A Simpler Time?

A friend of mine over on Facebook posted this:



I wish I had a teacher like Red had, and I wish there were more "celebrities" like Mr. Skelton who could broadcast their love of God and Country today.

Even Banks Are Anti-U.S.

Was I stunned that this happened...No.

Does it bother me...You bet!

Bank of America Flag Controversy Illustrates Dangers of Blind Obedience

Last week, a Bank of America branch in Gaffney, SC stirred up controversy by removing American flags from an adjacent sidewalk. The bank later returned the flags, which were intended for a funeral procession for a fallen Marine. But the city isn’t about to forgive the bank

This happens again. I don't understand how an American company can be worried about showing some patriotism, when they didn't even have to put the flags out, is so worried that they might "offend" someone. Who exactly is going to be offended by honoring a fallen soldier being brought home to rest?

I've sent a letter to BofA telling them that they cannot count on my business, EVER!

I am curious as to when you are going to change the name of your bank?

Obviously with the actions of your branch in Gaffney, SC you are afraid that displaying the American flag in honor of a war hero's body being brought home.

"...branch Manager Brandy Tate, who told her the bank’s policy did not allow flags for fear of “offending a customer.”"

What customer is it that you beleive is going to be offended by the display of our countries flag?

“We want to ensure the community knows how deeply proud we are of the men and women who have sacrificed so much in service to our country. The bank does fly the American Flag at our locations throughout the country and flags were displayed in front of our banking center in Gaffney the evening prior to our dedicated Marine returning home. We deeply apologize for any misunderstandings. “

The only misunderstanding here is what country you do business in and that we are the last bastion of freedom that allows any semblance of free trade.

I currently bank with Citi, and I can say I'm not happy with their ability to handle business, so I have been looking around to move my accounts elsewhere. With this news, I can say that BofA has dropped to the bottom of the list.

Since the hippies burned down your branch in Isla Vista in 1970, you haven't stood for anything that might create controversy,

Keep the BofA, just call yourselves "Bank of Anonymous" as you are in fear of someone thinking that you represent America.

Good Riddance.

Maybe it's time to let them know how the people feel again.

FETE

A Good Return For Our Money

Another blogger pointed out this PSA to show that Barney Frank backed ACORN. It's a blink and you missed it shot, but it is in there, and there is enough documentation and records from the Senate floor, and from committee hearings to prove where the dog got his fleas, so I'm not going to quibble.

ACORN Grassroots Democracy Campaign



The part that got me was at 8:25...they, over the last 10 years have given out $15 billion in benefits to people...out of the $85 billion they have received in grants.

Math time: $15 billion/$85 billion = 17.65% goes to the people they are helping and 82.35% goes to the organization.

Sound like the "Cash for Clunkers" program, such a deal $1.22 billion paid out to get "bad" cars off the road....but $1.66 billion for the government to handle the paperwork.

Why, oh why do I not trust the government to handle any program in a cost effective way?

I Gotta Get Me One Of These

I haven't been into models for 40 years, but this is something that could get me back into it.

Go watch this video: Now YOU can own an SR-71
HT: DJ Allyn

I've only flown 1 model plane in my life and that was one of those that you controlled with the strings to fly it by spinning in a circle until it crashed or you got so dizzy that it crashed.

I had two or three when I was a kid and Santa brought me one, but being I was the only boy up at the end of our street, all the Dad's would come out Christmas morning to see what cool toy I got that year and of course they would play with it...it would crash, so I would never get to fly it. I did end up with a little collection of airplane motors sitting in the garage.

9/11/09...A Day After

I was just too melancholy yesterday to post anything. I really didn't get enough sleep the day before and I watched the ceremonies at the Twin Towers and Pentagon in the morning waiting for my shift to end.

Eight years later and I still get that sick feeling in my gut reliving Sept 11, 2001. It's not pleasant, but I refuse to take the PC recommended solution and just let it pass, or like Obambi and his ilk would like to do, turn it into another "Earth Day"..."A day of Service......and remembrance".

NEVER FORGIVE, NEVER FORGET!

They want me to atone for something I feel no guilt about. I AM PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN!, I can acknowledge minor flaws of my country, however, they refuse to recognize the major flaws of their "religion".

I AM PROUD OF MY COUNTRY! No other has contributed so much to try to better the world as we have, and we do it willingly and not asking for thanks, and the world has certainly kept that part of the bargain.

I'm not going to embed this video, you go watch it if you think you can. A man, Kevin Cosgrove who went to work and found and found himself stuck on the 105th floor.

Kevin Cosgrove - 9/11


On another side of my life...Before going into work, I was checking my Email and looking to see what my friends had posted during the day, when there was a huge double boom that rattled the windows of my house. The animals quickly showed up for reassurance, while my heart was trying to slow down.

It was the Space Shuttle landing at Edwards AFB. Typically, I had forgotten they were still up there and had forgotten they were suppose to land a few days ago, except the weather in that hurricane prone area sucked (again), so they HAD to land here.

It was a great reminder of what achievements this country is capable of when it wants to. It was a beautiful picture perfect landing, perhaps the prettiest I've ever watched, but then again, I felt a downward feeling when they started talking about it being close to the end of our meager shuttle program.

We have been to the Moon, but once again, we are on the edge abandoning exploration to expand our horizons so that we can "be fiscally responsible" by supporting people that don't like, if not hate, the advantages our country provides to anyone and everyone that is willing to get behind the ideals set down back in 1787 in our Constitution.

Right now I'm watching the Tea Party gathering in Washington D.C., Hundreds of thousands of people that are just fed up with the politicians. Please notice that this event takes place on a Saturday as these are people with jobs, and unlike working for a Union or being a "grass root" unemployed lefty that got $20 to hold up a pre-printed sign and shout back what the "community organizer" is spewing through the bullhorn...these people are unpaid, and most likely laid out a bit of their own cash to attend...and they'll most likely be back to work on Monday.

I can't say it often enough:

GOD BLESS AMERICA, LAND THAT I LOVE

OBSCENE Profits!!!!

I work in the oil industry and I hear it all the time. "They're making to much profit off the poor folk of this country!"

Bullshit!!!

The Congresscritters have been screaming this over the money Health Insurance make and how they are going to tax the hell out them to make it fair. Look at the chart to the left (click on it to make it bigger if you need), the whopping profit brought in is a staggering 3.3%. That rates them at number 86, way below Gas Utilies (#16)and Railroads (#15).

They tell you that they made X billion in profit, but what they never bother to bring up is the multiple billions invested to earn that OBSCENE 3.3% profit.

If the damn government would quit trying to regulate every facet of the industry, you would actually find a real example of a company that could charge less and provide more and probably make a bigger profit.

Global Warming....Change....Cooling

Somethings happening here!

We are still dealing with the Station Fire here. The weather in my valley has cleared, but the fire has just moved on down the mountains and the fire crews are getting a handle on it.

The fire was arson and I don't think Linda Sanchez was talking about what caused the fire itself, but what caused it to grow so big, so fast.



Well, California is in a drought, and it was hotter than hell when the fire started, so it must be AGW that caused this to happen...right?

Aahh, No!



Turns out that Global Cooling causes droughts in California, but never let a crisis go to waste and don't bother with facts asd they just muddle up the message. Besides, I'm sure that Global Cooling is caused by Global Warming somehow.

We're All Flakes In California

A lady who owns a bakery in California has two minutes to address her congresscritter:



And the Congresswoman ignored her and moved on to the next question.

Station Fire

As I approached home today, my little valley smelled like a doused campfire and looked like it too. Thick with a wet cloying miasma. I felt like a fish being smoked.

My boy was ragging on me about not posting pictures of "the biggest fire to hit La Crescenta" and he wanted to see. I had the camera in the car with me last night, so I figured I would drive around "upper" La Crescenta and take some shots of how close the fire got to the homes.

THE MAN wouldn't let me!!!

If you don't have ID saying you can be there, you can't cross Santa Carlotta Rd. The Sheriff's were polite, but I couldn't get close to the burn areas.

I've lived here for over fifty years and this is the first time I've seen the San Gabriel Mountains burn on their front face. Two days ago it was scary. My house down at the bottom of the valley was safe, but I know a lot of people living up close to where the flames were and I really feared they would lose their homes.

If this had sprung up a month from now, when the Santa Ana winds (pronounced Santana) kick in, it would have really been hell on earth.

I did get a couple of pics before the cops chased me home:\





The mountains you can't see are huge (not speed bumps like the Appalachian "Mountains").

The wind is calm today so maybe the fire crews can gain more ground on this today.

I'm off for the next seven days, so if I can sneak up close, I'll try to get more pictures.

THE RECLAMATION OF INDEPENDENCE

This is borrowed from BlackisWhite's blog Taxes, Stupidity, and Death

THE RECLAMATION OF INDEPENDENCE

WHEN IN THE GENERATIONS SUCCEEDING the one that pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor to usher in the birth of the world’s only truly free nation, Liberty’s Progeny incrementally ceded their birthright to the government conceived and designed to serve a free people, and not be its servant, this generation is awakening to the terrible mistake that we, and our ancestors allowed to happen. Charged with the terrible knowledge that comes with opened eyes, we now take up the long abdicated duty to rouse our fellow citizens and actively wrest the power and the liberties that have been progressively talked, cajoled, threatened, wheedled, and extorted from us, not only by those who ostensibly served us, but by their supporters and enablers who, by accident or design, saw fit to usurp and disdain such freedoms, that they might be withheld, and where impossible to withhold, might be condemned, until a corrosive contempt for these liberties, wrapped in velvet gloves, might so suffocate the circulation of them that this nation, conceived in liberty and the providence of a wise and benevolent creator, might indeed perish from the earth, plunging the rightful heirs of a proud and noble heritage in the the darkened waters of chaos, despair, and evil that surround them, a dank deluge that even today, other human beings actively seek to escape from in the inspiring embrace of this blessed and free country.

We, the awakened and aware, freely accept the charge that the architects of this republic passed on to us over two centuries before, in the hope that all who partook in the blessings made possible by nation they created would somberly undertake the duties of citizens, and so appropriately train themselves in virtue, and educate themselves in the workings of the precepts and ideals set forth in their foundational documents that they would possess enough wisdom to recognize that not all threats to our freedom would come from without our ranks, the knowledge to recognize that not every chain and shackle menacing us will immediately appear to be what it actually is, and the humilitynot to assume that the ingenuity and innovation that has been the hallmark of American success has been the product of man alone.

To this end, we hereby identify and reclaim our independence from the tools used to slowly enslave a free people and usurp the freedoms that we could not be persuaded to freely give up, or voluntarily suppress the free exercise of on our own:

1. We reclaim our independence from the tyranny of ‘Political Correctness’.

The Constitution does not now, nor has it ever guaranteed a right to be free from being offended. Early successes in causing the disruption of free speech by insisting on the use of words or terms stripped of their meaning or altered by redefinition and deliberate use of ephemism, in order to avoid offending more delicate sensibilities lead to its use to deliberately avoid, delay, or prevent the free exchange and communication of ideas because we allowed ourselves to be more afraid of offending someone or being branded with a label chosen to imply that there was a problem with the offending speaker, rather than the intended recipient.

No more.

Words have meaning and names have power. But truth overcomes, when it is given the opportunity to exist unfettered by the artificial restraints that those who fear it would place upon it. The Founding Fathers knew this, which is why they favored the “marketplace of ideas” approach. And we now ratify and affirm this concept, having borne witness to the damage and impaired decision making that results when we remain silent and let others avoid any real discussion of topics, events, and ideas out of the fear that we might offend someone.

2. We reclaim our independence from your victimhood.

For too long, we have stood by silently, and allowed some to increasingly balkanize this country with sob stories of how one thing or another makes them a victim, and therefore they deserve some special deference, special preference, and recognition that they are special. We watched for too long, with growing alarm, as the hyphenated-Americans increasingly failed to take it upon themselves to overcome their victim status, yet continually expect to be rewarded for it as they brandished their victimhood like a cudgel, ready to bludgeon any who dared to question their entitlements and almost rapacious appetites to expand them.

No more.

One of the many unique blessings that this country has to offer is the presence of second and third and fourth chances. Others know this, and rather than think that the good things available to those who work for them were something that they were simply entitled to by virtue of their sob story, real or imagined, they decided to man up, and overcome. That doesn’t happen through accepting help and deciding to continually demand more. We are a generous people, but there are limits. Decide of your own accord to know the satisfaction of making your own destiny, rather than subsistence on the labor of others. You might be surprised at what you accomplish, or how that might come to benefit your fellow citizen in ways that you cannot even imagine.

3. We reclaim our independence from the myth of a compelling interest in diversity at the cost of excellence.

The latest affront to the ‘American Exceptionalism’ that our current President feels the need to apologize for in foreign capitols is the recent notion of a “compelling interest in diversity in our government, our institutions, and our culture”. This is the bastard child of Political Correctness and victimhood, which would not have been possible without the misapprehension of the concept of equality as enshrined in our law, the correct interpretation being that citizens of this country have equality of opportunity and equality in stature in the eyes of the laws that govern us. Once the “right” of offense took hold and started keeping company with victimhood, those benefiting from the employment of both decided that equality really meant that everyone had a right to be to be surrounded in all walks of life by people who looked just like them, whether those people were qualified to fulfill those roles or not.

No more.

Americans rose to prominence in the world in no small part due to the idea of merit and the pursuit of excellence. This was embodied in our government and institutions as much as in the private sector. Civil Service exams for public sector jobs ensured not only that people could do the work required of them, but that the best qualified were hired to do the job. Now, the standard in many fire departments, police departments, government agencies, and university staffs is not excellence, but the color of skin, gender, or sexual preference. The identity has eclipsed ability and we are all the poorer for it. Prepare for a change.

4. We reclaim our independence from the contempt of our citizenship.

For too long, we have silently permitted others to use the appeal of emotion to exact our acquiescence in their actively allowing people who have violated our laws to come here to live and work among us without asking permission to do so, or obeying our laws in doing so. We have allowed others to cajole us into allowing these persons to use our resources, and take benefits intended for citizens, without them being required to become citizens or apply for residence. We have been too long silent as others continually advocate for the application of the protections that are conferred upon us as our birthright to those who are not citizens and have tried to kill citizens, or have expressed a deep-seated desire to do so.

No more.

No sane person so despises something of value that is theirs by virtue of “the accident of birth” that they simply would give it away to others who want it and yet show contempt for those who have it by stealing it from them. Likewise, no sane person so dishonors a gift purchased with the blood of others that they will give it to those who only desire to kill or enslave them. No longer will we be silent as others confer all the benefits and protections of citizenship upon those who disrespect it, or would steal such benefits and protections without assuming the responsibility to pay for them, or worse yet, murder us because we have them.

5. We reclaim our independence from the “Freedom from religion” that has erroneously been read into the Constitution.

From the institution of Thanksgiving, to the architecture of our public buildings and monuments, the opening of government proceedings, down to the acknowledgement on our currency, this country has very deep and undeniable judeo-christian roots, and has been governed by leaders who unashamedly proclaimed their according personal beliefs while in office. It has influenced our laws and been the bedrock of every ideal that has allowed this nation to grow and prosper. This heritage has been the target of a decades long campaign to shove God out of the public square and exile him from congress with our elected officials by people who have refused the notion of a higher authority, because their own beliefs and desires are in contravention to those expressed by that higher authority.

No more.

Assaulting our national heritage with such dubious legal notions such as a separation of church and state that forbids any mention of God or expression of religion on or in state-owned property, and dismantling existing law with the fallacious statement “You can’t legislate morality” does violence to our history and demonstrates weak logic and understanding of what law is. The Founding Fathers’ intent with the Establishment Clause was the prevention of any one church gaining the favor and sanction of the Federal Government. A ban on ANY expression of religion or belief in God was never their intention, and the evidence of that is still surrounding us to this day. The current state of the law is based on a false premise that can be easily dismissed by a simple walk around the monuments and buildings in the District of Columbia, and taking out you wallet to pay for an ice cream cone. As for the “You can’t legislate morality” canard, this is also false. The law is, in its most simple essence, an expression of morality, codified. The question that then arises is whose morality should be expressed in the law? Those of people who can point to no particular belief system that has certain valuable virtues at its core, or those that can?

6. We reclaim independence from the cynical attempts to use shame to stop us from speaking out.

We have all felt this. The accusations that we are poor Christians because we refuse to give the government power not granted to it in the Constitution and go along with the currently contemplated healthcare reform bill. The charges that we hate the Earth and our children, because we oppose the highest single tax increase ever, combined with the deleterious effect on American jobs that would result in the passage of the Cap and Tax bill, which owes its existence to the myth of man-made global warming and the fact that it feeds the Federal Government its two favorite entrees: money and power. The charges that we are bad, greedy, selfish people for not supporting the idea that government and welfare entitlements are the way to improve the lives of Americans who are struggling, whatever the reason. The charges of “Racism” whenever we raise a provocative question or level a criticism at a person, policy, or idea that might happen to involve a person or persons who are not Caucasian.

No more.

Charges like “racist” and “racism” made without objective, quantitative support, and only the subjective justification of emotion will be ignored. The race card is maxed out, and the bank is no longer willing to extend the credit line. As for attacking our faith, or our practice thereof, we will no longer be held to account by people who do not understand the faith they would use as a weapon against believers, when the wielder subscribes to no belief system at all. Those who rely only on themselves for the regulation of their conduct and ethics no longer get to condemn those who answer to a higher authority. Not any more. We reclaim control of the shame that you have opted out of, and we will no longer allow you to use it to make us answer to you.

7. We reclaim independence from the notion that the Federal Government is the solution to every problem and the answer to every question.

For too long, we stood by and allowed debate and action on all matters, predicated upon on a destructive and dangerous idea: That the Federal Government is the only way to meet a need, fix a problem, or prevent a problem. In time it became a security blanket, and we became a nation of thumbsuckers, eager to give the federal Government more power and more money, if only it would keep us safe from life and the living of it as free people, until we no longer looked to it for protection from others who would have our liberties or destroy them; we looked to it for protection from the consequences of our own actions.

No more.

We were so fixated in seeking the federal government’s assistance with every aspect of our daily lives, no one within or without the Federal Government ever exercised restraint and said “No. The Consitution does not give the Federal Government the authority to do that.” And now that people are alert to the fact that the Federal Government is poised on the cusp of the largest power grab it has ever made with the healh care bill, some of us are finally saying “No. You do not have the authority.” The stakes have never been more obvious. Met with the anger of constituents who are actually paying attention, elected officials are employing various means to intimidate these citizens who are expressing their disgust and anger that a government that serves them would ever feel so entitled to our money and our data in the passage of something so clearly opposed by those who wold have to live under it, these servants have resorted to insulting their constituents, calling them shills in the pay of their political opponents, calling them stupid and saying that they simply did not understand the printed words on the pages of the bill, brazenly lying to them outright about what they have proposed and are considering, and filling audiences at public meetings with rent-a-mobs from the SEIU, ACORN, and others, so that they will face a friendly audience that is also hostile to the voters opposed to this latest demonstration of government off its leash. The days of promising good governance but delivering graft, corruption, and self serving sinecures are over. We do not care about your party; both have proven themselves reckless and dishonest. We demand that you act responsibly, that you do the people’s business, not your own, and we demand that you act within the confines of the Constitution. No more will we simply accept legislation that exceeds the authority strictly enumerated in the Constitution. No more will we accept interpretations of the Commerce Clause and the Necessary and Proper Clause that are so tortured and stretched beyond reason or recognition as to be unrecognizable to anyone who has read the Constitution. No longer will we accept legislation from the bench that relies not on interpretation of the Constitution, but mystical divination of mysterious penumbras that only a few ‘right-minded’ jurists can see. Those days are over, and you can return usurped powers to the states and the individual citizens in whom the Constitution rightfully places them, or you can have them stripped from you.

We, those who have come together in virtual congress to reclaim our independence from those who have by various means obtained it from us, realize that this probably wasn’t the HOPE! and CHANGE! that those persons had in mind, but nevertheless, the time has come.


Blackiswhite, Imperial Consigliere

Free Citizen of the United States of America,

August 29, 2009