Contradiction & Accountability

As I watch the swirling controversy over Nancy Pelosi and her constant changing of positions about what she knew about water boarding and other interrogation techniques used on the animals that committed the horrible act on 9/11, I am struck by the level of contradiction in her statements.

Another thing that strikes me as odd is that her colleagues don’t seem to be willing to hold her accountable for her obfuscations. Also, I think it is interesting that many (some in the press even) want to talk about former VP Cheney and attempt to take the focus off of what Speaker Pelosi is doing.

It seems that history has proven one thing time and again. Those who can be defined as Liberal have a close political resemblance to many of the worst actors on the world’s political stage when it comes to double standards.

What I mean here is that those that espouse a belief in conservative values appear to be lambasted for the same hypocrisies committed by those that embrace liberal views. The liberal appears to be able to contradict themselves while avoiding accountability for their hypocrisy.

The Cult of Personality

I’ve come to understand why this is so. I once heard a song by the band Living Color. The song was Cult of Personality and it talked about how ordinary people would blindly follow leaders with dynamic personalities.

What history has shown us is that Dictators, Communist and Socialist use the Cult of Personality to cover their own contradictions and to avoid accountability. They force the populous (you and I) and their political opponents to adhere to one standard while they adhere to another.

This sounds crazy right? But it’s not just the ramblings of a right wing blogger (which I’m not by the way, more of a libertarian/independent thinker type)….anyway, I digress… The way that Liberals use Contradiction and Accountability (or the lack of it as it applies to themselves and application of it as it applies to their political opponents) is spelled out in a strategy written back in the 60’s and 70’s by a political organizer and author named Saul Alinsky.

Rules for Radicals

Alinsky was quite a fellow. His most famous book; Rules for Radicals is basically a play book for causing political change. What is interesting is that the book itself is filled with contradictions, rules for accountability and rules for hiding ones true purpose in order to reach political change.

According to Wikipedia ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saul_Alinsky ) Alinsky begins his book with this tribute: “From all our legends, mythology, and history (and who is to know where mythology leaves off and history begins – or which is which), the first radical known to man who rebelled against the establishment and did it so effectively that he at least won his own kingdom – Lucifer.” That’s right, his book uses the Devil as one of it’s sources for how to rebel.

Not withstanding any religious beliefs, let’s not go down that slippery slope; let’s say we believe the bible to be a book of mythology. As in intellectual observation, it is odd that this author would choose to emulate the ‘evil’ force rather than use the ‘good’ forces for his examples.

He goes on to say; “Organization for action will now and in the decade ahead center upon America's white middle class. That is where the power is. ... Our rebels have contemptuously rejected the values and the way of life of the middle class. They have stigmatized it as materialistic, decadent, bourgeois, degenerate, imperialistic, war-mongering, brutalized and corrupt. They are right; but we must begin from where we are if we are to build power for change, and the power and the people are in the middle class majority.”

The Middle Class as a Pawn

It’s not hard to miss the hypocrisy here. Essentially what Alinsky is saying is that he doesn’t like the middle class. However, the political power lies with these masses and if the rebels want to succeed, then the middle classes must be convinced to align with the rebels.

The reference to ‘our rebels’ is to the rebels that have brought about populist social justice themes and are adherents to socialist democracies or so-called Democratic Socialism which in and of itself is another contradiction in terms. How can one have a Democracy aligned with Socialism, it doesn’t work…

Alinsky also felt that the Liberalism of his time was a farce. He saw that movement as docile and weak. His goal was to radicalize the movement in order to bring about his definition of social change ….Socialism…

Examples of his Words in Action

When we look around the world and delve into mankind’s history we see the works and words of Alinsky in practice. Some practiced his words before he even wrote them. Just look at the movements headed by Stalin, Hitler, Mao Tse-tung. Some practiced his words even while he wrote them, look at Ches Guevara, Castro, Qaddafi, Pol Pot and some practice his words today. Just look at Kim Jong-il, Chavez and other Socialist Dictators.

Now comes the billion dollar statement, the one that will get me in a huge amount of trouble with many who read my blogs. The power structures that currently run the Democrat party were educated in the principles of Alinsky and while they may not actively refer to the writings of Alinsky, they instinctively use his teachings to control the political spectrum whether they realize it or not.

Proof is All Around Us

My proof is evidenced in the way that Contradictions and Accountability are handled by many Liberals and some in the media. There is one standard for those perceived to be Liberal and a completely different standard for those perceived to be anything else.

Right or wrong is not the question here, the facts are the facts and they are visible for anyone who chooses to ‘un-bias’ themselves so that they can see clearly. The truth is that Liberalism today has been hijacked by the activist-rebellious-Socialist of the late 60’s and early 70’s and the truth is that they despise the middle class and look down upon them.

The elites who head the Democrat party see their continuants as dupes and morons. They revel in the realization that they (the leaders of the party) have finally learned how to control this vast and powerful middle class bastion and now the party will use this control to completely change the face of America.

So what are you? A dupe and a moron? Or are you a free thinker, an independent citizen? How do you view your own contradictions and how do you hold yourself accountable. Shouldn’t our politicians be held to the same standards we hold ourselves?

Alinsky didn’t think so. Contradictions were to be used to frame debate in a way that would not allow for rebutal and Accountability was to be used as a club to bludgeon opponents with, requiring them to hold fast to a standard which nobody could meet.

Think about it… and while you do, here’s a short list of the current day politicians that learned and actively used Alinsky’s teachings to organize communities and run campaigns.
Obama; Clinton (Hillary); Carville; (there are others, simply watch their actions and see how they deal with Contradictions and Accountability). Can we add Pelosi and Reid to the bunch? I don’t think that would be a stretch.

These are not the ramblings of a right-wing zealot, moreover they are the thoughts and research of a center-right realist. After you’ve done the research, I’d love not know your thoughts. Respectfully, thank you for reading.

In Wonderland

Sometimes when I watch the news I feel as if I’m Alice and I just fell through the rabbit hole.

As I arrived home from another stressful day of barely scratching out a living and working 12-14 hour days just to do it, I was greeted with our President and Secretary “Dodgy The Tax Dodger” Geihtner announcing a new corporate tax program.

As I watched …in disbelief I might add… Secretary Geihtner actually had the gall to admonish corporations who use LEGAL tax loopholes to lower their taxes. He then had the unmitigated nerve to state that the new law would give government the ability to collect back taxes owed by these corporations and wealthy individuals.

Now wait just one cotton pickin’ minute! Is this the same guy that didn’t pay his fair share until he was caught? Isn’t this the same guy that didn’t pay all of his back taxes owed because the statutes of limitation had run out on some of it?

Do we really live in a world where the Sec. Treasury who is supposedly the ‘brightest financial mind’ of our nation can’t even use Turbo Tax to properly file his taxes but is the one lecturing others on the tax responsibilities? Will the hypocrisy never end?

Making American Companies Less Competitive

But let’s look beyond the hypocrisy to the stupidity. While this idea seems to be a good one on its surface and will play well with the ‘class warfare’ types, you know the ones that want to crush the rich and curse the evil corporations, the whole thing will never work.

Here’s why. The rework of the tax code is supposed to ‘punish’ corporations that ship jobs over seas and ‘reward’ companies that create jobs at home. However the tax rate on corporations in our country is confiscatory. We have one of the highest corporate tax rates in the world.

Companies will just choose to move their operations completely out of the U.S. rather than be subjected to further government interference. On top of the regulations on CEO pay and other socialistic policies, more capital and more companies will leave our shores not stay here!

We Pay Anyway

But that’s not the real point is it? In my usual fashion I’d like to take the conversation to where it belongs and it’s a direction that you are not likely to hear from any normal news cast.

No matter how much corporation is taxed they never pay it. The cost of the tax is just reflected in the retail cost of the goods when they are brought to market. That’s right; we pay the tax, not the corporation.
Higher taxes and tightening loopholes will only lead to more companies leaving our shores. It will lead to less jobs here and it will lead to higher prices on everything. We pay anyway.

Evil Corporations!

Now I know that many of you know that I am self employed and as such I am ‘part of the problem’ in this country. After all, I don’t conform, I’m ambitious, I work hard and I’m independent. You can’t fit me a box so I must be ‘dealt’ with.

That’s right, I’m a CEO and I own an evil corporation. But I’d like to say something here. As a dumb hick from the Southside of Atlanta with a high school education, I’ve worked hard. I’ve taught myself and I’ve put a lot of sweat into what I do.

Over the past two years I’ve endured a huge amount of sacrifice and worked 60, 70 and 80 hour weeks without earning a single dime! I’m barely holding on, but I’m holding on. And when things turn around I deserve to make an unlimited amount of money because of my sacrifice. Who has the right to tell me otherwise?

The IRS and The Hospital

Well it seems that the IRS has the right to tell me otherwise. After years of paying my taxes on time, paying 7.5% of other peoples taxes (BTW – that’s what employers do, they pay 7.5% of someone’s wages to the Federal government for the privilege of having an employee, oh yeah, and don’t forget the additional 15% we pay on ourselves. Sound crazy? It is!)

….sorry, I digress…. I received a letter form the IRS saying that I owed back taxes called FUTA taxes for employee payroll from 2005. When I called I found out there was more, they believed that I operated my business out of California even though I’ve only been to that state once in my life, I could not get them to understand otherwise.

So what’s my point? My point is that the way I was treated was so unprofessional and so harsh that the stress sent me into a tail spin and I ended up in the hospital (that story will come soon, I’m writing it now so stay tuned).

You see, I am to be ‘dealt’ with as far as this administration is concerned. So for those of you who think I’m some conservative hack and guys like me need to be dealt with, watch what you wish for. I’m sure that when the government is finished with guys like me, they’ll turn on you.

Remember, government does not create wealth and at some point those that wish to redistribute wealth will run out of other people’s money, that’s when they’ll come after yours.

BTW – I don’t owe the tax and I have proof. Do you think that matters to the IRS? The answer was and is a resounding …NO!...

Stay tuned for the unbelievable TRUE story of what happened when I called into IRS Customer Svc…. “Coming Soon”

As The World Turns

As The World Turns is a daytime drama that has been on for years. And as all soap operas are apt to do, the drama that unfolds on a daily basis is so complex and drastic as to be unbelievable. Well the same can be said for the World Economy…

In America we woke up this morning to news that the Swine Flu has broken out in Mexico and Mexico City is like a ghost town. Luckily the epidemic has only spread into 5 states in the U.S. and outbreaks here have been minor.

We also learned that the British Pound-Sterling will stay that way for quite some time. For better or for worse (I think for the better) the Brits will not acquiesce and diminish their economy even further by joining the EU and converting their currency to the Euro.

And yes, there’s even more world wide news, seems that China is developing even closer ties with Taiwan while property prices in Hong Kong are making a huge comeback.

So, why do I report all of these things going on around the world? It’s because they affect our bond market which ultimately affects the flow of capital and the interest rates we pay.

Weak Economies Follow the Strong

Several months ago I wrote a blog titled ‘And So Goes the World.’ The point of the article was that as our economy experienced ups and downs, the world’s economy follows right along.

I wrote that article because many of the more liberal financial journalists were decrying our capitalist system and pointing to the strength of the EU and China and implying that their economic systems were superior to ours. In truth, these journalists with an agenda were wrong.

We don’t live in a vacuum and neither do our trading partners. Many bemoan the fact that America consumes so much, but we consume because our economy is so strong. What is happening to the world economy right now is a direct result of our economy losing it’s ability to consume.

So where is all this heading this morning? I’m not trying to make a political point here, I’m making a statement of fact. Property values in Europe have fallen and their banks are a mess. Their economic cycle follows ours by about 12-18 months.

Next it’s the BRIC economies …Brazil, Russia, India and China… These economies follow ours with a 20-24 month lag.

Stabilization is the Next Step

In the US we have seen a recent stabilization of property values and in the economy overall. Things may still be trending downward but not at as rapid a pace. The same is starting to happen in Europe, however, they still have a few big hits before they get to where we are.

But, China and the other BRIC nations are just starting to feel the heat. Remember earlier in this article I mentioned that property values in Hong Kong were on the rise? That’s because Hong Kong is one the few places in the world where the economy is somewhat insulated.

Their tax system (a consumption tax akin to the Fair Tax) has made the economy very insulated over the years. They follow patterns similar to the US so now that China is feeling the squeeze money is moving from China to Hong Kong!

What does all this mean to us …US…? It means this. We are getting close to the end of our economic down turn. Nobody knows if growth will be robust or sluggish, but that’s not the point. The point is we probably have one more big-hit coming and then we stabilize.

Ferocious Entrepreneurial Spirit!

This also proves another point. Many left-leaning ideologues would have us believe that capitalism can’t work without highly restrictive government oversight. But, they are wrong, capitalism works in spite of highly regulatory environments.

If you look at the data you will find that the government actions did very little to stop our precipitous fall. Some will argue that the TARP helped save banks, but did it really? Not all of the TARP money was even used.

The government still has hundreds of billions in unspent TARP money and the banks have stabilized. A very, very small percentage of the pork-filled, ear-mark laden, $800 billion dollar stimulus package has hit the economy. Yet, we are stabilizing.

The correction of the bubble in the economy was due to normal business cycles within the world wide Capitalist economy. No the ferocious entrepreneurial spirit will turn the American and World economies around despite the best efforts of central governments around the world and NOT because of them and their actions!

Winners and Losers Who Chooses

It's taken me a couple of days to completely absorb the fact that a sitting president just reached into the board room of a major corporation and fired the CEO. Notice I didn't say that the Board of Directors asked for the government’s assistance ...they didn't...

The news has been all over the place on this one, some say he needed to go. Others say the government shouldn't have this kind of power. Even others justify the action 'this one time' because of all the money given to the company to keep it afloat.

As is usual with me, I have a completely different take on the situation and it is one that hasn't dawned on many people yet. My question is not whether government should be in the business of firing CEO's of private companies.

My questions is have we crossing some precipice? Some invisible line that takes into a dark abyss where government decides which companies succeed and which should fail.

I know many will argue that this has gone on for years visa vie tax policy and regulations and I would agree. However, when this economic mess started in earnest and we allowed the Treasury and the Feds to save some investment banks while allowing others (Lehman Bros., Bear Stearns, etc.) to fail, we started down a slippery slope.

Now we are in full slide! It’s not just which banks should be saved and which should be allowed to fail, now it’s giving one company 30 days to fix a problem and allowing another 60 days. It’s firing a CEO and putting in another by dictation rather than a vote by the Board.

When the Obama administration announced that the government would stand behind the warranty of GM’s cars, they took an even greater step towards choosing winners and losers in this economy.

I ask one simple question, how is Ford to compete with GM (Government Motors) when Government Motors has billions of our Tax dollars funding it?

I admire Ford for recognizing its problems many years ago and setting out on a goal to fix them. I admire Ford for eschewing government hand outs and showing the rugged individualism and toughness that is genuinely American.

I am genuinely worried that we are on a destructive path here. When ‘BIG’ Government gets to choose the businesses that will be winners and the ones that will be losers, the people are bound to suffer.

I need only point to one example. Take a look at the history of England. You will see that at one time the government controlled all the car companies. You will also find out that there were waiting lists months and months long to get a new car.

So get ready, if government gets to choose the winners in this economy, you could be standing in a long line for your new GM, your new ‘free’ health care and maybe even your block of government cheese very soon!

Obama Lied; The Economy Died

Obama Lied; The Economy Died

The title of this article is one powerful statement and I was in shock when I read it. It’s the title of an article written by a conservative author, Tony Blankley.

Before you cry foul! Remember that liberal Democrats used the saying Bush Lied; People Died as the center piece of an entire campaign, not just an article in a newspaper …much more incendiary rhetoric I’d say.

Blankly, playing on this same theme makes some very good points in his op-ed piece in the Washington Post. He posits that Obama ran as one ‘thing’ but is really another.

Take the Preisdents message of ‘change’ as example #1. Obama ran on the promise of change in Washington. His stated goal was a more civil tone and more bipartisanship.

However, what we see happening is Obama and his Democratic cohorts ramming legislation down the throats of the Republican minority. His side is using tricks like only issuing legislation in printed format (not electronic) and expecting thousands of pages to be digested and voted on in just days of review.

When legislation is opposed, the President says; ‘We were elected, it’s our turn.’ And when the Republicans decide not to vote for legislation they haven’t had time to review the Obama team calls them obstructionist.

What change? Sounds like the same ole Washington to me!

There’s more, Obama professed to be for fiscal responsibility and no ear marks. Here again he has lied. We have only to look at the huge stimulus package which was one giant earmark made into law and had nothing to do with stimulating anything!

Other examples of Obama’s lies exist as well. The omnibus spending package with over 8,000 earmarks in the billions of dollars is being pushed for passage. The President says its last year’s business, BUT, if that’s true then why wasn’t it passed last year.

This is another example of the big lie. Obama claims to have inherited the Deficit and he did inherent some of the deficit but in the two months since he’s been in office, he’s tripled the size of the deficit.

The constant, persistent and now accelerated growth in spending and government regulations is killing the markets and slaying our economy. Obama ran to the center as a fiscally conservative Democrat in order to get elected, what he’s become is a Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi tax and spend style liberal!

Obama Lied; The Economy Died; how very apropos.