Month: September 2012

Drop in voter registration in Ohio

Despite what has happened locally here and how I feel about it; I must continue on writing and blogging about what I consider to be important.

It seems that in Ohio, there has been a decline in voter registration, especially in Democratic Party strongholds. This is also signaling a national trend. Here is the Story and Video via Fox News Channel:

The Video:

The Story:

“Don’t boo, vote,” President Obama often says in his stump speech whenever crowds boo a Romney plan.

The off-hand call to vote may be by design. It comes amid a precipitous decline in Democratic voter registration in key swing states — nowhere more apparent than in Ohio.

Voter registration in the Buckeye State is down by 490,000 people from four years ago. Of that reduction, 44 percent is in Cleveland and surrounding Cuyahoga County, where Democrats outnumber Republicans more than two to one.

“I think what we’re seeing is a lot of spin and hype on the part of the Obama campaign to try to make it appear that they’re going to cruise to victory in Ohio,” Cuyahoga County Republican Chairman Rob Frost said. “It’s not just Cuyahoga County. Nearly 350,000 of those voters are the decrease in the rolls in the three largest counties, Cuyahoga, Hamilton and Franklin.”

Frost points out that those three counties all contain urban centers, where the largest Democrat vote traditionally has been.

Ohio is not alone. An August study by the left-leaning think tank Third Way showed that the Democratic voter registration decline in eight key swing states outnumbered the Republican decline by a 10-to-one ratio. In Florida, Democratic registration is down 4.9 percent, in Iowa down 9.5 percent. And in New Hampshire, it’s down down 19.7 percent.

“It’s understandable that enthusiasm is going to wane a little bit from that historic moment (in 2008),” says Michelle Diggles, the study co-author and senior policy adviser for Third Way. “You can only elect the first African-American president of this country once.

Of course, there are other reasons why people are just not happy anymore with the Democrats:

One Democratic Party consultant told Fox News that independents in Ohio may be leaning Democratic – an effect that may be tied to the bailout of Chrysler and GM. One of eight people in Ohio work in businesses directly tied to the auto industry. The state has been carpeted with Obama ads that point to his bailout of the industry and it’s managed bankruptcy.

I do not mean to toot my own horn; but in this case, I must. I predicted that stuff like this would happen on my old blog. When the bailouts happened, and when the healthcare bill was pushed through. The truth is Independents are simply running away from Obama. Another thing too that this report did not cover; is that some Democrats are simply not happy with the Obama Administration. This is for a number for reasons: The continuation of Bush’s polices on the war on terror and the war is one. The failure to close the prisons in Gitmo is another. The continuing of the war in Afghanistan is another. Also too, Ohio is also a union State and when Obama’s chief of staff at the time, said “F*** the big three!”, many in Ohio heard about that too. This all makes for a unpopular President.

Also too; the economy in Ohio, here in Michigan; and nationally, just plain sucks. There are many small businesses in Ohio, many of whom are faithful Democrats; and they are just looking at their bottom lines and are looking at this President and wondering, “What on earth are they doing to us?” To be fair, it is not all of Obama’s fault. The Federal Reserve with it’s QE1, QE2 and now QE3 is not helping the situation at all. When the fed prints more money, inflation happens, which drives the prices of everything up and this, in turn, hurts businesses. Which, in turn, hurts the economy. Bill Clinton learned this lesson early on, and made adjustments. Jimmy Carter and this President, did not. For that, they are paying a price at the polls.

I should also mention that this current foreign policy debacle in Libya, and Egypt and the rest of the Arab World is also weighing heavy on the minds of people as well. As it was in 1979, with the Iran hostage crisis. Now, Iran is being a problem again. Which is very ironic.

History has such a strange way of repeating itself.

UPDATED — Sad News: Lottery winner Amanda Clayton has died

It troubles me to even have to blog about this.

You might remember Amanda Clayton, who was resident of my hometown here, Lincoln Park, Michigan. She won a million dollars from the Michigan Lottery, and thought she could still collect food stamps. She paid over $5000 in benefits back to the state of Michigan.

It saddens me to actually have to write this; but Amanda Clayton has died of an apparent drug overdose. The story via the local paper here in town, The News-Herald:

Amanda Clayton, the woman who garnered national attention earlier this year when it was revealed that she was still accepting food stamp benefits after winning the lottery, was found dead today in Ecorse of an apparent drug overdose, police have confirmed.

According to police, she was using prescription medication at a friend’s house on Sunnyside Street. Her friend found her dead at about 9 a.m. when they heard her toddler daughter crying. The child was reportedly in the bed with her when she passed.

I am not going to sit here and pretend to know a damned thing about this woman at all. What I am going to say is this: now a little toddler girl is now going to live without her Mother for the rest of her natural-born life. This woman became, unfortunately, a ‘talking-point” for the right-wing blogosphere; which did include me. I will not sit here and pretend to know what this woman’s politics really were. All I truly knew, was that she collected benefits, after winning money from the state. I also only know that she said that she did not know, that she could not do that.

I also will not lie to you; I am bit upset at this news. Here is why: This blogging stuff has always been fun for me, but, in a strange kind of way — distant from my home and my town. I always thought it to be a kick to criticize the Government and those in it, from the comfort of my basement and bedroom. Because of this, the stuff I write about is always —- distant —- and not really connected to anything local or personal. However, when it is this close, and when it is in my own damned backyard — in this close, it is very different and quite frankly, a bit discomforting and disconcerting. I guess what I am trying to say is that I shutter of the thought that something that I might have written on this blog, in the name of politics could have possibly driven this woman to take her life. I am praying that this is not the case, that it was a freak accident.

This serves to me and I hope it serves to be a reminder to everyone; blogger owners, readers and commenters: that those we write about, make sport of; whether for political reasons or what have you —- are real, honest to godness, people. People that have emotions, hearts and souls. Whatever this young lady’s issues were, they were not so bad that she should have been deprived of the right to enjoy her life to the fullest. This also should remind us to use great caution when writing about other people. Because sometimes, words can cause hurt and sometimes, that hurt cannot be managed.

I pray that the God of peace, that passes all understanding will be with the family of Amanda Clayton. May she find that peace in the arms of the Lord God in heaven.

Written with a truly broken heart this Saturday evening…..

-Charles Patrick Adkins

Owner

Thouightsandrantings.com

Lincoln Park, Michigan

—

Update (October 8, 2012) — The following comment was left by Rachel, who lives at the house that Amanda was found in:

I would first like to say Amanda Clayton was my best friend everyone thinks u knew her but if u knew the really Amanda u would all love her. Amanda was the most caring kind full person i ever knew. September the 29th was the worse day of my life i found my best friend dead in my bedroom And let me clear something up with all of u NO her daughter was not in the bed when i found her. I saw some of the comments u sick ppl said about my friend when she was already gone god have mercy on your soul when it’s your judgement day… All i know is we are all trying to get threw this tragic so please leave her family alone God rest my Amanda soul R.I.P Amanda Clayton i love u always Girl I’ll see u on the other side Baby when it’s my time love always ur Girl Rachel

I have no way to independently verify if that is actually someone that knows her or not. However, based upon the IP address of the sender of that comment, it is from this area. Again, this was a heartbreaking story and one that I wished I did not have to cover. God be with the family of this young lady and her friends.

Why do Christians and Conservatives do stupid stuff like this?

This used to be a pretty popular series on my old blog and I thought I would bring it back on this one as well. This series simply takes some of the more absurd things on the right and simply asks the question…..

Why? 

Before I start this; I feel the need to say this, because there are many out there that might not understand why it is that I write things like this little blog entry here. The truth is folks, I have never been a partisan blogger, or a “party guy.” I simply started blogging because I felt, then, that the political party and the President in office at the time was simply wrong about what he was doing. This is why I started a blog in the first place.

As many of you know, I spend a good amount of time on this blog, writing about the stupidity of the left; and sometimes, that gives people the idea that I am so sort of rich Republican. Well, needless to say; that is not the case at all. I am simply an American Constitutional Conservative and I am a Baptist Christian as well. The difference between this blog and the others out there; is the fact that I will hold a mirror to our own side and point out some of the more absurd things that some of our people do. This is called integrity and I will be quote honest with you; and admit that it is sorely lacking in the political world and yes, that includes the Conservative Blogosphere too.

So, without further ado, I give you:

Some of the dumbest stuff I’ve seen yet!

First in our little tour of the absurd is this picture:

Heil Yarmulke!

Now the back story on this, is that the Weekly Standard, which is one of the biggest Wilsonian Conservative magazines around, seems to believe that this picture is somehow or another an Anti-Semite conspiracy of some sort or another.  Now, unless the associated press and Reuters are really talented or held a meeting to discuss the picture; I believe it might just be a poorly timed happenstance. Putting it into workings man’s terms: Sometimes, a picture, is just a picture and nothing else.

The second story is about the man who made the film that supposedly caused the middle east to lose its collective mind. The Smoking Gun reports:

The producer of the controversial anti-Islam film “Innocence of Muslims” has been arrested for violating terms of his probation and is set for an appearance today in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles.

Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, 55, is scheduled for an initial appearance in the courthouse where Judge Christina Snyder sentenced him in June 2010 following a bank fraud conviction.

[UPDATE: Citing Nakoula’s “lengthy pattern of deception,” a federal magistrate this afternoon ordered him held without bond for alleged probation violations, including making false statements to his probation officer and using aliases. The judge rejected a plea from Nakoula’s lawyer, who argued that the convicted felon’s life would be in danger at an L.A. lockup due to the facility’s large population of Muslim inmates. Nakoula will remain in custody in advance of a probation revocation hearing, the date for which has yet to be scheduled.]

Investigators have not yet provided details about how Nakoula allegedly violatedprobation, but it seems clear that his involvement in the “Innocence of Muslim” production is central to the government’s new charge.

Nakoula (seen above) was sentenced to 21 months in prison to be followed by six months in a halfway house. Upon completion of the custodial term, he was placed on probation for five years.

Included in his probation terms were prohibitions on his use of the Internet, unless he secured prior approval from his probation officer. Additionally, he was not to “use, for any purpose or in any manner, any name other than his/her true legal name or names without the prior written approval of the Probation Officer.”

While producing “Innocence of Muslims,” Nakoula repeatedly used the alias “Sam Bacile” (and other variants) in communications, online postings, and dealings with cast and crew working on the film.

Now, this one is a bit hairy and I have seen the roundup of bloggers on the right who are saying this man is being targeted by the Government. As much as I would like to agree with them, I cannot. First off, it might very well be possibly that this man was working with terrorists himself. Second of all; the man broke the law, was caught and served his time and then, when given the chance to earn back his freedom, he proceeded to break the conditions of his probation. Because of this, a few people lost their lives as a result. Because I happen to believe in personal responsibility  I believe this man is right where he should be — in prison. I also hope that he stays there for a very long time.

Third, there is Rush Limbaugh. What can I say? The guy is funny; but sometimes, he blows it. Especially, when it comes to stuff like this here, which turned out to be wrong. Memo to Rusty: YOU.ARE.NOT.HELPING. 😡

Finally, there is story, which is for the “You gotta be freaking kidding me!” department. It comes from the Detroit Free Press:

A legal center filed a lawsuit this week against the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office, claiming its officers failed to protect Christian activists who carried a pig’s head while protesting Islam at the annual Arab International Festival in Dearborn.

Filed in Detroit, the lawsuit says that deputy chiefs in the department violated the constitutional rights of the Christian missionaries by not allowing them to “engage in Christian religious speech and expressive activities.” It was filed by the newly formed American Freedom Law Center, which was created by Ann Arbor attorney Robert Muise and an Arizona-based attorney, David Yerushalmi, known for his efforts to battle shari’a, Islamic law.

On June 15, a group of Christian missionaries from California known as the Bible Believers arrived at the Arab festival with large signs denigrating Islam and its prophet. Some of the signs read: “Islam is a religion of blood and murder” and “Muhammad is a … liar, false prophet, murderer, child molesting pervert.” They also carried a pig’s head mounted on a pole. Muslims consider pigs to be unclean.

Some youths in the crowd became upset at the signs and started hurling water bottles at the Bible Believers. The lawsuit claims that stones and debris also were hurled.

“We have an angry and violent mob of Muslims intent on suppressing free speech and law enforcement officials aiding and abetting the violence in violation of the Constitution,” Muise said.

Paula Bridges, a spokeswoman for Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon, did not comment this week on the lawsuit. In June, she said of the Christian group:

“While Sheriff Napoleon respects everyone’s right to freedom of speech, it’s unfortunate that some have chosen to exploit and taint what was to be a peaceful, community event.”

Let me get this straight, these Christians, went to Arab festival and insulted these people’s religion. Then, when they get pelted with bottles, they sue law enforcement. Just a thought; they should have been glad it was just bottles and rocks. They could have well been shot and killed for doing such an act and in the writer’s opinion, the killings would have been entirely justified. The way it is supposed to be; you something this foolish and get your tailed kicked; you suck it up and take it like a man. The very idea that a group would do this, after being idiots — makes me honestly question their Christianity. This group makes a mockery of the gospel of Christ and everything that the Bible stands for. Here is hoping this case is tossed out of a court of law and quickly.

 

 

 

National Review offers Mitt Romney some good advice and everybody hates it

I saw the following this morning and I read the reactions to it and I honestly had to chuckle at it.

The National Review actually gave Governor Mitt Romney some rather good advice in a piece penned by the editors. The crux of it is here:

Americans are more likely to blame Bush for the financial crisis that started on his watch than to blame Obama for the slow recovery from it. And even before the financial crisis, the last period of Republican governance was not especially good for America’s middle class. Wages were flat for people in the middle of the income spectrum even when the economy was growing.

The Romney campaign acknowledges that the crisis began before Obama took office, but it has next to nothing to say about what Bush-era Republicans got wrong. The result is that Romney appears to be saying that everything was going swimmingly until Obama came along. That impression lends credence to Obama’s attempt to portray Romney as running for Bush’s third term. Romney’s silence about the errors of the Bush years is, on the other hand, understandable, since many Republicans continue to hold Bush in high esteem as a good man who tried to do a lot of good things. Since most Americans consider Bush a failure, Romney cannot embrace him either. So Bush has been an awkward non-presence in the campaign: the man who was not there.

Instead of an explicit repudiation or an embrace, Romney needs to move beyond the controversies of the Bush era. To do that, he has to alter his critique of Obama. What Romney should say is that our country has problems that have been building since long before Obama took office, and that what’s wrong with Obama is that he has either left them unaddressed or made them worse. The country’s looming debt crisis, its dysfunctional health-care system, and its irrational tax code are three of them. Romney will take on those challenges head-on. Those are the ideas he has been running on, after all.

….and of course, most on the right hated it. The American Thinker:

Hmm.  Really?  Romney saying that the economic crisis began before Mr. Obama assumed office means that it began under…George W. Bush?  Or did we miss something?  Why should Mr. Romney be pointing fingers at his fellow Republicans?

The NR editors say that Romney’s silence on the Bush years is “understandable”?  But, you know, maybe if Romney could take a few shots at Bush, well, that might not be so bad.  But the NR editors appreciate why Romney isn’t going to pull the trigger on that one. 

[…]

Most voters, who are living their lives for much more than politics and elections, aren’t likely to tune in to nuances.

Romney may win this critical election — let’s pray he does — but it will be due more to a bad economy, mounting troubles overseas, and the grace of God than to a good strategy, which should be based on rock-solid conservative principles and ideas, and not neutered arguments and finding fault with one’s own.

They were not the only one, One of Lew Rockwell’s writers was not impressed either:

Gee, maybe George Bush was a disaster after all!

The NR sycophants who cheered W’s every crime now realize that he’s a ball and chain. Hilariously, these failed “conservatives” desperately want the Ministry of Truth to work overtime:

“Since most Americans consider Bush a failure, Romney cannot embrace him either. So Bush has been an awkward non-presence in the campaign: the man who was not there. Instead of an explicit repudiation or an embrace, Romney needs to move beyond the controversies of the Bush era.” [Ah — Why do they hate us? Now we know: because Ron  Paul made Bush a presence, and calmly exposed his malefactions for all to see.]

A little late, children. Bush’s crimes are not “controversies,” they are realities — but today’s faux conservatives don’t understand metaphysics, they’ve bought into the Trotsky-Kristol-neocon dialectic instead. Nothing is real but power. Hence, Romney must use the Memory Hole, ignore the past, and look to the future.

FORWARD!

Uh, doesn’t that have a familiar ring to it? As in, Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee?

Yes, they are always wrong. And no, they will never, ever apologize.

Now that takes talent; when you can manage to get your writings criticized by the grassroots right and by the ultra-libertarian/almost left-wing crowd, at the same time. You must be doing something right. Good job NRO!  Also too, it is good advice for Mitt Romney. He can acknowledge mistakes without shooting his own Party. It has been done before and can be done again. It just has to be done the right way.

Time to practice what I preach

After sleeping on it last night and making up this morning and thinking about it a bit. I sat and reread what I wrote last night about Israel and such.  This is when it occurred to me that me bashing The American Conservative magazine for its Anti-Israel stance, and then having myself listed as a Buchananite Conservative was hypocritical. So, I have removed any reference to being a Buchananite Conservative on this blog and on my twitter feeds.

The truth is, Pat Buchanan and a friend of his Taki Theodoracopulos, a Greek shipping magnate and a rebid anti-Semite; founded TAC in the lead up to the Iraq War.  Now while these men might have some ideas that might be noble, when it comes to economics; the truth is, they just hate Jews and because of that, in my opinion, anything else that they have to bring to the table is void.

I had changed my mind on my using the term Buchananite Conservative and was just going to use it. But, after reading what I did yesterday. I again am reminded of why I stopped using that moniker in the first place. I simply do not wish to be associated with that kind of hate; whether it be intellectualized or not —- it is still hate and it is still morally wrong and I simply do not want to be ranked among those people at all.

So, I will go find me a small Israeli flag and stick it back up there. However, I let my displeasure of some the actions of Jewish Americans be known. I will also link to this article here.

Some things in life, are just a damned complicated mess. 😡