"Red Sox Fans; Sometimes S*it Happens"

                                                         
Okay, I know alot of Red Sox fans are morose.  When all the trades and signings were over with last spring the Sox looked like a "sure thing".  But, as in everything in life, fate has a way of turning "sure things" into something entirely different.

This Sox fan out  here in Arizona is reading all kinds of fans mutterings, to include the idea of showing Francona the door.  I disagree.  If one is forced to lay fault at anyone's door I would blame your general manager for some questionable deals.  First and foremost was the signing of Carl Crawford for a king's ransom.  Even before the season started I was dumbfounded that the Sox would offer a thirty year old outfielder with legs beaten down from years of desperation and artificial grass a $130 million dollar contract.  That was followed up by the move to bring in Beddard, who has not exactly been lights out for the last few years. 

The Sox have seemed to always have deep enough pockets to afford mistakes such as the Lackey signing and, God forbid, J.D. Drew, who has never displayed the fire and grit of a gamer, when he does play, between bid pockets of Injured Reserve periods, he is mediocre at best. 

Those fans who say Francona should be fired ought to consider what he did with the Sox last year, despite all the injuries.  I thought he should have been Manager of The Year for making the best of what he had to put on the field. 

I also don't think there's a damn thing wrong with clubhouse leadership.  I just read a comment that more of the players need to have Pedroia's spunk.  I disagree there too; I think David Ortiz loves the Red Sox deeply and he had a heck of a comeback year.  Being an old Padre fan too, I also know Adrian Gonzales is a quiet leader, who leads not by rah-rah, but with the willingness to get out there and play every day and help any of his teammates with anything.  Nobody wanted that save more than your great reliever last night.  You could see it in his eyes.  Other than Crawford, who seems to look like a deer in the headlights, your team had their thing together.  The Sox played with great enthusiasm and fire and I'm proud of a team just loaded with alot of guys with heart. 

So, Sox fans, just face it:  Sometimes "Shit Just Happens".  Look at those improbable Tampa Rays comebacks.  Look at how every decision Madden made seemed to click.  It seemed that, in September, the ball just didn't bounce the Sox way.  Get over it.  Be proud of your team... they're going to win some more championships..and for god's sake, sign a couple of pitchers over the winter!

Sox Nation!

"Home, Sweet Home"

                                                
I am sixty-three years old now and I still miss my childhood home.  I'm told that, as we get older, we begin to regain the clarity of our childhood.  As we retire from the daily rigors of job and raising family I guess we have more time for reflection.  And so I find myself thinking more and more about my childhood home and how difficult it was to leave it. 

My "childhood home" is a bit of a generic one.  We followed the low rent districts; whenever my mom came across a house with a lower rent we tended to pack up and move.  If a lower rent meant an extra five pound bag of flour...or a few more pounds of meat per month, we packed up and moved.  No, "home" to me was not the physical layout of a house, but rather what constituted the tight circle of love and familial security that my mom established for us where ever we lived.

Oh, we never really had economic security.  We were always one paycheck away from being homeless.  Perhaps the most dire, and the most tenuous was the few months we resided in a one-room dirt floor shed.  We bathed in a wash tub and guarded the secret of our residency; the shed was so bad that we feared the county health department would show up and evict us...and perhaps place us children in foster homes.  I know for a fact that my mom feared this possibility above all.  I once wrote a story called "Mrs. Norman and the Water Biscuits" that related of a time when a miraculous event indeed saved us from that very fate.

"Home": I don't believe I've heard too many words more dear to the heart.  The word incorporates all of the warm memories of family love, of shared experiences, both good and bad, of that first place that is the center of your world.  Home is that place that provides shelter and unconditional love for you while you are preparing to venture out into an uncertain world.  Once you do take those first tentative steps to the world outside it is that lovely ache in your heart as you take that last long look over your shoulder toward "home"

I first left home when I went into the Air Force.  I can still remember the initial stages of leaving; an excitement about new adventures, followed by anxiety and uncertainty as I took those first independent meanderings into my new world.  In my new environs I was fortunate that that my mom provided sufficient guidance to stand on my own.  I would never have guessed that on that September night in 1967 I was leaving my home and would spend the next twenty-two years serving in varied locales as much as ten thousand miles from that small town I left so many years ago.

On many occasions during my career I said goodbye to the home I made with my wife.  On at least three occasions I hugged and kissed my babies at Christmas time, knowing many seasons would turn before I saw them again. 

How does one survive that?  You learn to live with memories.  You take long walks through the back of your mind to so clearly imagine "home" that you can mentally walk through every room in that house back home.  You can imagine your wife sleeping in the bed too large for one.   If you try hard enough you can call back the last touch, the last hug and kiss from a child.  You can "re-wind" that old memory tape and play back a game of Daddy Horsey or Red Light Green Light, or just watching an old Disney film together.  You can remember, and laugh, when you recall the kid's reaction to your superficial enthusiasm for a "Nova" documentary instead of "The Muppet Movie".

I'm home for good now, but it is not the home of my childhood...or the homes I made for my wife and babies.  The children have homes of their own which I pray will be as warm and as reaffirming as mine were.

I sometimes wonder, in the era of I-Phones and GPS and Mobile gaming and social networking, if home is as sacred to the younger generation.  When those today, who carry around in their hand, more technology than the Lunar Lander had, do they feel the need for love, shelter from the world and feel the sacred nature of "home".

I wonder.

Veterans Treatment; Politics vs Reality

                                                                   
Don't you just love that Michelle Obama and the Vice President's wife have taken to championing the military?  Doesn't it just look lovely when they attend a luncheon and patiently listen to the problems of the military, both active duty and veterans and their wives?  You get such a warm fuzzy, don't you?  I don't.

The majority of politicians, to include politicians wives use the military to advance their political aspirations.  And, I'm sorry to say, most of the American people forget about veterans once their "usefulness" is over.

First of all, this generation of active duty military has probably been abused more than any other.  When I served the U.S. government had a policy that specified once you had completed a year in combat you would not be returned to a combat area until all others had taken their turn.  In today's military it is not unusual to see our military compelled to serve four or five tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Two factors account for this.  During my years of service a military draft still existed.  The military, as such was more of a "citizen army" whereby Americans served their "fair" amount of time and would have bitched to high heaven had they been forced into multiple combat tours.  The second factor is that our military has been so decimated that we now have about a third of the force we had during Vietnam.  Because of our relatively small force our military is now forced into multiple combat tours. 

I do not buy the argument that some make; that this is a volunteer force and our military is making the choice to do this.  Not true.  One need only take a look around to see that our economy is so bad that many stay in the military as the only means to support their family.

Once our military troops are finished with their multiple tours and finally decide to separate from the military they can expect to be forgotten, as tens of thousands of Vietnam vets have been.

In 1996 President Clinton decided that VA Health Care for veterans was just becoming too expensive.  Accordingly, he set up procedures to means test VA Health care.  Any veteran making more than $24 thousand a year can expect to be turned away unless they have a combat related injury.  And the VA often fights the vet tooth and nail to deny that an injury is combat related.  Ask any vet who suffers from Agent Orange from Vietnam and had to fight for 20 years to win a court decision to force the VA to treat it.

How many civilians know that, unless the retired Vet surrenders a huge chunk of his retirement pay, when the veteran dies, the spouse gets nothing from the military; this despite the military spouse serving as fully, and with as much dedication as the active duty member.  She or He raises children without a father, serves as tutor and chauffeur, and sounding board for her children.  Yet she or he hangs by a tenuous thread in retirement and hopes she or he can die before the retired spouse.

Finally, it's a good thing I'm not at one of those Michelle Obama/Jill Biden military family photo-ops.  The first question I would ask is why haven't military pensioners received a pay raise for three years.  I would also ask why the U.S. government violated their enlistment contract with the military with respect to Military Tri-Care.

Frankly, I am disgusted when I see the President, the Vice President and Congressmen use the military to boost their political careers.  I believe they should be honest and just say "look guys, you're just cannon fodder and this is how the game is played".

"Obama Is Paying Pakistan To Kill U.S. Troops"

                                                    
Today, retiring Chief of Staff Admiral Mullen and outgoing CIA Director Leon Pannetta gave testimony before Congress that U.S. Intelligence discovered Pakistan aided,abetted, and participated in the terrorists' bombings at Kabul and at the American Embassy this month.  American and Nato casualties were devastating, yet Obama has said not one word publicly about this.  Apparently Obama did wag a finger at Pakistan's Intelligence Chief and said he better not do that again.

Folks, this is not the first time our Intelligence officials have reported on Pakistan's active role in killing U.S troops., providing sanctuary for Osama Bin Laden and working actively against American military efforts in the Middle East.

Query One:  Has America lost its backbone?  We have gone to war for far less than this! 

Query Two:  Has Obama become so enamored with Muslims that he refuses to uphold the honor and integrity of America?

Query Three:  After all of this information has come out in the last year, why are we still providing over $30 billion dollars in military and economic assistance to Pakistan?  Why are we forgiving $1.5 billion in Pakistani debt?

Query Four:  Why did Obama back down from Pakistan when they refused to allow American troops from cleaning out pockets of terrorists just over the border from Afghanistan?

Anyone who has read my earlier blogs know that I'm strenuously opposed to any ground wars in the Middle East.  That includes our involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan.  However, I am baffled about why we are providing billions of dollars in assistance to Pakistan when every move they have made has been against us and has contributed mightily to harm against our troops!

We should halt all military and economic aid to Pakistan effective today!  It should have been done as soon as we learned that Pakistan was protecting Bin Laden!  If future military action is required, for God's sake, let's not do another invasion.  We can do strategic bombing and strafing and inflict damage from the air if need be.

God Bless America and God Help America!...to develop a backbone!

Liberal Gannett's AZ Republic pimps for illegals

                   Immigration Cell; I know a few homeless Americans who would appreciate a clean bed

Well, the never-ending Arizona Republic campaign for Open Borders/Amnesty continues.  A host of news stories came out this week and, while blacks and whites were included in their crime stories, names and ethnicity continue to be withheld from their crime reports most often when hispanics are involved.

However, perhaps the most prominent in this liberal Gannett paper this week is the Arizona Republic's report that the Border Patrol are abusing illegals.  Those caught crossing the border and in custody pending an immigration hearing are complaining that the BP is making them walk barefoot in the desert (I didn't know we were required to provide them shoes upon capture!), that their food while in custody does not meet their standards and that their medical care is not up to snuff. 

The illegals further complain that the Border Patrol agents are not nice to them nor are the jail guards who watch over them.  The illegals claim that they are not receiving professional and courteous treatment and are asking for a full investigation. 

I guess I just have to ask, though I know the answer in advance:  what kind of treatment would an American receive in a Mexican jail?  I find it hard to comprehend how these illegal border crossers developed such a high standard of incarceration.

Perhaps these illegal criminals would feel better if they were shown a film of what Mexican Immigration efforts do to those Guatemalans and Central Americans who cross Mexico's southern border. 

I guess the height of hypocrisy is that these illegal border crosses are repeat offenders; Obama and his Attorney General has already issued a "catch and release"  for those illegals who's names do not appear in Immigration records as repeat offenders.

So, these repeat offenders are complaining of poor medical treatment and poor quality chow.  Perhaps these complaints will cause Obama to come down to the border to investigate the complaints of his future "voter constituency".  That seems to be the only way we can get The Anointed One to visit our border.

Post Script:  Here's the daily sample of how Arizona Republic censors the news.  Note the Republic won't report that a massive shoplifting ring that ripped off millions were all hispanics.  The Republic wouldn't even print their names.  The second link is our local TV station's news report that reports that these criminals were indeed all hispanic.  The Arizona Republic is despicable in censoring news and hiding behind the constitution:

http://www.azcentral.com/community/northvalley/articles/2011/09/22/20110922phoenix-police-work-credited-busting-shoplifting-ring.html

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/crime/police-bust-valley-shoplifting-ring-09142011

"Potpourri"

                                                    
If I were to concentrate on one subject when writing my blog I suspect I could gather a larger readership.  My page view stats indicate I get many more readers when I write about illegal immigration.  The second most popular are those blogs that discuss conservative ideas such as those supported by Tea Party Patriots.  Once in awhile I will score big with a humorous blog entry. 

Instead of concentrating on one subject I prefer to write about what moves me and inspires me at the moment.  I'm extremely dedicated to promoting citizen awareness of national issues but sometimes I have to get away from the frustration that politics entails.  Sometimes I am so endeared by a gesture of a family member I have to write about it.  Sometimes I chronicle my admiration for a public figure.  And sometimes I just feel like writing what's in my heart at the moment.

So, my blog is a potpourri of that which is me.  I'm sure that not all of my blogs are of interest to everyone but if it touches just one reader for that day I find it's worth it.  

I also think often in the abstract so that sometimes trivial things I observe often lead me to thinking of larger concerns.  My blog entitled "God and Trees and Me" was really just inspired one morning as I took my morning coffee out on the patio and marvelled at the disparity of my backyard trees.  It led surprisingly to the larger question of our life destinies. 

Often I am visited by the warm memories of loved ones who have passed.  When I am blessed by the closeness of those visits I write of those experiences as well and can see and feel that loved one, come back to me for joyous reunion.  The very timber of voice sings in my soul and I simply have to share it with you.

So, I guess I'll fore go the big "page view day" in favor of a potpourri blog that reflects what's in my heart at the moment.  Like Potpourri itself,  it fills my life with color and the sweet scents of once vital blossoms that continue to give pleasure long after their life is over.  If we could all leave such sweet remembrance long after we are gone, is that not something to aspire to?

"A Tale of Two Countries"

                                                  

While serving with the Air Force I was assigned to a base in Korea in 1976.  Having served in Vietnam on three tours I was somewhat familiar with the Asian region.  I have also always taken the opportunity when stationed in an area to seek out the locals and learn something of their culture.  I was very impressed with the hard-working Koreans.  Though poor, the Koreans exuded a "can-do" spirit and were very dedicated toward upward mobility and making things better for their children.

Korea in 1976 was still pulling herself out of extreme poverty.  The typical household still heated their homes with a charcoal burning furnace and the typical Korean kitchen was a little one-foot sized butane stove and a small mini-fridge, typically in the same room that served as living room and bedroom.  Almost all cars on the road were Hyundai taxi's; very few Koreans owned private automobiles.  Public transportation was the primary means of getting around.  Per capita income was $3,000 per year.

In 1982 I returned for another one year assignment in Korea.  Upon my return I was amazed at the rapid progress this little Asian country had achieved in six short years.  In the late 70's the government restructured their regulations to spur business activity.  The results were astonishing.  This time I witnessed middle class Koreans for the first time.  They were driving their own automobiles, their homes were modern, replete with modern new kitchen appliances and everyone was extremely busy climbing the economic ladder!  Per capita income had more than doubled to $7,000 per year, there was no inflation and industrial producton was beginning to spur export traffic.  In 2010, Korea per capita income is $28,000 dollars per year and Korean products such as Kia and Hyundai and Samsung are known for quality throughout the world.

Korea's tremendous economic success is attributable to two factors; an impressive work ethic and a business environment nourished by government that believes in the free markets!

Contrast Korea's success with that of the United States during the past two decades.  As the Koreans scoff at lazy laggards and champion the rewards of hard work, the U.S. has developed a "victim class" mentality that is sucking the very life from our economy.  The U.S. government has become so intrusive in our lives and our political philosophy has turned so liberal that John and Bobby Kennedy, the liberal icons of their time, are spinning in their graves at liberalism run amok.  Both would be considered Tea Partiers today.

Our massive debt, our severe unemployment problems and our depression-era economy is now forcing us to take a good long look at where we've been and where we're going.  We are now at a crossroads and must choose the path we will travel in the future.  Will America stop whining and pull ourselves up by our bootstraps and get going?  Or will we follow the European socialist model and stifle all sources of innovation?

It is clear that Obama and the liberal Democrats are hell bent on a socialist model.  Many will follow them as long as that government check keeps coming.  Some Tea Party folks, some truly conservative and Independent Americans have seen the direction we're headed and don't like it.  I believe we'll know by November, 2012 the choice America will make.

The Dems & Soaring Poverty Rates

                                               

It's ironic that liberal Democrats always attack the economic concept of "trickle down economics".  They attack the Republicans and Big Business, saying that when Republicans get the economy up the rich are the only ones who enjoy the prosperity.  Never mind that every historical economical statistic proves that a rising economy benefits all income groups. 

Isn't it also ironic that, with few exceptions, every time the Democrats get control of Congress the poverty rate soars.  So, it was no surprise when yesterday the government report soaring poverty rates in America.  The Democrats have been in charge of Congress since 2005 and their attack on American business has been unrelenting. 

Earth to Liberals:  It is business that creates jobs.  Attack and scare business and they'll naturally fold to the fetal position, stop investing and stop hiring and the economy collapses.  Result:  Rising poverty rates.

Of course, of equal concern is the massive invasion of 30 million illegals from a third world country are going to contribute to increased poverty rates.  It is well known that Mexican government policy has been to encourage illegal immigration to the U.S. of both their most poverty stricken citizens.  If America does not stop this invasion it will not be long before we too are a third world country.  It is also important to note that poverty rates will be artificially skewed since millions of illegals get paid in cash, thus can be artificially classified as having poverty level income, though they are driving a late model SUV, live in middle class homes and own their fair share of IPODS, large screen televisions and Sony gaming systems.

No one should be surprised at yesterday's reports on soaring poverty rates.  Nor should one be surprised that the Main Stream Media has failed to report on the real causes for these poverty rates.

The next time you hear the Dems hacking on "big business" and formulating government strangulation of open market business practices, don't be surprised if the "poverty rates" are rising to historical highs.

Tired of Pols Jerking Around Our Troops

                                            

I noted that, during the Monday night Republican debate, we are beginning to see conservative candidates coming around to the idea that we need to bring our troops home from Iraq and Afghanistan.  I am heartened by this movement.  I've been writing against America's attempt to nation build in the Muslim world since the first day of the Iraqi invasion. 

My perspective of our Middle East adventures comes from several sources.  Having served 22 years in the military, to include three tours in Vietnam, I am well aware that the military always pays the price for foreign policy mistakes.  65,000 of us died over there and several hundred thousand returned without legs, arms, or plagued with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.  Most of us were rewarded for that effort by being spit on in the face by our fellow citizens, and, in 1996, having our VA hospital care jerked out from under us through Clinton's "means testing" VA.  Anyone who makes over $24,000 per year are not eligible for VA care now.

I also developed great skepticism for any efforts to democratize a Muslim society and have often wondered how either Bush or Obama could conclude that it is even feasible. 

Of course, the will to export democracy or any concern for our military has always taken a back seat to the "dollar factor".  Thankfully, more and more pols are coming around to the realization that, with a $15 trillion dollar deficit and thirty percent of our citizens hurting, perhaps we can no longer afford the two trillion dollars we have spent on war making and economic assistance to two corrupt Muslim regimes who hate us.

So, let's withdraw our troops from the Middle East, use the budget savings to re-build our nation and deploy about 20,000 of those troops on our southern border.  Let's upgrade our port and airport security and concentrate our defense where we are most vulnerable.  Let's also spend a little of those war savings to take care of our troops who have endured four or five combat tours in a single military term of enlistment.

I'm convinced that the greatest support for Middle East war comes from those who do not understand the horrors of war, nor the despicable manner our military veterans are treated when they have fought as they were asked to do.

The bottom line is I'm tired of having our military, both active duty and retired, jerked around by politicians looking to satisfy a particular constituent group.  If the pols were going to war themselves there would be a hell of a lot fewer wars.

The IRS Mugs You Every April 15th!

                                                       
Imagine this scenario:  Your are walking down a city street and are suddenly accosted by a street thug who rips your wallet from you and takes all of your hard earned money.  You see a policeman nearby and hail him down for help.  Upon arriving at the scene you explain that this worthless thug just stole your money.  The Policeman sides with the robber and tells you to "move on".    You move on, since the police are the voice of authority....but you vow you'll take this matter to court.  You take your case to court and the judge sides with the thief and dismisses your case as "frivolous". 

Does this scenario sound realistic to you?  Why not?  It happens every April 15th!  The IRS, with the full backing of the U.S. government and the U.S. court system, takes your hard earned money, then gives it to their favored constituents!  In giving away your money the government rarely questions whether your taxes are going to those who, perhaps, don't deserve it.  Just yesterday, had you paid any attention to the news, you would have learned that your IRS gave $4.2 billion last year to illegal aliens through the granting of child tax credits.  An illegal family with four children gets over $4,000 dollars of your hard earned money, simply because the government is too lazy to stop it...besides, it's not their money so they don't care how it's managed.

Yesterday was a big news day!  It was also reported that $192 million of your tax money went to a single foreign cabal that gamed the medicaid system by that amount through fraudulent claims.  Since it's not the government's money, they didn't check very carefully before they paid out your tax money to the Russian mafia. 

Also, yesterday, news agencies reported that the FBI was investigating a California solar company, Solyendra, that received $535 million dollars from President Obama to promote his "green energy" program in 2009, then declared bankruptcy.  The company has no explanation as to where your tax money went and you're not going to get any  of your tax money back.  But the feds won't try too hard...after all it's not "their money".

But, let's look at the real killer.  Let's look at the three generations of Great Society "victims" that have been on the welfare, medicaid, food stamp and Section 8 housing dole for three generations!  The costs are staggering as each "victim" chooses to breed five or six children before they are 20...and reap the full rewards of your tax charity for their irresponsible actions.  It's not coming out of Obama's pocket, or Pelosi's pocket...it is coming out of your pocket! 

And guess what?  Until you wake up and start electing leaders who'll keep a closer watch on "your money" you're going to continue getting mugged!

"Will Arizona Be Ruled By California Transplants?"

Good morning America,

Last night while surfing the net I came across some information about Arizona demographics.  The article cited that, in addition to explosive invasion of illegal residents during the past decade, Arizona was picking up residents, and businesses who were and are fleeing the state of California.   Citing  California's  exploding tax costs, the rapid increase in crime rates and the ever-rising cost of doing business, folks and firms are voting with their feet it seems.

This information was not surprising.  I moved to Arizona from San Diego for the same reasons.  My once quiet and stately neighborhood had, within a two-year span, been overrun by new residents who loved to blare their mariachi music well after midnight and house two or three families in a single home.  Multiple "low-rider" cars parked on the front lawn became the norm and crime and graffiti marred what was once a beautiful neighborhood.

Further compounding the pain of living there was the soaring taxpayer costs associated with the need to build and expand our public schools to accommodate the Supreme Court's mandate to feed and educate all children, legal or not.

So, I now reside in Arizona where the folks are still fighting for the sovereignty of our borders and where we believe the less government interference in our lives and in our businesses the better.

However, we are now seeing a troubling trend.  One can detect in our "Letters To The Editor" and in local political action groups an increasingly active and growing liberal faction who are advocating for Arizona to become more open and accepting of more generous social programs, more tolerant of state budget over-runs and more agreeable to higher property, sales and income taxes to support these social programs.

Thankfully, the Obama/Reid/Pelosi regime has clearly demonstrated the disastrous effects of socialism and the electorate overwhelmingly elected clear conservative majorities to our statehouse.  However, when one tunes in to the local legislative coverage, we see long drawn out legislative sessions where one can hear the whines of the small pocket of liberal democrats.  We have one particularly vocal state senator, trained in liberal law principles at Berkley and has dedicated her political career to transforming Arizona into the California legislative model.

Arizona is safely in the hands of conservatives for the moment.  However, I fear, as more Californians flee that state for Arizona, that we will see them bring their liberal and free-spending political views, and their ready acceptance of an illegal invasion, with them.  Should that happen we can assuredly say goodbye to a state lifestyle that values independent spirit and personal freedoms.

Sad.

"Illegal Aliens & The 'Stolen Car' Economic Index"

Yesterday CBS news released national crime statistics for the top 20 cities for stolen cars.  With only a couple of exceptions the cities that had the highest stolen car rates were those who have literally been overrun with illegal aliens.  Of course, California cities, who hang out "illegals welcome" signs,  dominated the list of plagued cities.  These same cities were noted in an earlier Forbes report which cited "America's most crime-toxic, overtaxed and dying cities. 

http://autos.yahoo.com/news/auto-theft--worst-cities-for-stolen-cars.html

My question is this:  how can the Open Borders/Pro-Illegal Alien folks explain away these statistics and continue to support granting still another amnesty for illegal aliens?  How can Hispanic citizens continue to cry out for Amnesty knowing these criminals continue to erode every quality of life standard measurable in the communities where they live?

For those who continue to tolerate the invasion, those who do nothing to stop it:  are you so afraid of being labeled a racist that you're willing to tolerate runaway robbery, burglary, rape and murder just to avoid being tagged as racist for opposing the invasion?  Are you not weary with paying sky-high home and auto insurance premiums because of the high crime rates in your area?  Are you not sick and tired of paying higher property taxes so the government can build more schools for illegal aliens?  Aren't you tired of seeing your own child crammed into 40 student classes because half of your school populatons are illegal aliens?  Aren't you tired of waiting in an Emergency Room for hours because illegals use the ER for routine medical care?  

Aren't you tired of picking up your morning newspaper and reading of an illegal alien committing "hit and run" after running over your neighbors?...even your children?  Aren't you tired of having your food banks emptied out by illegal aliens ransacking the place and robbing food donations that could have gone to your neighbors?  Aren't you tired of seeing your federal and state taxes going to pay welfare, WIC and Section 8 housing for illegal anchor babies?

One of the plagues noted in the Forbes report was the re-emergence of polio, whooping cough and other diseases, brought anew to America, when those diseases were pretty well wiped out thirty years ago...and are now threatening the very lives of your kids?

Aren't you tired of seeing old chairs, sofas and 5 quart plastic bottles of oil dumped on roadsides throughout your city?  Hey, that's what they do in Mexico, so they do it here!

Finally, aren't you tired of these same invaders marching throughout your state demanding to be made citizens? 

I recognize it is too late for California; they lost this war long ago when they allowed the massive invasion....but, for you folks just beginning to see the effects of the invasion, will you continue to sit back and allow your community to evolve into  "third world" status?

Sigh...

"Obama; The Teleprompter & The Circus Bear"

                                                   
I'm writing this blog six hours before President Obama delivers his "jobs" speech.  I can do this because we all know what Obama will propose; the same old big government intervention to attempt to spur job growth.  He will advocate for more money to the states to keep union workers and state and federal bureaucrats employed.  He will trot out "job training" for a class of people all too comfortable with receiving a welfare check and who abhor the idea that they need to work to earn a living.  He will offer a token nod toward encouraging business investment, all the while he and his administration has put such a regulatory load on business that they refuse to hire in a high tax, high regulatory environment. 

One of the most remarkable vulgarities of Obama's speech is that he insists he must deliver it to a joint session of Congress.  While most Presidents are satisfied with trotting down to Capitol Hill once per year, during the traditional State of The Union address, Obama knows the American people have heard Obama's "speech of the day" for three years and are toned deaf to his pleadings.  Thus, Obama must create a larger "stage" for his political utterings.   If Obama was truly a "leader", and serious about improving the economy he would be meeting with leaders in Congress to hammer out solutions to our economic ills.  Instead, Obama has chosen to kick off his 2012 Presidential campaign by insisting on an effort to look "Presidential" by making still another speech that offers the same old tired liberal proposals. 

So, like a Circus Bear, Obama will don the Presidential Tie, see that his teleprompter is in place, and stand before Congress so that the American people might see him on the grand stage.

As has been said on innumerable occasions on the campaign trail, you can put lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig.  This speech will be no more consequential than the other 800 speeches delivered by this "community organizer" who hasn't a clue how to lead. 

As has also been said many times, Obama simply doesn't "get it".  He simply doesn't understand that employers will never hire more employees as long as they have the burdensome health care costs that Obamacare places on their operation.  Obama does not understand that, as long as business has the bureaucratic strangulation that his EPA and his Banking Czars have placed on them, they will wait him out and cheer when his exit inevitably occurs in November, 2012.  Just this week Obama's justice department has opted to sue all of the banks for mortgage fraud, even after the banks have paid back all federal loans, with interest!  It should be noted that the fed's Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are bleeding tens of billions of taxpayer's money every year but nothing is done because it was the Dems who oversaw the mess. And the banks have raised the ramparts in an effort to survive the onslaught of liberal bureaucrats and have cut off business loans in order to insure their "cash reserves" are adequate to defend themselves against Washington bureaucrats!  Surprise! Surprise!  The result is an economy stuck in neutral! The latest numbers show American corporations are sitting on $2.2 trillion dollars in cash but choose not to hire while they await the realities of Obamacare and what further harm the Obama/Pelosi/Reid regime has in store for American business!

Some of you more tolerant types might believe that Obama is simply stupid; that he means well but is simply incapable of understanding the basics of the American economy.  I'm not that gullible.  Obama has had numerous opportunities to learn "on the job".  He has opted to listen only to his liberal minions.  Republicans, moderate Democrats and American business executives have all tried to convince Obama that he was on the wrong track.  Obama has chosen to follow the path of socialism, no matter the costs and no matter the suffering of the the 30 million Americans who are unemployed or underemployed.

So again, six hours from now, the dancing circus bear that is our President, will again make the "grand speech on the grand stage" and hope beyond hope that he can once again sell the Obama brand of Hope and Change.  This time around the American people are not listening.  Abraham Lincoln said "you can fool all of the people some of the time, some of the people all the time, but you can't fool all of the people all of the time".  Another sage wrote: "fool me once, shame on you", "fool me twice, shame on me".  The American people have awakened to the realization that pretty words..and teleprompters, regardless of where they are spoken, will not create a single job.

The "Dancing Bear" has yet to realize that.

Post Script:  Well, I just listened to Obama's "campaign speech"; no surprises,  Spend now, maybe pay for it later, keep union thugs and government bureaucrats employed, re-model schools so the little rats can destroy them again within a year...blah, blah, blah.

"The One Democrat I Would Have Voted For"

                                                    
On a cold January morning in 1961 a rather handsome young man stood at the inaugural podium to deliver his unique message to America.  As he approached the podium to speak Walter Cronkite noted that it was 22 degrees, with a windchill of 8 degrees.  Despite the weather,  young John Fitzgerald Kennedy wore no topcoat. The morning sun cast a golden glow on his auburn locks and the nation looked on, at the youngest President to take office since Teddy Roosevelt.

A nation looked on in wonder, and with great anticipation.  So accustomed were we to the iron gray and aged leaders who led us in grandfatherly manner, their visage somewhat stoic, their manner formal and a bit remote, born and bred in the previous century, we were captivated by this handsome young New Englander and his beautiful wife. 

The young man began to speak.  He spoke of vast accomplishments of the previous generation, of the challenges we faced, of our need of vigilance to preserve our freedom and of his dreams and hopes for America's future.  Kennedy spoke for only thirteen minutes, but in one of the briefest inaugural speeches in our nation's history, but he lifted the spirits and defined the future for a baby boomer generation just approaching their teen years.   Kennedy's words gave reassurance to his own generation, those Kennedy termed as "tempered by war", those now known as The Greatest Generation. 

From the end of that speech, until his tragic death, America felt more youthful and more hopeful that we could right the wrongs which existed in our society and would go on to insure security and prosperity for our country.  He was not perfect, neither in his personal life nor in his professional one.  It would take a Martin Luther King's eloquent words as well as his quiet and peaceful civil disobedience before civil rights would be achieved.  Yet, it was Kennedy who sent in the National Guard to see the  little black girl safely to school.  It was Kennedy who sent federal troops to neutralize the southern "head-knockers".  He met the moral challenge of his age.

It was also Kennedy who, having earned our trust, shepherded our nation through the longest weekend of our lives, when Russia dared to establish nuclear missiles 90 miles from American shores.  It was JFK,  a patient but tough negotiator who forced down Kruschev as we stood only minutes away from nuclear war. 

It was John Kennedy who inspired thousands to volunteer for the Peace Corp, who travelled to the farthest reaches of the world to teach, to feed, to medicate, to inspire all of those less fortunate than we Americans.  It was JFK who encouraged the engineering and scientific degrees that would take us to the moon.  It was a young President that made us all feel more youthful and more hopeful.

Then one cold November day we heard the announcement over the school lunch room speakers.  Our young President has been assassinated.  We were sent home to watch the ghostly images on TV as we watched our young President returned to the capitol and to his place in Arlington.  Millions of dreams died on that day.

If one actually bothers to study history, one would find that John F. Kennedy, by today's standards, would be considered a tea-party zealout, so liberal has this country become.

For those who still dream, read what this young man said on a cold day in January; read why we embraced the same hopes and dreams espoused by a young man who changed our lives forever:

Vice President Johnson, Mr. Speaker, Mr. Chief Justice, President Eisenhower, Vice President Nixon, President Truman, reverend clergy, fellow citizens, we observe today not a victory of party, but a celebration of freedom—symbolizing an end, as well as a beginning—signifying renewal, as well as change. For I have sworn before you and Almighty God the same solemn oath our forebears prescribed nearly a century and three quarters ago.
The world is very different now. For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life. And yet the same revolutionary beliefs for which our forebears fought are still at issue around the globe—the belief that the rights of man come not from the generosity of the state, but from the hand of God.
We dare not forget today that we are the heirs of that first revolution. Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans—born in this century, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage—and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human rights to which this Nation has always been committed, and to which we are committed today at home and around the world.

Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, in order to assure the survival and the success of liberty.
This much we pledge—and more.

To those old allies whose cultural and spiritual origins we share, we pledge the loyalty of faithful friends. United, there is little we cannot do in a host of cooperative ventures. Divided, there is little we can do—for we dare not meet a powerful challenge at odds and split asunder.
To those new States whom we welcome to the ranks of the free, we pledge our word that one form of colonial control shall not have passed away merely to be replaced by a far more iron tyranny. We shall not always expect to find them supporting our view. But we shall always hope to find them strongly supporting their own freedom—and to remember that, in the past, those who foolishly sought power by riding the back of the tiger ended up inside.

To those peoples in the huts and villages across the globe struggling to break the bonds of mass misery, we pledge our best efforts to help them help themselves, for whatever period is required—not because the Communists may be doing it, not because we seek their votes, but because it is right. If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.

To our sister republics south of our border, we offer a special pledge—to convert our good words into good deeds—in a new alliance for progress—to assist free men and free governments in casting off the chains of poverty. But this peaceful revolution of hope cannot become the prey of hostile powers. Let all our neighbors know that we shall join with them to oppose aggression or subversion anywhere in the Americas. And let every other power know that this Hemisphere intends to remain the master of its own house.
To that world assembly of sovereign states, the United Nations, our last best hope in an age where the instruments of war have far outpaced the instruments of peace, we renew our pledge of support—to prevent it from becoming merely a forum for invective—to strengthen its shield of the new and the weak—and to enlarge the area in which its writ may run.
Finally, to those nations who would make themselves our adversary, we offer not a pledge but a request: that both sides begin anew the quest for peace, before the dark powers of destruction unleashed by science engulf all humanity in planned or accidental self-destruction.
We dare not tempt them with weakness. For only when our arms are sufficient beyond doubt can we be certain beyond doubt that they will never be employed.
But neither can two great and powerful groups of nations take comfort from our present course—both sides overburdened by the cost of modern weapons, both rightly alarmed by the steady spread of the deadly atom, yet both racing to alter that uncertain balance of terror that stays the hand of mankind’s final war.

So let us begin anew—remembering on both sides that civility is not a sign of weakness, and sincerity is always subject to proof. Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate.
Let both sides explore what problems unite us instead of belaboring those problems which divide us.
Let both sides, for the first time, formulate serious and precise proposals for the inspection and control of arms—and bring the absolute power to destroy other nations under the absolute control of all nations.
Let both sides seek to invoke the wonders of science instead of its terrors. Together let us explore the stars, conquer the deserts, eradicate disease, tap the ocean depths, and encourage the arts and commerce.
Let both sides unite to heed in all corners of the earth the command of Isaiah—to “undo the heavy burdens … and to let the oppressed go free.”
And if a beachhead of cooperation may push back the jungle of suspicion, let both sides join in creating a new endeavor, not a new balance of power, but a new world of law, where the strong are just and the weak secure and the peace preserved.

All this will not be finished in the first 100 days. Nor will it be finished in the first 1,000 days, nor in the life of this Administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin.
In your hands, my fellow citizens, more than in mine, will rest the final success or failure of our course. Since this country was founded, each generation of Americans has been summoned to give testimony to its national loyalty. The graves of young Americans who answered the call to service surround the globe.

Now the trumpet summons us again—not as a call to bear arms, though arms we need; not as a call to battle, though embattled we are—but a call to bear the burden of a long twilight struggle, year in and year out, “rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation”—a struggle against the common enemies of man: tyranny, poverty, disease, and war itself.

Can we forge against these enemies a grand and global alliance, North and South, East and West, that can assure a more fruitful life for all mankind? Will you join in that historic effort?
In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shrink from this responsibility—I welcome it. I do not believe that any of us would exchange places with any other people or any other generation. The energy, the faith, the devotion which we bring to this endeavor will light our country and all who serve it—and the glow from that fire can truly light the world.

And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.
My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.

Finally, whether you are citizens of America or citizens of the world, ask of us the same high standards of strength and sacrifice which we ask of you. With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking His blessing and His help, but knowing that here on earth God’s work must truly be our own.

"The Last Time The Dems Took The Blame"

                                              
I have what I think is a fair question for all of you, be you Democrat, Republican or Independent.  Can anyone please tell me the last time a Democrat stood up and took the blame for anything they have ever done?

Now,after the Republicans got hammered in the 2008 elections they finally got the message; America was tired of wasteful and costly war and was tired of excessive government spending.  After their losses, the Republicans finally began to look at wasteful spending, committed the entire Republican block in Congress to end earmarks, publicly apologized for failing to live up to conservative principles and vowed to be more responsible.
I'm sure there has been a time, but I honestly can't remember any Democrat who stood up and fessed "I was wrong...I shouldn't have voted for this or that.  As a student of history I've been thinking on this for some time now.  I have to go back to 1961, when John Kennedy stood up at a press conference and said "I really made a mistake in supporting the Bay of Pigs Invasion".  This year marks the 50 year anniversary of that mess!  Has it really been fifty years since a Democrat stood up and took responsibility for their actions?

I'm serious!  Let's look at the developments just in the last decade:

1)  The Democrats in Congress received the same intelligence briefing on Sadaam and Weapons of Mass Destruction that Bush heard.  The same briefing!  Democrats then voted overwhelmingly for the invasion of Iraq!  Yet, four years later you would be hard pressed to find any Democrat that would admit that they supported the Iraqi Invasion! (It should be noted that I opposed it.  My ten years living and working in the Middle East convinced me that you can't democratize a Muslim society).  The Democrats, having no sense of principle or obligation, managed to shuffle off all the blame onto Bush!

2) The Financial Crisis:  Isn't it ironic that the Democrats have been able to blame Bush for the entire financial crisis of 08?  Hell, Obama reminds us every day that "Bush" handed him a mess!   What you don't hear is that from 2005, right up to the crisis, the Democrats controlled both houses of Congress!  Isn't it also ironic that two Democrats were in charge of the biggest culprit Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac?  Yes, Democratic Senator Dodd oversaw Fannie and Freddie from the Senate and Democratic Congressman Barney Frank was overseeing Fannie and Freddie from the House.  Isn't it also interesting that both Dodd and Frank received below market interest rates from the very industry they were responsible for regulating?  You are never reminded of that in the Main Stream Media!

Isn't it also interesting that all of the banks who received federal loans have all paid the government back, with interest?...yet Freddie and Fannie are draining the treasury by the tens of billions of dollars each year through loan losses, are in hock to the taxpayer for a trillion dollars, have never paid a cent of it back...yet, have never been investigated or had regulation reforms placed upon them?  Why?  Because the Dems, who were in charge of Fannie and Freddie would be made to look bad if the nasty details were ever revealed by investigation!

Yet, the Democrats continue to hammer "the banks"...and never utter a word about the fraud, waste and abuse of Freddie and Fannie.

The Democrats will still not admit that their trillion dollar stimulous program was a huge waste of taxpayer money and did nothing to end the recession.  Instead, they just say "oh well, we made it better, anyway".  Better?  Things have only gotten worse.  The last time I looked into that stimulous program it cost the government $400,000 dollars for each job created!  Total failure!  Yet, no Dem has ever admitted that failure.

Along those same lines, do you know which bill was passed in 1998 that ended the Glass Seagull regulations which prohibited large money center banks from trading in mortgage back securities? (and would have prevented the mortgage meltdown)  You guessed it!  A Democrat...none other than President Bill Clinton! 

And do you know who forced Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into issuing mortgages to non-qualified minority home buyers?  President Bill Clinton and Dodd and Frank!  When Bush called for reforms of Freddie and Fannie in 2006 the Democrats Dodd and Frank refused!

3) As we sink into the morass of massive federal debt, do you hear the Democrats calling for reform of the extremely fraudulent welfare and medicaid programs?  No!  The Democrats refused to admit that 80 percent of the deficit is attributable to the entitlement programs that keep liberals in office!

4) As we are invaded by 30 million illegal aliens and spend $330 billion per year feeding, educating and medicating them, what is the Dems response?  "Let them come", they say!  Obama has now taken the lead on this by granting shadow amnesty; refusing to arrest and deport them....all for the fear that he will alienate his Hispanic voting base!

5)  Do I even have to mention Democratic President Lyndon Johnson and his Great Society Programs?  Even the ultra liberal New York Times reported that all of the Great Society Programs have cost us more than $80 trillion dollars...and has only resulted in more slums and bred three generations of the "victim class" that has been on the government tit for 46 years.

Okay...I'm open minded.  I invite any of you Democratic readers to provide me a single instance where the Democrats have stood up and said "God, did we ever blow that one!"

"The Arizona Republic Censorship Continues"

Well, the Arizona Republic Newspaper, owned lock, stock and barrel by the ultra-liberal Gannett Corporation is at it again; censoring crime news when hispanics are involved.

Read the Arizona Republic crime report on a Hispanic father who used a handgun to prevent other adults from stopping his two sons from beating up on another teen:

http://www.azcentral.com/community/gilbert/articles/2011/08/31/20110831gilbert-father-accused-letting-sons-beat-boy-abrk.html

Note the Republic crime report won't mention the criminal by name because he's hispanic.  They assert they withheld the name because of the two youths involved in the fight.  However, the other daily paper listed the name as did all of the three major television networks, as shown in the following CBS link:

http://www.kpho.com/story/15369628/g

All the other media had no problem reporting a Hispanic wielding a hand gun against other adults who were trying to stop the beating.


This Gannett publication is one of the most dispicable in the nation as they editorialize daily in favor of legalizing the 30 million illegals who invaded our country.  For seven years now since they bought the paper they have actively witheld vital information from crime reports, only when Hispanics are involved.  They have tried mightily to cover up the fact that Hispanics committ 80 percent of our crime here.

The problem is not limited to Phoenix.  Gannett has always been ultra-liberal and they especiallly champion amnesty and open borders.  They use their ownership of hundreds of papers across the U.S. to advocate for amnesty and for the illegal invaders.  They will stop at nothing to win their arguement, to include censoring the news as well as community comment.

Gannett surrenders responsibility for objective reporting, then hides behind their "Freedom of the Press" rights whenever challenged.



Sad, Damn Sad.

"Letter to Obama from Proctor and Gamble VP"

This letter from a retired Proctor and Gamble Executive was written in Obama's first year in office. 

I don't believe I could have written a better letter than this one.  It perfectly describes my fears as well.  This was checked out by Snopes.com and was indeed sent to Obama as well as the New York Times.  Admittedly this P&G Vice President is retired; he could never have written it while with the company.  Never the less, it certainly speaks the truth:
 
AN OPEN LETTER TO PRESIDENT OBAMA
By Lou Pritchett
Dear President Obama:
You are the thirteenth President under whom I have lived and unlike any of the others, you truly scare me.
You scare me because after months of exposure, I know nothing about you.
You scare me because I do not know how you paid for your expensive Ivy League education and your upscale lifestyle and housing with no visible signs of support.
You scare me because you did not spend the formative years of youth growing up in America and culturally you are not an American.
You scare me because you have never run a company or met a payroll.
You scare me because you have never had military experience, thus don't understand it at its core.
You scare me because you lack humility and 'class', always blaming others.
You scare me because for over half your life you have aligned yourself with radical extremists who hate America and you refuse to publicly denounce these radicals who wish to see America fail.
You scare me because you are a cheerleader for the 'blame America' crowd and deliver this message abroad.
You scare me because you want to change America to a European style country where the government sector dominates instead of the private sector.
You scare me because you want to replace our health care system with a government controlled one.
You scare me because you prefer 'wind mills' to responsibly capitalizing on our own vast oil, coal and shale reserves.
You scare me because you want to kill the American capitalist goose that lays the golden egg which provides the highest standard of living in the world.
You scare me because you have begun to use 'extortion' tactics against certain banks and corporations.
You scare me because your own political party shrinks from challenging you on your wild and irresponsible spending proposals.
You scare me because you will not openly listen to or even consider opposing points of view from intelligent people.
You scare me because you falsely believe that you are both omnipotent and omniscient.
You scare me because the media gives you a free pass on everything you do.
You scare me because you demonize and want to silence the Limbaughs, Hannitys, O'Relllys and Becks who offer opposing, conservative points of view.
You scare me because you prefer controlling over governing.
Finally, you scare me because if you serve a second term I will probably not feel safe in writing a similar letter in 8 years.
Lou Pritchett


http://www.snopes.com/politics/soapbox/youscareme.asp

Since this letter was written a dozen of Obama's czars, cabinet members and staff have uttered some of the most socialistic ramblings we've ever heard from anyone in government. 

We've seen Obama continue to circumvent congress by issuing executive orders that further entangle big government into our lives.

We've seen Obama intentionally ignore our immigration laws, having ordered the Department of Homeland Security/ICE to stop deporting illegals exept felons.

A year and a half to go before we send the worst President since Carter into retirement and back to community organizing where he is more proficient.

Sad.

"Future Shock Is Already Here"

In 1969 I read "Future Shock" by Alvin Toffler.  The book left a deep impression on me as it was both exciting and scary.  Toffler's book reported on the explosive growth in technology and how that technology would be both a blessing and a curse.  He predicted that the speed in technology advances will produce a corresponding "speed-up" in the pace of our lives, and how to best deal with it. 

Now, I'm not an expert, but I don't think I've ever read a better predictor of the future than Mr. Toffler.  To think that, more than forty years ago, we would be given advance warning so that we could, if not adjust to the social turbulence, at least be able to see it in context.   I've been grateful to Mr. Toffler for helping this old curmudgeon to see what's coming, even if I'm not pleased by the events.

I've been fortunate to be a "reader".  In keeping up with events and ideas I'm able to avoid the "deer in the headlights" syndrome whereby technology innovations and "grass-fire" rapidity of events so overwhelm one that they are left to puzzle over what's happening to them.

Now, I'm just fine with media satellite development and microwave ovens; the former affords me the opportunity to see world events in real time or find a GPS address in record time and the latter allows me to bake a potato in five minutes.  It's the social media that has me stumped.

You might find it interesting to note that, although I didn't "invent the internet" as claimed by Al Gore, I was one of the earliest users.  While serving with the Air Force at a major command headquarters I used to trod down to the basement in command headquarters and use the "internet" to communicate troop deployment plans to air bases in the Pacific.  At that time the internet was used by the military and selective colleges exclusively.

None of that experience helped me to conceive of what the internet would become.  I was as fascinated as anyone when I could dial up AOL and visit "chatrooms" as diverse as "grandpas" to "harley riders".  What the internet eventually did for me was to accelerate my knowledge bank ten thousand fold!  I really believe I have augmented my BA degree with ten masters degrees during the past twenty years.  Every day the internet introduces me to a new idea or some new level of knowledge.   During the first few years of "logging on" I would follow link after link, learning ever-expansive information on any subject I wished to learn about. 
The internet affords me the opportunity to read a book, listen to a song, research history, look up the plot of a movie on Wikipedia., send an e-card to a loved one, email a letter to family, send and receive pictures and a thousand other tasks!

Like anything else, the internet can also be bad.  Human civility has suffered as folks can now cowardly spout insults to friend or foe; words they would never have the courage to utter face to face.   We can now sit in utter isolation, in the comfort of home, and visit each other...but without the grace of touch and feel so vital to human interaction.  This has created a level of savagery unknown to most of us. 

So, Mr. Toffler, thanks for helping me adjust to Future Shock; it is here now and I both embrace it and struggle with it.  I'm sure I would be far worse had I not read your insightful glimpses into what was to come.

Sometimes I have to retreat from it, Mr. Toffler.  Sometimes I back away from the computer to look at an aging photograph on my bookshelf.  Sometimes I pick up the phone and rejoice in the sound of a human voice.  Sometimes I have to tune out "Glee" and "American Idol" and watch "The Waltons" or Lucy and Ethyl tromping those grapes.

"Is California Sodom and Gomorrah..Or Just Wacky?"

                                                                                                                
If our modern world has a Gomorrah it is surely California.  In a nation of rapidly declining moral values, California is once again leading the way.  Whether it be the embracing of the illegal invasion, the championing of Gay Marriage, the rejection of any sort of financial discipline, California is Queen of the World.

Let's look at what the California Statehouse has accomplished since the Democrats assumed total control of the Statehouse,

Though California has still not come up with a solution for dealing with annual $25 billion dollar deficits, nor have they been able to stop the business exodus to Nevada, Arizona and Texas, the State Legislature has been quite busy this year:

1) They passed a law that forces employers to allow cross-dressers to report to work in full cross-dressing attire.  Any attempt by the employer to discriminate against cross-dressers, by law, will result in a state sponsored discrimination suit.

2) Last month the California legislature passed a bill that requires a complete re-write of California textbooks so that all gay and lesbians historical figures are included in our political and cultural history.

3) Two months ago the California legislature passed a bill which requires the use of fitted sheets in California hotels and motels.  This bill was passed to accommodate the hotel union workers who are key Democratic supporters.  It seems hotel maids have complained that they get back aches making beds with flat sheets.  Though the hotel and motel association testified that this requirement would add millions in additional costs due to their sheet press equipment not being able to handle fitted sheets, the law flew through the Dem controlled statehouse with flying colors.  Many hotel and motel owners have vowed to leave the state for more business friendly environs.

4) Just recently several California municipalities have passed laws that force Home Depot to provide rest areas for illegal day laborers.  These rest areas must include water fountains, restroom facilities and lunch tables for the illegals to eat their lunch.

5) Yesterday, California signed into law provisions that provide illegals quota preferences in state colleges, reduced tuition rates and state aid, all funded by California taxpayers.  The law essentially gives illegals lower tuition rates than legal residents.

Now the Democratic legislature has come up with California AB 889, a bill that requires mom and dad to provide their babysitter with union type benefits for the babysitter when they go out for dinner and a movie.  The bill requires the following:  1) pay a fair and adequate wage 2) Provide a day of paid vacation for each 30 hours worked 3) Provide a "substitute babysitter" for the "first babysitter" so that the "first babysitter" gets a rest break every two hours 4)Dad and Mom must also provide workers compensation for the babysitter.
Should any of these requirements be breached, Dad and Mom are subject to civil lawsuit and work site violations.  The bill has passed the Assembly (without a single Republican vote) and is flying through the Democrat-controlled Senate and is expected to be sent to Governor Moonbeam for signing in record time.

Folks, I can't make this stuff up.  Read for yourself:
http://www.theunion.com/ARTICLE/20110830/BREAKINGNEWS/110839991/-1/RSS