Author: publius911

4/20/23

The title paraphrases Ben Stein in “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” asking for a missing person. Where are the big stories? The bulge under the carpet is getting bigger by the day. There are so many issues fading out of sight one wonders if there will be anything to talk about.

It starts with the “Russia, Russia, Russia” ruse and the multi-year Durham investigation of the investigation. Crickets for months. The most egregious use of the federal government instigated against a political rival is just another bygone story. Hunter’s tax and gun investigation. Huh? Origins of Covid anyone? Some snippets last week yes but any bona fide determination? Not yet. The Afghanistan debacle? Does anyone care that we left $80,000,000,000 of materiel in the Taliban’s hands? How many Americans are still left there along with those that helped us? How much post pandemic money is lost to fraud? Was the science really followed  when addressing Covid? The list is long and grows by the day as some new issue diverts ours and our supposed 4^th estate’s attention.

In this fast moving news cycle, yesterday’s tragedy is replaced by today’s weather forecast. In some media outlets it’s Trump, January 6^th and catastrophic climate change day-after-day. Even the shiny object of FOX News getting its hand slapped is only going to last as long as the second installment of “Get FOX” falls. Where are the follow ups to what were the “crises of the day” stories of yesteryear? Investigative reporting apparently is no longer taught in journalism classes. Rather it seems its teeth whitening procedures and the proper use of pronouns.

As was the case with Mr. Stein, I’m wondering where these and other pertinent stories are.

4-14-23

France continues to rile over the increase in retirement age. The issue has begat all the hallmarks of a populist uprising. Yesterday, protesters stormed the corporate offices of LVMH, the owner of multiple luxury brands. The protesters call for the “rich” to pay to prop up the French pension system. As is the case with most humans, once you are given something, you don’t want it taken away. Politicians know this very well and pander to it. The other guy wants to take it away while I want to give you more. Who wins in that battle for votes?

While today it is over an effort to put a failing program on a more solid trajectory, one that is still not sustainable, tomorrow it can be on any number of social engineering programs intended to create dependency. The French unions feel threatened that a mere head of state can make changes that undermine their power. Caring not one iota about the fiscal insanity their demands make, they cast the changes as an affront to humankind. How long before they call for the heads of those proposing change?

The prescient nature of France’s situation for the US is ominous. The Marxists that dominate the Democrat party are working in concert with their globalist comrades to undermine the capitalist system. Fueled with support from our adversaries, mainly China, they are subverting our institutions and creating animosity among the tribal groups they continue to identify in ever smaller numbers. As in France, any reference to putting Social Security and Medicare/Medicaid on a more fiscally solid footing is met with derision and scorn. Facts be damned, we’re not touching those programs!

We all know this doesn’t end well, politicians included. In our kick-the-can-down-the-road system of governance, the current crop of so-called “leaders”, will simply put out pablum expressing their allegiance to the failing programs and move on to more important things like making sure the record reflects the correct use of pronouns. Frozen in place too scared to give up their power, those who could tell the truth and take preventative actions will simply hope they won’t be around for the collapse.

How long will it be before, pitchforks in hand, the masses are at the door.

4-6-23

Paraphrasing the oft quoted Bush one campaign slogan, recent elections scream abortion is on the minds of voters. Elections in Kansas, Michigan, Kentucky, Montana and now Wisconsin are showing Republicans they had better come up with a better game plan if they intend to thwart the demise of our Republic. It’s abortion stupid!

I’m convinced that true polling of actual voters will show that the single most defining issue where they were on the fence as to who to select, was abortion or as these people call it, “women’s reproductive health”. You will find ardent fiscal conservatives crossing over to the “dark side” simply because they think abortion is a right, damn the child. That portends a crushing defeat in future elections, both state and federal, in light of the Roe v Wade case which moves the issue to state houses.

Step back and you see the usurping of elections laws allowing for all kinds of skullduggery, the crushing of our economy pursuing a false ideology of environmental disaster from fossil fueled energy, and a continuing stratification of our society into smaller “tribes” pit against one another. Using this issue fans the flame of polarization and is being used to augment the concerted effort to turn this country into yet another totalitarian state.

Is the current “opposition” prepared to counter this onslaught? Is the Republican party really an opposition party capable of standing up to the falsehoods being shoved down the country’ throat? Who will stand up and say killing babies is wrong in the face of losing their job (re-election) knowing that when they’re gone, they will be replaced with someone who will take our country further into decline? Tough stance and one that may win the moral argument but loses the war and results in total destruction.

Somebody had better come up with a position on abortion that will allow people on both sides of the issue room to express their beliefs. Is it only in the first trimester? When the pregnancy was the result of a criminal act? Most people would say the life of the mother is paramount so saving her with an abortion is justified. Is it? These and other tertiary issues must be reconciled if we’re to right the ship that is listing dangerously to capsizing.

3-30-23

Get ready for the biggest bailout in world history. Having nearly destroyed all major urban areas, Democrats will force the rest of the country to continue to prop up these cities. As traditional populations leave these cities, taking with them the income they earn by working, they are replaced by immigrants who survive on social welfare. That death spiral will not go unheeded. Watch Democrats use their tried and proven method of creating problems that only they can solve…with our money.

Already highly subsidized, major urban areas are cesspools of deteriorating schools, lax criminal enforcement and crumbling infrastructure. Despite the gobs of money thrown at these cities, they continue to deteriorate. Rather than stop the bleeding by addressing rampant crime and poor educational systems, Democrats choose to raise taxes in order to pay the unions that continue to live off of sweetheart policies that undermine free enterprise, adding to the exodus of rational people who see the writing on the wall. Get out of Dodge before the black hole swallows you up.

Those poor people who are left will only exacerbate the demise. More dependence on welfare while attending underperforming schools will  only be a clarion call to Democrats for MORE MONEY! Anyone questioning the demand will be labeled heartless and vilified as ..you name the phobia. No amount of math or past history will counter the argument that “children will die” if more money is not thrown at the problem.

Those of you who still believe that Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, Baltimore, Detroit, San Francisco, Newark, Philadelphia, Seattle, {Portland, Washington D.C., Atlanta to name the most egregious, are still viable need to take a hint from Greta and get out of town now. The world you once knew is ending.

3-25-23

The Sicilians know how to run a shake down. The restaurant owner that wants to avoid a “fire” pays for “insurance” to the knee capper. The Biden regime and the firmly entrenched deep state, know too well how to apply the same techniques to those in need of “direction”.

The Twitter files have exposed the criminal activity of our government. The FBI is fully engaged through placed agents, both active and “retired”, in organizations, including at high levels where policy is determined. At the regularly held meetings between government officials and company personnel, the case was made clearly. You don’t want to publish that information. Bad things might come to happen like legislation that thwarts your ability to remain viable. Of course, we’re only recommending you take this action. It’s up to you whether or not you heed our warning.

As is the case with the Mafia actions, people go along to get along. It’s a symbiotic relationship between government and selected businesses and even industries (ex. Renewable energy). “I’ll do what you ask and you make sure nothing bad happens to me.” What gets lost in both these situations is how everyone else pays for the skullduggery. We pay more for our night out at the restaurant.  We pay much more for an administrative state that wastes our tax dollars and worse, hides things that would diminish their power over us.

3-20-23

In the latest media analysis, reporters are now citing the lack of affordable child care as the main culprit in the dearth of workers. The 3/20/23 WSJ article, “Child Care Keep Parents Out of Work”, cites the lower number of younger persons working and the cause is the lack of affordable child care. Do you hear the drum beat getting louder for more government subsidy for other than parents raising children?

Across the political spectrum, there are calls for increase subsidy for child care. Why? Both parties understand the coffers get filled by worker bees. Filled coffers translates to power for those holding the keys to the treasury. By controlling the raising and education of children, they also control the future thus cementing their hold and providing additional juice to their power.

It is extremely difficult to turn around the materialistic society in which we live. The airwaves are filled with the lives of the “rich and famous”. Class envy is stoked at every turn and the “why don’t I have that?” mentality pervades at all income levels especially in light of the lack of any semblance of adhering to a higher calling beyond this temporal world.

So now it comes down to simple math. If you are making an entry level wage or depend on tips for you income, you are likely to not make enough to offset the cost of child care. If you have a college degree and work in an white collar environment, you likely receive a substantial wage and benefits package that does cover the cost of child care…. maybe. The cost of clothing, commuting, and increased use of prepared foods in addition to the cost of child care, should give the parent pause on who raises their child. Some studies have shown increased medical care costs for the child that should also give pause to the parent.

The final and best argument for raising your own child should be the joy that comes from seeing your child do things for the first time rather than hearing it from a person who does not hold unconditional love for that child no matter how committed they are to their work. My daughter worked in child care and she “loved” her kids, some of whom nearly 20 years later still remember her. She tells of the sorry state of parents rushing to drop off and being late for pick up and the stress it put on the child. She saw how children manipulated parents into “buying” the child’s love with promises of Disney, toys, and even food.

When you add the sorry state of public education to the math of working and paying for child care versus staying home and raising your child, it just doesn’t add up. Do the math.

3/6/23

In news to me over this weekend, I learned the cancelling of student debt is actually happening despite its illegality. Get this story told to us by an immediate family member.

The son-in-law of our friends has amassed nearly $1,000,000 in student debt. Yep, that is not an exaggeration. Between undergrad, dental school and then advanced education for a specialty (maxillofacial surgery), he has taken out loans totaling nearly 7 figures which he has been paying off $4000 a month at a time. We were told that he expected to be paying the loans off for some 20 years. He is now practicing medicine in Pennsylvania though we did not learn the nature of his practice.

Encouraged by a friend, he submitted a request for relief under the “Public Service Loan Forgiveness” program (PSLF). Again, according to the in-laws, the son was shocked when he got a form letter from the government telling him he no longer owes the balance of his loans totaling over $800,000.  Our friends were unaware of what “public service” work he had done to warrant the dismissal.

Our government working with our money.

2/14/23

Twitter, Meta, Google, et al have been used to disseminate user content and with much controversy. Do they deserve immunity from libel and slander as Section 230 allows or is there some culpability for X content that must be punished? Court cases continue to prop up and new revelations about internal practices raise eyebrows throughout the political landscape. What to do?

The Constitution of the United States is the second most bedrock document the world has seen. (The bible being number one.) The protection for unfettered speech is clearly spelled out in the 1^st amendment. Though under considerable attack right now, it is still a critical plank that separates us from those who would control you head to foot. It is imperative that it not be encroached upon for our society to continue to prosper. Social media plays an increasingly important role in public discourse and as such, it must be used to promote rather than inhibit free discussion.

Rather than leave this issue to politicians who approach most on how they affect their re-election, it would be better for users to say exactly what they want in a public forum. Censorship should be a bad word and letting Washington dictate what can and cannot be said is fraught with totalitarianism. The advent of artificial intelligence should bring about the ability to encourage public discussions while protecting all of us from things found to be violating accepted norms and laws. So, try this on for size.

1. NO PORN – Any display or depiction of human genitalia, real or simulated sex acts should be sequestered and accessed only by credibly assured adults. Prior to viewing, the site must warn the viewer of its pornographic content.
2. NO VIOLENCE – Any real or simulated acts of violence including physical confrontations, use of weapons or any item used to cause harm to a person or animal are not permitted. Entries of bonafide contact sports must be accompanied by a warning that there is violent content.
3. PERSON RESPONSIBLE – persons or organizations that post anything are solely responsible for the content they posted. They are subject to all laws pertaining to public statements. All postings must be traceable to an IP address that can be disabled in the least and prosecuted if necessary and possible.

Commensurate with this approach to social media and the internet in general, is educating people on the proper use of these vehicles. First, they are not the bible. There are many untruths in the world and they find their way to these sites. If you are getting your “information” from the internet, you may want to do a little more digging before accepting it as gospel. Much good has come from social media but so has it brought much grief. The answer to bad speech is not throttling it but encouraging more of it. Even stupid back-and-forth is better than shut up and sit down.

2/11/23

There used to be a TV show called, “What’s My Line” where a celebrity panel would try to ferret out the person telling the truth about themselves. When the queries ended and the panel made their guesses, the person who was telling the truth was asked to please stand up. I felt like I was witnessing a current version of that program as I watched the House hearings on “Protecting Speech from Government Interference and Social Media Bias“.

I was stunned to hear one witness, former Twitter employee lawyer Anika Collier Navaroli, say that more effort needs to occur to suppress hate speech and dis and mis information. This supposed educated person was actually advocating to subvert the first amendment and was doing it in the People’s house. Did she ever study the Constitution in law school? If so, how did she come to such an awkward position? While never proposing a solution to “hate speech” or dis and mis information, she was clear that January 6^th was a direct result of it. Even more alarming was how ranking Democrat Representative Rankin egged her on in total agreement. This, a person who took an oath to upholding the Constitution.

Rather than counter whatever kind of communication with which you disagree with reasoned response, increasingly ad hominem retorts are common. Without good retorts based on the merits of the argument, (the basis for all good debate), many are falling to the low use of name calling. That is, cut off any logical discussion of the topic and castigate the opposition into silence. As this approach has less and less effect in suppressing dissension, they now look for more tools behind which they can hide their ill-intentions. Mind you, they have a good part of those in power as part of this cabal so its not far fetched to imagine curtailment of speech through fines and imprisonment.

Whenever someone says you can’t say that, you have your fascist. They were on full display this week and they not only live among us, they sit in positions of power to make that statement stick. The real fascist stood up this week and its time to call them out.

2-2-23

New York Governor Hochul submits a $227,000,000,000 budget with tax increases while Florida Governor De Santis submits a $114,800,000,000 budget with tax cuts.