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Ground Zero Mosque?

Is it just me, or is it a smidge hypocritical of the libs to be rising up to defend the rights of Muslims to build their mosque near Ground Zero?  These are, of course, the same people who would poo themselves if somebody set out a Nativity scene in the same location.  These are the same liberals who just shut down the placement of roadside crosses in Utah to memorialize fallen highway patrolmen.  A mosque at Ground Zero?  No problem!  A cross for a fallen cop?  Violation of the First Amendment!  And you can just forget saying non-denominational prayer before a high school football game.

You know, I've got this crazy idea.  Want to build a mosque at Ground Zero?  Go for it.  But here's the rest of the deal.  You want to set out a cross, a Nativity at Christmas, want to pray?  In a school, in a government building, at a sporting event...you can do it ANYWHERE YOU WANT.

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof..."
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I Wonder...

...What it would be like to be required to obtain a permit to purchase a book?  If your bookstore had to obtain expensive permits and insurance?  What if you had to register your books with the government, and take training and have to purchase another permit to carry your books around outside your home?  What if it was against the law to purchase more than one book a month?  What if certain types of books were illegal, and citizens were not permitted to buy them?  All of these controls would be enacted by the government in order to protect us from our own weaknesses...for the greater good, you know.

I wonder if in that kind of world...would there be any doubt that the First Amendment was being violated?
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More Gun Laws...To Stop People From Breaking Gun Laws

By my estimation, would-be terrorist Faisal Shahzad likely broke multiple gun laws in his underachieving attempt to set off a bomb in Times Square.  A Kel-Tec Sub 2000 carbine, chambered for the 9mm pistol cartridge was found in his vehicle, parked at New York's JFK airport, where Shahzad was attempting to make his escape.  Let's see if I can break it all down...

For starters, Shahzad is reported to be a resident of the state of Connecticut.  Connecticut does not have any license or registration requirements for its residents to purchase or possess a rifle; Connecticut does have registration and licensing requirements for "assault weapons," but it appears that the Kel-Tec does not qualify as such.  Shahzad is OK so far.  I have not read whether or not the weapon was loaded, but if Shahzad transported it within the state while loaded, there's your first violation.

But where he begins to get into trouble is when he crosses into the state of New York.  While non-residents are permitted to possess and transport rifles in New York state, the Kel-Tec likely meets the state's definition of an "assault weapon" with a "high capacity feeding device."  There's no stated provision for non-residents to possess "assault weapons" in New York, so there's another gun law broken.

It gets worse when Shahzad enters the City of New York with his rifle.  Shahzad would have needed to have registered his rifle with the city, had a license to own it, and a permit to carry it within the city limits.  Since the lapdog media has not yet trumpeted his meticulous adherence to NYC gun laws, I will assume he met none of these requirements.  That's three more gun laws broken (we're up to five).  It is also a violation of city ordinance to carry a rifle in a vehicle, unless already properly licensed and registered.  Since we're assuming Shahzad did not do this, the carrying of the rifle in the vehicle is a separate charge.  (Tally now at six).

So there you have my "barracks lawyer" estimation of the number of firearms violations committed by Faisal Shahzad.  This once again points out the painfully obvious to liberal gun-controllers...those with criminal intent are not deterred by the existence of (in this case multiple) gun control laws.

Now we face legislation introduced in both houses of Congress which prohibits gun ownership by anyone who has been placed on the Department of Homeland Security's "no-fly list."  Understand that you may be placed on the list even if you have never been convicted of...or even accused of...any crime whatsoever.  The only requirement for you to be placed on this list is suspicion, and some bureaucrat in DHS decides that you might be a threat, and it's done.

The passage of either S.1317 or H.R.2159 will mean that once this happens, your 2nd Amendment right to keep and bear arms may become forfeit at the whim of DHS, and without the due process of law guaranteed by the 5th Amendment.  And the final insult is that as your Constitutional rights are shredded by a faceless bureaucracy, all we get is one more gun law for the criminals to break anyway.  Pick up your phone and call your elected representatives.

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The President's TMI

In a recent AP article, President Obama again shows his true colors to any who would observe.  The confessed Blackberry addict claims to not know how to work an iPod (one of which he gave to the Queen of England as a gift), iPad, Xbox, or Playstation.  A harmless lie, perhaps, but do you really believe that Barack Obama, the hippest, coolest President ever does not know how to work an iPod?  Really?  My point is that to show that he will casually toss out a lie, however implausible it may seem, in order to flesh out the story he is telling.  (I suppose it isn't actually a lie, but simply disingenuous when you use video games to advertise your political campaign.)  I believe he does it naturally, reflexively; to him it is simply harmless ornamentation on the tale he is weaving.  But it speaks to character.  If the little lies now occupy his everyday conversation, how difficult is it to transition to the bigger lies when you are an idealogue who believes them necessary to advance your agenda.  I suspect our President may not find them problematic at all.

The second "poker tell" in this story is the President's concern over the unfettered transmission of information.  To quote the AP article, "He bemoaned the fact that 'some of the craziest claims can quickly claim traction,' in the clamor of certain blogs and talk radio outlets."  Heaven forbid that a crazy claims gain traction.  We can provide health care to an additional 40 million individuals, and costs will go down?  I suppose the President's barometer for what constitutes a crazy claim is who made it.  Again, he puts himself on display for whomever would look and observe that the emperor indeed has no clothes.  Control of the narrative is an obvious goal of this President and his followers.

So the popular term "TMI"...too much information...takes on a different meaning under Barack Obama.  In his world, you put down that Blackberry, turn off the talk radio, and listen to the only crazy claims that count...those of the Dear Leader.  In our world, the "TMI" is how much we can learn about him simply by watching.
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Reset

    “Reset.”  That word has been thrown around quite a bit lately.  It has mostly been used as code by members of the Obama administration to mean, “undoing anything that we feel President Bush screwed up.”  But today I am the one who will try to reset.

    Following the 2008 election, I was quite frankly depressed (though not surprised) by the outcome.  As the new President and his minions took their perceived mandate to socialize the United States, and proceeded at full speed, I could not find the words to express my feelings and thoughts on the events unfolding.  At any rate there was so much commentary, I didn’t feel like I had anything fresh to add.  It was all already being said.

    That may still be the case, but I saw something last night.  I attended the Cincinnati Tax Day Tea Party, along with about 12,000 other Americans.  The speakers that I listened to all said basically the same things, and things I agreed with.  But the words had impact all the same.  I looked around and saw people of all races and all ages; I saw men and women, whole families, people with disabilities.  I saw these people listen politely as various speakers took the podium in turn, and as each spoke on themes of smaller government, fiscal responsibility, and lower taxes, they were met with applause.

    So I started thinking that maybe the words and the messages need not be unique and original…but they do need to be said, and they need to be heard.  Maybe there was someone there last night who was hearing those ideas for the first time, and that was all that was required to drive the message home.  And maybe there was someone there who was hearing the same messages for the fifteenth time, and it finally struck a chord.  And maybe, just maybe, someone who has heard it all before will read something I wrote and finally think, “I get it now.”  Maybe I can be the one voice among multitudes that finally wakes a fellow citizen to the predicament we are in, and motivates them to stop spectating and to stand up.

    It is my feeling that the great republic of the United States of America is standing on the edge of a precipice; our toes are over the edge of the cliff.  One more step and we plunge into an abyss from which we can never recover.  Take that step, and the America that we know and love will be lost forever.  I truly believe that we are living in one of the most historically significant times in the history of our nation, if not the most significant.  We are certainly teetering on a balance point where we will either stand or fall.

    The 2010 election cycle will be possibly the most important round of votes ever cast in America.  We cannot wait until 2012 to get serious about pulling our country back from that edge.  We must act now to change the composition of the House and the Senate into a body which can and will rein in the socialist agenda of President Obama.  Given two more years to work with Congress as it stands now, he will do irreversible damage to the country and the Constitution.

    At the close of the Constitutional Convention of 1787, Benjamin Franklin was asked whether the nation had a republic or a monarchy.  Franklin famously replied, “A Republic, if you can keep it.”  Can we keep it?  Not by sitting on the sidelines.  This nation can no longer survive an uneducated, disengaged electorate.  Inform yourself.  Research your political candidates, and reserve your votes for the ones who will keep the Republic.
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Earn It

     As has been my Memorial Day tradition these last few years, I just finished watching Saving Private Ryan.  Though the film is nearly three hours long, the heart of the message is contained in a very few minutes at the end.  After all three of his brothers are killed in combat in World War II, General of the Army George C. Marshall sends a contingent of Rangers to locate Private James Ryan and bring him home.

     Though questions are raised about sacrificing more lives to save one, the Ranger commander, CPT John Miller, does his duty and leads the Rangers forward.  The Rangers are confronted with their fears and with many of the moral uncertainties of war, and suffer the loss of many of their team by the time they find Ryan.  But the message comes in the climactic final battle.  With almost all of the Rangers now lost, CPT Miller is mortally wounded.  As he lies dying, he pulls Ryan near, and utters this command:  "Earn this.  Earn it."

     Earn it.  We flash forward to an elderly Ryan, who has returned with his family to Normandy.  As he stands over the grave of CPT Miller, he asks his wife to tell him that he's led a good life, that he's a good man.  We should ask ourselves this question on Memorial Day.  Have we earned it, the life we have?  Have we earned the sacrifice of so many who came before, and do we continue to earn the sacrifice of those who protect us today?  We live the lives we lead only because of the sacrifice of the CPT Millers out there, past and present.  We are all Private Ryan. Earn it.
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Guilty

     I know, I know.  It has been a long while since I last posted anything, but it's frankly been a little overwhelming lately.  There is so much going so wrong, so fast, all at the same time, that I haven't been able to get far enough ahead of it to put together anything thoughtful and somewhat original.  It's like the joke from Ghostbusters:  "Dogs and cats living together...mass hysteria!"

     But after the recent report on right-wing extremism from the Department of Homeland Security, I feel I must speak.  After all, I don't want to be left out, do I?  Although we can no longer spy on actual terrorists inside the US, it appears that now the new administration may actually favor surveillance of citizens who have no criminal record, no affiliation with terrorist groups, and have no actual plans to carry out violence of any sort.  The danger?  That their political beliefs and associated Constitutionally-protected political speech run counter to the Obama administration's leftist agenda, and that must be stopped.  Bottom line:  if you have strong conservative convictions and speak on them, that makes you suspect and, in the eyes of the DHS, a potential terrorist.

     So let me sum up:

    I favor a (much) smaller Federal government.
    I favor lower taxes.
    I am pro-life.
    I favor controlling the border and aggressively combating illegal immigration.
    I favor a strong military, with a budget to match.
    I am pro-Second Amendment.
    I oppose government intervention in the economy.
    I am a veteran.

Does that make me a right-wing extremist?  Am I a potential terrorist?  The Department of Homeland Security says it does.  I tell you this:  when the left succeeds in making political opposition into extremism, and this becomes the accepted definition, we are done for.  If they can make the sale that American citizens who believe differently are extremists, even though they have neither planned nor taken any violent action, then the First Amendment is finished, and so are we all.  This will turn the United States of America into a totalitarian state, where dissent is a crime (think China).  If saying this makes me an extremist, then I am guilty as charged.  Put that on your watch list.

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Obscene

“Obscene: 

1: disgusting to the senses: repulsive

2 a: abhorrent to morality or virtue; specifically: designed to incite to lust or depravityb: containing or being language regarded as taboo in polite usage <obscene lyrics>c: repulsive by reason of crass disregard of moral or ethical principles <an obscene misuse of power>d: so excessive as to be offensive <obscene wealth><obscene waste>”

This is how Webster’s defines the word, and I can find no better to describe the two Congressional spending bills floating around Capitol Hill. One of the main reasons that I haven’t written much since the election is that I have truly been at a loss for words most of the time. What can I possibly say that has not already been said?

You can read any number of authors, pundits, economists, and other experts who can enumerate the multitude of reasons that the $1 trillion+ spending proposed by our government is beyond gross in its incompetence; beyond crooked in its duplicity and deception. Read almost anything by Thomas Sowell or Walter E. Williams, and you will get it. Still, I suspect that if you are on Townhall.com and reading this blog, you already do.

So…what now? The cynic in me (who seems to carry the most weight lately) says that there is no way that Congress is not going to pass some sort of spending bill, and that it is going to be big. Can it possibly be stopped? Probably not. Can it be somehow trimmed or reduced? Maybe. I have contacted the offices of both my Representative and Senators, and made my thoughts on the matter clear. I oppose any sort of pork-packed spending bill intended to “jump start” the economy with a massive influx of cash (in a couple years). The only way to stimulate the economy is to allow businesses and individuals to keep more of the money they earn in the first place, through reductions in tax rates. Call your elected officials and tell them no.

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A Half-Step Better Than None

     In about two more months, Jose Compean and Ignacio Ramos will finally walk free.  In one of his last acts as President, George W. Bush has today commuted the sentences of two Border Patrol officers, convicted of shooting a suspected drug smuggler in the backside and subsequently imprisoned in 2007.  While a full pardon given two years ago would have been better, commutation is hardly a consolation prize.  Especially when you consider that these two men were looking at 12 and 11 year sentences, which they likely would have served in full had this not been done prior to noon tomorrow.

     Still the news is not all good , as without pardons Ramos and Compean are now felons, convicted of crimes of violence involving firearms.  They can never work in law enforcement again, cannot possess a firearm, and cannot vote.  They still have a long hard road ahead of them.  So if you think that this case will not have an effect on the Border Patrol in particular, and law enforcement in general, think again.  If you can still get people willing to take on the job, at best they will be more reluctant to take decisive action to enforce the law, and criminals will benefit.  At worst, they will be more hesitant to act forcefully when confronted with violence, and cops will get hurt.

     I pray that Ramos, Compean and their families they will soon be reunited, and able to find some peace, and that they may someday soon enjoy a happy and fulfilling life once again.  It's a good day.
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The Best News You'll Never Hear...

     You probably won't hear much about this in the mainstream media, anyway.  Earlier today, while much of America was still sleeping off the remains of 2008, the United States was officially handing off control of Baghdad's "Green Zone" to Iraqi authorities.  Saddam Hussein's presidential palace had served as the U.S. embassy and military headquarters in Iraq, but today was returned to a sovereign Iraqi government.

     But will anybody notice?  It's doubtful.  The media has spent the last few days bemoaning just how awful 2008 was (based largely on the last three months of the year).  We've all seen the headlines, "Thank God It's Over!" or others like it, as talking heads rehash the worst of the past 365 days.  While every "news" show in the country was filling air time with stories about New Year's resolutions, horoscopes and predictions, and hangover remedies, the Iraqi government was marking a major milestone in its return to independence.

     Still, it is encouraging to see.  Despite our economic struggles at home, 2008 was a year of great gains in Iraq.  Violence has dropped off dramatically, from an average of about 180 attacks per day a year ago to approximately 10 per day now.  American military deaths have decreased by almost 60%, and a similar decrease also applies to the Iraqis.  The murder rate in Iraq is about 1 per 100,00 citizens (the FBI reported that the 2007 murder rate in the U.S. was 5.6 per 100,000).

     So while America stumbles, pessimistic and  bleary-eyed out of 2008 and into 2009, there is good news to be found.  You just have to look for it.

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My Resolution

     Now, I'm not much for the whole New Year's resolution thing, but I heard something yesterday that piqued my interest in the concept.  It seems that there is research out there that says that somewhere between 80%-90% of New Year's resolutions are broken by the end of January.  While it might be easy to see that as a negative and get discouraged, I am a glass half-full kind of guy.

     So for the sake of finding the positive in things, I have developed a strategy to make near-certain failure work for me.  Therefore, I resolve to not sleep with Jennifer Aniston in 2009!  We'll see if that doesn't tilt the odds in my favor...  Anybody know if she reads this?

     Happy New Year!
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The Gift

     As I sit here enjoying a sip of a particularly nice single malt whisky, I am watching the clock tick ever closer to the stroke of midnight and the dawning of Christmas Day.  I'm listening to Pavarotti sing "O Holy Night," and reflecting on the season and its meaning.  I just left my sister's house, where she is raising my two nieces without the help of their father, who walked away from them five years ago.

     They are wonderful girls, who in their short lives have already taught me more about love than I learned in all the thirty-plus years I lived before they arrived in my life.  The most important thing I learned about love is that it is real.  You cannot touch it or taste it or see it with your eyes; none of our earthly senses can detect it.  It is not a thing of science.  There are no tests that can prove its existence, and there are no formulas or computer programs that can replicate it.  But it is real.

     No matter how much we can deduce with our brains and measure with the technology we create, we can only know that we love and are loved through our souls.  Souls that are God's creation make it possible for us to experience and share His greatest gift...love.  So when asked how I can know there is a God, I respond, "because I love."  He demonstrated this greatest gift two-thousand and eight years ago when He sent His Son to save us.

     I will go back to my sister's house in the morning.  We will all exchange gifts...we'll throw wrapping paper everywhere.  There will be Christmas stockings dumped in the floor, one bewildered cat, games and toys, new slippers, books and music.  And there will be love...the greatest gift of all.

     Thank you to those who read my words on these pages, and for your compliments and comments.  I wish you all the Merriest of Christmases, I wish you peace, and most of all I wish you love.

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So Much For Hope

     "It's going to get worse before it gets better," proclaimed the President-elect on Meet The Press today.  Seeming to channel Jimmy Carter, I have yet to hear much from Barack Obama that sounds like hope.  I don't hear the messiah-like inspirational oratory that came so easy when he was looking for votes.  He sounds much more like a man who has come to the realization that there is very much in this country that may well be outside his...or any one individual's...ability to fix.  Audacity only gets you so far.  But one thing is for sure...change we will get, one way or the other.
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Thankful

     In spite of the difficult times we face today, most of us will sit with family today to celebrate the good fortune in our lives.  I for one, will give thanks for the sacrifice of our military.  Many of them will be thousands of miles from their families, and if their mission allows it, they will have a holiday meal in a dusty mess hall.  They will be wearing combat boots and body armor, and have a rifle slung over their shoulder.  Meanwhile, on the other side of the globe, their families will gather around a Thanksgiving table with one empty chair.  Because of them, and all those who went before them, we can enjoy this holiday with our families in peace.  For that I thank them, and I thank God for such heroes, who daily place themselves between us and those who would do us harm.

     Happy Thanksgiving.
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We Few

     Less than 1% of the total population of the U.S. served in the military.  Think about it this Veteran's Day.  I salute my fellow vets, and extend my most sincere thanks to those who continue to serve today.

"We few, we happy few, we band of brothers.  For he who sheds his blood with me to-day shall be my brother.."

-- from Henry V, by William Shakespeare
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