Is Global Warming Finally Dead?

The Copenhagen Climate turned out to be just the wasteful jaunt it was widely predicted to be. It was just another attempt to establish a world-wide carbon market and loot the treasuries of industrialized countries of the world in an attempt to blackmail them into paying reparations to developing nations, third world dictators and potentates of poorer countries. The truth is that it was known in September there would be no climate agreement and that was solidified when the emails from England's CRU (Climate Research Unit) were exposed. The global-warmists are now in a desperate race to hold on to whatever veracity remains in the climate change charade. Very little was accomplished before President Obama got there and even less was accomplished after his arrival. Despite all the efforts by Obama's staff, a compliant mainstream media for whom Obama's success is vital, and the conference attendees themselves to convince us that Obama made a difference, his presence did not change anything of substance that had been decided on before he arrived. The claim that his mere attendance moved the conference forward is pure fiction and self-aggrandizing claptrap. The organizers of the Global Warming movement may have changed the name to Climate Change, but changing the name does change the character of the argument. We now know that Global Warming is a farce. The statistics were based on faulty models, tampered evidence and twisted logic all designed to develop a rational for marketing carbon dioxide, which is simply taxing the air. (Just follow the money) We know that the Earth’s weather patterns are always in a state of flux and despite their short term unpredictability the long term trends tend to remain the same and are based on the a wide variety of activities, the burning of fossil fuel being only one. No one is against cleaner fuels, cleaner water or cleaner air, but to try and make carbon dioxide, which is required for life to exist, the boogey man would be like trying to grow crops without water.

Climate Change = $126 Billion

If you want to know why investors and their media lackeys are hopeful about the upcoming Climate Conference in Copenhagen just think $126 billion in emission permits to be sold to firms that use energy. For this money they will lie, cheat, steal and exaggerate to get you to believe something will happen even though it's been known for some time there will be no binding agreement. They will be able to take this money from companies and the companies will pass this cost on to you. There you have it. Do you wonder why they are trying so hard to defend the recently uncovered emails, which The New York Times wouldn't publish because they may have been illegally obtained? Isn't that special? Legality did not bother the Times when it came to revealing intelligence concerning government wiretaps on America's enemies or the publishing of the now infamous Pentagon Papers. But it shirks at presenting data that disputes its long-held position on global warming despite the fact that there has not been any for more than a decade. Wake up New York Times. Wake up America.

Another Phony Deadline

If you listen to the media and the Democrats in Congress this is again the last chance for health care. If it doesn't pass this time it's done. The Democrats and their willing media lackeys want to create a sense of inevitability so that when the final vote does come it will go unnoticed. Well the truth is this is not the last vote. It's not even close. If this vote passes today it does not constitute anything but an interim victory. If it passes today, or should I say Saturday night, since Senate Leader Reid didn't have the courage to bring it to the floor during the week for fear the phone lines would melt, it still has many hurdles including a House/Senate conference and matching versions of the bill passing in both Houses. The media and Democrats have tried to put the obstruction of health care at the feet of Republicans, but really the debate is within the Democratic Party and the people of the country. If the Democrats were united and the people wanted the reform as proposed the Republicans are powerless to prevent it. The problem for Democrats is that the more people know about the bill the less they want it to pass. The bill is about putting health care in the hands of government. A government that has proven time and time again it cannot be competitive, efficient or innovative. Some examples include Medicare, Medicaid, Veterans Affairs, Indian Reservation Healthcare, Amtrak, The FAA and many others. Some readers may be confused when they see Medicare in this list, but the fact is that Medicare has $46 trillion dollars in unfunded liabilities so while it seems free to seniors, not counting the supplemental plans they must buy, it's not free and never has been. More and more doctors are refusing the take on new Medicare patients and if health care reform is passed this alone will be worse and not better. Despite all these obvious points the main reason for rejecting this reform package in its entirety is because it contains clauses that permit the Congress to opt out of the program, while requiring that everyone else takes part. That alone is reason enough for me. Melt those telephone and fax lines to your Representatives and Senators.

The Exoneration of Terror

In your heart you would like to believe that Attorney General Eric Holder would want the best for our country even if you disagree with the way he is doing it. But if you look at his decision to try five Gitmo prisoners in New York it is pretty difficult not to think he is aiming for the exoneration of the terrorists and the indictment of the FBI, CIA and the Bush Administration. On Friday night, while the President was in Japan, he announced a plan to try Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four others detained at Guantanamo Bay, in New York, just about a mile from Ground Zero. Is he kidding? I won’t argue the mitigating or aggravating aspects of his action (plenty of others are doing that) only that it will result in the exoneration of most of those defendants and could take 5 to 10 years to complete. Any good defense lawyer could get two years out of just seeking a change of venue and demanding sensitive material that could jeopardize national security, not to mention Miranda, torture, a previous lack rights, etc. You could spend the first five years on the preliminaries and never hear of single piece of evidence. And all this is not to mention “time served.” One of the defendants has been in military and federal custody for over a decade already. It is safe to say that most of these defendants will get minimal time and in some cases no jail due to time already served. And of course this will put them in a position to sue the United States on a variety of grievances. Holder is just giving happy talk when he says they will be convicted, and his confidence in the New York Federal Court is way overrated. A terrorist or spy has not been executed in New York since the Rosenberg’s. You also have to remember that Holder has been a friend of America’s enemies in the past. He fought hard for the freedom of the FALN terrorists and Mark Rich, a fugitive wanted by the U.S., all of whom were pardoned by Clinton. It should be noted that the law firm he worked for prior to becoming Attorney General was active in the defense of terrorists. From the moment he was sworn to uphold the Constitution of the United States he has tried to turn the Guantanamo Bay issue into an indictment of the Bush Administration and the CIA and has worked hard to poison the atmosphere by providing institutional support a for all lawyers making arguments against government conduct in the treatment of terrorists. His weak presentations against opponents of the U.S. and his failure to provide a strong defense on behalf of the government are a strong indicator of exactly where his sympathies are. There are those, like Holder himself, who says he believes that the courts can get convictions against these defendants, but the legal issues are myriad and surmountable for good defense attorneys. A good prosecutor, one that wants a conviction, would opt for a Military Tribunal.

Climate Conference Over Before it Begins

The upcoming Climate Conference in Copenhagen, Denmark, has been proclaimed a failure before the gates have even been opened. We are fortunate that most of the world, including our own government, is sensible enough to not destroy the goose that lays the golden egg for the benefit of a few. In this case the goose is industrial society and the golden egg is fossil fuel. Anyone who thinks otherwise is just daydreaming and the failure of climate change activists to handcuff the world's strongest economies is a stunning example of the world coming to its senses. A close look at the organizers of the conference demonstrates that they have financial interests in alternative energy and stand to make a fortune if some world-wide carbon trading scheme can ever be established. You can visit the site at http://en.cop15.dk/. See for yourself. As you read through their laughable efforts at reducing pollution you can see it is nothing but window dressing and wishful thinking. For example, the preposterous idea that by providing a million dollars to rebuild 20 old, inefficient concrete factories in Bangladesh makes up for the carbon footprint created by 20,000 people traveling to Copenhagen from all over the world. A million dollars would not cover the costs of demolishing the old factories even in a nation like Bangladesh; much less build 20 new ones. And this is only one of the many ideas offered to fool the participants and a media, whose understanding of basic biological processes is so scant they are incapable of intelligent analysis on the subject of climate change. For the time being we have been saved, but there is always next year.

I Stand Corrected.

In a previous post I noted that I thought that Hasan a traitor and that to me it didn’t matter that he may have been a terrorist. He could have been any sleeper agent or converted lunatic. The fact that he committed treason overrides any other considerations. Now it seems that is not quite right. There is now certainty that he as a terrorist, but he is still a traitor.

The Word is Traitor

Nidal Malik Hasan is a Major in the U.S. Army. He is not a civilian, not a jihadist, not a terrorist. First and foremost he is a traitor and he should be treated like a traitor. I have not heard this word use by anyone yet. Not the media, not the military, not even the President. Hasan should be court-martial-ed and executed for treason. There is no doubt about his guilt and no mitigating circumstance for an officer who wantonly kills his men. He not only took the oath of a soldier. He went the extra mile and took a commission. His major job was to protect the men under his command, even if that command was indirect. Enlisted men are trained to trust officers and obey their commands. The troops in the base were not expecting to have to defend themselves on their own base from one of their superiors. For the most part troops on a military base do not carry arms unless their specific duties or maneuvers call for it. Hasan was given every chance. He gave lectures in which he espoused the dictates of the Koran. He found beheading infidels and filling their severed heads with boiling oil defensible. He defended the activity of Muslim terrorists. He was permitted to continue on active duty. We now know he was communicating with terrorists and that it may have been known by others in the chain of command. If this turns out to be true they should also bear some responsibility. Enlisted troops must know they can trust their officers without hesitation and without trepidation that he or she may kill them when they are defenseless. Many men have cracked from the prospect of being sent to a war zone and react badly. It is an issue of personal courage and Hasan chose to go out in a blaze of jihadist glory and put the blame on the Army and America rather than himself. There is ample evidence that his attack was premeditated. We do not need to know the workings of his inner mind, his personal conflict about his role in the military, or whether or not he is a Muslim. The military accepted him despite his flaws and he chose to repay the military by killing and wounding unarmed soldiers who where at home and not expecting to have defend themselves against one of their own. He should be stripped of his commission and executed by firing squad.

It's Almost Over

Over the past several weeks the Democrats have been playing a little game. They have been trying to pretend they have passed health care so that when a version that passes both the House and Senate finally does come up for a vote the people will think it's already been done and that the final vote is just a formality when in fact it is the vote that really counts. It is all the votes that have taken place up to now that have not really counted. The five bills in Senate and the three in the House (or was it three in the Senate and five in the House?), were all meaningless committee and floor votes that only serve to begin the debate. All this hoopla, ceremony and histrionics over bills that are really meaningless is designed to stop you from paying attention to what they are doing. Even if the House of Representatives is successful in passing its health care reform package it must still go through the conference process with the U.S. Senate, which may not take place until the next Congressional session. And, most experts agree that if it goes into next year it's very unlikely to get passed by both houses and get to the President's desk. Congress may finally decide that it's better to do nothing than to make a mistake that could cost them the majority in 2010. Don't be fooled. Your freedom and our health care system are at stake.

The Party of Different

It is the fancy these days to call the Republicans the party of "no" on healthcare. Democrats and their toadies and lackeys in the mainstream media must feel that if they keep repeating it, it may appear to be true despite the false foundation it is built on. Republicans are not the party of "no" on health care they are the party of "different." One of the principle components of real reform is tort-reform. An idea vehemently rejected by Congressional Democrats because of pressure by the American Bar Association. This idea is part of a Republican proposal. Another principle component is to permit providers to sell policies across state lines thereby increasing consumer choice. The current law limits the number of companies that can sell in various states, which decreases competition and keeps prices high. A third important component is making such purchases tax deductible for individuals as they are for businesses. These three changes in the current law would have a dramatic affect on quality, price and availability. It would have a positive impact on those already with insurance and would make it more affordable for those who don't. These are the ideas that are ignored every day by politicians and journalists whose goal is to suppress these views rather than elevate them into the public space. It is just simpler to repeat the lie than to tell the truth.

Hey Larry; Write Any Good Jokes Lately?

Comedy writing is very difficult. That is why so often writers and comedians go for the cheap joke. The one that makes you laugh at the expense of someone who can be stereotyped. For example, just this past week Larry David put on a skit in which he accidentally urinated on a portrait of Jesus Christ and made a joke out of the fact that some people thought it was Jesus crying and constituted a miracle. HBO and his defenders say he makes fun of everyone and show no favorites. So I wanted to offer up a few ideas: How about a skit where a Muslim accidentally puts down his Koran in a men’s room and Larry comes in and urinates on it. Isn’t that funny? Or even better, how about one where Barack Obama uses the paper from a 10-page NY Times puff piece about him and the First Lady to get a fire started in a homeless camp. That would be a real funny one. I have more. Email your joke requests to gbuzz9@gmail.com

All Roads Lead to the Public Option

N o matter how the Congress and the President try to disguise their intention they plan to create a system of rationed care run by the government. Many in Congress have been waiting their entire career to accomplish this including Barney Frank, Nancy Pelosi and many others. They know that single-payer does not have the votes in the House or the Senate so they will change its name, call it what it is not and try any combination of devices to get it through. Witness the current situation. After getting a bill passed by the Senate Finance Committee they have moved the discussions behind closed doors and now plan to write the pubic option, which could not pass, into a new bill and call it the bill that passed. This "is the best path to get us to single-payer" according to Barney Frank, a long-time supporter of the Canadian system. So despite all current statements to the contrary this is where the liberals in Congress want to take us. With the Presidency and strong majorities in the House and Senate this is their best opportunity to do it. Take a minute and ponder this: we already have several examples of government-run healthcare including Medicare and Medicaid, veteran's hospitals and Indian reservations. It is well-known that those with Medicare must have supplemental plans for things not covered and we have all heard the horror stories of veteran's and Indians. Through the years Medicare has covered less and less, and supplemental coverage has cost more and more. Medicare has cut the reimbursement rate, which has resulted in many doctors and hospitals no longer accepting Medicare patients unless they carry supplemental policies. The current plan includes additional cuts in Medicare so it will only become worse. None of this is to even mention it has 46 Trillion in unfunded liabilities already. Add to this the myriad penalties, forced enrollment and increased regulation and there is no way such a plan could be deficit neutral or cost less. And finally, what is perhaps the most telling of all is that our Congress plans to exclude them selves from the system they are devising for us. Changing the name of the bill from National Healthcare to Healthcare Insurance Reform does not disguise the truth of what the government wants to do. The plan ends with a single-payer government run healthcare system, which history shows will destroy a healthcare system that is the envy of the world. Keep talking America. Let your Representative and Senators know how you feel. Keep those cards, letters and phone calls coming.

Men in White Coats

The Obama Traveling Medicine Show made a stop at the Rose Garden yesterday to help the President sell his healthcare reform message. There they were seated before and standing around him as he delivered the spiel of the day declaring doctors from every state supported his health plan. To prove it we were treated to a large group of lab-coated doctors in blazing white unused lab coats. The lab coats had never seen a hospital and it made you wonder if the doctors that were present had ever been in one either. After all you could be a doctor and never have practiced medicine. Say you were a Juris Doctor or a Doctor of Business Communication. You would be a doctor that never practiced medicine. However, it's not very likely that Obama would go such as great extent to trick the public. Oh yes, we know about the town hall plants, the predetermined questions, the orchestrated yelling, fainting, bussing and other activities that surround the President's activities. We here at thenewnarrative have been following the escapades of the Traveling Medicine Show since the end of the 2008 Democratic Primary. Given those things it's not likely he would try such a bush-league prank as dressing everyone up as a doctor. Or would he? Under normal circumstances the media would be asking questions, but with this President they just comply. So the questions remain: were all those present doctors or were just some of them doctors? How many of each? Is it just another illusion created to fool the crowd or can we take it at face value? Make your own judgment.

Obama Lets Iran Off the Hook

Iran got the best of both worlds this week when it forestalled any action on its nuclear ambitions, and will also get other countries to enrich much of its current un-enriched inventory of uranium, which it can use to create additional nuclear warheads for its missiles. You really can't make this stuff up. Perhaps if President Obama had flown to Switzerland instead of Denmark, the outcome might have been different. Any effort to portray the talks as anything other than a disastrous failure is an effort in futility and entirely dishonest. If the President wants to succeed with Iran he needs to fire a bunker-buster Cruise Missile right into the Qom facility tunnel entrance. The QOM facility is not even operational yet so it serves the purpose of providing a demonstration of force and also eliminates the possibility of radiation escaping into the atmosphere. The real work of enrichment goes on at the Narantz underground facility and the UN won't be permitted to go there. A Cruise Missile would be a meaningful message; "You stop now or else your Capital will be next." He has been fooled by his allies and snubbed by his enemies who are entirely unimpressed with his charm, wit and charisma. He either knows he is being played for a fool or he's a totally committed participant to the erosion of American influence in world affairs. As the star of the Obama Traveling Medicine Show he is a real pro, but as a world leader he is an amateur.

Let ‘em Fight or Bring ‘em Home

A military commander should never say its more important win the hearts of the locals than it is to kill the enemy. To say so publically for the enemy’s ears is to make the people and the soldiers on the ground fodder for a merciless enemy who kill the locals and kill our troops when they try to protect them. You wouldn’t expect such a pronouncement from General Stanley McChrystal, the former father of special ops singled out by George W. Bush for selection to the Joint Chiefs, unless of course the strategy is to reveal to the American people what will happen if we continue along the current path. Perhaps it is time to bring our troops home from Afghanistan unless we want to “kill the enemy” and “break his things.” Let’s leave nation-building to the non-military and let them convince people who live in mud huts and shacks that they would better off if they had heat and hot water and a Wal-Mart down the road. As a soldier it is perfectly appropriate to help an old lady, give candy to little kids and help a farmer with his goats, but it not appropriate to say to the enemy I won’t hurt you and give him an opportunity to kill you. The American people support the destruction of al Qaeda and the crushing of the Taliban, but they do not support using our troops as unarmed peace corp. volunteers fighting an enemy whose religion and hatred permits them to kill with no mercy. It’s not fair to the troops and their families and to the good name of our country. Let ‘em fight or bring ‘em home.

What's Good for the Goose...

You remember that old saying don't you? Well, it doesn't apply in Massachusetts where the state senate has passed a bill revision that would permit the state's Democratic governor to appoint a replacement for Ted Kennedy in the U.S. Senate. It was just five years ago that the now-deceased Kennedy asked the state legislature to pass a bill requiring a special election to fill an open U.S. Senate seat when Kennedy thought that John Kerry would defeat Bush and wanted to prevent then Republican governor Mitt Romney from replacing Kerry (D) with a Republican. The bill goes to the Massachusetts House this week and if passed Deval Patrick (D) is expected to sign it. Unfortunately this is the way the game is played, but to be so arrogant and brazen is disgusting and the ultimate form of hypocrisy.

Crush the ACORN

ACORN may be new to some people but I have been paying attention to this cadre of anti-capitalist criminals since the early 1980’s. As the editor of my college newspaper I recall some articles about ACORN organizers trying to establish their credibility to provide housing for the poor. They were the boots on the ground in the effort to prevent redlining and force banks to provide loans to people who were not qualified. This coupled with the Community Redevelopment Act and the development of Mortgage-backed Securities by quasi-public Fannie Mae and Freddy Mac is what laid the groundwork for the real estate collapse and the near- disintegration of the banking system. It’s hard to say exactly when their voting registration activities began, but there is little doubt that they are in serious trouble with election officials and law enforcement in at least 14 states. They did not even attempt to disguise their obviously illegal behavior in voter registration procedures. In addition, in the last few years they have also been engaged in breaking into foreclosed homes and helping supposedly homeless people become squatters. They have been getting federal and state taxpayer money for years both directly and through front-groups who are members of the ACORN organization. The latest series of videos about ACORN are just the latest in this group’s disdain for our country and our laws. They should be stripped of all taxpayer money. Every federal and state agency should excise the funding for this criminal enterprise from their budgets.

The Obama Medicine Show Tries Subterfuge

It is the fashion these days to dismiss objections to healthcare legislation by saying there is no bill yet, such and such is not in the final bill, and this or that will be changed, amended or fixed. However, supporters of the legislation overlook one important fact. If any of the previous versions of the proposed bill would have been passed as the President has been requesting since January there would be a public option, there would be the equivalent of death panels, there would be healthcare for illegal aliens and there would be federal financing of abortion. It is only after several failed attempts in the House and the Senate to get a bills to the floor, months of town hall meetings, an August recess in which half the Congress refused to meet with its constituents to discuss healthcare, and more than fifty public speeches by the President to garner support for his plan, that we have reached the point where new legislation must be forged in order to have anything that is remotely passable in the Congress. That is the true state of affairs and any attempt by supporters to paint a different picture is spitting in the wind when it is blowing in your direction.

Mr. President: You don't have to campaign anymore

The President's Joint-Session speeech was a disappointment for me and it should have been a disappointment for him, but I am now convinced he's not smart enough to even know it. Does he really think that he can just repeat himself over and over and expect us to hear something different just because he wills it. American has rejected the idea of rationed care ala Canada and Great Britan. Americans have proved over and over again that they are willing to pay more to get more. You can list the pros and cons of healthcare until the cows come. For most of us it's really simple. After you do all the analysis the fact remains that government subsidized healthcare is the least efficient and cost effective of all the available alternatives. And while he is focusing (his word) on healthcare the Wall Streeters, banks and insurance companies are making a fortune, our enemies are going nuclear and we are headed for third world status. Mr. President: You don't have to campaign anymore. The election is over. You won. Start acting like a President instead of a snake-oil salesman.

The Obama Medicine Show Rolls On

As the Congress comes back to work after getting the big "what for" from their constituents over healthcare the President is planning to continue his public relations effort to move Americans to his point of view, which as we know is to have a single payer plan. The basic reason we reject single payer is because where it is used Healthcare is rationed for those who need it and free for those who don't. That is just how single payer works. It is true that Americans spend more on healthcare, but we get more. We don't wait weeks, months and years for treatment and most treatments are covered. There are exceptions of course, but unfortunately sex change operations for convicted felons and cosmetic surgery for mal-adjusted inmates are covered, while radical treatments for cancer are not. Our system is not without problems. However the big question is if Obama wants single payer (government run healthcare) why is the plan about providing health insurance instead of providing medical care. It seems to me that the bill is just a big payoff to the insurance companies who will get 35 to 50 million new customers who will be forced to buy insurance. It is clear that Obama is likely to back off single payer and choose instead to support health coops with trigger mechanisms. However, in the final analysis it will be the same thing. His plans will drive medical care costs through the roof and people will be begging for the government to take it over. The regulations in the bill are all designed to push us into single-payer. Don't be fooled by the carnival barkers and the shills in the crowd. They are always there when the Obama Traveling Medicine Show comes to town.

Van Jones Lights Out

President Obama's Green Czar resigned just after Midnight last night and like a thief in the night did it when no one was looking. Unfortunately he still works for the White House Council on Environmental Quality so we are not yet free of his impulses to punish us for our lack of vision.

The Geithner-Rangel Gambit

If there's anybody in Congress who should not be writing tax law it is New York Congressman Charlie Rangel, unless you want to make the argument that those who are clever at cheating the IRS will make the best laws to stop the rest of us from doing it. If there's anybody in the Banking industry who should not be running the IRS it's Tim Geithner. He didn't even know his own income was taxable and he is going to make judgments about your income. Rangel should be impeached and Geithner should be fired.

Hippies in the White House?

Their hair is short, the tie-died shirts and the bongs are now hidden, but make no mistake the 60's generation now occupies the White House. The make love, not war philosophy now dominates our policy and government-run healthcare, open borders and the destruction of our intelligence apparatus are on the table.

Snake Oil, Bullshit; Same Thing

Within weeks of accusing conservatives of organizing anti-healthcare protests the "progressives" (formerly referred to as Democrats, liberals, communists, and socialists) sent thugs to start trouble (a la Missouri), started stacking healthcare town halls with bussed-in activists to create the impression that there is as much support as there is skepticism. The truth is that when the seniors jumped out to question the policy the Dems took notice. It was plain to see that most of the early healthcare town halls, except those staged by the Obama Traveling Medicine Show were dominated by seniors. Health Care reform is a policy decision that spans generations of Americans and no matter what younger folks like to think, seniors as very wise when it comes to recognizing bullshit. You cannot cut the Medicare program by two-thirds and provide better healthcare for seniors. They already need supplemental plans to cover the expenses not covered by Medicare. Translation: Not only will you be forced to buy insurance, you will also have to buy supplemental polices as well to cover what ever the government decides it doesn't want to provide. The other things that senior's recognize when they see it is snake oil.

Obama To Dissolve the CIA

Eric Holder’s decision to investigate the CIA torture issue combined with the President’s newly created department to coordinate terrorist investigations from the Whitehouse in conjunction with the FBI is the first step toward dissolving the CIA. The prosecution of CIA personnel for torture and the use of the FBI to conduct investigations of foreign agents combine to discourage the CIA to conduct interrogations and gives the FBI authority in the area of foreign operations, heretofore the domain of the CIA. It is not a surprise that the President and his friends would like to incapacitate the CIA. I just find it hard to believe the Congress will let them get away with it. It will take the FBI at least two decades to establish the type of world-wide intelligence network needed to protect our country from foreign enemies. Holder is personally responsible for the pardon for six FLAN terrorists in the last days of the Clinton Presidency. His behavior as Attorney General has been hateful and racist and if I may say so anti-American. He no more loves America than Osama Bin Laden, the Reverend Jeremiah Wright, Louis Farrakhan or yes, Barack Obama. The CIA is our best defense against foreign enemies and it is about to be castrated by a President who will be putting us a great risk and giving our enemies a great advantage.

All Roads Lead to the Government Option

Anyone watching the news lately was treated to two views of the healthcare debate. One was the unvarnished version that took place in meetings with Congressmen and Senators around the country. The others are the dog and pony shows that took place in New Hampshire, Colorado and other states. Things begin early. The Obama Traveling Medicine Show shows up around 7:00AM with charter busses of supporters to make sure there is enough supportive yelling, applause and cheers during the President's healthcare speeches. These supporters also get most of the forms for asking the President a healthcare question. The press goes right along and makes a big deal about the dearth of tough questions from the audience. In true softball fashion a 13-year old girl, whose mother is a long-time Obama supporter and organizer, asked what the people with "mean" signs had against healthcare for everyone. During this speech, which was really more like a lecture and a sales pitch, he said he did not favor a single-payer plan. Anyone who has listened to him knows that is a lie. Like some in the Congress (including Ted Kennedy, Barney Frank, Nancy Pelosi and many others) he knows that single-payer does not have the votes in either the House or the Senate to pass. The current healthcare plan "is the best path to get us to single-payer" according to Barney Frank, a long-time supporter of the Canadian system. So despite his current statements to the contrary this is where he and the Democrats want to take us. With the Presidency and strong majorities in the House and Senate this is their best opportunity to do it. Take a minute and ponder this: we already have several examples of government-run healthcare including Medicare and Medicaid, veteran's hospitals and Indian reservations. It is well-known that those with Medicare must have supplemental plans for things not covered and we have all heard the horror stories of veteran's and Indians. Through the years Medicare has covered less and less and supplemental coverage has cost more and more. Medicare has cut the reimbursement rate, which has resulted in many doctors and hospitals no longer accepting Medicare patients unless they carry supplemental policies. The current plan includes additional cuts in Medicare so it will only become worse. None of this is to even mention it has 46 Trillion in unfunded liabilities already. And what is perhaps the most telling of all is that our Congress plans to exclude them selves from the plan they are devising for us. Changing the name of the bill from National Healthcare to Healthcare Reform does not disguise the truth of what the government wants to do. The plan ends with a single-payer government run healthcare system, which history shows will destroy a healthcare system that is the envy of the world. Keep talking America. Let your Representative and Senators know how you feel. Congress will be returning to work in the next week or so. Keep those cards, letters and phone calls coming.

We Really Are Not One

Last week while researching I can across an interesting comment on an article about the Muslim population in the United States. It was not the number of Muslims, which may or may not be exaggerated or underestimated. It was the way that the Muslim commenter responded to a reader who could not understand the suicidal impulse of Muslim extremists, who claim jihad and the extermination of non-Muslims is the way of the Koran. The reader expressed the sentiment "when in Rome, do as the Romans do." She (the commenter) said "those people who strap on bombs in the name of Allah to me are not Muslims. So in the face of the fact of Muslim suicide bombers she claims they are not Muslims and declares that "Allah clearly tells us that suicide is forbidden." She goes on to claim that the portrayal of Muslims in the media is the problem, as if Muslim suicide bombers throughout world were being misidentified in some sort of conspiracy. She says that "if it wasn't for me explaining my beliefs to them, they would believe what they saw on TV and read in the papers and magazines." She then says that if you ask Muslims about Islam you will "not hear anything remotely close to what you hear on the news. She like many Muslims throughout the world has her head in the sand. The simple fact is that whether she likes it or not there are over a million extremist Muslims throughout the world who consider themselves Muslim and are intent on killing all non-believers. All non-Muslim believers are threatened by such people and that is true whether she and others like her believe such terrorists are not Muslim.

How Much Do Democrats Want Single-Payer?

If today's news is any indicator they want it a lot. So much that they are willing to vote against any reform that does not include a "public option." In a CNN interview the US Represntative Anthony Weiner (D-NY) said " he and many others in the House will not support a healthcare plan without the public option. He believes in a single-payer system. On the Sean Hanitty show long-time Democratic strategist Bob Beckel said "we have been trying to pass healthcare for 50 years." However, do not believe they have abandoned it. They will try to sneak it through in some form.

It's a Good Thing Obama Care was Stopped

Supporters of Obama's healthcare plan keep pointing out that objectionable measures (like end-of-life counseling) will now be removed from the plan. The point is that if it had been passed before the recess they would still be in there. The question is why was it there in the first place, which by itself is enough of a reason to keep the government out of it. Keep calling your representatives.

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All Roads Lead to Single Payer tells why you should contact your congressman and senators. I want to leave it near the top for a while so it can be read. In the meantime follow our research on twitter at thenewnarrative.

All Roads Lead to Single-Payer

Anyone watching the news today was treated to two views of the healthcare debate. One was the unvarnished version that took place in meetings with Congressmen and Senators around the country. The other was the dog and pony show that took place in a Portsmouth, NH high school gymnasium. Things began early in Portsmouth. The Obama Traveling Medicine Show showed up around 7:00AM with six charter busses of supporters to make sure there was enough supportive yelling, applause and cheers during the President's speech. These supporters were also given most of the forms for asking the President a healthcare question. The press made a big deal about the President's inability to select tough questions from the audience. The President also made a remark about the questions saying he wanted tough ones. Right after that a 13-year old girl asked what the people with "mean" signs had against healthcare for everyone. During his speech, which was really more like a lecture and a sales pitch, he said he did not favor a single-payer plan. Anyone who has listened to him know that is a lie. Like some in the Congress (including Ted Kennedy, Barney Frank, Nancy Pelosi and many others) he knows that single-payer does not have the votes in either the House or the Senate to pass. The current healthcare plan "is the best path to get us to single-payer" according to Barney Frank, a long-time supporter of the Canadian system. So despite his current statements to the contrary this is where he and the Democrats want to take us. With the Presidency and strong majorities in the House and Senate this is their best opportunity to do it. Take a minute and ponder this: we already have several examples of government-run healthcare including Medicare and Medicaid, veteran's hospitals and Indian reservations. It is well-known that those with Medicare must have supplemental plans for things not covered and we have all heard the horror stories of veteran's and Indians. Through the years Medicare has covered less and less and supplemental coverage has cost more and more. Medicare has cut the reimbursement rate, which has resulted in many doctors and hospitals no longer accepting Medicare patients unless they carry supplemental policies. The current plan includes additional cuts in Medicare so it will only become worse. And what is perhaps the most telling of all is that our Congress plans to exclude them selves from the plan they are devising for you. Changing the name of the bill from National Healthcare to Healthcare Reform does not disguise the truth of what the government wants to do. The plan ends with a single-payer government run healthcare system, which history shows will destroy a healthcare system that is the envy of the world. Keep talking America. Let your Representative and Senators know how you feel. Call, write, and attend their town halls if they still have the nerve to have them.

Follow us on Twitter

If you check our twitter site (thenewnarrative)you will see that we have been talking about the democratic insurgency to picture all those opposed to healthcare as un-American, Nazi-like and a mob. If you read our previous post you see that health-care supporters including the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and ACORN have been sending agitators to harass and assault conservative opponents of healthcare. Both the name-calling and infiltration of town-hall meetings are part of the Democratic strategy to quiet critics of the still unfinished healthcare bill. Imagine; they want to quiet critics of a bill that has not even been finished. What is worse is that they don't even want to know what we think is wrong with it. That is what the town hall meetings were supposed to be about. Apparently they will be shut down and the Dems will use their name-calling as a justification. If you take part in any these town halls be on the lookout for these thugs. This type of event orchestration is something we have been writing about since last year. Then we referred to it as Obama's Traveling Medicine Show. Now it is just an arm of the Democratic Party. In the same manner in which paid supporters crowd around media locations and envelope them with applause at every speech to create the impression there is enthusiastic support for the President, they are now doing the same thing at town hall meetings in an attempt to portray concerned Americans as a mob and un-patriotic. Don't be fooled!

The Chicago Way

Congressmen have been getting an earful from their constituents for a few weeks now and for the most part it has been a one-sided picture. There have been young professionals that see their futures at risk. Middle aged folks who see their parents and themselves at risk. And, seniors who have seen Solyent Green and Logan's Run. All seeking answers about things that people say are in the health reform bill. The bill is so huge that Congressman had to be briefed on how to respond to questions. Except for some yelling it has been robust but peaceful. Enter the President's hand-maiden's SEIU and ACORN. SEIU contributed more than 65 million to his campaign and expects to be paid back. ACORN’s voting fraud activities, which are now under investigation, were instrumental in winning several states in the primaries and the general election. In St. Louis you have violence and thuggery by SEUI and ACORN designed to portray these events are rowdy, disrespectful and without merit. The President's two hand-maidens have decided to take physical action. That is their job. The President cannot win the healthcare debate with the facts so "get out of the way," as he said in Virginia. Until SEUI and ACORN entered the picture it was just yelling. Now it’s assault. A young black man was hospitalized in St. Louis. The St. Louis event marks the first time that “supporters” in the form of thugs wearing SEIU and ACORN t-shirts showed up. It was a throwback to the old union days when instigators would start fights to break up protests or beat up opponents. It’s the Chicago way and one that Obama is familiar with. Our representatives must read this bill. You must tell them to do it.

Thoughts for Today

If Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi thinks the insurance companies are the villians in the healthcare debate why does she want to force 30 million Americans to buy health insurance from these same companies?

For several months I have written about the orchestration of Obama events and now we learn that David Axlerod is an expert in creating such situations. He has a major interst in a firm and was the brains behind a technique called "Astro-Turfing," which is the creation of grass-roots type movements to sell a point of view. He did it for a living before joining Obama. He's doing it now.

Richard Wolff of NBC News thinks that conservatives that show up at Town Halls are all paid protestors, like the type historically hired by Al Sharpton, Green Peace and ACORN for protests. The truth is that as more Americans learn the content of the Healthcare legislation the more they object to it.

Finally, the Whitehouse is now asking Healthcare bill supporters to report those who do not support the bill by reporting them to flag@whitehouse.gov. What happens then?

What Liberals Want in Healthcare

There is a lot of smoke and mirrors in the Healthcare Reform bills emerging from Congress, but they all have one thing in common: America's liberal and progressive thinkers want to move the country to a Single-Payer system, where the government is the sole provider of healthcare financing. This is the same system that is used throughout Europe and Canada and drives their patients to the United States for care they cannot get in their own country. Why can’t the Congress say so, author the bill and get it passed? They have the Presidency, the Senate and The House. They don't need a single Republican vote. Just ask Barney Frank, a longtime champion of single-payer and he'll tell you the votes to pass it aren't there. The Democrats have been trying to get to single payer for over forty years and despite their incremental advancements they have failed to convince enough Americans to get it passed. If your Representative or Senator is a liberal Democrat and you ask them about single-payer they will tell you that is the ultimate goal of healthcare reform because they is the most efficient and fair way to provide healthcare for all. If you ask if they will be subject to the same plan they will say yes, but the truth is that in the current bills under discussion they are exempt from the plan they are devising for you. There are many ways we can reform healthcare, make it more competitive and make it cheaper to own and carry, but moving toward single-payer and government control is not one of them. One only has to look at the mess in Medicare. As reimbursements shrink so does the number of doctors and hospitals that accept Medicare patients. The failure of oversight in Medicare is monumental. It is overpriced, corrupt and operates poorly like other government enterprises including the Post Office, Amtrak and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. With the proper reforms all federal and state operated healthcare agencies could be better operated by the private sector.

Upcoming Topics

This week's topics include:
1)The three hikers who stupidly went on a hiking trip on the border of Iran and Iraq: Hello........
2) Nancy's Pelosi's assertion that insurance firms are making obscene profits in healthcare on the one hand, but wants to provide them with 50 million new customers on the other: What was that?
3) Real healthcare reform is getting the government out of the health insurance market.

Racism in the 21st Century- Giving Up the Ghost

The only thing that could be worse than a racial incident in Boston is one in Selma, AL. The arrest of racially conscious Henry Louis Gates, whose work for PBS on the African slave trade is well-known and is one of America’s foremost black intellectuals, is a symptom of black America’s failure to give up the ghost of racism. He revels in the ability to claim racism at every opportunity. He is a member of the group of blacks for whom crying racism is a badge of honor that is exercised as often as possible to maintain the affirmmative action, no consequence gravy train. People like Gates, Cornell West, Mark Lamont Hill, and race hustlers like Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, are constantly reminding Caucasians of their debt to all black people for the sins of their grandparents. Since the President chose to respond to a question about Mr. Gates at his health care press briefing without a full airing of the circumstances some corrections are in order. The President called the officer stupid and failed to note that Gates refused to show his ID when first asked and did so only after an insulting and threatening tirade accusing the officer of racism and racial profiling, which the President also did not mention. The President also referred to it as “his” house and the reporting of the incident also implied the house belonged to Gates. Actually the house belonged to Harvard University so the neighbor that called the police did not recognize Gates as the owner or tenant. So when two people, no matter what color, are seen trying to enter a home without a key by pushing in the door what is an observer supposed to do? That’s right: call the police. Obviously the incident could have been handled better by both men, but to place the blame on the officer alone is not quite fair. In order to justify Gate’s deplorable behavior his supporters have referred to “Boston’s history as a city plagued by racism” to propel the no-consequence gravy train. I suppose that from Gate’s point of view, the officer should have known better than to mess with him. After all, he “went to Harvard.” In this case “stupidity” is not limited to one man. It’s time to give up the ghost.

Will the Real Sotomayor Please Stand up

Last month (May 28th)I wrote that it's possible there was a real jurist in Sonia Sotomayor and it was further possible that she could be Barack Obama's David Sooter. If you heard today's testimony you would have to think I was correct. She sounded more like an originalist than Chief Justice Roberts or even Justice Scalia. Her testimony was a rejection of every opinion she has written, every speech she has given and every decision she has made as a circuit and appellate court judge. It was truly a transformation from a racially radical, activist decision maker to an honest interpreter of the U.S. Constitution. We can overlook the use of the phrase "eminent danger" when imminent was the correct word or the use of "story" when the term "store" of knowledge was appropriate. Perhaps she will now stop bragging how her classmates scored higher than her on standardized tests. Her use of language clearly explains that. Conservatives have to be excited about the possibility of having another conservative on the bench unless of course Sonia Sotomayor is lying, in which case she should be rejected by the Senate. The truth is that if today's testimony represented the real Sotomayor the Democrats would not be voting to approve her as a Supreme Court Justice; and that's the truth.

Is Being Fair Too Much To Ask For?

As the rhetoric around the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court heats up the mainstream media is trying to portray it as Republicans lining up again Latinos. For example David Gergen said "If they line up uniformly in hostility against the first Hispanic woman (nominated) to the court, they risk paying a terrible price with the biggest and fastest growing minority in this country." David Gergen was never heard to say if Democrats line up uniformly against the first Hispanic nominee (Miguel Estrada, nominated by George W. Bush) they risk paying a terrible price with the biggest and fastest growing minority in this country. When the Democrats lined up against Clarence Thomas no one ever said if Democrats line up uniformly against a black jurist they risk paying a terrible price with the black community. Why is this type of rhetoric only applicable to Republicans? Almost everyone agrees that if a Caucasian nominee said he would hope that a wise Caucasian, with the richness of his experiences, would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a Hispanic or black who hasn't lived that life; his nomination process would be over. And yet, Sotomayor's 2001 statement (She "would hope that a wise Latina woman, with the richness of her experiences, would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life.") is not enough by itself to rule her out. What would rule her out? She said publically that she believes that policy-making is part of her role. She has ruled that race is an acceptable factor in adjudicating cases. Her decisions have been overturned by the Supreme Court 60-percent of the time. Do any of these facts qualify as a potential reason to disqualify her for the Court? After eight years of watching Democrats attempt to sabotage almost all significant court nominees it is astounding to hear them say we need to put an end to partisanship and vitriol in the nomination process. It is even more astounding that the Washington press corp. does not point out the hypocrisy. However, these days we expect a fawning , compliant press with neither the courage of its convictions or the ability to act as a watchdog of government. The Senate should stop thinking about giving Sotomayor a fair hearing and instead think about giving the Supreme Court a fair, intelligent and qualified jurist.

What is all this Cheering?

Every time President Obama opens his mouth there is a screaming bunch of teenage-sounding teenyboppers cheering at every sentence. I'm no expert but this seems a little overdone to me, unless of course there is a Guinness Book of World Records contest for the most cheers after sentences in any given speech. There are those, myself included, who are starting to think these constantly cheering sections that seem to accompany the President everywhere he goes are just part of a covert attempt to make the press, who already loves him, record and report on the cheering throngs as if he is adored by everyone. Since we know of so many who don't like him, don't agree with his policies, think he is a bit naive and resent his attempts to transform the U.S. into his own image, I can't help but thinking these cheering crowds are bought and paid for. It may well be that people less than enamored with the President are not allowed to be anyplace he is. That may explain the constant hoorah, although I agree with those who believe it's fixed.

What Sotomayor Tells Us About Obama

When President Obama introduced Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor he gave his usual rousing, instructional speech complete with talking points to his subjects and supporting media groupies. He demanded that the Senate confirm her before the August recess so she can "walk up those powerful steps and begin dispensing some justice." Exactly what does he think has been going on in America? He acts and speaks as if he were the very first President. What does he think the Supreme Court has been dispensing for the last 200 years? As a nation we are more diverse than any other country in the world. I am willing to bet that most people wouldn't think that was true if they get their information from the mainstream press. The propagandists that pass for purveyors of news in America are even more ignorant than those they try to keep in the dark. Real journalists and editors sift information for a living. They know what the truth is and only pass on what fits in with the mainstream view. For example there was other Hispanic, Latin nominee to the Supreme Court by the name of Miguel Estrada, who was nominated by George W. Bush. There was also a rumor that he was considering Alberto Gonzales, but knew the Senate would savage his character over the torture debate and the President declined to nominate him. So in reality Sotomayor is not the first Hispanic nominee, but because she is a liberal the fawning press corp. carries the water and skips over the facts to make her story "compelling." And in truth, her story is compelling. For those of us from the Bronx Sotomayor's old neighborhood is a tough place. She is a gifted individual, despite the mixed reviews on her lawyerly intellect. There are those that think there is a true jurist in her and she may turn out be Obama's David Sooter. She is being chosen for her espoused views on courts making public policy and the dispensation of racial and restorative justice. America can only hope that once nominated she discovers the calling that is the Supreme Court of the United States.

Colin - Take your Little Red Wagon...

...and join the Democrats. Just who does Colin Powell think he is to the Republican Party and to the vast majority of conservatives in the party? It must have killed him to admit that Bush was right on the torture question on CBS' Face the Nation. His argument that the Republicans need to be more inclusive is ludicrous; we have him. We also have a whole bunch of Democratic wannabes that I wish would join the Democrats. Don't be like Arlen Spector, who joined the Dems because he was unlikely to win in Pennsylvania. Just join them because, in truth, they are your party. Your think fits right in with their think. So just do it. Conservatives don't need to be told what to think. We don't need to be led around by some pie-eyed piper with a little red wagon. When the truth mattered Colin was absent. When his trusted aide Richard Armitage leaked the name of CIA agent Valarie Plame to the press he knew it. And yet, he let Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff Scooter Libby get hung out to dry by not going public with the knowledge. This is the man that wants you to trust him. He took part in ruining the life of an innocent man who served the White House and the people, when all he had to do was encourage Armitage to go public. But even Powell now suffers from Bush Derangement syndrome. Dick Cheney is right. Colin Powell is the worst kind of RINO because he too wants to desert the values that make our nation greater than either party. He wants to trade them in like an old car and get one with an Obamasheen. Just grovel Colin; the President will give you a minute or two.

Tidbits: Pelosi, NPR and ACORN

Last month in a column called Water boarding was no Surprise... it was clearly demonstrated that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi knew about enhanced torture techniques, including water boarding, despite her now well-known and exposed public positions to the contrary. There she was in the front of a compliant Washington Press Corp media pretending to be Sergeant Shultz citing his now famous phrase "I know nothing." Her real complicity was verified by the most recent CIA internal report that shows her in attendance at meetings where this information was provided, discussed and approved by Congressional oversight. Will anyone in Congress or the media call her on this? Not likely. The biggest surprise in the CIA report was that water boarding has not been used on anyone since 2003 and when it was, it was only with two detainees. It was so surprising that the mainstream press ignored that story, which points out the battle reasonable and fair people face in getting the truth to the public. Public Health Insurance is being put in the forefront as an integral part of Obama's healthcare reform plans. Today on NPR I heard something I think would have been impossible on NPR is the not too distant past; a serious talk show about National Healthcare Reform whose main guest was the president of the American Medical Association. Twenty years ago a NPR radio host (don't call me disc jockey) would have refused to give the AMA a platform because it was part of the establishment that supporters of NPR thought were part of the problem. The main discussion was the development of paperless electronic medical records, which some, including the President, claim will provide the savings required to provide healthcare for everyone. Aside from the irony of NPR interviewing the AMA this also permits me to say the "paperless revolution is a hoax." There will never be less paper. As a pioneer in the paperless revolution I can tell you from direct experience that the computers and copy machines consume more and more paper every day. People now can easily make copies, tens of copies, hundreds of copies, etc to their hearts and supervisor's content. It's a good thing that most paper products are bio-degradable otherwise we would all be up to our proverbial necks in it. On October 13, of last year I wrote that ACORN's, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, voter registration work must be exorcised from the voting rolls in every state they have registered voters. This organization has been indicted in 13 states for voter fraud. They and their partners are implicated in a Hilary Clinton primary loss in Indiana and the registering of democratic voters for Al Franken in Minnesota in the Coleman-Franken contest, which is still unresolved. Voter fraud on the scale of that practiced by ACORN can effect election outcomes and transform the nation to fit the views of a few. When voter fraud is not addressed everyone's vote is watered down and made more meaningless. Every voter registration submitted by ACORN and organizations like them must be rejected by every voting district in the country in favor of individual registration so we can be sure that every voter is a district resident and eligible to vote.

Arlen Spector Gets His

When Arlen Spector deserted the Republican Party for political expediencey last week I was thrilled because after hearing him speak in the early 90's at a Corrections Conference I concluded there was nothing republican or conservative about his philosophy or his outlook. When he switched parties last week I though good riddance to another RINO. In getting him to switch parties Majority Leader Harry Reid promised he would retain his senate seniority placing him ahead of many Democrats on the various committees of which he is now a majority member. However, late Tuesday night the Senate voted to strip Spector of his seniority and the announcement was made by Harry Reid himself. This illustrates two things. The first is that Spector has shown himself to be short-sighted and acting only in his own self-interest. The second thing is that the word of Harry Reid has little value when it comes to advancing his caucas. This should also serve as a warning to other Republican senators who might consider a move to the other side of the aisle. Unless of course, you would enjoy being the most junior democrat on any committee you serve.

Why National Health Care will Fail

The recent story of the 23-month old Mexican child who died from the Mexico-based swine flu aptly demonstrates why national health care is destined to fail. His family was coming to Houston, Texas for a day of previously scheduled doctor's appointments for the mother and aunt. The sequence is as follows and was reported by KPRC radio: The boy's family flew from Mexico City into Matamoros, Mexico across the border from Brownsville on the evening of April 3. They spent that night and the night of April 4 at a Brownsville hotel. On Sunday April 5, the boy, three brothers, his mother and a cousin drove to Houston for a day of previously scheduled doctor's appointments for the mother and aunt. The boy, who officials said had several underlying health problems, did not see a doctor. The long and short of this story is that people from Mexico are coming to the United States for health care. I assume that they are Mexican citizens and I would like to assume that they paid for the health care, but I don't know. I would like to assume that they crossed the border legally, but I don't know. I would assume they are well-off enough to spend a day at Houston's upscale Galleria shopping mall and therefore well-off enough to pay the hospital bill at Texas Children's Hospital or the hospital in Brownsville, but I don't know. There was no mention of cost by Kathy Barton of the Houston Health Department. There was no mention of cost by Houston Mayor Bill White. There was no mention of cost from Cameron County Judge Carlos Cascos, who said he spoke with boy's aunt in Brownsville. Look at the level of care this Mexican family received in the United States and all they had to do was walk across the street from Matamoros to Brownsville. All this care will be billed to the American's with health insurance and the when there is national health care events such as these will continue and all Americans will be forced to pay through a healthcare tax for anyone who finds their way into the country. If this Mexican family paid for this care I would like someone to step up and prove it. In fact I challenge Barton, White and Cascos to prove it. As it stands right now I must assume that I paid a little, you paid a little and many of your friends and neighbors also paid a little. That is what will happen with national health care whether people are entitled to the care or not. In some countries with national healthcare care is non-existent. For example, in Cuba healthcare is free but there are no medical supplies and the majority of hospitals and health care facilities are completely run down. In other countries with national healthcare, such as Canada and Great Britain, care is rationed. Their citizens flock to America for the privilege of buying the healthcare they need in a timely manner. How can we protect ourselves from pandemics like the swine flu if its victims can come to America for free health care they cannot get in their own country? The Obama Administration, following in the steps of single-payer advocates, is sowing the seeds of destruction for America’s health care system and increasing the chances of a healthcare catastrophe in this country.

Glendon Rejects Laetere Medal

Harvard professor Mary Ann Glendon turned down the 2009 Laetare Medal, the oldest and most prestigious honor given to American Catholics by Notre Dame because the President was chosen to give the commencement address. A former U.S. Ambassador to the Vatican and ardently pro-life she bristled at the idea her speech would serve to balance out Obama’s viewpoint. For Mary Ann rewriting here speech was not really enough. Her outright refusal to speak and accept the award showed the kind of courage too many of us lack these days. She is to be congratulated.

What if Obama Gave a Press Conference...

…and nobody came. Except the thirteen reporters whose questions were selected in advance. What a lousy excuse for a press conference. The White House Press Corp sitting quietly in their seats like the good listeners they are. Even David Gregory, whose verbal assaults on Bush 42 were legendary, sat rapt at the feet of Obama. Like the rest of his journalist classmates he waited to be selected to ask the questions they submitted in advance that may make Obama smile upon them. That he will approve and even recognize their brilliance in asking such perceptive, insightful and enchanting questions such as those by the NY Times reporter who deserves permanent anonymity after his series of questions. The members of the White House Press Corp must be truly embarrassed at their performance during this prime time Obama speech made to look like a press conference. When they play it back so they can watch themselves, it should make them feel truly humiliated to see how docile they where. It was a farce and they knew it. They're like people who think wrestling is real. In wrestling there is the “real,” which is the physical action and the “unreal,” which is the attitudes and story played out by the wrestlers. There was no real at this charade. Maybe the next time, unless TV Station executives decide not to provide prime-time air time to the President, the reporters may protest by not submitting or asking any questions or just not show up. Well, maybe not. The Press Corp probably doesn’t have that much backbone left. They had to hand it in when they got their new press credientials.

Waterboardng was no Surprise to Congress

It’s pretty clear at this point that the Congress was completely in the know about the interrogation techniques used by the CIA when trying to break particular terrorists. Those techniques, whether you agree or disagree, were effective in getting information, preventing terrorist plots from going forward, and keeping the country safe until now. Whether you read the New York Times or the Washington Times, watch CNN or Fox News Channel the truth is out for all to see. And try as they might to make you think otherwise those that were responsible for oversight did not object at the time. That list includes many of the same people that now want to call those techniques torture. One can only think the Obama administration must have been very disappointed when Spain said it would not try members of the Bush Administration for war crimes. It forced Obama to change the position stated by Rahm Emmanuel on Sunday by saying it was up to Eric Holder to determine whether or not to prosecute. Until water boarding came along I always thought that torture was like pulling your fingernails out or putting you on the Medieval rack. I always thought that having someone drawn and quartered or peeling off their skin would qualify. I just didn’t think that pouring water on someone’s head to make then think they were going to drown, even thought they couldn’t, would be considered torture. Thanks to a former President the political left relies on to be its whipping boy our country has so far avoided a repeat of 9/11. It was in part achieved with techniques that are mild compared to having your head severed from your body, being burned alive and hung from a bridge, or having your wife and children raped while you are forced to watch. Next to these things water boarding is child’s play. The men who were water boarded were killers. They would have happily killed you, your family, your friends and anyone else they could reach. What’s more they provided information that was used to foil planned attacks. They were lucky that water boarding was the worst they got. Any country with sensible leaders would execute such an enemy without remorse.

Lessons from the Stovetop

Despite the many rejections President Obama has received from world leaders for his openness to oppressive regimes and his willingness to brutally criticize America not one beneficial event has occurred; if fact, things have gotten worse. In response to his overtures to North Korea the PRK has thrown out the UN inspectors, cancelled the six-party talks and has confirmed its intent to develop nuclear weapons. His deference to the King of Saudi a Arabia, Bashar al-Assad and the King of Jordan and his apparent acceptance of the Arab League solution to the Israel/Palestinian has once again put our ally Israel in an untenable position. His effort to mend ties with Cuba by permitting travel and more remittances have resulted in a direct slap from Fidel Castro who said his brother Raul’s conciliatory words had been misinterpreted. In addition, Daniel Ortega’s condemnation of America did not generate a single response from the President and the showboating of Chavez was met with a smile. In case Mr. Obama has forgotten there was an America before he was President. There was a foreign policy before he moved into the White House. The President gets to protect and defend the nation, not use it as a prop for his own aggrandizement. He seems more concerned with pleasing his friends, who in general appear to dislike America, rather than to act in the country’s best interest. A child only needs to put its hand on a hot stove once to learn its lesson. How many times will Obama have to berate his own country, befriend its enemies and concede to the world’s tyrants before he learns his lesson?

Pirates and Landlubbers

The Somali pirates were surprised by the resolve of America when three shots to the head on a moonless night in the Indian Ocean dashed their dreams of wealth and the landlubbers in Washington were surprised by the resolve of Americans to show their marksmanship when it comes to targeting blame for our current cultural and economic ship of state.
Hundreds of thousands showed up at large and small rallies throughout the country from coast to coast and border to border. Working guys, moms, dads, kids, and pets. They carried signs and flags. They talked with their friends, neighbors and strangers too. There were no armed fanatics, just people who know the government is not acting in their interest and all their efforts at getting the message across have already failed. More than 200,000 people showed up at more than 800 rallies around the country.

These are the same people that the Dept of Homeland Security, under the direction of Janet Napolitano, considers to be more dangerous than Muslim terrorists, Somali pirates and radical left wing groups like the American Socialist Party, Code Pink and Green Peace, all of whom have resorted to violence when their demands have not been met. That the report was "mysteriously" leaked the day before the April 15th Tea Party rallies was not a mistake, as claimed by DHS. The next rally will be May 16th and there is likely to be another on July 4th. If you love America don't let these moments pass you by. Get out there. Be counted. Good Bless America.

I Spy, You Die

Somehow the Iranian government acquired “lawful intercept technology” and it’s nobody’s fault. This country whose treatment of dissidents is notorious and includes jail and torture got this technology from firms we know well, namely Siemens and Nokia. This sophisticated electronic equipment permits the Iranian government to tap phones, read e-mails and surveil electronic data on communications networks. Just recently an Iranian lawyer, a Ms. Mazaheri, had one of her clients arrested because of instant messaging between her and the client, according to an article in the Washington Times. The individual in question was interrogated and given printed copies of instant message chats between his lawyer and himself and summarily sent to prison. There are two issues here. Despite Germany’s public position of endorsing stricter sanctions on Iran its companies continue to export sensitive technology to the country. Siemen’s also does almost a billion in business with the U.S. and employs 70,000 people here and still provides this technology to Iran with no response by our own government. The other firm, Nokia of Finland, is one of the largest providers of handsets in the U.S. market and also traffics in this surveillance technology to Iran. The company, which is called Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) is a joint venture between the two firms and delivered the monitoring center to Iran. Just recently NSN sold is portion of the business to a private holding company called Perusa Partners Fund LLP. A Siemens spokeswoman said the company only retains a non-controlling interest in NSN, while Nokia runs the day-to-day operation of the firm. So there you go. Companies we know well and support have provided the Iranian government with technology that will be used to curtail civil liberties we take for granted in the U.S. Neither our parochial Congress nor the flaccid State Department will do anything about it. Despite their incessant calls for restrictions on such activity under President George Bush, they do nothing when the technology is sold to governments far worse than ours when it comes to the treatment of dissidents. Siemens and Nokia should both be investigated.

Don't Cry for Me, Barack Obama

I could have posted a blog every night of the Obama's Euro Asia trip, but instead I felt compelled to wait until it was over so I could assess the damage with a more discerning eye. How could we have selected such an amateur to be President of the United States? Let's see. First he gave the Queen of England an Ipod filled with his speeches as if she were one of his fans. Then he asked the French and the Germans to stimulate their economies like he was doing with the Brit's, and if possible would they send some fighters to Afghanistan to assist American troops. Both requests were rejected and in his vengeful boyish manner he rejected the French President's suggestion that they visit Normandy. Every President since WWII has visited Normandy during his Presidency except for this fool. After his public relations success and his political disaster in Europe he moved on to Turkey and Saudi a Arabia. There he ingratiated himself to the Turks and the Saudi's by bad mouthing his own country and all but laying himself prostrate before the Saudi King. Then he sat by and through the Somali pirate takeover of a U.S.-flagged merchant ship eating Chicago pizza and planning the next White House party night. The crew gained control of the ship but lost the captain to the pirates. The captain tried to escape but was recaptured, while one of our Aegis-class destroyers sat a mile away and did nothing. Obviously they did not want to risk the captain's life or offend the President by attacking Somali Muslims. After all he had recently claimed we are a Muslim country with some inconvenient Christians and Jews. So far Obama has been able to blame George Bush for everything and his fawning press corp has obliged. When will the blood begin to stain his hands? Don't cry for me Mr. President. I do not think we are a selfish, arrogant and derisive nation. We provide more aid and assistance to developed and emerging nations than any other country in the world. All of Europe combined provides less aid to Africa and South America than the U.S. We are more open to other countries than any country has ever proved to be open to us. Our country has little, if anything, to apologize for. It's unfortunate this President does not share that view. Don't cry for me Obama, because I cry for you.

Ted Steven's Won't Be The First

To ask "Where do I go to get my reputation back? The Justice Department dropped its corruption case against the former U.S. Senator from Alaska citing prosecutorial misconduct. He was the subject of a corruption probe and was convicted just before the 2008 election. The political ramifications were obvious. He lost his bid for re-election to Democrat Mark Begich. Steven's one vote could have a significant impact in the current Congress. Unfortunately the election cannot be undone, but it is now clear that the fix was in and heads should roll. Some career zealots at Justice should be fired.

Words Mean Things

President Obama may drop the “war on terror” rhetoric, but will the terrorists drop their “war of terror” tactics. Will Obama’s use of “Overseas Contingency Operations” or “Man-made Disasters” encourage our enemies to stop the suicide bombings, attacks on civilians or provincial police. Will the change in rhetoric translate into a change of behavior? Will the overseas disaster operator stop using women and children as shields? Will they stop using schools and hospitals as bases of operations? Will they refrain from using their children as suicide bombers? Winning the war on terror is a lot more complicated than changing the words used to describe it. We can only hope it doesn’t require another Overseas Contingency Operation or Man-made Disaster on American soil to get the point across.

Roll Over Obama

If any bi-partisan ship was intended in the so-called stimulus package there wasn't very much. Most Republicans, except for a treasonous few, held their ground and did not take part in the rolling of the President. Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi took Obama for the ride of his career and he doesn't even know it, unless his team does what the Congress did not do: read the bill. It contains every Democrat program that has not been able to pass the House or Senate since Ronald Reagan and will turn back some of the major reforms made by previous Presidents such as welfare reform, border security and immigration enforcement. In addition, already the bill is being criticized for not being enough to do the job. Some are saying at least another billion or two will be required in the coming months. America is being done a great disservice with the passing of this bill and it is very likely to aggravate a very unstable economy. Despite all of this gloomy news the Super Bowl and the Daytona 500 were sold out, all the mall parking lots are full and every restaurant is crowded. How is this possible unless someone is not telling the truth or people are just refusing to accept what they are being told?

Broken Promise?

When President Obama was campaigning he said he would check every spending item and veto the ones that were wasteful. It's obvious that Obama has not done it so far. The wasteful, non-stimulating spending in the so-called Stimulus" package is every item ever offered by the Democrats and not funded. Using the Rahm Emanual method of crisis management the Democrats want to make sure they "never let a good crisis go to waste" by funding their wish list under the "crisis" umbrella. It is truly repulsive that the Democrats would do this at a time when Americans are spent out. Americans are gagging on their expenses and choking on their taxes. The 188 House members that voted against the bill included 12 Democrats. Opposition to the bill was bi-partisan compared to the straight line vote for the purely Democratic bill. Republicans in the Senate are making the right kind of noises but they have not been helpful so far. They are faced with the proposition there is little they can do because some Republicans want to be players in the Obama Revolution. So instead of screaming to every newspaper, magazine, and talk show in the country they are trying to make it better. Wake up. You cannot make it better unless you gut it or kill it. If the President, with the help of Republicans, does not veto these wasteful spending programs while the country is in recession, they will be exacerbating the current crisis.

Hey; The Joke’s on You

Just how much unethical behavior does a person have to take part in to be unacceptable to the American people as a cabinet secretary or high-placed official? It's as if Obama and his team are laughing at us by selecting a tax cheat to run the IRS. Do they get their jollies selecting a health care lobbyist and tax cheat to run HHS? I can understand how appealing to Judd Gregg’s vanity to get him to desert his party and give Obama a scapegoat in case his policies fail could give them a big rush. I can see the thrill they get when they think they put something over on the American people: Sort of stuck it in their eye big-time. Well for a man who says he wants to bring change it looks like the same old playbook to me.

Why Doesn't Obama Talk About Us?

President Obama’s recent declaration that he has family members who are Muslim and his declaration that he has lived in Muslim countries are things he never said while campaigning. His declaration that America is a "Christian nation" and a "Muslim Nation," did not go unnoticed and will not fade from the minds of fair Americans. When he made this statement he did not say Judeo-Christian, as is commonly the case. His claim that his job is to tell Americans about all the fantastic Muslims in the world says a lot about his point of view. I would have thought the job of the President of the United States would be to tell Muslim nations about all the fantastic Americans in the world. Tell Muslims about our widespread efforts worldwide to help feed and care for the poor. About our efforts to bring modern medicine and technology to the world's more unfortunate populations and to export freedom and democracy to other countries because people fair better under freedom and America is the shining example. We are not a country without faults, but they are far fewer than most of the fantastic Muslims and Muslim countries Obama wants to tell us about, the majority of which are feudal dictatorships run by single families. The President’s characterization of America as a county with a lot to learn about the Muslim way is curious. Unlike American Christians and Jews in Muslim countries, Muslims in America are completely free to practice their religion in peace and in the open. Unlike American Christians and Jews in Muslim nations, Muslims in America can depend on equal protection under the law. In America Muslims can criticize the government without fear of reprisal, a right not granted in most Muslim nations to Muslims, much less Christians and Jews. So before Obama spends too much time informing Americans about the fantastic Muslims in the world perhaps he should spend some time informing the Muslims world about America.

Analyze This, Stimulate That

The President has a few major issues this week that are likely to haunt him for the next few weeks. His 850B stimulus package is apparently short on stimulus and long on pork barrel spending, often referred to as earmarks. Almost 70-percent of the package will not be spent for at least eighteen months and the remainder will not be spent for at least six. By the time the money starts to reach the economy the recession will be 18 months in length and may well be ending. This completely overlooks the fact that most of the bill is every leftover Democratic proposal that has been squashed by sensible members of Congress or President Bush over the last eight years, as well as programs that even Bill Clinton rejected. In so far as the remainder of TARP funds is concerned I agree with Mr. Obama that firms that take taxpayer dollars should forego giving bonuses to their executives for whom bonuses are not part of their regular earnings, such as sales commissions, incentives, etc. The stimulus bill will meet some resistance in the Senate this week and while this will not prevent it from passing hopefully the minority can restore some sense to the Democrats who are so giddy over the prospect of funding all their pet projects they want Obama to nominate Hew Hampshire Republican Senator Judd Gregg to Commerce Secretary to get a Democratic replacement and inch them closer to a veto-proof majority in the Senate. Unfortunately Judd Gregg has paid his taxes, has never been employed as a lobbyist and never used services that he neglected to put on his tax return like Timothy Geitner and former Senate Majority Leader Daschle, so there is a good chance that if he wants the job he'll be confirmed. These issues will be gone in a few weeks and the best the American people can hope for is the return of sanity to the budget process and the so-called stimulus package

Obama's First Gifts to America

The American Presidency is often about tone. What is the tenor of the President's message? How will his policy choices be interpreted? What do his choices say about him, our government and us? In Obama's case his first choices are about death. The death of Americans, the deaths of third world children, the death of Israel and the comfort of our sworn enemies, which includes the world's various terrorists groups. Al-Qaeda, Hamas, Hezbollah are just a few of many out there. The planned closing of Guantanamo Bay is premature, especially in light of the fact that this President plans to step up the action in Afghanistan. As it is there are over one hundred prisoners in Guantanamo that no country will take. There are others we cannot send back to their home countries because we know they will be imprisoned and possibly tortured. And there are some that are so dangerous that to close Guantanamo offers no alternative except to bring them to America, where they will be accessible and possibly encourage terrorist activity within our borders, which will undoubtedly lead the to the death of Americans. His executive order to ban torture is a tacit admission that the current tactics are torture, an opinion that many, including the CIA and military intelligence officials, do not agree with. He has cleverly left the back door open on the torture question so it is clear that it is just political posturing for the liberal wing of his party. His second executive order for death is the funding of abortions overseas with taxpayer dollars. It is the greatest of ironies that the first black President would support the Eugenics theories of Margaret Sanger the founder and first president of Planned Parenthood who wrote "The most merciful thing that a large family does to one of its infant members is to kill it." Planned Parenthood wears a different mask today than it did when it was founded because its original Eugenuics message was reprehensible and "Hitleresque." In her book, Pivot of Civilization, she referred to immigrants and poor people as "...human weeds, reckless breeders, and spawning... human beings who never should have been born." This is the message of genocide espoused by the elitist Sanger and carried on by our new President. Obama also did some less consequential things in his first week, but saying that America was a “Muslim” nation is not one of them. His failure to call Israel after having placed a call to the PLO to reassure them of our efforts to promote peace merely portends the direction he plans to take the Middle East. Israel too can feel the threat from the desired direction of Obama policy. Obama’s tutelage under Lewis Farrakhan and the Jeremiah Wright has laid the groundwork for the President’s distaste of Israel. The work of Colin Powell and the other Arabists that despise Israel will ensure that any objections to changes in US policy towards Israel will be stifled. There will be some objection from some quarters like the New York delegation, but they will be silenced quickly and in time the Arabists, the Iranians, the Syrians and the Jihadists may achieve their dream of Israel’s destruction. His speech at AIPAC and his rhetoric about defending Israel doesn’t fool anyone. He is an Arabist and will sell Israel out for peace with his Muslim brothers. Genocide only bothers this President when it takes place in Africa. Is this the new tone Obama brings to Washington D.C., America and the world? Does our new black President fly on the wings of death? Look at his first executive orders which require no more than his signature. They bring death to America, Americans and our allies, and death to Israel. This tenor, this tone does not speak well to America’s future.

Terrorist Justice

There are many opinions out there about how to treat the terrorists at Guantanamo Bay. Well as long as people are offering them I would like to offer mine. How about good old-fashioned military justice based on the Geneva Convention. They should blind-folded and executed by a firing squad because they represent no established country's military. They do not wear uniforms that identify their branch, division or rank. They target and kill civilians and run in the face of real opposition. Essentially they are criminals, thugs and cowards. If we wanted to treat them the way they treated Americans they captured we would burn them alive and hang them from bridges, or cut their heads off and put it on the internet. We might dismember them and send the remains back their families. In the past war and criminal behavior have always been separated. They have always been seen as distinctly different because war is an action by a country and crime is the act of individuals. This does not mean that crime does not occur in war, it just means it is treated differently because it is a war. That is why there is a Geneva Convention in the first place because despite the cruelty of war there are rules. The terrorists at Guantanamo Bay have ignored all those rules. They wear no uniforms; they target civilians and operate without rules. While it is fashionable to think that all armies are like this the truth is that most official soldiers know the rules and operate by them. There are exceptions of course, but if you ask anyone who has served they will tell you that most soldiers know the rules and do their best to follow them. The terrorists at Guantanamo ignored the rules on purpose. They deserve to be executed. That is the justice they deserve.

No Surprises - What A Disappointment

As America enters a new non-partisan era it's clear that the old hatreds remain the same. Despite the graciousness shown by President Bush, Vice-President Cheney and their spouses towards the Obama family and administration, Obama supporters could not suppress their dislike for the President by booing his parents, his family and his vice president when they were introduced at the Inauguration Ceremony. It was nothing short of disgusting, but in fact it was no surprise. People without manners and civility cannot learn them overnight even when the model is the perfect example. This entire week was a field day for the Bush whackers. Even as he leaves there are calls for war crime trials, more investigations, more blame, more vitriol and yes more partisanship. Except for John McCain of course who is now out to prove he never was a Republican anyway. We can expect lots of Obama boot-licking from him now that he lost. To regain his reputation as a maverick he will desert and betray his party in search of the deal that will make the media and the Democrats like him and invite him to all the good parties. And let me not forget the right and ancient, perhaps demented, Reverend Joseph Lowry who said "and White will embrace what is right." He obviously didn't notice that 45 million "white" voters chose Mr. Obama as President or did he just forget that he was at the Inauguration of the first black President. Maybe when they remembered the black regiment of the Civil War or the Tuskegee Flyers they should have remembered the many Caucasian Christians and Jews that supported the Civil Rights Movement including Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, Hubert Humphrey and Lydon Johnson to name a few. It may truly be fitting to call today a black day in Washington. It was disheartening, but no surprise. But the real disappointment is yet to come. While Obama's supporters love him for better or worse. Will they still be thrilled when Guantanamo is not closed? Will they still be thrilled when the war in Afghanistan becomes bigger than the war in Iraq? Will they still be thrilled when the Congress returns to business as usual? Will they still be thrilled when they must continue to pay their mortgages, car payments and health insurance, and in addition pay higher taxes to fund Obama's trillion dollar spending spree? The KoolAid drinkers will always follow in awe. What about you?

Don't Be Fooled - Again

As we approach the inauguration of the new President I find myself in a terrible quandary. With a compliant, liberal, pussy-whipped media singing his praises and the neo-bootlicking conservative analysts’ suddenly feeling non-partisan, while their political enemies plan their demise, true political conservatives are being pushed into the cold hard ground. Now that President Bush is leaving office liberals are now crying for a new bi-partisanship. They want us to forget or at least ignore the terrible way they treated President Bush for eight consecutive years. Many may remember that Bush too, also came to Washington and spoke of a new tone; A less partisan atmosphere in which the Congress could accomplish common goals. But it was not to be and many liberals argued that it shouldn't. They argued the media and the Congress should not be a rubber stamp for any President. For eight continuous years they battered the President until he was beaten to a pulp, and finally acquiesced to their view of the world. He leaves office merely a shell of the man he was. Now they want conservatives to take the gloves off. Be nice. Give the man (Obama) a chance. Be better than we were. I don't think so. First of all, we conservatives have always been better than liberals. We have always been more honest about policy positions. We have always been more honest about our political goals. We have never had to disguise conservative goals the way that liberals must disguise their goals. Euphemisms like single-payer plan for socialized medicine, government investments for tax increases, are just two examples of the many ways that liberals in government want to fool us into going along with something that is inherently bad for the country. We won't be fooled again. It doesn't matter what kind of clothes this new emperor wears. His ideas are naked. Despite the foolishness of many conservatives that believe he will not govern as he promised I believe he will. He wants to take this country down the path of European socialism and he will unless like-minded conservatives stay on his case.