Americans didn't vote for socialism

Just 21 short months ago, Americans elected the first black president; an astonishing, historic moment in a nation that just three or four generations ago still saw blacks drinking from separate water fountains from whites, and eating at separate lunch counters from whites. . Barack Obama was supposedly the politician that would bring America together, and that his message of 'hope and change' would transform all Americans' lives for the better. He would lower the seas (he said that during the campaign), and nobody making more than $250,000 would see a dime of increased taxes. . Remember his speech a few years ago that promised a nation coming together as one, not red and blue, but purple. His administration would be transparent, and that all bills pending before the congress would be published on the Internet 72 hours before they were voted on, so that the public could see what the legislation contained. No special interests or lobbyists would be part of his administration. . Remember all of that? It wasn't long ago at all. . Barack Obama has not kept one lousy promise he made during his campaign. Not one. He instead has spent all of his efforts in jamming socialism down our throats, and taking over banks and car companies and student loans and socializing medical care, and on and on.... . And in 21 short, brief months since his inauguration, all of his popularity, his coat tails and his promises of 'hope and change' are completely gone. Vanished. And why? Because this is not the guy whom all of those bamboozled voters voted for. This guy is a brazen, shameless Marxist socialist, and Americans want no part of that, and never did. . With the general elections coming up in just days, not even Democrats want to be seen with this guy. His appearance on the stump for any Democrat running for any office at all is the kiss of death and they are running away from him in droves if they even hear he is headed their way. He has demolished his own party by implementing his Marxist ideology, and by doing so has thrown hundreds of Democrats under the bus. Even rock solid seats such as Barney Frank (D-Ma), Russ Feingold (D-Wi) and Babs Boxer (D-Ca) are now toss ups to retain their offices. . What a turn around. It's astonishing, actually, to see the complete reversal of fortunes based on this ideologues' tin ear as to what governing is all about. He will watch as his party goes down the toilet the week after next, and he will probably blame us, the American people, for not having the brains to understand how much he has done for us. . Everyone entering that voting booth on November 2nd, 2010 knows full well what Barack Obama has done for us: 10% unemployment, and trillion dollar deficits as far as the eye can see. He is the mastermind of one of the largest landslide reversals of congressional power in our life times. And he accomplished this in just 21 short, brief months. Incredible. . Barack Obama has done nothing FOR us, but has done an enormous amount of damage TO us. Make no mistake: this upcoming election is an unmitigated, unmistakable referendum on this president. Americans want nothing to do with socialism, and this election will point that out with gusto.

What has America done for me lately?

I really want to know, exactly what HAS this country done for me lately? Has it put a new Lexus in my driveway? NO. Has it funded a beach front condo for me and my progeny to retire in? NO. And what about my kitchen, huh? It has needed new cabinets, floor covering and appliances since the Clinton administration. Where is my country when I need it?

I'll tell you where. Giving tax breaks and corporate welfare to all of those capitalist pig fat cats, instead of giving it to me. Sure, they provide me with food stamps, free prescription medicine and affordable housing for which I never have to service any of the loan (all stuff that should be a God Given RIGHT if you ask me), but I want MORE! Just living welfare check to welfare check keeps the wolves from the door, but when's the last time I had a 7-day eastern Caribbean cruise, huh? You know, where the destinations include St. Thomas and St. Maartin? NEVER, and is that fair? NO, I say!

.

All I can swing on my welfare/unemployment payments are those lousy three day cruises out of Galveston, Texas, and they only go to Cancun. And now those rotten Republican bastards want to limit where I can use my unemployment debit card? Who are they to tell me I can't use it in the Luxor in Las Vegas, or on my lousy, three day western Caribbean cruise? Those fat cat Wall street types have lost touch with the people.

.

Life is tough being me, let me tell you.

.

With all of these Tea Parties going on, declaring war on taxpayer funded entitlement programs, you'd think they want me to starve and die in the gutter. We all know this is what they want, and this is why we all need to re-elect every sitting Democrat, and every Democrat challenger to any sitting, fat cat Republican up for re-election.

.

Just say NO to these fat cat Republicans giving OUR money to their fat cat Wall Street buddies that can better be spent on improving OUR standard of living. All we got are these lousy 32" Sony LCD flat screens, when those fat cats are watching their football games on 50" LCD flat screens. Is that fair? NO, I say again!

.

Vote Democrat this November, and save our cruises, our free housing and provide everyone with a God given right of a 50" LCD flat screen TV! This is what America should be doing for me, lately.

.

(PS: if you believe any of this gibberish, you and all of us would be better off if you just stayed home on November 2nd, 2010 and let the grown ups decide who should hold public office during the 112th Congress).

Slacking, mooching Social Security geezers

There's a political ad running in Illinois right now depicting old, decrepit angry geezers admonishing a young conservative politician to keep his hands off of their 'so-security.' These whiny, pathetic geezers were lambasting the conservative politician because he dared suggest that perhaps we should consider raising the retirement age for 'so-security' in the face of an imminent collapse of this ill-conceived FDR-era Ponzi scheme.

.

One of the characters in the ad sniffed that 'we've paid our whole lives...' I would just bet that this ol' biddy paid perhaps a total of $30,000 into the system over her lifetime, and has now taken out over $150,000 (and counting....), and yet demands that we keep our hands off of 'her so-security.'

.

Just how do these geezers sleep at night, knowing that their social security checks are paid for by directly taking out funds from younger worker paychecks, and also knowing that the checks many geezers are cashing every month are well above and beyond what they ever put into the system in the first place? They must surely know that the checks they are cashing are not the funds that they contributed, and that were stored safely away in the So'-Security Lock Box. Are these old geezers that stupid?.

.

Apparently so.

.

But to get downright indignant that a politician suggest that we do something to stop the unfair and unsustainable transfer payments from the young to the undeserving old is just plain un-American.

.

Most of these old codgers know full well that they have taken way more out of the system than they EVER paid into it, and that they are eating off of their fellow American's tables directly and unashamedly. Have they no shame? Have they no honor, no integrity, no sense of self sufficiency? Simply look at their paychecks over their working lives, and calculate their contributions, and they must surely know that they are now pure and simply sticking their old, wrinkly liver spotted hands directly into younger American pockets, and stealing THESE YOUNGSTER'S money, and beggaring the generations that are following them! .

This is the "Greatest Generation" that I am talking about. They were the ones that were directly responsible for ensuring that Hitler and Tojo were defeated, and that we continued to teach our children (me and my fellow Baby Boomers) English, and not Japanese or German. Remember those honorable folks, the folks who suffered, sacrificed, fought and died during World War II for the American way of life? Those guys? What happened to them?

.

And yet they have the unmitigated gall, the nerve, the temerity to scold a young politician who sees this unsustainable Ponzi scheme of Social Security for what it is: a complete transfer of wealth from young Americans to old Americans. This is not the America they fought for and won great victories in World War II.

.

Social Security was never intended as a retirement account. It was only set up to assist the poorest among us in making ends meet, and not to finance a lifestyle of meeting every want and need of the geezers from every walk of life, from the age of 62 until they die at age 85! Do the math, geezers! You already have drawn out your contributions, probably DECADES ago!

.

And you excoriate anyone who wants to try and fix this nasty, Socialist mess?

.

Shame on you, America's slacking, mooching Social Security geezers.

Upcoming 'Lame Duck' session and the political carnage in store for us

The control of both houses of Congress will change on January 4th, 2011. Although we all can argue today about our guesses as to the peripheral details of the composition of the 112th Congress which will be decided on November 2nd, 2010, I am confident that regardless of the size of the GOP majority, the Republicans will have control of both houses next year.

.

Unfortunately, that leaves the outgoing Democrat majority in control from November 3rd, 2010 through January 3rd, 2011: sixty one days of terror during which Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid and Barack Obama will wreak legislative havoc on our country, regardless of the political consequences for years if not decades to come.

.

They have already announced that they plan to introduce, debate, gain cloture and pass around 20 pieces of odious, destruction liberal bills such as card check, cap and trade and comprehensive immigration reform (also known as amnesty), to name a few of the horribly damaging bills among many others nearly as damaging to our economy, our Constitution and our way of life in America.

.

In the U.S. Senate, Harry Reid will have 57 reliable Democrat votes, two reliable Independent Democrat votes (Bernie Sanders and Joe Lieberman), plus a few reliable Republican votes they can pick off, namely Olympia Snow, Susan Collins, John McCain and a few other RINO's from time to time to pass these God awful bills into law. Obama will sign them as fast as they show up on his desk, and repealing, slowing down, defunding or otherwise thwarting this crazy lurch leftward will be an extremely tough row to hoe. In the House, Nancy Pelosi can count on 255 reliable Democrat votes to a measly 177 Republican votes to usher in their madness in these 61 days of legislative carnage.

.

And do these outgoing liberals know that they will enrage the American people to the point that they may not win another national elective majority for years to come? Yes, of course they know this. And they also know that once an entitlement is enacted, it never goes away. Ever. And they know that they will, in the fullness of time, get the gavels of power back, and when they do, look at the bureaucracy that will have been in place for them to saunter right back in, and have their 'rightful' seat at the table of power of the socialist nation they had created back in 2010 - 2011.

.

'Fredd,' you say, 'no reasonable political party would ever do that to themselves in the short run, by throwing their entire party onto their own sword.' Oh yeah? Who ever said that this particular party, in this particular day and age, was ever reasonable?

.

The Democrat's exit from power in January, 2011 will much resemble the political version of Saddam Hussein's retreating Iraqi Republican Guard Army, leaving Kuwait at the end of the First Gulf War: they will set the whole country on fire, and then gleefully admire the carnage they wrought in their rear view mirrors.

.

Boy, do I hope I am very wrong about this eventuality. I really, really do.

European-style Socialism sucks: trust me, I've lived through it

The mental image that many Americans have when someone brings up the 'European lifestyle' is of relaxed Continental, metro-sexual types sipping espresso on a Tuesday morning in Paris, while soaking up the glorious morning sun at a sidewalk bistro on the Champs de Elysee.

.

That image is as accurate as that of the typical European, who is asked to describe their mental image of the typical 'American lifestyle:' a cowboy decked out in spurs, chaps and cowboy hat, up on their horse out on the trail, lassoing stray cattle on the cattle drive, all the while blasting away with his six shooter at marauding Indians. .

Having lived in Europe for 6 long years during two tours of duty in the U.S. Army, I have considerable insight into how the typical, real life European lives on a day to day basis, and I am here to tell you, those folks lounging about sipping their espressos on the Champs de Elysee are far, far, FAR from typical. .

Western Europe has embraced gigantic taxes to finance their socialist way of life since World War II. Not burdened by having to pay for battleships, aircraft carriers and tanks (the United States pays for all of that, you see), they are free to use that tax money to provide free health care, finance 35 hour work weeks, month long vacations in August, lucrative and opulent pensions beginning at 55 for life, and on, and on, and on..........

.

But what are the costs for all of this socialism? Nearly all European countries, and most noticeably Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece and Spain (P.I.I.G.S.), are floundering in crippling debt and bankruptcy. England is not far behind, nor is Germany, Sweden, Denmark, and many other socialist countries in Western Europe.

.

And the reason these countries are bankrupt are not that they all live in 4,000 square foot mansions, sip Dom Perignon champagne morning, noon and night and race off to fabulous parties in Monte Carlo in their Lamborghinis: the lifestyle of the typical European is as opposite of that as day is to night.

.

Quite the opposite, in fact: the average European family (4 members and shrinking) lives in a small, dingy apartment of perhaps 700 square feet. This average family has no car, but rather has to depend on the public transportation system, which is enormously expensive and inefficient. If a family does buy a car, it is not a Lamborghini, but rather a Citroen 'Duck,' a chintzy cheap piece of sh*t that gets around 40 mph, has a top speed of 60 mph (100 kph), and they fill the tank with $8.00/gas (benzine). Parking is another enormous expense, and accordingly, most European families do without these luxuries. Yes, cars are luxuries in Europe, whereas they are necessities in the U.S.

.

The average size refrigerator is smaller in the typical European household than you would see in any typical college dorm room in the U.S. Accordingly, Europeans don't have much room for food storage, and must make daily trips (within walking distance) to the local grocery store to buy the daily meals. Savings available to U.S. citizens via mega-stores like Safeway, Piggly Wiggly, Super Walmarts and so-on are non-existent. Europeans pay full blown retail for their food, as deep freezers are completely alien to most Europeans.

.

Taxes: All Europeans pay at least half if not more of their incomes in taxes. Income, sales, excise, property and value added: all of these are piled onto everything Europeans buy. In Germany, if a family has a TV, a tax is levied on the TV annually. Just like the Beatles song goes, if you take a walk, they tax your feet. Taxes are cripplingly high in Europe, and they still can't make ends meet, even though they scarcely contribute a dime for their national defense (the U.S. picks up the tab here). Paying these taxes assumes that the European is employed, which would be a spotty assumption: the European unemployment rate has hovered around 11% for most of my adult life, and they consider that 'normal levels.'

.

Life is cramped, Spartan and at times downright mean in Europe. Socialism is expensive, unsustainable, and living in a socialist system downright sucks. Trust me, I've been there and done that.

.

And we are heading in that direction.

Teacher's unions will be the death of us all

'Waiting for Superman' is a film highly critical of our educational system, and particularly the public teacher's unions who hold our children's futures hostage for their own pathetic benefit. There is no greater evil present among the civilized than those who use children as pawns, whether hiding behind them as Islamic terrorists do to avoid being shot at and bombed, or these public teachers unions who through the tenure system deny our children a decent education because they are more concerned about their lucrative and indecent public pensions than they are about the quality of children's education and their future.

.

This film was not directed and co-written by a radical, right wing conservative: Davis Guggenheim also produced Al Gore's 'An Inconvenient Truth' which leans decidedly left in its views on the man made global warming hoax.

.

Public teachers unions are killing our education system as well as killing our global competitive position in the marketplace because they value teacher tenure over teacher accomplishment. Public teachers are not promoted and retained because of core competencies at their specific topic of education. Not at all. The teachers union retain and promote teachers solely on how long they have been paying their union dues, i.e. tenure. A public teacher in many of our districts gains tenure after a measly three years in the classroom, and accordingly a secure job for their lifetime regardless of how they perform in that classroom.

.

All labor unions, regardless of the business they are involved in, strive to achieve one and only one goal for their members: more guaranteed pay for less work. That immutable fact is simply not arguable whatsoever. Teachers unions are no different: rather than work until age 65 at their trade and then retire, these insidious public teacher unions have bullied and threatened via strike tactics to reduce the length of time their members work until retirement (age 52 in many public school districts, or 30 years of teaching), and have also reduced the time required to reach tenure to as little as three years on the job (the point at which the member achieves lifetime union benefits).

.

After three years, there is no point in getting better at teaching, no point at all. Their job is secure, and many public union teachers simply phone it in from there over the remainder of their career. Once they hit 30 years, 27 of those years mediocre at best performance wise, they can retire with 75% of their full time income for the remainder of their lives, along with 3 or 4% cost of living adjustments annually.

.

How is this system possibly sustainable? To have a 52 year old retired teacher, living large on the public dime for the rest of their lives while the district they left has to hire yet another teacher to replace the able bodied slug that cashed in? The math is simple: the teacher that cashed in at age 52 earned perhaps $70,000 after 30 years in the typical school district. They will retire with full health care costs paid for and $52,500 annually for another 28 years or so on average. The district will replace that teacher with a rookie public teacher union employee, and pay that teacher (with full health care benefits) $40K to start.

.

The community in which their union operates accordingly is paying the $52,500 for the non-working teacher (the retired union teacher), along with $40K annually for the young replacement union teacher, and full health care benefits for both. That may be $125,000 and rising each year - PER TEACHING SLOT!! And this is probably a wild underestimation as to the actual costs per district per teaching slot. If the rookie teacher puts in their 30 and retires at age 52 and a new 'rookie-rookie replacement must be hired, and the long ago retired slug lives beyond age 82, then (in current dollars), the district is footing the bill for not only the $40K for a new rookie, but $52,500 for the old rookie newly retired, and $52,500 plus all of those cost of living hikes, perhaps another $35,000, for the 82 year old retiree's pension, PLUS ALL THE HEALTH CARE, and the math starts looking just awful - PER TEACHING SLOT: $200,000 ANNUALLY? $250,000 EACH YEAR, MAYBE? PROBABLY HIGHER THAN THAT AND INCREASING EVERY DAY!!!

.

Unsustainable. Simply unsustainable. And we haven't even discussed how badly these slacking, unmotivated tenured union teachers are phoning in their work to our children. And we haven't even scratched the surface as to how many teacher's union administrators have been provided with feather bed jobs that are redundant, unnecessary and useless. And of course, we haven't discussed the retirement benefits, health care benefits , etc. of all of these unnecessary and superfluous administrators who also retire at age 52.

.

And what do we hear, year after year from these unions? We need MORE MONEY!! IT'S FOR THE CHILDREN!! Hogwash and balderdash. Our public school system is awash in taxpayer money, and all of it goes to the union featherbedding of its members for life, all the while their tax base supports these slackers in perpetuity, immune from downturns in the economy, immune from responsibility and accountability.

.

The educational system as we know it now has to de-certify each and every public union, including teacher's unions, immediately if not sooner. The costs of this unsustainable system will be the death of us all in the long run.

.

We are already starting to wither and die in the short and medium run. Everyone with eyes can see this as the truth. And this commentary on the sad shape of public education, 'Waiting for Superman' exposes these greedy unions as for what they are: leeches, and parasites on our society.

You just might be a Democrat if.....

 1) ....if you think that the United States owes you a living simply because you were born here, and that your every want and need should be provided to you at no cost, you are probably a Democrat. That, or a Northeastern Republican (same thing).

.

2) You just might be a Democrat if....you belong to a public employee union, and firmly and truly believe that you should make $120,000 annually until you reach age 51, all the while each and every dime you make comes from the pockets of the taxpayers of your municipality. You also believe down to the marrow in your bones that you should retire comfortably at age 51 on around $90K annually to a beach house in Coral Gables, Florida while the municipality you worked for goes broke paying for your and the rest of your union's unbridled greed and sloth for the rest of your slovenly life, well then you just might be a Democrat. .

3) You just might be a Democrat if....you continue electing Democrat after Democrat to represent you in Congress and they in turn spend the Treasury's (read: 'the taxpayer's) money like drunken sailors on projects and payoffs that the Constitution never, ever intended, well then you just might be a Democrat.

.

4) You just might be a Democrat if....you truly believe that all women's bodies are theirs to do with as they wish, to include murder innocent lives within them for convenience sake by having abortions on demand for any reason whatsoever. You just might be a Democrat if you believe this, that or a Northeastern Republican (same thing).

.

5). You just might be a Democrat if....you think that living off the sweat, blood and tears of another without any input from you is nothing to be ashamed of, that eating the bread off of another American's table without any effort on your part is perfectly acceptable, and even 'a right.' If you think that sucking off the public dime is the American way; well then you just might be a Democrat. .

6) You just might be a Democrat if...firmly and truly believe, from the bottom of your heart, that you should pay no federal taxes, while people making more than you should pay all of the federal taxes, if you think that is the way America should be, well then you most certainly must be a Democrat.

.

That, or a Northeastern Republican (same thing).