Is it Mitt, or is it Hillary?

This is excerpted from an earlier post during the last Presidential primary season. I pulled the quotes from the excellent resource website, “On The Issues.”

See if you can identify the speaker as Mitt Romney, or Hillary Clinton:

1) “I am adamantly against illegal immigrants. People have got to stop employing illegal immigrants. you see loads of people waiting to get picked up to go do yard work & construction work & domestic work.”

2) “We have to have our citizens insured, and we’re not going to do that by tax exemptions, because the people that don’t have insurance aren’t paying taxes.”

3) “I hate the idea of in any way making it more difficult for kids, even those who are illegal aliens, to afford college.”

4) “We need to stand firm on behalf of sensible gun control legislation.”

5) “I also support an assault weapon ban.”

6) “The American people are tired of liars and people who pretend to be something they’re not.”

7) “I have never met anyone who is pro-abortion. Being pro-choice is not being pro-abortion.”

8] “We ought to be providing domestic partnership benefits for people who are in homosexual and lesbian relationships.”

_________________________________________

The answers:

(1) Hillary, (2) Mitt, (3) Mitt, (4) Hillary, (5) Mitt, (6) Hillary, (7) Hillary, (8) Hillary

So, how did you do? I live in a deep red state so my protest vote against Mitt won’t mean very much.

But for you conservatives who think Mitt is the only way to “win” the country back, take a look at Mitt’s changing stands on the issues that matter. Look closely. No one has forced Mitt to change his mind on them. Just naked opportunism. You decide if it’s worth it to you to elect someone who is the Republican version of Hillary Clinton.

I know what my answer is.

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The Last Cowboys

From the UK Daily Mail

For years, photographer Adam Jahiel has been taking pictures of the cowboys of Nevada’s Great Basin, perhaps one of the most inhospitable regions of the already harsh West.

‘These people represent one of the last authentic American subcultures, one that is disappearing at a rapid rate,’ Jahiel said.   Cowboying as an art-form is almost obsolete.

The late 1900s were tough times for cowboys, ranchers, farmers and anyone working with the land in the U.S.

Changing modes of food distribution and production, widespread urbanization and severe economic difficulties forced many to sell their land, go bankrupt, change professions, or take out large loans.

In 2003, there were just under 10,000 cowboys left in the U.S., making an average of $19,340 per year working in ranches, stockyards and rodeos.

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Hurricanes~Can’t Do A Thing About Them

Charlie Reese: 545 vs 300,000,000 people

Charley Reese’s final column for the Orlando Sentinel.  The article below is completely neutral, neither anti-republican or democrat. — Chris

545 vs. 300,000,000 People
–  By Charlie Reese

—–

Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them.

Have you ever wondered, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, WHY do we have deficits?

Have you ever wondered, if all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes, WHY do we have inflation and high taxes?

You and I don’t propose a federal budget. The President does.

You and I don’t have the Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations.  The House of Representatives does.

You and I don’t write the tax code, Congress does.

You and I don’t set fiscal policy, Congress does.

You and I don’t control monetary policy, the Federal Reserve Bank does.

One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one President, and nine Supreme Court justices equates to 545 human beings out of the 300 million are directly, legally, morally, and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.

I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board because that problem was created by the Congress. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional duty to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered, but private, central bank.

I excluded all the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a congressman, or a President to do one cotton-picking thing. I don’t care if they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash. The politician has the power to accept or reject it. No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is the legislator’s responsibility to determine how he votes.

Those 545 human beings spend much of their energy convincing you that what they did is not their fault. They cooperate in this common con regardless of party

What separates a politician from a normal human being is an excessive amount of gall.  No normal human being would have the gall of a Speaker, who stood up and criticized the President for creating  deficits. The President can only propose a budget. He cannot force the Congress to accept it.

The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, gives sole responsibility to the House of Representatives for originating and approving appropriations and taxes. Who is the speaker of the House? John Boehner. He is the leader of the majority party. He and fellow House members, not the President, can approve any budget they want.  If the President vetoes it, they can pass it over his veto if they agree to.

It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 300 million cannot replace 545 people who stand convicted — by present facts — of incompetence and irresponsibility. I can’t think of a single domestic problem that is not traceable directly to those 545 people. When you fully grasp the plain truth that 545 people exercise the power of the federal government, then it must follow that what exists is what they want to exist.

If the tax code is unfair, it’s because they want it unfair.

If the budget is in the red, it’s because they want it in the red.

If the Army & Marines are in Iraq and Afghanistan it’s because they want them in  Iraq and Afghanistan.

If they do not receive social security but are on an elite retirement plan not available to the people, it’s because they want it that way.

There are no insoluble government problems.

Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from whom they can take this power. Above all, do not let them con you into the belief that there exists disembodied mystical forces like “the economy”,”inflation,” or “politics” that prevent them from doing what they take an oath to do.

Those 545 people, and they  alone, are responsible.

They, and they alone, have the power.

They, and they alone, should be held accountable by the people who are their bosses.

Provided the voters have the gumption to manage their own employees.

We should vote all of  them out of office and clean up their mess.

Charlie Reese is a former columnist of the Orlando  Sentinel  Newspaper.
What you do with this article now that you have read it is up to you. This might be funny if it weren’t so  true.  Be sure to read all the way to the end:

Tax his land,
Tax his bed,
Tax the table,
At which he’s fed.

Tax his tractor,
Tax his mule,
Teach him taxes
Are the rule.

Tax his work,
Tax his pay,
He works for
peanuts anyway!

Tax his cow,
Tax his goat,
Tax his pants,
Tax his coat.

Tax his ties,
Tax his shirt,
Tax his work,
Tax his dirt.

Tax his tobacco,
Tax his drink,
Tax him if he
Tries to think.

Tax his cigars,
Tax his beers,
If he cries
Tax his tears.

Tax his car,
Tax his gas,
Find other ways
Taxes to pass

Tax all he has
Then let him know
That you won’t be done
Till he has no dough.

When he screams and hollers;
Then tax him some more,
Tax him till
He’s good and sore.

Then tax his coffin,
Tax his grave,
Tax the sod in
Which he’s laid…

Put these words
Upon his tomb,
‘Taxes drove me
to my doom…’

When he’s gone,
Do not relax,
Its time to apply
The inheritance tax.

Accounts Receivable Tax
Building Permit Tax
CDL license Tax
Cigarette Tax
Corporate Income Tax
Dog License Tax
Excise Taxes
Federal Income Tax
Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)
Fishing License Tax
Food License Tax
Fuel Permit Tax
Gasoline Tax (currently 44.75 cents per gallon)
Gross Receipts Tax
Hunting License Tax
Inheritance Tax
Inventory Tax
IRS Interest Charges IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)
Liquor Tax
Luxury Taxes
Marriage License Tax
Medicare Tax
Personal Property Tax
Property Tax
Real Estate Tax
Service Charge Tax
Social Security Tax
Road Usage Tax
Recreational Vehicle Tax
Sales Tax
School Tax
State Income Tax
State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)
Telephone Federal Excise Tax
Telephone Federal Universal Service Fee Tax
Telephone Federal, State and Local Surcharge Taxes
Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge Tax
Telephone Recurring and Nonrecurring Charges Tax
Telephone State and Local Tax
Telephone Usage Charge Tax
Utility Taxes
Vehicle License Registration Tax
Vehicle Sales Tax
Watercraft Registration Tax
Well Permit Tax
Workers Compensation Tax

STILL THINK THIS IS FUNNY?
Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago, and our nation was the most prosperous in the world. We had absolutely no national debt, had the largest middle class in the world, and Mom stayed home to raise the kids.

What in the heck happened?  Can you spell ‘politicians?’

I hope this goes around THE USA at least 545 times! YOU can help it get there!!!

GO AHEAD. . .  BE AN AMERICAN

h/t zerohedge.com

Afghanistan: Time to go

Michael Yon has some interesting comments regarding the war in Afghanistan …

It is clear that this war will end poorly.  Time to cut losses.

Our continued losses in Afghanistan are for nothing.  We should continue with a smaller presence to harass and kill terrorists, and losses from that are expected and part of the fight.  But the ongoing larger war is going nowhere.  We have been there since 2001.  This is 2012.  There is no vaguely discernible end.  We should look at Afghanistan as a century-long project, to be put on a far backburner.  The United States has problems to deal with at home.

read it all

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Mo’ toys

 

Loves me some kawasaki.

Your life doesn’t belong to you

“Do you really think God, you remember God, Right? Do you think God Made the highest life form on Earth, the Human Being, Just so he could destroy himself with sex, booze and drugs?”

… John Carey has written a piece that touched me. It could have been my story.

In fact, it was my story.

Yesterday we asked the question, “where were you when you heard that Elvis had died?”

Today, I am asking, “Where were you when God got your attention?”

____

This is the World Famous Friday Open Thread.

WFFOT: or as Joe Biden would say, “Thank God it’s Thursday.”

 

 

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Where Were You When You Heard Elvis Had Died?

Today, 16 Aug, is the date in 1977 that Elvis left this mortal coil.

I was in my early twenties, headed into Texas City with my best and oldest friend. We got together after work, loaded up his old International Harvester SUV “The Goose” and were bound for an inlet to Galveston Bay for some crabbing.  My best bud, a pharmacist, had grown up a fisherman and sportsman, as had I.  I was a student at UT-Austin, working a summer job in Houston as a painter’s helper on the Galleria II project.

As we were rolling into Texas City and turning off IH-45, the announcer on the big Houston rock’n’roll radio station stated, with a somber tone, “The King Is Dead.” Being in a party mode since leaving Houston, we looked at each other with blood shot eyes and went…whaaaa?  I said, seriously, who cares about the monarchy? Then the announcer stated it was Elvis who had died of congestive heart failure. That new information clue-batted us and we both expressed our shock and disbelief.

Elvis had been a part of our lives since we were toddlers.  My parents would drop us boys off at my grandparent’s farm on Saturday afternoon and go into Shreveport to have dinner, then go see this new singing sensation at the Louisiana Hayride, a young man named Elvis.  Of course my grandparent’s didn’t approve of this new “devil” music, no more than my parents approved of my Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin music, years later.

I can remember, even though I was only about four at the time, being scooped up and loaded in my Dad’s Buick Special for the midnight ride home, trying to understand where my parents had been and asking questions.

Years went by, I heard all of his songs and saw all of his movies(silly as most were), but it was Elvis, no one else looked like him or acted like him.  In the late sixties his star was waning and his Las Vegas era replaced the hit making young hip shaker. I was now into hard rock and paid little attention to his now faded glory.

But on this day, when I discovered he had passed away far too early, his impact on my life came flooding back with many memories.

*PS*  Elvis’ spirit was with my bud and I that afternoon and evening, we filled two large ice chests with huge blue shell crabs and made it home safely without injury or a DWI.

We’ve No Less Days

I picked up the copy of the Sunday bulletin for the 60th anniversary service of the Alta Woods UMC.   On the front page was the customary wide-angle photo of the church sanctuary.  In the lower left of the photo was another steeple, that of the Alta Woods Baptist Church.  If the photo could pan a hundred yards or so to the right, you would see the Alta Woods Presbyterian Church, and a few hundred yards to the right of that was the Carmelite Monastery.

 
I would see a group of the Carmelite Nuns each Saturday morning at the A&P as they did their grocery shopping.  I didn’t really know how to address them, “Miz” just didn’t seem right, so I just called them “Sister”, even though I wasn’t a Catholic.  It didn’t seem to bother them, though.  And between school, the A&P, and sleep, the true passion of my week was the time that I was able to spend with the youth of Alta Woods United Methodist Church.  Because for me, there was only one “Alta Woods.”  And coming back to celebrate this occasion was something  wonderful.  So full of tenderness and love, that I believe  that the celebration, not just the date on the calendar, is the real gift  to share and remember.

Forty years ago, the youth group was huge.  I don’t remember exact numbers, but I think maybe 100 or so high-school aged folks would get together each Sunday afternoon for choir and Sunday evening for MYF, and on Wednesday evenings for Bible Study.  Some of the parents in the adult Sunday School classes could probably give a better estimate, as they volunteered to feed this ravenous bunch of teenagers every Sunday afternoon.
Late night Kung Fu episodes at Sue Mac’s, choir tours, and lot of other activites contributed to what Travis Tichenor described to me this morning as  “a magical time that we were all fortunate to be a part of.”  I’ll always be grateful to Travis for inviting me to come to the youth choir that Sunday that my family visited Alta Woods for the first time.  I got that chance today, to thank him.  That was cool.   I suppose I should have also thanked him for prompting Sam Morris to let me sing the solo part of “I Believe in You.”   I was the new guy, and way to diffident to ask for myself.  David White told me today that he thinks of that song every time he thinks of me.

I didn’t get much time to talk with Murray  Nichols.  I hate that.  I spent many hours with ol’ Murray in his red VW.  Murray made me an 8-track copy of the first Dan Fogelberg concert that was broadcast on WZZQ.  I played that tape until it was unplayable.   I think I learned all the guitar and vocal parts to every song on that tape.  Thanks Murray.  I miss you, Bud.

I wish I could have gotten to everyone that I wanted to visit with.  And for those that couldn’t come, I missed them too.  The memories were as sweet as the pecan pie at the covered dish lunch.  It was delicious, by the way, and my wife didn’t believe me when I told her later, that I didn’t go back for seconds.  But I couldn’t have seconds and see the people that I wanted to see.  These are the people who shared their love for God with me, who loved me and welcomed me to their lives, and to this day, even though I rarely see them, are some of my best friends that I have, or will ever have.   And, even though it hadn’t occurred to me until just now, I spent only two years in this nurturing cocoon.  In my typical Baby-Boomer fashion, I find myself surprised to realize that the entire history of this congregation didn’t revolve around those two years.  So many other souls have been a part of the Alta Woods family, so many I’ve never known, but on this day, we were one in the Spirit, breaking bread together.

And now I am reflecting on memories of years gone by, of places and people dear to me.  Family, friends, fellowship, tender love:  it really doesn’t get any better than this in this lifetime.   And that, my friends, makes the next one even more amazing to contemplate.

Will Paul Ryan Be A Conservative GPS For Romney?

We can only hope so and pray that Romney will not hit the mute button.

WFFOT! It’s A Natural Thing

/*21 days*

Obama hypocrisy on display in Delphi pension termination

from Big Hollywood:

In what may contradict testimony by Obama administration officials under oath and may be a violation of federal law, The Daily Caller obtained emails that show Timothy Geithner’s Treasury Department “was the driving force behind terminating the pensions of 20,000 salaried retirees at the Delphi auto parts manufacturing company,” and the move, according to The Daily Caller, “appears to have been made solely because those retirees were not members of labor unions.”
As The Daily Caller notes, “Under 29 U.S.C. §1342, the PBGC is the only government entity that is legally empowered to initiate termination of a pension or make any official movements toward doing so” and “the White House and Treasury Department have consistently maintained” the PBGC “independently made the decision to terminate the 20,000 non-union Delphi workers’ pension plan.”

These emails contradict sworn testimony by several Obama administration figures and is yet another example of Obama’s administration misleading lawmakers, the courts, and the public — as they did with Obamacare — when it came to these pension cuts.

It Might Be The Middle Of Summer, But It Is Only 24 Days Until NCAA Football

Until some new memories are made by talented players in big games, viewing old videos is all we have.

Here is a tribute video to one of my all-time favorite ankle breakers from the 70’s, he wore number 24.

Southern Miss professor joins joins Chik-fil-A brouhaha

I saw this over at FR, via  Campus Reform.

A University of Southern Mississippi (USM) professor is demanding the faculty Senate reevaluate the university’s support for “organizations that are anti-gay” including the popular fast-food chain Chick-fil-A.   “We have a nondiscrimination policy at USM that includes sexual orientation and so if we have that policy, I think to live up to that, then we should not be doing anything to support organizations that are anti-gay,” associate political science Professor Kate Greene told local NBC affiliate WDAM Channel 3, regarding the Chick-fil-A controversy.

It’s causing more stink on the interwebs than it is at USM.  The professor, Kate Greene, was quoted speaking to WDAM that “anti-gay” organizations should be removed from campus.  A quick check of WDAM’s website doesn’t even show this on the front page.

Oh well.  No word yet if Ms Greene will receive the same fate as the Chik-fil-A bully.

Conservatism wins in Texas

Texas, Ted Cruz, the Tea Party, Sarah Palin, Glenn Beck, and arguably Chic fil A, all had a very big day yesterday. 

For anyone who has doubted that the movement elections of 2010 were anything but a fundamental shift in conservative politics, I give you the Marco Rubio of 2012, Ted Cruz of Texas.  Who would have thought that Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, the odds-on favorite, would lose to this first-time candidate for office.

I didn’t realize until I read it this morning that Ted’s father emigrated from Cuba, making the Rubio comparison even more appropriate.

Glenn Beck rallied over 65000 in Dallas a few days ago, but the media ignored it.  I imagine more than a few of those attendees voted for Ted.

Sarah Palin’s support for Ted solidifies her standing with the small-government-social conservative crowd (as if her cred needed any support).  Given VP Cheney’s “mistake” remark of a few days ago, I would say that the mistake was NOT the selection of Sarah Palin, but the nomination of John McCain.  Perhaps the GOP-e will learn the lesson of yesterday’s Cruz victory:  conservatives will no longer be silent and watch the establishment destroy the country we love.

Oh BTW, today is Chic fil a Appreciation Day.  Go enjoy a chicken sandwich.

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