The Awful Dilemma

I am amazed that the tree-hugging, environmentalist liberals are so determined to link human existence to global warming. Now the US EPA is going to regulate carbon dioxide as a deadly gas.

Last time I checked, every time I breathe, I exhale that deadly gas. Last time I checked, nature needs carbon dioxide to survive. I guess we kind of need each other to survive.

Well, many of these environmental do-gooders really want to limit global population to regulate global carbon dioxide. Yet, I find so much irony in the behavior of these do-gooders in failing to limit their "carbon footprint."

I think the real proof in their dedication to preserving the natural state of the global environment would be in the ultimate self-sacrifice. Reduce global population to preserve the environment starting with themselves.

But, if they are gone, who would be our social conscience???? The awful dilemma.

Carbon controls in the US

Now the EPA is going to regulate the emissions of carbon dioxide.

Yet, the US is the world leader in fossil fuel reserves. We are going to restrict our energy production so that China and India will surpass in production output.

My state of Indiana will be severely affected by these controls. Jobs will be lost under this plan.

Where will the federal governemnt get the money to replaced lost revenues from these plans?

Thank goodness 2010 is coming, unfortunately maybe not fast enough.

The perfect Christmas experience

This so takes me back to my childhood.

My grandparents used to have one of these in the front window of their small home in the early '60's. Add to the tree and the "awesome" color wheel Bobby Helms' "Jingle Bell Rock" makes for a perfect Christmas experience.

Presidential reading material

As reported today (11/25/2009) on Drudge Report, this picture shows the President leaving the White House carrying a copy of GQ magazine - with a picture of himself on the cover!! Maybe he just uses it as a cover for very important top secret files. HA!

This man really has no clue of his position in the world.

forgiveness

This past weekend I had to admit that I was wrong. That was the easy part.

I sat face to face with a man from my church that I felt had wronged me. My response over the past 5 years was wrong. Machismo had taken over. My general "John Wayne" attitude had taken over then and I felt I could recover just fine on my own. Nope. No man is an island to himself. I was on a deserted island. Now, he came to apologize to me. And he did so sincerely.

Suddenly, I was faced with the responsibility to forgive. The sudden sense that I had power over another person was very nearly overwhelming. More importantly, it was a sensation that I wanted to have no part of. While my forgiveness may seemed insincere, it was more the sudden emotion of power that I did not want.

I can seem to be intimidating. And it can be fun to exert that power (to a future son-in-law). Yet in this situation I did not like that power and wanted to have no part of it.

I think it is easier to ask for forgiveness than to give it.

The wonders of the universe

After sunset last night, I started a fire in the firepit and watched the sun set and the stars come out on a clear night like little lights turning on in the sky. The temperature was low enough to see my breath. I enjoy watching the flashing lights from planes flying around the sky, wondering what city they came from, where they are headed, and who the passengers are on them. I just don't stare at the sky enough for myself and I know that few people take the time to appreciate the wonders of the universe. It was a beautiful night to remember what a little person I am in the grand scheme of God's plan.

Congress has to spend money to make money

In a brilliant move by Congress, billions of tax dollars were spent on the "Cash for Clunkers" program. It has now been calculated that it comes out to approximately $24,000 per car purchased!!! What a deal! We spend $24,000 to reimburse car dealers $4,000 for a new car and trash many very usable used cars.

And with this kind of math, the current government wants to take over our health care now. I can't wait to see how much they want to save us here. (Well, actually, I can wait - in fact, I don't even want it to happen!)

The liberal media

In Fort Wayne IN, we have a local newspaper that leans way to the left. The editorial page tries to think it is very objective in its comments page.

Recently, they took the opportunity to chastise Republican Indiana state Secretary of State Todd Rokita for some of his activities. They accused him of using his office for a possible future run at govenor (at least 2 years away). The newspaper seems to have forgotten a former secretary of state that had used the office as a trial run to his ascendency to governor. That person was Evan Bayh. What makes this all significant is that I sent a letter to editor addressing this issue. The paper states that they may edit letters for printing. I post below first my original letter and then the letter they published. You can decide for yourself how extensive they "re-wrote" my letter. I think more to protect their image than for space issues.

What I wrote:

From the editorial page on October 17th, we find this written by the J-G staff:
There’s a fine line between enjoying the high profile incumbency offers and exploiting the title for political gain. Rokita’s frequent Twitter updates….seem to cross that line.
The state constitution limits the secretary of state to two terms, which Rokita will have filled at the end of next year. Seeking higher office is certainly admirable, but Rokita should be aware that his obligations as an officeholder take precedence over his political future and that his activities raise questions about his dedication to his current post.
Apparently the author is too young to remember a former Indiana secretary of State held the office for only two years, as a stepping stone for his future run as governor. What did he accomplish during his partial term? Every source I looked regarding Evan Bayh’s biography made no mention of any accomplishment as S.of S. They all quickly skip his to his run as governor in 1988. It was no mystery at the time that Mr. Bayh was only laying the foundation for his goal as governor.
Perhaps this newspaper should review Mr. Rokita’s accomplishments in his current office and reserve judgment on any aspirations he may have on other elected offices until the appropriate time.

What they printed:

Regarding the editorial “Office-holder or candidate?”
(Oct. 17): The state constitution limits the secretary of state to two terms,
which Todd Rokita will have filled at the end of next year. Rokita should be
aware that his obligations as an officeholder take precedence over his political
future and that his activities raise questions about his dedication to his
current post.
A former Indiana secretary of state held the office for only
two years and used it as a stepping stone for his run as governor. Every source
I looked at regarding Evan Bayh’s biography make no mention of any
accomplishment as secretary of state. Biographies all quickly skip to Bayh’s run
for governor in 1988. It was no mystery at the time that Bayh was only laying
the foundation for his goal to be governor.
Perhaps The Journal Gazette
should review Rokita’s accomplishments in his current office and reserve
judgment on any aspirations he may have on other elected offices until the
appropriate time.

The government is upside down

Is it just me or does anybody else notice how topsy turvy the Obama administration is?


First, I see that the Justice Dept. will not pursue the prosecution of illegal marijuana use. We can debate the criminality of such behavior. Is it wise to tell the public that even though "we the government know that marijuana use is illegal according to the law, we are letting you know that we will not prosecute you." Would that not possibly encourage more illegal behavior?


Second, the government has also quietly said they will not pursue pornographers. There is an obvious linkage between pornography and sexual crimes.

What are we telling the criminals?? You go ahead and do what you do and don't fear the government.


Thirdly, the government IS going after highly paid executives in the banking industry and those businesses that have taken bailout money from the government. The "pay czar" is limiting the income of those individuals. Why could not the government see this coming? Companies get government assistance, start to make a profit again and then reward their employees accordingly. There were no ties initially linking pay and performance when the money was distributed. Now they change the rules AFTER the fact. The debate can go on about whether these companies performed the expectations the government originally had for them. Some may very well may not performing as hoped. But there were no expectations put in writing. (That we know of, since the government is not being very open about the details of how the money has been spent.) The government is possibly going after other businesses in the same fields as the original recipients.


I have hard a time accepting the fact that the government can say how much an individual can earn from a private business. This type of government interference is directly contrary to free enterprise. Earn as much as you can for the work you do. This witch hunting the government is involved in is just plain un-American.


In essence, the current administration is saying that criminal behavior is okay, but legal activity that the government deems wrong will be controlled. This is all wrong!

The truth of stimulus spending

A couple of weeks ago there was an interesting article in The Wall Street Journal (Oct 1) about government spending that supposedly spurs the economy. While the article was detailed and a bit over my head, the last paragraph did an excellent job at summary.

The bottom line is this: The available empirical evidence does
not support the idea that spending multipliers typically exceed one, and thus
spending stimulus programs will likely raise GDP by less than the increase in
government spending. Defense-spending multipliers exceeding one likely apply
only at very high unemployment rates, and nondefense multipliers are probably
smaller. However, there is empirical support for the proposition that tax rate
reductions will increase real GDP.

What it comes down to is that government spending does not stimulate the economy. Maybe the American populace may begin to understand this. I know the spenders in DC never will. It will need to take a complete change of the Washington guard before this may be accomplished.