Comment

Timothy Geithner is an idiot. There, I said it.

AIG, Big Goverment, and One Really Bad Idea

The American people have been "outraged" recently by the bonuses AIG was reported to be giving their top Execs and 1000 other top employees. In an effort to quell the "outrage" and to act on the "anger" of the American people, President Obama immediately leaped onto the platform and harnessed, yet again, another word salad of negativity and dismay. Using such words as "outrage" and "anger", Mr. Obama urged the House to act immediately to pass a law stated that any institution that recieved 5 billion or more would be taxed 90% on their bonuses.

THIS is the outrage. I understand completely that the money that the government gives to company's is the taxpayers money, but if the government gives the company the money then it is up to the company to figure out the best way to use it. Some would argue that giving top execs bonuses in excess of 6 million per exec and would state that it is merely continuing the tradition of "corrupt" and "elite" management of Wall Street and the giants linked to Wall Street. Question: how do these companies expect top execs to stay on staff if their perks are taken away? These bonuses are their incentive to keep dong what they are doing, which includes keeping AIG afloat right now.

I would argue differently. It does not matter if there is corruption. A company is a place of business that will assuredly deal with corruption. If you walk in the mud, your shoes will get muddy; likewise if you are in the business world dealing with TONS (literally) of money, there is bound to be corruption. It does not make it right, but there is no denying that fact and as Professor Saxton in The Horror Express, "There is no morality in facts."

Immigration

Today, Madame Speaker Pelosi made her stance on immigration known to the US. She is against the working policy in effect. That policy basically dictates that citizens and employers have the right to a job first. After all, Americans are legal citizens and the right to a job before those who refuse to follow the proper channels to obtain citizenship.

The statistics stating the percent of illegal immigrants in the workforce today dictate that illegal immigrants compose about 10% of the workforce. Now, I am curious as to what the National Unemployment Rate is... very interesting indeed. Does anybody else see a connection here?

At any rate, immigration is dangerous for the economy of the US. Immigrants that reside in the US illegally place a burden on the government, the tax payers, the citizens already established here, and the private sector. I am not against immigrants; I am against illegal immigration(immigrants) that refuse to abide by the laws established in this country. They are there to protect American interest AND to protect what makes America the land of opportunity. I am sympathetic towards their plight and to their goal of wanting more; be that as it may, there is still a proper order of obtaining membership.

Addendum to What Your Country Can Do For You

"We the People" does not consist of bi-partisanship. It's simply the acknowledgement that, as our Constitution states, "all men are created equal." 

My call to conservatives is to stand alongside each other and to look to our leaders, Rush Limbaugh, Sarah Palin, Mike Adams, Bill O'Reilly, etc. and to pursue a course in action that does not end in another grand defeat. Republicans need to find their footing once again in the grass root ideals of America, most notably popular in the South, and rise once again not as a  party for rich, white guys but as a party deeply interested and seriously invested in the future, stability, and safety of America. 

The voice of the people is strong. It's what brought us into this mess in the first place with the election of President Obama. However, what Mr. Obama does not understand or grasp yet is that the same voice that helped him reach the Presidency can just as easily push him out. 

I will be excited when 2010 and 2012 comes. Mr. Obama entered the office with the highest "approval" ratings of any incoming president in American history. I wonder if he can break the other record. 

(Ask Not) What Your Country Can Do For You

I was watching the Memphis Tigers basketball game today and, during the commercial break, an advertisement for Papa Johns came on the television. While the actors were performing a skit to convey their newest pizza deal, the "Secretary of Taste" borrowed and modified one of my favorite quotes. It's the famous quote by one of our nations greatest Democratic presidents in history, John F. Kennedy, that I'm sure all of us know by heart. "Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country." This spoken during his inauguration address in 1961 was sending out a message to the citizens of the greatest nation on the face of the earth. It's not about what your country (government) can do for you, but what you can do for your nation. 

Of course, I found my remembrance of this quote quite pertinent considering the recent changes in the political climate since the election and inauguration of President Obama. As I stopped and meditated on this quote, several things came to mind. I began thinking about both the Republican and Democratic parties and their evolution over the past 50 years from Roosevelt, Eisenhower, and JFK. For both parties, there has been a time of success and a time of failure. But as I look at our parties today, I see nothing in comparison to what once was. 

Today, Democrats are a bunch of squabbling 60's hippies that should have paid more attention to what the President during the time of their birth said. It's not about big government; it's about citizenship. Democrats can't seem to get it in their head what a DEMOCRACY stands for. Democracy is a political system that states that the people have the voice and that their voice is channeled through who they vote for in periodic, free elections. It's not about the people speaking and the elect ignoring. It's about the elect leading by serving their voters, districts, and states. 

Likewise, Republicans are a cornucopia of reptiles. Their influence and power has been diminished by their inability to act as cohesive unit, until as of late. Pre-election Republicanism was more about bi-partisanship and less about their duties as elected representatives by the people. Bi-partisanship can not work when the Democrats say the people have the voice and the Republicans assert that their work is as a representative of the people.  

To me, true Republicanism and true Democracy is lost. They do not exist as workable political parties in America today. What I suggest is that there will be two new formations within the American political arena if politics continue to progress as they are now. The Republicans will split into Moderates and Conservatives. While they may or may not keep the name Republican, this is really not important. The Democrats will continue on their course and become the Socialist Party (with full backing by the Communist Party, of course). Eventually, the Moderates will be weeded out by both parties until the Conservative Party and the Socialist Party will be left. The Independent Party should still be around, though it will still be a minority. There will be some Democrats and Republicans who will not be Conservative or Social in thought and will fly to the Independents. 

JFK knew that as a Democrat, and as an elected representative of Democratic ideals, it was not about big government. Both Democrats and Republicans at their roots can agree that both parties were not founded with this in mind, at least when adhering to a straightforward definition of the terms. Some would say that since Roosevelt, the Democratic party has always been about an aggressive government. I would argue that this would not be the case. Aside from the New Deal which expanded the size of the government, there has not been an increase like the New Deal until the proposed increases by Mr. Obama. While Democrats today agree that the government can bail us out, they fundamentally disagree with the core of Democracy with their assertions. It's not what "your country can do for you". It never has been. When a call to arms is issued, who answers? When new jobs are created in the private sector, who submits applications? 

The parties of America should not be concerned with bi-partisanship. It is up to Americans to decide their fate and to decide their future. Both Republicans and Democrats have fought, bled, and died in wars. Both Whig's and Tory's bled and died in the Revolutionary War. Our nation is built on the blood of those with the common determination and drive to ensure the safety and protection of America and her citizens. 

"We the people" are not the "Yes we can" 's that Mr. Obama, Madame Speaker Pelosi, and their ragtag cabinet of Socialist politicians would have us all believe we are. We are not the puppets on the end of the string. "We the People" are the foundation. "We the People" decide what should do be done for our country's best interest. We are the masters of the puppets in Washington. It is our voice that is stronger than theirs. We are America. Diverse. Proud. And "We the People" will not stop. It's time to wake up, Conservatives. It's time to take our stand. I will not stand by and let my country become the next greatest Socialist superpower after the USSR and the People's Republic of China. Will you?