All That Is Necessary

There Is Some Hope In The World

Saw a headline in the news that I really hadn't expected to see anytime soon.  Are you ready?  Here it is:

Conservatives score wins in EU parliament voting

"Center-right parties hailed European Parliament election victories as a continent-wide vote for conservative approaches to the economic crisis and pledged Monday to forge ahead.

Right-leaning governments came out ahead in Germany, France, Italy and Belgium, while conservative opposition parties won in Britain and Spain."

Now, a "conservative" in the European union may not be quite a conservative here in the USA, but it is a great start.

I like this part:

"Tonight is a very difficult evening for Socialists in many nations in Europe," said Martin Schulz, the leader of the Socialists in the European Parliament. "(We will) continue to fight for social democracy in Europe."

We have an election coming up in 2010.  Maybe we can look forward to the same thing?!?!?!

Time To Really Pay Attention

Well, the collectivists are now in complete control.  So now is the time for the rest of us, those who value freedom, liberty, and personal responsibility to really pay attention to what these crooks in D.C. have in store for us.  They will most definitely immediately start to increase government control in all areas of our lives.  More taxes, more rules, more regulations.  You can't do this, you can't do that, etc. They will spend more money than ever before, even though the money isn't there.

This is why you need to stay engaged.  Be watchful of what these politicians are trying to do.  Email or call them to complain when they try to implement collectivist policies.  It may not help if your Representative or Senator is an idiot (but I repeat myself), but it certainly won't hurt.

And it is coming fast, folks.  Just this morning I saw a commercial promoting the Employee Free Choice Act, that horrible act that would do away with the secret ballot when a union tries to unionize a company.  They want to act fast, before reality sets in.

Most importantly, do not give in to the desire to say "the Hell with it" and give up.

Constitutional Conservatism

Peter Berkowitz has a good opinion piece in today's Wall Street Journal.  It is entitled "Conservatives Can Unite Around the Constitution".  He writes about how the various groups normally considered on the conservative side of the political spectrum can unite around the U.S. Constitution.  The 2008 election showed that the Right is pretty broken apart in different interest groups such as social conservatives, libertarians, abortion foes, etc.  Under the current alignment, the Right got crushed, big time.  He writes that all is not lost, though.  The U.S. Constitution can help!

"...conservatives of all stripes would be well advised to concentrate their attention on the constitutional order and the principles that undergird it, because maintaining them should be their paramount political priority."

"A constitutional conservatism puts liberty first and teaches the indispensableness of moderation in securing, preserving and extending its blessings."

The opinion piece is worth serious consideration by the Right if they can get their assorted heads out of the sand and actually think about the future.

Mr. Berkowitz writes that the two biggest blocks on the right, the Religious Right and the Libertarians, destroy each other by demanding party purity based on their OWN ideas.  That leads to continued losses.

"But the purists in both camps ignore simple electoral math. Slice and dice citizens' opinions and voting patterns in the 50 states as you like, neither social conservatives nor libertarian conservatives can get to 50% plus one without the aid of the other."

He is correct.  These two factions of the Right have been killing each other for decades and giving victories to the liberals.  It needs to stop!  This is where the good old U.S. Constitution can help.

"The principles are familiar: individual freedom and individual responsibility, limited but energetic government, economic opportunity and strong national defense. They are embedded in the Constitution and flow out of the political ideas from which it was fashioned."

Mr. Berkowitz provides a very real path to political victory in the future.  Go read his piece.  It is absolutely worthwhile and well written.  I like where he's headed.

Schadenfreude

For those who don't know this word, it can really come in handy at times.   Here is the definition:

scha·den·freu·de - Pleasure derived from the misfortunes of others.

I know I'm probably being bad, but I can't help it.  (Actually, I could help it, but I don't want to.)  This is concerning the Bernard Madoff ponzi investment scheme that just blew up.  Up to $50 billion (!!!!) could be gone.  This guy ran this ponzi scheme for decades, conning the rich "elite". 

"Many of his investors came from the enormously wealthy enclaves of Palm Beach, Florida and Long Island, New York, where people had invested billions in Madoff’s firm for decades. He was a fixture on the Palm Beach social scene, and was a member of some of its most exclusive clubs, including the Palm Beach Country Club and Boca Rio Golf Club, where he drummed up much of his business."

Tsk, tsk, tsk.  This is where the schadenfreude comes in.  I don't know any of these people.  I don't run with that crowd.  I'm sure there are some good people in there.  But if you have that much money and don't take care of it, screw you. 

Some of America’s wealthiest socialites are facing ruin after the arrest of a Wall Street big hitter accused of the largest investor swindle perpetrated by one man.

Socialites!  I love it!  Poor babies.  They may have to sell their string of polo ponies.  Or, OMG!, shop with the "little people".

I have no problem with people having enormous wealth, and being able to keep it and spend it as they like.  I do have problems with the spoiled, holier-than-thou, self-described elites.

So, I am enjoying the misfortunes of these socialites just a little bit.  Admit it, so are you, just a little bit.

Israel And Iran

There is an article on Foxnews.com about the Israeli plan to bomb Iran's nuclear sites.

Israel is drawing up plans to attack Iran's nuclear facilities and is prepared to launch a strike without backing from the U.S., an Israeli newspaper reported Thursday.

This is stuff that can have a real nasty impact on the ENTIRE WORLD.  I can't blame Israel, though.  What are they supposed to do?  The nut-cases that run Iran have stated repeatedly they intend to wipe Israel off the face of the earth.  They are non-stop in their nuclear ambitions.  They say these are strictly for peaceful mean - for electricity.  Ok, sure.  In the meantime all the world has done is "talk".  Oooooooo!  Iran is shivering in their boots.

However Israel intelligence sources say Iran has sufficient nuclear material to make an atomic bomb.

In a nutshell - Iran has said Israel is coming to an end.  Iran is rapidly progressing in its goal of building a nuclear bomb AND the missiles necessary to strike Israel.   All the talk by the world has not made a bit a of difference.  And do you really think the world will do anything?!  Israel has a choice.  Do nothing and die.  Strike now and possibly survive.  Not a tough choice for me if I were Israel.

Then, think of the consequences for the USA and our already decimated economy.  The stuff of nightmares.

Have a nice day.

All That Is Necessary

"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."

The above quote, that just about everyone knows was written by Edmund Burke, an Irish orator/philosopher who lived in the 1700's.  The power of these 15 words is amazing, and so appropriate to our times.  Since the time of FDR in the 1930's we have seen a steady erosion of the rights of individuals in this country.  Just as little raindrops can destroy a mountain, thousands of laws, regulations, quotas and edicts from the federal government, can destroy our country.  No single item can be pointed to as the single proof of the loss of freedom.  But, taken in their entirety, these rules have been just as effective as the raindrops.

Most of these rules have been pushed on us by a small ruling elite, certain in their superiority.  And all this time the mass of men and women have remained mostly quiet.  They have done nothing as their freedom has been stolen from them.  This theft of freedom fits my definition of evil.

All is not lost, though.  The rise of the alternative media, including blogs, has allowed a single individual to do something against this evil.  It may be a small drop, but there are millions of blogs now, and what worked for the collectivists will work for those of us who treasure our freedom and individuality.  It is time for us to stop doing "nothing".

Keep tuned for more on how America can triumph over this evil.