Tuesday, July 30, 2013

A quick lesson on taxation.

We all would like to think that the money that our government takes from us through taxation goes to a good cause, well at least some of us do. Let me give you a brief history on taxation and how it has gone terribly wrong. Originally taxes were asked for as a way to pay for safety, education and basic infrastructure of communities. Safety through police, fire and rescue and armed forces, education through schools, and BASIC infrastructure like roads. This is where it lived quietly for 100+ years in America. America saw great growth in the late 1800's, early 1900's and taxation as we know it today began in 1913 with the 16th Amendment.

That's when it went to shit.

Don't get me wrong, America still enjoyed explosive growth over the last 100 years, but we have also watched a tax system grow so far out of control that no ONE United States citizen knows it. In 1913 when the 16th Amendment was ratified, there was 400 pages in the federal tax code. That tax code now encompasses 74,000 pages of taxation. One of the principals that was argued originally was transparency in the code. Citizens were to know where the money that was collected was put to use. Now we have no idea what that money is used for, where it goes and have little recourse to change it. The 16th Amendment that allowed huge beneficial infrastructure projects (Hoover Dam, Interstate System) also created a bloated, money hungry machine that can't control itself. Our government routinely 'loses' billions and billions of dollars and still we have people that profess support for this broken system.

I'm currently writing this blog from Washington D.C. Did you know that 6 of 10 of the wealthiest counties in the United States are all within spitting distance from D.C. ?  How about that the median income in this area hovers around $113,000 while your median income sinks below $50,000? This is a fact that they don't want you to know! Nothing to see here folks, move along. Would it surprise you that 11 of the top 16 richest politicians are Democrat? Like I said...nothing to see here, we're one of you! They keep telling us that the rich are bad people why? Because they profit on division. They profit on conflict. We are feeding the machine and we're doing exactly what they want us to. The Democrats that rode to victory on class warfare were playing for the other team! They are stealing our money and giving it to their friends and family, don't believe me, it's all out there on the net. Read it for yourself.

Now, let's get one thing straight, politics are not a team sport. It doesn't matter if your Republican, Democrat, Independent or Green. If your an American you should be equally outraged that these people take your money and give you little to no value on your return. They promise you everything you want, spend enough of the money they take to retain the status quo and blow the rest. We see little change in our lifestyle, but stand idly by as they mortgage our children's future. It's not us that will feel the pinch, it's not us that will suffer, it's the future citizens of the United States. Our children, our children's children and so forth. This government takes what it can and borrows the rest. Then it TELLS us how we should feel about those cuts while they drink champagne and look down from their gilded towers.

So, next time you see the news and feel compelled to write a comment status on Facebook about it...think before you do. Are you picking a side? Are you doing exactly what they want you to do? Are you furthering THEIR agenda? Do you have any friggin' idea what your talking about? DO ANY OF YOU ACTUALLY KNOW WHERE YOUR MONEY IS GOING?

Don't be a sheep. We need honest people in Washington, too bad it's not hip to have principles and convictions. Instead our people vote in slick talking snake oil salesmen like Barry Soetoro. 

That's my two cents, spend 'em or put 'em in the dish for the next person.

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Obama's Action August

So, the democrats are putting together another round of campaign style 'informatics' that will call our attention to the real problem (in their eye), the economy. More like pull our eyes away from the train wreck that is this administration. They want us to dismiss the 'republican manufactured' issues like Benghazi, the IRS, Fast and Furious and the Detroit bankruptcy. Let me get this straight, all of the problems in the last 12 years have Bush written all over them according to the liberals, however, all the aforementioned problems had democrat oversight. Even more than that, these debacles had democrat COVER UPS! They can try and sugar coat it all they want, these are their issues and they own them. Bring on Action August, I'm betting that even the people that ate the bullshit with a big spoon are starting to get a bad taste in their mouth.

Let's talk about the economy that Obama would like us to focus on. He comes out and states to the nation that "Things are getting better" and "Unemployment is falling". I can easily sum that up in the words from a readers 16 year old grand daughter. She said, "Why does HE have to tell us that things are getting better in our country ... shouldn't we know it? ... shouldn't we feel it? because I don't think things are getting better..." When I read that it actually lifted my spirit. A 16 year old that understands that things don't improve just because the President is telling us it is. Parents, heed my words: Teach your children that everything comes with a price. NOTHING IS FREE. In order for them to eat, have a roof over their head and clothes on their back someone had to pay. Whether that comes from a service you provided to an employer, or money that you get from the government, someone somewhere paid. It either comes from a wage or a tax. Teach them that getting something for 'free' if they are able to get that themselves then they should pay it forward sometime. Karma is a fickle bitch, stay on her good side. 

Obama spews out numbers, but he's cooked the books. The numbers he spoon feeds the masses are numbers that are generated by asking a certain question. When he says that unemployment is 7.6 he's looking at the number of people that APPLIED for unemployment insurance. What about the people that don't get an unemployment check that just stopped looking? Or the folks that suddenly found out they suffered from a disabling condition and applied for SSDI even though the worked with that same condition for years, but now can't find suitable work? Go ahead...look up those statistics. They are out there to see, just a little difficult to dig up. http://www.bls.gov/news.release/laus.nr0.htm is a good link to start. Notice that the states with the highest unemployment rate voted Democrat? How about the U-6 number? Doesn't look so friggin' rosy does it there Barry? Ain't been below 8 since G.W. was prez, bet that stings a bit!

Chart is generated for a range of 22 year only
Unemployment rate U-6 2000-2013


The state I call home has surpassed the employed vs people who rely on government balance. There are now more people on the state than work in my state. This is a key point in this state's history. Do we climb out of the mire and create an economic atmosphere in which our children can work and live? Or do we start the downward spiral that has claimed once great cities like Detroit, Michigan and San Bernardino, California? We have a governor that has been called an obstructionist, but what do you do when the scales have turned in the negative?

Sometime in the near future, there will come a time when the government is going to have to say no. When that time comes, all these people that have come to rely on the handouts will be the ones to suffer the most. We the productive people of the United States are getting to the breaking point of being taxed to death. Pretty soon even the people low on the pay scale but high enough to be taxed like they are well off are going to start acting like the rich and hiding their money. The amount of tax revenue will continue to slide into the abyss which will trigger some screwed up liberal scheme to grab more or kick the can down the road by borrowing. This kick the can mentality is exactly what did in the cities that have and will claim bankruptcy.

I'm headed to Washington DC for some sight seeing in a couple of days, if any of you useless pricks in the White House read this blog, how's about hitting ol' Barry up for a meet and greet? I'd love to sit down and tell him what I think of him and his band of merry idiots right to his face! Maybe even try some of that beer that he makes in the basement, but if it tastes like the shit he's feeding us it's probably no good. Don't worry about me being a security risk, I'm a big softy, 250lbs 5'6'' and a knee that acts up from time to time. The only thing dangerous about me is my words, because I know what your up to and I intend to keep on running my mouth til I draw my last breath.

That's my two cents, spend 'em or put 'em in the dish for the next person.

Saturday, July 20, 2013

Detroit is our future

The bankruptcy filing of Detroit us just a taste of things to come. Decades of mismanagement by politicians who gave people what they thought they deserved instead of being good stewards of the peoples money. Now a once great city is a burned out shell of it's former glory. The Motor City is no longer running on all cylinders. What was once the fourth largest city in the United States has falling into ruins. 1.8 million people at it's peak now barely cresting 700,000. 80,000+ distressed and abandoned properties.

How did this happen? It's simple, greed. Not greed from the big bad corporations that all the liberals seem to love blaming. Greed from people who didn't want to work for their 'just rewards'. During times of economic boon unions held a knife to the throat of the businesses and municipality to cement benefits and pensions long into their golden years. Benefits that at the time seemed sustainable. Benefits that were very, very lucrative to employees yet didn't account for future economic adjustments. The results are what we see now, large municipalities filing for bankruptcy protection from those same UNFUNDED LIABILITIES.

Unfunded Liability is defined as: The amount, at any given time, by which future payment obligations exceed the present value of funds available to pay them. For example, a pension plan's payment obligations, including all income, death and termination benefits owed, are compared to the plan's present investment experience, and if the total plan obligations exceed the projected plan assets at any point in time, the plan has an unfunded liability.

I worked in a union, so before any of my unionized readers start running your pie hole, I saw the waste and abuses that run rampant. And, to up the difficulty rating, I worked in a SMALL union operation. As a matter of fact, the very same union that Congressman Mike Michuad worked in, although Mike didn't work all that hard. My boss at the time told me all Mike ever did was punch in and politic on the phone with his feet up and I'll be damned that's all I ever saw him do too. It took them over a year to get rid of a guy that showed up drunk for his shift all the time. There was a guy that walked around with a box all day to make it look like he was busy. There was a guy, that I shit you not, could sleep standing up! And guess who the union spent all its time defending? The sick, lame and lazy. I was told by older guys that they didn't have to work hard, that I was last in first out (hiring order). Seniority ruled so a lot of the older guys did little to nothing. They were safe. Us young guys had to pick up the slack or we'd be the first out the door. And those bastards had the nerve to call the bosses greedy.

So, since these companies started to notice the young people busting their asses and the older ones gearing up for their big fat negotiated pension plans, they found it more lucrative to close up shop and move away. How can we blame them for that? The problem in Detroit was that these big bad companies were the ones paying the lion's share of the taxes in that city. So, when they packed up and moved, so did their money. And workers. And their money. The municipality kept right on chugging along like nothing was going on. Spending money on projected tax earnings that were based on the big bad companies hanging around spending their money and the workers hanging around and spending theirs. It has taken years for it to catch up to them, but it has...in a big way. Now, before you jump up and down, look up Detroit's liabilities. Over $12 billion of the $18.5 billion debt they are hoping to get bankrupcy help with are directly related to employment liabilities.

But...

In the heyday of Detroit the MUNICIPAL unions did the same thing that the big bad company unions did. Mandatory staffing levels, special pension rules (25yrs and 55yrs old full pension) lifetime medical benefits. Now that the city is a shadow of what it once was, these opulent benefits are crushing it under it's weight. The unions don't want to even talk about cuts. These benefits were hard fought and won (in a better time mind you). Women and men suffered in times of strike (when the company and municipality wasn't in a good position to bargain). The city made investments that someone ill equipped to judge investment potential and borrowed money for it. Some of those investments were never fully realized due to the mass exodus from portions of the city. Parks that were abandoned, infrastructure improvments no longer needed and other well-meaning yet poorly executed projects.

What does all this mean to me? I mean I'm from Maine and pretty much insulated from the sewage from Detroit. I'll tell ya what it means to me. I'm watching my federal government run the same way Detroit was being run. My federal government is hemorrhaging money so fast it has to have the Federal Reserve print $85 million a week and add it to the national money fund just to keep itself running. They are propping up a house of cards with more and more cards, eventually it's all coming down...just like Detroit. You know what the difference is between a criminal and a politician? A politician can steal from you and there is nothing you can do about it.

That's my two cents, spend 'em or put 'em in the dish for the next person.

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Never Let A Good Crisis Go To Waste

Sorry about the brief hiatus, it's summer, it's hot and I've got things to do! Lot's has happened on the American freedom front in the last few weeks, almost too much to cover! I think I'd like to weigh in on the Travon Martin / George Zimmerman verdict and how it pertains to the current and future assaults on our liberties. I don't absolve Zimmerman for his actions, nor do I absolve Trayvon for his. Their are only two people that really know what happened that night, to comment or pick sides with either shows your deep seated racism and ineptitude. To pick sides shows you believe you know more than the people involved and have special knowledge of the incident that enables you to judge. If that rattles a few people, and it may even cost me a few Facebook friends, good. It means your thinking and thinking is good. If you pick a side you have fallen right into their trap.

I've been watching the reactions of friends on Facebook to the verdict brought forth by judge AND jury in the Zimmerman trial. The people outraged by Zimmerman 'getting off scott free' far outnumber the people commenting on the law working the way it should. He was acquitted by a judge and jury. After all the evidence from both sides was presented he was found not guilty. In many other courts across this country this same scenario played out during the 500+ days that Zimmerman's name and Trayvon's picture was splattered all over news and social media, why didn't we hear about those? Why was Trayvon's death held up to a higher standard while we never hear about a 12 year old girl SAVES HERSELF with a gun? Because it flies directly into the face of the narrative. Because they aren't relevant to the dialog that this administration is steering us into. The administration are trying to foster an attitude that everyone should be unarmed, except them. I wouldn't be the least bit surprised that the administration's ammo grab and the resulting rush of citizens to buy guns and ammo numbers will be used in the future to somehow skew the view of an armed citizenry.

In order to call into question our 'rights' as citizens, first they need to have a reason to start to talk about it. It was Rahm Emanuel that coined the phrase "never let a good crisis go to waste". In a nation of 300+ million people, this administration has the good fortune to cherry pick their crises. Over 11,000 young black men were murdered in the 500+ days that the nation was focused on the Zimmerman fiasco. Why then focus on only one? It didn't take long to answer that question. Eric Holder came out of his bubble to question the Florida 'Stand Your Ground' law. This was specifically targeted because it's state laws like these that undermine the progressives march towards an UNARMED America.

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This tragedy was floated on the backs of thousands of dead young black men to further an agenda. An agenda that relies on racial division to perpetuate a myth that personal protection is not only unnecessary, it's dangerous. Eric Holder actually stated that it's laws like these that promote escalation to violence. What a joke. A responsible adult, carrying a gun to protect himself and / or his family doesn't go looking for a fight. It does however show that we are fed up and won't take shit from criminals.

I've said in the past that I'm not a conspiracy theorist and still believe that I'm not. Politics is like a chess game. You have to think many moves ahead in order to gauge your opponents strategy and adjust accordingly. In order to out think your opponent, sometimes you have to toss in nonsensical moves to confuse them. The only problem here is that the majority of people in the United States are not chess players and are easily confused. Even the worst strategist in the world could map out what this administration is trying to pass off. There are voices out there that are trying to get the point across that they are trying to fundamentally change our rights, but not enough are listening.

Trayvon Martin's death was a tragedy, but you know what the real tragedy is? Millions of people fueling a division within our own borders. A division perpetuated by an administration drunk with power. Thousands of young black men murdered in America and this one 'fits' the narrative to keep you salivating for their brand of 'change'. When, no longer if, America becomes the America they are steering us towards, it's the so called 99% that will suffer. The ruling class will live high on the hog. Mark my words.


 
That's my two cents, spend 'em or put 'em in the dish for the next person. 


Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Happiness

 I know this is a HUGE departure from my normal political musings, however a friend asked (challenged?) to be to outline my theories on the human condition in a blog. So..without further ado..


All human emotion is brought about by a series of chemical and electrical responses to external stimuli. All of our fears and emotional short-comings are learned behavior. It stands to reason that by recognizing triggers to our emotional responses we can indeed understand them and move forward in a perpetual state of happiness even in our, perceived, darkest hours. Or we can wallow in our self pity by succumbing to our fears and letting the darkness take over. All of our perceived problems, are given priority in our own head. Have you ever seen a baby play with a snake or a spider? They do so with a curiosity and innocence that has yet to learn fear of these animals. We have taught ourselves to be afraid, we have taught ourselves to make decisions based on these fears, these fears are irrational chemical and electrical responses brought forth by learned behavior.

Geraldine, my mother, died at the age of 60 years old. After many years of cancer she was well aware of her impending demise. During the final few years of her life she tried to find her answer to the universal question of "What happens to me when I die". During this search I spent many hours with her reading religious texts, talking about paranormal theory and trying to help her find her way. On my mothers journey, I found my own way. After reading all sorts of religious literature my mother came to the conclusion that they all pretty much outline similar ideals. (Except the
Quran, to equate fellow humans with animals simply because of non belief is just wacko.) They all tell us to be good to one another and we'll be rewarded with happiness. My mother felt that there was no afterlife. That the real happiness was here and now. That being good to people, especially yourself, was the reward.

The daily struggle we all endure here on earth is self perpetuating. Each decision is another learned behavior. We make decision based on emotion. Emotion is the chemical and electrical response to external stimuli. That external stimuli causes a response that is a learned behavior. There is NO decision in the day to day struggle that should drive you crazy. Tomorrow will come regardless of the decision you make so why let it drag you down? The mantra I have accepted is: I am insignificant. I am one of 6 billion. My contribution is only important to me, if my contribution effects others I will try to be a positive one.

So, to sum it up, we can either lead ourselves to happiness by recognizing our emotional responses and making decisions based on logic rather than emotion, or we can let our learned response make the decisions through learned behavior and continue the downward spiral into the abyss we build ourselves. Our choice. I've been told it's not as easy as I say, but is anything worth it ever easy? I've found happiness and it's my choice.

That's my two cents, spend 'em or put 'em in the dish for the next person.