At his recent press conference, there were a couple of 'yelling at the t.v.' moments. These were a couple of the choice ones:

"...what I've been concerned about is some of the language that's been used suggesting that this is full of pork and this is wasteful government spending, so on and so forth..."

"when they start characterizing this as pork without acknowledging that there are no earmarks in this package — something again that was pretty rare over the last eight years — then you get a feeling that maybe we're playing politics instead of actually trying to solve problems for the American people."

No pork? No earmarks? Really? Common understanding of the political term 'pork' is that it has to do with unnecessary items. And 'earmarks' in common thought refer to pet projects that get funded off of the Federal dime. But just to be sure, because I tend to think of $3 billion for ACORN and similar groups, and $200 million for a coal-fired power plant in Illinois as a little bit of pet project / pork funding.

Pork barrel projects, or earmarks, are defined as those that primarily benefit constituents.

OK, so how, exactly, is a $200 million coal plant NOT pork?

And while we're on the subject of coal plants, I thought that our President said something about that before....ah, yes, I believe it was this:

“So if somebody wants to build a coal-powered plant, they can; it's just that it will bankrupt them because they're going to be charged a huge sum for all that greenhouse gas that's being emitted.”

Well, I guess it won't bankrupt them if it gets funded out of our wallets.

Looking at this bill, I wonder if there's actually anything in there that's not pork! What sorts of beauties are we getting out of the bill that is actually going to cost far more than the oh-so-lean $789 billion? Well, if it gets its way, $615 million will go to Stamford, CT so it can convert sports fields to turf, build a waste-to-energy plant ('cause they're working to get America off oil), replace windows in a school, etc., etc. They are, according to their mayor, working to "rebuild America." Mayor Dannel "Turfbuilder" Malloy claims that the school field project will create 100 jobs. One of the things you don't hear, though, is how long these jobs are going to last. It might create 100 jobs - at least until the turf is put down. How many do we lose 'cause the grass isn't being maintained? And I'm betting it'll be a grand total of one sports season before we start hearing the complaints about turf-related injuries in the schools. Glad to hear my home state wants to do its part in wasting taxpayer funds.

According to Newsmax, here are some of the other gems:

• $3 billion plus in “neighborhood stabilization” and Community Development Block Grant funding, much of which may go to ACORN. Not really a surprise they're getting funding, but disgusting nonetheless.


• $1.3 billion to bailout AMTRAK.


• $1 billion for educational programs, including courses on sexually transmitted diseases.


• $30 million for restoration of wetlands in Nancy Pelosi's district (because the endangered salt marsh harvest mouse is the no doubt key to American economic recovery).


• $45 million for ATV four-wheeler trails, and government office renovations.


• $50 million for the National Endowment of the Arts.


• More than $650 million for digital TV converter-box coupons - even though this whole thing has been put off until June.


• A reported $300 million for hybrid vehicles and electric-powered cars (including golf carts for federal workers). No word on whether those golf carts are going to come with country club memberships - or whether they're going to be able to convince the American people to actually buy these cars. This is supposed to help prop up the failing auto industry, but does nothing to address the oppressive union environment - one of the prime things that's killing it.

Add it all together, and the cost of all this crap is actually going to be more than $3 trillion. It's incomprehensible, and that may be why no one's cracked out the tar and feathers yet. The number is so large that it's almost inconceivable. This is why you hear all sorts of imagery to try to explain just how much money that is.

Here is one way to look at it. There are approximately 306 million people in America. At a cost of $3 trillion, Congress could give $10,000 to every single American. Hmmm...that would very likely do a little economic stimulating, now wouldn't it.

Here's another way to think of it. According to the National Compensation Survey, the average American civilian earned approximately $19.29 an hour as of June, 2006. At the current population, and that average wage, it would take every single American working approximately 500 hours to pay their share of this pork roast. With the number of Americans that are actually employed (150 million or so) , it would take double that. So this year, you're working through April to pay your taxes, and through October to pay for the stimulus bill. Enjoy the two months' pay this year that you actually get to keep.

No pork? There's so much pork in this bill, I'm surprised the U.N. hasn't demanded that we tank the stimulus bill because it's offensive to Muslims.

Labels: Congress, Democrats, politics, porkulus, President Barack H. Obama

So here we are, less than a week from an election that could quite literally mean the end of the United States of America as we know her. Paranoia? Perhaps. I never would have believed that my nation could truly be on the verge of voting itself out of existence. But here we are.

The golden child of this presidential election has deep, obvious cracks in his hallowed facade. There are signs that few could miss if they actually look - signs that indicate severe issues. Besides his associations with radicals and terrorists, there are scores of trouble markers.

He appears not to care who supports him. His website does not utilize credit card matching for donations; a test using the names Osama bin Laden, John Galt, and Saddam Hussein to make donations with the same credit card revealed that all the donations went through. In fact, a lot of interesting people have been donating to Obama; and foreign credit are also being accepted. Donations have come from Palestine. Good Will, Loving, and Dela Ware have also made donations. Obama also accepts donations from largely untraceable pre-paid credit cards. His campaign’s response to questions was that “no campaign can fully insulate itself” from these types of issues. John McCain and Hillary Clinton used computer matching (ABS) and citizenship checks for their donations. Obama checks neither.

Barack Obama reflects the far Left in this country - a political sect that wants to cut the military 25% during a time of war. He advocates negotiating with dictators who vow to see Israel and the United States eradicated. He goes to a country where we are fighting a war, and urges them to delay a deal on withdrawal of American troops - so that he can be sure to get the credit for that withdrawal.

Barack Obama doesn’t want you to use his middle name. He doesn’t want you to ask questions about his Marxist leanings, or his radical ties. Yes, he advocates redistribution of wealth, and thinks it’s too bad that the essential restraints of the Constitution limit the ability to act at will. Yes, he intentionally (and “carefully”) chose Marxist professors and friends. But don’t call him a Marxist. Don’t call him a Socialist - or you will be banned from any contact. Yes, he has ties to terrorists. But don’t talk about it. Don’t dare ask about it.

If you do, like "Joe the Plumber," you may find your DMV and other government files illegally accessed, and your life open to investigation. You may, like Sarah Palin, find your private email hacked and published. You may, like reporter Barbara West, be denied any further access to the campaign. Don’t cross the line, or you will see the consequences. And the Left doesn’t just want to restrict certain speech - it wants to go much further. The Left seeks to mandate speech (the Fairness Doctrine). The Left seeks to ensure that you hear what it wants you to hear - and only what it wants you to hear. If the Fairness Doctrine passes, blogs like mine may be required to publish “both sides” of the story. Even if “both sides” means the truth, and the lie from the Left. I have already decided that I will not comply. If I maintained a bigger blog, with a larger audience and a voice that might make a difference, I might openly defy the order. Realistically, though, I’m not that big. I will simply cease to blog. Much bigger voices may be silenced - the prime target of the Fairness Doctrine is talk radio. Barack Obama may not be a leading voice for the Fairness Doctrine, but if the Left has the House, the Senate, and the White House, do you really think that it won’t get passed? Can you see him using a presidential veto to prevent it?

Barack Obama wants you to stay away from examining his wife’s anti-American statements, associations, or political leanings. He says that family is off limits. Unless, of course, you’re talking about his opponent’s family. How has this campaign been to Sarah Palin’s family? To John McCain’s wife? The press is almost universally in the tank for Obama. CNN distorts quotes to portray Sarah Palin as negatively as possible. Other outlets refuse to cover stories that are negative to Obama - even to the point of refusing to release a tape where his own words might harm his campaign. Those who expose him are detained by countries where he has ties. How do you think people who oppose him will be treated once he is in power?

Barack Obama promises that the poor downtrodden masses will be lifted up, and that the evil rich will be taken off their pedestals. So did Lenin. Barack Obama promises that he will cut taxes for 95% of Americans. But only about half of those he’s promising tax cuts to actually pay taxes. Barack Obama will take your money and decide that someone else who has less deserves it - though you’re the one who worked for it. From each according to his ability; to each according to his need - not his worth, but his need.

Barack Obama promises to restore our standing in the world. We will be liked by a world filled with terrorists, socialists, communists, sellouts, and radicals. What will we have to sell to earn their praise? What is the value of our soul?

Well, it’ll only be four years, you might say. Eight, at most. And then the Left will have screwed things up so badly that they’ll be out of power for a long time. Maybe. But maybe not. During beloved Bill Clinton’s presidency, there was a movement to lift presidential term limits. It died then, but now there’s precedent. In New York, a lifting of term limits is allowing Bloomberg to run again (despite two referendums enforcing a two-term limit). After four years of nothing but positive press, nothing but the pap of propaganda, who will there be to oppose lifting presidential term limits?

If elected, Barack Obama has the potential to make us long for the good old days of Jimmy Carter. A Barack Obama presidency will be far, far worse. For the first time, we will have a socialist president, presiding over a legislature where the Democrats - a party with a significant number of like-minded socialists - rule.

The Republicans, with few exceptions, don’t have the guts to stand up to him. Even if they did, it would likely not do much good - they will not even be able to count on the filibuster. We are headed for a period of time where the checks and balances that form the basis of this government may mean nothing. Elect him, and we will likely have a Socialist president, a rubber-stamping Socialist legislature, and eventually, a rubber-stamping Socialist Supreme Court. We also have a fawning, socialist media - the type that refuses to air a tape in which Barack Obama praises PLO-linked Rashid Khalidi as having views that “the whole world“ should hear (for example, that Israel should be obliterated).

How much damage do you think all of that can do in four years? Eight years? Longer?

Recently, a growing chorus of voices are priming the pump. How bad is socialism, really? Would it be so bad to be liked by other nations? Would it be so bad to have those less fortunate lifted up? Would it be so bad if we tried something different? But the beautiful picture they paint of socialism is, and has always been, a lie. And make no mistake - Barack Obama is a liar. He is, like many charismatic leaders before him, one person on the surface, and another when you look any further. Barack Obama is a socialist. He is a radical. He is dangerous. And if he is elected, it could very well mark the beginning of the end for this country as she was meant to be. He says that his opposition is trying to scare you. It doesn’t take that much effort. He’s a pretty scary person.

Some elements of the Left will tell you that to not vote for him means that you’re a racist. But just because they say something, it doesn’t make it true - the Truth and the Left aren’t close friends anyway. I am not voting for him because I am an anti-socialist. I view redistribution of wealth as an evil. I view unbridled altruism as evil. I view restriction of free speech as a violation of the principles on which this country was founded - principles which formed the basis of the greatest form of government to ever exist on Earth. I define social justice as ensuring that everyone gets a fair shake - that they rise or fail based solely on their own merits - and not because someone propped them up or ensured that they would have what someone else earned. I am not voting for him because I believe him to be a radical, diametrically opposed to what this country stands for - or used to, anyway. I view him as someone who will sell our country out to whomever he sees fit. I am not voting for him because anyone who would enter into a dialogue with Iran deserves contempt, not a seat in the highest office in the land. I am not voting for him because he lacks the character and qualifications to be president.

Maybe the country that I believe in is already gone. Maybe political correctness, socialism, and self-loathing are the values of the new America. I hope not. I hope that this country takes a long look at Barack Obama before next Tuesday, and realizes the threat that he poses to its survival.

We will know shortly. We have already started down the slope, but our fingers are still desperately clinging on the edge. Take a moment to fix in your mind the country you have on Monday. You may never see it again.

Paranoia, maybe. But then again, maybe not.

Labels: Barack Obama, Democrats, opinion, politics, socialism