When you are obsessed with race, things can only get worse. The more the president and politicians push programs that favor any group over another you end up with resentment and conflict. Every civilization in history has had groups that have been discriminated against, and enslaved because human nature is what it is and will never change. Our founders knew that through their studies of civilization and political systems, and attempted to do their best constructing a system that focused on individuals and not groups.
Many Americans continue to reference our founders as racist because slavery was accepted in the original draft of the constitution, but anyone that studies the founders understands many of our greatest thinkers knew that our system of government would eventually lead to undermining slavery on principle. At least that was the hope of many. Slavery was not a product of America; slavery was a normal practice in every society including African society where most of our slaves were from. There is still slavery in Africa and other places around the world. But in America it is repulsive to think about or witness slavery today. The concept makes most Americans angry and we would never accept formalized slavery in this country, or would we?
Having grown up in the Bronx NY, I have witnessed another form of slavery and it comes in the form of a government program. Too many Black Americans have been shackled by a promise that government programs are the solution to their deplorable conditions within many of their communities. It started with welfare programs that destroyed the Black family by demanding that there be no father in the household in order to get benefits for the women and children. It continued with housing projects that looked more like jail cells than apartments, and it continues with government education that offers little hope to escape the circumstances many children find themselves born into in the inner cities of America.
It is heartbreaking to see Black males in too many cities standing on corners waiting, for what I don’t know, as life and the American Dream pass them by. And still generation after generation the promises of government enslave them into a cycle of poverty that can only be broken by the will of each individual. Not as a group, but one by one, breaking the cycle and getting out of these communities that have a culture of dependence. Easy to say, what to do?
Stop focusing on race. By focusing on race what we are saying is that the Black community is inferior and can’t lift themselves up by their own bootstraps, and that is absolute garbage. We need to end the education system as we know it and encourage entrepreneurial programs that focus on learning skills that focus on fundamentals and train children to be competitive in the American Dream. It would help if we could have a conversation about this subject without bringing up race, and looking at the fundamental problems within the community just like there are fundamental problems in every community. And they all can be fixed the same way with education and self reliance.
It is sad to watch a president that had a great opportunity to lift all Americans beyond the superficial platitudes of race squander the opportunity by dividing the country through “social equality” programs that have nothing equal about them. Human beings are not equal in outcome. We all have unique skills to offer the world and those skills will garner what the market values them to be. We cannot guarantee equal outcomes and that is what our founders knew. We are all created equal and what we do is a result of what we work toward as individuals. No guarantees of success just the guarantee that in our country if you work hard you have a chance to succeed. As a society that is the best opportunity we can offer everyone equally. To take from one to give to another through some “social justice” philosophy is not justice at all; it is divisive.
That is what we see today. A president and administration that has drifted dangerously away from our founding principles and by doing so is bringing back slavery through the guise of “shared responsibility”. The only shared responsibility we have is to abide by the laws and constitution of this land. That is what will end racism. Otherwise we will continue to resent what one group gets or takes from the others without justification except for the fact that their skin is a different color… That is divisive and will destroy the founding principles that have made this country the beacon for every race, creed, and gender…
True knowledge of American history is necessary to insure the future of the America we love… This is an important time in our country's history. We must be wise and measured as we choose our leaders going forward.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
McInnis can ignore the issue and we can ignore him at the polls…
I wonder how many people that vote based on principle are going to enthusiastically support or even support Scott McInnis if he for some strange reason gets the Republican primary nod. I can’t imagine any republican that knows of the plagiarism will vote for Scott in the primary. But stranger things have happened in politics.
But this is Colorado where there is still some semblance of values, and too many people that refuse to hold their noses and vote for an unelectable candidate in the general election. Talk about dowsing the enthusiasm of the conservative voter in Colorado by making McInnis the candidate. He may think he can just dismiss this as a mistake and move on but principled people don’t move on so easily.
We have a conundrum and it keeps getting worse. Those boots are definitely made for walking, but they ain’t walking over the good people of Colorado. I hope we’re better than that!
But this is Colorado where there is still some semblance of values, and too many people that refuse to hold their noses and vote for an unelectable candidate in the general election. Talk about dowsing the enthusiasm of the conservative voter in Colorado by making McInnis the candidate. He may think he can just dismiss this as a mistake and move on but principled people don’t move on so easily.
We have a conundrum and it keeps getting worse. Those boots are definitely made for walking, but they ain’t walking over the good people of Colorado. I hope we’re better than that!
Monday, July 19, 2010
Words Mean Things…
The process of writing our constitution was painstakingly debated because words mean things. When you choose words it is important they reflect the meaning you intend so it is no wonder there is a concerted effort underfoot to change the meaning of words and history by the enemies of our constitution, and it is happening every day, every chance they get.
Take for instance the president and secretary of state discussing our right to “freedom of worship” as opposed to right to “the free exercise of religion” as stated in the constitution. At first glance they may seem similar but freedom to worship is not the same as freedom of religion. There are many religions that define the terms of how they worship therefore free to practice their religion. Freedom to worship is not religion specific and taken to the next step could be defined by the government since it is not tied to religion. For some this may seem trivial but for thinking individuals it is the difference between protecting their religion and losing their religion.
Words and phrases slightly altered can be the difference of a free people and a people governed through tyranny. The first amendment states:
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
The choice of the words our founders used is clear to the intent of this amendment. But these words have been turned upside down to argue that no religious mention can happen in a public building. You tell me where those words are found in this amendment?
The second amendment states:
“A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”
One of the most challenged amendments of the first ten clearly stated protects the individual right to keep and bear Arms. It is often argued that this right is tied to being in a militia which its opponents equate to the military. But the definition of militia, is not the military. In the context of the day, a “militia” was every “ordinary citizen’s” responsibility to protect the state. It was independent of an organized military as we have today. So when it is stated a well regulated “militia”, they are not talking about the military, they are talking about “ordinary citizens”. To make it even clearer they added, “the right of the people…” It was as if they could see into the future.
In order to challenge this amendment its opponents have resorted to distorting the meanings of the words and phrases as well as ignored the context of the time.
Words make up the foundation of our constitution and were chosen with particular care. We can’t ignore the meaning of words, or when they are tied to other words and phrases, and we can’t ignore the context and meaning of words at the time they were written.
That is why the enemies of our constitution are always trying to breathe “life” into the document, arguing it is living. It is why the constitution’s enemies are always trying to evolve the meanings of words to meet their goals to undermine constitutional law, and it is why we need to remember; words mean things, and to never forget the context they were written in so we can protect the constitution…
Our freedom and future depend on our understanding of history…
Take for instance the president and secretary of state discussing our right to “freedom of worship” as opposed to right to “the free exercise of religion” as stated in the constitution. At first glance they may seem similar but freedom to worship is not the same as freedom of religion. There are many religions that define the terms of how they worship therefore free to practice their religion. Freedom to worship is not religion specific and taken to the next step could be defined by the government since it is not tied to religion. For some this may seem trivial but for thinking individuals it is the difference between protecting their religion and losing their religion.
Words and phrases slightly altered can be the difference of a free people and a people governed through tyranny. The first amendment states:
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
The choice of the words our founders used is clear to the intent of this amendment. But these words have been turned upside down to argue that no religious mention can happen in a public building. You tell me where those words are found in this amendment?
The second amendment states:
“A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”
One of the most challenged amendments of the first ten clearly stated protects the individual right to keep and bear Arms. It is often argued that this right is tied to being in a militia which its opponents equate to the military. But the definition of militia, is not the military. In the context of the day, a “militia” was every “ordinary citizen’s” responsibility to protect the state. It was independent of an organized military as we have today. So when it is stated a well regulated “militia”, they are not talking about the military, they are talking about “ordinary citizens”. To make it even clearer they added, “the right of the people…” It was as if they could see into the future.
In order to challenge this amendment its opponents have resorted to distorting the meanings of the words and phrases as well as ignored the context of the time.
Words make up the foundation of our constitution and were chosen with particular care. We can’t ignore the meaning of words, or when they are tied to other words and phrases, and we can’t ignore the context and meaning of words at the time they were written.
That is why the enemies of our constitution are always trying to breathe “life” into the document, arguing it is living. It is why the constitution’s enemies are always trying to evolve the meanings of words to meet their goals to undermine constitutional law, and it is why we need to remember; words mean things, and to never forget the context they were written in so we can protect the constitution…
Our freedom and future depend on our understanding of history…
A Rant - Looking For Political Answers in All the Wrong Places…
Scott McInnis and Dan Maes have rattled the cages of conservatives concerned with the direction of the federal government. Some of us were hoping to stop an out of control federal government by electing a strong conservative Governor that would use his power to take back the responsibilities outlined for the state in our U.S. Constitution. What are we going to do in Colorado?
Colorado is in trouble, and conservatives in particular are going to be left with a choice that is handed to us by the leaders of the Republican Party. The same party that has helped drive our federal government into our board rooms, our living rooms, and lunch rooms. These “limited government” advocates want a government limited to what they want and be damned the constitution. The same party that spends lavishly on expenses for party leaders while purporting to support the small business community they are robbing blind with taxation. The same party that has made it nearly impossible to see the line between them and the democrats with the exception of abortion and the Supreme Court. The party that knows no end to what the federal government can “help” us accomplish.
We are supposed to believe they are going to choose a candidate that will have the interest of the common business man, common citizen, and the future of our children at the forefront of their efforts. As John Stossel is famous for saying, “Give me a break!”
The choice for Governor on the democratic side is an enemy of the people. He is an elitist that believes and is supported by people that believe in global governance, global warming, universal taking of rights through healthcare, and every other utopian scheme that is bound to assist in our destruction as a state and nation.
This is what we get to choose from in Colorado? What are we Oshkosh (sorry Oshkosh!)? Who are we as a people to be left with this despicable set of circumstances with all of our eggs in the basket of a handful of incompetent party leaders? What have we done to deserve this predicament we are in? We have ignored the political process for too long and we must organize around something other than the Republican’s choice for a candidate.
As Colorado citizens we should reject both parties and organize around an individual willing to fight the federal takeover of our economy, liberty, and future. Damn it - we can do better than this…
Colorado is in trouble, and conservatives in particular are going to be left with a choice that is handed to us by the leaders of the Republican Party. The same party that has helped drive our federal government into our board rooms, our living rooms, and lunch rooms. These “limited government” advocates want a government limited to what they want and be damned the constitution. The same party that spends lavishly on expenses for party leaders while purporting to support the small business community they are robbing blind with taxation. The same party that has made it nearly impossible to see the line between them and the democrats with the exception of abortion and the Supreme Court. The party that knows no end to what the federal government can “help” us accomplish.
We are supposed to believe they are going to choose a candidate that will have the interest of the common business man, common citizen, and the future of our children at the forefront of their efforts. As John Stossel is famous for saying, “Give me a break!”
The choice for Governor on the democratic side is an enemy of the people. He is an elitist that believes and is supported by people that believe in global governance, global warming, universal taking of rights through healthcare, and every other utopian scheme that is bound to assist in our destruction as a state and nation.
This is what we get to choose from in Colorado? What are we Oshkosh (sorry Oshkosh!)? Who are we as a people to be left with this despicable set of circumstances with all of our eggs in the basket of a handful of incompetent party leaders? What have we done to deserve this predicament we are in? We have ignored the political process for too long and we must organize around something other than the Republican’s choice for a candidate.
As Colorado citizens we should reject both parties and organize around an individual willing to fight the federal takeover of our economy, liberty, and future. Damn it - we can do better than this…
Friday, July 16, 2010
Why any Attempt to Cut Obesity by the Federal Government is Unconstitutional…
Michelle Obama, unelected wife of Barack Obama is on a kick to reduce obesity in America, specifically our kids, and more specifically by unconstitutional mandates. Why is this attempt unconstitutional? Like most things the federal government does or is doing, it is not part of the defined powers in the constitution. The reason the founders defined, specifically the things the federal government can do was to insure they would not do things like decide your menu at home, in school or any place else where we eat. The constitution is designed to LIMIT the federal government to specific enumerated powers. The rest is left to individuals and the state. It is about protecting freedom from tyranny.
Michelle Obama is free to use the “bully pulpit” as the wife of the president to encourage people to eat healthy, but that’s where her or any federal bureaucrat’s power is supposed to end.
Within the unconstitutional healthcare bill there is a provision, that “every American’s electronic health record must: Calculate body mass index. Automatically calculate and display body mass index based on a person’s height and weight.”
I say no. As an individual citizen protected by the U.S. Constitution, I will not allow my body mass index to be recorded for the federal government to analyze. Why, first it invades my privacy and second I know what they are going to do with that information, they are going to control people’s lives. How you say? When the data is crunched and the BMI is calculated the results will be used to determine what foods the federal government will ban from consumption. They will say we are too fat and we must end the production of Twinkies in this country. Laugh but it’s not funny. I like Twinkies and ho ho’s, and Hershey bars, and Reese’s Pieces, and chocolate cake and freedom, and if I want to get fat, that is my right.
Again you say, by being fat you will cost the federal government more in healthcare. No I will not because I pay for my own healthcare. Again you say, eventually the federal government will be the only insurer for healthcare and I say I would rather die. This is why healthcare is unconstitutional. It goes beyond any enumerated power, and no matter how you or I feel about obesity and the efforts to curb it, you can’t use the federal government beyond its constitutional powers, otherwise you infringe on my freedoms. In order to protect freedom we MUST hold the federal government in check no matter what the issue of the day is. Do you see what has happened?
It is so obvious when you start to follow the logic of these tyrants dressed up as do gooders. They know better than you on what you should eat, drive, study, career, retire, do you see now?
We are being boiled one unconstitutional bill after another. Slowly these bills create a web of chains on our freedom, and one day we wake up to a knock on the door, “Mr. Hand, we see you didn’t fill out your BMI and we must take you down to the government controlled hospital to weigh and measure you. As soon as we finish that we will taking you to the prison cell to serve the sentence of two years for failing to conform to health regulation UPTHECREEK 101.”
The constitution must be adhered to and every Governor of every state must nullify every federal law that is passed that does not meet constitutional muster… Next we will discuss nullification…
Michelle Obama is free to use the “bully pulpit” as the wife of the president to encourage people to eat healthy, but that’s where her or any federal bureaucrat’s power is supposed to end.
Within the unconstitutional healthcare bill there is a provision, that “every American’s electronic health record must: Calculate body mass index. Automatically calculate and display body mass index based on a person’s height and weight.”
I say no. As an individual citizen protected by the U.S. Constitution, I will not allow my body mass index to be recorded for the federal government to analyze. Why, first it invades my privacy and second I know what they are going to do with that information, they are going to control people’s lives. How you say? When the data is crunched and the BMI is calculated the results will be used to determine what foods the federal government will ban from consumption. They will say we are too fat and we must end the production of Twinkies in this country. Laugh but it’s not funny. I like Twinkies and ho ho’s, and Hershey bars, and Reese’s Pieces, and chocolate cake and freedom, and if I want to get fat, that is my right.
Again you say, by being fat you will cost the federal government more in healthcare. No I will not because I pay for my own healthcare. Again you say, eventually the federal government will be the only insurer for healthcare and I say I would rather die. This is why healthcare is unconstitutional. It goes beyond any enumerated power, and no matter how you or I feel about obesity and the efforts to curb it, you can’t use the federal government beyond its constitutional powers, otherwise you infringe on my freedoms. In order to protect freedom we MUST hold the federal government in check no matter what the issue of the day is. Do you see what has happened?
It is so obvious when you start to follow the logic of these tyrants dressed up as do gooders. They know better than you on what you should eat, drive, study, career, retire, do you see now?
We are being boiled one unconstitutional bill after another. Slowly these bills create a web of chains on our freedom, and one day we wake up to a knock on the door, “Mr. Hand, we see you didn’t fill out your BMI and we must take you down to the government controlled hospital to weigh and measure you. As soon as we finish that we will taking you to the prison cell to serve the sentence of two years for failing to conform to health regulation UPTHECREEK 101.”
The constitution must be adhered to and every Governor of every state must nullify every federal law that is passed that does not meet constitutional muster… Next we will discuss nullification…
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Obama Healthcare may actually save the free market…
What? Are you crazy! This president despises the free market and is creating policies that are destroying the free market! You say… Well think about it carefully. Take healthcare for instance.
Living with a nurse for 25 years, you can imagine how many conversations we have had regarding healthcare. Me, a student of politics, and self proclaimed policy analyst, and my wife, have had many opportunities to discuss the impact of government intervention in healthcare. Here’s what I conclude.
Government control of healthcare will be a debacle because the government is incompetent (Medicare and Medicaid are already a debacle). The federal government is incompetent for these fundamental reasons; lack of accountability, hiring practices and policies, no profit motive, no connection to the consumer of the service, and imbedded unions that protect the incompetent employees that are all too common in government agencies.
Healthcare is personal and therefore extremely emotional. If we combine this with the reasons government is incompetent we have a recipe for disaster. That is why the only way to save the quality and access to healthcare is a free market model. And the Obama policies are driving the free market solution. These policy wonks don’t realize it yet, but America will not accept rationing or subpar medical services, and will do whatever necessary to get quality medical care. They have seen what the system can be, and the American people will never be convinced they can’t have it again. And that is why the free market will undoubtedly emerge just like it has in every country that has socialized medicine. As long as people have money to pay for private services they will. That’s a fact socialists don’t understand! So, here is what is happening in healthcare already that will save the free market.
Doctor pay is being cut by Medicare and Medicaid. These payments have not kept up with inflation and more and more doctors are refusing Medicare and Medicaid patients. Private insurance payments are based on the Medicare rate schedule so again doctors are finding it harder and harder to get market value for their services. Place this fact on top of the cost of medical school and missed opportunity costs based on the many years it takes to become a doctor, and you create an environment that incents early retirement and discourages new doctors from entering the profession. The current conditions and future concerns in the healthcare market are increasing doctor retirements and reducing the number of doctors entering the field, creating less supply while the demand is guaranteed to increase with the perception of “free” government healthcare.
In conversations with healthcare professionals what you are starting to hear more loudly than ever is private pay and free market principles as the solution. More and more doctors are starting to refuse private and government insurance programs and taking cash payment or creating their own payment plans through their practice. The more these doctors opt out of insurance the bigger the private pay market will become. In the end it will mean better care for patients at the market cost of services. As this happens more and more students will again consider the investment to become a doctor a good one.
Doctors will be able to influence change based on the demand for their services, and I predict as doctors become scarce, large corporations, and pools of small businesses will begin to hire private doctors to provide healthcare for their employees. Doctors no longer will have to be administrators and can focus on care while making a healthy paycheck. Corporations will eliminate the huge headache of administering multiple insurance plans and will be able to customize more affordable and accessible healthcare for their employees. Combine the rejection of private and government insurance with a demand from business to take care of their employees, and the government will be forced to yield control.
In conclusion, the private business of healthcare is going to thrive because of the burdens and incompetence that is occurring through bloated government and private health insurance bureaucracies. The free market will find a way to survive. Healthcare is too important and personal to leave to government or large insurance bureaucracies. The only solution left is the free market. There is nowhere else this industry can go. It has been over regulated for too long and is at a breaking point. The only way the United States healthcare “system” can survive is in a free market, entrepreneurial environment where people are free to go to doctors and pay a fare rate for the services. Insurance and government have become too expensive.
In the end, people will realize that the free market is the best answer to a healthy economic future and will re-embrace this foundational principle of our country…
Living with a nurse for 25 years, you can imagine how many conversations we have had regarding healthcare. Me, a student of politics, and self proclaimed policy analyst, and my wife, have had many opportunities to discuss the impact of government intervention in healthcare. Here’s what I conclude.
Government control of healthcare will be a debacle because the government is incompetent (Medicare and Medicaid are already a debacle). The federal government is incompetent for these fundamental reasons; lack of accountability, hiring practices and policies, no profit motive, no connection to the consumer of the service, and imbedded unions that protect the incompetent employees that are all too common in government agencies.
Healthcare is personal and therefore extremely emotional. If we combine this with the reasons government is incompetent we have a recipe for disaster. That is why the only way to save the quality and access to healthcare is a free market model. And the Obama policies are driving the free market solution. These policy wonks don’t realize it yet, but America will not accept rationing or subpar medical services, and will do whatever necessary to get quality medical care. They have seen what the system can be, and the American people will never be convinced they can’t have it again. And that is why the free market will undoubtedly emerge just like it has in every country that has socialized medicine. As long as people have money to pay for private services they will. That’s a fact socialists don’t understand! So, here is what is happening in healthcare already that will save the free market.
Doctor pay is being cut by Medicare and Medicaid. These payments have not kept up with inflation and more and more doctors are refusing Medicare and Medicaid patients. Private insurance payments are based on the Medicare rate schedule so again doctors are finding it harder and harder to get market value for their services. Place this fact on top of the cost of medical school and missed opportunity costs based on the many years it takes to become a doctor, and you create an environment that incents early retirement and discourages new doctors from entering the profession. The current conditions and future concerns in the healthcare market are increasing doctor retirements and reducing the number of doctors entering the field, creating less supply while the demand is guaranteed to increase with the perception of “free” government healthcare.
In conversations with healthcare professionals what you are starting to hear more loudly than ever is private pay and free market principles as the solution. More and more doctors are starting to refuse private and government insurance programs and taking cash payment or creating their own payment plans through their practice. The more these doctors opt out of insurance the bigger the private pay market will become. In the end it will mean better care for patients at the market cost of services. As this happens more and more students will again consider the investment to become a doctor a good one.
Doctors will be able to influence change based on the demand for their services, and I predict as doctors become scarce, large corporations, and pools of small businesses will begin to hire private doctors to provide healthcare for their employees. Doctors no longer will have to be administrators and can focus on care while making a healthy paycheck. Corporations will eliminate the huge headache of administering multiple insurance plans and will be able to customize more affordable and accessible healthcare for their employees. Combine the rejection of private and government insurance with a demand from business to take care of their employees, and the government will be forced to yield control.
In conclusion, the private business of healthcare is going to thrive because of the burdens and incompetence that is occurring through bloated government and private health insurance bureaucracies. The free market will find a way to survive. Healthcare is too important and personal to leave to government or large insurance bureaucracies. The only solution left is the free market. There is nowhere else this industry can go. It has been over regulated for too long and is at a breaking point. The only way the United States healthcare “system” can survive is in a free market, entrepreneurial environment where people are free to go to doctors and pay a fare rate for the services. Insurance and government have become too expensive.
In the end, people will realize that the free market is the best answer to a healthy economic future and will re-embrace this foundational principle of our country…
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