Category: politics

Memo to Chris Rossini: Please, cut the crap!

I have Ron Paul’s new institute for freedom feed in my rss reader.

More specifically I have the sub-blog “Neocon Watch” in the reader; which I do enjoy reading; because quite frankly I believe the neocon right should be watched. 

But, there was a blog entry that was done on November 6, 2013; that really makes me wonder, what exactly is the point of that blog? Is it for the honest reporting of the actions of the neoconservative right; or is it just another idiotic love fest of the former Representative from Texas?

What I am referring to; is this entry here, which is about the actions of a Democratic Senator from Illinois. 

Quoting the entry:

Congressman, Brad Schneider (D-IL), was in the process of introducing a bill in the House that sought to delay a new round of sanctions on Iran. That is, until the neocon Free Beacon caught wind of it.

How dare Schneider suggest waiting a measly four months before increasing sanctions?

Following the Free Beacon’s story, Schneider shelved the bill. He then“organized an impromptu conference Tuesday evening to explain to pro-Israel leaders why he authored a bill that could delay a new round of Iran sanctions…”

So Schneider shelves the bill, and then explains himself to pro-Israel leaders? What?

The story gets even better. The Wall Street Journal reports that:

Congressman Schneider has called upon the Senate to immediately pass the ‘Preventing a Nuclear Iran Act’ and opposes any legislation that would delay, hinder, or stop current or future sanctions.

Okay, that is all fine and dandy; but this is where the blog entry stops being about factual reporting and starts sounding like an idiotic Ron Paul commercial.

Quote:

What a turnaround!

Kinda makes you miss Congressman Ron Paul, doesn’t it?

Here’s how the story would have been different were he still in the House. Congressman Paul would have drafted a bill that would abolish all sanctions against Iran. After all, sanctions are an act of war.

The neocon Free Beacon could then write whatever it wanted to show its displeasure. They would surely use every derogatory name in the book. Congressman Paul would still file the bill. There would be no apologies, and the great American Congressman would surely not feel the need to explain himself to special interest groups.

While it may be sad that the voice for liberty is no longer in Congress, there is a tremendous bright side to the story. The much freer, and non-restrained Ron Paul is representing liberty like never before!

Again, I ask; what exactly is the point of this blog; is it to legitimately report on the Wilsonian right and left……..or is it an continuous Ron Paul commercial?

Not to make this about personalities; but when it comes to pro-American policies; especially those of economics, Patrick J. Buchanan wins that hands down. Ron Paul would rather see America undermined in trade, than to protect the American worker. Which is why I prefer him over Ron Paul any day of the week.   

The problem with Derek Hunter is…

The problem with Derek Hunter is, that he is an idiot.

At the link above this idiot goes on a rant about libertarianism and how it’s no longer truly defined and how they don’t seem to change policy. Which is true in some respects, but then he proceeds to compare the Libertarian Party to the Republican establishment and blames them for the loss in Virginia. Which in my opinion is quite stupid.

Reason why the guy up in Virginia lost is because not everyone is down with the extremist wing of the GOP which is represented by Ted Cruz. Some people believe that causing the government to default on its debt obligations is not always the smart idea.

Furthermore, why the guy up in Virginia lost is because he was a social conservative and now in the GOP social conservatism is not a real big priority.

One of the biggest mistakes I believe that the GOP could make now is to go off on a tangent of social conservatism. Folks whether we like it or not we lost that battle. The 1980’s as Dr. James Dobson correctly observed was simply a holding action and in the internet came in and killed any chances of that actually succeeding.

Not to mention that George H.W. Bush came in with his new world order and went soft on taxes and destroyed the Reagan Revolution.

So,I think we really need to get off of the social conservatism kick and concentrate on what’s truly important and that’s the financial state of the United States.

Not everyone thinks like the Tea Party and furthermore not everyone thinks that Ted Cruz is some sort of a rock star. There are some of us who actually believe the Ted Cruz is done more to damage the brand of the GOP then he has done to help it.

Update: Just thought I would let everyone know. Mr. Hunter wrote me on twitter and posted a link to my blog entry with a rather condescending and sarcastic remark. Well, I am all for political discussion; but I am not for ad-hominem attacks. I posted a legit criticism of his column and he responded with a personal attack. So, for this; I blocked him on twitter. Therefore, I am shutting off the comments and trackbacks on this blog entry. Because Mr. Hunter wants to turn this into a spit ball contest and I am a bit old for that sort of a thing. So to Mr. Hunter I simply say this: Grow up. If you cannot handle dissenting opinions; then stop writing on TownHall.com. Furthermore, stop writing whining columns about how your candidate did not win.

Update #2: I think this speaks for itself:

Smart move by David Barton

I wrote about this before and it appears that David Barton has conceded to reality.

Via the Corner over at NRO:

Controversial Evangelical author David Barton just announced that he won’t challenge Senator John Cornyn in the 2014 Texas Senate primary. On Glenn Beck’s radio show this morning, he told Beck’s listeners that, though the primary is “winnable,” the timing isn’t right for him.

“What can I do to talk you into this?” asked Beck, disappointed.

Texas tea-party activists had been hankering for Cornyn to get a primary challenger ever since he removed his name from Mike Lee’s letter urging his Senate colleagues to refuse to support a CR that funded the Affordable Care Act. But finding a candidate with the requisite name recognition, connections, and willingness was a tall order. Enter Barton, former vice chairman of the Texas Republican party, who’s well-connected in the Evangelical movement and has deep ties with the Texas conservative grassroots. Barton is a lightning rod for controversy: The publisher of his most recent book, The Jefferson Lies, pulled it because of concerns over numerous factual inaccuracies. (Beck wrote the foreword for that work and has promised to continue publishing it.)

Barton told Beck’s listeners that he had done polling to investigate his odds in the race, and believed it would have been easy for him to raise the first $3 to 4 million.

“Has Louie ruled it out?” Beck asked, hoping Representative Louie Gohmert would challenge the senator. The Texas congressman did reject the idea in July, and it’s ultimately unlikely Cornyn will get a competitive primary challenger.

I believe this to be a very smart move by David Barton. Because quite frankly, Barton would be a lightening rod for the left to attack the GOP as an extremist party. Furthermore, it would cost the GOP a important seat in the Senate. The plain truth is that while Barton might have some noble intentions; he is simply unelectable and his campaign would be unwinnable.

It simply boils down to credibility and Barton has a credibility problem; his book was pulled because of issues with accuracy. Those sort of things are not exactly a feather in ones cap, when it comes to politics. Either way, I am glad to see that Barton did not try and run; because in his case, the Republican Party simply did not need someone of his ilk trying to run for office. 

Detroit elects first white Mayor in 40 years

I see this as a very good thing and not for the reasons you might think!

But, first, the video:

The Story:

Detroit’s New Mayor – Mike Duggan

For Duggan, born in Detroit but who lived much of his life in the western Wayne County suburb of Livonia, it was a victory rooted in his turnaround persona that may also reflect a move away from decades of racial politics.

He will replace one-term Mayor Dave Bing in a city where 83 percent of the residents are black and in a region where racial divisions have strained city-suburb relations until recently.

A beaming Duggan Tuesday made a veiled reference to race but immediately brushed it aside to focus squarely on the monumental tasks that voters decided to put in his hands — and which he’ll share with an emergency manager appointed by Gov. Rick Snyder who holds the power to make most major decisions.

“What we have in common is much more powerful than what divides us. Now the real work begins,” Duggan said. “They want somebody to go into City Hall, get rid of the bureaucracy and get city services going.”

via Duggan: ‘Now the real work begins’ | The Detroit News.

Now about why I believe that Mike Duggan won the election; I believe that Duggan won because quite frankly, the people of the city of Detroit and I mean everyone — was sick and tired of the racial politics of the city. Those racial politics, by the way, date back to the first black mayor of the city of Detroit, Coleman A. Young. Quite bluntly, Young hated white people with a passion; and it showed in the white parts of the city, namely southwest Detroit — where I grew up.

Also too, I believe that many people in Detroit were sick of business as usual. That “Business as usual” bankrupted the city and put the city in the position that it is in now. I believe that Duggan represented a better path for the city of Detroit.  What amazes me, as that Duggan has, as you can see in the video; an overwhelming support of the black community, which I think is an awesome thing.

I am convinced Mike Duggan has his work cut out for him. I wish him and his staff the best. However, I believe that if he plays his cards right and goes in with the right attitude; I believe that he can possibly do some great things for the City of Detroit.

Here’s to a prosperous future in the City of Detroit!

Detroit News: DOJ will monitor Detroit, Hamtramck elections

To make sure that the black guy wins. Because we just cannot have the evil white man win the election! 🙄

Sickening… 😡

The Story:

Washington — The U.S. Justice Department said Monday it will monitor municipal elections Tuesday in Detroit and Hamtramck along with Orange County, N.Y., and Cuyahoga and Lorain counties in Ohio.

The department said monitoring is designed to ensure compliance with the Voting Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination in the election process on the basis of race, color or membership in a minority language group.

During the 2012 elections, the federal government had about a half-dozen or so inspectors in Detroit monitoring polling stations and responding to complaints. The department will have a smaller presence for Tuesday’s election.

In Cuyahoga, Lorain and Orange Counties, the Department will assign federal observers from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management to monitor polling place activities based on court orders. The observers will watch and record activities during voting hours at polling locations in these jurisdictions and Civil Rights Division attorneys will coordinate the federal activities and maintain contact with local election officials.

In addition, Justice Department personnel will monitor polling place activities in Detroit and Hamtramck. Civil Rights Division attorneys will coordinate federal activities and maintain contact with local election officials. The department has previously monitored polling places in Hamtramck to ensure voters’ civil rights were upheld.

In 2000, Hamtramck agreed to revamp election procedures to ensure all voters were treated equally under an agreement reached with the Justice Department. The agreement resolved a government suit claiming violations of the Voting Rights Act aimed at Arab-American voters in the November 1999 election.

The agreement stems from an investigation that began after the Justice Department received complaints from Arab American voters in Hamtramck that their citizenship had been challenged by private citizens during the November 1999 general election. “As a result of those challenges, Arab American voters and other dark-skinned voters, such as Bengali-Americans, were required by pollworkers to take a citizenship oath prior to being permitted to vote. This requirement was not imposed on white voters,” the Justice Department said.

Each year, the department deploys federal observers to monitor elections across the country. To file complaints about discriminatory voting practices, including acts of harassment or intimidation, voters may call the Voting Section of the department’s Civil Rights Division at 1-800-253-3931.

via DOJ will monitor Detroit, Hamtramck elections | The Detroit News.

A perfect illustration why the GOP should not run candidates who cannot win

This is the Country’s payment for the GOP’s stupidity:

Ongoing Federal “stimulus” spending per year = $700B+

$700B+ / ~320,000,000 people = ~$2,200/yr/person.

$2,200 / 12 months = $180/mo/person. (that includes illegals, uninsured, transient tourists, etc. i.e. every “warm body”)

$180/mo could pay for basic catastrophic and (genuine) emergency treatment for every warm body in the US, and NOT require huge bureaucracy or expensive non-functional web sites to accomplish. Canadians pay less than half that per-person for their lame CannuckCare coverage.

via Ace of Spades HQ: The socialized medicine you paid for but never got.

This is what happens when the GOP decides to run a made beltway boy and some Alaskan shrieking harpy Femi-Nazi. Then, after being beaten badly and made to look like fools; the GOP then decides to run a man who is basically the “in the flesh” manifestation of the comic strip “Richy Rich“.  Say what you want; but that is basically what happened.

17 trillion and counting… All because the GOP wanted to twice play nice and wanted to appeal to people, who would not vote for them anyhow. 😡

Good Point

Seen over at Lew Rockwell’s Blog:

This “Conservative Action Alert” says: “Tell Congress: Bring Impeachment Charges Against the President for Unconstitutional Military Actions!” Okay, fine. But where were you conservatives when Bush launched undeclared wars against Iraq and Afghanistan? The United States hasn’t declared war according to the Constitution since WWII. This means that not only Democrats Truman, Kennedy, LBJ, and Clinton should have been impeached for unconstitutional military actions, but also Republicans Nixon, Reagan, and Bush I. See my “U.S. Presidents and Those Who Kill for Them” for more details.

And like I have said many times, every bad policy of Obama can be traced back to Bush. Glad to see more and more conservatives waking up. Too bad they were asleep for 8 years when Bush was president.

However, I will say this about Lew Rockwell. He doesn’t allow comments on his site. This is because Lew Rockwell and his hardcore libertarian friends, do not like dissent. So, they would rather run a bully pulpit; than actually have a conversation. Which, in essence, makes them fascist, just like the neocons. I say this, because of the entries made, like this and this; which are just plain wrong.   

Blogs without comment sections are basically websites; or bully pulpits. It’s the whole, “It’s MY opinion and You WILL listen and not talk back!” mentality. Something that runs against the whole idea of what blogging was truly about. Talk about a God complex, they should look into that one. I can understand moderation concerns, this is why I run a pretty tight ship here. But, not having the ability at all, sends the message of, “We’re not interested in what YOU think, you commoner!”

Just my two cents.

Sorry, But, Sally Kohn is just not funny

I have made it clear on this blog many times, that I simply am not a big fan of Ted Cruz.

However, this little tweet here, just struck me, as…well, just wrong:

The Tweet I am referring to:

Full coverage at Twitchy.

Let me say this here. Because of the writing business that I am in here and because of my political position that I happen to hold to; I have good deal of interaction with white supremacists, white nationalists and white separatists. So, I feel to label someone, like Ted Cruz, who is a Cuban minority; is quite bigoted in my humble opinion. I understand, if this woman was trying to be funny. If she was, it didn’t work, at all.

I can understand her political position; but she could have said the very same thing, without coming off as some sort of knuckle-dragging bigot. Which is what she totally sounded like, when she made that demotivator. I also happen to be quite against illegal immigration as well; is Sally Kohn going to label me a Neo-Nazi as well?

You know, if I were an undignified sort; I could very well raise the point that the only reason she gets away with things of this sort, is because she is a Jew or maybe because she is a bull-dyke Lesbian. However, I will not do that; because like her little lame demotivator — it is just a bit too easy.

Another good reason why I cannot stand Ted Cruz

I wrote about this yesterday. However, I believe it goes without saying that Ted Cruz and his Dad have no place in American politics at all.

In April, Rafael Cruz, the father of Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), spoke to the tea party of Hood County, which is southwest of Fort Worth, and made a bold declaration: The United States is a “Christian nation.” The septuagenarian businessman turned evangelical pastor did not choose to use the more inclusive formulation “Judeo-Christian nation.” Insisting that the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution “were signed on the knees of the framers” and were a “divine revelation from God,” he went on to say, “yet our president has the gall to tell us that this is not a Christian nation…The United States of America was formed to honor the word of God.” Seven months earlier, Rafael Cruz, speaking to the North Texas Tea Party on behalf of his son, who was then running for Senate, called President Barack Obama an “outright Marxist” who “seeks to destroy all concept of God,” and he urged the crowd to send Obama “back to Kenya.”

via WATCH: Ted Cruz’s Dad Calls US a “Christian Nation,” Says Obama Should Go “Back to Kenya” | Mother Jones.

I do not want this man or his son anywhere near the White House at all. He does not speak for this paleoconservative at all. Do not misunderstand me here; I am all for the defense of Christian moral values and such. However, this guys beliefs are similar to those of the friends of Rick Perry, who happen to believe that apostate doctrine of “Kingdom Now” theology. Which is a very highly mistaken belief that somehow or another that Christians are on some sort of “God mandate” to occupy the Government until Christ comes back for his Church. It is the whole “God and Country” movement, taken to another level.

The reason for this is because historically, Christians did not believe in such things. Allow me to quote from a book called “The trail of blood” by James Milton Carroll:

24. Some serious questions have many times been asked concerning the Baptists: Would they, as a denomination, have accepted from any nation or state an offer of “establishment” if such nation or state had freely made them such an offer? And, would they, in case they had accepted such an offer, have become persecutors of others like Catholics or Episcopals, or Lutherans or Presbyterians, or Congregationalists? Probably a little consideration of such questions now would not be amiss. Have the Baptists, as a fact, ever had such an opportunity?

Is it not recorded in history, that on one occasion, the King of the Netherlands (the Netherlands at that time embracing Norway and Sweden, Belgium, Holland, and Denmark) had under serious consideration the question of having an established religion? Their kingdom at that period was surrounded on almost all sides by nations or governments with established religions–religions supported by the Civil Government.

It is stated that the King of Holland appointed a committee to examine into the claims of all existing churches or denominations to see which had the best claim to be the New Testament Church. The committee reported back that the Baptists were the best representatives of New Testament teachings. Then the King offered to make the Baptist “the established” church or denomination of his kingdom. The Baptists kindly thanked him but declined, stating that it was contrary to their fundamental convictions and principles.

But this was not the only opportunity they ever had of having their denomination the established religion of a people. They certainly had that opportunity when Rhode Island Colony was founded. And to have persecuted others–that would have been an impossibility if they were to continue being Baptists. They were the original advocates of “Religious Liberty.” That really is one of the fundamental articles of their religious faith. They believed in the absolute separation of church and state.

This is the proper way that true believers should be, to leave the business of politics of this fallen world to the people that want to run it. We believers should be about our Father’s business. We Christians have a right to vote; and we should vote our beliefs; what we should NOT do, is make disrespectful statements about the President and try occupy this Government. It all comes down to that thing, that many Christians seem to forget about; our Christian testimony.

This is why I had an issue with the whole “God and Country” movement of the 1980’s and this is why I have such an issue with the “Kingdom Now” types. This is because it is an unholy alliance between believers and non believers.

In closing, this is what the Bible says about all that:

Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. (2 Corinthians 6:14-18 KJV)

The round up of blogger reaction to this story is found here at Memeorandum.

Update: Fixed a rather bad typo and omission of words. Whoops. What I get for blogging before my mug of coffee is done. 😛

No, The Republican Party does not need David Barton serving in the Senate

Christians, Tea Party members and Republicans need to avoid people with extreme views.

The National Review’s blog “The Corner” reports:

David Barton, an Evangelical Christian historian who recently made headlines for a controversial history of Thomas Jefferson, is seriously considering primarying Senator John Cornyn (R., Texas), per multiple sources. Rick Green, one of Barton’s closest advisers, tells National Review Online the following in an e-mail:

More than 1,000 (zero exaggeration, that is an actual number) tea party and republican party leaders have asked David Barton to run. Polling says Sen. Cornyn is vulnerable and that’s why he is running ads right now. Like America’s Founding Fathers, David Barton will not “seek” this office, but if the people of Texas speak loud enough in the next few days, he could most certainly be drafted in by the voters.

Another Republican consultant in Austin familiar with Barton’s thinking elaborates on that. “The conservatives are putting in a significant effort to get him into the race, and this is not a drill — he might actually do it,” the consultant tells me. “I think David is probably mulling the race because he’s getting pushed really hard to mull the race. If people weren’t really pushing him hard, I don’t think he would be considering it. He probably fits the one profile which would be really threatening to Cornyn.”

And JoAnn Fleming, executive director of Texas-based Grassroots America We The People, says that a number of tea-party leaders are slated to have a conference call with Barton in the next few days to discuss his senatorial prospects. “We need a Constitutional conservative in that seat,” she says. “We believe that Senator Cornyn has become part of the establishment and we don’t believe that his priorities reflect the priorities of the people of Texas any longer.”

Here is why I say this; David Barton holds to some of the same views as I, on some subjects. However, David Barton’s work and even his book has been brought into question, even by other Christians and political historians. Furthermore David Barton is a believer that America happens to be a Christian Republic. This is a gross error. America is a Constitutional Republic; nothing more, nothing less.

It is one thing to be a blogger or writer that holds to Fundamentalist Christian views, and have some of them to be considered extreme by some. It is another entirely to be a holder of these views and run for public office. I want my elected officials to uphold the constitution; and it alone. I do not want my elected officials to be operating under some sort of pseudo religious mandate. David Barton believes that there is no such thing as a separation of Church and State. While it might be true that the phrase does not exist in the constitution; Thomas Jefferson made it very clear to the Danbury Baptists that there was a full wall of separation between Government and Religion. This is why the pilgrims fled England, because the pilgrims were being persecuted by the Roman Catholic Church! Yet, people like David Barton want Christianity forced upon Americans!  

Anyone who says anything other than this, seeks to hijack the United States Government for a religious cause; which flies in the face of the founding principles of this great Nation of ours. Again, we must be alert for Christian extremists, who want to infiltrate our Government for their nefarious purposes. I want a free Republic, not the Christian version of Sharia Law in America.