Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Presidential Succession

My darling daughter called today to ask about what the above list looks like. Just a little history: It's the 25th Amendment which was penned in 1967. So here goes:

Biden, Pelosi, Reid, Clinton, Geithner and drum roll please....Gates. Yes, friends, we'd have to go that far with a simultaneous accident(s) to get to an acceptable replacement for what we have and figure that some freedoms might be restored.

Now, I want you to know that the reasons might be such as "incapacitated, dies, resigns, or for any reason is unable to hold his office, or is removed (impeached and convicted...") So, I'm not suggesting any kind of catastrophe or disaster, just a weird coincidence would do.

Interestingly enough, the last name on the list is Secretary of Homeland Security. Did they even have that position in 1967? Or did it provide for "cabinet secretaries" and they add them as needed? Do we have any history buffs reading this stuff? We'd appreciate a clarification. Thanks

Sleep well, God bless.......

Monday, March 30, 2009

Carpetbagger for Secretary of State?

Remember this name: Jacelyn Benson, the lady who had a rumor started so that she could talk about it. (The one about not allowing a vote if in foreclosure.) Since this kind of activity has started before we're even close to an election shows me she will be a formidable candidate. She needs to pick up the endorsements of the rank and file precinct delegates who will attend the Democrat State Convention next year where they will pick the candidates. And she will stop at nothing.

Caught her on last week's Off the Record and as far as I know she hasn't held public office, (don't know about running for anything.) But she sure has the patter and obfuscation down pat. She skirts answering a question with the best of the best and I've heard a lot of them from Obama on down. And one more thing: she uses something I think she called "data determining decisions." Just the facts, ma'am.

The only problem I see is that she has actually pledged an impartial office and campaign which means the rest of the Dems are not going to be happy with that. They usually run as a team, but she was adamant. Well, we'll see when it comes time for the unions to tell her which way she will need to run. Without their support, I don't see her getting the nomination. Also, she just may have an anger management problem. She's going to have to watch that.

If you expected me to comment on Obama's firing of GM's CEO, I won't disappoint, Short and sweet, these are his baby steps. Pretty soon he'll be walking and when he gets his wind up, paces himself and then sprints to the finish we'd better watch out. If you think the market fell on the news today, watch your 401K when all his experts start taking control of companies through bureaucrats and then actual managers.

God bless.......

Sunday, March 29, 2009

New Word? Advertorial

A supplement to the National Geographic this month was put together by Frito-Lay which is the best news in a long time. Evidence that the kinds of alternative energy sources which have real potential will be funded by the private sector, not subsidized by the Al Gore types messing around through governmental agencies and politics.

The "Advertorial" indicated they are using mirrored troughs to maximize solar power to power some of their facilities. The solar energy is focused on water-filled pipes which run through the center of each mirrored panel. This particular system in Modesto, California is designed to make 11.7 billion BTU of steam each year--enough to power their SunChips Line.

And from another section of the supplement: "these plants concentrate sunlight with mirrors to heat a fluid to generate steam, which then drives a turbine that can supply electricity to multiple, high-demand users at prices that are set to rival conventional energy sources. And unlike home systems, solar-thermal plants can store heat energy without using lead batteries."

My promise: To share with you any other facts not covered by the media or the global warming folks who are looking for a hand-out from the government.

See you tomorrow and

God bless...........

ps-I've never had anyone wish for my demise before, so I guess I should post a disclaimer such as: it is not my intent to offend anyone particularly to the point of violence whether in thought or deed. I guess I should do this once a month?

Saturday, March 28, 2009

Depression:the opposite of Happiness

Folks who are describing the present recession seem to delight as Obamanomics definitions become the "worse crisis since the Depression." And years ago we defined recesion as when your neighbor lost his job but a depression is when you lose yours.

The other definition of depression is staring us in the face these days and if it hasn't hit you yet, it will at least give you a glancing blow.

In reading a magazine put out by a religious order the other day the juxtaposition of two articles really hit this nail on the head. The first was a very liberal review of a new book about JFK's assassination with the accompanying opinion piece touting how Kruschev really was a peaceful guy who was cooperating with Pope John XXIII and JFK on peaceful overtures. (Gag me with a spoon.)

The next article was a short fiction piece about a hero from WWII which was predicated on the "greater love hath no man than to lay down one's life for his friend." My take: no amount of peaceful talk will eliminate the evil in the world and we really need to "trust but verify" and have the power to repel evil activity
to keep all but the most fanatic of terrorists at bay.

Today's WSJ spoke to the growing number of suicides in the military and of course the most obvious cause is repeated tours of duty in the mideast and the consequent stress on families, foreclosures, divorce all the while trying to do your military assignment. You can see where this is going.

The other day I mentioned observing small children and feeling sad about their futures. Putting all these subjects together makes me think that there isn't enough Prozac or Zanax in the world to make us happy again. That same magazine noted that we can live 3 minutes without air, 3 hours in severe conditions without shelter, 3 days without water, 3 weeks without food and 3 months without hope. I presume these are all averages, but some are going to hit the 3 month wall pretty soon now.

And if things continue as they have been since January 19, who is going to predict that May 1 will bring a lot more than May flowers? Maybe, just maybe the Tea Parties on April 15 will make Obama take notice and at least listen to the loyal opposition. It was just too scary to see the mob mentality expressed in Connecticut and New York re the AIG bonus situation. We can hope this is the darkness before the dawn. Perhaps this Lenten season is bringing us to the eternal hope of Easter.

Again, God bless, we need it..........

Friday, March 27, 2009

Big Old Blame Game!

So now it's our fault, according to Hillary and her boss, that there is violence on the border with Mexico.

And today the Boss proclaimed our guilt in the problems in Afghanistan............

Gee, and I thought the Catholics were the best at the guilt trip stuff.

See ya later--

Back again-After the Prez talked about all the civilian workers needed in Afghanistan this thought occurs: is that how he is going to add to the count of added or saved jobs? More goovernment spending or should I say, investments?

And another thing: I'm getting tired of the commentators saying that the market is up X%, X% of what? When it kept going down and down and down, it sure was going to have big percentage increases when it started to move, right? The smaller the number, the less it takes to go up in double digits!

And how about this Reconciliation ploy by Harry Reid? If they go that route, we will really have a taxation issue to complain about at the Tea Parties. Don't forget, Jackson's is at 6:00 PM, April 15th at the Under the Oaks Park at 2nd and Franklin.

God bless............

Thursday, March 26, 2009

Emoticons or Decepticons? Which came first?

Someone sent me a cute little program you can upload so you can have sound effects, cutesy little things floating around your emails, etc. And when I saw the title, there it was to remind me of the chicken and the egg so tell me, which came first?

I guess you can tell I'm in the middle of the silly season. It seems that we just keep going around in circles. As noted last evening it just seems like the same old message using different attitudes or words. Since when is spending an investment? I think my dad would be winding up a little parable about not being confused with pretty words--always consider the source. If the guy cheats on his taxes, he no doubt is generally dishonest. And again, from last night, if Obama surrounds himself with cheats it must be because he is drawn to them because of a common value system or whatever it is that makes birds of a feather flock together.

This whole tax and spend thing appears to be worse than I thought possible. Truly, I expected that people would see through the scam and it would keep them from trying too much too soon.

I also thought that at the very least Rahm Emmanuel would be prudent in trying to push through too much too soon. He was in the Clinton administration when Bill thought he had a mandate so tried for HillaryCare, Don't Ask, Don't Tell, and most of his other programs and tried to ram them through right away. Result: the Contract with America and a Republican majority. i figured Rahm had "gone to school on his own putt" rather than have to wait for someone else and would ease into some of this stuff so the conservatives wouldn't have enough time to figure it out and put up some good candidates in 2010. Looks like the golf analogy doesn't fit Rahm.

Do you think Arlen Specter's position on Card Check is enough to save him a primary next year? Enough for now.

God bless...........

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Where do the Government Takeovers Stop?

According to the WSJ the foot in the door or the camel's nose under the tent happened this week. That sound is the other shoe dropping or the screech of fingernails on a blackboard, whichever scares you the most is to be found today on page A2.

"Widespread outrage over retention bonuses......is fast-tracking plans to give government officials the power to seize nonbank companies and freeze contracts at those firms. The House Financial Services Committee plans to vote as early as next week on legislation that would give the government this power. .....government already has such power over banks."

AIG is not a bank, but if you think the term "nonbank" covers only insurance companies or financial institutions, please think again. Just start thinking of all the ways that the government can make rules and regulations for wherever you work or wherever you may have invested money. Do you really want politicians making all the decisions which govern your lifestyle, salary, number of children, ........don't get me started. (Obama wants to change the way people determine charitable donations. It doesn't get much more personal than that.)

You can say one thing about the Muslims. They have the patience of Job and then some. While the rest of the world is killing kids by the millions through abortion, they are changing the demographics of the world by having more and more children. Today's news tells us that Brussels is 25% Muslim and their majority is not too far away. The rest of Western Europe isn't too far behind.

So while Obama and Pelosi think the economic ills can be solved by having fewer children, prepare yourselves for the cost-benefits on senior citizen healthcare. That can't be too far behind.

God bless........

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Same Old, Same Old

Couldn't just about anyone write Obama's speeches? Just the same tired old rhetoric.

How do you figure to balance a budget by adding universal health care and free education through 16 years (he really wants 18 but someone's going to have to make the choice between 2 yrs of pre-school or 2 extra years for the 4 yr degree?)

And when is he going to realize he is known by the company he keeps? I guess since there are no dissenting voices arguing with those who proclaim his brilliance we will accept it. However, my mom used to tell me two things: 1) It's one thing to be smart, but it's better to have some common sense to go along with it. And 2) you are known by the company you keep--if you hang out with kids who skip school, cheat, smoke and drink people will assume that you do those things as well. (Yes, I know those bad things seem tame and are from the dark ages, but I didn't even know what an STD was nor did I like the taste of booze or cigarettes.)

Who does he hang out with that I think are pulling him down to their levels?

Start with Nancy Pelosi-that woman just doesn't get it. She doesn't have the intellect to understand the concepts or theories of whatever she decides to talk about and puh-leeze don't believe a word she says about the Catholic Church just because she says she practices her faith. And oh, yeah, she thinks it's unAmerican to enforce the immigration laws.

Next, let's go with Barney Frank and to kill two birds with one stone, throw in Chris Dodd. The Countryside kids who were so adamant about putting folks who couldn't afford to own a home in one anyway--sometimes they went into the bank for financing empty handed and went out with money in their pockets. How's that for kick starting the economic slide?

And how about the list of Cabinet picks who cheat on their taxes, are being investigated for any number of offenses plus the one from Arizona who now has to talk like she wants the borders protected but is on record as a supporter of amnesty?

And if you happen to be Catholic, a letter to the President of Notre Dame is in order since he has seen fit to choose the President as a Commencement speaker while his Bishop says in that case he will not attend. You gotta wonder about these "really smart" people, right?

God bless........we need it

Monday, March 23, 2009

When Too Many People Chase Too Few Dollars...........

What happens? Interest rates go up and up and up. When does inflation look good? When paying back a debt--the devalued dollar is easier to come by, right? And since some of those dollars were just printed to increase the supply, there appear to be plenty to go around. And when is a $500 rise in the stock market not as good as it looks? When it has been going down ever since early February when Geithner was supposed to present a "plan." So every day it was delayed and the market went down and down it had farther and farther to go up when he finally got around to his presentation. And don't forget, some of that plan includes private funding. Ya think some of the rise had to do with real money instead of rising debt/deficits? So don't clap too hard--it's illusory.

Anyone can just put on his thinking cap and come up with a half a dozen scenarios which would appear to be logical conclusions from the mess we find ourselves wading around in. I'd be willing to bet that the Tea Parties going on around April 15th have more than one target in mind. Some of us are hurting now, some are going to be hurt in the near future and some are concerned about their kids and grandkids.

Remember when we talked about the clean coal project written into the stimulus bill for that small town in Illinois? Guess what! Odessa, Texas also has a similar project. It appears someone was outfoxed. As it turns out, the reason for the astronomical price of $1.6 billion has to do with the cost of burying the CO2. Oh, what a tangled web we weave when we try to pull the wool over someone's eyes (and it's especially frustrating when it's just a bunch of bureaucrats.)

If you're in the neighborhood, there is a 7th district meeting Thursday evening at Steaks Eatery and next week, the 1st Saturday of the month a Jackson County meeting at Steve's Ranch. Feel free to join us.

God bless...........

Sunday, March 22, 2009

The Charm is Wearing Thin--

After watching State pull out their game this evening we found ourselves watching an interview with the President on 60 Minutes.

Afghanistan will be easier to take care of because the people are better educated. Yes, he said that. Really? Wonder who told him that.

It's really a bad thing for us to hold prisoners at Gitmo. Well, we've talked about this before and I'll repeat it as often as I have to. If our military troops have a choice, and they will have a choice, do you think they will go to the trouble of taking a prisoner who will be read their Miranda rights, etc., etc., etc. or will they just figure that "movement" was an attempt to escape and shoot first and ask questions later? Visualize this-I'm sitting here just shaking my head back and forth and back and forth and.........(Steve Croft mentioned the guy they released who busied himself by training new terrorist recruits with not so much as a raised eyebrow.)

In less than 2 minutes as Obama was talking he found himself laughing alone 5 times by my count--finally getting to the point where Croft actually commented on the fact that folks might wonder what he thought was amusing and he referred to the need of a little "gallows humor" now and then. Really?

There has to be a word to describe what is happening as far as all the crises are concerned. In other words, like immunizations where a little bit of a problem is administered bit by bit until a tolerance is built up and pretty soon there is an immunity. Have we been getting bad news on a daily (of more often) basis which all of a sudden we find is normal? It's like watching the horrors of war on the television news night after niight until finally we became immune to what was happening. It became a "normal" thing.

And we see photos of starving babies, children, mothers and old people in Africa until that doesn't affect us on day 30 as it did on day 3. I just have this gut feeling that Rahm Emmanuel (nobody every called him stupid) figures that one of these days we will consider all the bad news normal and when things finally level off as cyclical problems always do, we will be grateful to anyone who keeps telling us that he has solved the problem and he will continue to take care of us.

Not gonna happen this time. If he thinks the Afghan people are smart, he is reckoning without giving the American public credit for what they intuitively know when they see the evidence. We may not have the sly and cunning behavior of some of the crooks in the world, but we can figure it out and face things with honesty when the time comes.

Have a good week--

God bless...........

Saturday, March 21, 2009

Making us Pay for the Rope to Hang Us!

It appears that municipalities, townships, counties, etc. get together and hire folks to lobby for state funds to come back to local entities. Now, let's get this straight: we pay taxes to local governments, they use some of those taxes to lobby to get more money from the state who gets their money from: you guessed it--
OUR TAXES! There is something wrong with that picture!

Is anyone out there surprised? Outraged? Shrugging their shoulders? Thought so.

The only other bit of news today is that Jackson is joining the parade of folks who are getting tired of the constant parade of raising taxes and actions which will lead to hidden taxes, no matter whether it is a pass through from a business or a tax on materials which we end up paying while they try to tell us it's not a tax.

So we're going to have a Tea Party Under the Oaks! April 15 at 6:00. That way if Jackson County residents want to participate in Lansing at noon, they can do both.
It is especially fitting that a protest be held where the Republican Party put up candidates who believed it was wrong to admit more slave states in effect, putting their money and efforts where their mouths were.

We continue to take a stand when the threat is to the future of this country: the children in the form of huge national debts. Redistribution of wealth just doesn't fit the profile of the United States of America.

We'll keep you posted as the event nears.

God bless..........

Friday, March 20, 2009

Mackinac Center for Public Policy

The best thing about newspapers and the Mackinac Center is that a good deal of information is supplied using paper and ink. This makes it easy to put it aside until you have time to kick back in the recliner and read it when you have time. (Also, your email box doesn't get really, really full waiting for you to pay attention to it and either delete it after reading or putting it in a folder, etc.)

Received a Mackinac Center publication about Property Rights and it's chock full of abuses by DEQ restrictions and other governmental entities. It's really scary to hear that the DEQ now considers that social concerns and who has the right to make more money than someone else on a particular piece of land is a part of their mandate.

They also look at zoning and planning in their "mission." The owner of a McDonald's in East Lansing is apparently being threatened by being labelled as a brownfield and some social engineering in East Lansing may be the beneficiary.

The Governor has vetoed via line item the post of environmental ombudsman. Sure looks like they need some way to rein in this bureaucracy gone wild. Horror stories abound. Keep your eyes open. You never know where they will strike next.

Capped the day by attending "Late Night Catechism" at the local college this evening. Really enjoyed the constant giggles. Take a break--if we don't we'll all go a little nuts.

God bless..............

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Model T vs SUV - Obama says Model T Wins on Mileage

No joke! He said "a model T gets better mileage than an SUV." Gee, ya think?

1-A model T had to be cranked--no starter, no battery, less weight.........
2-No automatic transmission--again, less weight........
3-Curtains not windows--less and less weight........
4-Top speed about 40 mph (20 hp engine) vs 100+ mph (260 hp)...........
5-Wooden wheel components.........
6-Tires closer to bicycle tires than radials--less friction..........
7-No air conditioning..........
8-Forget about catalytic converters and clean air.......
9-And really forget about carrying luggage, cupholders and comfort!!!!!!!

PS-Don't forget the water jug for the over-heated engine; take along the inner tube patch kit and the bicycle tire pump; and if possible take along a mechanically inclined friend with a tool kit.

So let's look at some more of his judgment calls:

1-We really need Geithner--he's so smart he's the only one who can solve our economic problems. So, what's he waiting for? He can't even pick a support staff. Why don't they call someone from Nike? AND JUST DO IT!!!

2-You guys need to pass the stimulus package right this minute! So they did. So why did he wait three days and then take a trip on Air Force I to go to Denver to sign it?

3-And what happened to the pledge to give everyone 5 days to study a bill before passage?

4-Make the Teamsters happy by stopping Mexican truckers at the border whereby the Mexicans slap on tariffs which are putting a whole bunch of American farmers and other workers out of business and adding to the unemployment lines.

Will this never end?

Seriously, I was in a waiting room yesterday and watched a baby who must have been about 7-8 months old. Usually I just think "Cute baby" and go back to my book. Today I attended a funeral where there were 27 grandkids mostly in pre K and grade schools. My thought process was the same. "Christmas morning has to be a riot at their house." Both times, my second thought was: "You little guys have your whole lives ahead of you. I wonder where life will take you. And I wonder what kind of problems you will face because of what's happening in our country today." I never used to give that a thought. This has been the land of opportunity, but I'm afraid that may be changing. This really is the generation whose kids probably won't be as successful (in the worldly sense) as their parents. The only way out of this mess is for us to keep working?

This is a little depressing. Think I'll quit.

God bless, as always.......

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

A is for Acorn, B is for Barney, C is for Commerce or corn for ethanol,

It probably wouldn't take too long to do the ABC's as a list of outrageous Washington activity, would it?

We can start with ACORN--you know the "community organization" group which was the only job on Obama's resume for awhile. Lawsuits against several of their units for fraud and corruption abound but, gee, who cares? We don't want to politicize the census so we'll give the job to ACORN because they are already organized............
You make up the rest---

Next is Barney Frank. What kind of gall does a guy have to have to sit there with a straight face and toss out accusations at AIG when he did as much or more in covering up the activities of Fannie and Freddie and then lie to the public as to what great shape they were in just weeks before the bottom fell out. He's a real piece of work.

We'll touch on Commerce first--does anyone want to place odds on the influence the new Secretary might have on keeping the census takers honest and apolitical? Not on your life!

As for Corn ethanol, I thought that had been put to bed when it was realized that without government subsidies coupled with the fact that it has a corrosive effect on engines. Some people never give up as we noted yesterday that auto dealers and some automakers (Ford's CEO) figure that $4 fuel is necessary to revive the industry.

NOW TELL ME! Do all of you who keep track of Mark Schauer remember that he claimed to have read the stimulus bill before he voted on it? Well he did. Now tell me this. Since everyone else in DC who had a vote claim not to have read the language that guaranteed the AIG bonuses, on whose head falls the responsibility (blame, if you will) for not warning the White House of the fallout? Why, Schauer's, of course. So, shouldn't he 'fess up and tell the rest of the world that he is oh, so sorry? And how can he make up for it? How about resign?

The Prez is going to be on Leno's show Thursday evening. My question: is he going to be paid scale like the other guests? Does Leno pay travel expenses? Or are the expenses coming out of his campaign funds? And shouldn't the Town Hall meetings he has ad nauseum also come out of the campaign fund? He just can't seem to get out of campaign mode. He keeps running and running and running, just like the Energizer Bunny.

Heard that the ACLU is trying to keep folks who work with Hospice from using the word (name) of God in public. Well, since the internet is public I figure they might come down on bloggers one of these days, so I don't want to miss a chance to ask God for his blessings on you every time we meet.

See you tomorrow.
God bless.............

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

$7 to $9 Gasoline??

It appears that the owner of AutoNation, the biggest car dealer in the country, is of the opinion that since the CAFE standards are in place and getting more stringent that he still can't sell high mileage, small cars because gas is so "cheap." He says that in order for car sales to get back to making money we will have to tax gasoline enough to make people want to buy small rather than SUVs or muscle cars. He apparently uses the European high prices as the example we need to emulate. So think on that for awhile.

And then wonder why Michelle and Barak are so intent on currying favor with the armed services and their families. And if anyone knows the real story behind his trying to change the insurance for wounded troops from the VA to private carrier or at least something that smacks of controlling costs at the expense of the guys and gals putting their lives on the line for us.

And check out a new book, "Dead Aid," which demonstrates how counter-productive it is to give constant aid in Africa. No growth and constant poverty no matter how much money is thrown at the problem. And it's not just due to the corruption. It's also a matter of no motivation to be self sufficient. There's a lot more to it, of course, but that's enough to get your curiosity up. Certainly it should be a lesson on what not to do and which we should be careful of starting--a nanny state. We're well on the road, at least theoretically it is sounding very persuasive to a lot of people. As soon as 51% take more than they give, it's a done deal, right?

See you tomorrow-

God bless.........

Monday, March 16, 2009

Mean Old Democrats!

Mr. Gibbs never seems to miss an opportunity to insult Republicans, does he? That crack about Rush being busy and sending Cheney in his place went over like a lead balloon when we heard it on the same segment when we also heard about Mrs. Cheney being admitted to a hospital. And they want someone to reach across the aisle.

Looks like even the people who have representation are having tea parties.

The costs of green seem to be going up and up and up. Read about a 109 ton 18 wheeler which can carry a 47 ton boom to get to the transformers on the really big windmills. More gazillions of dollars and guess who will get the bill? (Eighteen 4.5 ft wide tires!)

To get to the real business of the day we need to lay a little foundation. Of my kids there were two U of M grads, one started at Alma and finished at Eastern, and the other graduated from Western. Then that one rec'd Masters from State, two from Oklahoma and one from Stanford with one wife at U of M and one at Central Michigan.
So you can see that it all depends on who is playing at the time. (I do sorta resent the WSJ saying that U of M was over-seeded and State under-seeded, but them's the breaks.)

So for now, I say Go Blue, Go Green. The rest of you guys can have heart attacks.

God bless and have fun watching.........

Sunday, March 15, 2009

Geraldo Rivera-Literally Incredible or Uncredible?

Just can't look or listen to this guy without being reminded of the time when he was covering the Mideast War and was giving a report from a real "danger zone." You could hear gunshots and explosions in the background and he even ducked a couple of times. But a funny thing happened on the way to my living room.

They forgot to turn off the camera and as the camera pulled back the audience could see that Geraldo was standing on a bluff high above and quite a distance from the road where the action was taking place.

Since that time I have put absolutely no credibility in anything he has reported on whether it was a war story or as is the case now, gossip about Anna Nicole. He just sounds like a little old lady hanging on the garden fence swapping gossip with his next door neighbor. And he is usually more than a little vindictive.

Along with his many marriages and stabs at different religions, he's a real piece of work. Perhaps he's just shopping around, but I hope he finds a home soon. Thank goodness we have a forgiving God--we all need that but some of us need it more than others.

It's just that I have a real problem with folks like commentators acting like journalists and politicians who have the opportunity to influence millions of people and lead by bad example. I am reminded of the passage that says something like "it is better to be cast into the millpond with a stone around one's neck than to cause scandal to the least of the children." As they say, to whom much has been given, much is expected.

See you tomorrow--God bless......

Saturday, March 14, 2009

Public Employees Oughta be Ashamed!

Is there anyone out there who can do the math or a websearch to get the numbers I need to make a case against public service employees?

I'm thinking like this: The largest group of union members is now to be found with folks whose salaries are paid through taxes. Teachers and others who depend on millages to keep the institution open have delegated their responsibilities.

The teachers who are in failing schools (whose union leadership's only concern is throwing more money at a problem and the heck with teaching kids) and the papaer pushers and talking heads plus clerical staff from the U.S. Capitol on down to the guy who gives you a receipt for your overtime parking ticket are what I'm talking about.

The statistics will show the salary range in various professions, but what they don't show is the thousands to millions of people who are taxed to pay those salaries. How many of those people have a union to fight back against the millions of dollars confiscated from them to pay for the union to influence legislators at all levels to tax them at a higher rate to pay the union members' salaries? None. It just seems to me a lot like "pleading the fifth." I don't want my own money used to tax me more. Does that make any sense in any universe?

This card check nonsense has to be stopped. It is un-American to take away a secret ballot and it is un-American to use binding arbitration against you and make you pay for the privilege. And it is especially un-American when those unions have bought and paid for the politicians who are touting their positions!

Oh, and by the way, if yesterday it sounded as thought I were speaking softly about the wind turbine business, that was not my intent. Just showing their side of the story. You can still see that adding in the cost of borrowing or using capital and paying or losing interest plus maintenance plus the initial cost and cost of installation in a low to even medium windy locale would be cost prohibitive.

And one more thing: The subsidies involved are stealing money from people who can ill afford it or disagree with it as is the cost of public service ads on the radio or television as part of the Greening of Michigan (and I'm sure many other states as well.)

I sound a little witchy this morning, but darn it! some things need to be said.

God bless.........

ps-Exception on public service employees: public safety--cops and firefighters. They need all the help they can get.

Friday, March 13, 2009

You Gotta See This!

Take a minute to check this out: Obama presenting stimulus package in Dobson, Arizona. http://stickerpatch.blogspot.com/2009/02/obama-at-dobson-high.html

Note on Cascade Engineering and the windpower turbine: called their number and it is answered by a recording directing the caller to the website or in the alternative, leaving a telephone number so they can "call you right back." Tried it twice, 4 hours apart just in case the phone was temporarily unmanned. As it turned out to be. Shortly after posting this I received a call back.

A very nice young lady indicdated that the 3 year payback was predicated on a 30% tax return on the federal level, an $8500 price tag, high usage and high wind area.
There are states where there are also incentives which lessens the "payback" time. I guess I would consider that a subsidy, but I'm not sure just what the formula might be to activate it. (At the present time there are no incentives by the State of Michigan in place.) She also mentioned a website called "Desire" which would have more information. Haven't looked at it as yet.

Apparently the installation is not too sophisticated. Dealers who have installers with electronic and construction backgrounds can train their staff in two days. So there you have it. Someplace between 41.66 and 3 years plus maintenance and interest costs appears to be what we're looking at. So if you are independently wealthy and feeling really patriotic or are young enough and plan to stay in the same area for a long time, I'd say "go for it" Like chicken soup, couldn't hurt, might help.

Try the blog-it's worth the effort.

God bless.........

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Amnesty, Sharia Law and Psychiatry

First-how does Obama square the sending of troops to the border states to try to thwart drug runners with Napolitano and other governors not using their states' National Guard units with their position of amnesty (and votes) for all aliens, legal as well as illegal?

Second-how is it that Muslims don't just have their own financial institutions to deal with their God-given rules and regulations against charging or paying interest, but expect that our banks should figure out a way around their laws for them?

This topic hit home after reading a piece about Minnesota trying to deal with real estate problems in the Muslim population. (Not to mention the home grown terrorists being trained there.) Anyway, since I grew up there and still have family there, it is just beyond me that they can have such a top tier education system and sppear to just not understanding what is going on around them.

Third-in ruminating about how it is that the elites feel they have the right to foist their desires on the rest of the populace, it occurs that somehow they have acquired the mind-set which tells them they are entitled to whatever they want whenever they want it, that they are smarter than the average citizen and therefore they have a duty, yes a duty, to tell the rest of us how to live, what to think and what is good for us. "Just take your medicine, Johnny, it's good for you. Daddy knows best." Just how is it that these people have such a superiority complex and is there anything we can do about it?

Some years ago I used to read a magazine called Psychology Today which had interesting articles for the layman. Wonder if they have touched on this......

Haven't heard from Cascade Engineering, but their commercials are going strong.

God bless.......

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Too Many to Count

What's the problem today?

Found out that when Obama decided the climate for cloning was ripe and funding for research into embryonic stem cells was appropriate he also decided it was time to pull the plug on adult stem cell research where all the progress has been made thus far. One hesitates to label anyone as intrinsically evil, but it's coming closer all the time. Also, a bill submitted by Dianne Feinstein makes it clear that certain cloning would not be allowed--the cloning referred to by Obama as unacceptable. What this really means is that some cloning would be acceptable.
Double talk at its best/worst.

Our local YMCA has problems that need to be rectified and I've never tackled anything of this magnitude before except in what might be considered an abstract situation which turned realistic. Not sure I'm up to it. Will keep you posted.

Decided to look into the Michigan company which makes the wind turbine a little further because Horror of Horrors! it occurred to me that some of the stimulus money which will come this way may be used by Gov. Jenny to pay for and have installed a whole bunch of these things. Wanted to find out how many jobs are currently being "saved or created" and how to follow the money to find out. If you'll recall, the 41+ year payback certainly would be a waste and total subsidy type operation.
One of the sources indicated a payback at 3 years. Impossible! So I wrote an email to the Engineering Dept. at Cascade to ask for clarification. Will let you know if I get an aswer.

An appointment made by a vendor for a church project didn't show which was another waste of time, so all in all, life's little frustrations were abundant today.

See ya tomorrow-

God bless..........

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Blogging is Therapy?

Yes, that's what I'm saying. Sometimes when I have a full calendar it's tough to sleep through the night without waking and having to write something down or it's impossible to doze off again. It would be a whole lot worse if it weren't for the blog. It really is good therapy. I can share with at least a few of you who are interested in common topics and know that we're not alone.

Like today.....

I am just incensed about that voucher system in DC and their lousy school system and having a Congress and President who just don't seem to care. As long as their kids are OK, they're OK. Are their consciences clear because now they are sending billions and billions of dollars throughout the country to "improve the schools?"

Just like they always do--throw money at a problem hoping it will work and trusting the MEA and AFT to work for the kids rather than themselves and the teachers. Guess what? It ain't gonna happen! I hope someone is keeping track of the standings of the school systems who are recipients of the money and in a 4-5 year time span they will do some more testing or however they come up with comparative values for schools and let us see what was actually accomplished, or not.

And what the heck does "saved or created" mean? Rec'd an email from my Congressman of 63 days boasting of the thousands of jobs already saved or created by him when our newspaper had the story of 206 to be laid off when a local plant closes. How do they draw the line between the stimulus dollars to identify the specific job which was saved or created? That is absolutely the worst kind of parsing of words and false premises ever.

And how is it that even though Obama won the election with 53% of the vote nearly 70%of the people believe he is doing a good job? Reminds me of fuzzy math. Who asked the question, when was it asked and what was the question?

And when the leader of the abortion movement opines that it's OK to spend more on embryonic stem cell research because "scientists say" it's a good idea I can't help wondering how many scientists. A few? Many? Some? A vast majority? Most? All of them? Can we have a percentage? Nooo-o-o-o it's just "scientists."

He must have skipped school the day we were warned about generalizations. Or did his teleprompter get stuck......

You don't suppose we can use having to watch the Secretary of the Treasury make one of his first priorities being "sure that tax avoidance is lessened both here and abroad" as a Lenten exercise in restraint? Wouldn't you like to just kick something?

Take it easy and sleep well.

God bless.....

Monday, March 9, 2009

Global Warming and Wind Power, MY FOOT!

Over the weekend it was brought to my attention that the little windmills encircled by a frame to be put on the roofs of our individual houses now has a price tag. Yup!

According to Popular Mechanics magazine a Michigan company, Cascades Engineering, has developed a 7 1/2 foot diameter turbine with a ring around it to keep vibration and sound at a minimum and promises 2000 kilowatt hours in a high wind area. At a price of $10,000 you can put one up and save 20% of your electricity costs.

If you have a calculator handy you can figure out your "savings" or "contributions" to a greener, cleaner world. Are you ready for this? We'll make it easy. If your electric bill is $100 a month that's a savings of $20 and over a year $240. By dividing $10,000 we find that it will take 41.66 years to recoup your investment.
(If you don't have an extra ten grand lying around in your checking account, that may be increased by interest charges and I'm not even going there with my little hand-held, solar powered calculator.)

There are lots of graphs, facts and figures on "theblogprof.blogspot.com" which is written by a professor at Oakland University. I think you'll like the site.

Given that the pass through tax (remember carbon footprints?) to power companies is estimated at $1300 per household that makes our energy costs taking more and more and more of our income. A tax by any other name is still a tax. Don't be gullible!

God bless you.........
what more can we say--

Sunday, March 8, 2009

Holocaust References

Three sources reminded me of the holocaust this weekend. Watched a show wherein some children were exposed to the story of a survivor from Hungary who ended up in Auschwitz and reading a biography where the only mention made of the war years was a 6 sentence paragraph followed by a 2 sentence wrap-up. One of the memorable quotes was that of a German soldier who said "the only out of Auschwitz for you Jews is through the chimneys." Grotesque. And the other author gave it such short shrift. Go figure.

There is a connection here. The other reminder was a reference to Rahm Emmanuel's father who fought with the Israelis and the sequence of events that led to that opportunity if you can call it that.

I ended up dwelling on Rahm Emmanuel's "never waste a good crisis" remark and the extreme partisanship of the White House even though Obama purports to want to reach across the aisle. In your dreams.... With an extremist like Emmanuel in charge it's not a great leap to figure that he is of the mindset that if you "repeat a lie often enough it will be believed" because that was the method used to make so many Europeans believe that extermination of Jews was a good thing back in the thirties.

So he can throw out stuff like Rush Limbaugh being the Republican leader and it will be believed by many, many people. And he can toss around ideas like the Republicans want to privatize Social Security ad nauseum. Just pick a subject and figure out a way for him to manipulate the masses to keep giving Obama high approval numbers all the while they are looking for a job or a place to live.

I really don't think we can be too careful about looking for examples of the Democrats planting seeds of distrust and outright lies and we need to share them so we can let folks know when we find them. It is so sad to see Obama sending messages of doom and gloom and all the other distractions from his true agenda.

Have a good week.......

Saturday, March 7, 2009

It's Been a Long Day--

Thanking God for the mild weather and not having to spend a disproportionate amount on heating the house......

All of the extra costs added to the utility companies who then pass them through to all their customers is perhaps the most regressive tax we have going today........

A puzzler--chicken or egg seems like an easy one after you try to figure out how to figure out the difference between jobs saved and jobs created.........

What's the difference and how do we measure it??????????

Does anyone remember how embarrassing it was to have a passed note confiscated by the teacher and read to the class???????

Texting has to be 100 times worse since everyone can be doing it 100% of the time the way it appears to this old lady...........

Wonder if Barak needs a teleprompter to carry on a conversation with his kids and Michelle...........

Can people who gave money to Arlen Specter's campaign ask for a refund??????????

Local State Repr. Marty Griffin, when he was mayor of Jackson, used to brag about how well he had governed and how much money was in the city coffers even to the point of not taking some state revenue sharing from his bf Jenny G. Now they are in as much or more trouble than anyone else and are looking at cuts. Did they waste all the money he left or was he fibbing???????? Ad he wants to be my Congressman....

And speaking of Marty, he has been a Mark Schauer apprentice for a number of years and a recipient of the Stryker Coalition group........

Time to set all the clocks ahead........

God bless........

Friday, March 6, 2009

Is Our Foreign Policy Really That Weak?

(Don't forget to scroll down to March 4 where the Mark Schauer hilarity begins.)

My husband and I were talking over lunch today and he began to wonder what would happen if an attempt were made on Hillary's life given the attack on the Pakistani cricket game. His first reaction was that it would make the Europeans have to come off the fence on one side or the other.

My mind jumped to the dissing attitude Obama has for the UK and return of the Churchhill bust which had a place of honor in George W's office but Obama couldn't even just send it "down the hall" or find another location for it. He just had to get rid of it. Poor Mr. Brown--he was really treated quite shabbily.

So the question is: do we have any allies left in the world other than Canada since the Obama group has gone out of their way to tick off Columbia and Mexico who were sorta friendly before?

My guess is that we probably wouldn't have much of a reaction other than a "Just try something like that again and see what happens!" which is something like "just wait until your father gets home." It didn't take long for the kids to figure out what kind of bluff that was, right?

Oh, and before I forget it----did he really have to saddle up Air Force I to make an announcement that he had saved 25 jobs in Ohio? How much did that little maneuver cost the public? If he does that for every 25 jobs gained, we'll go bankrupt flying the darn plane!

Oh, well...........

See ya,

Thursday, March 5, 2009

Random -- Ramblings

Be sure to check out the Schauer clip which follows this entry--hilarious!

Not much has changed: Congress is holding back DC kids from vouchers so they get a second rate education while the legislators' and President's kids get high priced private schools........

Biden goes to Florida to hobnob with the bigwigs from the unions while the rank and file stand in the unemployment line and give me a break--they still expect the hourly workers to plead with Congress to pass the bill taking away a secret vote?

Does everyone have the feeling that as Hillary jets around the mid-East making nice with Iran and their friends that the rest of the world is being reminded of the weak foreign policy of the Clinton administration which is being carried forward by the Obama "Clinton-lite" White House?

I am sick of hearing politicians say "America wants" or "the people want" when in fact they haven't a clue what the people want. They just keep repeating the mantra so folks will think they are being represented.

Remember when we talked about one of the reasons women stayed home was because their first dollar was taxed at the rate of their husband's last dollar? At some time which is probably not too far away, the "rich" will realize that their higher tax rates put them in a category where they will be better off working just a little less by taking one less contract or working x number fewer billable hours or whatever it takes for them to figure they aren't being taken advantage of.

One more point on the "rich." I never believed people like Gore, Biden, Kerry, etc. and other presidential candidates who said they didn't itemize their contributions because they wanted to remain anonymous. Really, they just weren't very astute taxwise. If you itemize your charitable deductions, the dollars saved in tax can be used to give just that much more. As Judge Judy says, if it doesn't make sense, it's not true. It just doesn't make sense to penalize those who are givers rather than takers in our society.

Sam Brownback should be ashamed. With all the help and respect he has received from the pro life groups he is sticking his thumb in their collective eyes by supporting Sebelius. Bah! Humbug!

Heard someone say today say it's not right to pay taxes on taxes. So what else is new? This has been going on forever. We could have a contest counting examples.

God bless...........

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Mark Schauer


Kevin Brownlow




This is an extra just in case you want to watch Mark Schauer fibbing to the audience about the existence of earmarks.

Photos of Interest to Michigan folks


(Clicking on the picture will get a larger format and clicking on slide show will move it along. Also, if you want to comment on a particular photo, click on a photo on the page with all the small photos.)

Our Lincoln Day Dinner was February 23 at the Arbor Hills Golf Club here in Jackson. As you can see by the photos, we had quite an array of guests and office holders and candidates. The most exciting thing about the evening was the mix of new people who see what is going on with the liberals running the show and the fact that the veterans of many campaigns are not sitting back licking their wounds. We are ready to go and the 19th Senate District is our jumping off place!

I've always tried to keep this blog short so you could depend on not having to spend a ton of your precious time reading or repeating thoughts already uttered. Tonight is no exception.

God bless...........

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Can't Live With 'em/Can't Melt 'em Down?

A few days ago this was a reference to Transformers, but today we see similarities between both the Democrats and the Republicans who can use the same Motto above.

Harry Reid is jealous of Nancy Pelosi who has a burr under her saddle against Joe Biden who can't stand the fact that he has "Vice" in front of his name and has to play second banana and no one is really standing too close to Obama because nothing he says lately makes things look any better. How is it that he knows so many crooks and cheaters? It can't be all Illinois, can it? Maybe it's just the Democrat family.

Candidates Romney and Huckabee throw stones at McCain while Steele starts a little rumble with the self-anointed El-Rushbo (sp?) and Newt Gingrich stands on the sidelines trying to make points with anyone who wants to pair up. Republicans are floundering while trying to figure out what happened over the past 8 years and there is so much finger pointing going on it's hard to tell the players without a program.

It goes all the way from the top to the bottom and frankly I think we'd better start listening to each other rather than just interrupting or waiting to get a word in edgewise. We have new top leadership at local, state and national levels with all the subsets inbetween. The power struggles have just begun. We need to stop this!

We have folks who have just come on the scene trying to tell the old timers how to "change." Do they really think they have a prayer if they take out the right to life plank? Do they know what base means? They are so right when they point out the speck, or plank-depending on the amount of the spending, in the eyes of those who just had to keep up with the Democrats trying to buy allegiance of the voters. But that's not the only problem and Johnny one-notes don't really get it.

If it weren't so darned important it would be tempting to just sit back and watch the show, but even though the newbies are making our jobs harder, we'll just have to suck it up and work twice as hard. I guess you could say we're used to it.

Remember, prayer is God's wireless and undoubtedly the best electronic media going.

Sleep well......

Monday, March 2, 2009

KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE BALL!!

It really doesn't matter whether the beginning of the bear market was a comspiracy by Obama's big money friends like Soros, Buffett and Gates to get him elected. It got the market rolling downhill and now it is going faster and faster and faster.
It could be also that once it started it became out of control and the end result is that no one knows what to do now.

The golden tones of the President have had no effect whatsoever, but ever the opportunist he is making the most of the situation. Are you reminded of the shell game where the guy keeps things moving so fast you lose sight of the walnut or cup with the pea or whatever is under it? Magicians use distraction so their sleight of hand is not detected and now Obama is using it to cover the extreme liberals in his administration while he pursues his liberal targets of socialized medicine and the nationalization of certain businesses plus moving abortion into the infanticide column as he moved the issue in Illinois.

Now we hear the AG Holder has promised the crooks coming from Mexico that federal raids on marijuana medical dispensaries are being curtailed. Even the Mexican government is having a hissy fit over that one. After the gangland stuff we talked about last night it looks like Holder is playing right into their hands and taking us right along with them.

And all the while he talks about reaching across party lines........ Does he still have most of us mesmerized? We can only hope and pray not.

Sleep well if you can........(22% of the population admits to being so worried about the economy that they are loosing sleep.)

Sunday, March 1, 2009

Addendum on Gangs

Watched more Gangland on the History Channel that was taped a couple of weeks ago and was horrified to see that the gang members are joining the military partly as a way to learn methods of using weapons, stealth and ways to hone their "craft." There were photos of the gangland graffiti taken in Baghdad that were duplicates of what can be found in Los Angeles.

One thought: they are even worse than the Mafia. Their "families" exist for the pleasure, pure and simple, of doing violence to innocents. And they take innocents as young as 11 years old and train them to kill with no remorse--to take pleasure in inflicting pain and killing is a by-product. At least the Godfathers had a soft spot for family members, relatives and neighbors, and children. These ________, you fill in the blank, have nothing which could conceivably redeem their actions.

This is mindful of the parable of casting out demons and healing which and Jesus said could only happen through prayer. Let's not forget the proverb-pray as though everything depends on God and work as though everything depends on you. It's going to take everything we have to stop this activity.

Speaking of parables I'm beginning to think that the only way we can get the message through to the public who consider Obama a messiah is to talk in parables. We need to demonstrate what will be the future of our children and future generations if he is successful in bringing about a government which controls the people the way we are headed. We should be telling stories which show that future generations will do the kinds of jobs the government deems appropriate for each individual and where no one will be able to start a business doing what one loves because if it's successful the tax will destroy it.

Let's start using our imaginations to educate others.

God bless........