Read This

Good read on having a conversation regarding gun control.

I do see a problem though. Liberals couldn't see any of the facts mentioned if those facts slapped them in the face.

Following A Truck

This is the first in a series of articles that I am going to post regarding my experience driving a truck and how those I shared the road with can be safer around big-rigs.

During my year as a truck driver most of my encounters on the road were benign and not worthy of mention. However, there were enough bad encounters that it is worth mentioning them here.

I don't plan on typing about each one, the list is too long for that. Rather I am going to highlight a few and try to educate you how to best handle sharing the road with those of use who drive a truck.

Following too closely is probably one of my pet peeves. I never liked it when I drove a car and I certainly don't like while behind the wheel of an 18-wheeler.

As a considerate human, you should be concerned that the driver of the truck might not be happy with you. But you should also be aware that following too closely behind a truck is right down-right dangerous.

Gun Control Derangment Syndrome (Correction)

(Correction at the bottom)
First of all, before I get into the meat of this post I want to make clear that what happened in CT last Friday was a tragedy that I cannot begin to describe. I do not have the ability to put the words on paper (blog) that can convey how much this event has hurt, even though I have no connection (other than a human connection) with the people who have suffered a loss as great as losing a child.

When I heard about the shootings I will admit that two thoughts ran through my mind. The first and foremost was to say a pray to our Lord to provide strength to those who suffered a loss. At church today one of our deacons said a prayer for the people of CT and there wasn't a dry eye in the house.

The second thought was how long would it be before the media and those on the left (I know, I repeat myself) tried to exploit this for their anti-gun platform. Sorry to say it didn't take long. I know most of you have seen this stuff so I won't repeat here.

Ammunition

Haven't been posted much at all lately. New job is keeping me pretty busy plus I don't have ready access to a computer most days.

Ran across an article over at Legal Insurrection that I just had to link to. I will provide a few details here:

-Bush Tax Cuts for the Rich: 13%, for the middle class: 33%

-The top "1%" paid $84 billion more in taxes between 2001 and 2008. This despite an overall decrease in the tax rates. Funny how it works; when you let the people that spend money to make money keep more of that money (less tax), they tend to spend even more money to make even more money. Liberals pundits derisively call this trickle down. But let's face facts: When rich people spend money to create more money, it tends to create jobs for the rest of us. (More below)

-The bottom half of taxpayers paid $6 billion less from 2001 to 2008. This decrease occurred even though middle class wages were on the upswing. The decrease in middle class wages is only a recent development. Oddly enough, this wage decrease has occurred over the past four years. Lines very precisely with Obama's firsts reign of terror.

-Tax revenues went from $793.7 billion in 2003 to $1.16 trillion by 2007. Again, this was an increase in tax revenue despite a tax rate decrease.

Really Sad

I cannot believe that I live in a country where there are so may people who cannot see the forest throguh the trees. This nation is headed towards a benevolent dicatorship and all people can think about is their damn I-ph0nes and their next latte.

Over the past weeks I have talked with several people who would be considered liberal. I would ask them one question. What has Obama done to deserve another term? Not a soul could answwer that question with anything other than the standard tripe about how it all boils down to Bush's fault.

The press used to call Reagan the teflon President. But he couldn't hold a candle to Obama when it comes to nothing sticking to him. What does it take for these people to change their minds? This guy has two major scandals brewing that would have brought down a Republican. A lesser scandal brought down Nixon. At least the crap that Nixon pulled didn't cost five (and maybe more) American lives. Our economy is in absolute shambles and this guy goes golfing. The engine that runs our economy (samll businesses) have been running scared for four years and as a result they are not hiring. So I guess more of the same can be expected.

I just cannot image what this country is going to look like in four more years after Obama is done. Is gas going to be seven dollars a gallon? Will 7+% unemployment be the new normal? Will our grandmothers and grandfathers receive adequate medical care?

People, I truly fear for our once-great nation. I fear we are going the way of the Romans and England. The 20th Century was the "American Century". The second decade of the 21st Century will be the century history will record as when that "Shining City on the Hill" no longer shined as bright and was no longer the beacon of freedom.

Sorry to be such a downer tonight but I can't help myself. I really do feel as if half of my fellow countrymen/women have decided that greatness no longer matters.

Retraction? Not Likely

Through my e-mail I receive "cheat sheets" from various news organizations filled with links from around the web. As you might imagine, most of them are from the conservative side of the spectrum. But in order to keep a pulse of the left side of the aisle I also receive these daily updates from a few left-leaning organizations.

One of those is the Daily Beast. Oh, they try to pass themselves off as a balanced purveyor of news tidbits, but all one has to do is read what they send and it doesn't take too long to figure their objectives and agenda.

The other day the Daily Beast provided a link to a news story at USA Today about how a woman, in Louisiana, who happened to be black, was set on fire and her car deface with "KKK" on the hood. This woman receive burns over 60% of her body. A real tragedy. It didn't take long for the race hustlers to let loose with cries of racism, targeted mostly at the Tea Party and those who beleive in limited government and would like Preisdent Obama to be a one-termer.
 

Dem Donor Shows True Colors

I guess when you try to be the all-inlcusive party you are going to get a few nut-jobs.

The woman referred in the link article is referred to as the crazy lady in some circles, is a big democrat contributor in both local and national level elections. She has given over $60,000 to democrats running in local elections here in Washington State and she has also given money to the Obama campaign.

Not only is she a dem contributor, but apparently, if you judge by her recent statements, she is also quite the anti-Catholic bigot.

Michelle Malkin has the full story and related links here.

UPDATE: I have removed the individual's name because she has a history of taking people to court and I don't want to be one of her victims.

Trucking Images Four

These next images are a little closer to home and taken after I had been given my own truck. These are taken from good views points at a few locations that I found interesting.

These images were taken on I-82 between Yakima and Ellensburg, WA. While the decent isn't terribly steep, that it traverses the side of the slope, giving a wonderful the whole way down is what makes it interesting to me. I took these from a veiw point at the top.

Trucking Images Three

This group of images was also taken last Feb, only now we are in Montana.

This is on the road from Cut Bank to Kalispell.

Note the mountains to the right.  This is Glacier National Park. Very nice.

 

Trucking Images Two

This next series of photos was also taken on a California trip.

I spent part of my childhood in northern Cali in a city called Redding. Was there from 4th grade through the beginning of 9th grade. We did a lot of great things there; Camped, fished, hiked, etc. While I do bash on California A LOT (and deservedly so), I really did enjoy my time in Redding. Keep in mind that when I was there it was before the majority of the people in California got stupid and started electing people like Jerry Brown (the first time), or taxing the snot out everything that did and didn't move.

I also learned to ski there. I think it was the Christmas of my 7th grade year. That year my "Santa" present was a complete package of lessons, ski rentals, lift tickets, and transportation to and from the mountain. The mountain I learned to ski is featured in this next group of images.

This first grouping was taken from the north side of Mt Shasta, just after leaving Yreka, CA. This area is one of my favorite areas on the face of the planet. These images don't do it justice. Even though California has been governed by stupid people for the past 35 years I would live here in a heart beat, if my lovely bride would agree to it, which she won't. I like the million mile and dollar views. I have priced real estate here and it really isn't too bad.

Done Truckin'

Well, there is some good news from PACNW Righty. I will be changing jobs. I will no longer be a truck driver.

However, I will be staying in the transportation industry.

While the hours of this job really won't be any better than driving a truck, the pay is certainly better.

My time on the road was interesting to say the least. It was not a job I really enjoyed. Too much time away from home for too little pay. While I won't be fixing the time away from home issue, the pay issue will be solved. One thing I discovered; while I drove a truck for a living, but would not consider myself a trucker. For all the men and women who do this for a living, are good at it, and enjoy it, my hat is off to you!

While I was out on the road I was able to take a few images from time to time. I will post a few of those in the tonight. the one very positive thing I will say about trucking is that the view from my "office" couldn't be beat.

These first and second series of images were taken while I was in training. During this period my trainer and I were what was called a team. Basically this meant the truck was constantly moving other than for fuel and other quick stops. The images were taken while my trainer was at the wheel and I was getting ready to bunk down in the sleeper.

This first group was taken last Feb as we were making our way to California. We hit snow just south of Roseburg, OR and had to chain up a couple of times as we climbed and decended a series of mountain passes with the highest at just over 4,000 feet.

Right after we chained up and getting ready to head over the first pass

Decending the final pass into California. We have just crossed over the highest point on Interstate-5. Please excuse the blue color on this and the next image, I was trying to get artsy. As you can tell "artsy" is NOT a strong suit.

The Big Shutdown

Ya just gotta wonder when the Chevy Volt hits will finally stop.

First it was the spontanous combustion, then it was the melting power cords. Now it seems there to be this tiny little problem of the volt shutting down for no apparent reason. Well, other than piss-poor engineering, no apparent reason.

If a burned down garage sin't enough. And if a pool of melted rubber isn't enough. Well then, I guess Your Volt shutting down in the middle of traffic should convince all you greenies out there that the Volt really is the car for you. Here's hoping that your Volt shuts down while on the way to the polls next week.

These are the kinds of things that happen when a technology that isn't ready for prime time is forced upon the American public by an administration that is trying to kill the coal, gas, and oil industry.

Public saftey be damned, there are trees and unicorns to save.

BTW: thanks Doug.

Lefty Civility

Back when I first started this blog about two years ago I gave some thought to having a section or a separate blog detailing just how civl the left can be when it comes to politics. This was during the tragedy in Arizona when then-Rep Giffords was shot along with several others, including six dead. We all recall how the left-wing blogs exploded with accusations towards the right/Tea Party, including specifically naming Sarah Palin as a primary culpurit, for espousing violent rhetoric.

As we soon found out, the Arizona shooter was more left-leaning than he was to the right.

Anyway, I really thought hard about putting this separate blog together when Deb over ar "Nice Deb" decided that was exactly what she was going to do. She and exchanged a couple of e-mails on the matter and seeing that she was much better organized than I could ever hope to be I thought it was best just to leave this project to her.

Her blog is called "Moonbattracker" and I hope it is in your list of favorites.

This recent story needs to be highlighted. Seems that a son of a Wisconson Senator was beaten for trying to keep some Obama supporters from destroying some Romney signs. Deb has the full story with images and other links.

I also received an email form a good friend of mine who is spending his retirement on the road with his lovely wife. The email contained a link to an interesting story that further highlights the civility of the left. Apparently there are many on the left that think threatening riots and assassinations if Romney is elected is wonderful political discourse. Reader warning, some of what has been displayed within the linked story is quite graphic. Deb has also put this story on her Moonbat Tracker blog. Some of these people are quite disturbed.

Ah yes, the civility of the left just continues to amaze me.

You Didn't Build That!!

I know the events that inspired the making of this video are dated but I couldn’t resist putting it up. Thanks Denny!

Joe Bein' Joe

A few years ago, while deployed to Iraq, I had the opportunity to meet VP Biden. I was doing a late morning workout at the gym and in walks this guy wearing a baseball cap while in Army PT gear. Not only did this guy have a hat on but he was wearing it backwards. Although I was not in the Army (USAF-Retired), I had been posted to many Army support assignments throughout my career (AF provides some specialized support) and had been in combat with them a few times. Hence, I had a working knowledge of what is and isn’t permissible with respect to the wear of the Army PT uniform. Hats are verboten, even those worn backwards.

As I approached the guy to provide guidance on the prpper wear of a military uniform, thinking he might be Army Guard due to his age, I realized that I recognized him. Took me a moment to place him but once I did, I was actually pretty excited. I have always though Joe Biden would be a great guy to share a few brews with and talk about football, fast cars, and faster women. Everyone is aware that Uncle Joe can say some pretty outrageous things and what better way to loosen an already loose tongue that with a beer or two.  Never would I vote for the guy, but that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t tip back a cold one with the guy and swap a few lies.

After getting a chance to talk with him for a while I began to realize that he was a little weird. He was certainly affable enough and was quite friendly, even after I told him Obama was pretty far down my list (He asked). All I can really relay to you was just having a weird feeling after I walked away. Until yesterday I have never been able to put my finger on it. I just recall thinking this dude was one missed heartbeat away from the Presidency and not liking it one bit. And truthfully, it wasn’t politics.

After last night’s debate, this feeling returned, and this time that weird feeling crystallized. The guy is a goober, plain and simple. How else does one explain laughing while serious points about Libya, where four Americans were murdered, are being made by Congressman Ryan? While Obama got absolutely crushed in Denver last week, at least he remained somewhat professional. Biden was clearly off his rocker. After the debate (actually about half way through) I decided that sharing a beer with this goofball was no longer on my bucket list.

Other than the obvious, the one thing I took away from this debate was how cool Ryan was under pressure. It was mildly surprising that Ryan didn’t reach across the table and slap the dude on the back of the head. I know I wouldn’t have been able to constrain myself.

Here is a recap of “Joe bein’ Joe” from the RNC.

Presidential "Firsts"

Over at Director-Blue, Doug has been running a post that he updates periodically that highlights all of the “firsts” that have occurred in the ongoing four-year disaster that we call Barack Obama’s first (hopefully only) term as President.

I love this post because it gives you great ammunition to take on those Obama-living liberals. Doug gives you facts, which is something that can completely befuddle a liberal and cause their head to explode. Oh, I’m sorry, was that a violent image? Of course, I am speaking figuratively, not literally. Because if actually exploding heads were really the outcome of fact-based arguments, it would pretty gory out there.

For some reason, the actual page is not loading properly on his site. It could be an issue on my end. So, in the interest of getting this to you I am going put a decent portion here. Hopefully Doug won’t be too upset with me. And here is the link to the entire page just in case it is an issue on my end or Doug is able to fix it.

Because the number of historic “first” keeps expanding by leaps and bounds, Doug has decided to break them down by category. As far as I can tell, this categorization is also a first. Without further ado:

LAW AND JUSTICE:

Barack Obama is the first President…

Protest i.e. Break the Law, Get Rewarded

Some of you might recall a post I did regarding a pepper spray incident that occurred at the University of California-Davis. Late last year several Occupy “Something” protesters were peppered-sprayed by UCD cops after the protesters, who were “camping” without a permit, and who refused to depart when told to do so. Initially the event was covered as a point of possible police overstepping their authority. Later, it was discovered the protesters had been asked and warned several times. Furthermore, one of the protesters clearly stated their goal was to get pepper-sprayed by the cops, knowing full well a compliant media would give the protested every benefit of the doubt.

Well, those very same “we are the 99 percent” protesters have won a million dollars from UCD. Read details and commentary here.

Has it really come to this? You break the law, you suffer the consequences, and then you get paid?

And here is another example of being rewarded for breaking the law. Prof. Jacobson has covered this incident rather thoroughly. Take a moment or two to read all.

True Obama

I know that the vast majority of my readers are not supporters of President Obama. You are conservative minded, and while not necessarily strong supporters of Mitt Romney, you certainly like his ideas much, much more than you like Obama’s.

But occasionally I get a liberal-minded individual who passes through my little section of cyberspace. Some of you stay around for a bit, reading through some of what I have posted. Others see the lead-in banner and disappear, never to come this way again.

In this latter group there is one or two who have Obama-remorse but don’t know quite how to overcome the feelings of guilt or can’t get over the hump of admitting that you might have made a mistake. You are asking yourself, how can a change my vote after supporting this guy four years back. While I can’t put myself in your shoes, I think I can at least empathize with your troubles.

I am here to help you out.

Take a gander at this series of stories posted at the Washington Examiner. I readily admit the Examiner is a right-leaning newspaper (much needed in DC), but this series, while lengthy, does a fairly decent job of balance. Yes, the viewpoint is to the right, no question, but at least it does take the time to cover issue the supposed unbiased main stream media won’t cover.

If these articles don’t give you an idea of who the true Barack Obama really is, then there really is no changing your opinion.

So get a cup of coffee and a doughnut and please take the time to read the articles.

Why Is It Even Close?

Good Grief!

How is it even possible?

Obama: 48%

Romney: 46%

OK, the recent dem convention probably gave President Obama a bump. But how is it that he has ever been ahead in the polls?

I find it very disheartening.

UNEMPLOYMENT

Unemployment is at 8.1%. And this is the rate among those actually LOOKING for work. It does not account for the millions who have basically given up until conditions improve. Real unemployment is closer to 12%.

Think about that number people!

One out every six able body Americans are out of work. In some places like California it is close to every one out of five people can’t find a job.

GOVERNMENT DOLE

45 million people are on food stamps. Yes, Barack Obama is the food-stamp president, Al Sharpton and all the other race-hustler be danged.

The number of people “needing” government assistance through the food stamp program has nearly doubled over the past couple of decades, a significant portion of that increase occurring during King Barack’s reign.

The US population is a bit over 300 million. We currently have about 12% of the population on some sort of food stamp program. And while I might have been a bit cheesy in the above sentence regarding folks “needing” government assistance it is a bit odd that the percentage of real unemployed and the number of folks on food stamps dovetails. Related?

SLOW, SLOW, SLOW Blogging

For all the folks who posted comments and I didn’t get them up on the blog I have to apologize. I don’t blog like I used to as my trucking job keeps me away from the computer for weeks at a time.

We also experienced a death in the family. My father-in-law passed away suddenly at the beginning of August. Because of his burial wishes services had to be delayed until the end of August.

I am not going to promise more posting because it just isn’t going to happen. But I will continue to try as best as I can. Hopefully, you are already a follower or will become one so you can catch my infrequent updates.

Non-Government Workers Forced to Join Government Employee Unions?

This is beyond scary.

Could you ever imagine if you were a small business who conducted business with a state government, or received some form of government assistance to conduct your business, that you would forced to pay union dues?

According to the story linked above, that is exactly what some government worker's unions are trying to do, and have done already in a few states.

Great New Site

Folks, if you like Professor Jacobson's Blog, Le-gal In-sur-rec-tion you will also enjoy this new site: Col-lege In-sur-rec-tion.

The site puts a spotlight on where we are sending our children for their higher education.

It is worth a gander or two or even more.

Please pay it a visit.

California Just Doesn't Get It

For those few of you have followed my blog over the past couple of years you are aware that California is a state which is not high on my list of places that I would want to live. There are some places that such as Yreka that catch my eye, but I temper my desires with the knowledge that it is still in the state of California and governed by the boneheads from San Francisco and the LA Basin.

Linked here is an excellent article by Victor Davis Hansen that pretty sums up how the boneheads in San Fran and LA have completely screwed up a state that at one time was the world’s fourth leading economy.

It also highlights, in my opinion, the hypocrisy of the leftist-led environmental movement. The left screamed that water rights to the Central Valley farmers needed to be cut drastically or eliminated completely over a tiny little three inch fish. I am not so heartless that preserving the environment is a worthwhile endeavor; I really do think there needs to be a balance. And we are smart enough to make it happen. But it seems to me that the leftist are never interested in working to achieve this balance; they are only interested in what they want, consequences to humans be danged.

A Response

Patrice over at Rural Revolution has put together a great World Net Daily column about why young people should seriously consider getting a vocational education rather than going into debt for a college degree. Her points are very valid and I happen to fully agree with her. College isn’t for everyone and there are plenty of jobs out there that don’t require a college education and they pay well enough to support a family.

But there are some folks who don’t agree. In fact, there was a comment from “twosidedtruth” that caught my eye. I was going to respond to his/her comment but it got rather lengthy and decided to make it a blog post (The first in over a month).

2-Sided, three points that I'd like you to consider. First, if you look back at the history of the Great Depression you should note that when FDR put in place those high tax brackets on the rich an economy that was showing signs of recovery hit the skids once again. In 1937 the top rate was raised to 79% and the economy plunged as investments dried up in 1938. It took a war to bring about a recovery (although that was artificial as proven by the severe dip after the war).

Seattle Paper "Digs" Romney

Interesting story from the Seattle PI. The Seattle PI is the more liberal of the two major newspapers in the Seattle area, the other being the Seattle Times which could be considered more middle of the road. Worth noting is that the Seattle PI ceased publishing an actual newspaper, with only an online version, a few years ago while the Times continues with both print and lonline versions.

In the story linked above, it seems that a Super-PAC is trying to smear one of the democrats running for Congress. In an interesting twist, the Super-PAC supports the rival democrat candidate.

The most interesting aspect of the story (IMO) is the dig at Mitt Romney, who has no dog in this fight what-so-ever. As a liberal rag, the PI just could resist putting in this little bit.

The slick mailings have made largely untrue claims about DelBene’s business record. She is a former vice president at Microsoft who resigned as state revenue director to make her second bid for Congress. The latest tries to make DelBene look like Mitt Romney. (Emphasis mine, says PACNW Righty)

Very curious that the PI doesn’t even bother to say mention that the charges leveled against Romney by the Obama administration regarding Romney, Bain Capital, and the Salt Lake City Olympics have proven to be false.

Maybe they were trying to say DelBene looks and acts presidential? But then again, maybe not?

Obama Tells SCOTUS - Screw You

Well, not actually those words.

This administration gets more and more lawless at every turn.

I won’t even begin to recap all of the steps outside the Constitution Obama and those who work for him have taken during the 3.5 years he has been in office. Rather, I will point you here for a decent rundown.

Now we have them basically telling the SCOTUS to take a long walk off a short pier.

Today, the SCOTUS ruled that a good chunk of Arizona’s Illegal Immigrant law (which mirrors the Federal law) was unconstitutional. Won’t rehash the details here, but it basically boiled down to the states stepping on federal toes. However, they did allow the teeth of the law to stay put. That will allow Arizona law enforcement officers (LEOs) to question, and check, the immigration status of folks they come in contact with during contact (speeder pulled over can have their immigration status checked).

So what does the Obama Administration do? Within hours of the SCOTUS releasing their decision on the Arizona law Department of Homeland Security tell their enforcement agencies not to cooperate with Arizona LEOs on matters pertaining to immigration status checks. This will make the efforts of local agencies to conduct immigration checks nearly impossible since the databases of that kind of information is under federal jurisdiction.

According to the Department of Homeland Security, DHS officials in Arizona have been directed no to respond to the scene of a state or local stop or a similar law enforcement encounter upon the requests from state and local police officers for assistance in enforcing immigration laws unless the individual meets DHS enforcement priorities – is a convicted criminal, has been removed from the US previously and reentered unlawfully or is a recent border crosser. (Source: KPHO)

Beyond unbelievable. This group has decided that as long as they are in office, they will use any means necessary to achieve their unconstitutional goals. They continue to further divide this nation with each and every unconstitutional act.

I will be real curious to see what the response will be if the SCOTUS declares Obama unconstitutional. Will Obama use another Executive Order to make an attempt to overrule the SCOTUS decision?

I also wonder if Obama and his crew see the writing on the wall as to how much longer they have in office. Are they making these moves, knowing full well their time is short and they want to do as much damage as they possibly can before it all over in Jan 2013?  What more is in store before the year is up?

Matthews Is An Idiot

Video from Mediate.com

I can’t understand how anyone who is supposed to be smart enough to be on TV to commentate on events can really be this stupid.

But the more I think about it the more the realization burns through that it really isn’t stupidity on his part that makes him say things like this. It is the people his is talking to. Matthews can say things like this knowing full well that no one in his audience will bother to check the truth of the charges he is making. Actually, he is playing it smart.

Does he bother to mention that the framers of the Constitution put mechanisms in place to get rid of slavery? While he does mention the 13 Amendment, he discusses it like it was done to overcome the mistakes of the Founding Fathers, rather than using the amendment process, which founders put in the Constitution for just such a situation.

Of course, there is no way he would mention that it was the democrats who tried to filibuster the Civil Rights Amendments. Nor would he bother to mention that Republicans were to ones to lead the charge to get the Amendments passed in the first place. And would he mention that it was a Republican President who wrote the Emancipation Proclamation that actually freed the slaves. And lest we forget, it was democrats who wrote nearly all of the Jim Crow laws that essentially put blacks back on the plantations.

But Matthews can say all of these things because he knows that the VERY few people who watch him will not bother to check his statements. They will blindly believe whatever he says and take it as gospel that it was Republicans/Conservatives who are/were the racists.

Liberal Rag Posts Allen West’s Home Address,Picture

Liberal Rag Posts Allen West’s Home Address,Picture


This kind of thing really bothers me a lot. Why would someone post the address of a Congressman other than to put that person's life in danger. I do like the point made at the link. Did the jacka$$ consider that he might very well be putting Rep West's family in danger?

Does Mr. Obama Disrespect the US Flag?

Of course this was NOT reported in the lame stream media but it appears that our First, ahem, Lady, Michelle Obama completely and utterly disrespect the US Flag.

Lip readers have said that it appears that she is saying “All of this for a flag.”

I think what bothers me even more was the response from her husband. He smiles grimly and nods. Almost as if he is agreeing with her stance on the matter.

From the “For the first time I am proud to be an American”, to the “clinging to their guns and religion” comments and his initial refusal to wear the US flag lapel pin and his startling lack of ability to connect with US Troops we keep getting reminds of just how far off the main stream this guy really is.

Why the upcoming election is even close right now is beyond me. I do understand why there is a segment of our country that will vote for this guy no matter what he does. But for all you middle of the roaders out there who just want to live your lives, standing on your own two feet, it completely baffles me why you’d even consider voting for this guy once more.

Someone Is Really Upset

Very good “Afterburner” from Bill Whittle.

Follow the Ideology basically makes a very compelling case why President Obama and US Attorney General Holder developed and/or allowed Operation Fast and Furious to happen.

There is no question the dude is pissed.

Women are Women (And I Love It)

I know that most of my readers are fans of Patrice over at Rural Revolution. In fact, most of you probably came from there when Patrice was kind enough to provide me with some linkage.

If you are a fan of hers, then you certainly read her article on WND regarding equal pay. I would like to add a few observations from my point of view on this subject matter.

I really think she hits the spot and the evidence she provides is empirical fact. I know that when I have held discussions on this subject matter with my left-wing mother, these facts tend to bring the topic to a close because she can’t refute them. Facts are stubborn things.

But I would also like to add my own thoughts based on many years of experience. As you are aware, I spent a long time in the service of this great nation (it was an honor). And my observations are based on this time. I would also like to add these thoughts are my own, and in no way official military policy or stance. Not that military officials would touch this with a ten foot pole, but I felt I needed to add this to keep my butt out of sling (even though I am now retired).

Walesa Persona-non-Grata

This is rather stunning.

A guy who could be considered the father of modern day Poland is considered to political to be a visitor to the Obama White House.

Way back in the bad old days of the Soviet Union and the Iron Curtain there was an electrician who led many, many protest against Soviet occupation and the corrupt Communist Polish government. For his efforts he was arrested many times. He led a movement, Solidarity, that could be given as much credit for the end of the Soviet Union as President Reagan’s policies. He was a labor union leader.

Leah Walesa was deemed to political to be seen in the White House.

Polish leadership had requested Walesa accept Medal of Freedom on behalf of Jan Karski. But they were rejected. Too political.

So, still think Obama is a great foreign policy president? In a matter of a few days Obama and his staff utterly piss off an entire nation of 38 million. First to break was the snafu of calling the Nazi concentration camps “Polish death camps”. I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt on that. I mean, let’s face it, Obama is only as good of a speaker as his speech writers are. If he speech writers are not willing to do a tad bit of research, we can’t expect Obama to do any better. Jeez, that is what staffs are for. As a leader (and I am not calling Obama a leader), you expect your staff to make you look good. You hire people you expect will cover your backside. But this was a mistake of his staff, not of Obama’s.

But to turn down Lech Walesa, a union leader for goodness sake, is just plain bad form. But I guess they had to weigh his union activities with the fact that Walesa helped bring down the Soviet Union, a form of government many in the Obama administration undoubtedly admire.

Unemployment Ticks Up

The May unemployment numbers are in and they are not good. Only 69,000 jobs were created which was well off the “expected” 125,000+ thought. And the unemployment rate rose started to move upwards once again to 8.2%.

All in all, not good news for President Obama with an election only a few short months away. So far, Obama has presided over a very weak economic recovery, probably one of the weakest recoveries ever. Even during the dark days of the Great Depression, once we started to come out of it in 1935-1936, recovery numbers were much better than this. Of course, with unemployment near 30% any upward movement was good.

The question now becomes whether Romney can articulate his vision into something the voters will relate to. Can he convince voters that he is the answer to the problems in the economy? Most of you know that I am not a Romney fan, but I am firmly planted in the “anyone but Obama” camp. I am concerned of his flip-flops on several issues such as the 2nd Amendment and his “evolving” stance on abortion. But I cannot question his experience when it comes to what matters most to folks right now and that is his business acumen.

I really don’t think Obama has a clue how to recover this economy. His socialist views on the world and how to make things work doesn’t really work well in getting a stagnant economy running once again. He has tried clean energy and that has failed terribly. Almost a trillion dollars thrown into the pit of Solyndra and other companies with nothing but bankruptcy and job losses to show for it. Locking away mineral resources that could provide jobs by the hundreds of thousands and reduce our reliance on terrorist-sponsoring governments. Energy prices that are expected to skyrocket over the next few years as the EPA puts crippling regulations into force.  And don’t forget Obama Care. Not exactly the recipe for job and economic growth.

But Obama sure does look good and speaks well (as long as the teleprompter is working) and isn’t that all that matters?

If I have any liberal readers out there, could you please provide any form of rebuttal. Please give us examples of what “The Chosen Once” has done that has been good for the economy. But before you go down the stimulus road as your example, please remember that nearly all of that money was wasted paying off favored donors and pet projects. The sex habits of grizzly bears and the aforementioned Solyndra fiasco isn’t exactly what an economic recovery is made of. And he himself has said that projects weren’t exactly “shovel ready.”

Could Schools Ban Cell Phones?

If you haven’t seen the video below, you have most likely been living in a cave. But I am sure, dear reader, that you are aware. But I am not posting this as news, but as a reminder.

Plus, how long do you think it will be before schools ban cell phones in the classroom? The incident above could very well been considered a watershed event, exposing leftist and socialist teachers for what they really are. Now, before I get a bunch of comments from teachers, please note that I do know there are many teachers out there that able to maintain their neutrality and get the bias from the classroom, or have conservative values.

I know that the kind of recording that took place in North Carolina last month could embolden others to do the same thing. And while I think we may be coming close to crossing a line, keeping teachers in line who believe the classroom is for leftist manipulation is a good idea. The possibility of being recorded by a student might go a long way towards these kinds of teachers from spending too much time praising the “Dear Leader”.

But, you and I know that the teachers unions have immense power and will do everything possible to keep these records from happening. How long will it be before a school district bans the phone from the classroom? Has it already happened? How long before it more than just an isolated district here and there?

Conservative Blogger Jailed

Last Friday I posted this little article about some of the harassment being experienced by conservative bloggers from a convicted domestic terrorist. It was mostly just links to several stories by these bloggers. The blogger that is pretty much front and center of this whole fiasco is a certain fellow (and his family) from Maryland. Well, it seems that this individual has been taken into custody and placed in jail.

Read the whole story here.

Absolute miscarriage of justice if you ask me. This is a freedom of speech issue and the Maryland judge has probably violated his 1st Amendment rights.

Not only has the individual and his wife have lost their jobs through what are mostly likely lies and deceit, but he will now have a record.

Probably the scariest thing about all of this is the possibility that other could also be jailed just for speaking their minds on certain subject matters. If you are any sort of student of history, does any of this give you a moment of pause? While our current sitting President probably had nothing to do with the judge's ruling, the current atmosphere of tramping down opposing views by both the White House (Attack Twitter, since deleted) and the lame stream media's absolute silence on this issue probably gave the judge the impression that his ruling would go unnoticed.

There are times when liberty dies a sudden and voilent death (Think Germany mid 1930's) and other times it dies slowly due to a thousand little cuts (think America now).

Crybaby

All I can say is: WAAAAAAAAAAA.

You lie in the world you create.

Chris "The Thrill" Matthews created this world as one of the leftist media’s greatest Obama fans.

In the video he tries to answer an interview question regarding the “thrill” episode back before the 2008 election (coronation?) of President Barack Obama. He spends an inordinate amount of time trying (and failing) to put “the thrill” into context. Matthews should have been a politician. Just like the rest of them he is incapable of just a simple "yes" or "no" answer, which was requested by the host.

Watch the original below. Oh, and please note the slobbering by Keith “I keep getting fired because I’m an Idiot” Olbermann at the beginning of the clip.

Blogburst (Harassment Issue)

Over the past few weeks and story has been developing in the blogging world that I thought you might be interested in reading about. If you are like me and spend time reading many different blogs, you are probably already aware of this story. If you don’t spend much time on line, this story is something you really need to see to believe.

It seems that a convicted felon has been harassing bloggers who dare blog the truth about his past and current activities. This guy has a history of violence, being convicted of a string of bombings back in the early 1980s, one where a man was so severely injured that he later took his own life. In the present, there are some questions whether his non-profit organization is completely on the up-and-up. Details about all of this are within the links provided.

I am not going to rehash it all right here. Since my blogging has had to take a backseat to making a living I haven’t been part of what is going on. And even if I had been able to blog, I’m not so sure that I would have taken on this story.

The level of harassment experienced by these bloggers is some to behold and should shake your sense of freedom to its core.

But rather that spend much time on it, I am going to provide you with some links that I think you might find interesting.

Over at Patterico’s Pontifications, the writer describes a harrowing event that nearly got him killed. If you think that is hyperbole then I don’t think I can explain it to you any better than Pat can.

Another blogger and his family were forced to abandon their home after an associate of the convicted felon called the workplace of the blogger’s wife.

Probably the most detailed accounting of harassment committed against a blogger is here at this link. Due to the nature of the harassment and the people who are doing it, the employer of said blogger, and his wife, were fired from their jobs. The employer was fearful that the harasser would do something at the job site.

As always, Michelle Malkin has a great rundown and plenty-o-links to go around.

Many have called President Obama the “Apologizer In-Chief” and for very good reason.

Who can forget this image of the president bowing to the Saudi King?

Or when he bowed to the Japanese Emperor?

Or how about how about when he apologized to Muslims during a speech in Egypt early in his presidency?

So, could anyone image him, or anyone in his administration, saying anything like these folks below?

In the early 1960’s Charles DeGaulle, President of France, told JFK’s Secretary of State Dean Rusk that he wanted all US military presence gone from France after France pulled out of NATO.

Rusk responded, “Does that include those who are buried here?”

Not a big fan of Colin Powell since he voted for Obama after flirting with a run at the presidency as a Republican a few years back. I have wanted to ask him if he voted for Obama because of his policy positions or for another reason. I mean, why would a long time Republican suddenly decided that a Socialist-Democrat had all the answers?

When in England at a fairly large conference, Colin Powell was asked by the Archbishop of Canterbury if our plans for Iraq were just an example of ‘empire building’ by George Bush.

Powell answered by saying, “Over the years, the United States has sent many of its fine young men and women into great peril to fight for freedom beyond our borders. The only amount of land we have ever asked for in return is enough to bury those that did not return.”

There was a conference in France where a number of international engineers were taking parts, including French and American. During a break, one of the French engineers came back into the room saying, “Have you heard the latest dumb stunt Bush has done? He has sent an aircraft carrier to Indonesia to help the tsunami victims. What does he intend to do, bomb them?”

A Boeing engineer stood up and replied quietly: “Our carrier have three hospitals that can treat several hundred people; they are nuclear powered and can supply emergency electrical power to shore facilities; they have three cafeterias with the capacity to feed 3,000 people three meals a day; they can produce several thousand gallons of fresh water from sea water each day; and they carry half a dozen helicopters for use in transporting victims and injured to and their flight decks. We have eleven such ships; how many does France have?”

This one is my personal favorite:

A US Navy Admiral was attending a naval conference that included Admirals from the US, English, Australian, and French Navies. At a cocktail reception, he found himself standing with a large group of officers that included personnel from most of those countries. Everyone was chatting away in English as they sipped their drinks but French Admiral suddenly complained that, whereas Europeans learn many languages, Americans learn only English. He then asked, “Why is it that we always have to speak English in these conferences rather than speaking French?”

Without hesitating, the American Admiral replied, “Maybe it’s because the Brits, Canadians, Aussies and Americans arranged it so you wouldn’t have to speak German.”

This next one isn’t exactly the same as above but I wanted to include it anyway. Anytime anyone tweaks the noses of the French I gotta love it.

Robert Whiting, an elderly gentleman, arrived in Paris by plane. At French customs, he took a few minutes to locate his passport in has carry on.

“You have been to France before, monsieur?” the customs officer asked sarcastically.

Mr. Whiting admitted that he had been to France previously.

“Then you should know enough to have your passport ready.”

The American said, “The last time I was here, I didn’t have to show it.”

“Impossible…Americans always have to show their passports on arrival in France,” snorted the snotty French customs official.

The American senior gave the Frenchman a long hard look. Then he quietly explained, “Well, when I came ashore at Omaha Beach on D-Day in 1944 to help liberate this country, I couldn’t find a single Frenchman to show a passport to.”

Memorial Day is fast approaching. For many out there, this is the start of summer. But for a rapidly dwindling generation, it is time to remember those who did not come back from Europe or the Pacific Theater. I want you to remember not only those who we left behind more than 65 years ago but those that did come home. There aren’t very many of them left and if you have a chance to say thank you, please take a moment out of your day. You’ll be glad you did, trust me on this.

Take Care Where You Park

Something a little different for you folks to read today.

As many of you know I am now driving a truck for a living. It is not exactly what I want to do with my life, but I have to put bread on the table and for the time being this what I am going to do.

So in addition to blogging my thoughts on politics and whatnot, I will also include some of my thoughts about being on the road and upload a few pictures when I can.

Some of the thoughts I will have might rub some of my readers the wrong way because I am going to complain about some of the things that I witness out there on the road. When you read this I want you to remember something. I will probably put more miles on the road in one week then you will in a couple of month. Think about this, on an average day, I will do about 500 miles. That is an average week for many of you.

The other day I was waiting on my turn to get a load of bagged seed loaded into my trailer. It was beautiful day in Eastern Washington. The sun was out with a light breeze. The location was in an obvious industrial area with many small manufacturers and similar businesses up and down the several streets. At one point this car pulled up and stopped on the side of the street and stayed there for about 30 minutes.

No big deal, right?

Actually it was a big deal.

The person had decided to park right in a location that was used by truckers to gain some space for getting their rigs in and out of a loading dock.

Here is something for you to remember: If you are in an industrial area, and this includes businesses that serve the agricultural community, take care where you park. If you see an area along the sides of the streets and roads that look heavily worn and compacted keep in mind that this was mostly likely caused be trucks repeatedly crossing over that area as they enter and exit the local businesses.

Some will claim ignorance of how all this operates and that is fine. But in the case of the person I saw parking in situation described above, I know full well they were aware of where they were at because one of the employees of the seed business came out and got their lunch from the driver. In the time this person was parked there, one truck tried to exit the dock. They were able to get the rig out, but not after backing up twice just to make the corner. And the driver of the car did nothing to help, didn’t even offer to move.

If you don’t see other cars parked in these worn areas, take heed. The space is well worn for a reason. Please notice where the cars are parked and make every effort to park there. Those spots are so designated for a reason.

Occupiers Hit Seattle

Well gang, today was May 1st, the day that all communists and socialists celebrate for reason that are sort of unclear to me.

Because the Occupy “Something” movement is rife with communists and socialists supposedly fighting for the 99% they decided that a day celebrated in the old Soviet Union, Warsaw Pact nations, North Korea, and others who have a decidedly leftist bent in their philosophy that May 1st was a great day to kick off the 2012 Occupy movement.

As could be expected, the leftist colony that is Seattle and King County, suffered through their idiocy on this fine May day.

Windows at several Wells Fargo branch were forced to shut down due to shattered windows.

Nike Downtown also suffered a similar fate.

The protesters also set a small fire in front of the US Court of Appeals and also nailed it with paintballs. Interestingly, this court house is probably one of the more friendly venues for leftist/progressives as this court has a decidedly liberal lean.

A Porche Ceyenne was spray painted with anarchist symbols.

One thing that really doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to me why would these people do these kinds of things in a city that is renowned for their liberal and progressive leanings? The Seattle area has over a million people, a goodly portion of those folks would gladly proclaim their support for any and all causes liberal. Yet here the Occupy folks are going downtown, destroying property that more than likely belongs to people who, if they don’t outright support them, then at least have sympathies for the Occupiers.

If the Tea Party had demonstrated in the same fashion, do you think the 2010 midterm elections would have gone the same route? Not a chance. We tend to shed people who are extremists; we minimize them as quickly as we can. Take the knuckleheads who make up the white power group. They support many of the causes we do. They want smaller government, they don’t want their gun rights taken, they want traditional families. But they are too far out there for anyone who is mainstream conservative to even given them the time of day. Because of the way we have distanced ourselves from these kinds of people, they have really ceased to be anything more than a bad curiosity. Yet many of the folks who had damage done to their property and so forth will say nothing to push these people further into the reaches of nothingness.

I would also like to point out that Seattle has two main newspapers: The Seattle Times and the Seattle PI. The PI is left leaning while the Times tends to be more middle of the road. Guess which newspaper sent out updates via e-mail notices to their subscribers.

I really like this post over at Doug Ross’s site.

He basically takes the word “Totalitarianism” and breaks it down piece by piece to show you how Obama and his administration are functioning. I wonder if people knew this was the “change” that was referred to during his campaign if he would have won the election.

I have had this queasy feeling for quite some time about how Obama does things. Doug really does a good job of putting it together for you.

If I Wanted America to Fail

This video has gone viral.

If I Wanted America to Fail

Very powerful!

So powerful that Twitter temporarily closed the organizational account of the folks who produced the video. They blamed some sort of spam filter. Give me a break!

And if you listen closely, you can hear nearly every economic platform of the left and progressives.

At the altar of Obama!

There was a time that the environmental movement was something worthwhile. I think we can all agree that clean water and air are admirable and, as has been proven, achievable goals. But the conservation movement has been hijacked by extremists hell bent on shutting down any form of economic use of lands that could provide plenty.

One of the more interesting moments in the video, from a personal standpoint, was the Spotted Owl. Back when the whole save the spotted owl movement was killing high paying jobs in the PACNW, my father worked for the Forest Service. He was involved with the whole spotted owl issue. He was an advocate of further study as he was concerned that the numbers were being skewed in favor of the environmentalists. While my father was not a biologist by training, he was smart enough to be able to read the reports and study the data. And the data didn’t support the view the public was getting from the media and the “other side.” It showed not only was the spotted owl number declining because of predatory animals (there is always a larger predator), but the spotted owl’s favorite meal actually liked the more open space created by logging. He argued that if had open spaces surrounded by forested land, the spotted owl would thrive. This has turned out to be the case. The spotted owl has thrived, not in the old growth forests, but on lands that get logged.

When he saw that the environmentalists were going to win this battle, he decided to retire. He didn’t quit because he was a quitter, rather, he saw the writing on the wall. When he first joined the FS, it was an organization dedicated to multiple uses for our National Forests. The forest lands could provide jobs, recreation, mining, logging, wilderness areas, and be all things to all people. But the culture of the FS was changing, become less multi-use and more focused on extreme environmental issues. The spotted owl issue was the final straw, so to speak.

What is Going On?

NOTE: This post is going to raise some hackles. It is related to race relations, but it is not from the perspective that you are used to. And if you are a racist looking for a place to spew your hate, you have come to the wrong place. If you want to post a comment, go ahead, I will just delete it. Or better yet, I'll post it just so others can see how ignorant you are.

So, do you suppose that Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, and the NAACP will speak about what has just happened in Montgomery AL? It seems that a crowd of black men beat a white man senseless, beating him so badly that he was admitted to the hospital in critical condition. After the beating ended a witness said that she heard one of the assailants say "Now that's justice for Trayvon," referring to the teenage boy shot and killed in Fla this past winter.

I doubt very seriously this is going to make the nightly news on any of the major networks nor will it see the front page of any major newspaper.

I don't know if it just me but it seems like race-relations are deteriorating at a rate that concerns me. Over the past several years there have been several cases of crimes against another race and it seems like those cases are on the rise. In recent weeks we have seen an uptick in actual and threatened black on white violence. The incident in Montgomery is just the latest, triggered, in part, by the Trayvon Martin tragedy.

None of my liberal readers will be surprised that I lay the blame for this deterioration squarely at Obama's feet. When he did not order the Justice Department to go after the Black Panthers for illegally putting a bounty the individual who is now charged with killing Trayvon, it had to have sent a signal to the more radical elements with in the black community that it was OK to target those who they felt had done them wrong. There have been other incidents during this administration that has emboldened the more radical element in the black community to strike out, sometimes with violence. Think back about the events surrounding the "beer summit" and the dismissal of voter harassment charges against the Black Panthers.

I know first hand that there is a segment of society, black, white and Latino, where there is a festering sore of racism.

Several years ago I was attending a professional development course in Shreveport, LA. There is no way one could miss the simmering tensions between blacks and whites. Twice during my six week stay I witness it first hand. And it was not white racism towards black, but the other way around.

In my first few days there I was playing in a softball game. The team I played for was made up of all Air Force members. Most of us were white, but we did have about four blacks. The team we were facing was entirely black. During the game I never even gave the make up of the teams any thought at all. That soon changed. At the conclusion of the game I headed over to the dugout of the opposing team to shake their hands, as has been customary in any softball league I have ever played in, whether it be the local "beer league" or a highly competitive traveling team. As I approached the dugout one of the players looked up at me and said "What the F**K do you want white boy?" Other players joined in with the name calling and veiled threats. I just turned around and headed back to my dugout. One of my teammates basically told me that teams that are not diverse don't shake hands.

The other incident occurred towards the tail end of my six weeks. For anyone who is a college football fan, Eddie Robinson is a name that stands among the legends of college football coaches. For nearly his entire career, Robinson coached at Grambling State University, a traditionally black school. He was bringing his Grambling State Tigers into Shreveport to play NW LA Tech. I couldn't pass up a chance to see a legend in action, especially since it looked like his career was coming to a close. So I gather up a few friends and we went. Or should I say attempted to go. When one of my friends (who was also white) and I were crossing the parking lot, the level of hatred directed towards us had me utterly baffled, and frankly, quite scared. Scared is a normally reaction when receiving threats of violence if we attempted to enter the stadium. Needless to say, I did not get a chance to see the game.

I make these points to show my readers who might not be aware, that racism runs both ways. There is no question that racism from whites towards others does exist; I acknowledge that. But it also runs in the opposite direction and to ignore it or to say it isn't possible is just the wrong attitude. But the media does not cover it to any degree. It is not part of the progressive narrative to show that a racist attitude has nothing to do with your skin color. You don't have to be white to be a racist.

I have no desire to further drive a wedge that will continue to separate us along racial lines, I'll leave that to Obama and his Justice Department. I just wanted my readers to be aware that we need to recognize that unless something is done soon, relations are going to pass a point where the damage to to great to repair. I personnally don't ever want to reach that stage.