SEEDS OF HOPE |
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As John left for the Army in World War I his mother slipped a copy of the Twenty Third Psalm into his hand. “Here,” she said with tears in her eyes and pain in her heart, “take this with you wherever you go, never lose it and read it every time you are afraid and ask God to protect you!”
He followed her advice, even in combat. One day during a time of fierce fighting he slipped the Psalm from his pocket and started to read it. Suddenly, a bomb burst near him and he jumped into a fox hole and lost the tattered piece of paper. It frightened him and he said, “Now, I’ll always have bad luck.”
After the battle he went to a tattooist with a copy of the Psalm and asked, “Please, Sir, tattoo this Psalm on my arm. I never, ever want to be without it.”
Many of us are like that soldier. We have God’s Word in our Bibles but not in our hearts. We keep His Word on our tables or desks but not in our minds. We do not allow it to become part of us. It’s outside and “nearby” but not inside where it can make a difference in our lives.
“Praise the Lord, O my soul,” said David, “and do not forget all His benefits - Who forgives all your sins, Who heals all Your diseases, Who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion.”
When we pause and think of this Lord that David is writing about, it does not make any sense to keep Him in a Book or on a piece of paper. He deserves to be living deep within our hearts, guiding and guarding our lives.
Visit us at: SowerMinistries.org
Dear Editor:
A Troubled America
The picture of thousands of invaders trying to forcefully get into America is frightful. Especially to those living along the border with Mexico. For years, many have had their homes invaded, by much smaller groups than the present-day caravans.
Caravan of immigrants invading America is a new type of threat to this country.
The Liberal’s idea of an opened-border-policy is a sign of insanity.
Especially now that Mexico has, as of 12-1-18, a new President, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. He has been quoted as saying, during his campaign, “that immigrants must leave their towns and find a life in the United States.”
And he was also quoted as saying, …. “And soon, very soon….after the victory of our movement….we will defend all the migrants in the American continent and all the migrants in the world.”
Hopefully, that was just campaign bravado. We will soon find out!
Too bad our gutless Republican Legislators, and their fellow Democrat/Abomination Party Legislators, didn’t give the President enough money to build the wall.
The wall should be fifty feet thick and one hundred feet high, of reinforced concrete, down the center of the Rio Grande River, from the Gulf of Mexico to El Paso, TX, and from there on the border line, all the way to the Pacific Ocean. If it can be done, America can do it!
Manuel Ybarra, Jr.
Coalgate, OK.
To the Editor:
In his letter to the editor - “Join me in voicing support for Jordan Cove” - published November 16 and November 20 (online), Keith Tymchuk of Reedsport informs us that he is a professional politician “six terms” mayor “on Oregon’s south coast” (it’s Reedsport); that he’s been a “port commissioner for nearly 25 years” (it’s not Coos Bay) and that he is a “huge supporter of the Jordan Cove LNG project”.
Up front, I am neutral on the Jordan Cove Energy Project (JCEP). Unlike my many struggling fixed income neighbors, I can relocate if the JCEP LNG factory and humongous vessels present a threat to my safety.
Mr. Tymchuk further tells us that “our tax dollars support Portland school children”; he fails to mention that Portland tax dollars support our schools. He tells us that JCEP will be paying $250 million into a Community Enhancement Plan (CEP); monies “that will go directly to (south coast) school districts”. Mr. Tymchuk gives us his personal (albeit meaningless) “pledge” that this to be implemented some day CEP agreement between JCEP and a group of folks will be a panacea for all that ails us. He does not explain to all that the CEP is a scheme cooked up by, and to be administered by, a few unelected, unappointed, folks that gives hundreds of millions of JCEP tax dollars as fees in lieu of paying taxes. The taxpaying citizens lose all control over what would be many hundreds of millions of tax dollars.
Whoa Mr. Tymchuk! Concurrently, JCEP is expanding its slick PR campaign. We’ve been receiving JCEP junk mail; now it’s television ads on Eugene TV station KEZI and perhaps other electronic media throughout Oregon. In the JCEP ads that are clearly intended to get the support of all Oregonians for their needed site and operating permits, JCEP tells all that they will be pumping $60 million annually into the Oregon (other than south coast) economy.
It’s time for Salem to spend tax dollars that they don’t have. Isn’t it time for an unbiased knowledgeable investigative reporter to tell Oregon taxpayers, with the glut of natural gas how is JCEP able to guarantee that payment of $250 million, or $60 million annually, to whom, commencing when, for how many years, why the proposed CEP is so wonderful for all Oregon taxpayers?
Fred Kirby
Coos Bay
We are advised to NOT judge ALL Muslims by the actions of a few lunatics, but we are encouraged to judge ALL gun owners by the actions of a few lunatics. Funny how that works.
TEXT OF A MONOLOGUE DELIVERED ON THE JIM BICE SHOW
JANUARY 28, 2013
America is in the battle for its life. It's a battle predicated upon outright lies and public manipulation. Our constitution and our very freedoms are at stake. Make no mistake. This is not an exaggeration.
This is not about Republican or Democrat, liberal or conservative, race or ethnicity or religion or sexual preferences or any of the other means that are used to divide us. It is about those who believe in and support American freedom and our Constitution and those who do not.
Our Constitution is unique in all the world in that it limits the power of government over its citizens. It establishes a representative Republic where we elect representatives to serve the will of the people within its framework. The first 10 Amendments to the Constitution are called The Bill Of Rights. This Bill of Rights designates certain freedoms that are labeled as unalienable - individual and collective rights granted by God which the government can never violate.
Yet, even as I speak, we have a president, members of Congress and elitists in the media who are blatantly and brazenly endeavoring to deprive us of those rights. Though it may seem politically incorrect to make such an assertion, there is no way to describe what is happening other than the terms UNAMERICAN OR ANTI-AMERICAN.
President Obama has shown that he is totally anti-American and has little or no regard for our constitution. He ignores the constitution, breaks laws at will and ignores the powers granted to the congress. Remember, he's a politician and a well documented and accomplished liar. As with all politicians, you must consider what they do rather than what they say.
You want some examples? Now, these aren't speculation, they are actual facts!
Fast & Furious – Government illegally sells guns to Mexican drug cartels and when this was discovered, this administration has done everything possible to prevent the truth from coming to light, including illegally ignoring Freedom Of Information Act requests.
Made illegal administrative appointments while the Senate was still in session in violation of the constitution. A U.S. District Court just ruled that these appointments are unconstitutional and an abuse of power!
Government has not passed a budget in 4 years as required by the constitution. Obama submitted 3 budgets to the senate which were voted down unanimously by both parties.
Since 2011, Obama has violated his own law by refusing to file quarterly reports on the status of over $1 trillion in stimulus spending. Could it be that his stimulus didn't work and he doesn't want the people to know how badly they got screwed?
He has used provisions of Obamacare to deprive many of their 1st Amendment rights to freedom of religion regarding their funding and participation in abortion.
Now he has enacted 23 executive orders to do an end run around our 2nd Amendment rights.
And these are just a few of the most egregious things he's done.
Probably the most immediate threat to a free American people is what Obama is trying to do to our right to keep and bear arms. He's totally ignoring readily available facts and is instead using demagoguery, outright lies and even children to pursue his agenda. Does anyone remember Hitler, Stalin, Mao Tse Tung or Fidel Castro? They all surrounded themselves with children when they were about to stick it to the people.
Now he's even brought in six more agencies to track firearms in the hands of the American people. The three agencies that have traditionally been involved in firearms enforcement were Department of Justice, Homeland Security and Department of Defense. Now he has added by executive order, the Departments of State, Treasury, Interior, Agriculture, Energy, and Veterans Affairs. He has also countermanded a part of Obamacare that prohibits doctors from compiling data on their patients who own firearms and has overridden a 1994 law that prohibits Centers for Disease Control from designating firearms a national health threat.
During his inauguration speech, Mr. Obama called for collective action to ensure individual rights. This really means that if anyone disagrees with his version of individual rights, such as the 2nd amendment, he will use the power of the mainstream press and demagoguery to pressure them into submission. Sound familiar? Isn't this happening right now?
Our president's latest attempt to rob Americans of their constitutional rights should be resisted by every citizen, not just those who own firearms. President Obama is emboldened every time we fail to resist his power grabs. Obama has his executive orders. We have the Constitution. This is a fight from which we can't back down.
But it isn't just President Obama that's conducting warfare against our constitution and the freedoms of the American people. There are members of Congress who come out almost daily with new attacks, mostly based upon false information, and the mainstream media, which is trying to frame the discussion in a manner so as to vilify law-abiding gun owners as some sort of evil kill crazy freaks and potential terrorists. According to the current propaganda, we, who believe in our god-given right to self defense against violence both from criminal perpetrators and even a tyrannical government are somehow the bad guys. While those who act illegally, immorally and unethically, both in government and out, are somehow the defenders of human rights.
Now, Senator Diane Feinstein has introduced a bill that would declare certain firearms as assault weapons and a ban on high capacity magazines. But this is more than just a resurrection of President Clinton's assault weapons ban. Feinstein's bill would also create a national registry of firearms so the government can track gun owners. What could possibly be the ultimate result of that action? And isn't it interesting that Feinsten's proposed bill specifically exempts government employees and her bodyguards? I guess it's OK that her delicate butt should be protected by these evil assault weapons but you and your families don't deserve the same consideration.
Although it's unlikely that Feinstein's bill will pass congress, the real danger to our freedom is that it will be attached to some future bill as an amendment and passed behind our backs. Be sure to keep in mind just how trustworthy with our freedoms the latest batch of politicians in Washington have been – both Republicans and Democrats!
And, it should come as no surprise that the Communist Party USA is on board with President Obama's plan to attack Americans' right to keep and bear arms as a means to "end gun violence." A cardinal feature of communist regimes, like all dictatorships, is the prohibition of private ownership of arms, creating a monopoly of force in the hands of the State.
Let's just look at some hard cold facts regarding firearms and recent events:
According to numerous studies, both by government and private organizations, violent crime and crime involving firearms is at an all-time low.
Mass shootings are at their lowest point ever. The highest point was in 1929.
According to the Department of Justice, deaths caused by hammers, feet, fists, knives and clubs are nearly 5 times those caused by rifles and so-called assault weapons.
Each of us is 13 times more likely to die from medical misadventure than by firearms. We are 5 times more likely to drown in a swimming pool and 3 times more likely to die from a drunk driver. Why are we not having a national discussion on these issues?
Several studies conducted shortly after the expiration of President Clinton's ban on assault weapons and high capacity magazines indicate the the ban had no effect whatsoever on the crime rate. This was even confirmed by a former prosecutor in Washington D.C. which has one of the highest violent crime rates in the country.
So-called assault weapons are being designated by how they look rather than how they function. An AR-15 or an AK-47 function exactly the same as a Ruger 10/22 or a Browning semi-automatic hunting rifle. They all fire just one round with each pull of the trigger. And neither one would be considered a particularly high powered rifle. AR-15s and the commercially available versions of the AK rifles are NOT military type weapons. No modern military would send their soldiers into battle with mere semi-automatic weapons. All military weapons are designed to fire multiple rounds each time the trigger is pulled.
Media elitists and liberal politicians often compare firearm deaths in America with those in Britain and Australia, where private firearm ownership has been banned. Their assertion is that if no one had those evil guns that crime would go away and we could all live happily ever after. If you just compare firearm related deaths, you'd be correct. But what they intentionally fail to mention is that the violent crime rates in each of those countries is over 4 times what it is in America.
Those who want to ban private ownership of firearms should consider what happened during prohibition. That really worked out well, didn't it! Or how about the war on drugs? Certain non-prescription drugs are illegal to use or possess. Yet a huge majority of the crime in this country is drug related. How's that working out for ya? The reality that many of the anti-gun crowd seems not to understand is that laws only affect law-abiding citizens. Criminals don't care. That's why they're criminals.
Which brings me to the next fact: Firearms are legally used by law-abiding citizens over 2 ½ million times per year to protect themselves and others from violent crime. And it's in less than 2% of those instances where the firearms are actually discharged. If private citizens are not allowed to possess firearms, can you imagine what the violent crime rate might be?
Studies by both government and private organizations indicate that the significant and ongoing reduction in violent crime in this country is due more to the fact that more and more states are enacting concealed carry laws than by laws restricting firearm ownership. Crooks aren't that stupid. They don't want to be shot while doing business so they go to places where their intended victims can't defend themselves.
Statistically, crime rates are much higher in those states and municipalities with the strictest firearms ownership laws than in the areas with the least restrictive laws. Chicago, Illinois; Detroit, Michigan and Washington D.C. have the most restrictive firearms laws in the country. Chicago alone had over 500 firearm related deaths in just the past year and is on track for even more this year. Their answer to the problem – let's pass more laws!
Every mass shooting, with the exception of Congresswoman Gabby Giffords in Arizona, occurred in a gun free zone. According to the current propaganda, gun shows should be the deadliest places in the country.
With only one possible exception, every perpetrator of mass shootings in the past 15 years was either currently using or had previously used psychotropic prescription drugs. We don't know yet about the Sandy Hook shooter.
Even though the media is trying desperately to portray the perpetrators of these mass shootings as mentally ill and the result of the predominantly conservative "gun Culture", let's consider the following perpetrators of mass shootings:
Ft. Hood - Registered Democrat - Muslim
Columbine, Kip Kinkle - Too young to vote; family members were registered Democrats and progressive liberals.
Virginia Tech - Wrote hate mail to President Bush and to his staff - Registered Democrat
Colorado Theater Shooter - Registered Democrat; staff worker on the Obama campaign; Occupy Wall Street participant; progressive liberal
Connecticut School Shooter - Registered Democrat; hated Christians.
Not even one evil NRA member in the bunch!
I could go on and on, but suffice it to say that I have been unable to find even one credible study or statistic that would indicate that restricting or abolishing the private ownership of firearms would in any way make any of us safer or more secure. The only reasonable conclusion we can reach is that it's really not about gun control...it's about people control.
Now, I understand that there are people who just don't like firearms. And that's OK. This is America and you have the right to like or dislike anything you so desire. And no one is going to force you to have a firearm if you don't want one. But no one, not individuals, organizations or government or even the President of the United States has the right to violate or infringe on those rights guaranteed by our constitution.
Or maybe you're one of that growing number of people who believe our constitution is antiquated and should be abolished. I ask you this: With what would you replace it? Have you studied history to learn the results of an all-powerful unrestrained government? Are you aware that a government powerful enough to give you everything you want is also powerful enough to take everything you have, including your life?
Don't let anyone try to frame the issue as relating to hunting or other shooting sports. Don't allow them to change the issue to the capacity of your magazines or the looks of your firearm. It's about freedom. It's about the second Amendment to our constitution, prominently displayed in the Bill of Rights. "A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed." What part of "Shall not be infringed" do they not understand?
Then you have those who say, "Well you've got to have some sort of regulation and restrictions. Would you have people owning rocket launchers and heavy machine guns?" This is a completely asinine argument since we already have laws that addresses that. These weapons have been illegal to possess since 1934 and the National Gun Control Act of 1968 specifically prohibits the possession of such weapons except for certain designated firearms and with the issuance of specific permits. Firearms are already the singularly most regulated item in our entire body of laws.
The people who are trying to undermine our rights aren't stupid. They have access to the same facts I've mentioned here and much more. But they choose to ignore those facts. President Obama even admitted that there is no law that could be passed that would have prevented the tragedy at Sandy Hook School in Connecticut. The question we must ask is "WHY?" Why are they opposed to something when all the facts indicate that their position makes no sense? Why are they afraid of firearms? Indeed, why are they afraid of the American people? Could it be that their real agenda is to turn us from citizens into subjects, totally dominated by the whims of a tyrannical and out of control government?
Although the answers to these questions seem to be self-evident, I won't provide any of my own. Every one of you is capable of considering the facts, looking at the current political climate in this country and arriving at your own answers. Unlike many of our politicians and much of the media, I don't believe you're all stupid or irresponsible. And I certainly don't believe you're just a bunch of gun nuts looking for an excuse to kill someone. The mere fact that you're to me indicates that you're concerned about the same things that concern me – the freedoms we all enjoy as Americans and the safety and security of our families, our communities and our country.
One other question I'll pose here is for each of you to consider. Once you've arrived at answers to the previous questions, what are you going to do about it? Are you going to call or write to your elected representatives, including the President? Are you going to join with other patriots in one or another of the various organizations that are out there trying to protect our rights? Are you going to write letters to the editors of our local and state-wide newspapers? Are you going to call radio talk shows? Or are you going to put your head where the sun don't shine and hope the issue goes away?
I'll close with this one thought: For evil to succeed only requires that good people do nothing.
Being Green
Checking out at the store, the young cashier suggested to the older woman, that she should bring her own grocery bags because plastic bags weren't good for the environment.
The woman apologized and explained, "We didn't have this green thing back in my earlier days."
The young clerk responded, "That's our problem today. Your generation did not care enough to save our environment for future generations."
She was right -- our generation didn't have the green thing in its day.
Back then, we returned milk bottles, soda bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles over and over. So they really were recycled.
But we didn't have the green thing back in our day.
Grocery stores bagged our groceries in brown paper bags, that we reused for numerous things, most memorable besides household garbage bags, was the use of brown paper bags as book covers for our schoolbooks. This was to ensure that public property, (the books provided for our use by the school) was not defaced by our scribblings. Then we were able to personalize our books on the brown paper bags.
But too bad we didn't do the green thing back then.
We walked up stairs, because we didn't have an escalator in every store and office building. We walked to the grocery store and didn't climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time we had to go two blocks.
But she was right. We didn't have the green thing in our day.
Back then, we washed the baby's diapers because we didn't have the throwaway kind. We dried clothes on a line, not in an energy-gobbling machine burning up 220 volts -- wind and solar power really did dry our clothes back in our early days. Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing.
But that young lady is right; we didn't have the green thing back in our day.
Back then, we had one TV, or radio, in the house -- not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief (remember them?), not a screen the size of the state of Montana . In the kitchen, we blended and stirred by hand because we didn't have electric machines to do everything for us. When we packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, we used wadded up old newspapers to cushion it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap. Back then, we didn't fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. We used a push mower that ran on human power. We exercised by working so we didn't need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity.
But she's right; we didn't have the green thing back then.
We drank from a fountain when we were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time we had a drink of water. We refilled writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and we replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull.
But we didn't have the green thing back then.
Back then, people took the streetcar or a bus and kids rode their bikes to school or walked instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service. We had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances. And we didn't need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 23,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest burger joint.
But isn't it sad the current generation laments how wasteful we old folks were just because we didn't have the green thing back then?
Please mention this to another selfish old person who needs a lesson in conservation from a smartass young person.
We don't like being old in the first place, so it doesn't take much to piss us off.
LIBERAL LOGIC
THE ANT AND THE GRASSHOPPER
 ORIGINAL VERSION
The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter.
The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and dances and plays the summer away.
Come winter, the ant is warm and well fed.
The grasshopper has no food or shelter, so he dies out in the cold.
MORAL OF THE ORIGINAL STORY:
Accept responsibility for yourself!
MODERN VERSION
The ant goes to school to learn skills that will serve him throughout life. He gets a job and works hard in the withering heat and the rain all summer long, saves his money and starts his own business which employs hundreds of other bugs. He pays confiscatory taxes that help support his community, the state and the nation. He builds a beautiful house, saves and invests his money for future needs and lays up supplies for the winter.
The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and dances and plays all through school. His communist union teachers tell him he doesn't have to excel because if he fails, the government will take care of him. So he takes liberal arts courses and environmentally acceptable basket weaving classes and neglects to acquire the knowledge he'll need to become economically successful. When he graduates, he can't find a job so he sits around doing drugs and impregnating several teenage grasshoppers while he complains that the world isn't fair.
Come winter, the shivering grasshopper calls a press conference and demands to know why the ant should be allowed to be warm and well fed while he is cold and starving.
CBS, NBC, PBS, CNN and ABC show up to provide pictures of the shivering grasshopper next to a video of the ant in his comfortable home with a table filled with food.
America is stunned by the sharp contrast.
How can this be, that in a country of such wealth, this poor grasshopper is allowed to suffer so?
Kermit the Frog appears on Oprah with the grasshopper and everybody cries when they sing,'It's Not Easy Being Green.'
ACORN stages a demonstration in front of the ant's house where the news stations film the AFL-CIO, SEIU and Occupy Wall Street groups singing, 'We shall overcome.'
Then Reverends Jeremiah Wright, Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton have the group kneel down to pray for the grasshopper's sake, while they implore the God they don't really believe in to damn the ants.
President Obama condemns the ant and blames President Bush 43, President Bush 41, President Reagan, Christopher Columbus, and the Pope for the grasshopper's plight.
Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid and the Congressional Bug Caucus exclaim in an interview with Larry King that the ant has gotten rich off the back of the grasshopper, and both call for an immediate tax hike on the ant to make him pay his fair share.
The EEOC drafts the Economic Equity & Grasshopper Act, retroactive to the beginning of the summer.
The ACLU sues the ant for flying the American flag in front of his business, offending non-Americans who may drive past.
The EPA rules that his manufacturing facility is spewing large amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and is endangering the survival of a heretofore unknown species of snail.
The ant is fined for failing to hire a proportionate number of green bugs and, having nothing left to pay his retroactive taxes, his home is confiscated by the Government Green Czar and given to the grasshopper.
The story ends as we see the grasshopper and his free-loading friends finishing up the last bits of the ant's food while the government house he is in, which, as you recall, just happens to be the ant's old house, crumbles around them because the grasshopper doesn't maintain it.
The ant has disappeared, moving his remaining assets and his company to a more business-friendly location, putting his hundreds of employees out of work and reducing the local tax base which causes the community to file bankruptcy and lay off teachers, police and fire fighters.
The grasshopper is found dead in a drug related incident, and the house, now abandoned, is taken over by a gang of spiders who sell illegal drugs and terrorize the ramshackle, once prosperous and peaceful community.
The entire Nation collapses bringing the rest of the free world with it.
MORAL OF THE STORY: Be careful how you vote in 2012.
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The danger to America is not Obama but a citizenry capable of entrusting a man like him with the presidency. It will be easier to limit and undo the follies of an Obama presidency than to restore the necessary common sense and good judgment to an electorate willing to have such a man for their president. The problem is much deeper and far more serious than Mr. Obama, who is a mere symptom of what ails us. Blaming the prince of the fools should not blind anyone to the vast confederacy of fools that made him their prince. The republic can survive an Obama. It is less likely to survive a multitude of fools such as those who made him their president.
-- Author Unknown 
THESE ARE POSSIBLY THE
5 BEST SENTENCES
YOU'LL EVER READ:
1. You cannot legislate the poor into prosperity by legislating the wealthy out of prosperity.
2. What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving.
3. The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else.
4. When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that my dear friend, is the beginning of the end of any nation.
5. You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it.
DID YOU KNOW?
The 5 important facts about Abortion in Oregon are:
1. Abortion is legal for any reason, at any time during the pregnancy.
2. Even if Roe v. Wade were overturned, Oregon's abortion-on-demand policy would remain.
3. One in five pregnancies end in abortion
4. Oregon Taxpayers already pay for more than 1/4 of all abortions in this state, and when the National Health Care bill passed in Congress goes into effect, taxpayers will be paying 100% nation-wide,
5. There are no restrictions on minors getting abortions or women using abortion as a form of birth control.
Oregon needs leaders who will commit to protecting the most vulnerable, so vote PRO-LIFE on Election Day, November 2nd.
TO THE EDITOR:
WHAT EUROPE AND AMERICA HAVE IN COMMON
Europe and the USA have many things in common, one of which noted currently is the massive debt crisis both are experiencing because of politicians who fail to learn from history. George Santayana noted that those who fail to learn from the mistakes of the past are doomed to repeat them. In both Europe and the United States, power-hungry politicians have been trying to buy votes with money we don't have, taxing not only this generation but every generation in the future, guaranteeing a lower standard of living for our children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. These short-sighted politicos, thinking only ofthe present, seem to think they can go on forever, steadily increasing the public debt, by just printing more and more money without an equal increase in goods and services, hoping to find someone to buy our consequently less and less valuable bonds. As history has repeatedly shown us, this does not work. Every society that has tried this has collapsed. A prime example is the Soviet Union. If socialism were a better system, we would all be speaking Russian. Previously democratic civilizations and nations that have tried this have collapsed into dictatorship. Some noteworthy examples are the Greeks, the Romans, and the post-World War I Weimar Republic of Germany, the latter printing so much money that its currency became virtually worthless, bankrupting the country, and resulting in the establishment of Hitler's Nazi (National Socialist) party dictatorship that brought on the horrors of World War II.
It is time to rid ourselves of such history-ignoring, out-of-touch-with-reality, power-mad politicians, ousting them from power, and never let them in office again.
Harold Bob Jones
Blair, OK
TO THE EDITOR:
Actual 'Letter to the Editor' from the February 5th edition of the Wichita Falls, Texas Times Record News.
Dear IRS,
I am sorry to inform you that I will not be able to pay taxes owed April 15, but all is not lost.
I have paid these taxes: accounts receivable tax, building permit tax, CDL tax, cigarette tax, corporate income tax, dog license tax, federal income tax, unemployment tax, gasoline tax, hunting license tax, fishing license tax, waterfowl stamp tax, inheritance tax, inventory tax, liquor tax, luxury tax, Medicare tax, city, school and county property tax (up 33 percent last 4 years), real estate tax, social security tax, road usage tax, toll road tax, state and city sales tax, recreational vehicle tax, state franchise tax, state unemployment tax, telephone federal excise tax, telephone federal state and local surcharge tax, telephone minimum usage surcharge tax, telephone state and local tax, utility tax, vehicle license registration tax, capitol gains tax, lease severance tax, oil and gas assessment tax, Colorado property tax, Texas, Colorado, Wyoming, Oklahoma and New Mexico sales tax, and many more that I can't recall but I have run out of space and money.
When you do not receive my check April 15, just know that it is an honest mistake. Please treat me the same way you treated Congressmen Charles Rangle, Chris Dodd, Barney Frank and ex-Congressman Tom Dashelle and, of course, your boss Timothy Geithner. No penalties and no interest. Oh & don't forget Al Franken.
Sincerely,
Ed Barnett
Wichita Falls
P.S. I will make at least a partial payment as soon as I get my stimulus check.
THOMAS JEFFERSON - FOUNDING
FATHER - VISIONARY
Thomas Jefferson was a remarkable man who started learning very early in life and never stopped.
At 5, began studying under his cousins' tutor.
At 9, studied Latin, Greek and French.
At 14, studied classical literature and additional languages.
At 16, entered the College of William and Mary.
At 19, studied Law for 5 years starting under George Wythe.
At 23, started his own law practice.
At 25, was elected to the Virginia House of Burgesses.
At 31, wrote the widely circulated "Summary View of the Rights of British America" and retired from his law practice.
At 32, was a Delegate to the Second Continental Congress.
At 33, wrote the Declaration of Independence.
At 33, took three years to revise Virginia 's legal code and wrote a Public Education bill and a statute for Religious Freedom.
At 36, was elected the second Governor of Virginia succeeding Patrick Henry.
At 40, served in Congress for two years.
At 41, was the American minister to France and negotiated commercial treaties with European nations along with Ben Franklin and John Adams.
At 46, served as the first Secretary of State under George Washington.
At 53, served as Vice President and was elected president of the American Philosophical Society.
At 55, drafted the Kentucky Resolutions and became the active head of Republican Party.
At 57, was elected the third president of the United States ..
At 60, obtained the Louisiana Purchase doubling the nation's size.
At 61, was elected to a second term as President.
At 65, retired to Monticello ..
At 80, helped President Monroe shape the Monroe Doctrine.
At 81, almost single-handedly created the University of Virginia and served as its first president.
At 83, died on the 50th anniversary of the Signing of the Declaration of Independence [John Adams died the same day]
Thomas Jefferson knew what it would take to establish a government for, of and by the people because he-himself studied the previous failed attempts at government. He understood actual history, the nature of God, his laws and the nature of man. That happens to be more than what most understand today, especially those who purport to be our leaders. Jefferson really knew his stuff. A voice from the past to lead us in the future.
John F. Kennedy held a dinner in the White House for a group of the brightest minds in the nation at that time. He made this statement, "This is perhaps the assembly of the most intelligence ever to gather at one time in the White House with the exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone."
When we get piled upon one another in large cities, as in Europe, we shall become as corrupt as Europe.
Thomas Jefferson
The Republic will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not.
Thomas Jefferson
It is incumbent on every generation to pay its own debts as it goes. A principle which if acted on would save one-half the wars of the world.
Thomas Jefferson
I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them.
Thomas Jefferson
My reading of history convinces me that most bad government results from too much government.
Thomas Jefferson
No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms.
Thomas Jefferson
The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government.
Thomas Jefferson
The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.
Thomas Jefferson
To compel a man to subsidize with his taxes the propagation of ideas which he disbelieves and abhors is sinful and tyrannical.
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson said in 1802: "I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies. If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around the banks will deprive the people of all property - until their children wake-up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered."
[The Federal Reserve Act was enacted in 1913]
How little we have learned from the past and from this great man who was instrumental in the establishment of the United States of America. By ignoring his foresight and wisdom, are we now undermining and destroying the greatest nation in the history of mankind?
C I V I L I Z A T I O N
Human beings only have two ways to deal with one another: reason and force. If you want me to do something for you, you have a choice of either convincing me via argument, or force me to do your bidding under threat of force. Every human interaction falls into one of those two categories, without exception. Reason or force, that's it.
In a truly moral and civilized society, people exclusively interact through persuasion. Force has no place as a valid method of social interaction, and the only thing that removes force from the menu is the personal firearm, as paradoxical as it may sound to some.
When I carry a gun, you cannot deal with me by force. You have to use reason and try to persuade me, because I have a way to negate your threat or employment of force.
The gun is the only personal weapon that puts a 100-pound woman on equal footing with a 220-pound mugger, a 75-year old retiree on equal footing with a 19-year old gang banger, and a single guy on equal footing with a carload of drunk guys with baseball bats. The gun removes the disparity in physical strength, size, or numbers between a potential attacker and a defender.
There are plenty of people who consider the gun as the source of bad force equations. These are the people who think that we'd be more civilized if all guns were removed from society. But, a firearm makes it easier for an armed mugger to do his job. That, of course, is only true if the mugger's potential victims are mostly disarmed either by choice or by legislative fiat - it has no validity when most of a mugger's potential marks are armed.
People who argue for the banning of arms ask for automatic rule by the young, the strong, and the many, and that's the exact opposite of a civilized society. A mugger, even an armed one, can only make a successful living in a society where the state has granted him a force monopoly.
Then there's the argument that the gun makes confrontations lethal that otherwise would only result in injury. This argument is fallacious in several ways. Without guns involved, confrontations are won by the physically superior party inflicting overwhelming injury on the loser.
People who think that fists, bats, sticks, or stones don't constitute lethal force, watch too much TV, where people take beatings and come out of it with a bloody lip at worst. The fact that the gun makes lethal force easier, works solely in favor of the weaker defender, not the stronger attacker. If both are armed, the field is level.
The gun is the only weapon that's as lethal in the hands of an octogenarian as it is in the hands of a weight lifter. It simply would not work as well as a force equalizer if it wasn't both lethal and easily employable.
When I carry a gun, I don't do so because I am looking for a fight, but because I'm looking to be left alone. The gun at my side means that I cannot be forced, only persuaded. I don't carry it because I'm afraid, but because it enables me to be unafraid. It doesn't limit the actions of those who would interact with me through reason, only the actions of those who would do so by force. It removes force from the equation--and that's why carrying a gun is a civilized act.
HAVE WE LOST OUR MINDS?
A lot of Americans have become so insulated from reality that they imagine that
America can suffer defeat without any inconvenience to themselves.
Pause a moment, reflect back.
These are actual events from history...THEY REALLY HAPPENED!
Do you remember?
1. In 1968, Bobby Kennedy was shot and killed by a Muslim male.
2. In 1972 at the Munich Olympics, athletes were kidnapped and massacred by Muslim
males.
3. In 1972 a Pan Am 747 was hijacked and eventually diverted to Cairo where a fuse
was lit on final approach and it was blown up shortly after landing by Muslim
males.
4. In 1973 a Pan Am 707 was destroyed in Rome, with 33 people killed, when it was
attacked with grenades by Muslim males.
5. In 1979, the US embassy in Iran was taken over by Muslim males.
6. During the 1980's a number of Americans were kidnapped in Lebanon by Muslim
males.
7. In 1983, the US Marine barracks in Beirut was blown up by Muslim males.
8. In 1985, the cruise ship Achille Lauro was hijacked and a 70 year old American
passenger was murdered and thrown overboard in his wheelchair by Muslim males.
9. In 1985, TWA flight 847 was hijacked at Athens, and a US Navy diver trying to
rescue passengers was murdered by Muslim males.
10. In 1988, Pan Am Flight 103 was bombed by Muslim males.
11. In 1993, the World Trade Center was bombed the first time by Muslim males.
12. In 1998, the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania were bombed by Muslim males.
13. On 9/11/01, four airliners were hijacked; two were used as missiles to take
down the World Trade Centers and of the remaining two, one crashed into the US
Pentagon and the other was diverted and crashed by the passengers. Thousands of
people were killed by Muslim males.
14. In 2002, the United States fought a war in Afghanistan against Muslim males.
15. In 2002, reporter Daniel Pearl was kidnapped and beheaded by - you guessed
it - Muslim males.
No, there's no pattern here to justify profiling, do you think? So, to ensure
we Americans never offend anyone, particularly fanatics intent on killing us, airport security screeners are not allowed to profile certain people...ABSOLUTELY NO PROFILING!
They must conduct random searches of 80-year-old women, little kids, airline pilots with proper identification, secret agents who are members of the President's security detail, an 85-year old Congressman with metal hips, and Medal of Honor winner and former Governor Joe Foss, but leave Muslim Males alone lest they be guilty of profiling.
Have the American People completely lost their minds, or just their Power of reason???
The Gloria Aldreds and other stupid attorneys along with Federal Justices that want to thwart common sense, should feel ashamed of themselves -- if they have any such sense.
'Stupid Is As Stupid Does'
LETTER FROM THE BOSS
To All My Valued Employees,
There have been some rumblings around the office about the future of this company, and more specifically, your job. As you know, the economy has changed for the worse and presents many challenges. However, the good news is this: The economy doesn't pose a threat to your job. What does threaten your job however, is the changing political landscape in this country. However, let me tell you some little tidbits of fact which might help you decide what is in your best interests.
First, while it is easy to spew rhetoric that casts employers against employees, you have to understand that for every business owner, there is a Back Story. This back story is often neglected and overshadowed by what you see and hear. Sure, you see me park my Mercedes outside. You've seen my big home at last year’s Christmas party. I'm sure; all these flashy icons of luxury conjure up some idealized thoughts about my life.
However, what you don't see is the BACK STORY: I started this company 28 years ago. At that time, I lived in a 300 square foot studio apartment for 3 years. My entire living apartment was converted into an office so I could put forth 100% effort into building a company, which by the way, would eventually employ you.
My diet consisted of Ramen Pride noodles because every dollar I spent went back into this company. I drove a rusty Toyota Corolla with a defective transmission. I didn't have time to date. Often times, I stayed home on weekends, while my friends went out drinking and partying. In fact, I was married to my business -- hard work, discipline, and sacrifice.
Meanwhile, my friends got jobs. They worked 40 hours a week and made a modest $50K a year and spent every dime they earned. They drove flashy cars and lived in expensive homes and wore fancy designer clothes. Instead of hitting the Nordstrom's for the latest hot fashion item, I was trolling through the discount store extracting any clothing item that didn't look like it was birthed in the 70's. My friends refinanced their mortgages and lived a life of luxury. I, however, did not. I put my time, my money, and my life into a business with a vision that eventually, some day, I too, will be able to afford these luxuries my friends supposedly had.
So, while you physically arrive at the office at 9am, mentally check in at about noon, and then leave at 5pm, I don't. There is no "off" button for me. When you leave the office, you are done and you have a weekend all to yourself. I unfortunately do not have the freedom. I eat and breathe this company every minute of the day. There is no rest. There is no weekend. There is no happy hour. Every day this business is attached to my hip like a 1 year old special-needs child. You, of course, only see the fruits of that garden -- the nice house, the Mercedes, the vacations... you never realize the Back Story and the sacrifices I've made.
Now, the economy is falling apart and the guy that made all the right decisions and saved his money, has to bail-out all the people who didn't. The people who overspent their paychecks suddenly feel entitled to the same luxuries that I earned and sacrificed a decade of my life for.
Yes, business ownership has its benefits but the price I've paid is steep and not without wounds. Unfortunately, the cost of running this business, and employing you, is starting to eclipse the threshold of marginal benefit and let me tell you why:
I am being taxed to death and the government thinks I don't pay enough. I have state taxes. Federal taxes. Property taxes. Sales and use taxes. Payroll taxes. Workers compensation taxes. Unemployment taxes. Taxes on taxes. I have to hire a tax man to manage all these taxes and then guess what? I have to pay taxes for employing him. Government mandates and regulations and all the accounting that goes with it, now occupy most of my time. On Oct 15th, I wrote a check to the US Treasury for $288,000 for quarterly taxes. You know what my "stimulus" check was? Zero..Nada. Zilch.
The question I have is this: Who is stimulating the economy? Me, the guy who has provided 14 people good paying jobs and serves over 2,200,000 people per year with a flourishing business? Or, the single mother sitting at home pregnant with her fourth child waiting for her next welfare check?
Obviously, government feels the latter is the economic stimulus of this country.
The fact is, if I deducted (Read: Stole) 50% of your paycheck you'd quit and you wouldn't work here. I mean, why should you? That's nuts. Who wants to get rewarded only 50% of their hard work? Well, I agree which is why your job is in jeopardy.
Here is what many of you don't understand ...to stimulate the economy you need to stimulate what runs the economy. Had suddenly government mandated to me that I didn't need to pay taxes, guess what? Instead of depositing that $288,000 into the Washington black-hole, I would have spent it, hired more employees, and generated substantial economic growth. My employees would have enjoyed the wealth of that tax cut in the form of promotions and better salaries. But, you can forget it now.
When you have a comatose man on the verge of death, you don't defibrillate and shock his thumb thinking that will bring him back to life, do you? Or, do you defibrillate his heart?
Business is at the heart of America and always has been. To restart it, you must stimulate it, not kill it. Suddenly, the power brokers in Washington believe the poor of America are the essential drivers of the American economic engine. Nothing could be further from the truth and this is the type of change you can keep.
So where am I going with all this? It's quite simple.
If any new taxes are levied on me, or my company, my reaction will be swift and simple. I'll fire you. I'll fire your co-workers. You can then plead with the government to pay for your mortgage, your SUV, and your child's future. Frankly, it isn't my problem any more.
Then, I will close this company down, move to another country, and retire. You see, I'm done. I'm done with a country that penalizes the productive and gives to the unproductive. My motivation to work and to provide jobs will be destroyed, and with it, will be my citizenship.
So, if you lose your job, it won't be at the hands of the economy; it will be at the hands of a political hurricane that swept through this country, steam rolled the constitution, and will have changed its landscape forever. If that happens, you can find me sitting on a beach, retired, and with no employees to worry about.
Signed,
THE BOSS
A TEXAN'S ANSWER TO WELFARE
This was in the Waco Tribune Herald,
Waco, TX Nov 18, 2010
Put me in charge ...
Put me in charge of food stamps. I'd get rid of Lone Star cards; no cash for Ding Dongs or Ho Ho's, just money for 50-pound bags of rice and beans, blocks of cheese and all the powdered milk you can haul away. If you want steak and frozen pizza, then get a job.
Put me in charge of Medicaid. The first thing I'd do is to get women Norplant birth control implants or tubal ligations. Then, we'll test recipients for drugs, alcohol, and nicotine and document all tattoos and piercings. If you want to reproduce or use drugs, alcohol, smoke or get tats and piercings, then get a job.
Put me in charge of government housing. Ever live in a military barracks? You will maintain our property in a clean and good state of repair. Your "home" will be subject to inspections anytime and possessions will be inventoried. If you want a plasma TV or X-box 360, then get a job and your own place.
In addition, you will either present a check stub from a job each week or you will report to a "government" job. It may be cleaning the roadways of trash, painting and repairing public housing, whatever we find for you. We will sell your 22 inch rims and low profile tires and your blasting stereo and speakers and put that money toward the "common good."
Before you write that I've violated someone's rights, realize that all of the above is voluntary. If you want our money, accept our rules .. Before you say that this would be "demeaning" and ruin their "self esteem," consider that it wasn't that long ago that taking someone else's money for doing absolutely nothing was demeaning and lowered self esteem.
If we are expected to pay for other people's mistakes we should at least attempt to make them learn from their bad choices. The current system rewards them for continuing to make bad choices.
AND While you are on Government subsistence, you no longer can VOTE! Yes that is correct. For you to vote would be a conflict of interest. You will voluntarily remove yourself from voting while you are receiving a Government welfare check. If you want to vote get a job! |
