Today’s Washington Examiner posted an opinion piece on the current financial reform bill moving through Congress.  The piece points out that the reform bill does not include any reform of either Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, the two entities that essentially caused the financial meltdown. 

The article points out:

“Either because Fannie and Freddie have long been incredibly lucrative sources of campaign cash and career protection for Democratic politicians – see, for example,  Jim Johnson, Franklin Raines, and Barack Obama – or because they fear the political consequences of a full public airing of their culpability in protecting these two black holes for tax dollars, congressional Democrats refused to include any such reforms.”

 

Senators John McCain, R-AZ, Richard Shelby, R-AL, and Judd Gregg, R-NH, have introduced an amendment to the current financial reform bill that would begin the reforming of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.  In the first quarter of 2010 Freddie Mac has lost $8 billion.   It has requested another $10.6 billion from the government and stated that it would need more in the future.  The Obama Administration does not include Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as part of its budget calculations–it does not want to deal with the impact that would have on the deficit.

Please follow the link to the Washington Examiner article to read the full story of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.  Both entities are in desperate need of reform, and many in Congress are choosing to ignore the need.    

CNSNews is reporting today that Joe the Plumber has been elected to one of nearly 400 seats on the local Republican Party committee in Ohio’s Lucas County.  The group meets a few times a year to elect the county chairman and to set the party agenda. 

According to the article:

“He drew cheers at a tea party rally last month in Cincinnati when he told the crowd not to let “a bunch of liberal pansies” take away their rights.
 
“”Illegal immigration?” he said. “Put a fence up and start shooting.””

Whether you agree with him or not, his entrance into the political arena is interesting.  One of the effects of the policies of the current President and Congress is that people who have never been involved in politics or cared about politics are getting involved.  This will make for a very interesting mid-term election.

Yesterday Investors.com posted an aritlce about the failed Times Square bombing and the things we need to learn from it.  They listed a number of myths we seem to believe about terrorism in the United States.  These are the myths:

• The only violence we have to worry about is that from the Tea Partiers or the right-wing extremists.  We saw this myth in the initial response from Mayor Bloomberg to the attack, stated in a interview with Katie Couric.  You have to overlook a lot of history to believe this.
• American Muslims don’t participate in jihad.  They come to this country because they love it.  Faisal Shahzad, the would-be bomber, is from Pakistan and became an American citizen last year.
• The Taliban can only carry out successful terrorist operations in South Asia.  It is no secret that the Taliban has been trying for years to recruit Americans to conduct terrorism in America.  An American passport is a prized possession to the Taliban.  Their goal is to begin to recruit blond, blue-eyed terrorists that will not be given a second glance by immigration officials.
• We can use drones to deal with training camps, safe houses, and terrorist leaders in Pakistan.  Unfortunately, there is never any substitute for boots on the ground.
• Shahzad is another al-Qaida wannabe–these people are incompetent and represent no threat.  The problem with this idea is that Al Qaeda keeps trying.  The first attempt at the World Trade Center in 1993 failed, the second attempt in 2001 was successful.  The Middle East mindset is long-term; America thinks in terms of days, weeks, and sometimes months–we don’t have the attention span for anything longer.  We need to remember this.

We have avoided two serious terrorist attacks in the past five months due to dumb luck.  We can’t depend solely on dumb luck to keep us safe in the future–at some point we have to get our act together in the area of anti-terrorism.

Yesterday’s Washington Examiner posted an article by Byron York on a proposal by Arizona’s two Republican Senators, John McCain and Jon Kyl, to secure the U. S. border with Mexico.

According to the article, the Senators’ plan includes:

“…completing and improving the border fence, adding new Border Patrol agents, expanding a policy of briefly jailing illegal border crossers, and several other programs already in existence.”

In 2006 Congress passed The Secure Fence Act, which required 700 miles of border fence with double-layered fencing and other barriers.  According to The Customs and Border Protection agency, 646 miles of that fence are finished, so as far as they are concerned, the job is done.  Unfortunately, the double-layered fencing has not made it to most of Arizona.  The border fence in Arizona includes 123 miles of pedestrian fence (all but 10 miles are single-layered high fence) to keep people from climbing over), and 182 miles of vehicle fencing (easy for people to climb over or vehicles to use ramps to get over).  That represents 305 miles of fencing.  The border between Arizona and Mexico is 375 miles long.  It seems as though that might be part of the problem.

The estimate on the cost of the McCain-Kyl legislation to secure the border is about $5 million.  When you consider the amount of money this administration is generally throwing around in all other directions, this is doable.

The article concludes:

“As Kyl and McCain see it, Napolitano has things totally turned around.  Today’s problem won’t be solved by comprehensive immigration reform.  Instead, solving the problem would make comprehensive reform possible.  And a bargain, too.”

I hope the Senate has the wisdom to listen to what these men are suggesting.

Got a phone call from someone I know relating a bit of irony.  At the commissary at Camp Pendleton Saturday, the Jewish War Veterans and the Ladies Auxiliary of Southern California were handing out poppies in honor of the veterans.  The person pointed out to me that one of the main reasons her husband is in Afghanistan right now is poppies.  Maybe it’s time to find another flower!

I don’t think I am the only parent who has struggled with the cost of putting braces on children with crooked teeth.  Back in the age of dinosaurs, when my children wore braces, the cost of braces was about the same as the cost of tuition for a year in a state college.  I suspect both prices have gone up since then.  But braces are a major expense, and many families choose to spread that expense over a number of months.  In the future, that may get interesting.

Today The Hill reports that dentists may be affected by the financial reform legislation now moving through Congress. 

According to the article:

“Dentists could fall under the Senate financial bill because they often allow patients to pay in installments, Graham said. According to a 2009 ADA survey, roughly half of dentists offer this type of billing for three or four months.

“Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-N.Y.), chairwoman of the House Small Business Committee, told Dodd it was “more than likely” that small healthcare practices, including dentists and physicians, would fall under the scope of the new regulator. She noted a recent Federal Trade Commission (FTC) decision that dental and law practices were considered creditors as an example of regulators crafting broad interpretations.”

I rather doubt Congress intended to impact dentists with this law, but the fact remains that they did.  One of the major forces at work in Washington under this Congress is the law of unintended consequences.  Our legislators are passing laws, and Congress has no idea whom they will impact or how.  The healthcare legislation was the poster child for this problem; now the financial reform act may run a close second.

The campaign season has begun.  Primaries were held in various states today.  I think we need to send the current Congress home before they can do any more damage.  Leave my children’s teeth alone!

The car bomb in Times Square in New York City was noticed by two street vendors who alerted the police.  The bombing was stopped, and the investigation begun.  Today, the Washington Times reports on how the suspect was found and arrested.

Faisal Shahzad, a Pakistani who had just returned from a five-month trip to Pakistan, was arrested at John F. Kennedy airport as he attempted to leave the country.

Mr. Shahzad had removed the vehicle identification number from the dashboard of the vehicle, but had not removed it from the engine block.  That number allowed the police to trace the vehicle and its sale.

The SUV was packed with fireworks. propane gas tanks, and fertilizer.  The NYPD bomb squad has stated that they felt the fertilizer used was not volatile enough to explode.  I’m glad that is only theory and we are not dealing with the results of the bomb.

Regardless of the reasons for this attempted bombing (the South Park connection, etc.), the attempt should make us more aware that there are people out there (and unfortunately here too) that mean to do us harm.  Our federal officials cannot be expected to get it right 100 per cent of the time–that is not a reasonable expectation–but all of us need to pay attention to what is going on around us.  We are responsible for our own safety.

Thank God for the alert street vendors (according to one story, they were Viet Nam veterans) who called the police.

The Washington Examiner reports today that the Supreme Court has declined to hear an appeal from the San Deigo area Boy Scouts of a ruling that says that the Boy Scouts cannot lease city-owned parkland in San Deigo.  The Federal judges have said that the Boy Scouts are a religious group and the lease violates the federal law that prohibits the promotion of religion.  The American Civil Liberties Union filed the suit on behalf of a lesbian couple and an agnostic couple, each with scouting-age sons.  The suit was filed in 2006 right after the City Council voted to extend the 50-year lease for another 25 years.

The boy scouts’ response is that they have no theology and only believe that children should “do duty to God” to become productive citizens.

So two couples with scouting aged sons can ruin the scouting experience of numerous other scouts because they don’t like the morals the Boy Scouts are teaching.  I think we need more groups teaching morals and community service, not less.  I am really sorry this decision will not be overturned.  If the two couples involved don’t like what the Boy Scouts teach, they should start their own group to train good citizens–they don’t have to attack someone else’s group.

Yesterday’s UK Telegraph posted a story about Dale McAlpine, a 42-year-old Baptist preacher, who was arrested for causing “harassment, alarm or distress” after listing some of the sins referred to in the Bible–blasphemy, drunkenness, and same sex relationships. 

According to the article:

“The 42-year-old Baptist, who has preached Christianity in Wokington, Cumbria for years, said he did not mention homosexuality while delivering a sermon from the top of a stepladder, but admitted telling a passing shopper that he believed it went against the word of God.”

The Public Order Act, which was introduced in 1986, was supposed to be used against violent rioters and ‘football hooligans’, but unfortunately has been used to curb religious free speech.  The complaint was made to a police community support officer (PCSO) who arrested Mr. McAlpine.  The officer, who stated that he was homosexual, was the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender liaison officer for Cumbria police.

Hopefully, the recent anti hate speech rules that Congress passed will not result in this sort of arrest.  Just as homosexuals have the right to be homosexual, preachers have the right to repeat the Biblical warnings about the homosexual lifestyle.

The source for this article is one with which I am not familiar, but I have read the information other places, and I think it is important to post it.  Net Right Nation reported last week on the changes to the Form 1099 requirements included in the recently passed healthcare reform bill.  If you own a small business, these changes are going to cost you serious time and money.  If you are a consumer, you will be expected to absorb the increased cost to small business.  It is generally a lose-lose situation.

The healthcare reform bill requires that every business file a 1099 Form with both the IRS and the company that provided the services or sold the product for every expenditure that exceeds $600.  Previously, 1099 Forms were only required for contract employees.

The article explains the impact of this change:

“In practical terms, here is what the new law means. Joe’s Plumbing prints up 100 color presentations at FedEx Kinko’s for a trade show in New Orleans, where they are staying at a Holiday Inn for six days.

At a minimum, Joe’s Plumbing will have to contact FedEx Kinko’s, the airline, Holiday Inn, the rental car company, and the organization sponsoring the trade show and get taxpayer identification numbers from them so they can comply with this tax law. The company will then have to send out 1099 forms to each of these vendors and dozens, hundreds or thousands more vendors, depending upon the size of the company, thus adding significant compliance costs to every business in America. Everyone from a company’s accountant, to building supplier, to carpet cleaner to janitorial service will be trading 1099 forms.”

This situation gets worse.  The IRS will not be in charge of setting the rules for the filing and storing of the 1099 Forms–the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will be writing and overseeing these tax regulations.  Yikes.  That’s the equivalent of hiring a computer programmer to fix a plumbing problem.  He might be a really good programmer, but that’s not his area of expertise.

This provision in the healthcare reform legislation is another reason why ‘repeal and replace’ is a really good idea.  Please keep this in mind when you vote in November.

Monday’s Washington Times has posted an op-ed piece by Ted Nugent on the subject of immigration reform.  Ted Nugent has never been an average rock star even in the days when rock stars were not average.

After the recent murder of Robert Krenz, Arizona passed a law allowing policemen to ask for proof of citizenship from the people they stop.  The new law makes it a crime to be in Arizona illegally (just for the record, that was already a federal crime, but there was no enforcement).  The people who cannot prove they are in the country legally face up to six months in jail and a fine of $2,500. 

Mr. Nugent cites a quote from Ronald Reagan:

“A nation without borders will soon cease to be a nation.”

We have borders–the problem is that Washington politicians have refused to enforce them for a number of years.  It was not as critical when the unemployment rate was 5 per cent or before terrorism became a serious threat–now it is critical.

While I don’t totally agree with Mr. Nugent’s comments, I think he makes some valid points on what we need to do to protect our nation.  With freedom comes responsibility, and we have the responsibility to enforce our borders and our laws.  Before we discuss immigration reform, we need to stop the flow of illegal immigrants into this country.  Congratulations to Arizona for doing that.

According to today’s Washington Examiner delegates of 189 nations will meet tomorrow in New York City for their twice in a decade meeting to discuss the forty-year-old treaty designed to stop the spread of nuclear weapons.  Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is the only actual head of state taking part. 

According to the article:

“Departing Tehran on Sunday, Ahmadinejad signaled he’ll use the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT) review conference to assail the U.S. and other nuclear-weapons powers for slow movement toward disarmament.”

Great idea–let’s start by disarming him.  The United States Secretary of State, Hillary Rodham Clinton, said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that she thought the Iranian President was coming to New York simply to divert attention away from Iran’s nuclear program and confuse the issue.  This is one of the few times I agree with Secretary of State Clinton.

The article further states:

“Treaty members — every nation but India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea — gather every five years to review how it’s working and agree on new approaches to problems. They do that not by updating the treaty, a difficult task, but by trying to adopt a consensus final document calling for steps outside the treaty to advance its goals — in U.S.-Russian arms reductions, for example, or by strengthening the hand of the U.N. nuclear inspectors, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).”

It seems rather obvious that this has not been a successful program.  The bottom line here is that until the free countries of the world actually unite against the tyrants of the world who are developing nuclear weapons, more countries are going to acquire nuclear weapons.  Because the free countries of the world are not in charge of the United Nations, the slowing down of the growth of nuclear nations will probably never be a reality.  The only real answer to the problem is for the free nations of the world to share and expand their missile defense programs in order to avoid being the target of a new nuclear nation.

This story is based on two sources, wcbstv.com today and the UK Telegraph today.  Yesterday a car bomb was placed in an SUV in New York City and left to detonate.  Thanks to the actions of a street vendor who reported a smoking car, the bomb was discovered before it detonated.  Wcbstv reports that the New York Police Department is checking surveillance cameras around the area for leads and that the Federal Bureau of Investigation is also involved in the investigation.

The UK Telegraph points out that the bomb was located near the offices of Viacom, which owns the South Park television series.  Last month the writers of South Park were threatened with physical harm because of their portrayal of Mohammed in the series. 

South Park is in its fourteenth season.  During that time, the show has bashed everyone–Christians, Barbra Streisand, Scientology, pedophiles, etc.  The show is rude, crude,and politically incorrect, but it is probably one of the most unbiased shows on television.  Only when they satirized Mohammed were they faced with actual physical harm.  This ought to be a clue to us about the intolerance of the extremist elements of the Muslim religion.

According to the UK Telegraph:

“The bomb was left inside a dark green Nissan Pathfinder, left with its engine running and hazard lights flashing near the junction of 45th Street and Broadway.

“A T-shirt vendor, who was a Vietnam veteran, alerted police when he noticed smoke coming out of it. Police hurriedly evacuated thousands of tourists and theatre-goers, including women in evening gowns, from the area on Broadway’s busiest night of the week.”

Hopefully, we can quickly find the people who put this car bomb together and put them in jail for a very long time.  Meanwhile, we have a lot to be thankful for–no one was hurt and the bomb did not detonate. 

Ed Morrissey reports at Hot Air today about a provision in the financial reform bill that would allow the Federal Trade Commission to begin to regulate Internet transactions. 

The article points out:

“This has become a pattern with this Congress and administration. Despite having large majorities in both chambers, Democrats refuse to use the legislative path to pass regulation — mainly because the regulations they want are too radical to pass. Instead, they shift the creation of regulation to agencies like the EPA and its “endangerment” finding for CO2, which would then require Congress and the President to undo rather than vote to impose in the first place.”

Mr. Morrissey further points out:

“Even considering that pattern, this is something out of the ordinary. Neither the FTC nor the Internet had anything to do with the Wall Street meltdown in 2008.  If this financial-regulation bill is so desperately needed, why did House Democrats lard it up with this power grab at the FTC?  Why does the FTC need any further authority over the Internet, where fraud and abuse regulations apply already?   The Internet economy has been one of the bright spots throughout a dismal period of recent history.  Do we need to attack the one area that shows growth and promise?”

The loser in this type of transaction (other than the American people) is the U. S. Constitution.  It’s time to elect leaders who will uphold the Constitution, not find new and unusual ways to circumvent it.

Today’s Chicago Sun Times posted an article about U.S. Army Master Sgt. Pedro Medina.  Master Sgt. Medina, a Chicago policeman who was deployed to Afghanistan in 2008 with the National Guard, returned to Chicago yesterday. 

According to the article:

“One year ago, Medina was out in the open on his military base in mountainous southeastern Afghanistan when mortar rounds exploded around him. He took cover inside a building. A Chinook helicopter was taking off to escape the attack, and a downdraft from the rotors collapsed the building on top of Medina. Doctors later told Medina he was a quadriplegic.”

On Friday, Master Sgt. Medina walked through Midway Airport without even using a cane.  Master Sgt. Medina said that he is eager to return to police work after he finishes his rehab.

I am always amazed at the courage and strength of the people who serve in our military.  Please remember all of them in your prayers.

That is an amazing statement to have been made by someone who works at a job that pays $400,000 a year and somehow he and his wife made $5.5 million in the first year of his presidency.

These facts are noted in an editorial piece posted at Investors.com yesterday. 

The article wisely concludes:

“If the president is eager to regulate salaries, he might begin — and end — with the federal work force. Commerce Department data show that average federal worker compensation of $119,982 in 2008 was twice that of average private-sector pay ($59,909).

“If he can’t bring himself to spread federal workers’ wealth around, he and the rest of Washington need to stay away from everyone else’s income.”

When did we elect a President to tell us how much any of us should earn?  What does the President see as his ‘enough’ amount?

Hot Air reported yesterday that the United Nations has elected Iran to its Commission on the Status of Women.  Right.  According to its website, the Commission on the Status of Women is “dedicated exclusively to gender equality and advancement of women,”   The article also points out that the United Nations Commission on Human Rights includes such freedom-loving nations as China and Saudi Arabia. 

At the bottom of the article is a question asked by Jennifer Rubin:

“The U.S. couldn’t muster a word of opposition — not even call for a vote. That would be because . . . why? Because our policy is not to confront and challenge the brutal regime for which rape and discrimination are institutionalized policies. No, rather, we are in the business of trying to ingratiate ourselves, and making the U.S. as inoffensive as possible to the world’s thugocracies.”

I really wonder if both the United Nations and the United States have forgotten the call and the responsibilities of freedom.

In 1975 on April 29, the United States began a helicopter evacuation of U. S. Citizens, South Vietnamese allies, and others out of Saigon.  On April 30, the city surrendered, and more than three million people died in the political chaos that followed.

Unfortunately, America caused the deaths of these people.  A new book, AN AMERICAN AMNESIA, written by Bruce Herschensohn, details the sequence of events that caused the massacre that followed.  The book is reviewed at DisruptThe Narrative at Word Press.  What the book tells us about our government and the media during the 1970’s is frightening and sobering in view of current events.

According to the website:

“Between the 94th Congress defunding the aid that was promised to South Viet Nam, crafting and passing the unconstitutional War Powers act, and the resignation of Nixon later that year,  the North realized that they had a new opportunity and eventually caused the collapse of South Viet Nam, Cambodia and Laos within a couple of years.”

This is the reply of Cambodia’s Prince Sirik Matak as U. S. officials fled Cambodia and asked the Prince if he would like to leave:

“I thank you very sincerely for your letter and your offer to transport me towards freedom.  I cannot, alas, leave in such a cowardly fashion.  As for you, and in particular for your great country, I never believed for a moment that you would have this sentiment of abandoning a people which has chosen liberty.  You have refused us your protection, and we can do nothing about it.  You leave, and my wish is that you and your country will find happiness under this sky.  But, mark it well, that if I shall die here on the spot and in my country that I love, it is no matter, because we are all born and must die.  I have only committed this mistake of believing in you.”  (Quoted from THE AMERICAN PATRIOT’S ALMANAC by William J. Bennett and John T. E. Cribb)

Prince Matak was shot in the stomach when the Khmer Rouge seized Phnom Penh.  He was left unattended and took three days to die.  During the Khmer Rouge’s reign of terror that followed, 15 million people died from execution, starvation and forced labor.

Two quotes from Democrats involved in the decision to end the funding:

“Chris Dodd:  The greatest gift our country can give to the Cambodian people is not guns, but peace, and the best way to accomplish that goal is by ending military aid now.

“George McGovern:  Cambodians would be better off if we stopped all aid to them and let them work things out in their own way.”

History will repeat itself if we turn our backs on either Iraq or Afghanistan.  Unfortunately, we are the only nation in the world that would even consider preventing the slaughter of innocents that would follow an American abandoment of either country.  We can behave honorably or we can be responsible for another slaughter as we were in 1975.

On Saturday, MSNBC posted an article about the new immigration law just passed in Arizona.  The article states:

“It also requires local police officers to question people about their immigration status if there is reason to suspect they are illegal immigrants; allows lawsuits against government agencies that hinder enforcement of immigration laws; and makes it illegal to hire illegal immigrants for day labor or knowingly transport them.

“The law sends “a clear message that Arizona is unfriendly to undocumented aliens,” said Peter Spiro, a Temple University law professor and author of the book “Beyond Citizenship: American Identity After Globalization.””

This is ridiculous.  Why shouldn’t Arizona be unfriendly to undocumented (illegal) aliens?  What part of illegal does Professor Spiro not understand?  Is illegal only illegal if he says so?

One of the arguments against the new bill is that it requires legal aliens (or recent citizens) to have their identification papers on them at all times.  Supposedly that is the beginning of a totalitarian state.  Well, wait a minute.  This is a link to A Guide for New Immigrants put out by the United States government.  On page 8 of this guide is the statement:

As a permanent resident, it is your responsibility to:

Carry proof of your permanent resident status at all times.

This is directly copied from the New Immigrants guide:

Permanent residents are issued a valid Permanent Resident

Card (Form I-551) as proof of their legal status in

the United States. Some people call this a “Green Card.”

If you are a permanent resident who is 18 years or

older, you must carry proof of your immigration status.

You must show it to an immigration officer if asked for

it.Your card is valid for 10 years and must be renewed

before it expires.You should file Form I-90 to replace or

renew your Permanent Resident Card.You can get this

form at http://www.uscis.gov or by calling the USCIS

Forms Line. There is a fee to file Form I-90.

I think we need to enforce our own laws.

This is a picture from yesterday’s Investors.com website.  The picture was included in an article about Congress shutting off the water to the Central Valley in California. 

The article states:

“Instead of pink blossoms and green shoots along Highway 5 in April, vast spans from Bakersfield to Fresno sit bone-dry. Brown grass, dead orchards and lifeless grapevine skeletons stretch for miles for lack of water. For every fallow field, there’s a sign that farmers have placed alongside the highway: “No Water = No Food,” “No Water = No Jobs,” “Congress Created Dust Bowl.”

“Locals say it’s been like this for two years now, as Congress and bureaucrats cite “drought,” “global warming” and “endangered species” to deny water to this $37 billion breadbasket through arbitrary “environmental” quotas.”

The consequences of this man-made drought are unemployment rates of as much as 45 percent, an increase in mortgage foreclosures, California having to import vegetables rather than growing them locally, and increased food prices for the rest of us.

The really aggravating part of this water shut-off, however, is the politics involved.  The article points out:

“Take the three congressmen who represent the valley and how they were pressured to vote for President Obama’s health care bill. It didn’t go without notice by farmers like Jasper that the 5% water allocations announced in February for all three congressional districts were lifted to 25% for the two whose Democratic representatives, Jim Costa of Fresno and Dennis Cardoza of Modesto, switched their votes on health reform from “no” to “aye.”

“Devin Nunes, a Republican from Tulare, wouldn’t sell his vote, and parts of his district had to make do with the 5% allotment.”

This is not regular ‘hardball politics.’  This kind of political move hurts everyone.  I understand the Congressmen caving into that kind of pressure, but we need people in Congress who will stand up to the bullying that is going on from Washington.  Until we put men of integrity in office who will stand up for what is right, this kind of nonsense will continue.

“All great change in America begins at the dinner table.”

Ronald Reagan

Yesterday Investors.com posted an article about the timing of the release of the report by the Medicare’s Office of the Actuary which showed that the healthcare reform act would significantly increase the cost of healthcare. 

According to the article:

“Chief Actuary Richard Foster estimated that the program would add
$311 billion over 10 years in costs beyond what would have been the
case if the legislation hadn’t become law.

“The Health and Human Services Department reportedly had the report
more than a week before the vote but refused to review it until after
the Senate bill passed the House on March 21.”

The Senate leadership needed to have healthcare reform passed to provide a victory for President Obama; they chose not be bothered by the facts in studying the bill (that’s assuming they studied the bill). 

The article further states:

“”The reason we were given was that they did not want to influence the
vote,” said an unidentified HHS source in a Monday report in the
Washington Prowler blog of the American Spectator. Pardon us, but
wouldn’t it have been better if this information had been made public
or given to lawmakers before the House voted?”

I guess the loose translation of this is, “Don’t confuse me with facts.”

It is unfortunate that our “representatives” in Washington are more interested in gaining political victories than they are in representing the American people.  We need to vote all of them out in November.

George Will posted an editorial today at the Washington Post commenting on Arizona’s new Immigration law.  Mr. Will points out that being in the country illegally is already a federal offense–Arizona simply made it also a state offense. 

The law states that police
officers are required to try to make “a reasonable attempt” to
determine the status of a person “where reasonable suspicion exists”
that the person is here illegally.  The implication here is that the person in question has been detained by a policeman for a legitimate reason and that as part of the investigation process of the individual, his status as an American citizen will be confirmed.  I would have thought that would have been understood already.

Mr. Will points out:

“Arizona’s law might give the nation information about whether judicious
enforcement discourages illegality. If so, it is a worthwhile
experiment in federalism.”

After learning some of the problems caused in Arizona due to illegal immigration, I applaud their efforts to enforce the law that being in the country illegally is a crime.  The principle job of a government is to protect its citizens.  Arizona is in danger of becoming the kidnapping capital of the world due to the illegals entering the state.  We need to remember that included in the illegals entering the state are drug smugglers and people who have no interest at all in contributing to the growth and well-being of America.

That being said, I would like to see our immigration process streamlined so that people who want to come here and work do not have to wait years to have their applications approved.  The way things stand right now, we are allowing a group of people to ignore our laws while taking advantage of our medical and social programs.  This is not a good situation.

Meanwhile, let’s take a look at Mexico’s immigration laws:

• Mexico welcomes only foreigners who will be useful to Mexican society
• Foreigners are admitted into Mexico “according to their possibilities of contributing to national progress.” (Article 32)
• Immigration officials must “ensure” that “immigrants will be useful
  elements for the country and that they have the necessary funds for
  their
  sustenance” and for their dependents. (Article 34)
• Federal, local and municipal police must cooperate with federal
  immigration authorities upon request, i.e., to assist in the arrests of
  illegal
  immigrants. (Article 73)
• A National Population Registry keeps track of “every single individual
  who comprises the population of the country,” and verifies each
  individual’s identity. (Articles 85 and 86)
• Foreigners with fake papers, or who enter the country under false pretenses, may be imprisoned
• Foreigners who are deported from Mexico and attempt to re-enter the
  country without authorization can be imprisoned for up to 10 years.
  (Article
  118)
• Foreigners who violate the terms of their visa may be sentenced to up to six years in prison (Articles 119, 120 and 121). Foreigners who
  misrepresent the terms of their visa while in Mexico — such as working with out a permit — can also be imprisoned

It’s time for some basic reciprocity.

Green energy will be coming to Massachusetts.  According to Breitbart.com today, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar will approve the nation’s first offshore wind farm to be built in the Nantucket Sound off Cape Cod.  The wind farm will have 130 turbines. 

According to the article:

“Cape Wind says it can generate power by 2012
and aims to eventually supply three-quarters of the power on Cape Cod,
which has about 225,000 residents. Cape Wind officials say it will
provide green jobs and a reliable domestic energy source, while
offshore wind advocates are hoping it can jump-start the U.S. industry.”

Theoretically this is a great idea.  The question becomes how it will work in actual practice. 

One of the issues in the debate on this project was how it would affect the ocean view from Cape Cod.  According to the article:

“The project is about five miles off Cape Cod
at its closest proximity to land and 14 miles off Nantucket at the
greatest distance. According to visual simulations done for Cape Wind,
on a clear day the turbines would be about a half-inch tall on the
horizon at the nearest point and appear as specks from Nantucket.”

Two Wampanoag Indian tribes protested the construction of the wind farm because one of their sacred rituals requires an unblocked view of the sunrise over Nantucket Sound.  The article also stated that the wind farm would be built on long-submerged tribal burial grounds.  

Meanwhile, the Boston Herald reported today that Paul Kirk (the man who was the replacement Senator for Ted Kennedy for a short time) stated that Senator Kennedy would be saddened by the approval of the wind farm.

The Boston Herald also reported today:

“Without providing specific details, Salazar said project developers
will be required to undergo more marine and archaeological reviews and
take steps to reduce the turbines’ visibility from the shore. He also
said the project would be reduced in size from 170 to 130 wind turbines
– a “change” that surprised many because the size of the project had
been reduced long ago. Salazar said the conditions are “stringent,” but the project’s nine-year review has been thorough.”

Regardless of how you feel about this project, it will tell us a lot of things about the feasibility of future wind power.  New England (and its coast) have a lot of wind.  If wind power can be an alternative to our current energy sources, New England is where it will be successful.  Putting up the Cape Cod wind farm is similar to the Wright Brothers testing their airplane at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.  Kitty Hawk is always windy–if the airplane was going to fly at all, it would fly there!  If wind power is going to work at all, it will work off Cape Cod!

Front Page Magazine posted an article about a Solidarity with Israel Rally that took place in front of the Israeli Consulate in New York City on Sunday afternoon.  The rallying cry of the day was “Obama – Stop Pressuring Israel”.  There were more than 2000 people in attendance.

Please follow the above link to the article.  Fern Sidman, who wrote the article, explains a lot of the contradictions between Jewish groups who are supporting President Obama and don’t want to lose their influence with his administration and those Jewish groups who see the danger to Israel in making too many concessions in the name of peace.

The article reminds us:

“Rabbi Yaakov Spivak of Monsey, NY, a longtime Jewish activist, radio talk show host and a Daily News columnist intoned, “President Obama, we’re here today to tell you something. In Warsaw, they told Jews where we could build, in Lodz they told Jews where we could build, in Paris they told Jews where we could build. You will never tell us where to build in Jerusalem. We are home and Israel is our country. You are not our landlord and we are neither a vassal state nor a banana republic. Our mandate to be here today is none other than our holy Tanach, our bible which says, ‘For the sake of Zion I will not be silent and for the sake of Jerusalem I will not be quiet.””

We are in danger of taking the side of countries that want to see Israel destroyed–there has been no evidence since the Palestinians have been given the Gaza strip that they want to spend money on infrastructure or on helping their people.  Any money they have received has gone toward weapons aimed at Israel.  Until that changes and they begin to build a viable state, I see no reason why we should force Israel to make concessions to them.

The article also points out:

“A formidable contingent of Hindu and Sikh supporters of Israel was also present at the rally. “We understand all too well that a policy of appeasement towards Islamic radicalism will never bring peace to Israel or the civilized world,” declared Satya Dosapati of the Hindu Human Rights Watch.” As Hindus, we have been massacred by Muslims for thousands of years. If President Obama really believes that isolating and demonizing Israel and publicly humiliating Israel’s Prime Minister is not emboldening our Islamic enemies, then something is really wrong. Israel is a peace seeking nation and we unequivocally support their right to their homeland. The world must realize that if Israel falls then the entire world will come under the domination of a blood thirsty Islamic caliphate,” he continued.”

Israel and America are not the only countries in the crosshairs of the radical element of Islam.  The War on Terrorism should be a worldwide effort, and Mr. Dosapati realizes that.  Hopefully the rest of the world will realize it before it is too late.