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POLITICALSOLUTIONS.INFO
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Get your free removable window sticker, at no cost to
you, by E-mailing me your mailing address to: jmarinoesq@netzero.com
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Lets get rid of the present members of Congress.
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Welcome to my website and blog: I use
this site as my method to share my political views and solutions to issues that most concern everyone in the U.S. today. You
can expect me to write about a new subject ever few days or so. I invite you to voice your ideas and help me solve our
national problems. Unlike congress, I will listen to your concerns and together, we can act with our votes. About me: I have 85 years of life experience involving
solving problems. I'm a retired attorney, living in Florida. Andy Looney is my pen name because I just might be
"looney" to think the American people can solve these long standing problems in America. We know congress hasn't
been able and continues to not be able to for years. I welcome your comments, so let's start some dialog people!
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Sunday, November 29, 2009
THE DEMOCRAT’S HEALTH CARE BILL IS
BAD MEDICINE AND MAKESALL OF US SICK
November 21, 2009
Dear president Barack Obama:
In your misguided haste to pass a so called, health care
reform bill, you and congress will only manage to pass a bill that will bankrupt the nation, destroy the Medicare and Medicaid
systems and bring economic chaos to our already too expensive health care system.
You have predictably taken down congress with this ill conceived, ill advised, unconstitutional, and excessively costly
health bill. The cost figures are illusionary, and the plan to cut costs, is missing. You
say Medicare will be cut a half trillion dollars but you don’t have the guts to tell us how you plan to do it, because
you don’t know yourself. It is all smoke and mirrors and the American people deserve to know
the truth. As a retiree, we worry where and how our Medicare will be cut.
In case you
and congress did not know it, the main reason why 30-to 40 million Americans do not have health care insurance coverage, is
that they cannot afford its high cost. There are also a few million Americans that could afford it
but have decided, as they have a right to do, not to purchase it because of its high cost which is double that of available
in other countries of the world.
In
each case, all you and congress need do is to find ways and means and the mandate for the needed reform of a system, to make
it affordable to all Americans except the very poor who have it available under our Medicaid system anyway. You
and your democratic conspirators may be quietly plan to include the illegal immigrants in this plan when you pass the second
amnesty bill, but I can assure you the American public will never allow this to happen, if you and congress expect to stay
in office. There is no question
but Medicare and Medicaid costs have risen out of control but that is because our government has not prevented the abuse and
fraud of these programs which has escalated in recent years, mainly, due to failure of the government to police these very
programs, as it should.
When the US house of representatives pressed the passage of a nearly 2000 page bill,
which few members have read or could ever understand because of time restraints, on a Saturday night after secret sessions
in smoke filled rooms with illegal deals and favors to recalcitrant members to buy their vote, something is wrong with our
representative form of government that needs to be changed immediately. This is the opposite to the way
our founding fathers envivisioned our government would run, for the benefit of the country, not the benefit of any political
party.
Now, the US Senate is grappling with this health care plan, which the democratically
controlled senate is bound and determined to pass, if only because the republican members are against it for any reason.
Today, the full senate has been forced to meet at another rare Saturday session, to foist a vote of closure on its
senate health bill which no one has read or is aware of its contents, just to show the opposition just who is in charge in
that supposed August body. The democrats have closed ranks by buying off at least three opposing
democratic members to attain closure while the relative merits of the bill have not even been fully argued or debated in the
senate. Just as the House of Representatives have failed to do, the public has not been presented
with a copy of the proposed bill, in spite of your campaign promises to do so. What has happened to your
campaign promise that you could bring the opposing parties together to work to solve the nation’s problems? That
“can do” attitude is now a- can’t do reality.
You have been selected to receive a peace prize by an uninformed noble prize committee, when you have failed to bring
peace and unity in the government you are charged to lead. You may not like to hear these complaints,
but we know not any other way to get your attention in these desperate times, while you brazenly run off to foreign countries,
and from state to state in fundraising activity, leaving your obligation to your country unattended at home. Please,
do not think for a second, that these are the complaints of a lone disgruntled American because they are the feelings of a
frustrated and disillusioned majority of Americans who cannot wait for the relief due them, you promised, but have failed
to act and deliver to us.
When you and the government propose to force an American to buy insurance and fine him
if they don’t buy it, you are only helping the insurance industry and illegally and unconstitutionally punishing law
abiding Americans and depriving them of freedom of choice, you plan to tax insurance companies that issue Cadillac plans who
will, out of necessity and custom pass the cost over to the American consumer. With unemployment at
all time records you can expect the government to be responsible for millions of more Medicaid and welfare benefits seekers.
You and congress have allowed a 1.2 trillion dollar budget deficit this fiscal year with the likelihood the deficit
will arise to 2 trillion by next year. In the ten years you and the treasury forecast the national debt
will reach 20 trillion dollars which you are condemning our children and grandchildren to pay. This
is not fiscal responsibility, but the insanity of congress and you politicians, who are pushing us all into bankrupcy along
with the government we love.
If you think you and congress think you can fool
the American people another time, you better think twice, and remember the admonition of Abraham Lincoln in this regard, “you
can fool some of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time”.
First, you and congress have attempted to fool us with the bank bailout
bill.
Second, you and congress passed the stimulus
or economic recovery act eight months ago that has not stimulate one permanent job for the unemployed.
Third, you and congress passed a phony credit card reform bill that will
not reform anything and leave interest rates at about 30%. Three strikes and you out in any ball game and
this ball game are over for you and congress. If you don’t believe me, watch the popularity
polls and the next election, even if the last election results have failed to give you the warning.
If you are really
interested in cutting medical costs, which should be our first priority, you should first eliminate the free health care coverage
for all federal employees and elected officials, and cut the cost of government 10% a year for the next five years as a starter
and make any future medical coverage the responsibility of each individual person and employee. This will
help our stagnant economy recover and put money back into the treasury. No new health plan or taxing
plans to pay for it should be passed by congress, as long as we are in this economic crisis, unless
you want a real revolution at the polls.
Please tell congress instead,
to concentrate its efforts on finding permanent employment for our unemployed, who should be our first priority in these trying
times for most Americans. Your proposed health care reform plan is making us all sick! Finally, it is time for
all you politicians to work for the people who elected you and not for your respective political parties you think you are
beholden. It is time for all of you to act in the best interest of the country and all Americans, and your
reward or fate will be decided at the election booth, very soon.
Thursday, November 26, 2009
THANKSGIVING MUST BE CANCELLED THIS YEAR
November 16, 2009
An open letter to president Obama,
It is with great regret and sadness that we advise you to cancel the celebration of Thanksgiving this year, 2009.
Simply put, it is because we have experienced nothing, in this country in the last year to be thankful for.
The following is a small list of some reasons why we have nothing good to celebrate this past year.
1.
We installed you as our new president with all the hope and confidence
of the “changes” you promised and the “can do” attitude that you promised us.
Unfortunately, all those promises were empty and unfulfilled to date, which have left us disappointed.
You marched into Washington while appointing the same gang of politicians you promised to replace.
2.
Unemployment was at 5 % when you took office and has doubled since
then, with no hope or plan to improve this huge and vital problem of suffering humanity you have mostly ignored completely.
3.
You and your moneyed advisors were quick to throw our money at the
country’s financial institutions obstensively to free up loans to the public at large, but they all pocketed our money,
played the stock market, refused to account for it while granting outlandish pay and bonuses to these high officials and lavish
parties for their agents at plush resorts, not one loan has been made to any business or person that would not have been made
without the trillion dollar “donation” to these financial institutions you said were too big
to fail but, should have been allowed to fail because they were the root cause of this debauchery. One
hundred and twenty-two banks have failed this year; the very banks you said would be bolstered to give out the needed loans
and mortgages.
4. The mortgage foreclosure problem
has gotten worse, resulting in a steady decline in values of real estate and rental values, which has resulted in more mortgages
to exceed the value of the property and prompting more mortgage foreclosures, while you do nothing to help keep the homeowner
in their home, and off the street with their belongings. You cannot expect banks to give mortgages when
real estate values are dropping indeterminably.
5. It
is for this same reason that your plan to give an $8,000.00 credit to home buyers from our treasury is not sound because it
really helps only those, working with steady jobs to buy the homes of the unemployed who are losing their homes by foreclosure,
at bargain prices while the government picks up the tab under FHA, veterans and Fanny Mae guaranteed loans. Again,
our treasury and our money is being spent and increasing the national debt. You should be helping
the unemployed instead since they and their families are suffering.
6. Speaking of national debt you and congress have managed to spend and spend on stupid projects that
have doubled the national debt in less than a year, from 5 trillion to ten or eleven trillion dollars and counting, since
the budget deficit is more than a trillion a year.
7.
That phony “national recovery act bill,”
passed by congress at your behest, amounting to about a trillion dollars in pork barrel projects, has done nothing to create
the ten million permanent jobs needed to get us out of this recession, Of course, most of this money
went to cities and town, and state and the federal government to help them keep their political friends and employees on the
job because of the shortfall in income due to the high unemployment. If this money was used to employ the
unemployed also, everyone would gain, not just your political friends.
8. Helping those two auto companies with huge loans was a waste of our treasury funds since Chrysler
will never be able to pay these loans back, and you have violated the principle of the free enterprise our country has flourished
on, free and open competition amongst businesses. The better way to have handled this problem was
to put import taxes in foreign autos and parts, this would have put money in our treasury not out of it while helping our
auto industry to compete. It is also obvious that labor union have operated solely for their
benefit while destroying the industry the workers are employed at. The net result of your gifts to
the auto industry is that they are downsizing and laying-off more workers, to the unemployment line instead.
You may have helped the industry, temporarily but, not the worker, labor and the industry must be made to join together
to meet the competition and survive, jointly.
9.
You and congress have spent all this time on a health plan that does not
guarantee that the cost of health care will be reduced but is projected to cost a trillion dollars more in
the next ten years. All you needed to do was to reduce the costs of health care so everyone
could afford it, as that was the reason people do not buy it. Everyone needs reasonable health care, not
health care at any cost. Your plan is outrageously high in cost and will not work until the costs
are addressed first.
10.
It was the free trade pacts that have caused the bulk
of the unemployment in this country. American businesses have rushed overseas to find the cheaper labor
in China and other third world countries. This has not only caused America a big share of the unemployment
problem it has caused a trillion dollar yearly deficit in our trade for durable goods which is also draining our net worth
and reducing the value of our dollar. What we need is a fair trade policy, akin to a barter system with
these countries; they may sell all they want, as long as they take payment in American made goods that are not strategic to
us, such as oil, and other such items.
11.
Speaking of oil, congress and every administration for the last forty years,
have allowed our country to be increasingly dependent on foreign and domestic oil and subject to the whim of the foreign OPEC
and oil cartels control of prices. Almost 50% of our oil comes from foreign countries while the oil deficit
has reached a trillion dollars a year, draining our net worth and reducing the value of our dollar, worldwide.
You have planned nothing to halt this practice that brought our country to its knees in July 2008 with $4.00 a gallon
gasoline and fuel oil. This was the breaking point for the auto companies because they were manufacturing
huge gas guzzling clunkers. Since your election to the presidency, you have not enunciated a real and definite
plan to quickly rid us of our dependency on oil. We need a crash program, backed by the US government,
to produce alternative fuels within the next five years to solve this problem, while in the meantime oil in nearing the $3.00
a gallon range, too high for the hurting American consumer and the transportation industry who merely passes the high cost
of diesel fuel along to the already hurting Americans in the form of higher food and other transportation costs.
12. The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have been draining the life blood of our country
and the economy and well being our troops and country. Our military have been stretched to the limit, and
the troops are suffering too much with stupid deployment after deployment. It is time to end these conflicts
and stop this nation building action of our country in those places we had no right to invade in the first place.
Unless and until the problem with Israeli and the Muslim nations is solved, we will be targets of hate and conflict,
worldwide. Solve that problem and the fanatical Muslims will settle down to a peaceful existence with America,
England and Israel.
13. The
American people have been living on a deep credit economy with high credit card balances and mortgages maxed to the limit
to make end meet for the last ten years, wages have been stagnant while taxes and costs have increased dramatically. The country
and the people are in tough financial condition and it will take the best efforts of a real American president to help the
American people and the country out of this mess. You sir, have failed to make the changes you promised
the people who elected you to the job you sought. Now, it is high time you work for the good of the
American people and no one else before all faith and trust in you is irretrievably lost. If and when you solve these problems you promised to solve and
bring the country the relief we so dearly need, maybe we can celebrate our Thanksgiving Day holiday in the same spirit intended
by our pilgrim fathers, nearly four hundred years ago, in Plymouth Massachusetts.
Sunday, November 22, 2009
THE ROAD TO ECONOMIC RECOVERY IN AMERICA MUST BE PAVED WITH MILLIONS OF PERMANENT JOBS
An open letter to the president:
November 20, 2009
Dear president Barack Obama: Maybe, at this point, you
are ready to realize the economy and unemployment are rightly the main concerns of the suffering American people that need
your attention, today. If you are not prepared immediately to try methods to correct these
pressing problems, you certainly can expect them to get worse, during your term of office. You were elected on the promise of a “can do”
administration but, one year later, the economy has worsened and unemployment has continued to increase.
All those temporary measures passed by congress nine months ago, were only of temporary significance, but now the time
and money has run out and we need permanent jobs to lift us out of this serious economic crisis, as the improvement in the
economy will follow, only in a country with full employment.
The following suggestions are a mere outline of what we think is needed to get us on the road to recovery.
1. The
very first step is to have congress repeal the bush tax cut for the rich because, in this emergency, we need all that tax
money to help the economy recover. And help our budget to be balanced. Every American
should think of giving something back to their country who made their dreams possible and now is the best time to show their
gratitude, in their country’s needs.
2.
We are in a national
emergency, with the economy in shambles. It is time to initiate wage and price
controls on all our products, especially gasoline, diesel and fuel oils, to prevent inflation and help the economy, recover.
Also, with our troops sacrificing in two wars. For eight years the American people should not be receiving huge profits
or wages at this time, but should also sacrifice and contribute in some way.
3. For the same reason, we must condition all our imports from foreign countries on an oil and goods for American goods,
barter type basis, so that under # 2 above and this #3, our trade deficit will be reduced to zero, immediately and this should
bolster the production of goods for export and domestic consumption in this country almost immediately, this action will put
Americans back on the production lines, and reduce unemployment, drastically.
4. We
need the government to encourage and assist American companies to help develop all the alternative fuels and energy sources
available in the 50 states. In a crash five year program we are talking solar, wind water, thermal, clean coal, nuclear and,
all sources of electricity, batteries and, hydrogen energy must be developed and produced at an affordable price to rid us
of our dependence on oil, domestic and foreign. This should have been done thirty five years ago,
when OPEC first brought us to our knees. And to long lines at the pump. Temporary income and real
estate tax incentives must be offered to these startup and developing businesses. This alone will
put millions of workers into permanent jobs while service and construction jobs will also benefit.
5. The
auto industry must be encouraged to produce and sell all electric or hydrogen cars at reasonable prices to soon help rid ourselves
of our dependence on oil once and for all time.
6. Labor unions have done nothing to help their unemployed workers.
It is time for these unions to invest their huge health and welfare and pension funds in companies that have or plan
to move overseas, buy up these factories and keep their union men employed and paying their union dues so they both may survive
and prosper. Unions have helped price their members out of the world market with their constant
demand for wages and benefits, union must become partners of industry, not their enemy.
7. The government must encourage and help small businesses in the USA. To increase their competitiveness
in the market place. These mom and pop businesses are the backbone of our free
enterprise system and they can successfully compete with big business because of their hands on control and their no frills
low overhead.
8.
Until and unless the mortgage crisis is addressed and mortgage foreclosures
end, the housing and the construction industry cannot recover from this deep recession. The
unwarranted granting of excessively high mortgages by greedy banks and investment institutions has been the chief contributing
cause of this economic crisis which has now lasted unabated for more than two years. We need to have banks
stop these foreclosures of homes and business properties, as long as the owners pay enough money (equal to the current rental
value) to carry the property until the economy and the owners are in position to resume their obligations under their mortgages
. In some cases, said owners should be able to have their mortgages reduced based on the fact the
mortgage balance exceeds the sale value of the property, if foreclosure is chosen. This
action will stop the flood of property onto the already saturated property market which, day by day, continues to depress
values even further. This will also stop the steady decline of home values, over the last two
years and the stabilized market will bring confidence to the public and contractors and
investors to begin building again the construction industry is the sole remain enterprise free from foreign
competition and its recovery is vital to re-employ million of workers at sites and material factories.
This is the main reason those 122 local banks have failed. If the big banks are too big to fail,
the small banks are too local to fail and should have been bailed out at the same time.
9. It is estimated that 20-25, million illegal immigrants and overstayed visa holders now reside in the US.
At least one half of them are holding down jobs that Americans are now willing to perform. It is
high time we identify these illegals and send them back from whence they came, until our country has full employment again.
It is needless to say this action will be applauded by the unemployed and their exit will save the country countless
other costs, economically.
10. Since our armed forces are worn thin, with too many multiple tours of duty for our brave troops, the
time has come for a real change in our recruitment practices. We need to encourage eighteen year
olds to join the services as they graduate from high school for a three year hitch. The incentive
should be a sure job and free training and a commitment for an additional three years of college or vocational training at
government expense. In addition, all these veterans and others should be given free medical
attention at all the available veterans’ facilities throughout the country, for life. We need to
build more veterans homes for all old and totally disabled veterans and for the one and a half homeless veterans, wandering
our streets. They are obviously suffering emotionally and economically.
This action will provide an endless supply of young men to the service of their country, year after year and provide
them with a good start in their lives, for the future, while solving their employment problem for the next three years or
more, and help make them hire able.
11. We need to mandate that all students must remain in school until age eighteen, (not sixteen), in either
scholastic or vocational training. Those who do not join the armed services after graduation
from high school should be conscripted for three years of public service to their nation, state and cities and towns,
in every capacity needed. The result will be that these young people will be assured
of a job and training for at least the first three years of their formative and productive lives while serving their communities
and nation and acquiring the work ethic needed to help make them good citizens for life. This
plan will provide jobs at reasonable costs and save the public sector the cost of full time help, and all the attending costly
benefits.
12. Those students who opt for vocational training or public service, along with returning veterans must have a government
run or controlled re-employment placement service available, to seek permanent jobs
at the end of their three years of service, with incentives to employers to hire these well trained young men and women as
they return from their valued public service, health insurance coverage for their families must also cover
these young people until age 21 or three years after graduation. Unless they are in the armed services.
Conclusion: Each
of these 12 suggested solutions to the unemployment problem today, when added together, will assuredly help the economy while
eliminating the unemployment problem in the US within a year or so. There is no
assurance they all will be workable, but we certainly need to consider each carefully in our effort to help our country out
of this deep recession.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
5:57 pm
OUR COUNTRY IS BEING ATTACKED FROM WITHIN
An open letter to the President of the United States:
November 14, 2009
Dear president Barack Obama:
The tax free organized religions in America are attempting to control our US government
changes our constitution and even destroys our beloved country and our freedom.
In spite
of the fact that I am a Roman Catholic, I, and a majority of Americans are pro- divorce, pro- abortion
and pro-equal rights for gays, although, the church has steadfastly stood and preached
against these rights, I am an American first and foremost. As I say these
words, I am shocked by the misguided claim by US army major Nidal Hasan, that, I am a Muslin first and American second.”
Unfortunately these words led to the tragic massacre of innocent Americans at Fort
Hood, just last week so, when these questions come up, I feel an absolute obligation to uphold our constitution for these
rights rather than to defy or deny the right of every American to have these constitutional rights.
As an attorney
who graduated a Jesuit law school, I was confronted with the dilemma between the teachings of the Catholic Church and the
law I was sworn to uphold. When a prospective client asked me to represent her in a divorce action
at the beginning of my practice of law, I immediately realized that to let my religion interfere with my obligation as a lawyer
to give full representation to my entire client, would be a disservice to my clients and to my profession as a lawyer, sworn
to follow the US laws.
By the same token, I would not quarrel with anyone who chooses to privately follow
the teachings of the Catholic Church in these regards, just as long as they do not try to foist their religious beliefs on
any American who believes otherwise and chooses to follow the US constitution. I am shocked and dismayed
when I recently heard high church leaders, such as the Bishop of Providence Rhode Island berate US congressman, Patrick Kennedy,
for voting recently to include the right to abortion in the proposed provisions of the pending health care reform legislation.
When a church gives a government representative the ultimatum to vote the church’s teaching over the constitutional
rights of Americans, or to leave the church, it is time for action against that religion for attempting to interfere with
the rights of all Americans. It is time for the Catholic Church to clean up its own act, stop it’s
cover-up of pedophile priests, and to openly challenge the constitutional rights of Americans and the government to be free
of religious advice and control.
Do not attempt to argue
this was only an isolated incident, because the Catholic Church a has been steadfast in these beliefs along
with many others including, refusing women the same rights as men to join the priesthood and relegating women to a subservient
positions in the Catholic Church, banning the marriage of priests in the process.
I, for one am convinced this ban was one principle cause of many pedophile men being attracted to the priesthood, their
recently exposed actions, have caused the Catholic Church near fatal harm, embarrassment and tremendous costs in reparations
to victims.
At the funeral of Senator Ted Kennedy, I understand you were approached by Cardinal
O’Malley of Boston, who implored you to oppose the inclusion of abortion rights in your proposed health care legislation
for all Americans and, also to help the illegal aliens. This revelation is most shocking coming from a
person who one day may be in consideration as a future Pope of the Catholic Church. The very first lines
of the very first amendment to the US constitution, reads, “congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of
religion, or the prohibiting of the free exercise thereof…” obviously the intention of our forefathers and framers
of our constitution, made it quite clear that religion should pay no part in government and court decisions have continuously
upheld this mandate. This constant attempt by religious leaders to influence our government
and its leaders is not restricted to Catholics alone. The so-called moral majority made up of many
protestant faith churches have recently unabashedly challenged the Republican Party and anyone that believes in abortions
or equal rights for gay people.
The most recent example was amply
demonstrated in the 25th US congressional district in New York State, where the national republican
party openly opposed the candidate selected by the local republican party and even went so far as to back a so-called, conservative
candidate. The unfortunate result, for republicans, was that a democratic opponent was elected in
a traditionally republican district for the first time in a hundred or more years. I am also reminded of
the insensitive and uncalled for remarks by a Protestant preacher who remarked that 9/11 was God’s way of punishing
the sinners of America.
Adding to this problem is the brazen and open attitude of the Catholic Church to support
the effort of some democrats to give amnesty and a path to citizenship to those unknown millions of illegal aliens and foreigners
with overstayed visas.
With our economy in shambles for the
last few years and with our unemployment figures rising daily to unprecedented figures, we need to preserve those jobs left
for Americans first and foremost and to provide permanent jobs for those suffering years of unemployment.
Today,
we heard the US government has moved against certain Muslim mosques s in the US, which are fronts for the Iranian government
and providing tax free money to its government.
I believe the time has come for all the city, state and federal governments to investigate
the activities of all the religious faiths and organizations in this country and reassess their tax exempt status, for un-American
activities and for profitable businesses in contravention of their tax free, religious, charitable and nonprofit status.
If they insist on trying to influence our political leaders and the operation of our
government in a way contrary to our US constitution, they and their properties should be taxed as political entities, just
like every other American.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Dear president Barack Obama. On this Veteran's Day, we honor the service and sacrifice our servicemen and women have
given us Americans over the years to keep us safe and free.
As a veteran of world war II, I remember how anxious we Americans were to avenge the dastardly sneak attack on the United
States at Pearl Harbor and the acts of the dictators of the axis nations in Europe, the brave French were brought to their
knees and England barely survived, because Hitler had not planned for an invasion of this island nation. Once war was declared by our president Roosevelt, everyone
put their full efforts and minds toward winning the war as soon as possible. The country was able to mobilize
its fighting men and woman, build defense plants, while our shipbuilders filled the seas with fighting ships, and our aircraft
builders filled the skies with the best planes for the fight. The entire nation joined in the task, while suffering
price and wage controls and shortages of every nature so our fighting men and women had everything they needed to win the
fight. Everyone did the job they could as best they could and, as a result, we were able to defeat the war
machines of Germany, Italy and Japan in about three and a half years, in a war that spanned every continent and sea.
The victory was complete and the surrender unconditional, so our fighting forces could return home and pickup their lives
the war had interrupted. Everyone was proud to contribute to this victory, those at home, as well as those ten
million fighting men and women in the armed forces.
Since then, we have been engaged in many conflicts, starting with South Korea, where our fighting men have been required to
stay for 55 years because of the threat of North Korea, since the war ended with a cease fire truce instead of the victory,
all fighting men expect and deserve. We did not win that fight because our president Truman was afraid to confront
China, a sleeping giant who poured men and materials into the fight along with Russian MIG fighter planes, directly against
our fighting forces. Who now does not appreciate the ignored advice of General MacArthur who was fired
because he wanted to confront China then, a third world country at the time. Then Vietnam came along, and another twelve years of war with more than 50,ooo
Americans killed in a holding war, we didn't win because no one except the WWII generals knew you can't win unless
you drive forward and conquer, close the borders and pickup the weapons the enemy could use against you.
The public became disenchanted with the war, the troops were sprayed with Agent Orange and the government made the troops
suffers the physical and mental damage from this Agent Orange and the scorn of the public for doing their job. The first Gulf War would have been a great victory if George
H. W. Bush, our president, only had let the generals finish off Sadam Hussain, in the first place. Now we are
mired down there with little chance the government will survive when we leave after seven years of fighting and nation building. Afghanistan sounded like a justified war but we did not
learn the lessons taught to the Russians before us. Get in, do the job and get out. We never finished the job,
but if Bin Laden was there we should have captured or killed him by now. Unless we are prepared to wipe out the
Taliban and the war lords by sealing the borders and picking up all the arms and munitions, we will never win there because
we are seen as invaders who will eventually leave and the Taliban will return, with the help of the controlling war lords.
After eight years there, our troops are
worn thin, tired, frustrated and disenchanted, because they know not the plan for victory. Post traumatic stress
is affecting just about everyone who fights there. We are asking too much from our brave troops. This
war is no place to send the army national guard, mostly veterans of other conflicts with families to worry about and
families that suffer as much as the troops whom are fighting. No fighting man or woman should be made
to fight for eight years, one tour of duty after another. This is insane, especially when the troops are the only
Americans suffering and sacrificing because of the war. No war should be fought without the support and assistance
and equal sacrifice of every American at home.
Ask the troops how they feel about the CEO's of those financial institutions, pulling down outrageous pays and bonuses, while
politicians are racking up big contributions for their reflection campaigns, while the business of the nation is being ignored
by all the politicians in Washington, while they are made to fight for a pittance of the wages they could get if they were
home working at their old jobs.
Even those brave troops who have suffered emotional trauma, have been denied help for years, because the armed forces
don't want to admit these men are genuinely ill and need help. After last week's tragic terrorist act at Fort Hood in
Texas, our fighting troops are not safe at their own home bases. There is no excuse for this massacre happening.
We must do a better job to protect our troops or you will see a drastic drop in enlistments, along with the public's disillusionment
for these wars. The lesson to be learned
from all these wars is that you do not go to war, unless it is absolutely necessary, and then, only as a last resort, not
the first. If you go to war, it must be to win quickly and get out. Remember the greatest invasion
in history that of Europe in 1944, succeeded in eleven months, not eleven years. They defeated the greatest fighting
force, Germany, who had conquered and controlled Europe for nearly six years. It took the skill of our best
generals and the will of all Americans and their allies to win against all odds. My brother fought with General Patton during his race
to Berlin, his men loved and admired him because he led them, even with his faults. That episode where he slapped a
crying soldier in the face, calling him a coward, was a prime example of post traumatic stress which, even he missed as great
a fighting man as he was. Not everyone can endure the constant stress of war in the field. We owe our troops everything they need to fight with and also everything
they need to return home to their loved ones and live out their lives in peace, once the battle is over. You are our Commander in Chief and we look to you to
bring a quick conclusion to these wars and the suffering of our brave fighting forces in their time of need. I am sure you may remember my grandson, Ret. Cpt.
Scott Quilty, a patient at Walter Reed Army Medical Hospital for nearly one year after losing his right arm and leg in
Iraq. He was in Iraq for only a few months before he was severely injured by a roadside bomb while leading his platoon.
The army medical corps performed
a miracle to bring him back to near normal. Today, he is married to an army occupational therapist.
They, recently had a beautiful baby boy, we call a miracle child. Mentally, he has completely recovered to the
point he has chosen to lead up the United States section of the famous Survivor's Corps, to help those, like himself who have
suffered the same type of injury and trauma. He is a credit to himself, his family and his country. It is for that reason that this day was set aside to show our
gratitude and respect for the past and present members of our armed forces. So let us resolve, never to forget
the contribution each of these Americans so unselfishly gave to the country and the people they loved, so we can enjoy the
freedom our fore fathers fought and died for, in 1776.
4:24 pm
Monday, November 9, 2009
PRESIDENT OBAMA IS A BUMMER, WHO DOES NOT KEEP
HIS WORD
We thought we elected a “can do” President who promised to bring the welcomed and needed
change in government after years of bickering and inaction by both political parties. Instead we ended
up with a part Democrat whom married the office holders and the failed system in Washington, DC. He
put them in his cabinet and the only difference is that Washington is now run by the Democratic Party in control.
While the Republicans are ignored and locked out and choose to complain and plot against the President
at every turn in true political fashion. Their motto should be do only what is good
for the party and “to hell” with the American people and their problems.
Nothing has changed for the better and in fact everything has changed for the
worse, in the year since his election, his first mistake was to help bail out the financial system in this country that put
U.S. in the economic mess we are in today. CIT has filed for bankruptcy and its failure means the 2.1 billion
dollar investment the government made in its stock is lost forever. Of course this loss
will not be picked up by Obama or congress, but the American people from our already empty treasury. The
bail out of the auto industry giants, General Motors and Chrysler, will never be paid back and the Obama plan of “trade
in your clunkers” cost the American taxpayers more billions also taken from our empty treasury.
It only took one month for the President and Congress to pass a nearly trillion dollar stimulus bill, dubbed an Economic
Recovery package by the President himself, which did nothing to produce permanent jobs for the ten million unemployed Americans
and their families, while guaranteeing the Federal, State and Municipal workers, their plush political job security, again
with money from the empty treasury. All that trillion dollar expenditure did was to
help get the politician re-elected when they should be losing their jobs, too, because we should vote them out of office.
The two wars we are waging in Iraq and Afghanistan costs us 200 billion dollars
a year from our empty treasure and six thousand lives and 35,000 maimed brave servicemen and servicewoman and counting and
for what? Osama Bin Laden is still plotting and killing our troops while we fight an invisible enemy, Bush
and Congress got us into for no good reason. Servicemen are trained to fight to win, not be targets of
every civilian that passes by. In eight years plus, we have not developed a strategy to combat the
terrorists in both countries while our brave servicemen and servicewoman are being exposed to this danger by a President that
cannot make up his mind to make up his mind. Our military Generals are asking for 40 thousand more troops
in Afghanistan added to the sixty thousand troops already there and no one can define the mission or stop the needless slaughter
of our forces in the field. Iraq is no better off, while a civil war has been raging there since we entered
to oust its leader, Saddam Hussein. What have we gained there and at what cost in blood
and to our empty treasury? Who is going to pay for these ill conceived and ill conducted ventures?
Our children and grandchildren cannot afford and should not be saddled with this bill.
This is our bill and we should be made to pay for it. The
National debt is now about eleven trillion dollars and now that the National Health Care Bill passes, you can add another
trillion dollars.
The biggest problem with Health Care its cost is twice what any other country
pays. All we need to do is to cut the costs and it will be affordable to every American.
That should be the first step before we consider anything else regarding health care. I
believe this Obama administration is using the Health Care Plan to reduce the care of those Americans on Medicare and Medicaid
and thusly cut the cost. It doesn’t take a genius to do that!
The biggest boondoggle was the Prescription Drug Plan for Medicare and Medicaid,
which was passed to help reduce the double costs of prescription drugs in the U.S. part of the bill, prevents Americans and
the Government from buying drugs at half prices in another country. The claim was that
you can’t trust the quality of foreign made drugs. Why then, I ask, are four of the five swine flu
vaccine companies providing us with the vaccine? Now, we are in a bad bind with not
enough vaccine to give to those that need it now!
Obama claims the economic recovery plan is working. Why
then, are the unemployment figures rising? Tell that to an unemployed worker, whose job went overseas in
search of cheaper labor with the assistance of the U.S., who even subsidizes and gives tax breaks to these companies.
Obama has no plan to help the unemployed. He
thinks if the stock market goes up companies will provide jobs for them. People, who
play the stock market, invest their money in the market, not the company that went public to put their company on the gambling
block. Their CEO’s are bound to cut costs so they may increase their salaries. Not
hire people, but eliminate them as much as possible. All the businesses and jobs that
went overseas are not coming back. What we need to help those unemployed, is a permanent
job in a new industry like alternative energy which will eliminate our dependence on oil. But
Obama and Congress do not want to hurt the oil companies since they have always been their biggest contributors to their campaigns.
Trade with China has been a disaster, with a trillion dollar a year deficit
in trade. Slowly but surely, in twenty years, China and the oil cartels will own all
the assets in American the only answer is balanced trade, but Congress and the President have already sold us all out in return
for money. That is why the financial institutions were bolstered up, so they will continue
to buy up the votes of Congress and the Obama administration.
Obama has been the biggest disappointment to the millions of Americans that
trusted him when he said he would stop the gridlock and change the environment in Washington DC. Instead
he has proven himself to be just another ambitious and ruthless politician and a political party man. First,
the Republican party screwed up the country in eight years with senseless wars and five trillion dollars of deficits, now
the Democratic party has continued this boondoggle and the debt has risen to about eleven trillion and counting.
We still have ten million unemployed, the dollar is dropping in value and inflation is bound to
jump up as we continue to increase our debt, by deficit spending that still has not put us back to work. Without
nearly full employment, there never will be a recovery, never! Obama had his chance,
he doesn’t event have the right attitude so there is no hope for help from him or Congress and soon we will be in another
depression.
When will the American people realize that, to have the change they need
to put the Country on the right track, is to throw out all the incumbent Congress people and reign from both political parties
and leave them powerless. Every American needs to be an independent person and independent voter.
2:58 pm
Thursday, November 5, 2009
THE ALLEGIANCE OF PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA IS NOT TO THE AMERICAN VOTER AND HIS
TROOPS IN THE FIELDS OF BATTLE
On the campaign trail of then, Senator Barack
Obama, seeking the office of the U.S. Presidency, he appealed to the voters due to his of his “change” and “can
do” promises. The change encompassed the attitude of most members of congress and the administration
of taking a political position on all the urgent problems facing the country. The democrats were against
anything proposed by the republican majority and the republican Bush administration, for the last eight years while the republicans
were against anything proposed by the democrats resulting in such pressing problems such as the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The economy, social security, health-care and unemployment were left unresolved because of the political
parties in power in Washington. The American people were upset and discouraged with this situation and
popularity polls as a result with this situation and popularity polls as a result showed congress who only worked 2 ½
days a week at its lowest level of popularity while President Bush’s Republican administration was stymied in inaction
over the domestic problems while it was mired down in both wars without any hope or plan for victory, after eight years of
seemingly senseless cost in troops and money. The lifeblood of our fighting forces was being drained while
our treasury was operating in a deep deficiency of about 10 trillion dollars from a surplus only eight years before.
There was no question but the American people wanted change and that the country
needed a change from this constant inaction by its leaders and representatives. Barack Obama had the newness,
good looks and, charisma to apparently fill the need as his promises of “can do” were believed and relied on by
the American voter to get the job; needed to be done, accomplished. He won over a handful of seasoned and
talented politicians because his promises were believed over those other politicians because they had failed to solve the
people’s problems for years. That is the reason for Obama’s victory over other Democratic candidates
and over the Republican candidate Senator, John McCain, a war hero, seasoned and well respected politician.
When President Obama took office in January, 2009 he was faced with a plateful
of problems, some more urgent than the others, but all every serious and in need of attention and solution. These
were the same problems which had been left festering and unresolved for the last eight years, with the economy topping the
list in urgency.
The mortgage crises headed the list with a record number of mortgages in
default, due to the subprime loans given out by greedy banks and the failing economy with unemployment reaching epidemic proportions.
With the surplus of foreclosed homes and commercial buildings on the market, the construction industry came to
a screeching halt. The inflated value of homes finally caused the housing collapse while the auto industry
followed because of the rising price of gasoline to $4.00 + a gallon a doubling in price in a short two year span.
The falling value of the dollar and increased transportation crisis pushed the value of imported food and other products
being shipped to market upward at the expense of the consumer all this while Mobil-Exxon was reporting record and unconscionable
profits for no other reason, but greed.
President Bush, just prior to the November 2008 election had rushed to Congress to bail out the banking and financial
industry including insurer AIG. Both Obama and McCain rushed back to Washington to help pass a trillion
dollar bailout of the industry, which was caused by the industry themselves because of their greed to profit in giving loans
they should not have approved. With the falling economy and falling home prices due in part to the home
foreclosures, the minimal 5 to 10 % down payment made on these loans were overcome by falling values, some as much as 50%
of previous market value. As the foreclosures continued to increase, the value of real estate continued
to fall as a direct result.
One of the first acts of President Obama was to dole out the other half of the trillion dollar bailout to the financial
industry and AIG at the behest of his chosen Treasury Secretary, Timothy Geithner, a Federal Reserve and Goldman Sakes former
employee. “Mistake Number 1”, I say because you don’t reward the person who makes the
same mistake over and over and seek to shrug off the home owner mortgagor who made the single mistake of buying a “home
he could not afford”. This is especially true when it was the bank that finally had the obligation
not to approve the loan.
At that, Congress’ and the President’s failure to put controls
on said loans or any accounting conditions resulting said financial companies continuing giving big bonuses to its favored
employees and CEO’s, and giving lush parties for its agents at the expense of the American tax payers.
Next, President Obama sought to bailout the Domestic Big three Auto Industries,
GM and Chevrolet, jumped into the congressional hearing, flying in on private jets to the disdain of almost everyone.
The loans amount to 500 billion dollars was finally given to the two auto companies. Since when
do we help companies that can’t cope with competition in the workplace? One job was not helped and
layoffs continued, especially after the loans were given. Small business fail 80% of the time and the government
does not help them, even if they have a small business loan that will be put in jeopardy even further.
Next and thirdly, President Obama urged congress to pass a nearly trillion dollars
stimulus package, later called an economic recovery act, to help the 15 million Americans laid off in the last two years.
In passing the Bill Congress filled it with so many political pork it helped no one, but Congress and their friends
with generous amounts of money. Money handed out to the many states and towns for political gain of loyal
politicians. To his credit, Obama included 50 million dollars or one half of one percent of this
expenditure of taxpayers’ money for alternate energy uses but, only in public buildings to conserve energy not to replace
gasoline and fuel oil.
As a result, since unemployment has continued to increase to 15 million
Americans and increasing every month and President Obama is about to propose another stimulus package to continue extending
the unemployment benefits from 25 months to 34 months. With benefits at an average of 250 upon which the
recipient must pay income taxes this is hardly the re-employment in permanent jobs that are needed for each unemployed
Individual so he/she can save his/her home and family.
What is needed here is a concerted program to put these 15 million unemployed
Americans into new permanent job, because most of this unemployment was caused by the factories and business going overseas
in search of cheaper labor.
If our President and Congress stopped taking huge campaign contributions
from big business who are getting richer manufacturing their American products overseas with cheap labor or by way of employment
visas, then, maybe, they will turn their attention to the plight of the unemployed Americans before they are thrown out of
office for their “do nothing” attitude.
Congress with much publicity and fanfare passed the Credit Card “Bill
of Rights” for the American consumer only to pass a bill with more holes in it than an old fishing net that allowed
the credit card companies to reverse all the benefits before they became effective while doing nothing to prevent them from
raising interest rose to more than 30%, a year. If this wasn’t a cruel outcome, it would be funny.
Finally, in July President Obama presented Congress with its 1,000 page
Health Care Plan to provide the 30-50 million un-insured Americans with affordable Health Insurance. At
the same time he asked that it be passed by August 1, 2009, even before anyone had a chance to read it. Part
of the plan was, he said, to pay for it by cutting the costs of Health Care. Of course, he failed to explain
in any manner how these costs would be cut. Thusly, the plan was attacked by both sensible Democrats and
Republicans alike. Here it is the end of October and we still don’t have a plan that he guarantees
will not help illegal aliens and will not add one cent to the already overburdened treasury deficit. Of
course, the cost of nearly a billion dollars over 10 years is expected to be covered by taxes on the insurance companies and
a reduction of benefits. This is a stupid plan because the tax on the insurance companies will only be
passed over to the consumer of course, 30-50 million Americans are not covered with Health Insurance most likely because of
the COST of said insurance than for any other reason. If costs were cut, as Obama proposes, by the government,
there is no need for a Health Insurance Bill in the first place. So, fix it so the insurance companies
are given free rein to compete in the American spirit and tradition of free enterprise upon which our country was built and
has endured for generations. So, after nearly 10 months of acute suffering by the American people, Obama,
has only helped big business and not the hurting American people. Everything he has done has been politically
motivated and for political contribution and NOT to help the American people that voted him into office.
With our troops being killed and maimed in Iraq and Afghanistan and his General
demanding more troops, Obama, is stalling and vacillating, when he, as Commander In Chief is supposed to act in any conflict
the Commander and his Commanders in the field, are bound by common sense to have predetermined courses of action under all
possible circumstance. They should not and cannot expect that one plan will always win the day.
I remember, General Eisenhower, had two speeches ready when the invasion of
Normandy took place in June 1944, one if victory was obtained and another if the invasion was thrown back into the sea and
defeated. With many needless deaths of our troops taken place while, President Obama, seeks advice and
stops to think through, what to do next, it is a tragic situation that our leaders cannot plan beyond the day.
As a former “line soldier” up front, we were told of the alternative
plans of moving forward and when necessary to retreat or have alternative plans to take other routes or other methods to succeed.
All we had to do was give the alternative orders when the need arose and at times the need did arise, but that was
what saved the day and our butts. We had alternative plans of strategy ready to employ, when necessary.
There is no excuse
for the delay in meeting the current challenge of the Taliban and Obama is guilty of dereliction of his duty to lead, while
his troops are in the field of battle, dying and maimed, day by day.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Happy Halloween On October 31st, of each year most young Americans celebrate Halloween, with trick of treat
visits to neighbors dressed as witches and goblins, angels and supermen and dress ups of every description. It is a fun evening
designed to spook people to fear and submission while knocking on our doors chanting...trick-or-treat, smell my feet, give
me something good to eat.
Few revelers know the origins of Halloween, but enjoy the fun and
candy treats offered to ward off the tricks threatened.
Halloween is named for the evening before
All Saints Day (November, First) a day set aside by the Catholic Church, to honor and pay tribute to all the Catholic Saints
recognized and canonized by the various Popes of the Catholic Church over the years. This is how that day came to be celebrated
the evening before with tricks or treat revelry with witches, spooks, skeletons and costumes.
For example, in Italy, the real birthplace of Christianity, the day is celebrated as "Carnivalle", which is interpreted
as a person of low morals and the opposite of one considered Holy or a Saint. It is used as an excuse to play pranks on people
like slapping on the back or shoulder an unsuspecting person as part of the greeting when one meets another, except in this
case the prankster hold a chalk covered piece of felt, in the shape of a doll or circle to make that persons back of shoulder
with the transferred chalk.
In America, as we all know the day is very commercialized with
the trick or treat habit of visiting neighborhood homes, dressed in scary costumes like witches and goblins. Of course over
the years, Halloween was also celebrated by teenagers to play harmful pranks on a neighbor for a perceived insult or hurt
perpetrated on the prankster or one of his friends during the previous year.
I remember when we were teenagers, sneaking
up to the parked car of a neighbor on the street in front of his home and letting the air out of one or two of their tires
by removing the valve stem of the tires. That neighbor may not have been guilty of anything worse than calling the police
for the youths playing ball on the street and occasionally the damage caused by a ball striking the house of vehicle. But
our actions were all in the name of a Halloween prank to have some fun.
As we grew older, we
graduated to more damaging pranks we felt justified to pull on a neighbor who shouted at us to "...go away..." at
about 9:00 p.m. in the summer as we congregated under a street lamp telling stories or jokes, keeping our neighbors up into
the night. For this insult we plotted the ways and means to trash a section of their white picket fence surrounding their
home or throwing eggs at their front door, causing a gooey mess for them to clean up come morning. We all thought we were
justified to vent our resentment to this neighbor, in a secret covert way, rather than openly because of the consequences
if we were identified. Afterwards, we laughed and snickered among ourselves and felt good about this obviously bad deed.
Recently, many people disgruntled with this trick or treat actions by teenagers have created a
panic by giving tainted candy or fruit or glass chards to the children, which have caused havoc with the Holiday and have
cast doubt on its worthiness to continue.
I, for one think it is a fun neighborly thing to see these children in their
scary costumes once a year, to renew their friendships and bring neighborly fun to the children who one day will grow up and
repeat this friendly visit with their own children in their future in their own neighborhoods.
The fact that it is partly commercial in nature, should not detract from the good cheer and good feeling we will receive with
a little act of giving and neighborliness. Especially in these days, with the economy being what it is, when we have little
to celebrate and a chance to be tolerated and generous with our neighbor, just as we enjoyed as children, not too long ago.
Trick-or-treat, smell my feet, give me something good to eat!
4:49 pm
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