[a few times].

Yes, we know what we “see” on television is not “real”…. But question, how much is REALLY not real and what IS real?

When people are so used to watching it all on tv…what makes them question anything?

thank for the ‘hat tip’ to my friend @ResistTyranny

SAN DIEGO — The highly secretive Navy SEAL team that killed Osama bin Laden will likely be honored in the only way such a covert group(yes, so covert the news can report on the secret ceremony) can be: in private with nobody but themselves and their commanders in the know.

Quietly recognizing heroic actions for clandestine operations is not new in the military. Some service members wear war decorations but refuse to talk about how they earned them. Others stash away their medals, either because they’ve been ordered to hide them or they have chosen to for their own security.

And there are those heroes who have never lived to see a medal, their families sworn to secrecy until they were honored posthumously. For the elite few who dropped from the sky into the walled compound in Pakistan, they must carry on without breathing a word about their participation in Sunday’s spectacular raid that eliminated the world’s most-wanted terrorist.

It is a secret that surely must burn in their souls, but military officials say they have no doubt it will be kept. The stakes are too high.

The Navy still hasn’t confirmed its SEALs carried out the much-lauded, 40-minute operation. But privately, Rear Adm. Edward Winters, at Naval Special Warfare Command in California, sent an email (and we know about the email!) congratulating his forces and reminding them to keep quiet because “the fight is not over.”

Winters is the chief of the elite SEAL unit officially known as Naval Special Warfare Development Group, or “DEVGRU,” which is made up of only a few hundred personnel based in Dam Neck, Va. They call themselves “the quiet professionals.” (?)

Team members’ names won’t be released for their personal safety, said Naval Petty Officer 2nd Class John Scorza, a spokesman for the Naval Special Warfare Command.

“I can understand the conundrum that commanders are in about how much can you tell,” said defense analyst Paul Giarra, a retired U.S. naval officer. “Because it’s news that’s good for morale and it also makes it clear to al-Qaida that they’re losing. That’s important. They need to know they’re losing.”

Revealing too much, on the other hand, can give the upper hand to groups like al-Qaida, Giarra said.

Gauging how much to tell is a growing challenge as military special operation groups increasingly work side by side with the intelligence community, like the SEALs and CIA did Sunday.

Read the Article here

I don’t care how or where, I may not say much but it bugs me when the Eagle is facing the wrong way, when someone wraps the flag around their shoulders like it’s a fashionable shawl, and so on and so on. Have my children and myself included ever dropped a flag by accident, yes we have….. but never in purposeful disrespect. With that said….. I won’t get into the obnoxiousness dealing with Hu Jintao’s visit to the United States, the Hollywood gala the Obama’s threw on his behalf and on Jintao’s “dollar” ….

I want to focus on the Flag. Old Glory, The Red White and Blue, The Stars and Stripes….

Historically the flag is the last hope in a war or battle situation….When the flag falls, a nation falls. It’s a common and old tradition that is not exclusive of the United States. We’ve based children’s games based on the “capture” of a flag.

Flags are an honored symbol, it is a marker that speaks volumes when we are too far from the “leader”….Banners tell a story and relay a message from afar and from near.

In Sun Tzu’s Art of War, “On the field of battle, the spoken word does not carry far enough: hence the institution of gongs and drums. Nor can ordinary objects be seen clearly enough: hence the institution of banners and flags. Gongs and drums, banners and flags, are means whereby the ears and eyes of the host may be focused on one particular point.” (thanks Ken)

The message flags relay is so important in fact, that some countries have not changed their flag in ages. The Danish flag has kept it’s design for close to 800 years.

So important is the symbolism that in the game of life, when you give up or lose your flag, you have given up your identity to whomever has. You cease to be of yourself, you now belong to the “other team”.

Side note: Recently I became a Cub Scout Den Leader. This has been one of the greatest and most fun roles I have ever played in my life. In my preparation for that role, I did a lot of research on flag ceremonies (remember, I’m a stickler?)…. I had to be the “expert” because 8-9 yr old boys are counting on their Den Leader.

I went bought this book that the Boy Scouts of America published… Don’t just take their word for it however, you can find this all over the net.

Boy Scouts of America 2001

“The flag of the United State of America should be at the CENTER and at the HIGHEST point of the group when several flags of states or localities or pennants of societies are grouped and displayed from staffs.”

Wrong

I was not at Washington Avenue, I was not there, but if this is IN FACT what was displayed along the avenue…then this is a blatant disgrace and disrespect. Is Obama responsible for this? No. He didn’t go and post the flags on his own, I get it.

But let me ask, is there not one thinking individual in ALL of Washington, D.C. who can bother to look United States Flag protocol up in a book? Are the D.C. idiots really that stupid?

I don’t like to point the finger and use “you”…but in this case I’m pretty upset….

Do YOU people think that China doesn’t “notice” these things? Believe me, they of ALL people do…it is inbred into the CULTURE. Folks, when are most of us and most of everyone else going to get their heads out of the sand and wake up? DO WE NOT CARE?

Whoever put these flags up knew EXACTLY what they were doing….you don’t walk up to a pole with two United States flags and ONE Chinese flag and not know how you are going to arrange them.

Call it what you want, but in my PERSONAL opinion, Barack Obama et. al. have officially tucked each of our noses up Jintao’s big red behind.

Have we figuratively GIVEN UP OUR FLAG and therefore our identity? Perhaps we lost our identity so long ago that we don’t even bother to notice anymore when the proof slaps us in the face. Or do we keep on playing dumb and allow morons in D.C. put up our banner in the wrong way?

I guarantee if a Scout Troop or Cub Scout Pack would have been called, we would not be having this conversation.

“Ending a pregnancy through abortion interrupts the natural birth process and creates significant trauma and stress for those involved in the pregnancy. An abortion is a tragic ending, not only because of the loss of a life, but also because of the physical and psychological trauma caused by the procedure itself.” ~ Governor Rick Perry of Texas.

Truer words have never been spoken by him or many of others for that matter.

Fact is abortion is a very heavily weighted issue and one could argue for and against it for months. I’m going to lay it out. I am pro-life. What does that mean? Well let me first explain that there are different “levels” of pro/against abortion. Let’s see if i can do a quick explanation. On the spectrum starting from pro-life, to pro-abortion.

There you go.  For a while now,  I have been a recovering Level 2 pro-lifer and have moved up the scale to a Level 1 pro-lifer.

I realize many people who are fine individuals sit at level 2 thinking that they are doing what is best for a mother, and up until recently I did the same. However, after doing some research, I realized that perhaps I had really fallen victim to the sick lies that the left/democrats/feminists movements had put out in order to make abortion legal in the first place.

This is not a story about Margaret Sanger’s history within the abortion movement but it is a story about the particular lies that abortion movement created to appeal to conservatives like you in order to get you to BELIEVE that to a slight degree, YOU TOO AGREE with the left.

Lets look at the criteria here: You AGREE with Abortion IF:

It a) endangers life of mother - The fact is that women still sometimes to die in childbirth, yes. However not nearly as many die as you would think. And very few women who actually do die from pregnancy die from complications AFTER delivery. Hemorrhage, obstructive labor, infection are the main causes. These symptomatic deaths are not deaths that can be predicted EARLY in the pregnancy -which defeats the idea that we are trying to “prevent” death of the mother by killing the baby.

FACT:About 529,000 women die worldwide every year during pregnancy, childbirth or the immediate postpartum. This is .4% of all pregnancies. The rate in the United States is much lower and it is less than 1% in the developed countries(all inclusive) according to world-wide reports.  On another note: Hillary Clinton and the left wing agenda would have you believe that the public health-care option will take care of all this?

Educate yourself. WHO defines “A maternal death is defined as the death of a woman while pregnant or within 42 days of termination of pregnancy, irrespective of the duration and site of the pregnancy, from any cause related to or aggravated by the pregnancy or its management but not from accidental or incidental causes.”

According to the table on page 34 of the Maternal Mortality Report 2005 - The United States Maternal Mortality rate is at 11 deaths per 100,000, only three more deaths than occur in the UK that same year the research was compiled!

As you can deduce, the myth that abortion should remain legal in order to save a woman’s life because of pregnancy complications is not a theory that holds water and therefore should consider your stance on when abortion should be legalized.

Take time to review this article where “The researchers found that compared to women who carried to term, women who aborted in the year prior to their deaths were 60 percent more likely to die of natural causes, seven times more likely to die of suicide, four times more likely to die of injuries related to accidents, and 14 times more likely to die from homicide. Researchers believe the higher rate of deaths related to accidents and homicide may be linked to higher rates of suicidal or risk-taking behavior.”  Abortion Nearly Four Times Deadlier Than Childbirth

You AGREE with Abortion IF:

b) rape and c) incest - These two may as well get bundled together for simplicity in writing sake. Incest is usually rape(although not always). This is perhaps the one that I’ve had the most trouble justifying as a reason for allowing abortions. I did some research and found a report by Elliot Institute.

Studies showed.

In our survey of women who became pregnant as a result of rape or incest, many women who underwent abortions indicated that they felt pressured or were strongly directed by family members or health care workers to have abortions. The abortion came about not because of the woman’s desire to abort but as a response to the suggestions or demands of others. In many cases, resources such as health workers, counselors and others who are normally there to help women after sexual assault pushed for abortion.

The study also terms abortions as a type of ”medical rape”. Victims of rape or incest  often the describe the abortion procedure in this way.

“I soon discovered that the aftermath of my abortion continued a long time after the memory of my rape had faded. I felt empty and horrible. Nobody told me about the pain I would feel deep within causing nightmares and deep depressions. They had all told me that after the abortion I could continue my life as if nothing had happened.”

“Continue my life as if nothing had happened”? – Trauma, be it physical rape or medical, rape is a “procedure” that can not be forgotten.  I challenge any woman who has gone thru a pap smear to tell me she does not remember her last one or the sensations associated with it.

The Feminist Movement in its goal to make abortions legal,  needed a good argument on its side and it needed to convince a great amount of “good” people that its abortion cause was benevolent.  But then again, what movement doesn’t try to advance itself in that fashion? Even malevolent and nefarious movements can conjure a positive argument to further their cause.

Questions and Leftist Arguments

Life begins…?

One of the first arguments, while it had already been established, was that life did not really begin at conception. Life began after the baby was born and took its first breath outside of the womb. While courts, congress, science and theology are in agreement that life begins at conception – this is still an argument – albeit a weak attempt. When this argument is made, you as a pro-lifer should quickly shut it down.

At a recent Senate hearing “A prominent physician points out that at these Senate hearings, “Pro-abortionists, though invited to do so, failed to produce even a single expert witness who would specifically testify that life begins at any point other than conception or implantation. Only one witness said no one can tell when life begins.”

Roe vs. Wade…?

Many on the left will argue that Roe vs. Wade set the standard and tone FOR abortion.  Did the 1973 SCOTUS decision really put its seal of approval on abortion? Not exactly, the ruling was more about a woman’s “right to privacy” rather than the seal of approval on abortion or a decision on whether life begins at conception or at a point further along.  As a conservative, we should not play to the left’s argument that because Roe vs. Wade stood, it means that life has been determined. We could have solved the undefined issue of privacy by debating whether women should be allowed to “wear” tramp stamps, had tattoos been illegal in the 1970′s.

Another interesting tidbit on “Jane Roe” is that she did later take time to declare how she had “converted to pro-life” and regretted her decision to abort. Anyone who chooses to do more research on her will find it interesting that On July 22, 1995, Norma McCorvey (jane roe) became a born-again Christian and a pro-lifer…

Norma McCorvey also initially claimed that her desire to abort was due to rape, however later court documents and her own statements later acknowledged that she had lied about being raped.

Norma also had 3 children and NEVER had an actual ABORTION. Her own affidavit also states how her abortion suit was greatly manipulated and had spun out of control to the point that it basically took a life of its own beyond her. In other words, she was used. Read her legal and publicly filed affidavit here.

“Abortion”, to me, meant “going back” to the condition of not being pregnant. I never looked the word up in the dictionary until after I had already signed the affidavit. I was very naive. For their part, my lawyers lied to me about the nature of abortion. Weddington convinced me that “It’s just a piece of tissue. You just missed your period.” I didn’t know during the Roe v. Wade case that the life of a human being was terminated.” – McCorvey (Jane Roe)

Save Mother’s life…?

The next argument is that in order to save lives, abortions must be legal. Everyday a woman’s life is in danger and therefore abortions should be legal. FACT is most women don’t know their life is in danger well after the first 3months of pregnancy. At that point most women choose not to have an abortion. Americans perform an average of 3,700 abortions a DAY…and only 6% of those are because of the health of baby or mother. Side note: Abortions are also not reported as the amount of total ”deaths” when calculating world death statistics. When the CDC or WHO reports death rates and they fail to include abortion rates, it really skews the numbers as to how many “lives” we really do eliminate yearly.

I believe feminists twisted this argument. Point to ponder, are they really saying ”save the life of of a woman“(not a mother) from infection or complications resulting from a back alley abortion.  It was not about saving mothers, it was about saving women who wanted abortions. We saving mothers by providing good pre/during and post pregnancy care. (reference the Maternal Mortality Report)

Rape and Incest…?

So we must “legalize” abortions because to rape and incest really are an epidemic. Fact is  only 1% of the abortions performed are for that reason. The article referenced earlier: Most women who are victims of rape and incest are not seeking abortions and those that do, have a much more difficult time with the abortion than they would have with the pregnancy. Of course, the left would try to convince you through argument that abortions are a NECESSARY evil to overcome the “apparent” outbreak of pregnancies resulting from rape and incest.

Is abortion REALLY necessary to the degree that the left will argue? When we have the left clamoring for the “legality”, freedom and in consequence of the abortion right, do we also need a portion of the “conservative” population agreeing to their subtle play on words and reasons?

Decide today if you will be part of the impetus that keeps abortions legal at the federal level and to a degree eventually paid for by our tax dollars.

——

Update: Someone mentioned how the legality of abortion is a blessing because some pregnancies are indeed unsafe. Certainly, in the course of this blog, I am not discounting the fact that some pregnancies do require “medical abortions” – (as in the case of an ectopic pregnancy or pregnancies that were WANTED) CLEAR danger to the mother is certainly a reason to perform an  “abortion”but as the reports show, these are small percentages.

 ”Spot a terrorist, identify a lost child or locate an Alzheimer’s patient who has wandered off”

“Machines will definitely be able to observe us and understand us better,” said Hartmut Neven, a computer scientist and vision expert at Google. “Where that leads is uncertain.”

In “law enforcement”

The future of law enforcement, national security and military operations will most likely rely on observant machines. A few months ago, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, the Pentagon’s research arm, awarded the first round of grants in a five-year research program called the Mind’s Eye. Its goal is to develop machines that can recognize, analyze and communicate what they see. Mounted on small robots or drones, these smart machines could replace human scouts. “These things, in a sense, could be team members,” said James Donlon, the program’s manager.

Already at a store near you.

The facial-analysis software, Mr. Ross said, could be used in store kiosks or with Webcams. Shopper Sciences, he said, is testing Affectiva’s software with a major retailer and an online dating service, neither of which he would name. The dating service, he said, was analyzing users’ expressions in search of “trigger words” in personal profiles that people found appealing or off-putting.

Read the full story here: “Computers That See You and Keep Watch Over You”

Atlantic Wire:

Two major conservative groups are sitting out the year’s most important conference for their ideological allies–attendance is a near-requirement for GOP presidential contenders–because a gay Republican organization has been invited. Concerned Women for America and the Family Research Council are refusing to attend the Conservative Political Action Conference because GOProud will be there, indicating a “movement away from conservative principles,”

WND reported:

 ”We’ve been very involved in CPAC for over a decade and have managed a couple of popular sessions. However, we will no longer be involved with CPAC because of the organization’s financial mismanagement and movement away from conservative principles,” said Tom McClusky, senior vice president for FRC Action.

“By bringing in GOProud, CPAC was effectively saying moral opposition to homosexuality is no longer welcome in the conservative movement,” said LaBarbera. “Would CPAC bring in an organization specifically devoted to promoting abortion and pretend it’s conservative?” LaBarbera has formerly participated in CPAC, but said he may protest the conference this year.

Jenny Erickson  blog post at cafemom:

Conservatives are not a bunch of old white guys. Contrary to popular belief, the Republican Party is very diverse, and encompasses many groups not typically associated with the GOP. Take me for example: As a blonde twenty-something Californian, I should be a Democrat.

GOProud is another break in the conservative stereotype. Its website states that the group members are “conservatives who believe in limited government, individual liberty, free markets, a strong national defense and a confident foreign policy.” That’s standard Republican stuff, but what makes GOProud so interesting is that they represent gay conservatives and their allies.

Yes, gay conservatives actually exist. And we need them. “Moral issue” groups like World Net Daily (WND) and the Family Research Council (FRC) are shooting the GOP in the foot by refusing to attend CPAC because there will be someone else there that they don’t agree with on every issue. The number-one issue at the moment is reducing the overreach of government into our personal lives. If we don’t stop bleeding money, we’re going to cease to exist as a prosperous nation, and whether or not gay marriage should be legalized will be the least of our problems.

Where am I going with all this? Background: As a former middle school Language Arts teacher, my purpose was to not only correct grammar and spelling, which by the way I happen to be very lazy at…but also to teach my students to form cohesive thoughts on paper.  Let’s just say, “stay on topic” and “consistency”.

The problem with CPAC and the whole ”conservative/republican” movement is that we haven’t come to an agreement as to where that consistency lies.

I took time to bold and underline words on the snippets of articles. There is a purpose there.

Should we care about CPAC and weather WND wants to attend or not, is GOPROUD peeved because the bigoted finger is being pointed at them? The teacher in me doesn’t care, I just want to take my red pen and mark up this middle schoolers paper.  (Don’t misunderstand, the writers are better writers than I am….I am referring to the “figurative” middle schoolers paper.)

Here is my point….

As a teacher….

I can’t say i have an opinion one way or the other. I believe Ericson makes an excellent point in that it is about unification and not separation. But before we can have unification(continuity), we need to understand the separation(or grammatical mistakes).

Democrats have been able to put aside grammatical mistakes for the greater (or worse) good.

We need only look at the National Organization of Women (NOW) and how they allow themselves to be demeaned by male  left counterparts all for the furthering of “an agenda”.  

My observation in reading through the CPAC “about” and “principals” pages is that on the about page CPAC states they stand for “traditional values” but on the principals page, it really makes no mention of which specific values(i.e. gay marriage or homosexuality)…which leaves the “conservative individual” and the “republican individual” to make those judgements on his/her own. In which case, disagreements are sure to ensue.

Furthermore, is there a difference between the groups? uhh…. Yes, Republicans, Conservatives, and Libertarians are NOT all the same. (this is where I mark up in red)

I think we clearly understand that WND, Family Research Council, and GOPROUD are hardly the same. Seriously, if I had to put a label… GOPROUD is more “libertarian” leaning and not “conservative” in the full sense of the word…

Let us agree that “Republican” does not make for a “Conservative” when the Republican is dealing ONLY in matters of economic policy.  The GOP does not always equate Conservative either.

<figuratively> Should “WE” put aside the label of democrat, liberal, marxist, feminist, etc… and just play to the all-encompassing “progressive” label to move “our” cause forward….(just like the democrats have done? Do we let ourselves be smeared just like NOW has done?)

This is the question that those as Conservatives, those as Republicans and those as Libertarians have not sat down and answered. At one point, will WE (regardless of our name tag) have to round-table and agree to do the exact same thing which the left has been doing to achieve that “greater good”.  The greater good being perhaps that we want to maintain our country as we know it. (What that means is another story)

CPAC may be the place to get it done. Perhaps it is CPAC who needs to make some grammatical corrections? Seriously.

CPAC = Conservative Political Action Conference    aka    American Conservative Union

Is CPAC a Conservative organization? Or is it a Republican organization?

As a conservative, I will say that what makes US Conservatives, “conservative” is exactly the idea that we don’t compromise or water down our conservative “values” and that is why we have this CPAC strife.  We have not had the round table as to whether we put aside our differences for that “greater good.”   

Getting some continuity in our writing may help. Let’s not use the labels interchangebly…conservative is a conservative, libertarian is a libertarian, and republican is a republican. 

CPAC calls itself Conservative… CPAC must decide if it REALLY stands for Conservative values and makes them clear….

or….

The groups decide that they will put aside the labels for that greater good.

• Original Post:
• So this morning before school, my kids were watching TV while we got ready and there it was… A McDonald’s commercial announcing the newest toy (a bakugan). My boys are very into that Bakugan stuff and then it came… “moooommm, can we go to McDonald’s today?” I want that toy. I said, wait for it, wait for it. “NO”.
• Friend #2  I can’t even remember the last time I took my kids to McDonalds.
• Original Poster :Well, with all that hype about suing MD over kids’ obesity is just rediculous! We are fat because of the food we put in our mouths not because of the food people sell.
• Friend #2 :Take responsibility for what you eat and do??? Too hard, easier to just blame others for “my” stupidity. Everyone demands choice and then blame others when they choose wrong.
• Original Poster:  That’s right. The government will continue to dip into our freedoms because we can’t take responsibility for ourselves and the rest of us will have to fight to keep our civil liberties.
• Jessi Bradshaw : you know, i don’t have a problem with the toy except that the cost of the meal to get the toy is not worth it. I get more food by not getting the toy…so my response is.. “are you eating the toy or the food?”. That usually gets them. Plus… those toy are so generic.
  Anyway….I will spare your page my rant on the “political” side of the issue, Merry Christmas!
• Friend #2:  Wow, when you think about it they have covered it all, from health insurance down to plastic free toys! I’m sorry, but I would rather hear about other issues like hmm, jobs, the war on terror, national debt, national security…plastic toys? Whats next? Are they going to dictate what toilet paper I ….
• Jessi Bradshaw : ok, i promise not to go into a full on rant. Mary, you are absolutely right-they are coving the bases but there is more. my issue, in plain words is this, i agree with both of you and most of this population, that ppl should choose and are …directly responsible for what they CHOOSE to put in their mouths. If it makes one fat, then one has the responsibility to either stop or exercise.
  But more importantly than the obesity factor, and i think its where ”original poster” mentions “civil liberties”…
  Lets look at it this way. the FED(local, state,whatever) GOVT feels they can go INTO a PRIVATE business to DICTATE what that biz can or cant do. Thereof, affecting the consumer choice. Again, a PRIVATE biz. (in this case, no toys, hooters is next on the too do list, if u havent heard)
  (slowly but surely) Recently, DHS decides that it is now time to enter into Walmart(private biz) and start preaching from the tv monitors on what we should or should not be on the “look out” for? Wait a minute, i am at a private biz, shopping for my PERSONAL needs but DHS can start preaching to me? Does this not infuriate people? When should we expect these govt messages at the movie theaters, restaurants, amusement parks?
  So if that isn’t creepy enough.Lets look at the hypocritical. I obesity is a national security issue. Then why is intoxication not one? Why is the FED govt NOT going into bars and nightclubs enforcing sobriety “laws” or anti-smoking laws? Why are they hell bent on legislating for the kids?

Now, why is this not JUST about McDonalds “toys”.

From the  San Bruno Patch:  “The NOW chapter filed a complaint (today) Thursday with the San Bruno Police Department accusing the Hooters restaurant here, along with several others in the state, of exposing minors to sexual entertainment and that the restaurant should be forced to comply with local adult entertainment regulations.”

View Larger Map

Minutes away!

Gay dudes who work out and don't eat at McDonald's because fries are too fatty.

Eyes Burn....Yeah, no exposure to overt sexuality at this parade. Idiot "parents"!

 

Yeah, no exposure to overt sexuality at this parade. Idiot "parents"!

 

At what point is the liberal agenda going to look at itself and it own OVERT HYPOCRICY? Never, so get used to it. 

Angry at his wife’s firing from her job, he went to avenge her.  Now the world was rid of a psychopath but ended up with an unemployed widow. Either way we we are screwed and more importantly so is his wife.

On a more serious note, feel free to watch the video, the more graphic part is not at the end of this video you have to play part 2.

I would like to do a play by play just to make a point. As you watch, notice how people just ran out of that room scared out of their wits and as fast as they could because of one “idiot’s” possession of a gun. Scary for sure!

> At :21 seconds Clay spray paints the “V for Vendeta” on wall as people STARE.

> At :30 seconds these people who came to listen to the school board meeting, after having been granted permission by Clay, either engage in fight or engage in flight… mostly flight with some freezing and definitely some begging.

> At 1:00 Ginger Littleton comes bravely at Duke with her PURSE but seems to faint after her attempt fails. Notice everyone else that didn’t leave is still in FREEZE mode.

> At 3:29 the school safety officer, Mike Jones, arrives but refrains from causing any more panic(thankfully). Hooray! No Mall Cop Tactics!

> At 5:57 Clay fires.

Part 2:

News Report (extra)

Should we feel sympathy towards Clay Duke because of his depression, the effects of a failing economy on his family, his lack of healthcare benefits? I don’t really want to argue what you think you should feel.

What I will say is that what I noticed here was the way these people reacted when they were allowed to leave. They probably felt they made it out alive by the skin of their teeth and the last bit of mercy or sanity Clay Duke happened to muster to allow them all to go. (that was a mouthful) You get my point.

Think about it, this guy is dead, partly because a (nice guy) security guard was hanging around just keeping an eye open and a finger on the trigger.  Yeah,he happened to have a gun on him – thank God! (yes, I said, “GOD”)

So lets put it this way again, the current Federal Government would like to do away with the fifth amendment(did I say fifth? Wait that is another abuse of power amendment, I MEANT 2nd!) Back to my point, do away with guns because potentially there are enough psychopaths out there who could be pointing those guns at us and we need to make sure they cannot become armed. Yeah. That’s it!

Imagine that! Yes, the idea that only police officers or the government(employees) be the ones allowed to carrying guns puts me at ease.

No, it actually it should scare you to death. Just like Clay Duke scared those people and had them at HIS MERCY, yes, the government can do that to you too when it is only they with the power to carry a gun. 

Luckily we will have our purses and man-bags to defend ourselves.

 

No freeman shall ever be debarred the use of arms. 
         —Thomas Jefferson: Draft Virginia Constitution, 1776.

 

They that can give up essential liberty to - little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.
         —Benjamin Franklin, Historical Review of Pennsylvania, 1759.

 

Political power grows out of the barrel of a gun. - Mao Tse Tung

Americans like to say that “big business” runs our government… well, the “big businesses” running Mexico are the drug cartels. Period. So, giving money to Mexico to help the drug situation is essentially giving money to the drug cartel business to annihilate itself.

Now, the drug cartels are not stupid, while they run the government, “Mexican socialism” runs services like the oil/gas refining industry, public works, education & healthcare.  Let’s take healthcare, while still limited primarily to poor people, the “government” runs the healthcare just poorly enough so that the drug Familias can come in and show some real benevolence.

Drug Lords know how to get support in Mexico…”A U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration profile says La Familia gives Bibles and money to the poor, funds schools and pays off local officials.”  ….

Forget Calderon, he is an even bigger puppet than our Dear Leader. Now back to our original story  “A peace march called by local authorities in western Mexico turned into a show of support for a slain drug lord Sunday, with adults and children carrying signs lauding the capo known for handing out Bibles to the poor.”

Mexicans march in support of ‘Craziest’ kingpin | mexicans, mexico, morelia – Top Stories – Valley Morning Star.

Not that it matters, but The Council of Foreign Relations report http://www.cfr.org/publication/16279/uslatin_america_relations.html states:

This report makes clear that the era of the United States as the dominant influence in Latin America is over. Countries in the region have not only grown stronger but have expanded relations with others, including China and India. U.S. attention has also focused elsewhere in recent years, particularly on challenges in the Middle East. The result is a region shaping its future far more than it shaped its past.

Keep this in mind the next time the CFR suggests the United States pass along more money to these Latin American countries.

At first I thought….warm fuzzy “awwwww”

Followed by a… “wait a minute, yeah right!”

Then “There has got to be a catch here.”

Finally “I better look into this.”

Here is what I gathered…

Back in August of this year, Warren Buffet sent out the call to the wealthiest people to encourage them to give away their wealth. Apparently,the “Giving Pledge” as it is now 57 Billionaires strong. Yadda Yadda, George Lucas, Ted Turner, Barron Hilton…

I was kinda peeved I didn’t see any of those whiny celebrities that we see all over those “for 40 cents, I bought myself a donut hole” commercials, but I digress. You know which annoying ones I am talking about.

Givingpledge.org About page goes on to say….

The Giving Pledge is an effort to invite the wealthiest individuals and families in America to commit to giving the majority of their wealth to the philanthropic causes and charitable organizations of their choice either during their lifetime or after their death.Each person who chooses to pledge will make this statement publicly, along with a letter explaining their decision to pledge. At an annual event, those who take the pledge will come together to share ideas and learn from each other.The Pledge is a moral commitment to give, not a legal contract. It does not involve pooling money or supporting a particular set of causes or organizations. While the Giving Pledge is specifically focused on billionaires, the idea takes its inspiration from efforts in the past and at present that encourage and recognize givers of all financial means and backgrounds. We are inspired by the example set by millions of Americans who give generously (and often at great personal sacrifice) to make the world a better place.

Each donor is honored on the webpage with a photo and the actual letter that they submitted to GivingPledge announcing their commitment to “pledge” their wealth…. It also comes with a short bio about how hard they have worked and will continue to work….yadda yadda.

Here is the catch I concluded. Will liberals whine at how “unpleaseable” I am that I somehow doubt the benevolence of these rich people? Yes. I mean, who is more confused than a liberal who can hate a rich person and at the same time commend them for outwardly voicing their commitment to give? (anyway)

I looked through the letters.  Mostly, these individuals remind us of how they have ALREADY been generously giving to their personal foundations.

Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, Edutopia and the George Lucas Educational Foundation, Peter G. Peterson Foundation (which is “deeply involved in educating, motivating and, hopefully, activating the public to do something about these problems: our unfunded entitlement promises, our ballooning debts to foreign lenders, our very low savings, mushrooming healthcare costs that threaten to bankrupt our economy) …..Foundation, Foundation, Foundation….

So if I were one of these billionaires, I would say, “I’m rich, I have money to give, and I am giving it to my foundation, just like I’ve been giving it to my foundation in the past. So yeah, nothing has changed. I am just doing what I always do. Thanks for the free PR.”

Not so special now, huh? Why don’t these people give their millions of dollars and pay off our debt to China so that the government will have no excuse but to finally lower our taxes and at some point dismantle the IRS? Wouldn’t that be a hugely philanthropical thing to do? Lower EVERYONE’S taxes?? I mean, instead of paying for 3 kids’ scholarship to some acting school, or pay to have “nuclear proliferation”(which we know it ain’t happenin’) why not lower every single American’s tax bill! Think of the possibilities!

Seriously folks, do (some of) these people think we are that stupid? While people like Ted Turner get to give money to their own foundation, while we are getting told to give our daily 40cents by a bunch of guilt tripping celebrities. 

Feel free to donate your forty cents to my “If I Can Help ONE Liberal See Through The Propaganda Foundation”.

Morningstar CEO To Give Away Half Of Wealth : http://abcnews.go.com/WN/bill-gates-warren-buffett-organize-billionaire-giving-pledge/story?id=11325984