Mandatory Census Bureau Survey

Over the last decade I have had my personal information “possibly compromised” by the Veteran's Administration, the SC Department of Revenue, and the US Department of Energy. This week my wife and I received notification from the US Department of Commerce Director, U.S. Census Bureau that our address had been randomly chosen to receive “a very important national survey, the American Community Survey.”

The Constitution specifically requires an “enumeration” every 10 years for the purpose of apportioning the House of Representatives. The Federal Government has vastly expanded this function to the extent that census information is withheld from the public for 72 years due to privacy reasons. The currently available census data is 1940. The data is in high demand, and computer servers nearly crashed several years ago when the 1940 census became available for the first time.

Businesses and financial markets have come to depend on information collected by the government. At 10:30AM every Wednesday the Weekly Petroleum Status Report is released by the Energy Information Administration within the Department of Energy. The Bureau of Labor Statistics releases the unemployment statistics and the Census Bureau the Gross Domestic Product estimates along with many other measures on a regular basis. All this and more is available to the political party in power on a 24/7 basis. Other agencies like the VA, IRS, HUD, HHS, FBI, NSA etc have much more data on individual Americans. This information gathering costs taxpayers about one billion dollars each year. It is hard to know exactly since the government does not budget and does not use Generally Accepted Accounting Principles.

As our lives become increasing digitized, it is important to remember that fallible humans are collecting and using this data – sometimes for nefarious purposes. Big Brother is definitely real and active.

Tyranny in America

In 1967 I took an oath to support and defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic. Attorney General Holder and his boss took the same oath. I meant what I said. Holder has decided which laws to enforce and which to ignore.

Imagine if the ranking lawman in your county decided not to enforce some laws. Suppose the Sheriff or District Attorney decided that rape is just "boys being boys" and arrested no one and prosecuted no one. We would fire them. We are not under Sharia law where a girl who is gang-raped is stoned to death for fornication!

Holder and Obama have done the same with DOMA and immigration laws. Representative Bachman has finally submitted articles of impeachment against Obama. There have been many hearings in Congress about "fast and furious" but no articles of impeachment against Holder.

I understand that neither would be removed from office. Only two presidents have been impeached, and neither was removed from office. Nixon resigned and was pardoned by Ford. The speeches in the House of Representatives are still recorded in the Federal Register for the public to read.

Offenses of government officials against the people should not be ignored. That invites tyranny. In 1986 President Reagan agreed to amnesty for 2.5 million illegal aliens in exchange for a tough immigration law. The law was never well enforced. The result is tens of millions of illegal aliens in our country today. The government has blurred the distinction between those illegal aliens and those who took the legal steps to become citizens and swore allegiance to the United States. The difference is like that between a burglar and an invited house guest!

The Constitution is the Law of our land. If laws are passed by the Congress and President and not enforced, then we are no longer a law-abiding nation. Tyranny will be the result if we who defend the Constitution keep silent.

Skunk Replaces Eagle as Symbol of President

The skunk has replaced the Eagle as the new symbol of the American Presidency. It is half Black, half white, and everything it does stinks.

It is said: If you give a man a fish you will feed him for a day. If you teach a man to fish you feed him for a lifetime!

New Obama Proverb: If you give a man hope of getting a job, he will vote Democrat for a year! If you give a man a welfare check, a free cell phone, free Internet, food stamps, section 8 housing, ninety-nine weeks of unemployment then Social Security disability for life, free health care and free Medicine... He will vote Democrat the rest of his life and several more times... After he's dead

Government Shutdown "crisis"

The United States is bankrupt. Life goes on as “normal” because there is great flexibility in such a huge economy. There is currently a “budget crisis” and a looming “debt-limit crisis.” These are a problem because Congress and the President planned it. The President sent his budget proposal to Congress in the spring. It was late, but since an actual budget – with 13 separate appropriations bills – has not been signed into law for 4 years - the President's tardiness is moot.

Both parties blame each other for the shutdown. The fact is that they have had over 5 months to debate the budget. The House of Representatives has produced numerous budget bills only to see them tabled by the Democrat-controlled Senate. Since the last budget passed was the Pelosi-Reid-Obama budget, the Democrats are happy to “continue it” with a constant stream of CRs.

The real debate is over the type of government we actually have. The Democrats say that America is a democracy, and must operate by “majority rule.” The Constitution is a “dated” document and is irrelevant now. The Conservatives say that America is a constitutional republic with “limited government.” A century ago, Progressives were successful in reducing the power of the states with the 17th Amendment. Senators had been elected by state legislatures. Now both Representatives and Senators are “popularly elected.” Only their terms of office are different. The problem with democracies is they fail when the people realize that they can write checks to themselves.

Democrats make a heartwarming appeal for the “little guy.” In the 1930s it was electricity and secure retirements for all. From the 1960s to present it was an end to poverty, jobs and promotions through race preference for minorities and medical care for all. For several decades it has been telephones for all. The Progressive “solution” is always according to Karl Marx's philosophy of from those who have; to those who “need.” Marxism fails when you run out of other peoples' money (Thatcher). Progressives believe that individual responsibility and free-markets are wrong. A marriage with husband and wife is wrong because “it takes a village to raise a child.” There is power in the union of workers and in the “collective.”

We have clear examples of implementations of fascism, communism and socialism which failed. Our constitutional republic with a free-market economy has succeeded well. Our forefathers believed in the inherent sinfulness of man/woman, and the need for checks and balances. That rule of law is rarely practiced today.

Why is America Recovering Despite Obama?

Bill Clinton vetoed the fiscal policies of the conservative Congress twice in 1996 before finally accepting the policies. He then took credit for the surpluses that the policies produced.

Some ignorant people will give Obama credit for the current “recovery.” If presented with the facts, then it would be hard to do so. Consider unemployment in Yuma, AZ of 31.8% and unemployment in Bismarck, ND of 2.8% from the BLS report for June. If Obama is responsible for a 7.4% national rate, then he is also responsible for the 31.8% rate in Yuma The real reason is that new technologies in the “carbon-based” industries have given us an energy boom. Obama has been fighting any progress with a carbon tax proposal, huge subsidies to competing energy sources, and delays/prohibitions for obtaining resources from public lands and cheap and efficient distribution methods (pipelines). The oil imports have decreased more than 1 million barrels/day over the last several years (eia.gov). This amounts to money for over hundreds of millions of barrels of oil at $100/barrel which stays in the United States instead of subsidizing those who hate us. Those billions each year compose capital which can be used to create jobs.

Obama has surrounded himself with academics and out-right socialists who favor central planning over free-market economics. They claim that deficit spending (stimulus) by government and tight controls bring the nation out of recessions. The fact is that Hoover and FDR; Bush and Obama both tried stimulus spending and high wages. We know what happens because it has been tried before. Millions of Americans have suffered. The wealthiest period in America was the six years under President Coolidge. We had surpluses every year and individual wealth rapidly increased. Americans borrowed money to invest in America believing the boom would last forever (sounds like house prices never decrease?). Alan Greenspan would describe them as “irrationally exuburant.” The crash came under Hoover who Coolidge dubbed “wonduh boy.” Coolidge had been blamed as a “do-nothing” while Hoover, FDR, Bush and Obama were type-A interventionists.

The reference economist of 1776 was Adam Smith. Twentieth century economists Hayek and Mises saw the flaws in Keynes ideas and their use in Europe. If we continue to ignore the lessons of history, then we are doomed to repeat the mistakes – over and over again! See mises.org (Mises Institute at Auburn University – a kudzu-league school).

Melowese Richardson Convicted of Voter Fraud in Ohio

Last week an Ohio judge sentenced Ms. Richardson to five years in prison for voting 6 times in a single election. Ohio was a critical state in the 2012 Presidential election. If the votes in only 4 states - Ohio included - were reversed, then Mitt Romney would have won. More of these criminals need to go to prison for voter fraud to diminish!

Will the United States Follow Detroit?

Detroit, once the fifth-largest city in America, has filed for bankruptcy. Hopefully the federal government will not bail out decades of mismanaging politicians with federal taxpayer dollars. As with other cities whose elitist leaders seek to centrally control all aspects of citizens' lives while lacking the competence to do so, Detroit is bankrupt. The producers have left the once-great city of 1.8M leaving less than 700,000 – many who are parasites depending on the city teats. This did not take place quickly. It took over 60 years! It is similar to the current situation at the federal level. Hiring and promotions have been based on race instead of competence, while pay, tenure and benefits have been extraordinary. Parkinson's Law may also be used to explain the situation – especially the number of “special assistants to the POTUS” (czars).

The Obama administration ignored centuries of contract law in the GM bailout. Union members were moved to the head of the line, and creditors were pushed back. Most in Detroit are also friends and supporters of the Democrat Party. Will the federal courts follow the law? Will the lawyer-in-chief provide additional guidance?