Christmas Eve...

Bill of Obvious Rights...

That is what Madison and Hamilton might have preferred to call the first ten amendments to the Constitution.  They believed that the "amendments" were not necessary.  Why write down that the federal government can not infringe on the right to bear arms?  What power does the Constitution give the federal government to infringe on that right in the first place?  It was not at issue. Some saw that it could be.

"They (first ten amendments) would contain various exceptions to powers which are not granted; and on this very account, would afford a colorable pretext to claim more than were granted. For why declare that things shall not be done which there is no power to do? Why for instance, should it be said, that the liberty of the press shall not be restrained, when no power is given by which restrictions may be imposed? I will not contend that such a provision would confer a regulating power; but it is evident that it would furnish, to men disposed to usurp, a plausible pretense for claiming that power."

               - Federalist 84 (Hamilton)

How far we have travelled off the path laid down for us…

Shall...

Shall be free…
Shall be secure…
Shall not be infringed...



A National Right-To-Carry-Law should read something like this:  The right of the people to keep and bear arms SHALL not be infringed.  Or words to that effect.

Drip, Drip, Drip...

"...I think, then, that the species of oppression by which democratic nations are menaced is unlike anything that ever before existed in the world…After having thus successively taken each member of the community in its powerful grasp and fashioned him at will, the supreme power then extends its arm over the whole community. It covers the surface of society with a network of small complicated rules, minute and uniform, through which the most original minds and the most energetic characters cannot penetrate, to rise above the crowd. The will of man is not shattered, but softened, bent, and guided; men are seldom forced by it to act, but they are constantly restrained from acting. Such a power does not destroy, but it prevents existence; it does not tyrannize, but it compresses, enervates, extinguishes, and stupefies a people, till each nation is reduced to nothing better than a flock of timid and industrious animals, of which the government is the shepherd."

When was this written?

A)  2012
B)  1978
C)  1937
D)  1835

"What difference, at this point, does it matter?"

Without Feck...

feck·less

[ˈfekləs]

ADJECTIVE

1. lacking initiative or strength of character;
2. weak, ineffective;
3. worthless, irresponsible

How Did I Get Here...

I was searching You Tube for ideas for a workout for today, then clicked on a free speech video…and ended up at the one below (I like videos where they draw cartoons to make the point…not sure why).  But how did we become such a BIG-GOVERNMENT anti-entrepreneur country? Who are these people that pass these laws?  We should have a law against passing bad laws...

And Now a Word From Our Sponsors….

Let's Get One Thing Straight…

We have Hillary for only one reason.

"You're G D right I ordered the stand down
…you can't handle the truth!"

In 1992, Bill Clinton was elected President with 43% of the popular vote (370 electoral votes).  He had approximately 5.8 million more votes than George H.W. Bush (168 electoral votes).  The election was thrown by H. Ross Perot who had 19,743,821 votes (0 electoral votes).  Perot ran primarily on a fiscally conservative platform of balancing the budget through reduced spending, and strong opposition to gun control (80% of his voters described themselves as conservative or moderate).

But wait, there's more.

In 1996, Bill Clinton won re-election.  The popular narrative is that he is a brilliant politician, and was extremely popular.  But here is the hard truth:

In 1996, H. Ross Perot ran again, and received over 8 million votes (again, 0 electoral votes, which pundits love to point out).  Clinton beat Bob Dole by just over 8 million votes.  So Clinton would have won anyway, even if he got every Perot vote, right?  The popular vote does not elect the President - the electoral college does - ask George W. Bush.  Take a look at the following vote totals in 1996:

State	Electoral Votes	Clinton			Dole			Perot	Dole + Perot	vs Clinton	2000	Margin
Arizona	8	653,288			622,073			112,072	734,145	80,857+	Bush	96,311
Florida	25	2,546,870			2,244,536			483,870	2,728,406	+181,536	Bush	537
Kentucky	8	636,614			623,283			120,396	743,679	+107,065	Bush	233,594
Missouri	11	1,025,935			890,016			217,188	1,107,204	+81,269	Bush	78,786
Nevada	4	203,974			199,244			43,986	243,230	+39,256	Bush	21,597
Ohio	21	2,148,222			1,859,883			483,207	2,343,090	+194,878	Bush	165,019
Oregon	7	649,641			538,152			121,221	659,373	-9,732	Gore	6,765
Pennsylvania	23	2,215,819			1,801,169			430,984	2,232,153	-16,334	Gore	204,840
Tennessee	11	909,146			863,530			105,918	969,448	+60,302	Bush	80,229
Wisconsin	11	1,071,971			845,029			227,339	1,072,368	-397	Gore	5,708

I can't hear you…I can't hear you...

In Arizona in 1996, for example, Perot earned 112,072 votes.  Add that to Dole, and it beats Clinton by over 80,000 votes.  In 2000, George W. Bush won Arizona by 96,311 votes, in another close election.  In fact, if you give Perot's votes in each of the states in the chart to Dole - the results verses Clinton are similar in result in every case to the election result of 2000.  Thus, Dole would have earned 288 electoral college votes to Clinton's 250.  Clinton still would have won the popular vote - but lost the electoral college….just like 2000.

In closing…what difference, at this point, does it make!

Chicken Little...

This would be funny, if was on SNL, but its real, our government, the worlds "leaders" are spending their time and our money on this.

Do Something...

With the "1000 year flooding" in South Carolina, billions in water damage and several people dead, Democrats in congress should consider a ban on flooding. Please, consider the working families.  This is just too much water. I'm not against water, I'm just suggesting limiting it to pools, lakes and rivers, ponds, pipes, etc., there is no need for that much water to be in the streets and businesses.  Water-free zones…something.

Our Leaders...

Cotton pickin'…

"The 1930's called, they want their foreign policy back…"

    - Sen. Tom Cotton to President Obama

Ask Your Doctor...

Go To Jail...

…do not pass go, do not collect $200.

Kim Davis, Clerk of the Court, Rowan County Kentucky

Kim Davis went to jail for refusing to uphold federal law (not a law passed by an elected legislature, but a law that is a ruling by judges).  Because Davis refused to issue marriage licenses to same-gender couples, some same-gender couples did not get a marriage certificate from the county.

Ed Lee, Mayor of San Francisco

Ross Mirkarimi, Sheriff of San Francisco County

Ed Lee and Ross Mirkarimi did not go to jail for refusing to uphold federal law (a law passed by an elected legislature).  Because Lee and Mirkarimi refused to turn over previously deported felons in their custody - Kate Steinle is dead.

Happy Labor Day!

…but they're never happy, are they?

What's In a Name?

Rutgers University Dismissed Five Football Players After Arrests for Assaults

The list of charges actually included home-invasion robberies of students with drugs, and drug dealers. How did they know they had drugs?

Anyway, the five players caught were Nadir, Ruhann, Andre, Delon and Razohnn.  I'm just sayin'…

Half of 90% of All Statistics are Misleading...

Pew Research shows (via a lame poll) that:

49% of 18-29 year-olds have a "favorable" impression of the word SOCIALISM.  Only 46% have a favorable impression of the word CAPITALISM.  It is worse if you poll highschoolers.

However, the same poll showed 29% of self-identified "conservative-Repulbicans" have an unfavorable impression of the word CAPITALISM.

I believe it is all in how the question is asked.  If you define socialism and its RESULTS, I believe there would be less favorable responses.

Those are the results of a poll.  A question of peoples' opinion.



Statistics that are compiled from facts, are a better use of our time:

Pew Research also says that the 2010 homicide rate due to firearms was 49% lower than the rate of 1993.  That is half the number of gun related homicides with a much larger population. Non-fatal rates of violent crime for the same years is down 72%.

Contrary to what gun-control politicians and Geraldo Rivera says, we are safer than ever before.


 



To be fair, Obama did not say it is worse now than it was before, but "to be clear" that is what he implied.  He said it does not happen in other countries, citing his opinion and feelings, I guess. This is similar to the argument that we are the only "advanced" country that has mass-incarceration rates - while not mentioning that we pride ourselves in being a "nation of laws," that we have the fairest system of justice, with the principle of innocent until proven guilty, and the best law enforcement in the world.  But why let facts get in the way of feelings...

All For One and One for All, or something like that...

"Democracy and socialism have but one thing in common—equality. But note well the difference. Democracy aims at equality in liberty. Socialism desires equality in constraint and in servitude…."

Alexis de Tocqueville, 1848



"We must stop thinking of the individual and start thinking about what is best for society…" 

Hillary Clinton, 1993



"...We're going to have to take things away from you on behalf of the common good."

Hillary Clinton, 2004






Hillary understands the poor like others don't:

"The clearest way to know whether you are with a poor person in America is not by the logo on the clothes, because we all wear pretty much the same anymore. It's by looking into their eyes and seeing whether they look into yours, and seeing what kind of teeth they have."

Except their dentists?

Thanks NASA...

In case you were wondering, NASA is not out of the business of space exploration.  Recently the New Horizons spacecraft took this photo of one of Pluto's moons:

Hard to see, but here is the amazing photo enlarged:

Notice the dark regions, and then the lighter, less dark regions.

*Just kidding, there were some awesome photos with great detail, I just thought this was funny.

Exactly...

Obey the Law...

I found this map with this quote: 

"As of 2014, the United States has the highest incarceration rate on the planet. While America represents 4.4% of the world's population, it houses 22% of the world's prisoners."

Obviously, this means…if you live in another country, and you are the victim of a crime - too bad.

What we need is more of these:

Happy 5th of July...

The 4th is over, now get to work…

Happy 4th of July...

Don't Forget to Set Your Clocks Back...

June 30, 2015 is Leap Second…

Due to irregularities in the Earth's rotation, June 30th 2015 will have 86,399 seconds instead of the 86,400 we are all used to.

HAPPY LEAP SECOND DAY!

The Only Thing We Have To Fear...

…Is Words.

"Congress passed the Affordable Care Act to improve health insurance markets, not to destroy them. If at all possible, we must interpret the Act in a way that is consistent with the former, and avoids the latter."

 - Chief Justice John Roberts

…shall not be infringed.

Weak handed shooting becomes strong handed shooting...

The individual who shot Giffords would have passed a background check.  His family failed him, and our society's ability to deal with the mentally ill failed him.  What stopped the shooting from being worse was the brave citizens standing nearby.  In some respect Arizona has reacted well to this incident, removing infringements on the right to bear arms, concealed or otherwise.  

__________

Never bring a knife to a gun fight.  Unless, the state infringes on the right to have guns, and then you are just in a knife fight.  Never go to a knife fight…

New Jersey Woman Killed While Waiting for Her Gun Permit to Be Approved

New Jersey law says that unless they will NOT be approved, gun purchase permits SHALL be issued within 30 days.  The Chief of Police quoted in the article claims it usually takes more than two months. Does he know that is against the law? (It sometimes takes three months, six months, etc, even for LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS to purchase guns personally).  

Solution?  Enforce the laws regarding prohibited possessors (i.e. already convicted felons) and have truth in sentencing (get sentenced to 4 years, actually serve 4 years) for the use of a gun during a crime.  In New Jersey - the criminals know very well that there is little risk in criminals possessing guns...

Man Arrested After Giving Teen Stolen Gun in Atlantic City

He was arrested, but what amount of time will her serve?  He has two prior robbery convictions and one weapons conviction.  He was in possession of another gun four months after being released from prison.  A gun stolen out of Virginia.  No background check required for that.  What should be the penalty for him on his fourth strike?  

Lets Hope...

Awesome! That they do the right thing….and kill Matt Damon.

June 6...

Bring Your Child to Work Day was April 23rd this year.  Annually, it has not always been a convenient day for me, and most of the years I was not doing something I could bring a child to.  I borrowed a day in June a couple years ago and declared it my take your child to work day.  My oldest was getting ready to fly the coop, into the wild blue yonder, so I got permission to take him with me.  It was not an extraordinary work day, pretty routine, it was a "training" day.  Which was nice, gave him a chance to see what my work looks like a lot of the time. (I imagine professional football or baseball players have pretty good days at work…but on a different level, I do have one of the coolest jobs on the planet - as far as "jobs" go). Some co-workers even took time out of their day to spend with him too.  Just having him there, having him see what I do - just as he was leaving home to start doing what he does - made it one of the best days of my life.

This was just after losing an epic competition to his old man.

As things go, it turned out to be the worst day of my life.  In some ways I have not really moved on from that day, and time seems to stand still.  You never really get enough father-son days, not at work, not at home.  A couple days ago my oldest described his day at "work." It was a "training day" for him too.  Maybe not the best day of his life, but a pretty good "work" day. I hope that some day, if he has a son, he gets to take him to work and have a day like I had.

Ironic...

The day after portions of the Patriot Act were allowed to expire:

Boston Terror Suspects Plotted to Behead Police Officers

You can read in the article that the FBI had two of these men, and a third, under 24 hour surveillance.  That they had recordings of their conversations.  That they knew they were communicating with ISIS via social media.

How many people does it take to do 24 hour surveillance on one person?  On three?  How many people does it take to monitor live phone conversations and computer accounts of three people? (If you have no idea - it is ALOT of people just to follow around one person - remember, you CAN'T lose sight of him, or he may kill a cop).

ISIS claimed they had people all over America.  So far, what the public knows is that American law enforcement is 2 for 2 on attacks by these evil doers.  Garland, Texas (which was really Phoenix, Arizona) and now Boston.  The FBI is also very successful recently at arresting people as they were trying to leave the country to join ISIS, here, here, and elsewhere.

The Boston story is getting a lot of good news, good in that the public can see that ISIS was not lying, and good that the FBI is all over it.  How many do they not know about?  What happens when a police officer is publicly killed an beheaded in America?  At least police officers are armed, but what about when a soldier is attacked in America?  It happened in Great Britain. (It actually happened at Fort Hood - but that still gets less attention then the Colorado movie shooting).

The Patriot Act is not perfect - few laws are.  But are we really giving up freedom when we pay a phone company to dial a phone number to call somebody and the government has access to those records? I'm not going to belabor the point - but there has always been a "reduced expectation of privacy" when a third party (the phone company) is involved, and once the majority of the American public understands that the government can obtain the records - can't we cede that to big brother?

The good news so far, is that the ISIS in America guys are idiots.  But what if they stopped talking on the phones, used anonymous and random social media to communicate, and launched a "coordinated attack" at what seemed like random locations around the country? They wouldn't have to be that successful to change our world.

Would you suspect these people as Islamic radicals if you saw them in public?

David Wright, aka Dawud Sharif Abdul Khaliq

Usaama Rahim

Elton Simpson

Nadir Soofi

Bobblehead Bernie...

 - Sanders' hair looks like that because he just pulled his head out of the sand to make the video

 - I only posted the video to hear her say snow domes with all those extra syllables...

Delightful Zaniness and Obsequies Cockolorums….

Andrew Klavan on Truth Revolt:




Cockolurum:  [ ˌkäkəˈlôrəm ] NOUN   a self-important little man.

Republican Presidential Candidates...

Wouldn't it be easier, at this point, if we start listing who is not running?

Memorial Day...

…in the Netherlands







I wonder if there is a similar memorial in Iraq, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia...

People, Come on, People...

Liberal Think Tank: ATF Should Merge with FBI to Reduce Firearms Crime

First of all, "Liberal Think Tank" is an oxymoron.  I'm just sayin'.  And proof of the moron part is in the above referenced article.  Merging the ATF with the FBI is like merging, well, it is like merging…well it is a dumb idea.  Why don't we merge the Center for American Progress with Waste Management (I'm still just trying to come up with an analogy).

"...the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is plagued by inadequate management, insufficient resources, burdensome restrictions and a lack of coordination."

The ATF has a function - they just don't know what it is.  I am no expert on the ATF, but just like the DEA, they serve a purpose - which is NOT long term, complex investigations of criminal enterprises.  If congress wants to get rid of the ATF, I am okay with that.  The FBI already investigates "firearms crimes," so there would be no change there.  But the FBI does not do any regulatory function - which is what the ATF should do.

We don't need more gun laws, we need to enforce the ones we have…and get rid of quite a few.  Any legislator that wants to pass another gun law, should sit in state or federal court for a hearing regarding a charged crime under the current laws.  Until then, they can only complicate it and make it worse.

"...Thirty-five years ago, President Ronald Reagan said during his first presidential campaign that he wanted to abolish ATF and transfer its powers to other agencies."

Nothing has changed.

They should also consider changing the name to the F.  What do they do with the A and the T?  That is another area that is covered by other agencies.  I know they like to add "Explosives" and call themselves the BATFE, but that is just another area where they butt heads with the FBI…and lose.


There are some good videos out there of FBI Agents doing stupid things…but the ATF Agent in the below video is down right scary with his lack of common sense.  Do you think making him an FBI Agent is the solution?

Iraq...

You can have your opinion about the invasion of Iraq…but you can't have your own facts.  Or something like that…

Misremembering Iraq
by Victor Davis Hanson in National Review Online


"...The former autocracy (Syria) was later threatened with red lines and ordered to abdicate by Barack Obama; the latter (Libya) was removed by force without either U.N. sanction or congressional approval. Both Syria and Libya are now wastelands and incubators of terrorism."

"...Stocks of WMD even today continue to turn up both in Iraq and in Syria; some may have fallen into the hands of ISIS, suggesting that the full story of Saddam’s chemical and biological arsenals still has never been fully told…."


The Biggest Lie
by Victor Davis Hanson in National Review Online

"...ISIS is rumored to have attempted to use mustard gas against the Kurds. Iraqi depots are periodically found, even as they are often dismissed as ossified beyond the point of easy use, or as already calibrated and rendered inert by either U.N. inspectors or U.S. occupation forces. But where did all the WMD come from, and why the sudden fright now about these stockpiles’ being deployed?…"

Deflategate...

NFL Plans to Change Football Handling Guidelines

A popular comedian once said that he was in favor of steroid use in professional sports.  At the prices they charge for games, we want to see the biggest, fastest, strongest freaks possible.

While I don't agree, I get the point.




So much has been said about Tom Brady and the under-inflated footballs.  The answer is right under their noses.  Are the Patriots your team? Me neither.  Do you wish Tom Brady had been drafted by your team? Me too (he was skipped by every team, several times*).  Do you want the quarterback of your team to be more like Tom Brady?  THEN CHANGE THE RULE AND ALLOW THE BALLS TO HAVE 10 pounds of pressure per square inch instead of 12.5.

This will not turn Tony Romo into Tom Brady…but maybe…

Each team already uses separate balls, and that is not only allowed - it is the rule.  Why? Because they like them different ways.  Kickers already use different balls than are used for the regular plays, and that is not only allowed - it is the rule.  Why? Because the like them different ways.

Fans want to see the best game possible - having the quarterback grip the ball the way he likes it, and throw more accurately is a good thing.


FREE BRADY!

*  In 2000, the year Tom Brady was drafted, Troy Aikman was in his last year in the NFL and Michael Irvin was gone.  That year, the Dallas Cowboys drafted Dwayne Goodrich, Kareem Larrimore, Michael Wiley and Mario Edwards in front of Tom Brady.  Who are they?  I have no idea, and neither does Jerry Jones.