On Homeschooling

I will be straight and honest with you all, because that is how I do it around here. I was homeschooled for a short period in my life. I also attended Christian Schools for a good deal of my life. I also happen to have Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. I take medication for it. I will be very honest with you; homeschooling is not for everyone. I used the ACE curriculum and I will say emphatically that ACE Schools are not suited for Children with learning disabilities. Furthermore, I have very mixed feelings on Christian Schools; if they are staffed with qualified teachers, they can be a good experience. If not, they can be a nightmare. Believe me; I have seen both sides of that coin.

For those who wonder, the A.D.H.D. affects my ability to excel in math. I can plus and minus with the best of them. However, when it gets any tougher than that, I do the run for the calculator. I am getting better with it, as I get older; my checkbook is always balanced. However, I will not be volunteering anytime soon to be solving any sort of complex scientific problem. In other words, if NASA were relying on me to get to the moon, we would be lucky to leave the drawing room!

However, I happen to notice this article over at Salon.com about how homeschooling your children would be a horrible thing and a slap in the face to the big Government public school system. There are a few things, that stand out in this article and I will touch on a few of them. When a parent takes his child out of the public school system and decides to homeschool them, that parent is saying that the school system that he is enrolling in is a failure and that child is unable to learn in it. Which is ironic, because when my Mother withdrew me out of the Christian School that I attended to homeschool me, which was done at my request; I was saying the same very thing about the school that I was attending at the time.

Another thing that stands out in this article is the nuanced dog whistle assertion that if your child is homeschool that he will grow up to be some “right wing extremist militia” type. My friends let me be clear; that assertion is absolute hogwash. It just so happens that I only spent like 2 years in public schools. The rest of educational years were spent in various Christian Schools, and I when I turned 18 years of age and registered to vote; I voted Democratic Party up until the year 2008. Yes, I did eventually did change my political views. However, the changing of my political stance had absolutely nothing to do with my Christian Schooling or my Home Schooling; my change in political philosophy was warranted by the idiocy of what was happening in the Democratic Party in the 2007 primary. Furthermore, my departure from the status as a Democratic Party voter was the utter hapless treatment of our United States Military and its service members that served in it. There are many more reasons, but for the sake of brevity, I will just list these.

Therefore, to my fellow Conservatives, libertarians and tea party friends: do not be bothered by this article. It is simply a progressive buffoon attempting to keep the Government union-backed public sector employees employed. Perhaps it is a sign, that the progressive left is feeling the heat and fears losing the overall battle of the political discourse in this Country. This in this writer’s humble opinion would be a good thing. As the far progressive left, as far as this writer is concerned has driven this Country into a state of ruin, and on top of that, lied their way into controlling that car. It is time for change and for a new discussion — an erasing and washing of the blackboard, if you will. The progressive way of thinking and operating this Country has failed and it is time for a massive redo. The progressive left knows this and this is why articles like this one are being written.

Do not be dismayed by this, we on the right in this Country; on the righteous side of the political discussion are armed with the truth, the left only has lies and propaganda. We shall prevail and we shall be victorious. Homeschooled youth usually have higher IQ’s; excel in most subjects and go on to do many great and important things. I was not the rule; I was the exception to that rule. Just because I suffer from a learning disability, which was diagnosed long before I ever started schooling; does not mean the entire idea of a homeschooled child should be thrown out. To do this would be to take away a parents right of individual choice and that, in a Constitutional Republic is very unacceptable.

Others: American Power, Vox Popoli and The PJ Tatler

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab appeals his sentence

Remember this guy who got sent up the river?

Well, it appears now that ol’ Sabu here is not too keen on being the pivot man in the prison circle jerk.

The Story:

Detroit— “Underwear bomber” Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab appealed his life sentence Friday, one day after a judge issued the maximum penalty for trying to destroy a Detroit-bound airliner carrying 289 people on Christmas Day 2009.

The notice of appeal was filed in federal court in Detroit.

U.S. District Judge Nancy Edmunds sentenced Abdulmutallab to four life terms on Thursday, ending the country’s highest-profile terror case since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

“This court has no ability to control his motivation, which appears to be unchanged,” Edmunds said Thursday. “I can control his opportunity to act on those intentions.

“I believe he poses a significant ongoing threat to (the) safety of American citizens everywhere.”

Before being sentenced, Abdulmutallab’s legal adviser, Detroit lawyer Anthony Chambers, argued the mandatory life sentence constituted cruel and unusual punishment

via ‘Underwear bomber’ Abdulmutallab appeals life sentence | The Detroit News | detroitnews.com.

Like I wrote in my last entry about this idiot; we should have tried this terrorist puke in a military court. This murderous thug is not a uniformed combatant, he is a terrorist thug, who should be executed by firing squad, or better yet, with a damn rope and a tree. Racism? man, please. 🙄 Anyone who does what this little puke did, should not be affording any sort of respect at all. Least of all any respect of his race. 😡

But, now, as I wrote before, we will have to pay for this puke’s legal defense and pay to feed, clothe and shelter this little puke. Which is morally wrong, considering who and what he is, and what he tried to do. Which was not a ordinary criminal act, but an act of war. But your friendly neighborhood Marxists feel that he deserves the protection of the Constitution of the United States.

It is truly pathetic, it really is; here is hoping that we elect a President in 2012, that sees this threat for what it truly is and not a criminal one.

Video: Dad of the Year!

Naturally Ace and AllahPundit both hate this; but I think  this is just pretty darn awesome.

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To be fair, I should point out; that the guy does have his own facebook page; one personal and one for his book. The dude is in IT. Go figure.

Not the way I would promote a book or raise money for MDA; but….hey, fame is fame, right? Milk it Tommy…Milk it for all it is worth. 😉 😀

Needless to say, I highly doubt said daughter will be mouthing off on facebook anytime soon. Shooting a laptop.. Ouch. That’s just harsh. 😯

To add some unrelated hilarity to this — the dude is a CB’er. heh….  10-4 on the shot up laptop come ‘on…. 😆

For what it is worth; contary to what one might think, Timothy is not from Texas, he’s from North Carolina. Close enough. 😉

 

Catholics are not the only ones raising cain about the healthcare issue

The Baptists are raising a stink about it too.

There is this:

WASHINGTON (BP) — The issue at the center of the swelling controversy over the Obama administration’s refusal to protect the conscience rights of employers in its “contraceptive mandate” is “about as basic as it gets,” especially for Baptists, says Richard Land.

“Does the government have the right to intrude on the consciences of people to force them to pay for that which they find unconscionable? This goes contrary to our tradition in this country and contrary to our understanding of the First Amendment’s religious freedom protections,” Land said Feb. 9 in explaining what is at the heart of the debate.

“In my opinion, a Baptist needs to take a stand on this issue. Our Baptist forefathers went to prison and died for the freedoms that we have, and now it’s our responsibility in the providence of God to defend these freedoms lest they be taken away by government fiat,” said Land, president of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission.

via Baptist Press – Land: Obama mandate is a Baptist issue – News with a Christian Perspective.

Then there is this, also via Baptist Press:

“I’d go to jail rather than cave in to a government mandate that violates what God commands us to do. Would you? Acts 5:29,” author and pastor Rick Warren wrote on his Twitter account Feb. 7 before adding, “I’m not a Catholic but I stand in 100% solidarity with my brothers & sisters to practice their belief against govt pressure.”

Like I wrote earlier about the Catholics; my advice to my fellow Baptists, do not settle for anything other than a FULL and Complete exemption to this rule. I have to admire the Baptists and other Christian who are showing their boldness in this very important issue. Although, I really wished they would have shown the same sort of boldness, on the issue of the Iraq War. But, at this point, I will take any kind of boldness I can get. 😀

 

Fox Business Network Drops Judge Napolitano

First they got rid of Glenn Beck and now Fox News Channel’s Business network gives Judge Napolitano the axe.

Alternate headline: Fox News goes back to its Neoconservative roots and kicks the Paleoconservative voices out.

The Story:

In a surprise announcement Thursday afternoon, the Fox Business Network announced a major makeover of its primetime lineup. The new look slate will feature re-airs of The Willis Report, Cavuto, and Lou Dobbs Tonight, while ending the runs of FreedomWatch with Judge Andrew Napolitano, Power & Money with David Asman, and Follow the Money with Eric Bolling. In addition, the network will be developing a new show featuring Melissa Francis, which will eventually air at 5 p.m., bumping Gerri Willis‘ live show to 8 p.m. (Willis will air live at 5 p.m. with re-airs at 8 p.m. until the second quarter).

via Fox Business Network Drops Bolling, Napolitano Shows In Primetime Shuffle | Mediaite.

I did not always agree with Judge Napolitano, who is a Ron Paul supporter. But I will say this; he has in the past called out the Wilsonian Trotskyite crowd for what they truly are and I commend him for that.  I wish the Judge all the best and if I were him, I would be heading over to Glenn Beck’s network and trying to make a deal. Fox News never was one to stray too far away from they consider to be “Mainstream” Conservative thought. Paleoconservatives and libertarians were only there to be, like liberals, to be made sport of. They do it Bob Beckle and also to John Stossel. If I were John Stossel, I would be making sure my ship was secure, if not; I would be looking elsewhere too.

Again, it is a shame that this is going on, but that is the business of media; they follow the winds and when the winds change, networks have to react.

Coming to an airspace near you: 30,000 surveillance drones!

Remember what I wrote this?

A Government that watches it’s citizens and considers them a threat; fears those people and that is because they are doing wrong. This is nothing more than a police state action; and the American people should vote accordingly in 2012.

Well, here you go, this confirms what I said….:

Look! Up in the sky! Is it a bird? Is it a plane? It’s … a drone, and it’s watching you. That’s what privacy advocates fear from a bill Congress passed this week to make it easier for the government to fly unmanned spy planes in U.S. airspace.

The FAA Reauthorization Act, which President Obama is expected to sign, also orders the Federal Aviation Administration to develop regulations for the testing and licensing of commercial drones by 2015.

Privacy advocates say the measure will lead to widespread use of drones for electronic surveillance by police agencies across the country and eventually by private companies as well.

“There are serious policy questions on the horizon about privacy and surveillance, by both government agencies and commercial entities,” said Steven Aftergood, who heads the Project on Government Secrecy at the Federation of American Scientists.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation also is “concerned about the implications for surveillance by government agencies,” said attorney Jennifer Lynch.

via Drones over U.S. get OK by Congress – Washington Times.

The nanny staters and big Government socialists will carp — But-but-but-but it is for the greater good!:

“It’s not all about surveillance,” Mr. Aftergood said.

Homeland Security has deployed drones to support disaster relief operations. Unmanned aircraft also could be useful for fighting fires or finding missing climbers or hikers, he added.

The FAA has issued hundreds of certificates to police and other government agencies, and a handful to research institutions to allow them to fly drones of various kinds over the United States for particular missions.

The agency said it issued 313 certificates in 2011 and 295 of them were still active at the end of the year, but the FAA refuses to disclose which agencies have the certificates and what their purposes are.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation is suing the FAA to obtain records of the certifications.

Good luck with that lawsuit. The Government only reveals what they want you to know. You can go read the rest of that; but one thing that stands out:

Currently, the only barrier to the routine use of drones for persistent surveillance are the procedural requirements imposed by the FAA for the issuance of certificates,” said Amie Stepanovich, national security counsel for the Electronic Privacy Information Center, a research center in Washington.

The Department of Transportation, the parent agency of the FAA, has announced plans to streamline the certification process for government drone flights this year, she said.

I give it about a year or so; and they Governments — local, state and federal will be flying these drones, with equipment in them to see inside houses and know what you are doing. It is what the liberal Democrats and Statist Republicans in this Country have wanted to do for years. Now the technology is there and they can do it.

As Randy Weaver found out, the Government is not your friend; and if and when they want to come after you, they will. This right here will make that feat even more possible.

(H/T HotAir.com Headlines)

My feelings on the Josh Powell tragedy

Things like this are never, ever, easy to write about, because if you take a position that is outside of the normal realm of opinion; people tend to think you are someone who justifies murder or crime.  Let me say emphatically that I do not condone, justify or even remotely support what justify that which Josh Powell did to his Children or even possibly to his wife.

However, yesterday I wrote a posting on this blog, which shows that something is seriously wrong with our Government.  It just so happens that if the Government decides that you have committed a crime, the burden of clearing your name falls on the person accused of the crime; and if you happen to not be a person of great means of wealth, you basically become a slave to the judicial system. Sometimes that judicial system becomes poisoned —- whether by bias, religious discrimination or some other poison.  Furthermore, if you marry a woman and that woman’s family and parents decide that they have a vendetta against you, and they have the Government on their side, you are twisting in the wind, my friend. As for Powell’s wife, the authorities have no idea what happened to his wife. All they have are theories.  The truth is she could have left the Country or State with another man for all we know. But, it will not be properly investigated; because they have to pin the murder on someone; so, why not Josh? He killed himself and his two kids, did he not? It is an conviction of convenience; something big, intrusive Governments are known for.

Such is the case of Josh Powell — From the Salt Lake City Tribune:

Graham, Wash. • Relatives of Josh Powell blamed government officials, media and Internet media pundits for setting in motion the terrible tragedy that has now rocked two families.

The statement signed by Maurice and Patti Leach said they were “grievously saddened” by the loss experienced by both the Cox and Powell families and that there was no justification for the deaths of Powell’s two innocent sons, Charlie, 7, and Braden, 5.

Patti Leach is Steve Powell’s sister. They attended a September custody hearing to support Josh Powell. In a statement they said that he had asked for their support in helping him as “the next patriarchs of the family” following his father’s arrest on pornography and voyeurism charges.

“We were also asked by Josh if we would offer a safe haven for his sons should the need arise,” the Leaches said. “Our answer was absolutely yes.”

[…]

The Leaches said they had become disillusioned with the legal system during the court proceedings. They said government agencies, religious bias, “Internet kangaroo courts and sensationalized media had circumvented and “completely compromised” due process rights in the case.

“America, this is not only a tragedy, Sunday was a dark day for all of our families,” the Leaches said.

On May 18, 1927 a School in Bath, Michigan was bombed.  A man named Andrew Kehoe was the culprit.  The media then made him into a monster.  The truth is, the man was pushed into foreclosure on his farm, because of excess taxes brought on a levy to pay for a school.  The point here is that Andrew and Josh both have one thing in common; they were pushed to the brink of violence and committed these acts of violence because they were pushed; by an intrusive Government that would stop at nothing, to get what it wanted. Sadly, because of this, in 1927 — 45 people; 38 children who never got a chance to grow up and be adults, 2 teachers, 4 other adults and the bomber himself were killed and 58 people were injured. All because the Government just had to have its taxes.

I think we can do better than this — much better.

I leave you all with a picture that was made by Andrew Kehoe before his death:

Such is the case with Josh Powell and Andrew Kehoe

California supreme court strikes down Prop. 8

I have a simple libertarian/Constitutional/Federalist answer to this:

A federal appeals court Tuesday struck down California’s ban on same-sex marriage, clearing the way for the U.S. Supreme Court to rule on gay marriage as early as next year.

The 2-1 decision by a panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals found that Proposition 8, the 2008 ballot measure that limited marriage to one man and one woman, violated the U.S. Constitution. The architects of Prop. 8 have vowed to appeal.

The ruling was narrow and likely to be limited to California.

via Prop. 8: Gay-marriage ban unconstitutional, court rules – latimes.com.

What does this mean? That the United States Government or any Government for that matter —- should not be in the business of marriage.

Anything other than this; is big Government statism.

Others: Washington Post, Hot Air, Poliglot, Firedoglake, Wall Street Journal, PolitiCal, emptywheel, Capitol Alert, ACS Blog, Hit & Run, Show Tracker, The Volokh Conspiracy, The Loyal Opposition, The Daily What, Runnin’ Scared, JONATHAN TURLEY, Towleroad News #gay, PopWatch, Colorlines, Clayton Cramer’s Blog, Feministing, Sky Dancing, Jezebel, Gawker, Truthdig and Angry Black Lady Chronicles (via Memeorandum)

FBI says that “sovereign citizens” are a threat.

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm….:

(Reuters) – Anti-government extremists opposed to taxes and regulations pose a growing threat to local law enforcement officers in the United States, the FBI warned on Monday.

These extremists, sometimes known as “sovereign citizens,” believe they can live outside any type of government authority, FBI agents said at a news conference.

The extremists may refuse to pay taxes, defy government environmental regulations and believe the United States went bankrupt by going off the gold standard.

Routine encounters with police can turn violent “at the drop of a hat,” said Stuart McArthur, deputy assistant director in the FBI’s counterterrorism division.

“We thought it was important to increase the visibility of the threat with state and local law enforcement,” he said.

via FBI warns of threat from anti-government extremists | Reuters.

I said this over at another blog’s comment section and I will say it here; A Government that watches it’s citizens and considers them a threat; fears those people and that is because they are doing wrong. This is nothing more than a police state action; and the American people should vote accordingly in 2012.

Further more, I find it most insulting that the United States Government would rather hunt down its own citizens, rather than hunt down and capture the real terrorists, who truly hate this Country and want to see it destroyed. That would be the radical Islamic Jihad Terrorists; you know like the ones that slammed those planes into the Trade Center, the Pentegon, and the field near Shanksville, Pa? — or people like these here? But no, our Government, see people like me; citizens who disagree with the policies of the socialist President to be a threat.

Having said that, I have an open message to the United States Government, Federal Bureau of Investigation, President Barack Hussein Obama, The United Nations and the rest of the Big Government morass:

Go Fuck Yourselves Sirs!

Which is all the more reason to go here and get armed with one of these:

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That is all….

Others: Blogcritics, Hot Air, Weasel Zippers, Scared Monkeys, Atlas Shrugs, The PJ Tatler

Update: Like this posting? Please vote it up over at Reddit, please.

Video: Open Message to Michelle Malkin and Karl Rove

First of all, before you watch my video; Go read this article here, it will open in a new window — then come back here.

After reading that article, I went to twitter and really spoke my mind:

I am the type of person, if I make a mistake; I will admit it. I am also the type of person, that when I feel that I am right, I will back it up. So, I made this video:

I will simply end this blog posting with this; as I said in the video. To Michelle Malkin and Karl Rove; clean up the crap in your own party, before you unleash on my home town. The Republican Party is just as evil, just as screwed up and just hypocritical about many things, including foreign policy.  I agree on Terrorism, it is a problem. But the Republican Party’s nominee for 2000 and 2004, who won those elections handled 9/11 in a wrong-headed way. Because of this, we are now having the problems in the middle east that we are having now. Maybe you should work to fix the problems with your party’s foreign policy and let Detroit sort out its own problems.

Thank You.

-Patrick

…and of course, Michelle Malkin’s resident useful idiot agrees with her.

Update: ….and if this isn’t bad enough, we have Andrew Breitbart meeting with Bill Ayers. You see now why I don’t want anything to do with the Republican Party and the majority of the Conservatives; or those who call themselves Conservative? 🙄

Update #2: In my video, I made a reference to Michelle Malkin using Frankfort School tactics, this is what I was referring to here:

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Others: Alan Colmes’ Liberaland, The Atlantic Wire, New York Magazine, The Nation, Wonkette, Hollywood Reporter, nation.foxnews.com, The Hill, The Moderate Voice, Christian Science Monitor, Los Angeles Times, National Review, PopWatch, emptywheel, Poynter, ABCNEWS, Taylor Marsh, Outside the Beltway, The Raw Story, The Daily Caller, Hullabaloo and Daily Kos (via Memeornadum)