Fort Hood vs Tucson

Both the Fort Hood (November 2009) and Tucson (January 2010) massacres were tragic. But I can’t resist the temptation to compare how the media and their political cronies have treated each event.

Shortly after the Fort Hood massacre, the President, his political base and the media were promoting caution about condemning the gunman because he was a Muslim, I.e., political correctness.

Starting immediately after the Tucson shooting, the media’s ‘talking heads’ and members of the President’s leftist base were blaming the recent anti-big government rhetoric coming from the ‘right’ for motivating the gunman with an “aura of hatred”.

There is no doubt they were talking about the Tea Party and others (like myself) who are growing increasingly concerned about the growth of the federal government and the out-of-control spending.

The President is scheduled to speak soon at a memorial service for the victims of the Tucson shooting. If he is smart, he will condemn the blame game rhetoric coming from his own political base and focus only on this tragic event and the victims.

So, I guess we’ll see which is more important to him…political gains or unifying the country.

A True Irishman

(As I'm still pissed at the March 21 Congressional shenanigans that passed Obamacare, I offer the following classic Irish joke. I'll save my political venting until later.)

A True Irishman

One day an Irishman, who had been stranded on a deserted island for over 10 years, saw a speck on the horizon. He thought to himself, 'It's certainly not a ship.' And, as the speck got closer and closer, he began to rule out the possibilities of a small boat or even a raft.

Suddenly there emerged from the surf a wet-suited black clad figure. Putting aside the scuba gear and the top of the wet suit, there stood a drop-dead gorgeous blonde! The glamorous blonde strode up to the stunned Irishman and said to him, 'Tell me, how long has it been since you've had a cigarette?'

'Ten years,' replied the amazed Irishman. With that, she reached over and unzipped a waterproofed pocket on the left sleeve of her wet suit, and pulled out a fresh pack of cigarettes. He takes one, lights it, and takes a long drag. 'Faith and begorra,' said the man, 'that is so good, I'd almost forgotten how great a smoke can be!'

'And how long has it been since you've had a drop of good Irish whiskey?' asked the blonde.

Trembling, the castaway replied, 'Ten years.' Hearing that, the blonde reaches over to her right sleeve unzips a pocket there and removes a flask and hands it to him. He opened the flask and took a long drink. 'Tis nectar of the gods!' stated the Irishman. 'Tis truly fantastic!!!'

At this point the gorgeous blonde started to slowly unzip the long front of her wet suit, right down the middle. She looked at the trembling man and asked, 'And how long has it been since you played around?'

With tears in his eyes, the Irishman fell to his knees and sobbed; 'Sweet Jesus! Don't tell me you've got golf clubs in there too!'

Witch Hunt?

Over the last few weeks, I’ve been wondering about something that I have not yet noticed anywhere in the media.

Fact 1: With federal bail-outs, the federal government now owns a substantial portion of the US auto industry.

Fact 2: Most of the labor unions in this country have always supported Democratic candidates and helped the current administration get elected. In this case, I’m speaking of the United Auto Workers union.

Fact 3: Consumer Reports has always rated Toyota, Nissan and other foreign cars higher than most cars made in the US. They are rated higher in reliability, safety, resale value and overall economy. This is unfortunate, but it is a fact. Consumer Reports does a far better job of thoroughly investigating and comparing vehicles than anyone else, certainly true when compared to whatever the federal government does.

With the recent and alleged “issues” with some models of Toyota and Nissan, I have the following comments:

Historically, there have always been many more recalls of American-made cars than foreign-made cars. Example: my wife and I own a Ford Explorer and a Nissan Maxima. We’ve received several recalls on the Ford and have yet to receive a recall on the Nissan. I have friends whose American cars are constantly in the shop for the latest recall.

The federal government, the auto unions and the media have teamed to “demonize” foreign-made cars to scare the American public away from foreign cars and towards American-made vehicles. If this attempt is successful, the union jobs are retained and the federal government makes a profit.

Speaking of the federal government making a profit….does anyone else think that this situation is a major conflict of interest…?

And, as always, the mainstream media continues to be just a group of public relations firms that favor the current administration. They are totally devoid of any independent thinking.

I would love to buy only American-made vehicles. However, as a consumer, I must look out for my own best interests and foreign-made vehicles are just a better value in cost, reliability, safety, economy and resale value.

So, it is my conclusion that what we are seeing with Toyota and others is nothing less than an overtly blatant “witch hunt”.

The People Have Spoken

January 19, 2010

As I sit here watching the results of the Massachusetts special election to fill the U.S. Senate seat vacated by the late Ted Kennedy, I couldn’t help but reflect on a few things:

It could be said that the initial concept of this country was founded in Massachusetts.

As we all know, this concept eventually led to our current form of government. One of the ideals of this new type of government was the “balance of power” between the Executive Branch, the Judicial Branch and the Judicial Branch.

It would appear that the good people of Massachusetts viewed the current situation as I do, that the abuses of the current administration and Congress were “out of balance” and true balance was desperately needed if this country was going to survive.

I have said for many years that I feared another revolution may be needed to return our government to what Abraham Lincoln described as a “government of the people, by the people, for the people….".

Today’s election results have encouraged me that “we the people” can take back our government through honest and fair elections, as our Constitution delineates. If a historically Democrat state like Massachusetts can elect a Republican senator, then I know that my ideals are shared by many others.

I can’t wait for the November mid-term elections.

Truth In Video

How Long Do We Have..? (Part 2)

(Click on map for better viewing.)

Professor Joseph Olson of Hemline University School of Law, St. Paul, Minnesota, points out facts of 2008 Presidential election:

Number of States won by:

Democrats: 19

Republicans: 29

Square miles of land won by:

Democrats: 580,000

Republicans: 2,427,000

Population of counties won by:

Democrats: 127 million

Republicans: 143 million

Murder rate per 100,000 residents in counties won by:

Democrats: 13.2

Republicans: 2.1

Professor Olson adds: "In aggregate, the map of the territory Republican won by Republicans was mostly the land owned by the taxpaying citizens of the country. Democrat territory mostly encompassed those citizens living in government-owned tenements and living off various forms of government welfare."

Professor Olson believes the United States is now somewhere between the "complacency and apathy" phase of Professor Tyler's definition of democracy, with some forty percent of the nation's population already having reached the "governmental dependency" phase.

If Congress grants amnesty and citizenship to twenty million criminal invaders called illegals and they vote, then we can say goodbye to the USA in fewer than five years.

(Please reference my post of October 26, 2006, for more from Prefessor Olson and Professor Tyler's definition of democracy.)

True Stories

True Story No. 1

Many years ago, Al Capone virtually owned Chicago . Capone wasn't famous for anything heroic. He was notorious for enmeshing the windy city in everything from bootlegged booze and prostitution to murder.

Capone had a lawyer nicknamed "Easy Eddie." He was Capone's lawyer for a good reason. Eddie was very good! In fact, Eddie's skill at legal maneuvering kept Big Al out of jail for a long time.

To show his appreciation, Capone paid him very well. Not only was the money big, but Eddie got special dividends, as well. For instance, he and his family occupied a fenced-in mansion with live-in help and all of the conveniences of the day. The estate was so large that it filled an entire Chicago City block.

Eddie lived the high life of the Chicago mob and gave little consideration to the atrocity that went on around him. Eddie did have one soft spot, however. He had a son that he loved dearly. Eddie saw to it that his young son had clothes, cars, and a good education. Nothing was withheld. Price was no object.

And, despite his involvement with organized crime, Eddie even tried to teach him right from wrong. Eddie wanted his son to be a better man than he was. Yet, with all his wealth and influence, there were two things he couldn't give his son; he couldn't pass on a good name or a good example.

One day, Easy Eddie reached a difficult decision. Easy Eddie wanted to rectify wrongs he had done. He decided he would go to the authorities and tell the truth about Al "Scarface" Capone, clean up his tarnished name, and offer his son some semblance of integrity. To do this, he would have to testify against The Mob, and he knew that the cost would be great. So, he testified.

Within the year, Easy Eddie's life ended in a blaze of gunfire on a lonely Chicago Street . But in his eyes, he had given his son the greatest gift he had to offer, at the greatest price he could ever pay. Police removed from his pockets a rosary, a crucifix, a religious medallion, and a poem clipped from a magazine.

The poem read: "The clock of life is wound but once, and no man has the power to tell just when the hands will stop, at late or early hour. Now is the only time you own. Live, love, toil with a will. Place no faith in time. For the clock may soon be still."

True Story No. 2

World War II produced many heroes. One such man was Lieutenant Commander Butch O'Hare. He was a fighter pilot assigned to the aircraft carrier Lexington in the South Pacific.

One day his entire squadron was sent on a mission. After he was airborne, he looked at his fuel gauge and realized that someone had forgotten to top off his fuel tank. He would not have enough fuel to complete his mission and get back to his ship.

His flight leader told him to return to the carrier. Reluctantly, he dropped out of formation and headed back to the fleet. As he was returning to the mother ship, he saw something that turned his blood cold; a squadron of Japanese aircraft was speeding its way toward the American fleet.

The American fighters were gone on a sortie, and the fleet was all but defenseless. He couldn't reach his squadron and bring them back in time to save the fleet. Nor could he warn the fleet of the approaching danger. There was only one thing to do. He must somehow divert them from the fleet.

Laying aside all thoughts of personal safety, he dove into the formation of Japanese planes. Wing-mounted 50 caliber's blazed as he charged in, attacking one surprised enemy plane and then another. Butch wove in and out of the now broken formation and fired at as many planes as possible until all his ammunition was finally spent.

Undaunted, he continued the assault. He dove at the planes, trying to clip a wing or tail in hopes of damaging as many enemy planes as possible, rendering them unfit to fly. Finally, the exasperated Japanese squadron took off in another direction.

Deeply relieved, Butch O'Hare and his tattered fighter limped back to the carrier. Upon arrival, he reported in and related the event surrounding his return. The film from the gun-camera mounted on his plane told the tale. It showed the extent of Butch's daring attempt to protect his fleet. He had, in fact, destroyed five enemy aircraft.

This took place on February 20, 1942 , and for that action Butch became the Navy's first Ace of W.W.II, and the first Naval Aviator to win the Congressional Medal of Honor. A year later Butch was killed in aerial combat at the age of 29. His home town would not allow the memory of this WW II hero to fade, and today, O'Hare Airport in Chicago is named in tribute to the courage of this great man.

So, the next time you find yourself at O'Hare International, give some thought to visiting Butch's memorial displaying his statue and his Medal of Honor. It's located between Terminals 1 and 2.

So what do these two stories have in common?

Butch O'Hare was "Easy Eddie's" son.

(Pretty cool, huh?)