When it comes to political philosophy, I have had three of what I like to call "red pill moments" in my life. These events crystallized various long held, but seemingly unrelated thoughts and ideas, into the famous aha! feeling where I instantly had a transcendent insight. The first of these moments came during the presidential campaign of 1980. Listening to Ronald Reagan speak about the nature of freedom and what it means to be an American enabled me to understand the concept of American Exceptionalism for the first time. It became clear to me that the Founder's vision of a self-governing people constitutionally protected from tyranny and enabled by a civil society was the ultimate vehicle for human progress. Therefore, it was essential that we conserve and exalt the paramount truth of our time. We are endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable rights and this recognition is essential if we are to push the boundaries of human potential and progress.
The second red pill moment occurred during the mid-Eighties when I began to read the writings of Irwin Schiff and Ben Wattenberg. Understanding that the inexorable force of demographics rendered the entitlement state unsustainable over the long term, was an eye opening experience for me. Doing simple arithmetic was all it took to realize that the Crooks and Thieves had set us on a road that led to economic decline and eventual bankruptcy. Reading the insights of these two men, it became clear that as more and more taxes were taken from the economy to pay for old age entitlements, this wealth transfer would crowd out the seed capital needed to start the new businesses and industry that would keep the economy flourishing. After all, without capital, capitalism cannot function. When higher taxes were added to the ever increasing burden of the regulatory state, existing American business would not be able to compete with lower cost countries in a global economy diminishing our ability to pay for the promises of dishonest politicians. Thus, I began a twenty-five year effort to try to warn my fellow Americans about the inevitable reckoning to come.
The third red pill moment occurred just after President Obama was elected when I finally decided to read Ayn Rand's seminal novel: Atlas Shrugged. I must admit that I was blown away by Ms. Rand's prescience. Just about everything she described in her book is happening in America today. The same attempts by the government to dominate the economy are being tried and the same arguments are being used as justification. The similarities are eerie. Upon reading that book, I had a true awakening about the true intentions of the left and how quickly they were accelerating the end of American Exceptionalism and the day of reckoning for the economy of our country.
Shortly thereafter, I received an e-mail from my buddy "Fred". As I related earlier, it was mostly because of that e-mail "Fred" sent me that I came to write this book. "Fred" and I started our “conversation” because he said that Ayn Rand was “nuts” and that Paul Ryan was a suspect character because he is a Rand acolyte. At first, I attempted to explain to my friend that while Ryan was influenced by Rand, that was far preferable to our President and Hillary Clinton who were influenced by Saul Alinksy. Since "Fred" always claims to be an Independent "moderate" type unaligned with either party, I told him that he was being hypocritical because he had a particular animus against Ryan because of Rand, but not a similar one against Obama because of Alinsky. Paul Ryan may have told his staffers to read Atlas Shrugged, but Obama actually taught Alinksy propaganda to young skulls full of mush:
The second red pill moment occurred during the mid-Eighties when I began to read the writings of Irwin Schiff and Ben Wattenberg. Understanding that the inexorable force of demographics rendered the entitlement state unsustainable over the long term, was an eye opening experience for me. Doing simple arithmetic was all it took to realize that the Crooks and Thieves had set us on a road that led to economic decline and eventual bankruptcy. Reading the insights of these two men, it became clear that as more and more taxes were taken from the economy to pay for old age entitlements, this wealth transfer would crowd out the seed capital needed to start the new businesses and industry that would keep the economy flourishing. After all, without capital, capitalism cannot function. When higher taxes were added to the ever increasing burden of the regulatory state, existing American business would not be able to compete with lower cost countries in a global economy diminishing our ability to pay for the promises of dishonest politicians. Thus, I began a twenty-five year effort to try to warn my fellow Americans about the inevitable reckoning to come.
The third red pill moment occurred just after President Obama was elected when I finally decided to read Ayn Rand's seminal novel: Atlas Shrugged. I must admit that I was blown away by Ms. Rand's prescience. Just about everything she described in her book is happening in America today. The same attempts by the government to dominate the economy are being tried and the same arguments are being used as justification. The similarities are eerie. Upon reading that book, I had a true awakening about the true intentions of the left and how quickly they were accelerating the end of American Exceptionalism and the day of reckoning for the economy of our country.
Shortly thereafter, I received an e-mail from my buddy "Fred". As I related earlier, it was mostly because of that e-mail "Fred" sent me that I came to write this book. "Fred" and I started our “conversation” because he said that Ayn Rand was “nuts” and that Paul Ryan was a suspect character because he is a Rand acolyte. At first, I attempted to explain to my friend that while Ryan was influenced by Rand, that was far preferable to our President and Hillary Clinton who were influenced by Saul Alinksy. Since "Fred" always claims to be an Independent "moderate" type unaligned with either party, I told him that he was being hypocritical because he had a particular animus against Ryan because of Rand, but not a similar one against Obama because of Alinsky. Paul Ryan may have told his staffers to read Atlas Shrugged, but Obama actually taught Alinksy propaganda to young skulls full of mush:
I tried to make the case to "Fred" that following Rand's libertarian philosophy of individual freedom and self-determination might not be his perfect ideal, but it was far preferable to following the Alinsky path. I let him know that the left's economic and political philosophy is always about taking away the freedom of the individual for the “collective” good. Whether you think that’s good or bad, it does have ramifications and one of the most important of those consequences is that the government will force you to do as your told, or else! It is the history of their philosophy from the extremes of communism to the “innocuous” PC culture of the college campus. Free speech, dissent and individual thought will not be tolerated. The path of the left is the way of the heavy hand of government.
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Sad to say, I was unable to convince "Fred" that this was something he should be concerned about. I am pretty sure he'll be voting for the Alinskyite for President this year. However, the conversation I had with "Fred" made me realize how many people like him are still stuck in the Matrix. They have been so propagandized and blinded by the spin in favor of bigger and more powerful government that they cannot see the implications on their freedom and their unalienable right to self-government. This is exactly as Rand described it in Atlas Shrugged.
The left's control over academe, government, the press and the organs of the popular culture has created this Matrix of unreality. Through these mediums they paint themselves as the champions of compassion and those who oppose them as evil incarnate. If you are against current welfare programs because you see it as a cynical vote buying racket that traps people into lives of poverty and dependency, then you are a racist. If you want to improve a failing education system to promote greater choice and competition, you hate children. If you seek to reform entitlements to prevent them from going bankrupt and sinking the rest of the economy with them, then you are a mean ogre who wants to kick granny into the snow. And on and on it goes. Name me a political topic and I'll show you that the Matrix spin will inevitably show the left as kind hearted benefactors and those on the right as evil, mean, racist, sexist, homophobes who are the tools of the rich and big business.
It is this massive and pervasive unreality that those of us who have swallowed the red pill must confront. That is why Atlas Shrugged is such an important novel. It stands as an utter refutation of the leftist memes and spin the Matrix spews out daily. For me, this book is one of the best arguments against the concept of “collective good” and one of the best cases for individual freedom ever penned. It is also the most prescient book on the inevitably disastrous and inhumane results of leftist policy you can read. It’s an allegory, but it’s a damn fine one.
As I tried to explain to "Fred" and as I have hopefully illuminated in this book, America has been on an Alinsky path for most of our lives. So much so, that the welfare state worldwide is in a period of financial crisis. The declining America described by Rand is coming to pass today:
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Sad to say, I was unable to convince "Fred" that this was something he should be concerned about. I am pretty sure he'll be voting for the Alinskyite for President this year. However, the conversation I had with "Fred" made me realize how many people like him are still stuck in the Matrix. They have been so propagandized and blinded by the spin in favor of bigger and more powerful government that they cannot see the implications on their freedom and their unalienable right to self-government. This is exactly as Rand described it in Atlas Shrugged.
The left's control over academe, government, the press and the organs of the popular culture has created this Matrix of unreality. Through these mediums they paint themselves as the champions of compassion and those who oppose them as evil incarnate. If you are against current welfare programs because you see it as a cynical vote buying racket that traps people into lives of poverty and dependency, then you are a racist. If you want to improve a failing education system to promote greater choice and competition, you hate children. If you seek to reform entitlements to prevent them from going bankrupt and sinking the rest of the economy with them, then you are a mean ogre who wants to kick granny into the snow. And on and on it goes. Name me a political topic and I'll show you that the Matrix spin will inevitably show the left as kind hearted benefactors and those on the right as evil, mean, racist, sexist, homophobes who are the tools of the rich and big business.
It is this massive and pervasive unreality that those of us who have swallowed the red pill must confront. That is why Atlas Shrugged is such an important novel. It stands as an utter refutation of the leftist memes and spin the Matrix spews out daily. For me, this book is one of the best arguments against the concept of “collective good” and one of the best cases for individual freedom ever penned. It is also the most prescient book on the inevitably disastrous and inhumane results of leftist policy you can read. It’s an allegory, but it’s a damn fine one.
As I tried to explain to "Fred" and as I have hopefully illuminated in this book, America has been on an Alinsky path for most of our lives. So much so, that the welfare state worldwide is in a period of financial crisis. The declining America described by Rand is coming to pass today:
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For those of you who have never read it, Atlas Shrugged depicts an America where the golden goose is being slowly but surely squeezed of life by the state to create a nation of “equality” and “fairness”. As more and more businesses are regulated and taxed, the economy goes further and further downhill which leads the government to ask for greater and greater contributions from those who “have” to be given to those who “have not”. That the numbers of those who have not are being swelled by these very policies, is irrelevant to the powers that be. It just conveniently adds fire to the class warfare charge that the rich and successful are achieving their ill gotten gains on the backs of everyone else. Once the rich and successful are put in their proper place, the utopia that is promised will occur.
In the meantime, all companies will be regulated and controlled by the government to serve the collective needs of the society. This will be done slowly, as not to alarm anyone, but it will be done constantly and insidiously until the whole of the economy is controlled by “well meaning” government bureaucrats and their crony capitalist allies. “Democracy” still exists, but dissent and variation from this policy will not be countenanced. As ever more sectors of the economy come under the heavy hand of government control, ever more capitalists refuse to play the game and ever more the economy sinks deeper and deeper in the mire. Sound familiar?
Today, we are living in a society where every day the government grows more and more powerful and seeks to abrograte our freedom and encroach on our unalienable rights. We have elected a President whose administration includes a regulatory czar Cass Sunstein who has said that he wants to employ teams of covert agents and pseudo-"independent" advocates to "cognitively infiltrate" online groups and websites -- as well as other activist groups -- which advocate views that Sunstein deems "false conspiracy theories" about the Government and whose Science Czar John Holdren has argued for forced sterilization and abortions, and whose climate czar is an openly avowed socialist, whose former communications director holds as one of her two greatest philosophers Chairman Mao, and whose former green jobs czar was an open and self-avowed communist who now wants to confer “human” rights on animals and plant life. These are the people President Obama handpicked to be his closest advisers in his administration. They talk almost exactly the way Rand portrays her collectivist villains in Atlas Shrugged:
For those of you who have never read it, Atlas Shrugged depicts an America where the golden goose is being slowly but surely squeezed of life by the state to create a nation of “equality” and “fairness”. As more and more businesses are regulated and taxed, the economy goes further and further downhill which leads the government to ask for greater and greater contributions from those who “have” to be given to those who “have not”. That the numbers of those who have not are being swelled by these very policies, is irrelevant to the powers that be. It just conveniently adds fire to the class warfare charge that the rich and successful are achieving their ill gotten gains on the backs of everyone else. Once the rich and successful are put in their proper place, the utopia that is promised will occur.
In the meantime, all companies will be regulated and controlled by the government to serve the collective needs of the society. This will be done slowly, as not to alarm anyone, but it will be done constantly and insidiously until the whole of the economy is controlled by “well meaning” government bureaucrats and their crony capitalist allies. “Democracy” still exists, but dissent and variation from this policy will not be countenanced. As ever more sectors of the economy come under the heavy hand of government control, ever more capitalists refuse to play the game and ever more the economy sinks deeper and deeper in the mire. Sound familiar?
Today, we are living in a society where every day the government grows more and more powerful and seeks to abrograte our freedom and encroach on our unalienable rights. We have elected a President whose administration includes a regulatory czar Cass Sunstein who has said that he wants to employ teams of covert agents and pseudo-"independent" advocates to "cognitively infiltrate" online groups and websites -- as well as other activist groups -- which advocate views that Sunstein deems "false conspiracy theories" about the Government and whose Science Czar John Holdren has argued for forced sterilization and abortions, and whose climate czar is an openly avowed socialist, whose former communications director holds as one of her two greatest philosophers Chairman Mao, and whose former green jobs czar was an open and self-avowed communist who now wants to confer “human” rights on animals and plant life. These are the people President Obama handpicked to be his closest advisers in his administration. They talk almost exactly the way Rand portrays her collectivist villains in Atlas Shrugged:
Now, it is easy to dismiss this redistributionist socialist talk as mere political rhetoric; red meat for the party faithful if you will. However, the Democrat party has been trending increasingly leftward over the past twenty years. This is no longer your father's Democrat party. Heck, this isn't even Bill Clinton's "the era of Big Government is over" Democrat party. This is a party hellbent on imposing it's statist philosophy on the country.
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For those of you who dismiss these concerns because the Matrix has so successfully hidden the true motives of the left in this country, I beseech you to examine the evidence. Not only has the President surrounded himself with far left ideologues in his administration, he has appointed them as "czars". This is important because while they have direct power, with the full authority of the Office of the President, to mandate policy at Cabinet agencies, they do not have to be confirmed by the Senate, are completely unaccountable to anyone but the President and everything they do can be kept secret because they are fully protected by Executive Privilege. This lack of transparency is the way Obama likes to run his government. It speaks volumes about how much information about his policies he wants the public to know about.
In this new "progressive" way of governance, it is the legislative aim of the Democrats to create unaccountable bureaucrats who will decide policy by fiat with zero oversight from Congress:
Consider the Independent Payment Advisory Board that Obamacare created. Its 15-member board, appointed by the president, has virtual carte blanche to cut Medicare spending by mandating “evidence-based medicine” (code for rationing) or slashing physician payments. Its “recommendations” will have the force of law unless Congress passes—with a three-fifths supermajority in the Senate—alternative cuts of an equal amount. This, in essence, delegates away Congress’ legislative powers.
But the real kicker is that it will be nearly impossible for future Congresses to repeal the board, a profound assault on the Constitution. Congress will have a small window between Jan. 1 and Feb. 1 in 2017 to introduce a joint resolution calling for its repeal. If the resolution passes with a supermajority by Aug. 15, it will be dismantled in … 2020.
It might be easier to dissolve the union than the board.
This is not the administration’s only monster child. There is also the Consumer Financial Protection Agency created by the Dodd-Frank financial reform legislation. It’ll be headed by one czar, not even a full board like the ObamaCare advisory board, who’ll have sweeping powers to dictate to banks, lending institutions, credit unions and payday lenders among others what financial instruments they can offer and on what terms. The czar (Obama has nominated former Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray) won’t be subject to removal by Congress, and lawmakers won’t be able to be repeal his directives without a two-thirds majority. What’s more, the agency will draw its funding from the Federal Reserve without any congressional oversight.
Both of these signature legislative accomplishments of President Obama, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid create two massive new government entities with vast powers and no oversight or accountability. This is not an accident. Progressives will staff them with hacks who will do the bidding of their masters. To heck with having to deal with those pesky things called citizens. We the People is now We the Government.
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The Obama administration doesn't much care for the judicial branch either:
In February of last year, Louisiana Federal District Court Judge Martin Feldman found that the Obama Interior Department was in contempt of his ruling that the offshore oil drilling moratorium, imposed by the administration in 2010, was unconstitutional. After Feldman struck down the initial drilling ban, the Interior Department simply established a second ban that was virtually identical.
Judge Feldman was not amused. "Each step the government took following the court's imposition of a preliminary injunction showcases its defiance," Feldman said in his ruling. "Such dismissive conduct, viewed in tandem with the re-imposition of a second moratorium ... provides this court with clear and convincing evidence of its contempt."
If you have the chutzpah to thumb your nose at the judiciary, thumbing your nose at Congress is even easier. Barack Obama actually believes that His Exalted Majesty has the right to determine whether the Senate is in session or not. In order to pick the head of the unaccountable Consumer Financial Protection Agency and to pack the National Labor Relations Board with Obamabots (more on them later), the One decided that despite the fact that the Senate was still in session, he could unilaterally declare it to be in recess so that he could install his people in their jobs. Did the Attorney General, also known as America's lawyer, do anything to stop this outrageous breach of the separation of powers? Of course not:
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For those of you who dismiss these concerns because the Matrix has so successfully hidden the true motives of the left in this country, I beseech you to examine the evidence. Not only has the President surrounded himself with far left ideologues in his administration, he has appointed them as "czars". This is important because while they have direct power, with the full authority of the Office of the President, to mandate policy at Cabinet agencies, they do not have to be confirmed by the Senate, are completely unaccountable to anyone but the President and everything they do can be kept secret because they are fully protected by Executive Privilege. This lack of transparency is the way Obama likes to run his government. It speaks volumes about how much information about his policies he wants the public to know about.
In this new "progressive" way of governance, it is the legislative aim of the Democrats to create unaccountable bureaucrats who will decide policy by fiat with zero oversight from Congress:
Consider the Independent Payment Advisory Board that Obamacare created. Its 15-member board, appointed by the president, has virtual carte blanche to cut Medicare spending by mandating “evidence-based medicine” (code for rationing) or slashing physician payments. Its “recommendations” will have the force of law unless Congress passes—with a three-fifths supermajority in the Senate—alternative cuts of an equal amount. This, in essence, delegates away Congress’ legislative powers.
But the real kicker is that it will be nearly impossible for future Congresses to repeal the board, a profound assault on the Constitution. Congress will have a small window between Jan. 1 and Feb. 1 in 2017 to introduce a joint resolution calling for its repeal. If the resolution passes with a supermajority by Aug. 15, it will be dismantled in … 2020.
It might be easier to dissolve the union than the board.
This is not the administration’s only monster child. There is also the Consumer Financial Protection Agency created by the Dodd-Frank financial reform legislation. It’ll be headed by one czar, not even a full board like the ObamaCare advisory board, who’ll have sweeping powers to dictate to banks, lending institutions, credit unions and payday lenders among others what financial instruments they can offer and on what terms. The czar (Obama has nominated former Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray) won’t be subject to removal by Congress, and lawmakers won’t be able to be repeal his directives without a two-thirds majority. What’s more, the agency will draw its funding from the Federal Reserve without any congressional oversight.
Both of these signature legislative accomplishments of President Obama, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid create two massive new government entities with vast powers and no oversight or accountability. This is not an accident. Progressives will staff them with hacks who will do the bidding of their masters. To heck with having to deal with those pesky things called citizens. We the People is now We the Government.
5=====================================================================================================
The Obama administration doesn't much care for the judicial branch either:
In February of last year, Louisiana Federal District Court Judge Martin Feldman found that the Obama Interior Department was in contempt of his ruling that the offshore oil drilling moratorium, imposed by the administration in 2010, was unconstitutional. After Feldman struck down the initial drilling ban, the Interior Department simply established a second ban that was virtually identical.
Judge Feldman was not amused. "Each step the government took following the court's imposition of a preliminary injunction showcases its defiance," Feldman said in his ruling. "Such dismissive conduct, viewed in tandem with the re-imposition of a second moratorium ... provides this court with clear and convincing evidence of its contempt."
If you have the chutzpah to thumb your nose at the judiciary, thumbing your nose at Congress is even easier. Barack Obama actually believes that His Exalted Majesty has the right to determine whether the Senate is in session or not. In order to pick the head of the unaccountable Consumer Financial Protection Agency and to pack the National Labor Relations Board with Obamabots (more on them later), the One decided that despite the fact that the Senate was still in session, he could unilaterally declare it to be in recess so that he could install his people in their jobs. Did the Attorney General, also known as America's lawyer, do anything to stop this outrageous breach of the separation of powers? Of course not:
So, now the President, not the Senate gets to decide when they are in session or not? Are they serious? Apparently so:
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Disgraceful it may be, but Barack Obama's decision to become the Imperial President and bypass the Congess and rule from the Executive Branch is nothing new. Why bother with Congress when another Obama stimulus is deemed necessary?
Disgraceful it may be, but Barack Obama's decision to become the Imperial President and bypass the Congess and rule from the Executive Branch is nothing new. Why bother with Congress when another Obama stimulus is deemed necessary?
The President has decided that because he is so "special" and his ideas so "important" that the Constitution can be turned on its head and he can now rule as Emperor. As Kimberly Strassel of the Wall Street Journal says there is a brand new way of governing in Washington DC:
Mr. Obama proposes, Congress refuses, he does it anyway.
For example, Congress refused to pass Mr. Obama's Dream Act, which would provide a path to citizenship for some not here legally. So Mr. Obama passed it himself with an executive order that directs officers to no longer deport certain illegal immigrants. This may be good or humane policy, yet there is no reading of "prosecutorial discretion" that allows for blanket immunity for entire classes of offenders.
It isn't that Emperor Obama doesn't know that he is violating the Constitution:
Mr. Obama proposes, Congress refuses, he does it anyway.
For example, Congress refused to pass Mr. Obama's Dream Act, which would provide a path to citizenship for some not here legally. So Mr. Obama passed it himself with an executive order that directs officers to no longer deport certain illegal immigrants. This may be good or humane policy, yet there is no reading of "prosecutorial discretion" that allows for blanket immunity for entire classes of offenders.
It isn't that Emperor Obama doesn't know that he is violating the Constitution:
He just doesn't care. If it means that he can win some votes with Hispanics to help him win re-election, the heck with that crinkly brown piece of paper. Enforcing the laws on the books? That's for mere Presidents. He is now Emperor Barack The Magnificent:
Mr. Obama disagrees with federal law, which criminalizes the use of medical marijuana. Congress has not repealed the law. No matter. The president instructs his Justice Department not to prosecute transgressors. He disapproves of the federal Defense of Marriage Act, yet rather than get Congress to repeal it, he stops defending it in court. He dislikes provisions of the federal No Child Left Behind Act, so he asked Congress for fixes. That effort failed, so now his Education Department issues waivers that are patently inconsistent with the statute...
Even though the No Child Left Behind Act and every other Education Department mandate specifically prohibits the creation of a national education curriculum, Emperor Barry is creating one anyway.
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Similarly, when Mr. Obama wants a new program and Congress won't give it to him, he creates it regardless. Congress, including Democrats, wouldn't pass his cap-and-trade legislation. His Environmental Protection Agency is now instituting it via a broad reading of the Clean Air Act. Congress, again including members of his own party, wouldn't pass his "card-check" legislation eliminating secret ballots in union elections. So he stacked the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) with appointees who pushed through a "quickie" election law to accomplish much the same. Congress wouldn't pass "net neutrality" Internet regulations, so Mr. Obama's Federal Communications Commission did it unilaterally.
In January, when the Senate refused to confirm Mr. Obama's new picks for the NLRB, he proclaimed the Senate to be in "recess" and appointed the members anyway, making a mockery of that chamber's advice-and-consent role. In June, he expanded the definition of "executive privilege" to deny House Republicans documents for their probe into the botched Fast and Furious drug-war operation, making a mockery of Congress's oversight responsibilities...
Even though the No Child Left Behind Act and every other Education Department mandate specifically prohibits the creation of a national education curriculum, Emperor Barry is creating one anyway.
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Similarly, when Mr. Obama wants a new program and Congress won't give it to him, he creates it regardless. Congress, including Democrats, wouldn't pass his cap-and-trade legislation. His Environmental Protection Agency is now instituting it via a broad reading of the Clean Air Act. Congress, again including members of his own party, wouldn't pass his "card-check" legislation eliminating secret ballots in union elections. So he stacked the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) with appointees who pushed through a "quickie" election law to accomplish much the same. Congress wouldn't pass "net neutrality" Internet regulations, so Mr. Obama's Federal Communications Commission did it unilaterally.
In January, when the Senate refused to confirm Mr. Obama's new picks for the NLRB, he proclaimed the Senate to be in "recess" and appointed the members anyway, making a mockery of that chamber's advice-and-consent role. In June, he expanded the definition of "executive privilege" to deny House Republicans documents for their probe into the botched Fast and Furious drug-war operation, making a mockery of Congress's oversight responsibilities...
Well, Emperor Barack "The Sly" certainly can't have a scandal unfold right before the election... Oh, no! Therefore, the most arcane assertion of Executive Privilege is used to prevent anyone from seeing how badly and dishonestly his administration mucked up their little gun running scheme until after November. Transparency? Accountability? The heck with that! There's an election to be won!
This president's imperial pretensions extend into the brute force the executive branch has exercised over the private sector. The auto bailouts turned contract law on its head, as the White House subordinated bondholders' rights to those of its union allies. After the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the Justice Department leaked that it had opened a criminal probe at exactly the time the Obama White House was demanding BP suspend its dividend and cough up billions for an extralegal claims fund. BP paid. Who wouldn't?
And it has been much the same in his dealings with the states. Don't like Arizona's plans to check immigration status? Sue. Don't like state efforts to clean up their voter rolls? Invoke the Voting Rights Act. Don't like state authority over fracking? Elbow in with new and imagined federal authority, via federal water or land laws.
In so many situations, Mr. Obama's stated rationale for action has been the same: We tried working with Congress but it didn't pan out—so we did what we had to do. This is not only admission that the president has subverted the legislative branch, but a revealing insight into Mr. Obama's view of his own importance and authority...
Mr. Obama came to office promising to deliver a new kind of politics. He did—his own, unilateral governance.
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Emperor Barry "The Magnificent" feels that he, and he alone, has the power to take the nation to war, oh wait excuse me, a kinetic military operation, and feels no need to get any approval from Congress whatsoever:
This president's imperial pretensions extend into the brute force the executive branch has exercised over the private sector. The auto bailouts turned contract law on its head, as the White House subordinated bondholders' rights to those of its union allies. After the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the Justice Department leaked that it had opened a criminal probe at exactly the time the Obama White House was demanding BP suspend its dividend and cough up billions for an extralegal claims fund. BP paid. Who wouldn't?
And it has been much the same in his dealings with the states. Don't like Arizona's plans to check immigration status? Sue. Don't like state efforts to clean up their voter rolls? Invoke the Voting Rights Act. Don't like state authority over fracking? Elbow in with new and imagined federal authority, via federal water or land laws.
In so many situations, Mr. Obama's stated rationale for action has been the same: We tried working with Congress but it didn't pan out—so we did what we had to do. This is not only admission that the president has subverted the legislative branch, but a revealing insight into Mr. Obama's view of his own importance and authority...
Mr. Obama came to office promising to deliver a new kind of politics. He did—his own, unilateral governance.
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Emperor Barry "The Magnificent" feels that he, and he alone, has the power to take the nation to war, oh wait excuse me, a kinetic military operation, and feels no need to get any approval from Congress whatsoever:
So he has chosen to simply ingnore the law! Imagine that! Not only does Barack Obama feel that he can go to war without Congressional authorization in direct contravention, not only to the War Powers Act, but of the Constitution itself, but he deems that he is free to do what he wants in other areas of foreign policy. Despite their repeated proclamations of hatred for "infidels" in general and the US and Israel in particular, Barack Obama felt it necessary to appease the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt , the Palestinian Authority and UNESCO, by giving them hundreds of millions in US aid over the objections of Congress. Of course, that leaves him solely to blame now that our Embassies in Libya and Cairo have been attacked and this money looks to have been completely wasted.
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But there's more. Despite campaigning strenuously against them, Obama has continued most of the controversial programs that Bush pursued during the War on Terror including Guantanamo, rendition, warrantless wiretaps and has even added some more like his policy of using GPS trackers without warrants. He has even decided that he has the authority to "assassinate" American citizens without a trial and to hold prisoners indefintely even after they have been acquited of crimes:
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But there's more. Despite campaigning strenuously against them, Obama has continued most of the controversial programs that Bush pursued during the War on Terror including Guantanamo, rendition, warrantless wiretaps and has even added some more like his policy of using GPS trackers without warrants. He has even decided that he has the authority to "assassinate" American citizens without a trial and to hold prisoners indefintely even after they have been acquited of crimes:
It might happen to you... Well put. So, what't the big deal about Barry thinking he is Emperor? Well other than setting a precedent for an Imperial Presidency and creating the foundation for the end of the Republic by ignoring the Constitution when it suits him, what worries many civil libertarians is that President Obama, like W before him, is using the War on Terror as an excuse to sign Executive Orders that gives the government unprecedented power over the means of communication including your private conversations, emails and digital devices:
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But, Barry was only getting started. When Congress refused to give Emperor Barack "The Sly" the ability to regulate the internet (the last true bastion of freedom in the world), he just imposed it by executive order:
On December 21, 2010 the Barack Obama Administration--via its Federal Communications Commission (FCC)-- illegally imposed Network Neutrality.
Net Neutrality allows the government to regulate every website on the World Wide Web--a tremendous First Amendment free speech problem.
Net Neutrality came from the fevered mind of Tim Wu. Wu is a Columbia law professor. And the former chair of Free Press--the absurdest of all the pro-Net Neutrality Media Marxist groups.
And on February 4, 2011 Wu became:
(A) senior advisor to the (Obama Administration’s) Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for consumer protection and competition issues that affect the Internet and mobile markets.
Great news, eh? What First Amendment goodness has Obama Administration Advisor Wu been up to of late? This.
Free Speech for Computers?
In today’s world, we have delegated many of our daily decisions to computers. On the drive to work, a GPS device suggests the best route; at your desk, Microsoft Word guesses at your misspellings, and Facebook recommends new friends.
In the past few years, the suggestion has been made that when computers make such choices they are “speaking,” and enjoy the protections of the First Amendment.
This is a bad idea that threatens the government’s ability to oversee companies and protect consumers....
Wu wants the government to know where we go via GPS, what we write on word processing software and who we Friend on Facebook.
That isn’t at all totalitarian and creepy.
(W)hen you turn to Google with a question, the search engine must decide, at that moment, what “answers” to give, and in what order to put those answers. If such answers are speech, then any government efforts to regulate Google, like any efforts to bowdlerize Ann Landers, must be examined as censorship....
But if we call computerized decisions “speech,” the judiciary must consider these laws as potential censorship, making the First Amendment, for these companies, a formidable anti-regulatory tool.
Ummm, yeah--that’s sort of the point.
Wu is absurdly asserting that what you type in the “Search” field is protected speech--but the results you get are not. The “Search” results being, of course, a dead giveaway as to what you typed in the “Search” field.
Do you want the government having blanket access to where you go, what you write and for what you search--just because you did any of it on a computer? Neither do I. Wu does.
ObamaCare contains in its monstrous folds the regulation of any computer or device on which you do anything health-related, including storing health records. Wu--obviously an overachiever--goes several huge steps further.
The First Amendment has wandered far from its purposes when it is recruited to protect commercial automatons from regulatory scrutiny....
The line can be easily drawn: as a general rule, nonhuman or automated choices should not be granted the full protection of the First Amendment, and often should not be considered “speech” at all....
Computers make trillions of invisible decisions each day; the possibility that each decision could be protected speech should give us pause.
“Computers make trillions of invisible decisions”--devised, designed and elicited by...people. For whom the First Amendment acknowledges unlimited free speech.
What should give us pause is that people like Wu teach at our universities--and are “advisors” to this administration.
To give computers the rights intended for humans is to elevate our machines above ourselves.
No, it means when we speak via our computers--we’re still speaking. Which makes us the masters of our machines--and our machines free from Congressional speech abridgment.
The First Amendment--and the Constitution in its entirety--makes us the masters of our government. Wu wants to turn that relationship the other way round.
11====================================================================================================
You just know that the left would never allow for a true bastion of freedom like the internet to exist unregulated. Their need to control every aspect of what you think, say and do knows no limit. At first glance, how they go about violating your privacy and your freedom seems so innocuous:
But, Barry was only getting started. When Congress refused to give Emperor Barack "The Sly" the ability to regulate the internet (the last true bastion of freedom in the world), he just imposed it by executive order:
On December 21, 2010 the Barack Obama Administration--via its Federal Communications Commission (FCC)-- illegally imposed Network Neutrality.
Net Neutrality allows the government to regulate every website on the World Wide Web--a tremendous First Amendment free speech problem.
Net Neutrality came from the fevered mind of Tim Wu. Wu is a Columbia law professor. And the former chair of Free Press--the absurdest of all the pro-Net Neutrality Media Marxist groups.
And on February 4, 2011 Wu became:
(A) senior advisor to the (Obama Administration’s) Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for consumer protection and competition issues that affect the Internet and mobile markets.
Great news, eh? What First Amendment goodness has Obama Administration Advisor Wu been up to of late? This.
Free Speech for Computers?
In today’s world, we have delegated many of our daily decisions to computers. On the drive to work, a GPS device suggests the best route; at your desk, Microsoft Word guesses at your misspellings, and Facebook recommends new friends.
In the past few years, the suggestion has been made that when computers make such choices they are “speaking,” and enjoy the protections of the First Amendment.
This is a bad idea that threatens the government’s ability to oversee companies and protect consumers....
Wu wants the government to know where we go via GPS, what we write on word processing software and who we Friend on Facebook.
That isn’t at all totalitarian and creepy.
(W)hen you turn to Google with a question, the search engine must decide, at that moment, what “answers” to give, and in what order to put those answers. If such answers are speech, then any government efforts to regulate Google, like any efforts to bowdlerize Ann Landers, must be examined as censorship....
But if we call computerized decisions “speech,” the judiciary must consider these laws as potential censorship, making the First Amendment, for these companies, a formidable anti-regulatory tool.
Ummm, yeah--that’s sort of the point.
Wu is absurdly asserting that what you type in the “Search” field is protected speech--but the results you get are not. The “Search” results being, of course, a dead giveaway as to what you typed in the “Search” field.
Do you want the government having blanket access to where you go, what you write and for what you search--just because you did any of it on a computer? Neither do I. Wu does.
ObamaCare contains in its monstrous folds the regulation of any computer or device on which you do anything health-related, including storing health records. Wu--obviously an overachiever--goes several huge steps further.
The First Amendment has wandered far from its purposes when it is recruited to protect commercial automatons from regulatory scrutiny....
The line can be easily drawn: as a general rule, nonhuman or automated choices should not be granted the full protection of the First Amendment, and often should not be considered “speech” at all....
Computers make trillions of invisible decisions each day; the possibility that each decision could be protected speech should give us pause.
“Computers make trillions of invisible decisions”--devised, designed and elicited by...people. For whom the First Amendment acknowledges unlimited free speech.
What should give us pause is that people like Wu teach at our universities--and are “advisors” to this administration.
To give computers the rights intended for humans is to elevate our machines above ourselves.
No, it means when we speak via our computers--we’re still speaking. Which makes us the masters of our machines--and our machines free from Congressional speech abridgment.
The First Amendment--and the Constitution in its entirety--makes us the masters of our government. Wu wants to turn that relationship the other way round.
11====================================================================================================
You just know that the left would never allow for a true bastion of freedom like the internet to exist unregulated. Their need to control every aspect of what you think, say and do knows no limit. At first glance, how they go about violating your privacy and your freedom seems so innocuous:
No big deal right? It may be a bit more information than we'd like some stranger off the street to know perhaps though:
Why indeed? Well, perhaps it is so political operatives can do things like this to you:
12====================================================================================================
Now, while most people don't want their busy body neighbors to know their voting patterns, it is a part of the public record. You have to admit that this kind of invasion of privacy is a clever tool to help with the get out the vote effort. I guess in the age of computers we should expect that this is going to happen. Were that all that this is, I'd not have even bothered to mention it. But, when it comes to voter intimidation, this is a game the left seeks and excels at. Harassment, tire slashing, and beatings have all been part of the left's intimidation tactics for years. Just ask Kenneth Gladney, a black Tea Party member in a wheel chair, who was beaten senseless by SEIU thugs outside of a town hall meeting in Missouri. Once these people know where you live and how you vote, they can institute their special "persuasion" campaign to convince you to do the "right" thing. That's why the NLRB that Obama packed with his hacks during that unconstitutional recess appointment pushed a law to force companies to give unions employees phone numbers:
Now, while most people don't want their busy body neighbors to know their voting patterns, it is a part of the public record. You have to admit that this kind of invasion of privacy is a clever tool to help with the get out the vote effort. I guess in the age of computers we should expect that this is going to happen. Were that all that this is, I'd not have even bothered to mention it. But, when it comes to voter intimidation, this is a game the left seeks and excels at. Harassment, tire slashing, and beatings have all been part of the left's intimidation tactics for years. Just ask Kenneth Gladney, a black Tea Party member in a wheel chair, who was beaten senseless by SEIU thugs outside of a town hall meeting in Missouri. Once these people know where you live and how you vote, they can institute their special "persuasion" campaign to convince you to do the "right" thing. That's why the NLRB that Obama packed with his hacks during that unconstitutional recess appointment pushed a law to force companies to give unions employees phone numbers:
But, the government, the political parties and the unions aren't satisfied with just tracking your voting habits or finding out where you live. They also want to monitor what you do in your car. They are actually talking about mandating "black boxes" on every vehicle. The information on those boxes may or may not be yours. It will depend on whether the government decides you deserve to see it. But, rest assured, they will have the full authority to study what you do behind the wheel of a car in full detail. Many people say that this is a precursor for when the government nannies want to institute a mileage tax to get you out of your nice car and into crowded public transit. But, that's just a rumor. Those enviro-nuts in the Democrat party would never actually do that, right?
Well, those lovable greenies out in San Francisco do want to do just that:
Well, those lovable greenies out in San Francisco do want to do just that:
13====================================================================================================
While all of these intrusions into our privacy have yet to cross the line into direct violations of our civil rights, that does not mean that the government isn't taking advantage of using the computer and cell phone age to keep tabs on us. Almost every American has a cell phone and the Obama administration wants to make it easier to track your movements using the GPS devices embedded in these mobile devices without the bother of having to obtain a warrant. So, far the judicial system and civil libertarians have blocked most of those attempts. However, you can be sure they are going to keep trying. The trick will be to either find or appoint the right judges. It's just a matter of time. The same is true for e-mail and your computer records. The government would like to be able to monitor what you write and what you search for on any digital device that you use. As was noted earlier, that was the whole purpose behind Obama unilaterally instituting Net Neutrality and the regulation of the internet.
Think about this for a moment... Any private investigator can get into your credit card and bank records and know how much you spend and on what. Federal investigators from agencies like the NSA , DHS and the FBI have that kind of power and more. Many of us share our whole lives via text or Facebook. If you own one of the newer iPads and iPhones, the face recognition technology can be accessed and used by the government as well. Anything you ask Siri goes to the central computer and can be accessed. When Google Glasses come out and go into wide circulation, as one day they inevitably will, the government will have even broader access to the private details of your life because once again all of that data is accessed by a "cloud server" whose information can be obtained by the government.
There is already talk of using the Obamacare law as an excuse to give every American a bar code chip and the idea is already being used to track kids in San Antonio schools. Of course, this will be sold as a benefit to you. The media-Matrix will go into full propaganda mode informing you of how wonderful it will be that all of your medical records can be stored on this chip in case something happens to you and emergency personnel need to identify you and know your pertinent medical history. Sounds good right? And since everyone in the US will be mandated to sign up for health care, the government will be able to tag and track virtually every single American citizen if this is allowed to occur. I am sure that all of this will be voluntary at first. But, rest assured, every new baby born will have a chip implanted in them. There will be loads of peer pressure put on mothers to make the "smart" choice so that the medical records will be there and, with the GPS tracking device, the child will never be lost or kidnapped. Trust me when I tell you this, bar code chips will become ubiquitous.
14====================================================================================================
Then there are the drones. From small planes to tiny devices that look like insects, soon the government, law enforcement and private snooping agencies will be able to visually track you wherever you go using either your cell phone GPS or implanted chip to locate you:
While all of these intrusions into our privacy have yet to cross the line into direct violations of our civil rights, that does not mean that the government isn't taking advantage of using the computer and cell phone age to keep tabs on us. Almost every American has a cell phone and the Obama administration wants to make it easier to track your movements using the GPS devices embedded in these mobile devices without the bother of having to obtain a warrant. So, far the judicial system and civil libertarians have blocked most of those attempts. However, you can be sure they are going to keep trying. The trick will be to either find or appoint the right judges. It's just a matter of time. The same is true for e-mail and your computer records. The government would like to be able to monitor what you write and what you search for on any digital device that you use. As was noted earlier, that was the whole purpose behind Obama unilaterally instituting Net Neutrality and the regulation of the internet.
Think about this for a moment... Any private investigator can get into your credit card and bank records and know how much you spend and on what. Federal investigators from agencies like the NSA , DHS and the FBI have that kind of power and more. Many of us share our whole lives via text or Facebook. If you own one of the newer iPads and iPhones, the face recognition technology can be accessed and used by the government as well. Anything you ask Siri goes to the central computer and can be accessed. When Google Glasses come out and go into wide circulation, as one day they inevitably will, the government will have even broader access to the private details of your life because once again all of that data is accessed by a "cloud server" whose information can be obtained by the government.
There is already talk of using the Obamacare law as an excuse to give every American a bar code chip and the idea is already being used to track kids in San Antonio schools. Of course, this will be sold as a benefit to you. The media-Matrix will go into full propaganda mode informing you of how wonderful it will be that all of your medical records can be stored on this chip in case something happens to you and emergency personnel need to identify you and know your pertinent medical history. Sounds good right? And since everyone in the US will be mandated to sign up for health care, the government will be able to tag and track virtually every single American citizen if this is allowed to occur. I am sure that all of this will be voluntary at first. But, rest assured, every new baby born will have a chip implanted in them. There will be loads of peer pressure put on mothers to make the "smart" choice so that the medical records will be there and, with the GPS tracking device, the child will never be lost or kidnapped. Trust me when I tell you this, bar code chips will become ubiquitous.
14====================================================================================================
Then there are the drones. From small planes to tiny devices that look like insects, soon the government, law enforcement and private snooping agencies will be able to visually track you wherever you go using either your cell phone GPS or implanted chip to locate you:
If all that ability to surveil every aspect of your life isn't enough, the last major measure of being able to analyze and control your behavior will be the elimination of cash and coins. Without cash, the government can monitor every single purchase and financial transaction you make. There will be no hiding from the Nanny State and the do gooders and busy bodies who want to control every aspect of your behavior. Expect one day to see an e-mail message saying that Uncle Sammy has been noticing an increasing consumption of french fries in your diet. We recommend that you cut down or you will be fined and the money instantly deducted from your digital cash account. Further violation of the new Federal French Fry act may lead to the suspension of your bank account and the requirement to show up to your local Sensitivity Training Center to take mandatory diet training classes.
Think that is ridiculous? That it will never happen? Socialist nations like Sweden are already doing everything in their power to create a cashless society. Don't get me wrong, this whole movement towards the digital world is a good thing which promises many great advances for human progress. However, that is true only so long as our constitutional right to privacy is protected. Unfortunately, the Crooks and Thieves of both parties are more than willing to abrogate your rights for the benefit of the collective. Whether it is for national security reasons or not, this type of steady and insistent encroachment on our freedoms is beginning to remind people of 1984:
Think that is ridiculous? That it will never happen? Socialist nations like Sweden are already doing everything in their power to create a cashless society. Don't get me wrong, this whole movement towards the digital world is a good thing which promises many great advances for human progress. However, that is true only so long as our constitutional right to privacy is protected. Unfortunately, the Crooks and Thieves of both parties are more than willing to abrogate your rights for the benefit of the collective. Whether it is for national security reasons or not, this type of steady and insistent encroachment on our freedoms is beginning to remind people of 1984:
15====================================================================================================
What is even more scary are the Executive Orders that President Obama has been signing recently. These frightening documents proclaim that in an "emergency" (whatever that might be) the Federal government is empowered to declare martial law and basically turn America into a totalitarian state controlled by Washington:
What is even more scary are the Executive Orders that President Obama has been signing recently. These frightening documents proclaim that in an "emergency" (whatever that might be) the Federal government is empowered to declare martial law and basically turn America into a totalitarian state controlled by Washington:
Recently individual Federal agencies like the EPA and NOAA purchased an incredible amount of hollow point ammunition. Given that this kind of ammo is not useful for target practice, but is designed solely to kill human beings, many people wanted to know why this was all necessary. In fact, his action by our Federal government so alarmed Major General Jerry Curry, USA (Ret.) that he wrote a public letter questioning this move:
The Social Security Administration (SSA) confirms that it is purchasing 174 thousand rounds of hollow point bullets to be delivered to 41 locations in major cities across the U.S. No one has yet said what the purpose of these purchases is, though we are led to believe that they will be used only in an emergency to counteract and control civil unrest. Those against whom the hollow point bullets are to be used — those causing the civil unrest — must be American citizens; since the SSA has never been used overseas to help foreign countries maintain control of their citizens.
What would be the target of these 174, 000 rounds of hollow point bullets? It can’t simply be to control demonstrators or rioters. Hollow point bullets are so lethal that the Geneva Convention does not allow their use on the battle field in time of war. Hollow point bullets don’t just stop or hurt people, they penetrate the body, spread out, fragment and cause maximum damage to the body’s organs. Death often follows.
Potentially each hollow nose bullet represents a dead American. If so, why would the U.S. government want the SSA to kill 174,000 of our citizens, even during a time of civil unrest? Or is the purpose to kill 174,000 of the nation’s military and replace them with Department of Homeland Security (DHS) special security forces, forces loyal to the Administration, not to the Constitution?
All my life I’ve handled firearms. When a young boy growing up on my father’s farm in Pennsylvania Dad’s first rule of firearms training was, “Never point a gun at someone, in fun or otherwise, unless you intend to shoot them. If you shoot someone, shoot to kill.” I’ve never forgotten his admonition. It stayed with me through my Boy Scout training, when I enlisted in the army as a Private to fight in the Korean War, during my days as a Ranger and Paratrooper and throughout my thirty-four year military career.
If this were only a one time order of ammunition, it could easily be dismissed. But there is a pattern here. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has ordered 46,000 rounds of hollow point ammunition. Notice that all of these purchases are for the lethal hollow nose bullets. These bullets are not being purchased and stored for squirrel or coyote hunting. This is serious ammunition manufactured to be used for serious purposes.
In the war in Iraq, our military forces expended approximately 70 million rounds per year. In March DHS ordered 750 million rounds of hollow point ammunition. It then turned around and ordered an additional 750 million rounds of miscellaneous bullets including some that are capable of penetrating walls. This is enough ammunition to empty five rounds into the body of every living American citizen. Is this something we and the Congress should be concerned about? What’s the plan that requires so many dead Americans, even during times of civil unrest? Has Congress and the Administration vetted the plan in public.
I fear that Congress won’t take these ammunition purchases seriously until they are all led from Capitol Hill in handcuffs. Why buy all this ammunition unless you plan to use it. Unknown to Congress, Does DHS plan to declare war on some country? Shouldn’t Congress hold hearings on why the Administration is stockpiling this ammunition all across the nation? How will it be used; what are the Administration’s plans?
Obama is a deadly serious, persistent man. Once he focuses on an object, he pursues it to the end. What is his focus here? All of these rounds of ammunition can only be used to kill American citizens, though there is enough ammunition being ordered to kill, in addition to every American citizen, also every Iranian, Syrian or Mexican. There is simply too much of it. And this much ammunition can’t be just for training, there aren’t that many weapons and “shooters” in the U.S. to fire it. Perhaps it is to be used to arm illegal immigrants?
We have enough military forces to maintain law and order in the U.S. even during times of civil unrest.
We have local police, backed up by each state’s National Guard, backed up by the Department of Defense. So in addition to all these forces why does DHS need its own private army? Why do the SSA, NOAA and other government agencies need to create their own civilian security forces armed with hollow nose bullets?
Were I the JCS, and if I wasn’t already fully briefed on this matter, I’d stop the purchase of hollow point bullets, ask the secretary of Defense why all this ammunition is being purchased and spread around the country? If I got answers like the ones Congress got during the investigation of Operation Fast and Furious – I’d start tracking all ammunition deliveries nationwide to find out what organizations and units are using them, for what purpose and, if it is not constitutional, prepare to counteract whatever it is that they are doing.
This is a deadly serious business. I hope I’m wrong, but something smells rotten. And If the Congress isn’t going to do its duty and investigate this matter fully, the military will have to protect the Constitution, the nation, and our citizens.
Are these just the ravings of a highly decorated, but highly paranoid lunatic? Perhaps. I don't believe that Emperor Barack or any of the other Crooks and Thieves have any imminent plans to declare martial law and then stamp out and take full and complete control of any resistance via their ability to surveil and track everything each citizen does. However, the fact that they are acting in a way that puts everything in place to make 1984 a reality should be frightening to anyone who cares about the future of our civil liberties.
16====================================================================================================
While I find these potential assaults on our very freedom disturbing to say the least, what really worries me is how close the left is coming to fully realizing the world that Ayn Rand and George Orwell prophesied. By taking control of academe, the news media and the popular culture they are now able to fully control the narrative. As a result, the "enemies" of the state are under constant assault. Those who believe in the Founder's vision and are speaking out for sanity in our fiscal policy in order to prevent national bankruptcy are marginalized as "extremists" and "hostage takers". The media-Matrix is even willing to go to the point of showing a photo of a man with an assault rifle attached to his back and trying to use that to portray the Tea Party as violent racists... except for the fact that the man in question was actually a soft spoken African American. The truth? Who cares about the truth when a narrative of Tea Party as extremist, violent hostage taking racists must be advanced to keep people from swallowing the red pill and waking up to the reality that confronts us.
Now, that Democrats control the levers of the Executive Branch as well as the Matrix, they feel free to use the heavy hand of the government to come down on anyone with the temerity to say that Emperor Barack has no clothes. Thus, the Tea Party found itself under attack from the IRS:
in February that the Kentucky 9/12 group filed for non-profit status back in December of 2010. They finally heard back from the IRS on Valentines Day of this year. (A mere 14 months after they sent in an initial request.) Their return message was not in regards to any issues or concerns brought up in there original application, rather a letter requesting detailed documentation to answer 30 questions with sub-bullets (88 total separate inquiries) and only a two-week period to comply.
The Kentucky 9/12 Project said in a statement that what was even more alarming than the egregious request, was that their group was joined by close to 80 liberty groups from around the country that the IRS has targeted and is attempting to regulate out of existence.
This action by Obama's enforcers was so blatant and uncalled for that twenty US Senators felt compelled to write a letter to to IRS Commissioner Douglas Schulman demanding answers to concerns that the agency may be targeting the Kentucky 9/12 Project specifically, in addition to other conservative-leaning groups.
“It is critical that the public have confidence that federal tax compliance efforts are pursued in a fair, even-handed, and transparent manner – without regard to politics of any kind...
“It is imperative that organizations applying for tax-exempt status are able to rely on a consistent and foreseeable review structure from the IRS. Any significant changes to the IRS review process should be implemented only after appropriate notice and opportunity for comment from the public and affected parties.”
17====================================================================================================
But this is just typical of how the Crooks and Thieves running our government roll. If you have the temerity to defy one of their sacrosanct agencies, they will do everything in their power to bury you:
The Social Security Administration (SSA) confirms that it is purchasing 174 thousand rounds of hollow point bullets to be delivered to 41 locations in major cities across the U.S. No one has yet said what the purpose of these purchases is, though we are led to believe that they will be used only in an emergency to counteract and control civil unrest. Those against whom the hollow point bullets are to be used — those causing the civil unrest — must be American citizens; since the SSA has never been used overseas to help foreign countries maintain control of their citizens.
What would be the target of these 174, 000 rounds of hollow point bullets? It can’t simply be to control demonstrators or rioters. Hollow point bullets are so lethal that the Geneva Convention does not allow their use on the battle field in time of war. Hollow point bullets don’t just stop or hurt people, they penetrate the body, spread out, fragment and cause maximum damage to the body’s organs. Death often follows.
Potentially each hollow nose bullet represents a dead American. If so, why would the U.S. government want the SSA to kill 174,000 of our citizens, even during a time of civil unrest? Or is the purpose to kill 174,000 of the nation’s military and replace them with Department of Homeland Security (DHS) special security forces, forces loyal to the Administration, not to the Constitution?
All my life I’ve handled firearms. When a young boy growing up on my father’s farm in Pennsylvania Dad’s first rule of firearms training was, “Never point a gun at someone, in fun or otherwise, unless you intend to shoot them. If you shoot someone, shoot to kill.” I’ve never forgotten his admonition. It stayed with me through my Boy Scout training, when I enlisted in the army as a Private to fight in the Korean War, during my days as a Ranger and Paratrooper and throughout my thirty-four year military career.
If this were only a one time order of ammunition, it could easily be dismissed. But there is a pattern here. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has ordered 46,000 rounds of hollow point ammunition. Notice that all of these purchases are for the lethal hollow nose bullets. These bullets are not being purchased and stored for squirrel or coyote hunting. This is serious ammunition manufactured to be used for serious purposes.
In the war in Iraq, our military forces expended approximately 70 million rounds per year. In March DHS ordered 750 million rounds of hollow point ammunition. It then turned around and ordered an additional 750 million rounds of miscellaneous bullets including some that are capable of penetrating walls. This is enough ammunition to empty five rounds into the body of every living American citizen. Is this something we and the Congress should be concerned about? What’s the plan that requires so many dead Americans, even during times of civil unrest? Has Congress and the Administration vetted the plan in public.
I fear that Congress won’t take these ammunition purchases seriously until they are all led from Capitol Hill in handcuffs. Why buy all this ammunition unless you plan to use it. Unknown to Congress, Does DHS plan to declare war on some country? Shouldn’t Congress hold hearings on why the Administration is stockpiling this ammunition all across the nation? How will it be used; what are the Administration’s plans?
Obama is a deadly serious, persistent man. Once he focuses on an object, he pursues it to the end. What is his focus here? All of these rounds of ammunition can only be used to kill American citizens, though there is enough ammunition being ordered to kill, in addition to every American citizen, also every Iranian, Syrian or Mexican. There is simply too much of it. And this much ammunition can’t be just for training, there aren’t that many weapons and “shooters” in the U.S. to fire it. Perhaps it is to be used to arm illegal immigrants?
We have enough military forces to maintain law and order in the U.S. even during times of civil unrest.
We have local police, backed up by each state’s National Guard, backed up by the Department of Defense. So in addition to all these forces why does DHS need its own private army? Why do the SSA, NOAA and other government agencies need to create their own civilian security forces armed with hollow nose bullets?
Were I the JCS, and if I wasn’t already fully briefed on this matter, I’d stop the purchase of hollow point bullets, ask the secretary of Defense why all this ammunition is being purchased and spread around the country? If I got answers like the ones Congress got during the investigation of Operation Fast and Furious – I’d start tracking all ammunition deliveries nationwide to find out what organizations and units are using them, for what purpose and, if it is not constitutional, prepare to counteract whatever it is that they are doing.
This is a deadly serious business. I hope I’m wrong, but something smells rotten. And If the Congress isn’t going to do its duty and investigate this matter fully, the military will have to protect the Constitution, the nation, and our citizens.
Are these just the ravings of a highly decorated, but highly paranoid lunatic? Perhaps. I don't believe that Emperor Barack or any of the other Crooks and Thieves have any imminent plans to declare martial law and then stamp out and take full and complete control of any resistance via their ability to surveil and track everything each citizen does. However, the fact that they are acting in a way that puts everything in place to make 1984 a reality should be frightening to anyone who cares about the future of our civil liberties.
16====================================================================================================
While I find these potential assaults on our very freedom disturbing to say the least, what really worries me is how close the left is coming to fully realizing the world that Ayn Rand and George Orwell prophesied. By taking control of academe, the news media and the popular culture they are now able to fully control the narrative. As a result, the "enemies" of the state are under constant assault. Those who believe in the Founder's vision and are speaking out for sanity in our fiscal policy in order to prevent national bankruptcy are marginalized as "extremists" and "hostage takers". The media-Matrix is even willing to go to the point of showing a photo of a man with an assault rifle attached to his back and trying to use that to portray the Tea Party as violent racists... except for the fact that the man in question was actually a soft spoken African American. The truth? Who cares about the truth when a narrative of Tea Party as extremist, violent hostage taking racists must be advanced to keep people from swallowing the red pill and waking up to the reality that confronts us.
Now, that Democrats control the levers of the Executive Branch as well as the Matrix, they feel free to use the heavy hand of the government to come down on anyone with the temerity to say that Emperor Barack has no clothes. Thus, the Tea Party found itself under attack from the IRS:
in February that the Kentucky 9/12 group filed for non-profit status back in December of 2010. They finally heard back from the IRS on Valentines Day of this year. (A mere 14 months after they sent in an initial request.) Their return message was not in regards to any issues or concerns brought up in there original application, rather a letter requesting detailed documentation to answer 30 questions with sub-bullets (88 total separate inquiries) and only a two-week period to comply.
The Kentucky 9/12 Project said in a statement that what was even more alarming than the egregious request, was that their group was joined by close to 80 liberty groups from around the country that the IRS has targeted and is attempting to regulate out of existence.
This action by Obama's enforcers was so blatant and uncalled for that twenty US Senators felt compelled to write a letter to to IRS Commissioner Douglas Schulman demanding answers to concerns that the agency may be targeting the Kentucky 9/12 Project specifically, in addition to other conservative-leaning groups.
“It is critical that the public have confidence that federal tax compliance efforts are pursued in a fair, even-handed, and transparent manner – without regard to politics of any kind...
“It is imperative that organizations applying for tax-exempt status are able to rely on a consistent and foreseeable review structure from the IRS. Any significant changes to the IRS review process should be implemented only after appropriate notice and opportunity for comment from the public and affected parties.”
17====================================================================================================
But this is just typical of how the Crooks and Thieves running our government roll. If you have the temerity to defy one of their sacrosanct agencies, they will do everything in their power to bury you:
This is what happens to a couple with no political ax to grind, just a desire to build their dream home. Imagine what would happen if you had the gall to donate a million dollars to one of Emperor Barack's political opponents. Well, you need imagine no further. Once again Kimberly Strassel of the Wall Street Journal has the details:
Try this thought experiment: You decide to donate money to Mitt Romney. You want change in the Oval Office, so you engage in your democratic right to send a check.
Several days later, President Barack Obama, the most powerful man on the planet, singles you out by name. His campaign brands you a Romney donor, shames you for "betting against America," and accuses you of having a "less-than-reputable" record. The message from the man who controls the Justice Department (which can indict you), the SEC (which can fine you), and the IRS (which can audit you), is clear: You made a mistake donating that money.
Are you worried?
Richard Nixon's "enemies list" appalled the country for the simple reason that presidents hold a unique trust. Unlike senators or congressmen, presidents alone represent all Americans. Their powers—to jail, to fine, to bankrupt—are also so vast as to require restraint. Any president who targets a private citizen for his politics is de facto engaged in government intimidation and threats. This is why presidents since Nixon have carefully avoided the practice.
Save Mr. Obama, who acknowledges no rules. This past week, one of his campaign websites posted an item entitled "Behind the curtain: A brief history of Romney's donors." In the post, the Obama campaign named and shamed eight private citizens who had donated to his opponent. Describing the givers as all having "less-than-reputable records," the post went on to make the extraordinary accusations that "quite a few" have also been "on the wrong side of the law" and profiting at "the expense of so many Americans."
These are people like Paul Schorr and Sam and Jeffrey Fox, investors who the site outed for the crime of having "outsourced" jobs. T. Martin Fiorentino is scored for his work for a firm that forecloses on homes. Louis Bacon (a hedge-fund manager), Kent Burton (a "lobbyist") and Thomas O'Malley (an energy CEO) stand accused of profiting from oil. Frank VanderSloot, the CEO of a home-products firm, is slimed as a "bitter foe of the gay rights movement."...
The real crime of the men, as the website tacitly acknowledges, is that they have given money to Mr. Romney. This fundraiser of a president has shown an acute appreciation for the power of money to win elections, and a cutthroat approach to intimidating those who might give to his opponents.
He's targeted insurers, oil firms and Wall Street—letting it be known that those who oppose his policies might face political or legislative retribution. He lectured the Supreme Court for giving companies more free speech and (falsely) accused the Chamber of Commerce of using foreign money to bankroll U.S. elections. The White House even ginned up an executive order (yet to be released) to require companies to list political donations as a condition of bidding for government contracts. Companies could bid but lose out for donating to Republicans. Or they could quit donating to the GOP—Mr. Obama's real aim.
The White House has couched its attacks in the language of "disclosure" and the argument that corporations should not have the same speech rights as individuals. But now, says Rory Cooper of the Heritage Foundation, "he's doing the same at the individual level, for anyone who opposes his policies." Any giver, at any level, risks reprisal from the president of the United States.
18====================================================================================================
Any giver, eh? Apparently so as Ms. Strassel relates further:
Here's what happens when the president of the United States publicly targets a private citizen for the crime of supporting his opponent.
Frank VanderSloot is the CEO of Melaleuca Inc. The 63-year-old has run that wellness-products company for 26 years out of tiny Idaho Falls, Idaho. Last August, Mr. VanderSloot gave $1 million to Restore Our Future, the Super PAC that supports Mitt Romney.
Three weeks ago, an Obama campaign website, "Keeping GOP Honest," took the extraordinary step of publicly naming and assailing eight private citizens backing Mr. Romney. Titled "Behind the curtain: a brief history of Romney's donors," the post accused the eight of being "wealthy individuals with less-than-reputable records." Mr. VanderSloot was one of the eight, smeared particularly as being "litigious, combative and a bitter foe of the gay rights movement.
About a week after that post, a man named Michael Wolf contacted the Bonneville County Courthouse in Idaho Falls in search of court records regarding Mr. VanderSloot. Specifically, Mr. Wolf wanted all the documents dealing with Mr. VanderSloot's divorces, as well as a case involving a dispute with a former Melaleuca employee.
Mr. Wolf sent a fax to the clerk's office—which I have obtained—listing four cases he was after. He would later send a second fax, asking for three further court cases dealing with either Melaleuca or Mr. VanderSloot. Mr. Wolf listed only his name and a private cellphone number.
Some digging revealed that Mr. Wolf was, until a few months ago, a law clerk on the Democratic side of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. He's found new work. The ID written out at the top of his faxes identified them as coming from "Glenn Simpson." That's the name of a former Wall Street Journal reporter who in 2009 founded a D.C. company that performs private investigative work.
The website for that company, Fusion GPS, describes itself as providing "strategic intelligence," with expertise in areas like "politics." That's a polite way of saying "opposition research."...
This is not the first attack on Mr. VanderSloot. While the executive has been a force in Idaho politics and has helped Mr. Romney raise money, he's not what most would consider a national political power player. Through 2011, nearly every mention of Mr. VanderSloot appeared in Idaho or Washington state newspapers, often in reference to his business.
That changed in January, with the first Super PAC disclosures. Liberal bloggers and media have since dug into his past, dredging up long-ago Idaho controversies that touched on gay issues. His detractors have spiraled these into accusations that Mr. VanderSloot is a "gay bashing thug." He's become a national political focus of attention, aided by the likes of partisan Salon blogger Glenn Greenwald and MSNBC host Rachel Maddow. Bloggers have harassed his children, visiting their social media accounts and asking for interviews and information.
Mr. VanderSloot has said his attackers have misconstrued facts and made false allegations. In February he wrote a long reply, publicly stating that he has "many gay friends whom I love and respect" who should "have the same freedoms and rights as any other individual." The Obama campaign's response, in April, was to single out Mr. VanderSloot and repeat the slurs.
Political donations don't come with a right to privacy, and Mr. VanderSloot might have expected a spotlight. Then again, President Obama, in the wake of the Gabby Giffords shooting, gave a national address calling for "civility" in politics. Yet rather than condemn those demeaning his opponent's donors, Mr. Obama—the nation's most powerful man—instead publicly named individuals, egging on the attacks. What has followed is the slimy trolling into a citizen's private life.
19====================================================================================================
You will do as you are told. You will bow to the feet of the almighty Obamessiah. Otherwise, you might find yourself an enemy of the State. Do you want a government contract? Well, you can donate to the Emperor's opposition, but we will come out for you in total Alinksy fashion:
Try this thought experiment: You decide to donate money to Mitt Romney. You want change in the Oval Office, so you engage in your democratic right to send a check.
Several days later, President Barack Obama, the most powerful man on the planet, singles you out by name. His campaign brands you a Romney donor, shames you for "betting against America," and accuses you of having a "less-than-reputable" record. The message from the man who controls the Justice Department (which can indict you), the SEC (which can fine you), and the IRS (which can audit you), is clear: You made a mistake donating that money.
Are you worried?
Richard Nixon's "enemies list" appalled the country for the simple reason that presidents hold a unique trust. Unlike senators or congressmen, presidents alone represent all Americans. Their powers—to jail, to fine, to bankrupt—are also so vast as to require restraint. Any president who targets a private citizen for his politics is de facto engaged in government intimidation and threats. This is why presidents since Nixon have carefully avoided the practice.
Save Mr. Obama, who acknowledges no rules. This past week, one of his campaign websites posted an item entitled "Behind the curtain: A brief history of Romney's donors." In the post, the Obama campaign named and shamed eight private citizens who had donated to his opponent. Describing the givers as all having "less-than-reputable records," the post went on to make the extraordinary accusations that "quite a few" have also been "on the wrong side of the law" and profiting at "the expense of so many Americans."
These are people like Paul Schorr and Sam and Jeffrey Fox, investors who the site outed for the crime of having "outsourced" jobs. T. Martin Fiorentino is scored for his work for a firm that forecloses on homes. Louis Bacon (a hedge-fund manager), Kent Burton (a "lobbyist") and Thomas O'Malley (an energy CEO) stand accused of profiting from oil. Frank VanderSloot, the CEO of a home-products firm, is slimed as a "bitter foe of the gay rights movement."...
The real crime of the men, as the website tacitly acknowledges, is that they have given money to Mr. Romney. This fundraiser of a president has shown an acute appreciation for the power of money to win elections, and a cutthroat approach to intimidating those who might give to his opponents.
He's targeted insurers, oil firms and Wall Street—letting it be known that those who oppose his policies might face political or legislative retribution. He lectured the Supreme Court for giving companies more free speech and (falsely) accused the Chamber of Commerce of using foreign money to bankroll U.S. elections. The White House even ginned up an executive order (yet to be released) to require companies to list political donations as a condition of bidding for government contracts. Companies could bid but lose out for donating to Republicans. Or they could quit donating to the GOP—Mr. Obama's real aim.
The White House has couched its attacks in the language of "disclosure" and the argument that corporations should not have the same speech rights as individuals. But now, says Rory Cooper of the Heritage Foundation, "he's doing the same at the individual level, for anyone who opposes his policies." Any giver, at any level, risks reprisal from the president of the United States.
18====================================================================================================
Any giver, eh? Apparently so as Ms. Strassel relates further:
Here's what happens when the president of the United States publicly targets a private citizen for the crime of supporting his opponent.
Frank VanderSloot is the CEO of Melaleuca Inc. The 63-year-old has run that wellness-products company for 26 years out of tiny Idaho Falls, Idaho. Last August, Mr. VanderSloot gave $1 million to Restore Our Future, the Super PAC that supports Mitt Romney.
Three weeks ago, an Obama campaign website, "Keeping GOP Honest," took the extraordinary step of publicly naming and assailing eight private citizens backing Mr. Romney. Titled "Behind the curtain: a brief history of Romney's donors," the post accused the eight of being "wealthy individuals with less-than-reputable records." Mr. VanderSloot was one of the eight, smeared particularly as being "litigious, combative and a bitter foe of the gay rights movement.
About a week after that post, a man named Michael Wolf contacted the Bonneville County Courthouse in Idaho Falls in search of court records regarding Mr. VanderSloot. Specifically, Mr. Wolf wanted all the documents dealing with Mr. VanderSloot's divorces, as well as a case involving a dispute with a former Melaleuca employee.
Mr. Wolf sent a fax to the clerk's office—which I have obtained—listing four cases he was after. He would later send a second fax, asking for three further court cases dealing with either Melaleuca or Mr. VanderSloot. Mr. Wolf listed only his name and a private cellphone number.
Some digging revealed that Mr. Wolf was, until a few months ago, a law clerk on the Democratic side of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. He's found new work. The ID written out at the top of his faxes identified them as coming from "Glenn Simpson." That's the name of a former Wall Street Journal reporter who in 2009 founded a D.C. company that performs private investigative work.
The website for that company, Fusion GPS, describes itself as providing "strategic intelligence," with expertise in areas like "politics." That's a polite way of saying "opposition research."...
This is not the first attack on Mr. VanderSloot. While the executive has been a force in Idaho politics and has helped Mr. Romney raise money, he's not what most would consider a national political power player. Through 2011, nearly every mention of Mr. VanderSloot appeared in Idaho or Washington state newspapers, often in reference to his business.
That changed in January, with the first Super PAC disclosures. Liberal bloggers and media have since dug into his past, dredging up long-ago Idaho controversies that touched on gay issues. His detractors have spiraled these into accusations that Mr. VanderSloot is a "gay bashing thug." He's become a national political focus of attention, aided by the likes of partisan Salon blogger Glenn Greenwald and MSNBC host Rachel Maddow. Bloggers have harassed his children, visiting their social media accounts and asking for interviews and information.
Mr. VanderSloot has said his attackers have misconstrued facts and made false allegations. In February he wrote a long reply, publicly stating that he has "many gay friends whom I love and respect" who should "have the same freedoms and rights as any other individual." The Obama campaign's response, in April, was to single out Mr. VanderSloot and repeat the slurs.
Political donations don't come with a right to privacy, and Mr. VanderSloot might have expected a spotlight. Then again, President Obama, in the wake of the Gabby Giffords shooting, gave a national address calling for "civility" in politics. Yet rather than condemn those demeaning his opponent's donors, Mr. Obama—the nation's most powerful man—instead publicly named individuals, egging on the attacks. What has followed is the slimy trolling into a citizen's private life.
19====================================================================================================
You will do as you are told. You will bow to the feet of the almighty Obamessiah. Otherwise, you might find yourself an enemy of the State. Do you want a government contract? Well, you can donate to the Emperor's opposition, but we will come out for you in total Alinksy fashion:
I mean, really... You do not want to offend the One:
Ho! Ho! I see on this disclosure form that you donate to the Republican Party and other right wing groups. Hmmm, the Big Boss doesn’t like that. We are going to have to put your proposal up for further review. Seems like you didn’t dot all the I’s and cross all the T’s on your application with us. So, sorry about that! About that lucrative contract you had with us… oh well, you really should have thought about that before you started contributing to the “wrong” people. I mean, you are entitled to give to whomever you want. This is America. However, next time you should remember how it will look to the powers that be come contract renewal time. You’d better get smart and play ball. That’s a good CEO. What about the Unions, you say? Oh no, they aren’t big evil companies. They don’t need to disclose. They are fighting for the little guy don’t ya know? They are one of us. Now, we are going to have to terminate your contract this year, but be sure to come back next year with a note from a Democrat saying that you have donated the proper amount to their campaign. Have a nice day!
20====================================================================================================
This is pure Alinskyism:
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.)- Saul Alinsky, Rules for Radicals
Woe be unto you if you go against the forces of the Dark Emperor and his Storm Troopers of the left. Why you might become the next Chik-Fil-A and become the newest target of political correctness and behavior modification. As Rob Bluey of the Heritage Foundation writes:
Watching liberals react to Dan Cathy’s comments on marriage and family over the past two weeks revealed their real agenda: shut down and silence anyone who doesn’t agree with them.
Big-city mayors from Boston, Chicago, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., vowed to use their political clout to keep Chick-fil-A out of their cities. When the company’s top spokesman died unexpectedly last week, one liberal friend of mine declared on Facebook, “Oh, karma, you crafty bitch.”
I thought liberals were the ones preaching tolerance?
The Chick-fil-A kerfuffle helped clarify a point conservatives have been making for years. Liberals are interested in debate only when they’re winning. And on the issue of marriage, they’re 0-for-32 in states that have put the question to voters.
That offers some explanation why mayors Tom Menino, Rahm Emanuel, Ed Lee and Vincent Gray promised to punish Cathy because of his differing view on marriage. What’s scary, though, is that individuals with this much clout think it’s appropriate to use that power to exact the punishment.
Never mind that Chick-fil-A takes no position on homosexual marriage, a point the company reiterated during the media firestorm. It didn’t matter. Liberal journalists fanned the flames by deeming Cathy’s comments endorsing the “biblical definition of the family unit“ as anti-gay.
And to make matters worse for the mayors, Chick-fil-A hires employees and serves customers without regard to their sexual orientation. So in this case, the only people discriminating are the mayors.
Sadly, this is a trend that’s played out too frequently of late.
Can you imagine? Democrat Mayors and other high ranking public officials threatening the livelihoods and businesses of Chik-Fil-A franchisees over a political disagreement? This is America? It's one thing if someone calls for individuals to boycott a business, it's another when the Crooks and Thieves who are supposed to represent all the people use their power to enforce behavior modification. Not only is this unconstitutional, it is morally wrong in every way I can think of.
21====================================================================================================
One would think that this would have provoked a great outcry even amongst those charged with running the media-Matrix. However, if that's what you thought, you'd be wrong. Everyone in the Matrix was fully on board. In fact, a member of the supposedly respectable and estimable Washington Post was egging them on:
20====================================================================================================
This is pure Alinskyism:
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.)- Saul Alinsky, Rules for Radicals
Woe be unto you if you go against the forces of the Dark Emperor and his Storm Troopers of the left. Why you might become the next Chik-Fil-A and become the newest target of political correctness and behavior modification. As Rob Bluey of the Heritage Foundation writes:
Watching liberals react to Dan Cathy’s comments on marriage and family over the past two weeks revealed their real agenda: shut down and silence anyone who doesn’t agree with them.
Big-city mayors from Boston, Chicago, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., vowed to use their political clout to keep Chick-fil-A out of their cities. When the company’s top spokesman died unexpectedly last week, one liberal friend of mine declared on Facebook, “Oh, karma, you crafty bitch.”
I thought liberals were the ones preaching tolerance?
The Chick-fil-A kerfuffle helped clarify a point conservatives have been making for years. Liberals are interested in debate only when they’re winning. And on the issue of marriage, they’re 0-for-32 in states that have put the question to voters.
That offers some explanation why mayors Tom Menino, Rahm Emanuel, Ed Lee and Vincent Gray promised to punish Cathy because of his differing view on marriage. What’s scary, though, is that individuals with this much clout think it’s appropriate to use that power to exact the punishment.
Never mind that Chick-fil-A takes no position on homosexual marriage, a point the company reiterated during the media firestorm. It didn’t matter. Liberal journalists fanned the flames by deeming Cathy’s comments endorsing the “biblical definition of the family unit“ as anti-gay.
And to make matters worse for the mayors, Chick-fil-A hires employees and serves customers without regard to their sexual orientation. So in this case, the only people discriminating are the mayors.
Sadly, this is a trend that’s played out too frequently of late.
Can you imagine? Democrat Mayors and other high ranking public officials threatening the livelihoods and businesses of Chik-Fil-A franchisees over a political disagreement? This is America? It's one thing if someone calls for individuals to boycott a business, it's another when the Crooks and Thieves who are supposed to represent all the people use their power to enforce behavior modification. Not only is this unconstitutional, it is morally wrong in every way I can think of.
21====================================================================================================
One would think that this would have provoked a great outcry even amongst those charged with running the media-Matrix. However, if that's what you thought, you'd be wrong. Everyone in the Matrix was fully on board. In fact, a member of the supposedly respectable and estimable Washington Post was egging them on:
Yup, that's it. Go full Alinsky on Chik-Fil-A. Find out who works there. Find out who does business with them and go after them. After all, we can't have people actually living and acting upon their own religious beliefs. Sadly, Mr. Capehart is just another Alinskyite who cannot tolerate anyone whose views are different than his. He doesn't just want to win the debate. He wants to silence and bankrupt the opposition. In this he is fully supported by his buddies in the Matrix whom on Support Chik-Fil-A day, when thousands and thousands waited on line for hours to show their support for Mr. Cathy, decided it wasn't actually a story:
I guess if it's not something that advance their "narrative" it doesn't enter the Matrix.
22====================================================================================================
As you can see, Emperor Barack and the left don't countenance any dissension or disagreement from anyone. But, hey, it's one thing if you are a rich businessperson giving money to his political rivals or causes he disagrees with. It another thing entirely if you <gasp> actually write an e-mail saying that the emperor has no clothes. For that, you will be targeted. Why, kind King Barry will just ask your neighbors and friends to snitch on you.
The first attempt at this creepy Soviet style program was launched by former Matrix member Linda Douglas who, in her role working for Obama, put out a video to tell people to send "disinformation" about the President's health care law including names and e-mails to [email protected]. As you can imagine, even the ACLU was not pleased. Here is Megyn Kelly trying to get the truth about what was happening out of a White House spinmeister:
22====================================================================================================
As you can see, Emperor Barack and the left don't countenance any dissension or disagreement from anyone. But, hey, it's one thing if you are a rich businessperson giving money to his political rivals or causes he disagrees with. It another thing entirely if you <gasp> actually write an e-mail saying that the emperor has no clothes. For that, you will be targeted. Why, kind King Barry will just ask your neighbors and friends to snitch on you.
The first attempt at this creepy Soviet style program was launched by former Matrix member Linda Douglas who, in her role working for Obama, put out a video to tell people to send "disinformation" about the President's health care law including names and e-mails to [email protected]. As you can imagine, even the ACLU was not pleased. Here is Megyn Kelly trying to get the truth about what was happening out of a White House spinmeister:
As you can see, this interview was not going well for the White House. Eventually, the indisputable notion that this scheme by the White House to intimidate people into being quiet about their disagreements with the Emperor's policies became politically toxic. So, they shelved it. For a little while... But, like all evil things, unless you put a stake through its heart it comes back...
Yes it is so immature and thin skinned, but it is also scary. It's ATTACK WATCH!
23====================================================================================================
If Emperor Barack seeks to stifle free expression and dissent from the average citizen, think about how much he'd like to control the only news media outlet that isn't part of the Matrix. Disagree with His Majesty and reveal his dirty little secrets to millions of people? Why, it's time to go to war!
If Emperor Barack seeks to stifle free expression and dissent from the average citizen, think about how much he'd like to control the only news media outlet that isn't part of the Matrix. Disagree with His Majesty and reveal his dirty little secrets to millions of people? Why, it's time to go to war!
While the White House ultimately backed off the overt war against Fox News due to the public relations debacle it created, that didn't mean that the covert war was over. As Tucker Carlson of The Daily Caller reported, Media Matters For America, funded by Obama's progressive allies like George Soros, were willing to do whatever it took to bring Fox News down:
24====================================================================================================
You might be asking yourself why the left who are in control of most of the media, academe and the pop culture still feel the need to squelch whatever tiny voices of dissent rise up against them. The answer, I am afraid, is to make sure that there is no opportunity for someone to offer you the chance to swallow the red pill. Because if you did, you might notice that they are well on their way to turning America into a socialist country. Now wait just a minute! Socialist? That's crazy talk!
I wish it was. Really I do. But, let's be clear. Today's socialists aren't like your father's and grandfather's socialists. As I pointed out earlier in the book, the new path to a socialist utopia no longer lies in government actually taking over the economy by owning the means of production. After seeing the disaster that was the Soviet Union, the Eastern Bloc, China and every other country that went down that road, modern progressives and leftists came up with another plan. Why not just regulate the economy and turn every business into a quasi-public utility?
Think about it. Con Edison is a private company that is beholden to its stockholders. It can deliver the power more cheaply and efficiently than the government can. However, every action they take and every decision they make is first vetted and approved by those on high. Better yet, if anything goes wrong, the government can just blame it on those greedy executives at the evil power company. It also makes a great place to create a patronage employment racket for all their friends and stooges. Let's see, power, control, private sector efficiency, a prime patronage racket and no accountability. Does it get any better than this for the left?
That's why the four major initiatives of the Obama/Pelosi/Reid cabal were all designed to take over huge sectors of the economy via regulation. Look at what they are trying to accomplish from an eyes wide open, bottom line, red pill perspective. Federal, State and Local government spending is around 37% of GDP:
You might be asking yourself why the left who are in control of most of the media, academe and the pop culture still feel the need to squelch whatever tiny voices of dissent rise up against them. The answer, I am afraid, is to make sure that there is no opportunity for someone to offer you the chance to swallow the red pill. Because if you did, you might notice that they are well on their way to turning America into a socialist country. Now wait just a minute! Socialist? That's crazy talk!
I wish it was. Really I do. But, let's be clear. Today's socialists aren't like your father's and grandfather's socialists. As I pointed out earlier in the book, the new path to a socialist utopia no longer lies in government actually taking over the economy by owning the means of production. After seeing the disaster that was the Soviet Union, the Eastern Bloc, China and every other country that went down that road, modern progressives and leftists came up with another plan. Why not just regulate the economy and turn every business into a quasi-public utility?
Think about it. Con Edison is a private company that is beholden to its stockholders. It can deliver the power more cheaply and efficiently than the government can. However, every action they take and every decision they make is first vetted and approved by those on high. Better yet, if anything goes wrong, the government can just blame it on those greedy executives at the evil power company. It also makes a great place to create a patronage employment racket for all their friends and stooges. Let's see, power, control, private sector efficiency, a prime patronage racket and no accountability. Does it get any better than this for the left?
That's why the four major initiatives of the Obama/Pelosi/Reid cabal were all designed to take over huge sectors of the economy via regulation. Look at what they are trying to accomplish from an eyes wide open, bottom line, red pill perspective. Federal, State and Local government spending is around 37% of GDP:
Now, let's add control of two thirds of America's car companies and all of their suppliers, dealers and assorted hangers on to that. Then, let's add 1/6th of the economy with the regulation of health care. Then let's add another massive slice with the Dodd/Frank regulations of the Financial Services industry. Then let's attempt to add control over the entire energy, transportation and manufacturing sectors with Cap and Trade (thank God it failed). Though they weren't successful with that, the left is still going after them all with their EPA end run of carbon caps so let's add that. Then add the total takeover of the student loan market that was enacted as part of Obamacare. Throw the ninety some odd percent of the nation's home mortgages the Feds now control onto the pile as well. Oh, what the heck, let's add regulation of the internet on top too. Add them all up and you have a government that has power over at least two thirds of America's GDP and looking for more. Any way you slice it, that's socialism. That is the world of Atlas Shrugged.
25====================================================================================================
The kind of power this control over so much of our GDP gives those wielding the heavy hand of government is immense. And the President is not done. Oh goodness no! He wants to do to the rest of American business what he did to GM:
25====================================================================================================
The kind of power this control over so much of our GDP gives those wielding the heavy hand of government is immense. And the President is not done. Oh goodness no! He wants to do to the rest of American business what he did to GM:
You've gotta hand it to Barry. He has ambitions for the leftist agenda as big as his vaunted ego. With all of the sectors of the American economy that Obama and his allies now have control over, they have an incredible amount of leverage and control over how businesses and corporations operate. And how will a Chicago pol who is famous for his Alinskyite tactics use such awesome power? Just how you'd expect:
How's that for using their new power under Obamacare to intimidate, harass and do things the Chicago way? For now, it seems so innocuous. After all they are going after a person who they have trumped up as a “crook” that broke laws. The precedent is being set: speak out and dissent and we’ll ruin you and your company.
26====================================================================================================
Because of the massive scope of the new Obamacare program, all companies with even the remotest association with “health care” will become part of the jurisdiction of the Feds and these kinds of Alinskyite tactics can be used on all of them. CEO’s and companies the administration doesn’t like can be threatened with the most frivolous of “criminal” charges and either they must comply or they will lose their ability to do business with anyone in the health care field. You better do what we say if you know what’s good for you. The big boss wants everyone to cooperate and keep their mouths shut. You say this will never happen? These people are Chicago pols. This is how they operate. Go read up on the Daley family and the “Chicago Way”. They are also lawyers who have figured out how to exploit every law they pass to the fullest. Like I say, it’s all out of our buddy Saul Alinsky’s playbook.
Forget, for a moment, about the massive sectors of the economy they currently control through regulation, the government also directly control's a third of all the spending in the economy. You want a piece of that? Better show you have Barack and Michelle's back. You'd better show that you are with the program:
Want to win a contract to operate concessions on federal property? Be ready to explain how your business promotes Obama administration desires like “climate friendly strategies” and the first lady’s “Let’s Move!” anti-childhood obesity effort.
Proposal documents obtained by The Daily Caller reveal that the National Park Service favors those who promote these Obama White House priorities when deciding which concessioners they will allow to operate businesses on federally owned property.
The documents outline what criteria the National Park Service considered when awarding a concessions contract for operating the Silver Gull Beach Club and Breezy Point Beach Club on federally owned land in New York this summer.
These guidelines tell bidders that the National Park Service is “interested in supporting the goals of the First Lady’s Let’s Move! Initiative.”
“Describe how your proposal supports these goals, including measures that will encourage healthy options for food and beverages and active, exercise-oriented recreation,” reads proposal packages for both locations.
Guidelines for both beach clubs add that bidders with “climate friendly strategies” to “reduce its greenhouse gas emissions” also will be favored. The guidelines state that this is encouraged because the beach clubs are part of the Gateway National Recreation Area which “has developed strategies to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions.”
Prospective concessioners are told to “describe the actions you will take to support the Park’s Climate Friendly Park designation. A better response might include a variety of actions … and might provide multiple actions for each area addressed.”
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So, you see? It's a piece of cake. If you want some cash from Obama's stash, you'd best just go with the flow. For those who don't, well tough luck for you. In fact, if you have the gumption to try to upstage the Obamessiah and try to steal some customers away from his car companies with ads like this:
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Because of the massive scope of the new Obamacare program, all companies with even the remotest association with “health care” will become part of the jurisdiction of the Feds and these kinds of Alinskyite tactics can be used on all of them. CEO’s and companies the administration doesn’t like can be threatened with the most frivolous of “criminal” charges and either they must comply or they will lose their ability to do business with anyone in the health care field. You better do what we say if you know what’s good for you. The big boss wants everyone to cooperate and keep their mouths shut. You say this will never happen? These people are Chicago pols. This is how they operate. Go read up on the Daley family and the “Chicago Way”. They are also lawyers who have figured out how to exploit every law they pass to the fullest. Like I say, it’s all out of our buddy Saul Alinsky’s playbook.
Forget, for a moment, about the massive sectors of the economy they currently control through regulation, the government also directly control's a third of all the spending in the economy. You want a piece of that? Better show you have Barack and Michelle's back. You'd better show that you are with the program:
Want to win a contract to operate concessions on federal property? Be ready to explain how your business promotes Obama administration desires like “climate friendly strategies” and the first lady’s “Let’s Move!” anti-childhood obesity effort.
Proposal documents obtained by The Daily Caller reveal that the National Park Service favors those who promote these Obama White House priorities when deciding which concessioners they will allow to operate businesses on federally owned property.
The documents outline what criteria the National Park Service considered when awarding a concessions contract for operating the Silver Gull Beach Club and Breezy Point Beach Club on federally owned land in New York this summer.
These guidelines tell bidders that the National Park Service is “interested in supporting the goals of the First Lady’s Let’s Move! Initiative.”
“Describe how your proposal supports these goals, including measures that will encourage healthy options for food and beverages and active, exercise-oriented recreation,” reads proposal packages for both locations.
Guidelines for both beach clubs add that bidders with “climate friendly strategies” to “reduce its greenhouse gas emissions” also will be favored. The guidelines state that this is encouraged because the beach clubs are part of the Gateway National Recreation Area which “has developed strategies to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions.”
Prospective concessioners are told to “describe the actions you will take to support the Park’s Climate Friendly Park designation. A better response might include a variety of actions … and might provide multiple actions for each area addressed.”
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So, you see? It's a piece of cake. If you want some cash from Obama's stash, you'd best just go with the flow. For those who don't, well tough luck for you. In fact, if you have the gumption to try to upstage the Obamessiah and try to steal some customers away from his car companies with ads like this:
You might find yourself on the wrong side of the Emperor's ire:
This kind of abuse of power stinks to high heaven. It is exactly the kind of thing the government does in Atlas Shrugged. As Ed Morrissey of Hot Air aptly comments:
the fact that the White House exerted pressure on Ford to cease and desist is a rather ominous example of why we want government to stay out of the business of running auto companies at all. In fact, government shouldn’t be running any businesses, not car makers, banks, or mortgage lenders. A free market doesn’t stay free when government begins competing in it, and just the mere existence of the ability to use its regulatory power to favor its own operation will distort market behavior in significant and freedom-chilling ways. Knocking an ad critical of government policy off of television and the Internet is simply a more visible symptom of those dangers.
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the fact that the White House exerted pressure on Ford to cease and desist is a rather ominous example of why we want government to stay out of the business of running auto companies at all. In fact, government shouldn’t be running any businesses, not car makers, banks, or mortgage lenders. A free market doesn’t stay free when government begins competing in it, and just the mere existence of the ability to use its regulatory power to favor its own operation will distort market behavior in significant and freedom-chilling ways. Knocking an ad critical of government policy off of television and the Internet is simply a more visible symptom of those dangers.
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Gone mad with power, the government is now even going so far as to tell companies what states they can build their factories in. It had better be an Obama approved union state, or else!
Yeah that Ayn Rand was a total nut! It isn't like she predicted that one day the government would tell a company that they will locate their factories in an "acceptable" and "labor friendly" location or else they will have their two billion dollar factory shut down costing them untold billions more. Now, isn't it better to just do what Master tells you? That's a good company! Here's a treat! Fetch boy!
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But, even Rand could not imagine that Captain Crunch and Tony The Tiger would not be immune from the clutches of the all powerful state:
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But, even Rand could not imagine that Captain Crunch and Tony The Tiger would not be immune from the clutches of the all powerful state:
Sure, now it’s just an “advisory guideline”, but as soon as the new health care law becomes fully in effect, it will become law. All of these companies have been put on notice that they risk the ire of the government and Empress Michelle if they persist in poisoning our children with “bad food” under the harmless guise of Toucan Sam. Soon, Ronald McDonald will be as extinct as Joe Camel. But, if the government can eliminate the Keebler Elves, for crying out loud, how much infringement on freedom of speech is too much for them?
I doubt that there is any limit. The Empress Michelle has such a big ego and is so sure of the rightousness of her cause that she had the gall to lecture Olympic Gold Medalist in Gymnastics Gabby Douglas on her eating habits:
I doubt that there is any limit. The Empress Michelle has such a big ego and is so sure of the rightousness of her cause that she had the gall to lecture Olympic Gold Medalist in Gymnastics Gabby Douglas on her eating habits:
Yup, the gold medalist is setting the Empress back and she duly apologizes. Amazing, eh? Such is the power the Empress wields. You will do what she says. She knows best. But, hey, it’s for a good cause: children’s health, anti-obesity don’t you know? However, what other abridgements of free speech are next in the name of the “collective good”? Now it's to save the children, next it'll be to save the elderly, then to save the obese, then to save the alcoholics. Eventually, it will be to save you from yourself. Do you have something you enjoy doing that might not be the best thing for you? Too bad, nanny government says no more for you. Ever!
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I don’t know about you, but I loved Captain Crunch cereal and I grew up to be just fine. So did most of my generation who grew up on all kinds of sugary foods and drinks. Are we to ban products (like chocolate milk or potatoes for crying out loud)because some people can’t control themselves and promote the theory that individuals and families are too stupid to make their own choices about what to eat? Are we really saying that the right to monitor their own children's diet must be taken from them because the government can look out for them better? Really?
As John Sexton from Hot Air so correctly opines:
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I don’t know about you, but I loved Captain Crunch cereal and I grew up to be just fine. So did most of my generation who grew up on all kinds of sugary foods and drinks. Are we to ban products (like chocolate milk or potatoes for crying out loud)because some people can’t control themselves and promote the theory that individuals and families are too stupid to make their own choices about what to eat? Are we really saying that the right to monitor their own children's diet must be taken from them because the government can look out for them better? Really?
As John Sexton from Hot Air so correctly opines:
Perhaps this might make you begin to wonder what , if any, limits, does Obama see in the power of the heavy hand of Government to persuade you to do the "right" thing. It sure seems like he thinks government can do just about anything he decrees it too.
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But, it is another story if you want to play the game his way... Chicago style. Why, if you are a friend of Barry, Nancy and Harry they'll exempt you from some of the onerous regulations they are imposing on everyone else. For a small fee, of course.
For instance, when it comes to getting waivers from Obamacare, their union buddies will be first in line… uh well ok... second in line behind businesses from Nancy Pelosi’s district:
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But, it is another story if you want to play the game his way... Chicago style. Why, if you are a friend of Barry, Nancy and Harry they'll exempt you from some of the onerous regulations they are imposing on everyone else. For a small fee, of course.
For instance, when it comes to getting waivers from Obamacare, their union buddies will be first in line… uh well ok... second in line behind businesses from Nancy Pelosi’s district:
Hmmm, I wonder how that happened, eh? When Nancy Pelosi famously said that we had to pass Obamacare so that we could all see what was in it, she wasn’t kidding. One of the things that we have found out, now that it is law, is that there are a lot of people who don’t like what’s in it and want a waiver. To get that waiver, they have to go hat in hand to their nearest government agency and hope someone smiles their way. Or they could do the things necessary to become politically connected enough to bypass “normal” procedures. In other words, they can hire lobbyists, donate to politicians or parties, or otherwise show that they behave like good little children for daddy government.
If you want to know what this is really all about, try and get a liquor license in New Jersey or Chicago and see what happens if you just fill out your application like your average Joe Blow without any outside or monetary (you know like an under the table bribe) intervention. Your application will be processed sometime in the next decade. If you're lucky. Get the idea?
Fuggedaboudit!
So if you have money or power and want to succeed in the new age of Queen Pelosi and Messiah Barrack, you'd best start playing ball for the home team. For the rest of you suckers, the home team is looking out for you too. They love the little guy. They have your best interests at heart. Don't worry about these waivers. You don't need them. The law is great! You'll love it! Just wait and see!
If you want to know what this is really all about, try and get a liquor license in New Jersey or Chicago and see what happens if you just fill out your application like your average Joe Blow without any outside or monetary (you know like an under the table bribe) intervention. Your application will be processed sometime in the next decade. If you're lucky. Get the idea?
Fuggedaboudit!
So if you have money or power and want to succeed in the new age of Queen Pelosi and Messiah Barrack, you'd best start playing ball for the home team. For the rest of you suckers, the home team is looking out for you too. They love the little guy. They have your best interests at heart. Don't worry about these waivers. You don't need them. The law is great! You'll love it! Just wait and see!
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I mean, it's not as if they'd ever do anything corrupt like use these waivers to help their friends and spite their enemies right?
I mean, it's not as if they'd ever do anything corrupt like use these waivers to help their friends and spite their enemies right?
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This is all just a sliver of the kind of Crony Capitalism that Ayn Rand foretold in Atlas Shrugged. Rand warned that government would interject itself so much into every aspect of the free market that either you played nicey nice with Government officials and their diktats or your government backed competitors would bury you. Sounds a lot like what they do in Chicago, where it's known as pay to play. Pay up and be rewarded:
This is all just a sliver of the kind of Crony Capitalism that Ayn Rand foretold in Atlas Shrugged. Rand warned that government would interject itself so much into every aspect of the free market that either you played nicey nice with Government officials and their diktats or your government backed competitors would bury you. Sounds a lot like what they do in Chicago, where it's known as pay to play. Pay up and be rewarded:
It isn't just window companies that are profiting from their support and connections with the Obama administration:
Politics has no role in who gets the coveted stimulus money? Yeah, right. Politics has everything to do with it. Welcome to the future of American capitalism! But, you ain't seen nothing yet!
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Did you ever think that the US Government would own a car company? It probably wasn't a shock to find out that President Obama would stiff corporate bondholders to help out his union buds, but it might surprise you to know how important a role your connection to Washington would play if you were a GM or Chrysler dealership for ninety years and wanted to stay in business. Don't have a friend in Government? Well, pal, you'd better make one quick. Party registration changes are being accepted at window one. Donations to Democrat campaigns are being accepted at window two. Welcome to Gangster Government:
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Did you ever think that the US Government would own a car company? It probably wasn't a shock to find out that President Obama would stiff corporate bondholders to help out his union buds, but it might surprise you to know how important a role your connection to Washington would play if you were a GM or Chrysler dealership for ninety years and wanted to stay in business. Don't have a friend in Government? Well, pal, you'd better make one quick. Party registration changes are being accepted at window one. Donations to Democrat campaigns are being accepted at window two. Welcome to Gangster Government:
Ayn Rand couldn't have scripted a better example of how this new world is going to work than in the relationship between President Obama and GE chairman Jeffery Immelt:
Here is the new paradigm. If you get tight and cozy with the Obama administration through verbal and financial political support, you'll get named to head the "President's Council on Jobs and Competitiveness" where surely you will be able to curry favor and steer some government business your way in the name of jobs and competitiveness. As an added bonus, you'll get a special bailout worth billions tailored just for you and "green" energy subsidies from the stimulus that will enrich your coffers. And all that High Speed rail nonsense the President has been touting? Guess who stands to benefit nicely from that:
Imagine that! Barack Obama has been enduring increasing ridicule and scorn for pushing for a Federal boondoggle that makes absolutely zero sense in terms of economics or the environment and the person who stands to profit mightily is his pal Jeff Immelt. How's that for "winning the future"? Read this and this too for other new and exciting benefits you can get once you and the government are buddy, buddy. I guess it's just a coincidence that GE owned MSNBC and the rest of NBC family have been a propaganda arm for the President and his policies from day one, eh?
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Let's not forget about the big Health Care Insurance companies either. Contrary to popular belief, most large health insurance companies donated to Democrats in 2008 despite being constantly demonized by them for years. And they were first on board for the Obamacare program. As the old Washington DC adage goes: "if you're not at the table, you're on the menu as the main course. Having learned this lesson well from the days of the Clinton Health Care plan , they decided that passage of the plan looked inevitable so they'd better cut the best deal with the powers that be before Obama, Pelosi and Reid sharpened their cutting knives.
Despite all the protestations against Dick Cheney writing the energy policy of the US in secret with his buddies from the oil industry in the room to dot the i's and cross the t's, and despite Obama's promise on the campaign trail to hold health care negotiations in public, this is how the bill got written: (Sorry about the commercial)
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Let's not forget about the big Health Care Insurance companies either. Contrary to popular belief, most large health insurance companies donated to Democrats in 2008 despite being constantly demonized by them for years. And they were first on board for the Obamacare program. As the old Washington DC adage goes: "if you're not at the table, you're on the menu as the main course. Having learned this lesson well from the days of the Clinton Health Care plan , they decided that passage of the plan looked inevitable so they'd better cut the best deal with the powers that be before Obama, Pelosi and Reid sharpened their cutting knives.
Despite all the protestations against Dick Cheney writing the energy policy of the US in secret with his buddies from the oil industry in the room to dot the i's and cross the t's, and despite Obama's promise on the campaign trail to hold health care negotiations in public, this is how the bill got written: (Sorry about the commercial)
Well, lookee here, seems the whole sordid affair was done in secret and behind closed doors and not a single Republican in the room. So, on the qt and the hush hush, with no one the wiser, what kind of a deal did the health care insurance companies get for their support and a seat at the table? The individual mandate of course. Forcing every single American, particularly the young and the healthy who are the most likely not to have insurance into the pools will do wonders for their near term bottom lines. By the time, the bureaucrats and the politicians increase benefits and set price ceilings on premiums thereby destroying their business model and leading to single payer government control of health care, the current CEO's of these insurance behemoths will be long gone into retirement with their nice golden parachutes.
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Not that the insurance industry were the only ones to cut deals with Obama in secret. Oh no, even the evil Big Pharma, object of Democratic derision and scorn for most of my lifetime was on board. They made their own profitable little private pact with the One too:
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Not that the insurance industry were the only ones to cut deals with Obama in secret. Oh no, even the evil Big Pharma, object of Democratic derision and scorn for most of my lifetime was on board. They made their own profitable little private pact with the One too:
You see what happens when everyone plays nice? Obama is happy. The big insurance companies and drug companies that used to be constantly vilified by Democrats are happy. Everyone is happy. Warren Buffett is happy with the loot he got when Barry deep sixed the Keystone XL pipeline. George Soros is happy when he gets to profit from Obama loans to Petrobras and his natural gas initiative. All of people who decided to become Obama's friend and get with the "program" are smiling.
Somehow, when I see all these people smiling, that's just about the time that I know that we're all getting seriously screwed. Trust me, when Big Government and Big Business start to cozy up to one another it won't end well. I know a lot of people have gotten into hot water for pointing this out, but the truth is that this new way of doing business in America is the way that the Fascists and the Nazis did business. If you were a friend of Adolf and Benito, you made a fortune in the thirties and forties. If you weren't a good Nazi or Fascist, and didn't toe the line or salute smartly enough, well tough luck for you. We have a nice vacation for you at a concentration camp as a consolation prize. Am I saying that Obama is a Nazi? No. I am just pointing out that the type of crony capitalism he is engaging in and that Ayn Rand warned against is eerily reminiscent of those disgraced political philosophies. And they didn't end very well did they? Just saying....
Somehow, when I see all these people smiling, that's just about the time that I know that we're all getting seriously screwed. Trust me, when Big Government and Big Business start to cozy up to one another it won't end well. I know a lot of people have gotten into hot water for pointing this out, but the truth is that this new way of doing business in America is the way that the Fascists and the Nazis did business. If you were a friend of Adolf and Benito, you made a fortune in the thirties and forties. If you weren't a good Nazi or Fascist, and didn't toe the line or salute smartly enough, well tough luck for you. We have a nice vacation for you at a concentration camp as a consolation prize. Am I saying that Obama is a Nazi? No. I am just pointing out that the type of crony capitalism he is engaging in and that Ayn Rand warned against is eerily reminiscent of those disgraced political philosophies. And they didn't end very well did they? Just saying....
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Charles Kadlec of Forbes kind of sums it all up:
President Barack Obama and his administration’s willingness to use the extraordinary powers granted under ObamaCare to expand his political power has been on full display in recent weeks. More troubling are new initiatives that seek to hobble his, and the Democratic Party’s political opponents in next year’s elections.
The use of federal programs and regulations to favor allies and punish or intimidate opponents raises serious questions about the president’s commitment to a pillar of our liberty, that all should be treated equally before the law.... Are these actions consistent with a transparent government and just society, or are the president’s invocations of transparency and social justice being used to justify a corrupt, lust for power?
Charles Kadlec of Forbes kind of sums it all up:
President Barack Obama and his administration’s willingness to use the extraordinary powers granted under ObamaCare to expand his political power has been on full display in recent weeks. More troubling are new initiatives that seek to hobble his, and the Democratic Party’s political opponents in next year’s elections.
The use of federal programs and regulations to favor allies and punish or intimidate opponents raises serious questions about the president’s commitment to a pillar of our liberty, that all should be treated equally before the law.... Are these actions consistent with a transparent government and just society, or are the president’s invocations of transparency and social justice being used to justify a corrupt, lust for power?
In other words, what has everyone learned from this new President and his new way of doing things? Get connected and get with the program or we'll bury you!
Do you now see what all of these things I have described in this chapter have in common? That's right. They are all about putting everyone on notice that they’d best do as they are told and not complain.
Or else!
As Michael Barone warns:
Punishing enemies and rewarding friends -- politics Chicago style -- seems to be the unifying principle that helps explain the Obamacare waivers, the NLRB action against Boeing and the IRS' gift-tax assault on 501(c)(4) donors.
They look like examples of crony capitalism, bailout favoritism and gangster government.
One thing they don't look like is the rule of law.
Or else!
As Michael Barone warns:
Punishing enemies and rewarding friends -- politics Chicago style -- seems to be the unifying principle that helps explain the Obamacare waivers, the NLRB action against Boeing and the IRS' gift-tax assault on 501(c)(4) donors.
They look like examples of crony capitalism, bailout favoritism and gangster government.
One thing they don't look like is the rule of law.
Who needs the law and that pesky crinkly brown piece of paper known as the Constitution, when you consider yourself so special that you are above it all? Why, the social justice ends clearly justify the means in Barack Obama's way of thinking.
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All of this was predicted in Atlas Shrugged. Here was a book written fifty four years ago and, yet, all of these things were foretold by Ayn Rand with uncannily prescient accuracy. Let's face it, this new era of socialism by regulation that Emperor Obama and his allies on the left have brought about is bankrupting our nation. The more the government grows, the less capital is available for the private sector and the less economic wealth is created. There are far too many people riding in the wagon and those few who still pull it are demonized.
As Ayn Rand foresaw, this new type of crony capitlism and vote buying aided and abetted by a compliant media who keep everyone in a Matrix of unreality will surely doom the American dream and the American idea. We will become Europe. We are well on the road to serfdom like our friends in the UK:
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All of this was predicted in Atlas Shrugged. Here was a book written fifty four years ago and, yet, all of these things were foretold by Ayn Rand with uncannily prescient accuracy. Let's face it, this new era of socialism by regulation that Emperor Obama and his allies on the left have brought about is bankrupting our nation. The more the government grows, the less capital is available for the private sector and the less economic wealth is created. There are far too many people riding in the wagon and those few who still pull it are demonized.
As Ayn Rand foresaw, this new type of crony capitlism and vote buying aided and abetted by a compliant media who keep everyone in a Matrix of unreality will surely doom the American dream and the American idea. We will become Europe. We are well on the road to serfdom like our friends in the UK:
Sound familiar? It should. We simply cannot create prosperity by taxing the productive sector of the economy to pay for the unproductive sector. We will not get out of a crisis of debt by maxing out the national credit card. We cannot continue on the path that we are on. Our national car is headed for the cliff. We still have time to stop it, but too many people still want to slam the pedal to the metal and crash like our friends in Europe will all soon be doing.
We do have a choice. America can be exceptional once again if we change direction and return to the timeless vision of our Founders. We can still save our country and rescue the American dream. Unless, that is, we continue be asleep inside the Matrix:
That's the sad truth of the matter. America will fail if we don't change the path we are on. The heavy hand of government is destroying our economy and our hopes. The world that Ayn Rand predicted is almost here. It scares me to think that if enough people remain in the Matrix and don't wake up in time, our economy will collapse. There will be anarchy and riots in the streets as there are in Greece. Whenever there is chaos, people will cry out for order. Surely some charismatic politician will rise to meet that yearning. Then that person will dust off all of the Executive Orders that Emperor Barack signed, check the ammo lockers for the billion rounds of hollow point ammunition and then invoke total martial law. All dissent and digital communication will be stifled and controlled. People will be monitored and drones will meet out justice and we will be living in the science fiction movie from hell. That's what I fear. I hope... enough of us choose the red pill and wake up to the nature of the reality that is Obama's America before it's too late.