Albert Speer. He manufactured his own Open Temple of The One in Denver for the Democratic National Convention last summer, replete with fake Greek columns." --columnist Michelle Malkin

Open Query

"Obama's very activism these days arrogates to himself the blame for the success or failure of his policies. Their outcome will determine his outcome, and there is no way it will be positive. Why? You can't borrow as much as he will need to without raising interest rates that hurt the economy. The massive amount of spending will trigger runaway inflation once the economy starts to recover. His overhaul of the tax code (still in the planning phases) and his intervention in corporate management will create such business uncertainty that nobody will invest in anything until they see the lay of the land. His bank program is designed to help banks, but not to catalyze consumer lending. And his proposal for securitization of consumer loans won't work and is just what got us into this situation." --political analyst Dick Morris

*****

Veritas vos Liberabit -- Semper Vigilo, Fortis, Paratus, et Fidelis! Mark Alexander, Publisher, for The Patriot's editors and staff.

We are going to put an end to the notion that the American taxpayer exists to fund the federal government.

That we may be like all the other nations

The people of Israel wanted change in the days of Samuel and demanded that they have a king as did the other nations around them. They wanted to become like those in the rest of their world, rather than remain the special nation they had been set apart to be. Samuel gave them notice as to how life under a King would be, but they continued their insistence, not hearing the words of the wise old man who had, along with others, lead them for many years.

In 2008, the people in America, at least a voting majority, demanded change. They wished to become more like the rest of the world, rather than remain the special nation they had been, a nation where people often risked life and limb trying to enter. Many gave warnings of how life would be under the guise of “change.” But, like the people of Israel, few listened, and the inevitable happened; they got what they wanted.

The following is the account from 1 Samuel 8:4-20a. I am quoting from the Amplified Bible® for easier reading. Please pay special attention to verses 7 and 18. People of the United States, you were warned, and now the consequences are coming quickly. Will you continue to sleep, and will you be content to become the same as other countries around you? This is a wake up call.

4 All the elders of Israel assembled and came to Samuel at Ramah

5 And said to him, Behold, you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways; now appoint us a king to rule over us like all the other nations.

6 But it displeased Samuel when they said, Give us a king to govern us. And Samuel prayed to the Lord.

7 And the Lord said to Samuel, Hearken to the voice of the people in all they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should not be King over them.

8 According to all the works which they have done since I brought them up out of Egypt even to this day, forsaking Me and serving other gods, so they also do to you.

9 So listen now to their voice; only solemnly warn them and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them.

10 So Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people who asked of him a king.

11 And he said, These will be the ways of the king who shall reign over you: he will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen and to run before his chariots.

12 He will appoint them for himself to be commanders over thousands and over fifties, and some to plow his ground and to reap his harvest and to make his implements of war and equipment for his chariots.

13 He will take your daughters to be perfumers, cooks, and bakers.

14 He will take your fields, your vineyards, and your olive orchards, even the best of them, and give them to his servants.

15 He will take a tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and to his servants.

16 He will take your men and women servants and the best of your cattle and your donkeys and put them to his work.

17 He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves shall be his slaves.

18 In that day you will cry out because of your king you have chosen for yourselves, but the Lord will not hear you then.

19 Nevertheless, the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel, and they said, No! We will have a king over us,

20 That we also may be like all the nations, ….

Yes Dumb and Dumber Do Exist

SOME REALLY DUMB QUOTES:

"It's not about bashing Democrats, it's not about taxes, they have no idea what the Boston tea party was about, they don't know their history at all. This is about hating a black man in the White House. This is racism straight up. That is nothing but a bunch of teabagging rednecks. ...[T]he limbic brain inside a right-winger or Republican or conservative or your average white power activist, the limbic brain is much larger in their head space than in a reasonable person, and it's pushing against the frontal lobe. So their synapses are misfiring." --actress Janeane Garofalo on last week's Tea Parties

Speak for yourself: "Why are they out there whining with this Tea Party thing? Just a bunch of wimpy, whiney, weasels who don't love their country..." --CNN contributing Clintonista Paul Begala

/Sounds like too many knocks upside the head: "I don't know whether it is better to have freedom or to have no freedom. With too much freedom ... it can get very chaotic, could end up like in Hong Kong or like in Taiwan... I'm gradually beginning to feel that we Chinese need to be controlled." --actor Jackie Chan, who made millions of dollars filming movies in a free country

" SOME EVEN DUMBER QUOTES: "What's disturbing about some of these [tea party] protests and some of the people at these protests is this edge of anger at the government. There is ... a real hostility that is not just politics as usual among some of these people." --CNN's Jeffrey Toobin

"[T]his is a party for Obama bashers. I have to say that this is not entirely representative of everybody in America.... I think you get the general tenor of this. It's anti-government, anti-CNN, since this is highly promoted by the right-wing conservative network, Fox." --CNN's Susan Roesgen

"Are these protesters really out of step with the majority of Americans? We just saw ... that 62 percent of the people here approve of the president's handling of the economy, and that Americans rate taxes, incredibly at, the very bottom of the most important economic issues right now." --CNN's Christiane Amanpour

You have to remember that at almost any given time any cockamamie proposition in America will have at least 25 percent of those polled supporting it. It was a good stunt. ... We pay relatively small taxes. ...[W]hat you ostensibly get for it is a civilized kind of social compact where you don't have massive civil eruptions. That is what taxes are for." --NPR's Nina Totenberg on the tea parties (Wonder what planet this dingbat lives on)

THE MAKES YOU WONDER,--DO THEY KNOW WHAT THEY ARE TALKING ABOUT QUOTES:

To confront our economic crisis, we don't need a debate about whether to have a rigid, state-run economy or unbridled and unregulated capitalism is better -- we need pragmatic and responsible action that advances our common prosperity. To combat lawlessness and violence, we don't need a debate about whether to blame right-wing paramilitaries or left-wing insurgents -- we need practical cooperation to expand our common security." --Barack Obama

Talk about a scalpel: "One of the messages that I delivered ... to all the members of the cabinet was, uh, 'As well as you've already done, we're going to have to [cut more].' I'm asking for all of them to identify, uh, at least a hundred million dollars in additional cuts to, uh, pare administrative budgets, separate and apart from, uh, the work that Peter Orszag and the rest of our team are going to go line by line in the budget and identify programmatic cuts that need to be made." --Barack Obama, who doesn't have a line-item veto [but give him the right crisis and he'll have one. Never let a good crisis go to waste ] my input on the subject

Government is here to help: "We need to restore the American people's confidence in their government -- that it is on their side, spending their money wisely, to meet their families' needs." --Barack Obama

Projecting their faults: "We will not sacrifice our values or trample on our Constitution under the false premise that it is the only way to protect our national security." --Attorney General Eric Holder, who misses the fact that national security is one of the few things the federal government does that is constitutional

Non Compos Mentis: "[C]rossing the border is not a crime per se." --DHS secretary Janet Napolitano **U.S. Code says otherwise.

SOME REAL DOOZIES or as I like to call em--- JUST LIES:

: "You in United States, you have a lot of traffic of drugs, you have a lot of distribution of drugs, you have a lot of corruption as well. ... But most of the weapons, almost 16,000 are assault weapons and 90 percent of those were sold in United States." --Mexico's president Felipe Calderon

AND THIS FROM THOSE WHO EVIDENLTY BELIVE THE LIES:

"On the violence issue, 6,500 people were killed in drug violence in 2008 alone. Ninety-five percent of the guns used were out of the United States. What is the U.S. going to do to stop the guns from getting there?" --ABC's Diane Sawyer to DHS secretary Janet Napolitano, who replied that she wouldn't "quibble about numbers" since "that's not the point."

THOUGHTS FROM THE MORE INTELLIGENT SIDE:

"I cannot find any authority in the Constitution for public charity." --President Franklin Pierce (1804-1869)

"I feel obliged to withhold my approval of the plan to indulge in benevolent and charitable sentiment through the appropriation of public funds. I find no warrant for such an appropriation in the Constitution." --President Grover Cleveland (1837-1908)

"I don't like the income tax. Every time we talk about these taxes we get around to the idea of 'from each according to his capacity and to each according to his needs.' That's socialism. It's written into the Communist Manifesto. Maybe we ought to see that every person who gets a tax return receives a copy of the Communist Manifesto with it so he can see what's happening to him." --accountant and Commissioner of Internal Revenue T. Coleman Andrews (1899-1983)

"Our Constitution represents a compact between the states and the federal government. As with any compact, one party does not have a monopoly over its interpretation, nor can one party change it without the consent of the other. Additionally, no one has a moral obligation to obey unconstitutional laws. That's not to say there is not a compelling case for obedience of unconstitutional laws. That compelling case is the brute force of the federal government to coerce obedience, possibly going as far as using its military might to lay waste to a disobedient state and its peoples." --economist Walter E. Williams

"The Obama Doctrine means criticizing past presidents, Democratic and Republican; apologizing for past American sins, real and imagined, to both allies and enemies of the United States, on domestic and, preferably, foreign soil -- in the hope that doing so allows Obama to speak with greater moral force and clarity. The overriding goal of the Obama Doctrine is to make the person it is named after look good, rather than, and if necessary at the expense of, the nation he was elected to represent." --former Bush deputy assistant and columnist Peter Wehner

SMILES:

President Obama's been reaching out to Iran, reaching out to Cuba, reaching out to Latin America. The only place he can't seem to be able to reach out to: Texas. Despite Governor Rick Perry talking about how Texas could secede from the Union if it wanted to, 75 per cent of the people who live there want to stay in the United States. Of course they want to stay. I mean, after spending all that time and effort sneaking across the border to get here, why would they want to leave? Jay Leno

HATTIP : Patriot Post and various on-line news sources

We are going to put an end to the notion that the American taxpayer exists to fund the federal government.

DHS Security and Subterfuge

I recently discovered some very interesting information concerning the new Chief of Homeland Security, Janet Napolitano; you know, the one who classifies all of us freedom-loving individuals to extremists. We are the ones who dare question such things as government spending and the constitutionality of government actions. I wonder if “Nappy” is worried about information being discovered on how she has spent her department’s money, namely yours and mine. It seems that she has taken very good care of the folks who would now be in the unemployment line in Arizona if not for the largess of their dear boss.

The mission for today and this week is to get the right media person(s) tuned in to what the Secretary of DHS has done when it comes to her staff and to spread the word across the blogosphere about the actions of this high-placed official in the U.S. Government. It is doubtful that the Lame Stream Media will ever pick up on a story such as this since she was hand picked by “the One” who can do no wrong. Regardless of the past doings of the Chosen, such as failing to pay taxes, or a demand for 30 extra positions to take care of their “friends” and “associates,” once chosen they will get a pass.

It seems that Janet Napolitano brought 30 people with her from Arizona. (Note, that's MANY more than the Chief Occupier brought with him from Illinois, the campaign, and the Hill.) The Arizona staff would have been out of a job when Napolitano left because the individual who replaced her as Governor is a Republican, and he would have sent her people packing. So, she cut a deal with the White House that she would take the job if her people got cover.

This report is not rumor or hearsay; it came directly from those who are in positions to know such information. It is all a matter of public record as to which Schedule Cs have been hired in DHS, their last employment (Arizona), and their pay grade and level, i.e., GS 15 Level 10 (about $150K, as I recall). It would also be good to know their clearance level, since they came in on interim secret, and it takes even a top level political about four months to get a TS with SCI level access.

All of this had to be done with stealth and subterfuge—so much for transparency, again—so these thirty people are not in Nappy’s immediate office as hires because it would show up on her office budget. They have been placed around the DHS department in the Secret Service, CBP, ICE, FEMA, etc. Some of these people are then detailed to her office in order to hide the real mission and intent of the move.

The components of the Department of Homeland Security—Secret Service, Customs and Border Protection, FEMA, Science and Technology Directorate and others—are eating the salaries of the extra people from their individual budgets but are losing their full time employees slots (FTE's) back to the Secretary of DHS. Most of the 30 are top level GS-15s and a few 14s (early 20 somethings with little job experience). That’s $5 million in salary monies plus moving expenses. That was an additional $500,000, which is not offered for critical subject matter experts and was only paid for a few critical hires in the last administration.

It is interesting to note here that the Chief Occupier called for $100 million in overall cuts over the next 90 days. The Secretary of DHS projects that it can save up to $52 million over the next five years by buying office supplies in bulk. Hmmm … let’s see, send 30 people hired from Arizona on the “buddy plan” at $5 million per year X 5 years and that would be $25 million of the $50 million projected and then add on the office supplies that these “buddy hires” use and just think of the savings.

Another note of interest concerning these individuals is that they are holding meetings with their counterparts in other government agencies, AND they are making policy without any involvement of the knowledgeable Feds who are ready to let them spin in the wind because they are not asking for any advice. According to my source and my own experience, mark my word, the proverbial stuff WILL hit the fan, whether by a terrorist attack or a natural disaster, and these people will be ducking for cover. The career types will only do what is necessary to protect their jobs. Given that and barring a disaster as mentioned, these folks will continue right along doing who knows what kind of damage to this country until another change in Administration occurs.

This is a story worthy of being brought to the forefront. The LSM who are in the tank with the Chief Occupier, however, will not allow it to see the light of day. It will be up to those of us in the blogosphere who are dedicated to truth, justice, and freedom of speech to push this information and hope that somewhere along the line it will leak out into the Main Stream where the proverbial stuff will hit the fan.

COMING SOON....The next objective is to get the names of the Arizona Mafia and learn where the Secretary has buried the indivuals in DHS and shed more light on the money trail. There is much more to this story, and this is only the tip of the iceberg.

OVER AND UNDER

Millions of Americans observed Income Redistribution Day on Wednesday, spending countless hours and dollars first to figure and then file their federal income taxes. Of course, personal income taxes barely scratch the surface of paying for the cost of our rapidly metastasizing government. Furthermore, who knows much government really costs? Certainly not those in government.

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released revised numbers on the so-called stimulus passed in February, saying the bill will cost taxpayers $356 billion, not the originally estimated $189 billion. Off by just a mere 53 percent. As Investor's Business Daily notes, "[T]here are two immutable rules that govern federal programs: They will always cost more than lawmakers and presidents tell us they will, and once they're in place, they'll never go away."

The CBO projects a deficit of $1.85 trillion for fiscal 2009 -- nearly quadruple the previous annual record. We're more than halfway there, too. The Treasury Department announced that through March, the deficit is just shy of $1 trillion.

Meanwhile, Citizens Against Government Waste released its 2009 Congressional Pig Book Tuesday, just in time to remind taxpayers that while the number of unconstitutional earmarks in the 2009 budget declined to 10,160 from 11,610 in 2008, the dollar amount for those earmarks increased from $17.2 billion to $19.6 billion. And the Tax Foundation estimates that Tax Freedom Day, that calendar date upon which Americans will have earned enough to pay for all federal, state and local taxes, occurred on 13 April this year -- meaning citizens must work 103 days to pay for the cost of government. In 2008, that day was 21 April. On the other hand, if government operated on a balanced budget, the additional taxes would require that Americans work exclusively to fund the government until 29 May.

As for the revenue side, the government overestimated tax receipts. For example, in March 2008, regular corporations sent $32.6 billion to the IRS; in March 2009, that number was $3.4 billion. In fact, corporate income tax receipts are down 57 percent so far this fiscal year.

One result of such a shortfall almost certainly will be a tax increase on everyone. Martin Sullivan, a former economic aide in the Reagan administration, points out, "You just simply can't tax the rich enough to make this all up." Ronald Reagan himself observed, "Raising taxes will slow economic growth, reduce production, and destroy future jobs, making it more difficult for those without jobs to find them and more likely that those who now have jobs could lose them." Unfortunately, that's wisdom President Barack Obama will all too quickly throw under the "Hope 'n' Change Express."

But yet the Chief Occupier will deny all of this and continue to spread his “Big Lie”.

"For too long we've seen taxes used as a wedge to scare people into supporting policies that actually increase the burden on working people instead of helping them live their dreams. That has to change, and that's the work that we've begun. We've passed tax cuts that will help our economy grow. We've made a clear promise that families that earn less than $250,000 a year will not see their taxes increase by a single dime. We're giving tax relief to the Americans who need it and the workers who have earned it. So, on this April 15th, we're reminded of the enormous responsibility that comes with handling people's tax dollars and we're renewing our commitment to a simpler tax code that rewards work and the pursuit of the American dream." --The ObamaPrompter

And to make it sound even better he had this to say on Income Redistribution Day: "We cannot rebuild this economy on the same pile of sand. We must build our house upon a rock. We must lay a new foundation for growth and prosperity -- a foundation that will move us from an era of borrow and spend to one where we save and invest." --Barack Obama

Memo to BO: The foundation of our nation -- the Constitution and free-market capitalism -- is just fine. The fact that the "new foundation" will be built on debt owed by generations not yet born is the problem. I will add that until all of the borrow and spend is repaid there is no way to save and invest. Well, unless you believe the Big Lie followed by more lies and capped off with another lie yet to come.

Hattip: Patriot Post USA Friday edition.

Tea Party. Why Some Don't Understand

Yesterday, millions of Americans mailed in their tax returns to the IRS. Also yesterday, millions of Americans gathered around the country in places like Ft. Worth/Dallas, Texas; Greensboro, NC; Kingsport, TN; Washington, DC; and big, medium, and small town USA to express their displeasure over the direction this country is going. These gatherings were called “TEA Parties,” standing for “Taxed Enough Already,” based on the original Boston Tea Party of 1773.


Perhaps the name “TEA” is not the best one for what is occurring since these gatherings are over much more than taxes. The Leftists love to throw that up and say, “Well, what’s the solution to taxes,” but they don’t seem to get it. While the original Tea Party of 1773 had more to do with taxes on tea, these gatherings are more about government spending today that will, indeed, bring forth excessive taxes tomorrow. How else will this deficit be paid for? If you are one of those who asked that question, please continue to read, for I intend to offer my idea of the solution. This idea is not mine alone; it is also the idea of the millions who gathered yesterday to say, NO MORE.


Some time around 1971, about the time I graduated from college, the National Debt was in the $460 billion range. I believe that worked out to be somewhere around $2000, give or take a few hundred dollars, for every man, woman, and child in this country.


In December 2008, before all this new spending had been approved and thrown to the four winds, it was closer to $11 trillion, 23 times the amount in 1971. The per capita national debt has risen to nearly $35,000. The new budget deficit for this year alone will raise that debt to about $12 trillion, give or take a trillion or so. That means that the next tax bill received by the American people, regardless of political party, race, creed, gender, or sexual orientation will be in the neighborhood of $183,000 per man, woman, and child, and that is just a start. It will continue to climb as more and more spending is added to this already mind boggling amount.


The Congress and the White House tell us they are committed to deficit reduction, but that is totally absurd. No, it’s worse. It’s an all-out lie, or they would be looking for ways to cut spending, rather than throwing money down a rat hole for unneeded, unwanted, and unnecessary programs given out to repay political debts or to insure future votes. It matters not which political party these people belong to. They are not being honest with the American people, and this, my friends, is why millions gathered yesterday—to say ENOUGH IS ENOUGH! It’s time for Washington to get their house in order and begin living like the people they represent: on a budget, no credit cards, no lines of credit, no self-given pay raises, no fancy frills and perks, just plain and simple—live on what you have, and do without until you can afford more through savings and being frugal. That’s the way responsible Americans live today.


We see the evidence of irresponsible spending every time we see foreclosures and bankruptcy notices in the newspaper or hear of such on television news shows. Not all, mind you, but the majority of the bad were self wrought through irresponsibility. The “I want it now” syndrome took over and replaced common sense.


America has found a new “religion,” a false religion called “moral therapeutic deism,” the “central goal of life.” Sociologist Christian Smith calls it, “be happy and feel good about oneself.” I would have to ask if the folks who are now facing foreclosure and bankruptcy are “happy and feeling good about themselves,” or are they sitting in shock and awe wondering what happened. The answer is simple, and when they recover from the initial shock, the majority will realize that the religion they followed that brought about all the happy, tingly feelings has led them to the hell in which they now stand.


My parents had a different outlook on things when I was growing up. My dad worked swing shifts of seven days straight with a few days off in between for more than thirty years. He had a limited education but was intelligent enough to train most of his supervisors during those thirty-plus years. He also was intelligent enough to know that one did not get ahead by spending willy-nilly and buying whatever “flipped your trigger” at the time. No, he understood sacrifice, stemming from farm life, the days of the depression, and service in the Pacific during WW II. He understood there are no free rides, and if one wants to move ahead, it requires hard work, planning, and, yes, sacrifice—the one thing that most in this country are not willing to grasp, especially those who are supposed to be leading. They call for sacrifice but they say that comes through spending more than what we have. That is a completely wrong definition for sacrifice. Sacrifice, for the most part, means to do without, to forfeit, forego, relinquish, yield, something those in Congress and the White House seem not to fathom. My folks didn’t mind sacrificing, for they had “a better plan” for their offspring. They sacrificed so that I could receive an education and not have to work thirty-plus years of swing shift work to provide for my family. They saved for the day that their retirement would arrive, knowing that no matter how good the company was that Dad worked for, retirement and Social Security would not be sufficient for them to enjoy what they had worked and sacrificed for. They instilled that same spirit in their child, and that child has attempted to instill the same in his. I pray that it continues to grow in the grandchildren, but I fear they may not have the opportunity to do the same since they are the ones who will be saddled with this horrific debt that has no end, regardless of what is being touted by those in Washington, DC.


Somewhere along the line, someone failed to instill that spirit into our leaders in Washington. Perhaps it was once there and power and greed has overshadowed common sense. It’s time for them to dig down deep and rediscover that spirit, embrace it, and never let it go until this country is once again on stable ground and not on the precipice of disaster. These leaders need to give up their religion of “moral therapeutic deism,” stop the self worship, the instant gratification, the thrill of the moment to grab more power. Repentance of such is needed, along with a move back to a solid moralist, self sufficient, self determining and accountable way of living and governing.


Now, hopefully, those who question the purposes of the TEA Parties and ask what the solution is will finally get it. It’s all about living within your means, which often means cutting back, stopping the spending, and saving for tomorrow instead of trying to buy a tomorrow. That is the path to destruction, as those who are calling for an end to such spending know.


If I could offer one Scripture verse to those who believe that we can spend our way out of the decline we are now in, it would be this one, for it is evident that none of them have counted the cost.

Luke 14:28-29 Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him …

Texas Declared a Terrorist State

Well folks it does appear that many of us now fit the category of Right-wing Extremist , commonly known as Terrorist. You see we now fall under the new guidelines set by the Chief Occupier and his new DHL Secretary Napolitano.

The real terrorist , the ones with whom we have been at war with since the days of Jimmah Carter and the 444 day Hostage Situation in Iran, have recently been given a pass and the war has been declared over. If you remember the Chief Occupier made much ado about ending the “war” in his first 100 days. Well, the war on terror is over and has been declared an overseas contingency plan but now it seems a new type of terrorist has arisen and that includes many of you and me.

According to the Department of Homeland Security, Texas fits the Department's profile of potential domestic terrorism described in their newly released report titled, " Right-wing Extremism: Current Economic and Political Climate Fueling Resurgence in Radicalization and Recruitment".

Islamic extremists' acts of domestic terrorism were recently given the dignity, by Homeland Security Secretary Napolitano and President Obama, of being classified as man-made disasters, and abroad, the "war on terror" has been reclassified as an "overseas contingency plan". But an entire non-Islamic class, or perhaps by extension entire states, according to the report, are not afforded such considerate and cordial titles if they are anti-abortion, tend to harbor returning soldiers stationed in the Middle East, aid and abet the reintegration of military personnel into civilian life within their borders, are anti-illegal immigration, are anti-gun control, possess Christian views, are against high taxes, and are opposed to the overreaching power of the federal government. They fit the assessment of "extremists" that was "provided to federal, state, local, and tribal counterterrorism and law enforcement officials so they may effectively deter, prevent, preempt, or respond to terrorist attacks"

I am proud to say that my home state of Texas is in opposition of the “overreaching power of the federal government and that the statement of our governor Rick Perry may have sealed our fate as a terrorist state.

I don’t always agree with many of the things our governor has to say or much of what he has done recently but I will give him credit for his support of HCR 50, which support states rights under the 10^th Amendment. The same 10^th Amendment that expounds on Article 1, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution which spells explicitly the limits of the federal government, just in case the federal government becomes confused of their limits.

Anyone paying attention of late will know this to be occurring with speed and stealth.

Governor Perry had this to say on the subject: "I believe that our federal government has become oppressive in its size, its intrusion into the lives of our citizens, and its interference with the affairs of our state. That is why I am here today to express my unwavering support for efforts all across our country to reaffirm the states' rights affirmed by the Tenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. I believe that returning to the letter and spirit of the U.S. Constitution and its essential 10th Amendment will free our state from undue regulations, and ultimately strengthen our Union....Millions of Texans are tired of Washington, DC trying to come down here to tell us how to run Texas."

The declaration also sets forth that: A number of recent federal proposals are not within the scope of the federal government's constitutionally designated powers and impede the states' right to govern itself. HCR 50 affirms that Texas claims sovereignty under the 10th Amendment over all powers not otherwise granted to the federal government.

It also designates that all compulsory federal legislation that requires states to comply under threat of civil or criminal penalties, or that requires states to pass legislation or lose federal funding, be prohibited or repealed.

To assure you that Texas falls under the terror threat assessment capabilities based on voting habit her is a check list. You might want to check to see if you fall into the category and if your state will also soon be declared a rogue, terrorist state:

Anti-abortion--check

Pro-Gun--check

Anti-gun control--check

Predominantly Christian--check

Military bases--check

Returning soldiers--check

Against high taxes (no state tax in Texas)--check, check

Anti-illegal immigration--check

Against an overreaching federal government--check

Conservative--check

Extreme right-wing (according to Democratic Party standards)--check

Understands Article 1, Section 8--check

Understands the 10th Amendment--check

Rejects federal authority in favor of state or local authority—check

That sums it up: Texas is most definitely a terror state in the eyes of Secretary Napolitano and her agency as well as the Chief Occupier’s opinion.

On March 1, 1845, then-President John Tyler signed a congressional bill annexing the Republic of Texas. Though the annexation resolution never explicitly granted Texas the right to secede from the Union (as is often reported), many (including me) hold that it is implied by its unique autonomy and history, as well as the unusual provision in the resolution that gave Texas the right to divide into as many as five states. Both the original (1836) and the current (1876) Texas Constitutions also declare that "All political power is inherent in the people. … they have at all times the inalienable right to alter their government in such manner as they might think proper."

Perhaps the time is getting close to reinforce the constitution of the Republic of Texas.

NOTE: As of today 34 states have made some move toward declaring their rights under the 10^th Amendment.

We are going to put an end to the notion that the American taxpayer exists to fund the federal government.

Feelers and Thinkers

This weeks blog is sayings of feelers and thinkers. Can you tell the difference? Also included are some of the dumb and dumber sayings of the past weeks along with a closing thought of humor. Hope you enjoy reading as much as I have enjoyed putting it together.

INSIGHT

"Back in the thirties we were told we must collectivize the nation because the people were so poor. Now we are told we must collectivize the nation because the people are so rich." --National Review founder William F. Buckley Jr. (1925-2008)

"If you put the federal government in charge of the Sahara Desert, in five years there'd be a shortage of sand." --Nobel prize-winning economist Milton Friedman (1912-2006)

UPRIGHT

"It's recently been reported that President Obama is refusing to allow banks to repay their TARP funds. In other words, he's declined to allow them to exercise the 'accountability' he has rhetorically embraced. ... Could it be, after all, that President Obama's objective isn't so much to demand responsibility from the private sector than it is to strengthen the government's control over it?" --columnist Carol Platt Liebau

"Five minutes of explanation to James Madison, and he'll have a pretty good idea what a motorcar is (basically a steamboat on wheels; the internal combustion engine might take a few minutes more). Then try to explain to Madison how the Constitution he fathered allows the president to unilaterally guarantee the repair or replacement of every component of millions of such contraptions sold in the several states, and you will leave him slack-jawed." --columnist Charles Krauthammer

"[M]ore important than the left's hypocrisy is their ongoing disrespect for the Constitution when it suits their political ends. We are living in a time when the very integrity of the Constitution is being threatened daily, from federal bailouts to federal assumption of control over private business." --columnist David Limbaugh

"Socialists believe in government ownership of the means of production. Fascists believed in government control of privately owned businesses, which is much more the style of this government. That way, politicians can intervene whenever they feel like it and then, when their interventions turn out badly, summon executives from the private sector before Congress and denounce them on nationwide television." --economist Thomas Sowell

"If the Republicans can't break out of being the right-wing party of big government, then I think you would see a third party movement in 2012.... Remember, everything Obama's doing, Bush started last year. If you're going to talk about big spending, the mistakes of the Bush administration last year are fully as bad as the mistakes of Obama's first two, three months." --former House Speaker Newt Gingrich

DEZINFORMATSIA

Looking to the wrong guy: "I think we all find [Obama] very charismatic, very handsome, and almost with the responsibility of being a savior on his shoulders." --CBS's Julie Chen

Downplaying mediocrity: "The president's stagecraft on this trip and his star power have really held up all through his trip to Europe so far. As Jake [Tapper] pointed out, though, on the substance the president hasn't gotten all he wanted either at the G-20 or at this NATO summit, but he's done a good job of managing expectations." --ABC's George Stephanopoulos

Still bashing Bush: "The last president we had that went to Europe, I mean no one wanted to see him. There was great hostility. This president's changed the tone. Just changing the tone was a great plus for the United States." --ABC's Sam Donaldson

Drooling over the First Lady: "With Michelle [Obama], you can almost feel those warm arms. You know, there's a kind of real red-blooded feel to her. But there's also -- I mean she's almost like overtaking Oprah, I think, as the kind of inspirational 'it' girl at this point. ... She's also, I think, getting a kind of almost Princess Di-like empathy going at this point." --CBS's Tina Brown

Blame the Right: "[G]un sales are up, violence is back on the front page and conservatives are calling for revolution. Is the red-hot rhetoric of the Right helping foment something dangerous in this country?" --MSNBC's David Shuster

MEDIA BUSTERS

This week's "Leftmedia Buster" Award: "You have to look really hard to find it, but the American mainstream media are glancing at the stunning Obama bow before the King of Saudi Arabia, but only for the purpose of dismissing it. The Hotline, widely read among political pros, publishes a brief note focusing on conservative blog reactions, not the incident itself, in its 'Blogometer' feature. The implication is that only right wing kooks care about such matters. Quite clearly, many in the media would rather nobody reported on the incident, but since news is leaking out, they feel a need to minimize it, and make sure nobody important ever sees the full extent of the leader of the free worlds' self-abasement before a slave-holding absolute monarch, whose country exports Salafism worldwide." --American Thinker editor Thomas Lifson

TOTALLY DUMB SAYINGS OF THE PAST WEEKS

Making up languages: "It was also interesting to see that political interaction in Europe is not that different from the United States Senate. There's a lot of -- I don't know what the term is in Austrian -- wheeling and dealing -- and, you know, people are pursuing their interests, and everybody has their own particular issues and their own particular politics." --Barack Obama, who apparently doesn't know that Austrians speak German

From the supremely arrogant America-hater-in-chief: "In America, there is a failure to appreciate Europe's leading role in the world. Instead of celebrating your dynamic union and seeking to partner with you to meet common challenges, there have been times where America has shown arrogance and been dismissive, even derisive." --Barack Obama **"One should remind Mr. Obama and the Europeans how America has 'shown arrogance' by saving Europe from itself innumerable times in the 20th Century. World War I, World War II, the Cold War, and the wars in the Balkans were largely resolved by American blood, treasure, and leadership. One can be 'dismissive, even derisive' toward Europeans because they pretty much caused those conflicts and then dithered, for the most part, until those arrogant Americans had to step in to clean up their mess. Much of the problems of the Third World, including the rise of Islamo Fascism, can be laid at the doorstep of European colonial practices, including the chaotic and often bloody process of decolonialization that took place starting with the end of World War II. Africa is a butcher shop and the Middle East is a cockpit of terror and war, not because of American 'arrogance', but European stupidity when it ran those two places." --columnist Mark Whittington

Moral relativism: "[O]ne of the great strengths of the United States is -- although as I mentioned, we have a very large Christian population, we do not consider ourselves a Christian nation or a Jewish nation or a Muslim nation; we consider ourselves a nation of citizens who are bound by ideals and a set of values." --Barack Obama on our nation, which was founded on Judeo-Christian principles and values ++ "We will convey our deep appreciation for the Islamic faith, which has done so much over the centuries to shape the world -- including in my own country." --Barack Obama to the Turkish Parliament **"The most significant event connected to the Islamic faith that has shaped the character of the United States was the attack on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001." --author Robert Spencer

VILLAGE IDIOTS

He's changed America, alright: "You have given renewed hope not only to the citizens of the United States of America, but to all citizens in all parts of the world. I want to thank you for your leadership, your vision and your courage, which you've already shown in your presidency, and congratulate you on the dynamism, energy and indeed the achievements that you have been responsible for. Your first 70 days in office have changed America, and you've changed America's relationship with the world." --British Prime Minister Gordon Brown to Obama

You first: "We, like the rest of the world community, are awaiting a world free of nuclear arms. Our expectation from the U.S. and others is to take serious and practical measures toward nuclear disarmament and dismantling of weapons of mass destruction." --Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hassan Qashqavi

Logical fallacies: "We have 32 people being murdered by guns every day in this country. If peanut butter or pistachio nuts or spinach killed that number of people once in one day, they'd be pulled by the FDA." --Michael Wolkowitz, member of the board of trustees for the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence **Apply that logic to alcohol or automobiles and see where it gets you.

AND JUST FOR LAUGHS:

President Obama and the First Lady met with Queen Elizabeth and the royal family at Buckingham Palace. Actually, you know why they did that? This is all part of Obama's campaign to reach out to those people without any real jobs.

A lot of Americans don't understand the role of the queen. The queen is merely a figurehead. She wields no real political power. Or, as we call it in this country, the vice president.(And if anyone has seen or read about the VP this week this is hilariously true. )

HAT TIP: TO THE PATRIOT POST

We are going to put an end to the notion that the American taxpayer exists to fund the federal government.

Can Obama Shut Down the Internet??

The question is being asked, and it is an important one that we all need to pay attention to. Can Obama shut down the internet? The answer will not come as a surprise to most of us. The only ones surprised may be the adoring, leg tingling, messiah worshipers but they will be in denial until it is too late.

With conservative bloggers, talks shows, and the like being considered “terrorists,” this is not too far fetched. In fact, it is getting closer to becoming reality by the moment. Here is what I found thanks to Hot Air Blog.

When Mother Jones and Jules Crittenden agree, isn’t that a sign of the apocalypse? Both take a hard look at the Cybersecurity Act of 2009, sponsored by Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), Bill Nelson (D-FL), and Olympia Snowe (R-ME). The bill addresses the need to protect vital networks from cyber attack, but it gives a lot of power to the executive branch — perhaps too much power. Mother Jones reports:

The Cybersecurity Act of 2009 (PDF) gives the president the ability to “declare a cybersecurity emergency” and shut down or limit Internet traffic in any “critical” information network “in the interest of national security.” The bill does not define a critical information network or a cybersecurity emergency. That definition would be left to the president.

The bill does not only add to the power of the president. It also grants the Secretary of Commerce “access to all relevant data concerning [critical] networks without regard to any provision of law, regulation, rule, or policy restricting such access.” This means he or she can monitor or access any data on private or public networks without regard to privacy laws.

Jules adds:

You know, if it was the Bush administration, I’d be more inclined to trust them. They sought extraordinary wartime powers, and used them to prosecute the war on terror. Never abused them, though, despite all the squawking.

Jules wonders when the Leftosphere will erupt in outrage. Mother Jones isn’t a bad start, though.

Here are the sections raising eyebrows:

SEC. 14. PUBLIC–PRIVATE CLEARINGHOUSE.

(a) DESIGNATION.—The Department of Commerce shall serve as the clearinghouse of cybersecurity threat and vulnerability information to Federal government and private sector owned critical infrastructure information systems and networks.

(b) FUNCTIONS.—The Secretary of Commerce—

(1) shall have access to all relevant data concerning such networks without regard to any provision of law, regulation, rule, or policy restricting such access; …

SEC. 18. CYBERSECURITY RESPONSIBILITIES AND AUTHORITY.

The President— …

(2) may declare a cybersecurity emergency and order the limitation or shutdown of Internet traffic to and from any compromised Federal government or United States critical infrastructure information system or network; …

The second provision is something less than advertised, I believe. It gives the President the authority to disconnect federal networks from the Internet in the case of cyberattack. That doesn’t seem like an outrageous provision to me; it sounds like a sensible option to protect vital government systems. In fact, I’d be surprised if that power doesn’t already exist within the various federal agencies. This would allow the President to make a blanket order to take networks off line.

That doesn’t make it completely benign, either. That power could get abused to keep people from accessing public information. However, the provision on its own does not equate to “shutting down the Internet”, at least not how I read it.

Section 14 may be a bigger problem. It essentially revokes all privacy safeguards on Internet use for allall times. networks. The Fourth Amendment would go straight out the window with the explicit inclusion of “private sector owned critical infrastructure information systems and networks.” While Section 18 limits jurisdiction to federal networks, Section 14 allows the government to go after private networks without search warrants. The section also doesn’t limit the jurisdiction to acute attacks, either. That jurisdiction exists at

The big problem isn’t that Obama might shut down the Internet. It’s that the bill essentially repeals the Fourth Amendment.

Hat tip: Hot Air Blog

We are going to put an end to the notion that the American taxpayer exists to fund the federal government.