For the bulk of this year we have been told how if only everything is turned over to the benevolent and competent hands of the government we will receive better health care at a lower cost than we now endure, and as an added bonus no patient will be left behind.
Rather than all the fighting and bickering that is going on now, why don't the powers that be take the simple step of proving how much better and cheaper they can run things? The federal government, or it's compelled partners the state governments, already control Medicare, Medicaid, and the VA health care systems. If they can do such an incredible job of providing improved health care at lower cost, let them prove it within the framework of these programs. Show us the savings you can realize. Show us how much better off the participants can be made through the application of smart government to the problem.
If they can do everything they claim is possible within those programs, I guarantee that every American will march on Washington and demand that the benefit of government brilliance be extended to everyone. One solid result will win far more converts than any number of pie in the sky promises.
Prove the truth, and no one can claim there is a lie.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Renault’s Ghosn Bucks Trend With Electric ‘Model T’
The above linked story extols the virtues of a new Renault electric vehicle, the Fluence sedan. The slant of the article is that Renault is producing the equivalent of the Model T for the electric vehicle world.
". . . will make Renault’s Fluence sedan the world’s first mass-market, zero- emission auto, [Chief Executive Officer Carlos] Ghosn said today at the Frankfurt Motor Show."
That's a really green, feel-good quote, Mr. Ghosen. Unfortunately, sir, TiVOing the carbon emissions from the tailpipe to the power plant across town does not make them go away. No matter how much you may wish it to be so, the electricity fairy does not come along in the middle of the night and top off your battery with magically carbon-neutral electricals. Until you create the initial energy in a non-polluting manner your efforts are nothing more than smoke and mirrors.
But keep trying!
". . . will make Renault’s Fluence sedan the world’s first mass-market, zero- emission auto, [Chief Executive Officer Carlos] Ghosn said today at the Frankfurt Motor Show."
That's a really green, feel-good quote, Mr. Ghosen. Unfortunately, sir, TiVOing the carbon emissions from the tailpipe to the power plant across town does not make them go away. No matter how much you may wish it to be so, the electricity fairy does not come along in the middle of the night and top off your battery with magically carbon-neutral electricals. Until you create the initial energy in a non-polluting manner your efforts are nothing more than smoke and mirrors.
But keep trying!
How Many Of These Do You Recognize As Having Come To Pass So Far?
A Google search for the phrase "Communist Goals read into the Jan. 10, 1963 Congressional Record" will yield a number of results, including the one linked in the title above. As the search term suggests, the results concern a list of 45 Communist goals for America. Compiled in the 1958 Cleon Skousen book "The Naked Communist", the list was read into the Congressional Record for the U.S. House of Representatives on January 10, 1963.
What is interesting is not the fact that this material was entered into the Congressional Record, but rather the fact that so many of the stated goals have been achieved, creating the nation and world we live in today. Proving yet again that the best way for the bad guys to have their way with the world is to simply tell the reasonable people exactly what they plan to do. History proves we can be relied upon to ignore the bad news.
(Note: There is no direct link to this material because the Congressional Record is only available online back to 1994. Visit a Federal depository library for corroboration of this material.)
Congressional Record--Appendix, pp. A34-A35, January 10, 1963
1. U.S. acceptance of coexistence as the only alternative to atomic war.
2. U.S. willingness to capitulate in preference to engaging in atomic war.
3. Develop the illusion that total disarmament [by] the United States would be a demonstration of moral strength.
4. Permit free trade between all nations regardless of Communist affiliation and regardless of whether or not items could be used for war.
5. Extension of long-term loans to Russia and Soviet satellites.
6. Provide American aid to all nations regardless of Communist domination.
7. Grant recognition of Red China. Admission of Red China to the U.N.
8. Set up East and West Germany as separate states in spite of Khrushchev's promise in 1955 to settle the German question by free elections under supervision of the U.N.
9. Prolong the conferences to ban atomic tests because the United States has agreed to suspend tests as long as negotiations are in progress.
10. Allow all Soviet satellites individual representation in the U.N.
11. Promote the U.N. as the only hope for mankind. If its charter is rewritten, demand that it be set up as a one-world government with its own independent armed forces. (Some Communist leaders believe the world can be taken over as easily by the U.N. as by Moscow. Sometimes these two centers compete with each other as they are now doing in the Congo.)
12. Resist any attempt to outlaw the Communist Party.
13. Do away with all loyalty oaths.
14. Continue giving Russia access to the U.S. Patent Office.
15. Capture one or both of the political parties in the United States.
16. Use technical decisions of the courts to weaken basic American institutions by claiming their activities violate civil rights.
17. Get control of the schools. Use them as transmission belts for socialism and current Communist propaganda. Soften the curriculum. Get control of teachers' associations. Put the party line in textbooks.
18. Gain control of all student newspapers.
19. Use student riots to foment public protests against programs or organizations which are under Communist attack.
20. Infiltrate the press. Get control of book-review assignments, editorial writing, policy-making positions.
21. Gain control of key positions in radio, TV, and motion pictures.
22. Continue discrediting American culture by degrading all forms of artistic expression. An American Communist cell was told to "eliminate all good sculpture from parks and buildings, substitute shapeless, awkward and meaningless forms."
23. Control art critics and directors of art museums. "Our plan is to promote ugliness, repulsive, meaningless art."
24. Eliminate all laws governing obscenity by calling them "censorship" and a violation of free speech and free press.
25. Break down cultural standards of morality by promoting pornography and obscenity in books, magazines, motion pictures, radio, and TV.
26. Present homosexuality, degeneracy and promiscuity as "normal, natural, healthy."
27. Infiltrate the churches and replace revealed religion with "social" religion. Discredit the Bible and emphasize the need for intellectual maturity, which does not need a "religious crutch."
28. Eliminate prayer or any phase of religious expression in the schools on the ground that it violates the principle of "separation of church and state."
29. Discredit the American Constitution by calling it inadequate, old-fashioned, out of step with modern needs, a hindrance to cooperation between nations on a worldwide basis.
30. Discredit the American Founding Fathers. Present them as selfish aristocrats who had no concern for the "common man."
31. Belittle all forms of American culture and discourage the teaching of American history on the ground that it was only a minor part of the "big picture." Give more emphasis to Russian history since the Communists took over.
32. Support any socialist movement to give centralized control over any part of the culture--education, social agencies, welfare programs, mental health clinics, etc.
33. Eliminate all laws or procedures which interfere with the operation of the Communist apparatus.
34. Eliminate the House Committee on Un-American Activities.
35. Discredit and eventually dismantle the FBI.
36. Infiltrate and gain control of more unions.
37. Infiltrate and gain control of big business.
38. Transfer some of the powers of arrest from the police to social agencies. Treat all behavioral problems as psychiatric disorders which no one but psychiatrists can understand [or treat].
39. Dominate the psychiatric profession and use mental health laws as a means of gaining coercive control over those who oppose Communist goals.
40. Discredit the family as an institution. Encourage promiscuity and easy divorce.
41. Emphasize the need to raise children away from the negative influence of parents. Attribute prejudices, mental blocks and retarding of children to suppressive influence of parents.
42. Create the impression that violence and insurrection are legitimate aspects of the American tradition; that students and special-interest groups should rise up and use ["]united force["] to solve economic, political or social problems.
43. Overthrow all colonial governments before native populations are ready for self-government.
44. Internationalize the Panama Canal.
45. Repeal the Connally reservation so the United States cannot prevent the World Court from seizing jurisdiction [over domestic problems. Give the World Court jurisdiction] over nations and individuals alike.
What is interesting is not the fact that this material was entered into the Congressional Record, but rather the fact that so many of the stated goals have been achieved, creating the nation and world we live in today. Proving yet again that the best way for the bad guys to have their way with the world is to simply tell the reasonable people exactly what they plan to do. History proves we can be relied upon to ignore the bad news.
(Note: There is no direct link to this material because the Congressional Record is only available online back to 1994. Visit a Federal depository library for corroboration of this material.)
Congressional Record--Appendix, pp. A34-A35, January 10, 1963
1. U.S. acceptance of coexistence as the only alternative to atomic war.
2. U.S. willingness to capitulate in preference to engaging in atomic war.
3. Develop the illusion that total disarmament [by] the United States would be a demonstration of moral strength.
4. Permit free trade between all nations regardless of Communist affiliation and regardless of whether or not items could be used for war.
5. Extension of long-term loans to Russia and Soviet satellites.
6. Provide American aid to all nations regardless of Communist domination.
7. Grant recognition of Red China. Admission of Red China to the U.N.
8. Set up East and West Germany as separate states in spite of Khrushchev's promise in 1955 to settle the German question by free elections under supervision of the U.N.
9. Prolong the conferences to ban atomic tests because the United States has agreed to suspend tests as long as negotiations are in progress.
10. Allow all Soviet satellites individual representation in the U.N.
11. Promote the U.N. as the only hope for mankind. If its charter is rewritten, demand that it be set up as a one-world government with its own independent armed forces. (Some Communist leaders believe the world can be taken over as easily by the U.N. as by Moscow. Sometimes these two centers compete with each other as they are now doing in the Congo.)
12. Resist any attempt to outlaw the Communist Party.
13. Do away with all loyalty oaths.
14. Continue giving Russia access to the U.S. Patent Office.
15. Capture one or both of the political parties in the United States.
16. Use technical decisions of the courts to weaken basic American institutions by claiming their activities violate civil rights.
17. Get control of the schools. Use them as transmission belts for socialism and current Communist propaganda. Soften the curriculum. Get control of teachers' associations. Put the party line in textbooks.
18. Gain control of all student newspapers.
19. Use student riots to foment public protests against programs or organizations which are under Communist attack.
20. Infiltrate the press. Get control of book-review assignments, editorial writing, policy-making positions.
21. Gain control of key positions in radio, TV, and motion pictures.
22. Continue discrediting American culture by degrading all forms of artistic expression. An American Communist cell was told to "eliminate all good sculpture from parks and buildings, substitute shapeless, awkward and meaningless forms."
23. Control art critics and directors of art museums. "Our plan is to promote ugliness, repulsive, meaningless art."
24. Eliminate all laws governing obscenity by calling them "censorship" and a violation of free speech and free press.
25. Break down cultural standards of morality by promoting pornography and obscenity in books, magazines, motion pictures, radio, and TV.
26. Present homosexuality, degeneracy and promiscuity as "normal, natural, healthy."
27. Infiltrate the churches and replace revealed religion with "social" religion. Discredit the Bible and emphasize the need for intellectual maturity, which does not need a "religious crutch."
28. Eliminate prayer or any phase of religious expression in the schools on the ground that it violates the principle of "separation of church and state."
29. Discredit the American Constitution by calling it inadequate, old-fashioned, out of step with modern needs, a hindrance to cooperation between nations on a worldwide basis.
30. Discredit the American Founding Fathers. Present them as selfish aristocrats who had no concern for the "common man."
31. Belittle all forms of American culture and discourage the teaching of American history on the ground that it was only a minor part of the "big picture." Give more emphasis to Russian history since the Communists took over.
32. Support any socialist movement to give centralized control over any part of the culture--education, social agencies, welfare programs, mental health clinics, etc.
33. Eliminate all laws or procedures which interfere with the operation of the Communist apparatus.
34. Eliminate the House Committee on Un-American Activities.
35. Discredit and eventually dismantle the FBI.
36. Infiltrate and gain control of more unions.
37. Infiltrate and gain control of big business.
38. Transfer some of the powers of arrest from the police to social agencies. Treat all behavioral problems as psychiatric disorders which no one but psychiatrists can understand [or treat].
39. Dominate the psychiatric profession and use mental health laws as a means of gaining coercive control over those who oppose Communist goals.
40. Discredit the family as an institution. Encourage promiscuity and easy divorce.
41. Emphasize the need to raise children away from the negative influence of parents. Attribute prejudices, mental blocks and retarding of children to suppressive influence of parents.
42. Create the impression that violence and insurrection are legitimate aspects of the American tradition; that students and special-interest groups should rise up and use ["]united force["] to solve economic, political or social problems.
43. Overthrow all colonial governments before native populations are ready for self-government.
44. Internationalize the Panama Canal.
45. Repeal the Connally reservation so the United States cannot prevent the World Court from seizing jurisdiction [over domestic problems. Give the World Court jurisdiction] over nations and individuals alike.
Monday, September 07, 2009
Play Time's Over, Kids (Mommy and Daddy Aren't Famous Enough)
Rosie O'Donnell gets a pass on this when she dresses her 4-year-old daughter similarly (Note: the previous link is one of literally thousands available regarding the June 2207 O'Donnell incident, and was only selected as a representative account because it is posted by a "respectable" source - CBS News), but less well off citizens get hauled in and charged?
Clearly the two in this most recent case are not Parents of the Year material with the drugs and other issues around the home. However, it was the picture that drew government attention in the first place. Certainly one may choose to disagree with the notion of children being in possession of firearms, but a photograph of a child holding a weapon is hardly illegal, and there is no possible method of discerning from the photograph whether the guns were loaded at the time of the photoshoot. Even if the weapons were loaded, that does not in and of itself constitute child endangerment. The nanny-state concerns of a busybody, do-gooder friend or neighbor over the subject matter of a photograph that is not in and of itself depicting a criminal act hardly justifies violation of the Fourth Amendment.
Since the authorities gained access to the home due to information that did not exclusive of the establishment of other supporting facts constitute a crime and would never have otherwise drawn their involvement, all charges the couple face ought to be dismissed. From the photograph itself, as a cause of action for entry and search, it is not possible to determine where the photograph was taken or whether the guns are legally owned and registered. They should get off on this one not because the parents don't deserve to be charged but because we cannot permit the government or it's representatives to enter our homes without just cause and then conduct a fishing expedition.
If the standard for probable cause to enter and search private property is reduced to one citizen complaining that an illegal act might have taken place (or not - oops!) then the protections and privileges of private property cease to exist for all.
Just one more chink in the armor of civil liberties and protection against intrusive government.
Clearly the two in this most recent case are not Parents of the Year material with the drugs and other issues around the home. However, it was the picture that drew government attention in the first place. Certainly one may choose to disagree with the notion of children being in possession of firearms, but a photograph of a child holding a weapon is hardly illegal, and there is no possible method of discerning from the photograph whether the guns were loaded at the time of the photoshoot. Even if the weapons were loaded, that does not in and of itself constitute child endangerment. The nanny-state concerns of a busybody, do-gooder friend or neighbor over the subject matter of a photograph that is not in and of itself depicting a criminal act hardly justifies violation of the Fourth Amendment.
Since the authorities gained access to the home due to information that did not exclusive of the establishment of other supporting facts constitute a crime and would never have otherwise drawn their involvement, all charges the couple face ought to be dismissed. From the photograph itself, as a cause of action for entry and search, it is not possible to determine where the photograph was taken or whether the guns are legally owned and registered. They should get off on this one not because the parents don't deserve to be charged but because we cannot permit the government or it's representatives to enter our homes without just cause and then conduct a fishing expedition.
If the standard for probable cause to enter and search private property is reduced to one citizen complaining that an illegal act might have taken place (or not - oops!) then the protections and privileges of private property cease to exist for all.
Just one more chink in the armor of civil liberties and protection against intrusive government.
Michael Moore: Bet You Won't Find His Money Running Where His Mouth Does
"Capitalism: A Love Story" is the latest offering to the cultural heritage of the planet by Michael Moore.
In the film, Moore "concludes" - though one suspects the conclusion was the starting framework around which selected supporting elements were wrapped - that capitalism is an evil, and needs to be replaced with something good for the people - like democracy!
Not only does Moore reveal his widely shared ignorance of the form of government established in the Constitution of the United States of America, that being a representative republic rather than a democracy, his conclusion also would seem to suggest that the successful function of capitalism is impossible and indeed undesirable within a democratic society.
Hmm. The workers control the means of production anyone?
Speaking in Venice, "Democracy is not a spectator sport, it's a participatory event," [Moore] told a news conference. "If we don't participate in it, it ceases to be a democracy. So Obama will rise or fall based not so much on what he does but on what we do to support him."
So all we need to do is gather 'round and launch a rousing chorus of Kumbaya My Lord Obama, Kumbaya, and the good times will soon be had by all.
I have no doubt that Michael Moore will join the chorus. How likely is it, though, that he will donate all his filthy, capitalist system generated millions to the cause?
In the film, Moore "concludes" - though one suspects the conclusion was the starting framework around which selected supporting elements were wrapped - that capitalism is an evil, and needs to be replaced with something good for the people - like democracy!
Not only does Moore reveal his widely shared ignorance of the form of government established in the Constitution of the United States of America, that being a representative republic rather than a democracy, his conclusion also would seem to suggest that the successful function of capitalism is impossible and indeed undesirable within a democratic society.
Hmm. The workers control the means of production anyone?
Speaking in Venice, "Democracy is not a spectator sport, it's a participatory event," [Moore] told a news conference. "If we don't participate in it, it ceases to be a democracy. So Obama will rise or fall based not so much on what he does but on what we do to support him."
So all we need to do is gather 'round and launch a rousing chorus of Kumbaya My Lord Obama, Kumbaya, and the good times will soon be had by all.
I have no doubt that Michael Moore will join the chorus. How likely is it, though, that he will donate all his filthy, capitalist system generated millions to the cause?
Friday, September 04, 2009
More Mail For Congress
As a follow-up to the August 22 letter to the White House on Health Care Reform, the letter below was sent today to Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, Robert Byrd, Jay Rockefeller, and Shelley Moore Capito.
For some strange reason, the President does not seem inclined to reciprocate when I reach out to correspond with him. I am optimistic that at least one of the five on today's mailing list will return a form letter assuring me my views are truly valued.
______________________________________
September 4, 2009
Representative Nancy Pelosi
United States House of Representatives
235 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515-0508
Madame Speaker,
Please read the enclosed letter to the President.
As public servants and shepherds of the best interests of the collective citizens of the United States of America, it is Congress’ obligation to me and every other American to provide leadership and promote the wellbeing of all. Pillaging the treasury and saddling several future generations of Americans with a debt that makes the toxic housing loans of recent years appear conservative and completely responsible is an abrogation of your fiduciary responsibility to the public trust.
The only “trigger” that needs to be legislated and pulled is the one invoking common sense, maturity, and reason from those serving in Washington. Health care reform as it is presently contemplated is neither reform nor necessary.
I call upon you to do all within your power to derail this mad rush towards the oblivion today’s political leadership seems determined to force this nation into.
Sincerely,
Jacob D. Vreeland, Jr.
Bunker Hill, WV
For some strange reason, the President does not seem inclined to reciprocate when I reach out to correspond with him. I am optimistic that at least one of the five on today's mailing list will return a form letter assuring me my views are truly valued.
______________________________________
September 4, 2009
Representative Nancy Pelosi
United States House of Representatives
235 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515-0508
Madame Speaker,
Please read the enclosed letter to the President.
As public servants and shepherds of the best interests of the collective citizens of the United States of America, it is Congress’ obligation to me and every other American to provide leadership and promote the wellbeing of all. Pillaging the treasury and saddling several future generations of Americans with a debt that makes the toxic housing loans of recent years appear conservative and completely responsible is an abrogation of your fiduciary responsibility to the public trust.
The only “trigger” that needs to be legislated and pulled is the one invoking common sense, maturity, and reason from those serving in Washington. Health care reform as it is presently contemplated is neither reform nor necessary.
I call upon you to do all within your power to derail this mad rush towards the oblivion today’s political leadership seems determined to force this nation into.
Sincerely,
Jacob D. Vreeland, Jr.
Bunker Hill, WV
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