Revolution? Yes We Can!

This country, with its institutions, belongs to the people who inhabit it. Whenever they shall grow weary of the existing government, they can exercise their Constitutional right of amending it or their revolutionary right to dismember it or overthrow it.

--Abraham Lincoln

Not a huge fan of using quotes usually. I think it’s kind of hacky. If you are going to write something and can’t illustrate the point effectively yourself; don’t write at all! (Some of you just said…well then stop typing!)

Once in a while however, a good quote can really knock your thinking from one of myopic indoctrination to one of clarity.

Americans have become so influenced by the deluge of information and misinformation thrown down at us like so much offal over the last 150 years, that we have lost sight of who we are and how this country is supposed to work. The bulk of Americans no longer see themselves as We the People, but as Us the Powerless.

Think about it hard. The last time you got screwed by Bank of America, or the DMV or Wal-Mart, etc; what did you do? You probably screamed like hell up to a certain level of management and then gave up regardless of how truly pissed you were; chalking up whatever egregious indignation you suffered to the inability to fight such a behemoth of an organization. Of course, it’s true that for one individual it is virtually impossible to “fight City Hall” as it were.

But with a coalition, Americans can “fight City Hall”, or Bank of America, or Wal-Mart or whomever. That’s how our country was built. We are not powerless unless we make ourselves powerless and that is exactly what we have done.

This is why when I hear someone scoff at the idea of revolution my blood boils over.

Talk of revolution usually elicits two responses:

1. Abject revulsion; as the word Revolution to most liberals has become synonymous to drunken, inbred ramblings of racist redneck hicks propagated by a love of hell raising and hatred for authority in general. Liberals believe that anyone who even thinks of revolution to be clearly devoid of any semblance of intellect whatsoever. Revolutionists are in effect, dangerous ignorant extremists to most Liberals.
2. To conservatives and moderates, the idea seems fantastic, but impossible to achieve given the size and ingrained infrastructure of our current Government. The prospect just seems so damn daunting.

To the first group, my response would be: you are the truly ignorant amongst us.

Are you implying that Patrick Henry, Samuel Adams, George Washington, Ben Franklin et al, were extremist dolts? Is it because you have become so fat and happy given the liberties these revolutionists fought for that you couldn’t possibly fathom any other mode of operation? Are we now to be a country that merely opines rather than takes action towards the betterment of their own people’s destinies? Or, shall we allow the Government to do that for us?

Liberals are not patriots. Oh, not by a long shot. They have no problem taking and taking and bitching about how little they receive for doing nothing and how stupid everyone else is. They offer solutions in which they have no intention of helping to achieve. Their raison d’être is perpetuating cradle to grave government reliance.

These are the same people who have labeled the Tea Party folks an ignorant mob of predominantly white-faced miscreants looking to shore up their 2nd Amendment rights. Clear and utter bullshit. Tea Partiers are not the problem, they are doing what they can to showcase a growing viewpoint: American Government as we know it does not work!

To Conservatives and Moderates: I would beg look back to the beginning when Britain’s Goliath-like grip was broken by a rag tag, ill equipped group of patriots who were short on resources but long on belief in the power of regular people and the desire for a good quality of life unencumbered by Government. This should be the very inspiration we need to begin a real change, not the crap Lord Falderal sold the nation last year. The first American Revolution was a seemingly impossible undertaking: fighting the formidable British Empire. But they did it and so can we. Any nay saying on the subject is bilge.

The difference between now and Revolutionary times is there were real leaders then. Now, we have nothing but trained rhetoric specialists and lawyers with aspirations and personal agendas. Any idiot with a team of newly minted college English majors sporting laptops and a teleprompter can get into office regardless of their experience in real life.

There was also a more pure distribution of information; no Internet, or biased media poisoning the minds of voters into thinking things are not what they really are and that the citizenry are in essence controlled by the Government and not vice versa. Sure, there were fewer people to get the word out to, but at least the voting public could be confident that information looked something like the Truth.

Today, the well has been poisoned. I know very intelligent people who take the word of CNN, MSNBC and even FOX as gospel and vote accordingly. Mindless. There is no initiative to seek the real truth since it is just easier to take the word of whoever the flavor of the week media correspondent is and go with that.

Seldom will you find me agreeing with Sarah Palin, but she is right on point with the media. Amazing things can be done through editing and camera angles as well as selective choices of dialog to use in any media package be it audio or video. They have the power to make an idiot look like a genius and a genius look like an idiot. Ask John Stewart, that’s how he makes a living. We have become a sound bite society and we use these clever edits to choose our so-called leaders.

We have let this system run on autopilot for way too long and are paying the piper for it now. The United States Government and Capitalism as a whole is a rudderless ship careening towards the reefs of destruction. The near miss of Lord Falderal’s hapless healthcare reform is the perfect example. Despite an overwhelming amount of people who were against it, it would have passed both Houses because our leaders have no clue what their constituents really want. And, for those of you who see some sort of conspiracy by the right wing that claim Falderal is tinkering with Socialism; here’s a clue, he is and it is no conspiracy.

This collective legislative scum could care less about the people they represent. They care only about their own careers and their places in history.

Thankfully the people of Massachusetts spoke, sending a shot across the bow of rank and file legislators all over the Nation. Now the House healthcare plans will have to be scrapped and retooled. The message is clear; the people are angry and will not be pushed around any longer.

Massachusetts was indeed a game changer, and it should be used as an example of what can be accomplished when people get together, express how they are feeling and turn those feelings into action. If the aforementioned topics in addition to the Massachusetts election don’t get you fired up, how about this: the Supreme Court's latest ruling on Campaign Finance? It not only lets the foxes into the henhouse, it also filets and breads the chickens.

It’s time to find real leaders regardless of what party they come from; strong leaders that can speak directly to the people at their own levels. We haven’t had a real leader since Teddy Roosevelt was President. In short, we need a real revolution. Not the kind where we forcefully take over the government, but the kind with a long-term strategy devised to dump this President and the entire legislature. We the people must take over the government and get back to where we came from.

It is also important to realize that revolution is not about throwing out the party in control and replacing it with the other party. It’s about rethinking the whole structure. It’s about replacing the morons who are running things from the Executive Branch down. They no longer represent real people; they represent party hacks and special interest groups. If Massachusetts didn’t illustrate that point, I don’t know what else would.

Can we do it in the next three years? Yes, we can; only this time for real.

The price of freedom is eternal vigilance.
--Thomas Jefferson

Shelby; Way to Make the Democrats Cry, Dude!

I am getting a real kick out of the hold Senator Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) has placed on Lord Falderal’s nominations for a lot of reasons. While it is true that I love political theatre in any form, I particularly love it when it is entirely misconstrued, misunderstood and mis-communicated by the press.

There is a mechanism in the Senate that allows Senators to put holds on Presidential nominations especially in the case of a perceived intense preference by the President to a particular nominee. The mechanism actually allows a single Senator to put holds on as many nominations as he/she feels necessary. Holds happen all the time, usually one at a time. Senator Shelby has decided to invoke his right to hold up all 70 of Lord Falderal’s pending nominations.

Most of these nominations are, well, nominal to say the least. Very few are actually important and the President does have a remedy to the situation. He can actually temporarily appoint his nominees and have them formally take their jobs at a later date.

Senator Shelby is being cast as the poster child for Republican obstructionism by the Falderal administration for making this bold and unprecedented move. Headlines in the Washington Post like; America Taken Hostage, Day 1, have been the norm for just over a week now. What the Falderal Administration and Senate Democrats are insinuating is that Shelby’s hold is bad for America because it has put a stop to any forward motion for any legislation in the pipeline for the last year, including health care reform.

Shelby’s motivation for placing the holds is he wants earmark spending for his State fast tracked. The Democrats are calling foul as this maneuver represents pork barrel spending in their eyes. Well, they would know, wouldn’t they? They are trying desperately to use their own philosophy on pork as a weapon against Shelby and the Republicans by saying that R’s have been consistently against earmarks since Christ was a Corporal in the Footguard, and therefore should back down on these holds.

True enough.

However, let’s consider a few things here.

First, what are the earmarks Shelby is looking for? The good Senator is looking for dough that would go directly to funding our country’s defense. The FBI is seeking to build a lab for improvised explosive device testing in Alabama, the state Shelby represents. Something Team Falderal has spent the last year trying to kill.

The other pet project of Shelby’s is a little stickier. There is a $40 billion dollar contract to build air-to-air refueling tankers at a Northrup facility in Mobile. The company has threatened to bail out on Alabama unless the Air Force makes some changes to a draft request for proposals. One would assume, a change that would benefit Northrup in the bidding process.

Both of these programs are good for the country and are job intensive, meaning unlike most of Falderal and Senate Democratic programs, there will be job creation, a lot of it.

What Shelby is doing is his job, representing the State he was elected in and the people who elected him by looking out for their best interests. He is taking action, something Senate Democrats certainly know nothing about.

One of the responses taken by Falderal and the D’s is an investigation into Shelby’s campaign contributions. Well, lo and behold, the defense contractors mentioned above were major contributors. Is that somehow surprising? Are we 14 years old here? Of course, his contributions were heavy on the contractor side. Where is the big story?

What the Democrats are really whining about is their power and platform being pulled out from under them. Perhaps they should reconsider their own actions in the past year and apply them to the Shelby situation.

We wouldn’t be in this mess had Falderal kept to his word and fostered an environment of bi-partisanship after taking the train to the White House. Instead what he fostered was an air of power that due to the super majority in the Houses made him and his partners in the axis of evil, Pelosi and Reid, feel as though they could do anything they wanted. The problem with this is they read the public wrong and forced upon their constituents’ legislation they never wanted as evidenced by the whole Scott Brown situation.

Falderal’s attempt to garner Republican partnership after the State of the Union was too little too late. Had Falderal listened to what the other side had to say throughout the year, perhaps he and us, the American people, wouldn’t be in such trouble.

Shelby isn’t holding the country hostage at all. What he may actually be doing is saving us from this dysfunctional Government that can’t get out of it’s own way. Maybe forcing the shut down of the Senate is a good thing, or at least crippling it until the mid terms so we can get some new blood.

It’s time for the Falderal Administration and the bags of dung they drug along with them into the Houses to wake up and start playing ball. If Falderal was smart, he’d fire everyone on his staff and start over with qualified professionals from both sides of the aisle. But he’s not, as was clearly indicated at the State of the Union. So, we will have to wait until next year when guaranteed come Hell or high water, there will be new faces sitting in those chambers. Let’s just hope they are not as dumb as this batch.

Don't Dismiss the Tea Party Movement

I am not a member of the Tea Party, but I’m not a hater either. In fact, I am extremely gratified as an American and political junkie for their existence.

Like most people, I am no fan of hypocrisy; something we have in abundance in this country when it comes to politics and Government. The big problem with political opinions in the United States is they are so polarized, and that polarization is what effects the negative opinions people have towards the Tea Party movement. That polarization of political ideologies is what fuels the hypocrisy in political opinion.

That’s one crazy paragraph up there so let me explain.

Most political opinions, at least the ones thrust at us by the main stream media, come from either the East Coast or the West Coast, where people tend to think they are more sophisticated than the average voter from any other region of the country.  I feel qualified to say this having grown up in Connecticut, attending University in New Haven and having spent some time in small town and state politics.

The mentality in New England and New York is that of being the intelligentsia capitol of the world, the power brokers of the universe. Yes, I am generalizing and I am doing it with confidence and wild abandon. We are a snooty bunch us New Englanders and we know everything. We have money, most of it old money passed down from idiot heir to idiot heir and we possess the luxury of being able to mentally masturbate every single political notion out there, with the incorrect view that we can experiment with these notions to appease our intellectual curiosities. Forget there are other people living in this country without our advantages, it is us that matter. That is why New England can afford such liberalism when it comes to their political opinions and philosophies.

Now that I live in San Diego, I see the very same thing only more clearly than I ever did before. Because of course, when I lived back East I didn’t give a flying you know what about the West Coast, their opinion on politics meant nothing to me. But, the West Coast fosters a different kind of liberalism, in my opinion, an even more disgraceful form. The West Coast is all Unicorns and Rainbows. The political power base in California is fueled by guilt and glamour.

Most of the money and power out here comes from Hollywood with a few exceptions of East Coasters who have moved west for various reasons, and of course there are the millionaire software geeks. The money and success fueling the politics on the West Coast doesn’t come from the same ilk as the East Coast, no not by a long shot. This philosophy is fueled by people who either feel guilty about having so much when others are so desperate, or the need to be recognized as actually mattering on the political front. They want to feel like they have more substance than they actually do. And, they have the money (new money) and the infrastructure to do so. Mainly, what they are looking for is access to major politicians.

Lord Falderal benefited greatly from this in last year’s election. Hollywood helped deliver him the White House and all he had to do was stack the White House guest list with serious star power upon taking office.

Both coasts’ philosophies reek of idealism and not realism. They do not live in the real world but somehow think they are qualified to comment on it. The information they choose to process comes from a faulty mainstream media, which they themselves basically control. It is this incestuous micro chasm that has absolutely nothing to do with real life on which major decisions are made.

The healthcare debacle really is a great example of this as is the failed stimulus program. The benefactors of both those abortions of legislation certainly weren’t going to be regular people.

The useless bunch of offal occupying the White House and the Houses learned a big lesson when Scott Brown was elected. The message to Congress being; you are not doing what we elected you to do. You must listen to the people in order to keep your jobs. Even in the most liberal of all states, people are fed up with not being heard. Real people.

Scott Brown is the new Rosa Parks for the American people. He is a symbol stating that the politicians we elected to represent our interests will not be allowed to push the American people to the back of the legislative bus. (Let’s just hope he lives up to the hype!)

These self appointed masters of politics on both coasts call themselves American Patriots. They feel their perceived political superiority is license to pounce on groups like the Tea Party folks, using such negative slurs as un-intelligent, rednecks, extremists, nut-jobs, and oh-my-god…Republicans even. They disparage the very name Tea Party, apparently not understanding the symbolism.

The Tea Party movement is something this country has sorely needed. It is a refuge for the disenfranchised from many different political bents. And, it showcases for everyone to see that in between the coasts, there is a huge area inhabited by people who also care about their country. Real people, living their lives through what was once the American Dream and having seen that dream bastardized, are now pissed and doing something about it.

The Tea Party is made up of a diverse array of people from all walks of life but sharing one thing in kind; they all love their country. The core values and platform of the movement are admirable; fiscal responsibility, constitutionally limited government, and free markets. If I remember my history correctly, it was those same ideals the founding fathers launched this country.

Pay attention to the Tea Party movement.

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Coakley Could Be a Game Changer

Martha Coakley. Hmm.

When Teddy Kennedy left this Earth to serve his penance in Hell, (by the way, save me a spot Ted, I always liked my Chivas warm) it was wrongly assumed by the well entrenched and always entitled Massachusetts Democratic party that his seat would easily be handed off to the next Democratic shill in line. Unfortunately, for the Democrats that shill was to be Massachusetts’s Attorney General Martha Coakley.

Coakley has never exactly been known for her campaigning acumen. During past elections she has refused to debate opponents and has flip-flopped on every major issue politicians usually take staunch positions on. Par example; Coakley supported Capital punishment for cop killers, then suddenly decided not to. Huh? I don’t know a lot of politicians who take that issue quite so lightly.

It has been said by even the most liberal of liberal publications, that Coakley’s campaigns lack soul and it’s not clear what she really believes in, besides wanting to further her career. To me, Coakley fits in perfectly with the current batch of morons in the Senate, so why wouldn’t she just sail into the former Lion’s den?

Because even in Massachusetts, people are pissed, that’s why.

This past year has shown what lofty promises and lack of experience get you: a huge quagmire that isn’t going away, and blaming the Bush Administration is getting old and worn out. Hell, even Falderal has started to own up to his own foibles.

Politicians have to learn that when you pass legislation the actual people you represent are against, there is going to be hell to pay. Think Health Care Reform. For far too long voters have remained somewhat apathetic. One good thing Lord Falderal did was wake up people who were fed up and looking for a change. Well, they got change. It was just the wrong change.

One thing I have learned in politics, which always proves true, is something former Connecticut Governor John Rowland told me during one of my campaigns. He said: “there are only two things to remember about how campaigns are won. It’s as easy as this, people either want to stay the course, or throw the bums out, and if you don’t know which side you fall on, you’re going to lose.” John went on to resign the Governor’s office in disgrace and spent a year in jail, but he certainly knew a thing or a million about winning elections.

Unfortunately, for Coakley and Massachusetts Democrats, the tiger Falderal woke up during the election were the Independents; people who actually think for themselves and were tired of the status quo. (By the way, I have never faulted this particular group for voting this idiot in, they really didn’t have much of a choice.) It is these folks who will decide the fate of these fat and happy cretins down on the Hill and across the mall to the White House. That crazy cult of personality Falderal developed during his campaign (you know the ones, the Prius drivers with the ridiculous bumper stickers) are not the people holding the dice. And, the Republicans are certainly not holding any key cards on their side of the table either. The Independents now have the power and that is as it should be.

Coakley has wrongly assumed Falderal’s particular wave of change is still cresting on the same platform. It’s not, and the failure to realize this could cost her big.

There are so many examples of Coakley’s campaign miss-steps it’s comical. She refuses to make public appearances, as mentioned before she will not debate, and get this; Coakley will not even take private meetings with groups of voters! My favorite Coakley quote is when asked about her foreign policy experience the reply was that she had once visited her sister overseas. Coakley also added in a fun little tidbit about there being no terrorists in Afghanistan. The worst part; she made that statement after the seven CIA agents were taken out by terrorists in Afghanistan. I am considering forgiving Sarah Palin for the “I can see Russia” from my hot tub, or whatever it was, quote from 2008!

But, Coakley’s biggest mistake of all is the arrogant manner in which she feels entitled to be the Senator from Massachusetts. In Coakley’s mind, that seat is her’s unequivocally and she need not prove anything to obtain it. Her attitude is not all her fault. Entitlement is pretty much the culture of the Massachusetts’s Democratic Party and always has been.

However, this year things are a bit different and a virtual unknown is positioned rather well to rip that seat away from the D’s, and with prejudice I might add. If Republican candidate Scott Brown wins this Tuesday, you can call it a mandate for the upcoming 2010 election season. Why? Because this particular key Senate seat was never considered to be vulnerable by anyone, Democrats or Republicans.

This could be a real coup for the Republicans. Not only would it provide hope and energy to their campaigns this season, it also tilts the balance of power in the Senate.

Brown has thundered his way into the threatening position he now holds over Coakley raising 1.3 million bucks in 24 hours and gaining support from all sides of the political spectrum.

Where does that leave Coakley? Begging lobbyists in Washington D.C. for money.

Oh, and this is a sparkly little anecdote. Whilst sucking the kneecaps of pharmaceutical and medical supply lobbyists for dough at a fund raiser in DC, the scumbag Democratic strategist Michael Meehan hip checked a reporter from the Weekly Standard to the ground, putting a ten inch rip in the hapless guy’s pant’s leg. Classy. That’ll teach him to ask questions of a candidate.

When queried about the incident, Coakley said no one really knew the facts of the case and referred to a conspiracy by her opponent’s campaign to harass her with faux media representatives. What? Good lord.

One thing working in her favor as far as that little faux pas goes is that it did not garner a whole heap of national media attention. Big surprise. As usual it was conveniently ignored at first and then the Haiti situation took over. So a lot of people have not been exposed to it.

Do not get the wrong idea, Coakley seriously could win just because, because, because. But, if she does lose, this is a massive victory not just for Republicans, but also for the voting public overall. It is time to be heard as a people now more than ever and this would be a great start.