Debt

Again, the media is blasting Republicans. Why won't they compromise on the debt ceiling? Why won't they raise taxes? Don't they know the end is nigh? After all, Obama told us this (of course he told us this several times and it did not come to pass.)

Liberals often fail to remember that there is a better way to raise tax revenue than upping the tax rates. That is by increasing prosperity. You can never tax your way to economic growth, or spend to get there either, as the (non) stimulus proved.

What we need is national leadership to unleash the economy. We need a president who believes in the free market and reduced government interference. We need politicians who know that plundering the economy won't help it to grow. We need to reduce the burdens on business at not only the national, but also the state and local levels. The EPA is one of the worst offenders, but local zoning laws choke business vitality as well. We also have the highest corporate tax rate in the entire world, which drives business overseas.

Raising the debt ceiling will not help because it perpetuates the problem of too much spending. All we have to do to stay within our current limits is to completely scrap Obamacare and that will solve the crisis in the short term. Pretty simple and it will accomplish something that the people want.

The NFL and NBA Lockouts

Looks like there is a distinct possibility that two of the most recognizable professional sports leagues in the world won't be playing this fall.

The NBA and NFL are both in lockout. That means that players can have no contact with their teams and leagues. Some may blame greedy owners, others may cite the players as being at fault. In reality, different circumstances are behind both labor issues.

In the NFL, players and owners are debating a number of issues. Some owners want to expand the season to eighteen games without increasing roster size. The season already takes a huge toll on certain positions, such as running back. Quarterbacks would certainly be much more vulnerable to injury, barring radical changes in the rules. NFL players cannot withstand eighteen games plus playoffs and hope to have lengthy careers. NFL owners and players are also having trouble deciding how to split the massive profit pie. The NFL only loses if the season is postponed or cancelled. The owners are in danger of messing with one of the most popular sports brands on Earth.

The NBA is actually in trouble. Twenty-two franchises have reported financial losses in the past year. Some franchises will actually do better financially if there is no season. The NBA wants to move towards the NFL model with more revenue sharing among teams to keep the league solvent and help small market teams compete. Players fear that such moves will reduce contracts and are resistant.

Both leagues must be concerned if they don't end up playing this year. In a down economy, people must be more picky about how they spend their money. Both leagues could lose more fans to the college versions of each sport. It's time for the NFL and NBA and their players to find ways to earn money and keep fans.

Potentially Much More Damaging and Destructive Than Watergate

In the realm of bad ideas and high level cover ups, Watergate exists in a class by itself. Nixon's White House, saturated by secrecy and cronyism, lived in perpetual fear of its political enemies. This led it to tap former intelligence specialists and adventurers to engage in political espionage and hardball tactics. They violated the rights of individuals and organizations, all in the name of political expediency. As bad as the break ins were, the cover up involved the president and high level officials.

Although Watergate involved high level officials in a criminal conspiracy that violated the Constitution and numerous other laws, no one got hurt. The cover up ended up being a worse crime than the original break ins.

Not so with "Operation Fast and Furious." This ill-conceived plan funneled guns from U. S. shops into Mexican cartels with no oversight. When these guns were linked to American sources, the cover up began. The Obama Administration initially condemned law abiding American shop owners who were actually working with federal agents. When the store owners began to reveal the federal government's role, the story started to slowly unravel. We do not yet know the full truth.

The Attorney General and the Department of Justice have obstructed efforts by the director of the ATF to investigate the extent of the definitely negligent, and possibly criminal activities involved. Congress has launched a full investigation along with the ATF, but Obama's attorney general, Eric Holder, has stonewalled the process. This is the same attorney general that refused to prosecute Black Panthers who violated federal election laws by intimidating voters in 2008.

Eric Holder is a symbol of all that has gone wrong in Obama's Administration. We need to know all parties responsible for "Fast and Furious," whether or not the intention from the start was to advance the anti-gun agenda, and how far up the cover up extends.

Obama's presidency is teetering on the edge of the abyss. This scandal could knock it off completely.

An Armed Citizen Is a Safe Citizen

Chicago has seen a rash of violent mob attacks in the past several months. Now Milwaukee has seen its first.

Racially motivated attacks on whites have been on the rise lately. In Milwaukee, one young woman heard an attacker gleefully proclaim "oh white girl she bleeds a lot."

Violence may be color blind, but there is really only one way to stop these attacks. Cities need to understand that police can't be everywhere to protect everyone. Violent mobs and criminals already know this. The main way to counteract this behavior is to encourage good citizens to buy guns and learn their proper use.

I'd much rather see a story like this. Mob of youths attack peacful law abiding group. Individual pulls handgun and severely wounds or kills several attackers, ensuring the safety of herself and her friends.

That is the only way to halt mob attacks, regardless of motivation.

Trial By Jury in the Anglo-American System

The Casey Anthony trial is over and she was found not guilty. Lots of folks, convinced of her guilt, are angry that she will likely leave jail on Thursday, only convicted of the charge of lying to a police officer.

The prosecution had a major obstacle that the hysterical media rarely mentioned. They could never really prove that Caylee Anthony was murdered. They also had to convince a jury that the mother was cold, hateful, and murderous when those twelve people could also watch film after film of a mother obviously enjoying the presence of her child.

But most of all, they had to overcome the necessity of a burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt. In our justice system since the Middle Ages, a jury cannot judge innocence or guilt. That is left to God. All a jury can judge is the effectiveness of the prosecution's case. Did they, or did they not prove the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Furthermore, even if the think the person is guilty, they are not supposed to vote that way unless the prosecution proved its case.

This is our our system works and, despite its flaws, it is the best that humanity has ever come up with. Was Anthony guilty? Tough to say. But twelve jurors, who the media praised for paying close attention to the case, thought that the proof was simply not there. We certainly hope that the justice system was right in this case, but if not, that is still no reason for radical change.

African Union Slams Qaddaffi Arrest Warrant

The African Union last weekend indicated that its member states would ignore an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court for the arrest of Moammar Qaddafi. The ICC, located in the Netherlands, sought to bring Qaddafi to trial for crimes committed by his regime.

Even though Qaddaffi is a violent dictator with a history of terrorist acts, it is a positive step when any body claiming international jurisdiction gets undermined, humbled, and ignored. The African Union complained that the ICC ignored so-called crimes committed by Western nations. This complaint raises a valid fear. What if the ICC got a wild hair and decided to issue a warrant for an American military officer or diplomatic official acting under orders of the president and/or Congress? If it succeeded in capturing said person, then any real president would send in the special forces to rescue that official rather than allowing them to stand trial. International organizations should have no jurisdiction that supercedes the national.

The African Union made a valid point that the arrest warrant made a peaceful solution more difficult. It would have narrowed the options for Qaddaffi to leave Libya and live out the remainder of his days in exile somewhere else.

Just because an evil tyrant is the issue here does not mean that we should support the continued posturing of an international organization that could someday abuse an American's rights.

A Perfect Note For the Fourth

I HEAR America singing, the varied carols I hear;
Those of mechanics—each one singing his, as it should be, blithe and strong;
The carpenter singing his, as he measures his plank or beam,
The mason singing his, as he makes ready for work, or leaves off work;
The boatman singing what belongs to him in his boat—the deckhand singing on the steamboat deck; 5
The shoemaker singing as he sits on his bench—the hatter singing as he stands;
The wood-cutter’s song—the ploughboy’s, on his way in the morning, or at the noon intermission, or at sundown;
The delicious singing of the mother—or of the young wife at work—or of the girl sewing or washing—Each singing what belongs to her, and to none else;
The day what belongs to the day—At night, the party of young fellows, robust, friendly,
Singing, with open mouths, their strong melodious songs.

Interestingly enough, I think the EPA has done something to make almost all of these professions more costly or difficult. Have a great July 4th!