Just an update on the Tax DayTea Parties scheduled for next week.  I am planning to attend the one in Rhode Island, which will be held 3 pm to 6 pm on the City Side Steps of the State Capitol.  There are tea parties in Massachusetts in Boston, Lowell, Hyannis, Worcester, Pittsfield, and Springfield.  Click on the Massachusetts Tea Parties link to find out the hours and exact locations of the tea parties.  The basic message of the tea parties is very clear:

 repeal the pork, cut taxes and cut spending

Posters need to reflect that basic message.  This is not a Republican/Democrat thing–this is a survival of the middle class issue.  We are rapidly appoaching a point in our tax system where 50 per cent of the population does not pay taxes–they have no interest in controlling spending–their interest is in getting as much from the government as they can.  Unless we stop the slide toward people who produce being overtaxed to support the nonproducers, we will lose our producers.

I guess I would never make it as a negotiator (that is totally an understatement).  I am ready to blow the pirates (and any other pirate ships that come to their rescue) out of the water.  These people are not worthwhile members of society.  The are the modern-day equivalent of the Al Capone gang.  They have taken control of the waters off Somalia and are demanding protection money (ransom) for ships to pass there.  So far this has been a profitable undertaking, so why in the world should they stop doing it?  Now they have taken an American ship (from a country that used to have a backbone), and they are getting away with it.  The captain will probably be released and the pirates will probably collect their ransom.  I would love to be wrong about this, but I don’t think I am. 

When this is resolved, nothing will change.  Some countries may reroute their ships to avoid the pirates, but the pirates will still take the ships that pass by and hold them for ransom.  It is an unbelievable shame that no one in the world is willing to stand up and say that pirates are the scum of the earth who attack innocent, unarmed people and deserve to die.  It is a shame that NATO, when asked last year to deal with the pirate problem, couldn’t be bothered (or didn’t have enough backbone to want to accept the job).  This is a truly awful time for America, we are being humiliated by a bunch of well-armed thugs and we are not willing to do anything about it.  It is also sad that much of the ransom collected will go toward the terrorists’ war that is being fought against us.  It is totally in our best interest to deal with the pirates harshly and quickly.  I fear that we do not have the resolve to do that.

The website Exurban League has a different take on the current pirate situation.  They have posted an article entitled, “Obama Reaches Out To ‘Moderate’ Pirate Community”.  As you can imagine, the article is tongue in cheek (and very well done).  Just follow the link to read it.  I have no intention of trying to summarize it–it’s too good the way it is!

According to The Hill, Senator John Kerry has called for hearings on the mounting piracy problem.  Call me cynical if you will, but why wasn’t this issue discussed before an American ship was taken.  It wasn’t as if the taking of an American ship was not inevitable.  The piracy off Somalia has been going on for a number of years now.  It’s funny that while George Bush was President, they never touched American shipping. 

According to the article:

“There have been more than 50 attacks in the area this year alone and the problem isn’t going away,” Kerry said. “I plan to hold hearings to further examine the growing threat of piracy and all the policy options that need to be on the table before the next fire drill becomes an international incident with big implications.”

Note to Senator Kerry:  the piracy will stop when the risk outweighs the possible material gain.  As long as the ransoms are paid and no pirates are killed, there is no incentive for the pirates to stop.  The ransom income for Somalia from piracy is larger than the country’s gross national product.  It is also a scary thought to wonder how much of the ransom money goes toward the funding of terrorism.  That alone should have been reason to put a stop to this long ago.

Obviously, some residents of Somalia have decided that the best paying employment for them is piracy.  That is probably true, the ranson income the pirates have been collecting is larger than the gross national product of Somalia.  It is also a fairly safe bet that a large part of the ransoms collected go toward funding terrorism around the world.  This is a situation that is going to have to be dealt with sooner or later.  I suggest sooner.

The New York has an editorial in its paper this morning stating its evaluation of the piracy problem.  The editorial points out that the Maersk Alabama was the sixth vessel to be seized off the Horn of Africa in just the past week.  The editorial also reminds us:

America is, and always has been, a maritime power.

Yes, the country is 3,000 miles wide — but from a global-trade and national-security perspective, it is essentially an island. Unrestricted access to the high seas is, and always will be, fundamental to the nation’s very existence.

Certainly it was no coincidence that the country’s first foreign military expedition — and the inspiration for the “shores of Tripoli” reference in the Marine Corps hymn — was against the rogue North African Barbary states that conducted piracy against US shipping.

And the War of 1812 was fought essentially to contest British restrictions on free passage of the high seas.

No nation has seriously challenged US naval supremacy since the destruction of the Imperial Japanese Navy in 1945.

This is President Obama’s time to prove that he can lead America in the world.  There is an article in today’s American Spectator reminding us of the history of three ocean hijackings against this country since the 1960’s and how each sitting President handled each incident.  The differences and the different results achieved might be a good thing to take a look at right now.  If piracy is profitable and has little consequences, it will continue.  If it is dealt with and becomes risky and unprofitable it will decrease.  It is up to President Obama to decide which outcome he prefers.

According to Ed Morrissey at Hor Air, the black caucus has returned from Cuba with rave reviews of the Casto regime.  They argued that the embargo has not worked, which may be true, but some of the comments of those who went on the trip are somewhat amazing.

According to the article:

“It was almost like listening to an old friend,” said Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Il.), adding that he found Castro’s home to be modest and Castro’s wife to be particularly hospitable.

“In my household I told Castro he is known as the ultimate survivor,” Rush said.

Anyone aware of the civil rights record of the Casto regime has to be amazed by that statement.  I suspect there are a number of Cubans in Florida who might have a problem with the above quote.

According to the Washington Times, President George W. Bush’s campaign to fight aids has reduced the mortality rate of the disease by ten per cent in fifteen targeted countries.  According to a recent study, 1.1 million lives were saved by the campaign.

According to the article:

“The study by two Stanford University doctors showed the treatment part of PEPFAR, the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, which involves making drug treatment available to about 2 million people, has shown solid success while the prevention efforts under the program have not yet produced the same concrete results.”

The program emphasized treatment more than prevention.  The study showed that the rate of infection in the fifteen targeted countries had not changed, but the survival rate had.  I’m not sure how this would apply to dealing with aids in America, because I believe in America it is easier to get the necessary treatment, but in Africa, making treatment available has made a significant difference. 

Scott Johnson at Power Line posted a piece at National Review Online today on the Minnesota Senate election.  The shorter article is at the Power Line link, the longer article is at the National Review link.  Mr. Johnson is a Minneapolis attorney who has followed this race and afterrace from the beginning.  His conclusion is that although the recount is uneven and probably not totally fair, Al Franken can rightfully be handed the Senate seat.   I guess the bottom line on this is that enough people voted for Al Franken to make whatever he has done since the election to assure his win possible.  That alone scares me, but I guess the people of Minnesota will have to live with the consequences of their actions.

According to today’s New York Post, the American crew of the hijacked American cargo ship has retaken control of the ship.  The information is preliminary, but it was reported that the crew had reported to the private company that owns the ship that they were safe and in control.  There are also reports that they have captured one of the pirates.

It is ironic that the ship was carrying emergency relief aid to Mombasa, Kenya, when it was hijacked.

According to the article:

“Somali pirates are trained fighters who frequently dress in military fatigues and use speedboats equipped with satellite phones and GPS equipment. They are typically armed with automatic weapons, anti-tank rocket launchers and various types of grenades. Far out to sea, their speedboats operate from larger mother ships.”

I realize that this particular hijacking seems to have a happy ending, but I would hope that a serious military response will follow.  We cannot continue to have pirates threatening the world’s shipping lanes.  There needs to be a unified strong response, and if it can’t be unified, it should at least be strong.  They know the pirates work from mother ships.  Where are our airplanes?  It seems like serious action is in order.

According to Fox New. the judge in the Ted Stevens trial in Alaska has ordered a criminal investigation into the prosecution’s handling of the case.  Meanwhile, the charges against the former Senator have been dismissed.  Admittedly, this case looks like it was politically timed and motivated, but I still wonder what went on. 

U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan appointed a special prosecutor to investigate Justice Department lawyers who repeatedly mishandled witnesses and withheld evidence from defense attorneys during the monthlong trial.  Senator Stevens narrowly lost to Democrat Mark Begich shortly after the verdict was reached in October.  According to the article:

“Sullivan appointed Washington attorney Henry Schuelke as a special prosecutor to investigate contempt and obstruction by the Justice Department team. He said the matter was too serious to be left to an internal investigation by the department, which he said has dragged its feet looking into the misconduct.” 

Because this is a criminal case the prosecutors could face prison time and fines.  Wow.

On February 29, 2008, the Times Union ran a story about the launching of the USS New York, the “Never Forget” ship named in honor of September 11 victims.  The ship was built with 7.5 tons of steel that once held together the World Trade Center at lower Manhattan until the towers were destroyed by terrorists.  The ship is a 684-foot San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ship, which the Navy will also identify as LPD 21.  The USS New York, an amphibious warship, will be officially commissioned in New York City in 2009.

What a fitting way to use the steel from the towers.

According to yesterday’s American Thinker, the period of public comment on conscience protection for health care providers will end on April 9.  According to the article:

“In December 2008 the Department of Health and Human Services issued a regulation clarifying the protections offered by three civil rights laws for health care providers passed by Congress with bipartisan support. However, the Obama administration has stated its intention of overturning the conscience regulation and not enforcing the existing laws.”

The website which explains how to make your opinion known is Freedom2Care.  The website explains exactly what the rules have been and how they are changing and how to voice your opinion to your representatives. 

Generally speaking, the law has been that any physician could refuse to perform any procedure that violated his conscience.  Evidently, there are modifications in process that will change this and force physicians to do procedures they do not believe are moral and ethical.  This becomes an issue if nationalized health care is passed–there have been a number of cases in the northwestern states of this country where a cancer patient was told that his cancer drugs were too expensive and doctor assisted suicide was recommended–doctors who believe that procedure is against the Hippocratic oath would be forced to assist in a patient’s suicide.  National health care is rationed health care, and a physician’s conscience is a necessary tool in providing medical care for the elderly and people who ‘the system’ decides do not have the appropriate ‘quality of life’.  Please visit Freedom2care and voice your opinion.

Ted Nugent (yes, that Ted Nugent) has a commentary in yesterday’s Waco Tribune stating that he is hoping for the failure of the Obama Presidency.  He goes on to explain that by that he means that he does not want the President’s economic plans to become law.  He reminds us that the economic programs Barack Obama is supporting are very similar to those pursued by Jimmy Carter.  Those were the plans that gave us double-digit inflation, high unemployment, and incredibly high interest rates.  The ‘misery index’ was born in the Carter Administration because there needed to be a way to track the destruction that was happening to the economy and to the American people.  The only good thing about the Carter Presidency is that it paved the way for Ronald Reagan.

According to today’s American Thinker, Senator Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia has introduced two bills in the Senate which will control internet traffic.  The Canada Free Press is reporting:

“The White House will have new powers to access private online data, regulate the cyber security industry and even shut down Internet traffic under the provisions of Senate bills No. 773 and 778, introduced by Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.V.. It’s called the Cybersecurity Act of 2009.”

The article in the Canada Free Press has links to the working draft of the bill.  The bill is designed to control the technology of the internet and computer software.  I don’t have enough of a technical background to understand what this means, but I really don’t understand why we have to let the government control either the internet or the technology involved in it.

Friday afternoon, National Review Online wrote an article about the Supreme Court of the United States’ decision that it has jurisdiction in Afghanistan.  According to the article:

“Thursday, the inevitable earthquake struck as a federal court in Washington took the imperial judiciary global. Though Rasul and Boumediene involved only the detainees held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, Judge John D. Bates (a George W. Bush appointee) ruled that alien combatants detained by our military in Bagram, Afghanistan — an active combat zone — are entitled to petition the federal courts for their release.

Let’s be clear about what this means. Judge Bates is saying that, under the Supreme Court’s rulings, the jurisdiction of the federal judiciary extends everywhere in the world, without limitation, and it includes the power to micromanage wars as they are being fought.”

At a time when terrorists are plotting attacks against Americans inside and outside of this country, this ruling is not constructive.  Our soldiers (at least 99 per cent of them) have acted honorably on the battlefield–taking prisoners, following the Geneva Convention.  This ruling makes it much more advantageous to shoot prisoners rather than capture them.  It is not healthy for us as a country or for our troops.  Even in a conventional war, this would be a bad ruling, in an asymmetrical war it borders on insanity.  Putting terrorists into our justice system rather than a military system is naive at best and dangerous to our safety as a nation at worst.

Yesterday’s Wall Street Journal Online ran an article about banks trying to return TARP money and the Obama Administration’s reluctance to take back the money.  This is the most important story from the article:

“Here’s a true story first reported by my Fox News colleague Andrew Napolitano (with the names and some details obscured to prevent retaliation). Under the Bush team a prominent and profitable bank, under threat of a damaging public audit, was forced to accept less than $1 billion of TARP money. The government insisted on buying a new class of preferred stock which gave it a tiny, minority position. The money flowed to the bank. Arguably, back then, the Bush administration was acting for purely economic reasons. It wanted to recapitalize the banks to halt a financial panic.

Fast forward to today, and that same bank is begging to give the money back. The chairman offers to write a check, now, with interest. He’s been sitting on the cash for months and has felt the dead hand of government threatening to run his business and dictate pay scales. He sees the writing on the wall and he wants out. But the Obama team says no, since unlike the smaller banks that gave their TARP money back, this bank is far more prominent. The bank has also been threatened with “adverse” consequences if its chairman persists. That’s politics talking, not economics.”

I have published two similar stories recently–the first is about Don Davis, who has resigned as head of a bank in St. Louis and will be starting his own bank to avoid the regulations that are being imposed with TARP money (this story was published March 30th under the heading “Another Entry In The Law Of Unintended Consequences”).  The second story deals with the East Bridgewater Savings Bank–a small bank doing very well and not needing TARP money because they have good management.  They received a negative rating letter from the banking commission because they are not making enough subprime loans! (this story was published March 20th under the heading “Update On True Story With The Names Omitted”).  It is amazing to watch the government overspend and mismanage our money as they try to take over private industries to manage them!

According to Politico.com, a number of people currently working at the White House have made a great deal of money from firms involved in the TARP bailout.  Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Merrill Lynch, Bank of America Corp. and the now-defunct Lehman Brothers and others paid Lawrence Summers, one of President Obama’s top financial advisors, more than $2.7 million in speaking fees.  According to the article:

“He pulled in another $5.2 million from D.E. Shaw, a hedge fund for which he served as managing director from October 2006 until joining the administration.”

“Thomas E. Donilon, Obama’s deputy national security adviser, was paid $3.9 million by the power law firm O’Melveny & Myers to represent clients including two firms that receieved federal bailout funds: Citigroup and Goldman Sachs.”

One of the questions about the TARP has been the seemingly lack of intervention from the government in the banking industry and its related industries (other than the AIG bonus flap).  There really hasn’t been a lot of flak about the large bonuses paid by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.  It seems as if the people controlling the TARP money and making the rules are a little too involved with the banks they are dealing with!

The Mercury News ran a story last week on how the Endangered Species Act is negatively effecting California farmers and farm jobs in the state.  Because the Endangered Species Act protects the 3-inch-long delta smelt, there have been court-ordered reductions in the amount of water pumped to some farmers in the San Joaquin Valley.  California congressmen pleaded with their colleagues Tuesday to make an emergency exception to the federal Endangered Species Act.  Representative Devin Nunes, R-Visalia, said the unemployment rate in his district is nearly 20 percent and is nearing 50 percent in some communities.  The area that is being denied the water for farmland is the most productive areas for farming in the country.  To continue to cut off their water supply not only impacts the unemployment rate, it will eventually impact the food supply for this country.  At some point we need to begin to balance the wishes of the environmentalists and the needs of the people. 

This is not just a California story.  With the addition of the polar bear to the endangered species list, any activity that produces carbon could be monitored and impacted by the Endangered Species Act.

I was not one of the people who was willing to pick up my pitchfork and torch and march on AIG about their employee bonuses.  It was, however, interesting to watch the way the story was played (and spun) in the media and egged on by ACORN (they rented the buses to bring the picketers to the executives’ homes in Connecticut).  But now we have Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac bonuses, and no one seems concerned. 

According to ABC News, the employees at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will be receiving  more than $210 million in bonuses through next year to give workers the incentive to stay in their jobs at the government-controlled companies.  That’s what was going on at AIG.  Why is this different?  I need someone smarter than I to answer that question.

Bakersfield.com has the following comments on the US Government guaranteed warranty on your new GM or Chrysler product:

“Just call him Mr. Goodwrench.

That’s what President Obama is telling American car owners and buyers, making them an offer they can’t refuse: If General Motors or Chrysler won’t honor their warranties, he will.

But Uncle Sam won’t stand by warranties held by current vehicle owners or safety recalls, which can occur years after the warranty expires. That would leave uncovered about 10 million to 15 million GM and Chrysler vehicles bought in the past couple years, said Clarence Ditlow, executive director of the Center for Auto Safety.”

For further information on your warranty, see the video at YouTube.  It reminds us what government service is like! 

I don’t know if anyone from Georgia reads this blog.  If you do, thank you.  If you know anyone from Georgia, please draw their attention to this article.

Congress does not do a very good job of representing me right now.  I don’t know if you feel the same way.  Sometimes I wonder what it would take to bring us back to simplicity in government–what does this program really do, what does it really cost?  Well, it seems that in some parts of the country, the people have succeeded in electing representatives that do actually ask those questions (and some very good other questions).

I received in my mail a letter from Steve Forbes asking for a campaign donation for Paul Broun, MD, Representative from Georgia.  In the letter Dr. Broun lists his criteria for voting in favor of any legislation.  He has a four-way test he uses:

1.  Is it constitutional and a proper function of government?

2.  Is it morally correct?

3.  Is it something we really need?

4.  Is it something we can afford?

Wow.  We need to ask all of our representatives to think about these things before they vote.  Congratulations on the State of Georgia for electing this man, may you elect him many more times.

Yesterday’s Wall Street Journal Online ran an editorial about what has happened in Congress to two of President Obama’s signature policies.  ‘Card Check’ (the end of secret ballots in union elections) has not gained enough support to block a filibuster, and it looks like Cap and Trade (massive increases in energy costs for all of us, done in the name of global warming) may go the same route.

Twenty-six Democrats joined all forty-one Republicans in a vote that will require any new taxes on carbon-based energy to have sixty votes.  Many of the Democrat senators who voted to require the sixty-vote requirement are from states who rely heavily on coal to provide electricity.  They are smart enough to see that their constituents would not appreciate a drastic increase in the cost of electricity and might take out their anger at the ballot box.  There may be enough sanity (or self-preservation instinct) in Congress to prevent some of the more drastic ideas of President Obama from being passed.

The article points out:

“The most important remaining fight this year is over health care. Democrats seem intent on trying to plow that monumental change through with only 50 votes, even as they negotiate to bring along some Republicans. We hope these Republicans understand that a new health-care “public option” — a form of Medicare for all Americans — guarantees that the 17% of GDP represented by the health-care industry will be entirely government-run within a few years. This is precisely Mr. Obama’s long-term goal, though he doesn’t want to say it publicly.”

The decisions made now by our representatives will effect not only our lives, but the lives of our children and grandchildren.  We need to oppose those things which will negatively impact future generations.  I strongly suggest getting involved with the April 15th tax day tea party in your area.  See taxdayteaparty.com for further information.

National Review ran a article yesterday by Jonah Goldberg commenting about getting his tax return ready for April 15th.  He points out a few things that might cause us to realize that we need to rethink this tax thing.  Notice the distance between tax day and election day.  If both happened at the same time, would we have smaller government?  If we abolished withholding (which was established during World War II as a ‘temporary’ thing to pay for the war), would people begin to realize how much they are paying in taxes? 

One suggestion mentioned in the article:

“Not only should we get rid of payroll taxes, let’s get rid of tax brackets (or, in a brief nod to reality, reduce the number of them). The top half of earners already pay something like 96 percent of all income taxes. The top 5 percent pay 54 percent.”

We need to also remember that 40 to 50 percent of Americans pay no income tax at all–therefore they have no stake in whether or not government spending and taxes increase.  This also needs to change.

The article ends with this statement, which I think says it all:

“Yes, I want to keep more of my money — because it’s mine. But there are people who don’t see it that way. The problem with those people isn’t simply that they’re wrong. It’s that they are in charge.”

Today’s Washington Post has an article by Charles Krauthammer stating what he believes is President Obama’s ultimate agenda.  According to Mr. Krauthammer, President Obama has four basic goals–he wants to change the relationship between our government and us so that the government will shrink the income gap (and any anxiety gap) between the rich and poor,   He also wants to nationalize health care and change our education system so that everyone gets a free education through college.  His final goal is to fund all of this with a carbon tax (by passing cap and trade).

President Obama is not particularly interested in the United States Constitution and what it says.  There is nothing in the Constitution that guarantees health care, controls wages, or taxes carbon, but this does not seem to be a problem for the Obama Administration.  We need a President who will take all restraints off the free market and let people live according to the results of their own labor (or lack of it).  We cannot expect the government to handle all of our challenges from cradle to grave, although they seem to be trying to.  The private sector has always done a better job of taking care of everyone without letting everyone take advantage.  The government needs to get out of the peoples’ way and let the economy thrive.