Friday, July 25, 2014

 

Campaign Promises


Is a promise not kept a lie?


In several sources I have read, the idea of keeping campaign promises has come up. The consensus appears to be that they are almost never kept. This is a very sad state of affairs, since the candidates for office were elected on the basis of their character, their ideas, their convictions and their promises.
For them to turn their backs on their solemn word or promises is tantamount to lying to the public simply to get elected.

We need to keep a careful scorecard of promises kept and promises not kept and why*. It is obvious that some promises made in the heat of an election may be a serious overreach once the man is sworn into office, and he faces the realities of governance. His duty in this event is clear. He should immediately set forth what he promised and why he cannot fulfill it. We see far too much dodging and weaving and not coming clean on promises not kept, and political excuses made because of an intransigent congress. That kind of promise, one that any fool could see will not fly, should never be made. The public deserves far better.

*See PolitiFact.com


Saturday, July 19, 2014

 

Congressional Stalemate


Traditionalism versus Authoritarianism or Progressivism

 
Why is our Congress so dysfunctional? The fundamental answer is an extreme philosophical and political difference of opinion. On the one side, Traditionalists stand tall to defend the American Way and the tenets of the U.S. Constitution, which in turn is fully based upon the philosophy of Natural Law, Natural Rights, and Natural Duties, and on recognition of basic Christian values and religion from God.

These defenders of the Constitution clearly support keeping the national sovereignty secure, and bemoan the fact that there are far too many dysfunctional and amoral nations in the world to allow us to become subservient to a world government and world laws. They agree that there could be incremental changes to our Constitution, but insist that such changes be accomplished through the prescribed Constitutional method for making changes.

On the other side, Authoritarians and Progressives appear to envision an America that rapidly moves far closer to the Secular Humanist, Socialist, or Communist models of secular and Godless society, together with eventual worldwide internationalism for governance, where the ideal seems to be both equal opportunity and equal outcome for all citizens.

Save, of course their leadership class, who sit above this egalitarian mass with supreme powers to dictate the law, the division of wealth, and the way of life for all, while the elite leadership themselves are leading superlative, wealthy lifestyles. The Constitution is to them an impediment to their plans, and therefore must be ignored, modified, or changed completely and immediately to conform to what they believe is best for society. They promise to seek cradle to grave security for their citizens in return for popular support for their dictatorial plans.

We have seen many times how this works out in reality--eventual abject failure, since people cannot be molded into conformity, the government cannot manage the economy in sufficient detail to provide for the wellbeing of its citizens, the nation becomes a police state very rapidly, and typically seeks a confrontation, a foreign threat, on the international scene to bolster their need for control internally.

Is there any wonder that the Traditionalists strongly oppose this attempt to transform America into something like quasi-European Socialism or even a Gramsci version of creeping Communism? The only defense to this diabolical plan is to prevent their versions of law to be enacted at all costs.

The Traditionalists have few other weapons available, since their own versions of proper and constitutionally correct legislation are also blocked by the opposition's Progressives and their Progressive President. Progressive pleas for compromise in legislation uniformly turn out to be "You do it my way" compromises, which are rightly rejected by Traditionalists.

So we have a standoff that is fully recognized by the people with their opinion of Congress at an all-time low, nearing single digits! It may be true that about half the people are against the Traditionalists, and the other half are against the Progressives, but both are upset by Congressional inaction!

 


Friday, July 18, 2014

 

Conservatism: Simple to Complex
(Version 6, 7/24/14)                                                                

Let us keep the good things that make the nation proud, and marginalize  the bad things that ultimately make us miserable. The good things are numerous and legion; the bad things are glaringly and historically obvious.  So we see (in no special order) tendencies of Conservatives  towards:

                

THESE
BUT NOT THESE
Keeping Good Things
Marginalizing the  Bad Things
Strong Belief in God, Tolerance of Others that Do Not Threaten the Nation
Weak Belief in God, Agnostic, Atheist, Not Religious,
Fosters Beliefs on the Public, Supports ACLU
Strong Values Ethic; Faith; Hope; Charity; Prudence; Temperance; Justice; Fortitude; Integrity, Honesty
Relative Values, Situational Changes, False Beliefs, To Lie to Promote Liberal and Progressive Goals is Good, Promises Mean Nothing--Liberal Acts are Everything
Freedom and Liberty are Paramount
Prudent Protection Laws                        
Too Many Constraints on Liberty, Civil Laws that Violate the Rule of Preserving Natural Laws and Rights
Belief in the Rule of Law
Enforcement of All Laws
Belief in "Suitable" Laws, Adaptation to Goals, Non-Enforcement of Laws They don't Approve.
The Declaration of Independence as it Stands
Ignoring it or Using it Excessively if Needed to Further Liberal and Progressive Goals
Preserving The Constitution
Flouting and Bending the Constitution--"Living Document"
Natural Law
Violating Natural Law
Natural Rights
Subverting Natural Rights
Natural Duties
Shirking Citizen Duties if Desired
Civil or Common Law in Accord with Natural Law
Civil or Common Law to Further Liberal or Progressive Goals and Not Following Natural Law


 

Fiscal Responsibility, Budgets, Realism
Excessive Spending, No Budget
Social Customs and Traditions
Abortion, Same-Sex Marriage, Change Customs
Individual Responsibility
Expecting Government Handouts
Minimal Effective Regulations and Executive Orders
Governing Through Extensive Regulations and Executive Orders, Bypassing Congress
Free Markets; Proper Regulation and Oversight of the Financial Arena
Highly Regulated Markets by Government. Seeming Objective of Gradual but Eventual Socialization
Hayekian Economics, Let Market Forces Reign, Control Spending
Keynesian Economics, Quantitative Easing, Printing More Money, Flouting Financial History
Private Property is Protected
Takings (Eminent Domain)  for Private Development
Charity First, Support the Truly Needy
Excessive Welfare, Support All the People
Common Sense and Knowledge
Cerebral Popcorn of Unproven Ideas
Less Government: Right Sized
Far More and Intrusive Government
Conserving Institutions, Traditions and Customs
Abolishing Disliked Institutions, Traditions
and Customs
Veracity and Openness in Government
Closed, Secretive Government, Lies to the Public, Violating Campaign Promises
Proper Media Oversight, Honest Reporting
Very Biased Media Favoring Liberalism, Omission of Negative Reports on Liberal Policies & Acts
Sovereign Nation and Sovereign States
One Sovereign Nation with Subordinate Regions
States Rights Supported
Minimize States Rights
Strong Modern Defense
Weak Defense, Cut the Forces
Effective Military--Industrial Complex
Abhors, Reduces the Military--Industrial Complex
Subsidiarity (Make Decisions at Lowest Practical Level)
Decisions at a High Level Only
Near-Totalitarian Federal Government


 

Realistic Foreign Policy
Unrealistic Foreign Policy, Naiveté and Proud of it!
Proper Interpretation of the Law
Judicial Activism Subverting the Balance of Power
Seeding Subsidies for New Areas Only
Product Development and Production Subsidies
Proper Environmental Stewardship
Excessive Environmentalism, War on Coal, Petroleum
Proper Institution of Good Changes, Pilot Programs, Caution
Experimentalism, Ignoring the Law of Unintended Consequences
Improving Our Way of Life
Neglecting Needed Improvements to Infrastructure
Balance of Power in Government
Unbalancing the Constitutional Power Balance
Electoral System for Presidential Elections
Direct Democracy, Where Citizens Vote Directly for the President
A Goal: Senators Appointed by State Legislatures
Senators Elected by Popular Vote in States
All-Source Power Plan
Renewable Sources of Power Only
Delimiting the Commerce Clause
Applying it and Extending it Where Desired
A Christian Society
A Fully Secular Society
Global War on Terror
Anomalous Random Positions, Ignorance of the Threat
Recognition that Islam is a Direct Threat to the Nation
Waffling About Islam and Permitting Emigration of Many Muslims into the Nation Without Vetting Them
Minor Warming Trend Possible, Currently a Local Cooling Trend
Anthropic Global Warming Disaster, Necessity for Massive Intervention and Global Enforcement
Practicalism, Reality, Listening to Public Demands, "tragic vision"
Elitism, Papa Knows Best, Catering to the Moneyed class`   "vision of the anointed"


 

True Free Speech
Politically Correct Speech, Multiculturalism, Diversity
Assimilation of Legal Immigrants
Pandering to Foreign Groups
English Must be the Official Language
Multiple Languages in All Spheres Allowed
Enforce Immigration Laws
Amnesty for Illegals, Open Borders
Free Market Medical Care
ObamaCare, Single Payer Goal
You Earn it, You Keep it
Redistribution of Wealth
American Spirit, Patriotism, Exceptionalism
Anti-Patriotism, Envy Politics, Disillusionment of the Unsuccessful, Denial of Exceptionalism
Well-Rounded, Effective Education
Education With a Liberal or Progressive Bias
National Sovereignty, Diminish the UN
Internationalism, World Government and Courts
Free Constitutional Republic
Collectivism: Socialism; Humanism, Even Communism
Supports Gun Ownership and Use,
2nd Amendment Rights
Strict Gun Controls, Anti-2nd Amendment, Confiscation of Weapons
Home Defense Rights, Lethal Force
Intruder Rights(!), Excessive Humanism
Belief in Just Killing, Death Penalty
Belief in Life in Prison, No Killing
Belief in Just and Preemptive Wars
Basically Pacifist Unless Directly Attacked
Supports Improvements in Government Operations; No Fraud or Abuse
"Hope and Change," Bias Towards Liberal Policies, Growth of Government, Laissez Faire
Belief in a US Role Worldwide and Freedom of the Seas
Tendency Towards "Fortress America," Ignorant Foreign Policies, Withdrawal of Forces to the US,
Fair Taxation for All, (Progressive Taxes are Theft by the Government)
Progressive Taxation, Let the Rich Pay, Wealth Gap is Bad


 

Freeing Small Businesses from Excessive Regulation Compliance
Burdening Small Businesses with Paperwork, Taxation, Benefits and Hiring/Firing Regulations
Belief in Moral Absolutes
Belief in Moral Relativity
Equal Opportunity for All
Belief in Equal Outcomes
Keep Race as a Non-Issue, Equality
Use Race to Further Goals, Promote Racial Conflicts
Government Must Not Compete with Private Industry, or Interfere Illegally
Government Right to Interfere in Industry in the Name of Protection of the Nation--"To Big to Fail!"
Comity in Government and Politics, Serve the People and the Nation
Wide Use of Alinsky's Rules*, Character Assassination (See Rules Below)
True and Thorough Accountability in Government, Firings for Cause
Cover-ups and No Accountability, Reference the IRS, VA, Benghazi, EPA, Iran Red Line, and On and On.
 
National Debt Must be Reduced by Plan Immediately (Now $17 Trillion!)
"We Owe It to Ourselves!" Stupidity, Printing Money to Pay Debts, Loss of the $ as the Reserve Currency
Government Unions Must be Abolished
Garners Financial and Voter Support from Unions
Congressional Reforms, Term Limits, Campaigning, Rules, No Tricks
Power to Set Rules When in the Majority, Tricky Passage of Controversial Legislation
States Cannot Cope With Unfunded Obligations
Congress and the President Passing Legislation With Unfunded Obligations onto the States.
Immigration Reforms Start With Securing the Border, Control of Migrant Workers, and Control of Employers
Amnesty. Desire to Gain Democratic Voters From the Hispanic Community.
Planning for the Future, Rational Goals That Preserve the Constitution
Hastening to Enact Futuristic Legislation Without Sufficient Pre-Testing on a Smaller Scale.
Valiant Effort to Keep Campaign Promises, True to the Words
Campaign Promises Made to Gain Election, but Ignored Subsequently if contrary to Liberal Tenets
Practical Solutions Sought, While Rejecting the Blame Game
Playing the Blame Game Over and Over.

*Alinsky's Rules for Radicals (A diabolical methodology used by liberals)

(This material was gathered from the web, especially Wikipedia)

 RULE 1: “Power is not only what you have, but what the enemy thinks you have.” Power is derived from 2 main sources – money and people. “Have-Nots” must build power from flesh and blood. (These are two things of which there is a plentiful supply. Government and corporations always have a difficult time appealing to people, and usually do so almost exclusively with economic arguments.)

RULE 2: “Never go outside the expertise of your people.” It results in confusion, fear and retreat. Feeling secure adds to the backbone of anyone. (Organizations under attack wonder why radicals don’t address the “real” issues. This is why. They avoid things with which they have no knowledge.)


RULE 3: “Whenever possible, go outside the expertise of the enemy.” Look for ways to increase insecurity, anxiety and uncertainty. (This happens all the time. Watch how many organizations under attack are blind-sided by seemingly irrelevant arguments that they are then forced to address.)


RULE 4: “Make the enemy live up to its own book of rules.” If the rule is that every letter gets a reply, send 30,000 letters. You can kill them with this because no one can possibly obey all of their own rules. (This is a serious rule. The besieged entity’s very credibility and reputation is at stake, because if activists catch it lying or not living up to its commitments, they can continue to chip away at the damage.)


RULE 5: “Ridicule is man’s most potent weapon.” There is no defense. It’s irrational. It’s infuriating. It also works as a key pressure point to force the enemy into concessions. (Pretty crude, rude and mean, huh? They want to create anger and fear.)


RULE 6: “A good tactic is one your people enjoy.” They’ll keep doing it without urging and come back to do more. They’re doing their thing, and will even suggest better ones. (Radical activists, in this sense, are no different that any other human being. We all avoid “un-fun” activities, and but we revel at and enjoy the ones that work and bring results.)

RULE 7: “A tactic that drags on too long becomes a drag.” Don’t become old news. (Even radical activists get bored. So to keep them excited and involved, organizers are constantly coming up with new tactics.)


RULE 8: “Keep the pressure on. Never let up.” Keep trying new things to keep the opposition off balance. As the opposition masters one approach, hit them from the flank with something new. (Attack, attack, attack from all sides, never giving the reeling organization a chance to rest, regroup, recover and re-strategize.)


RULE 9: “The threat is usually more terrifying than the thing itself.” Imagination and ego can dream up many more consequences than any activist. (Perception is reality. Large organizations always prepare a worst-case scenario, something that may be furthest from the activists’ minds. The upshot is that the organization will expend enormous time and energy, creating in its own collective mind the direst of conclusions. The possibilities can easily poison the mind and result in demoralization.)


RULE 10: “If you push a negative hard enough, it will push through and become a positive.” Violence from the other side can win the public to your side because the public sympathizes with the underdog. (Unions used this tactic. Peaceful [albeit loud] demonstrations during the heyday of unions in the early to mid-20th Century incurred management’s wrath, often in the form of violence that eventually brought public sympathy to their side.)


RULE 11: “The price of a successful attack is a constructive alternative.” Never let the enemy score points because you’re caught without a solution to the problem. (Old saw: If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem. Activist organizations have an agenda, and their strategy is to hold a place at the table, to be given a forum to wield their power. So, they have to have a compromise solution.)


RULE 12: Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it.” Cut off the support network and isolate the target from sympathy. Go after people and not institutions; people hurt faster than institutions. (This is cruel, but very effective. Direct, personalized criticism and ridicule works.)*


Also: How to create a social state, by Saul Alinsky:

There are 8 levels of control that must be obtained before you are able to create a social state.

The first is the most important.

1) Healthcare — Control healthcare and you control the people

2) Poverty — Increase the Poverty level as high as possible, poor people are easier to control and will not fight back if you are providing everything for them to live.

3) Debt — Increase the debt to an unsustainable level. That way you are able to increase taxes, and this will produce more poverty.

4) Gun Control — Remove the ability to defend themselves from the Government. That way you are able to create a police state.

5) Welfare — Take control of every aspect of their lives (Food, Housing, and Income).

6) Education — Take control of what people read and listen to — take control of what children learn in school.

7) Religion — Remove the belief in the God from the Government and schools.

8) Class Warfare — Divide the people into the wealthy and the poor. This will cause more discontent and it will be easier to take (Tax) the wealthy with the support of the poor.

Now, think ...

Does any of this sound like what is happening to the United States?


 

 


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