I live in a one-party neighborhood in a one-party community. All local elections are settled in the Democratic Party primary, not in the general election. The last Republican to hold local elective office here was booted out more than 20 years ago.
Am I discouraged? No. I hold my candle of conservative values high. My Democrat friends and neighbors know what I believe, and respect me for them, because I share my beliefs in a respectful way. More importantly, the light of this candle in the darkness is reflected in the eyes of those of my neighbors who are still in-the-closet, afraid of what our liberal neighbors will say if they’re exposed as conservatives.
The Old Jarhead has posted an essay describing a hypothetical next attack by Al Qaeda on America. I encourage every American to read this post. Here is an excerpt:
John Stossel and 20/20 explains CanadaCare (in words and images even a Congressman can understand), and why America’s private, profit-based, individual choice healthcare system breeds inovation and attracts people from Canada and around the world who can’t get care under their government-run, “free healthcare” systems:
Certain members of our Demcrat Congressional leadership seem to be having great difficulty distinguishing between paid union thugs and actual constituents. Some have taken to calling citizen participants in our democratic process (i.e. protesters at congressional town hall events) “mobs.” To help Rep. Conyers and others reacquaint themselves with their voters, here is a great post with lots of annotated pictures of the “mob.” (http://thedanashow.wordpress.com/2009/08/06/meet-the-mob/)
ANN ARBOR, MI – The Thomas More Law Center, a national public interest law firm based in Ann Arbor, Michigan announced today that a federal lawsuit has been filed against a Dearborn, Michigan high school, Fordson High School, and its Muslim principal, Imad Fadlallah, over the firing of Gerald Marszalek because of Marszalek’s connection to a Christian volunteer coach.
Marszalek, who had coached wrestling for 35 years, had achieved a legendary status in the wrestling community. Earning more that 450 wins, and sending numerous wrestlers to various collegiate programs, he was elected to the Michigan High School Athletic Association Hall of Fame, named “Sportsman of the Year” by the All-American Athletic Association. Marszalek’s contract was not renewed because of his association with a Christian volunteer coach, Trey Hancock, who the principal accused of…
This editorial cartoon came across the Designated Conservative’s digital desktop this afternoon. More from the liberal left who don’t understand America:
Another one bites the dust. Yes, it’s time for President Obama to “explaniate” and “re-interpretate” the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights to the Obamanation. As this Designated Conservative read the official White House blog posting below, I could almost hear the President saying: “It’s necessary in this period of national emergency to take bold action against the forces who would oppose me and what I know to be best for you.…”
This “letter to the editor” has been making it’s way around the blogosphere from a (soon to be ex-) Dodge dealer (thanks to President Obama’s “change”) .
Click on the picture to see the faces of 50 more fully employed people who will likely soon lose their jobs and associated health benefits, savings, and possibly homes because of the sort of “change” President Obama believes that our country deserves:
My name is George C. Joseph. I am the sole owner of Sunshine Dodge-Isuzu, a family owned and operated business in Melbourne, Florida. My family bought and paid for this automobile franchise 35 years ago in 1974. I am the second generation to manage this business.
We currently employ 50+ people and before the economic slowdown we employed over 70 local people. We are active in the community and the local chamber of commerce. We deal with several dozen local vendors on a day to day basis and many more during a month. All depend on our business for part of their livelihood. We are financially strong with great respect in the market place and community. We have strong local presence and stability.
I work every day the store is open, nine to ten hours a day. I know most of our customers and all our employees. Sunshine Dodge is my life.
On Thursday, May 14, 2009 I was notified that… Read More »
Julea Ward, a graduate student at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Michigan, was recently expelled from her counseling program and the University. EMU initiated disciplinary action after she refused to affirm a client’s homosexual behavior and asked to have the client reassigned, all before any counseling sessions took place (the client had not met with her and was unaware of her request).
I recall reading something about this last month in the local paper , but didn’t realize at the time that the student had actually been expelled from the University.
Usually May is the time of the year when students are fitted for the cap and gown, count their credits, pay their school bill and plan the parties. With a firm handshake and a costly piece of paper, they will start their lives in the real world.
President Obama has signed the “Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act” into law. This bill, approved in the U.S. Senate with the substantial assistance of Utah Republican Senator Orrin Hatch, expands the civilian “volunteer” Americorps funded by the federal government (many of these “volunteers” receive a significant stipend for their service).
This sounds wonderful (love thy neighbor as thyself), except that…
Law Center challenges basis of DHS report on right-wing extremist threat
Ann Arbor, Mich., Apr 15, 2009 / 09:04 pm (CNA).- The Thomas More Law Center announced today that it has filed a request with the Department of Homeland Security challenging the basis for their recent “Threat of Right-Wing Extremism” report, which says those who oppose abortion, gun control, and immigration laws pose a potential threat to national security.
Legislator to colleagues: ‘Your laws not authorized by Constitution‘
By Chelsea Schilling
Sponsored by Rep. John Shadegg, R-Ariz., H.R. 450, or the Enumerated Powers Act, states, “Each Act of Congress shall contain a concise and definite statement of the constitutional authority relied upon for the enactment of each portion of that Act. The failure to comply with this section shall give rise to a point of order in either House of Congress. …”
When he introduced the proposal Jan. 9, Shadegg gave a House floor speech reminding his colleagues of limited authority granted in the 10th Amendment of the United States Constitution.
It states, “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”
“What that means is that the Founding Fathers intended our national government to be a limited government, a government of limited powers that cannot expand its legislative authority into areas reserved to the states or to the people,” Shadegg said. “As the final amendment in the 10 Bill of Rights, it is clear that the Constitution establishes a Federal Government of specifically enumerated and limited powers.“
“This measure would enforce a constant and ongoing re-examination of the role of our national government,” he said. “… It is simply intended to require a scrutiny that we should look at what we enact and that, by doing so, we can slow the growth and reach of the Federal Government, and leave to the states or the people, those functions that were reserved to them by the Constitution.”
Shadegg said the act would perform three important functions:
It would encourage members of Congress to consider whether their proposed legislation belongs in the federal level in the allocation of powers or whether it belongs with the states or the people.
It would force lawmakers to include statements explaining by what authority they are acting.
It would give the U.S. Supreme Court the ability to scrutinize constitutional justification for every piece of legislation. If the justification does not hold up, the courts and the people could hold Congress accountable and eliminate acts that reach beyond the scope of the Constitution.
“(T)he Constitution gives the Federal Government only 18 specific enumerated powers, just 18 powers,” Shadegg noted.
“Let me be clear,” he said. “Virtually all the measures which go beyond the scope of the powers granted to the Federal Government by the 10th amendment are well-intentioned. But unfortunately, many of them are not authorized by the Constitution. The Federal Government has ignored the Constitution and expanded its authority into every aspect of human conduct, and quite sadly, it is not doing many of those things very well.”
While many believe government “can do anything,” that is not what the Founding Fathers intended for the nation, Shadegg contends.
WND columnist Henry Lamb has been urging voters to contact (your) representatives and ask directly if they will co-sponsor and vote for the Enumerated Powers Act, or explain why not – in writing.
“Nothing short of massive public pressure will force congressmen to take a position on this important bill.” Lamb wrote. “Nothing short of a return to the Constitution can save this great nation.”
Rep. Louise Slaughter, D-N.Y., chairs the House Rules Committee, and Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., chairs the House Judiciary Committee – where the act was referred Jan. 9 and remains today.
“Both of these committee chairs should be bombarded with phone calls and e-mails asking that H.R. 450 be brought to the House floor for a recorded vote,” Lamb wrote.
UPDATE: Like all breaking web-stories that are in their early hours of existence, it can be difficult to separate fact from rumor and hoax. The following story has proponents and detractors. Some insist it is a hoax (I hope so!), while others insist it’s accurate (please, no…).
Isn’t it terrifying that the mere idea of the Obama Administration taking such an action is even remotely plausible?!!
UPDATE 2: This story/hoax/rumor apparently originated from a Bloomberg Business News story entitled “China Needs U.S. Guarantees for Treasuries, Yu Says“ (excerpt below)
China should seek guarantees that its $682 billion holdings of U.S. government debt won’t be eroded by “reckless policies,” said Yu Yongding, a former adviser to the central bank. …
China may voice its concerns over U.S. government finances and the potential for a weaker dollar when Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visits China on Feb. 20, according to He Zhicheng, an economist at Agricultural Bank of China, the nation’s third-largest lender by assets. …
“In talks with Clinton, China will ask for a guarantee that the U.S. will support the dollar’s exchange rate and make sure China’s dollar-denominated assets are safe,” said He in Beijing. “That would be one of the prerequisites for more purchases.”
UPDATE 4: Leave it to the folks at World Net Daily to get the straight scoop. The Secretary of State’s office says no way – this is so untrue (or words to that effect). I’m glad to hear it. However, I’m still left with my earlier troubling thoughts - Isn’t it terrifying that the mere idea of the Obama Administration taking such an action is even remotely plausible?
Sources at the United States Embassy in Beijing China have just CONFIRMED to me that the United States of America has tendered to China a written agreement which grants to the People’s Republic of China, an option to exercise Eminent Domain within the USA, as collateral for China’s continued purchase of US Treasury Notes and existing US Currency reserves!
The written agreement was brought to Beijing by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and was formalized and agreed-to during her recent trip to China.
This means that in the event the US Government defaults on its financial obligations to China, the Communist Government of China would be permitted to physically take — inside the USA — land, buildings, factories, perhaps even entire cities – to satisfy the financial obligations of the US government.
Put simply, the feds have now actually mortgaged the physical land and property of all citizens and businesses in the United States. They have given to a foreign power, their Constitutional power to “take” all of our property, as actual collateral for continued Chinese funding of US deficit spending and the continued carrying of US national debt.
This is an unimaginable betrayal of every man, woman and child in the USA. An outrage worthy of violent overthrow.
I am endeavoring to obtain images or copies of the actual document but in the interim, several different sources both in the US and in China have CONFIRMED this to me.
More details as they become available. . . . . spread the word ASAP.
This designated conservative has a hard time contemplating such a betrayal of our national sovereignty by a sitting President and Secretary of State as an actual fact. I sincerely hope that there is nothing to the story, because if true such an action absolutely meets the U.S. Constitution’s definition of “high crimes and misdemeanors.”
Such an agreement would be unconstitutional, treasonous, and an impeccably impeachable offense. Of course, so is deliberately trashing the U.S. economy (the Generational Theft Act of 2009, universal health care, $Billions for ACORN, the Pork-Laden Omnibus Spending bill, and the nearly $4 Trillion 2010 Budget proposal), damaging national security (withdraw from Iraq, cutting defense spending, Illegal Alien Amnesty II, etc. etc.), and the rest of the rush-to-implement Democrat Party agenda.
Even as we bask in the remarkable success of the Chicago Tea Party movement this week, we can easily contemplate the ship of state sinking beneath our feet….
So far, this Designated Conservative, like all of the Tea Party protesters across the U.S., has received no response from President Obama to my April Fool’s Day Tea Party letter… …at least until now. Click here for more….
FAIRNESS DOCTRINE UPDATE: …and for the last (and least) word on local Tax Day Tea Parties, we offer up this excerpt from a liberal extremist perspective (otherwise known as the new “in-crowd” at the Department of Homeland Security), as offered on MarkMaynard.com about the modest gathering held at the Ypsilanti City Hall….
None of these people gave a flying f**k about the forged documents concerning yellow cake uranium that led us into a war in which hundreds of thousands of people have died, but here they are today, actually taking to the streets with signs, questioning the legitimacy of the President’s birth certificate.
It’s absolutely mind boggling.
Do I think that we still have problems? Hell yes. Under the Bush administration, our rights were systematically stripped from us, and my hope had been that Obama would be quicker about restoring them. But it’s only been a few months. And my sense is that he’s trying.
FAIR USE UPDATE: (hat tip to Michelle Malkin) Apparently, CNN is trying to hide the Obamantics of their reporter at the Chicago Tax Day Tea Party – the original FoundingBloggers video was taken down by YouTube at CNN’s request. Here is a replacement link:
(from Newsbusters.com)
It is pretty telling that on-air “reporter” Roesgen’s email address suddenly returns as address unknown, isn’t it? Why is CNN so afraid of hearing from its viewers?
If you’d like to email CNN about its unprofessional “journalists” try these other email addresses:
CNN Executive Vice President Ken Jautz: ken.jautz@cnn.com
Philip Kent, the Chairman & CEO of CNN: phil.kent@turner.com
“The ‘tea parties’ being held today by groups of right-wing activists, and fueled by FOX News Channel, are an effort to mislead the public about the Obama economic plan that cuts taxes for 95 percent of Americans and creates 3.5 million jobs,” Schakowsky said in a statement.
“It’s despicable that right-wing Republicans would attempt to cheapen a significant, honorable moment of American history with a shameful political stunt,” she added. “Not a single American household or business will be taxed at a higher rate this year. Made to look like a grassroots uprising, this is an Obama bashing party promoted by corporate interests, as well as Republican lobbyists and politicians.”
This is the strongest language to date opposing the protesters, which, according to some estimates, topped 250,000 across the country.
For this designated conservative, these comments and Mark’s other (more graphic) post that went down into the no-class Anderson Cooper/CNN gutter (referring to the Tea Party attendees by the vulgar “teabaggers”) serve as a reminder that freedom and liberty-focused conservatives truly are speaking a language that Obamanation liberals can no longer understand.
For my Obamanation liberal readers, the Tea Parties are about:
protesting the growing intrusiveness of our federal government,
the resulting erosion of personal freedom and liberty,
the unconstitutional usurping of state sovereignty by the Democrat Congressional leadership, and
the borrow-and-spend proclivities and creeping socialistic tendencies of our ballooning federal government.
For Michigan, add in protests against the increasingly taxing, I-never-saw-a-state-employee-or-state-program-that-isn’t absolutely-essential proclivities of our Governor Jennifer Granholm and her best bud Speaker of the Michigan House, Andy Dillon.
Like the first Boston Tea Party, taxes have part in that – but are not the be-all and end-all of the protests.
Go to the Tax Day Tea Party website for all the latest news and updates nationally, and check out the Designated Conservative’s favorite site for Michigan political news and views, RightMichigan.com, for links to Michigan Tea Party events.
Americans for Prosperity-Michigan has arranged for Joe “the Plumber” Wurzelbacher to speak at the rally. This is your opportunity to meet an ordinary man who was not afraid to publicly question a national politician.
What: Michigan Taxpayer Tea Party When: Wednesday, April 15, 2009 – High Noon Where: Capitol Steps, Capitol Avenue, Lansing, Michigan Why: Protest out-of-control politicians who are borrowing against your great grandchildren’s yet-to-be earned income.
Plans are underway for a follow up to the successful “Chicago Tea Parties” around the U.S.: The following is from a new site called “Tax Day Tea Party“:
Building upon the success of the February 27th “Chicago Tea Party” Rallies, many of the organizers are now working to develop an even larger day of protests set to happen on April 15th, 2009.
Our goal with this website is to try and help pull a lot of the Tea Party event organization in to one easy to navigate and user friendly place on the web. We learned, after much feedback, that one of the biggest frustrations was the difficulty in finding information. Our hope is that this website will solve a lot of these problems.
Planning a Tax Day Tea Party? Visit http://taxdayteaparty.com to post your information and contact details on the site.
“…I wanted to let you all know about the Michigan Tea Party being held on Friday, February 27, 2009. Grassroots patriots from all across Michigan will join thousands across the nation in a Nationwide Chicago Tea Party. It is from 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm at the Michigan State Capitol, 100 N. Capitol Ave, Lansing.”
What started as a twitter conversation between local RIGHTY bloggers… Joan from The World According to Me, Wendy Day from For a Better Day and twitter-maven MelanieAnn79, turned into an event that drew hundreds of taxpayers to the Capitol steps from all across Michigan.
Wendy, Joan and the team will be blogging about the event in their own awesome way but I wanted to give them each a shout-out and a big congrats on an amazing turn-out, that had everyone buzzing, from both regular citizens, moms, dads and kids all the way to the mainstream media…
Folks are fed up and they are not going to take it any more. These weren’t Republicans and they weren’t Democrats. Both parties were roundly and lustily booed for their hands in the Congress’s recent out-of-control spending. These were Michiganders coming together simply to say enough is enough.
UPDATE 2: Here is the video “rant by a CNBC reporter at the Chicago Board of Trade that got this movement started:
UPDATE 3: More links to pictures and news about the Lansing, Michigan “Chicago Tea Party” have been posted at RightMichigan.com. Click here!
I ran across this excellent article by Mark Tapscott on the DC Examiner website that gave me, a designated conservative of the Republican Party, some hope for the future. What is that hope? The “NetGen.” Who are they? As Tapscott notes:
The NetGeners are the future of the conservative movement because they are the heart and muscle of an historic opportunity to restore and reinvigorate our ideals of individual freedom and limited government.
Who are the NetGeners? And why do I believe they hold such promise for the Right? Because the NeT Geners are at the confluence of the Internet as the dominant communications tool, economic platform and social connector, the demographic reality of a generation growing into adulthood whose numbers exceed even that of the vaunted Baby Boomers, and the intrinsic contradiction between the politics of centralization that currently defines politics and governance and the culture of choice that defines the coming majority of Americans.
The NetGen are usually defined as Americans born between 1977 and 1997. Tapscott goes on to note in his article that research has found that this rising generation of Americans hold several conservative-oriented values in common, including freedom, customization, and collaboration.
1. Freedom.
“Net Geners expect freedom, especially in the workplace. ‘They prefer flexible hours and compensation that is based on their performance and market value, not based on face time in the office.’ But the insistence on individual freedom doesn’t just impact the workplace. Net Geners expect choice everywhere, and why not when they have grown up with a multitude of consumer choices in their daily lives. Think iPOD and the multiplicity of songs available through iTunes.”
2. Customization.
“They also love having the opportunity to adapt, to customize products to suit their particular needs. Think TiVo, which allows individuals to watch what they want when they want, and to skip through the commercials while doing so. Is a generation that demands the freedom to choose from among thousands of widgets that provide infinite adaptability likely to be satisfied with a government-run health care systemthat by definition can provide few choices and for whom customization controlled by individual customers is intrinsically alien?”
3. Collaboration.
“I believe the culture of collaboration among Net Geners is the norm that most threatens the liberal moment. A generation that expects to be free, to be able to customize and to be able to scrutinize authority is also a generation that is discovering a multitude of ways in which the Internet empowers what used to be called the “thousand points of light.” (T)hat is exactly why liberals are doomed to fail in the Internet age – because the dominant values of the Net Geners empower individuals, not collectives.”
Tapscott also offers the most concise definition of conservatism I’ve seen in many a moon:
“Conservatism is all about individual freedom, decentralizing government and empowering local communities to solve their own problems.”
If these children of the Baby Boomers get together with the Reagan Generation (those of us old enough to have voted in 1980 or ‘84), there is no stopping a rejuvinated conservative movement. So, those of the rising NetGeneration, let your light shine forth in the darkness of Obamanation, and become the next designated conservatives for the republican party!
UPDATE: The intent of this idea of going “cold turkey” on the federal income tax is really all about restoring the constitutional balance between the federal government, state governments, and the people. The founding fathers viewed the potential of the federal government to accumulate power and trample on freedom and liberty with trepidation. In response, the authors of the constitution and Bill of Rights included as many checks, balances, and fences around federal authority as possible.
One of the natural limitations on federal power was the ability to tax. Limited federal revenues naturally limited federal power. This began to change with the passage of the 16th Amendment. The federal-state-people relationship turned virtually upside-down in the wake of the New Deal, World War II, and especially with the Great Society social-welfare explosion of the 1960s and 70s.
The only way to begin the process of restoring the proper federal/states constitutional balance is to…
.
