"New Box, Old Product"

Last night was the NFL Pro-Bowl, the showcase of the NFL's best players of the 2009 season. Usually this game would be played one week after the Super Bowl, the jewel of the NFL; this year the league opted to play the game the prior to the big show, and move the game from the tropical paradise of Hawaii to Miami where the Super Bowl is being played. Personally I think this is a brilliant marketing decision, and great for the people of Miami. The Pro-Bowl is somewhat anti-climactic when played after the Super Bowl. It seems that America stops to take a breath after the Super Bowl, thus giving the Pro-Bowl mixed revues from the football viewing audience. Offering the Pro-Bowl as an appetizer to the Super Bowl whets the interest of the fans and really turns Super Bowl week into quite an event. Pro Football is learning from Pro Baseball's All-Star Game, that spends a week of special events prior to the game keeping the fans interest riveted on the big game. Every day we watch commercials on television, these advertisements are carefully researched to focus groups as to their effectiveness and the proper time they should be aired. This is basically the same reason baseball and football make changes as I have referred to earlier. Marketing and timing the cornerstone of business when selling a product to the public. Last week Barack Obama was in the marketing business, he was putting a new picture on his "box of cereal", his agenda for America. He was taking his unpopular policies and changing their names a bit and moving them around a bit in an attempt to put a new face on an agenda that America has certainly cooled toward. Unlike the National Football League the Obama administration is selling a product that America doesn't want no matter how much they try to re-package it. Slick advertising won't change the content of what has become distasteful to the American people, arrogance and casting accusations toward opposing views are not selling well in the political market place. Obama, Pelosi, and Reid would be well counseled to actually follow the will of the people instead of trying to re-market a bad idea. The NFL should benefit from the change they made because their product is something the public wants. The new face on the "cereal box" of the Obama administration is something the American people aren't buying. As Americans we can only hope that our continued vocal opposition and the revelation of the truth about the machinations of the Obama administration will keep us from following a path that is not of our own choosing. Let's show this administration that America will not be manipulated!

" Circus In Town!"

Have any of you seen the movie called "Inherit the Wind"? It was based on the Scopes "monkey trial ", where a high school teacher was prosecuted for teaching evolution in a small town. Spencer Tracey played the defense attorney, Fredrick March played the prosecutor. The acting was superb, and the plot was riveting. The cinematography was stellar, it really captured the moment when a small town was turned into a circus when it was put in America's spotlight. The small town population changed from local chit-chat to a forum on what was acceptable for the minds of American children. The atmosphere of the town was almost like a carnival had come to town, visitors from cities all across the country, press from most of the major markets, and radio stations set up temporary broadcast facilities invaded this small rural hamlet. The trial was broadcast over the radio, back then it was equivalent to a satellite broadcast to the world, the press had a private section of the courtroom filled with telephones and a wireless transmitter, and the general public jammed the room to overflowing. Back then it was the trial of the century, and the "side-show of the century", it was the media event that captured the imagination of America. It was almost as if the issue was lost because of the magnitude of the event. We are about to have our court system put under the laser lite of the world press as the 911 terrorists will soon be put on trial. Attorney-General Holder has tentatively chosen New York City for the trial. This choice has been criticized from a large segment of New York's populous including Mayor Bloomberg. The projected cost is over a billion dollars, the security is monumental, and the poor taste of having this take place in New York is ridiculous. Most people don't know what Eric Holder is thinking. New York is a favorite target for terrorists, it has a huge population, and is enough of a circus on it's own without added stress to it's police and security forces. The press will be hanging on every word of this trial, giving the terrorists a forum for their twisted philosophy of hatred and poison, and dredging up horrible memories for the people of New York. Setting aside the fact that this trial should have been before a military tribunal, what does the Obama administration hope to gain by giving terrorists the same rights as American citizens? These people are war criminals, not purse snatchers. Acts of war against a peaceful civilian population should be dealt with in a manner that matches the gravity of the crimes. I realize that there will be great interest in the outcome of this trial, but by making it into a media event only emboldens our enemies. It is now rumored that there are second thoughts about having this trial in New York, I only hope this is true. Terrorists are war criminals and should be treated that way, perhaps if we did that they would think a little more before they acted. A military trial and a firing squad is the proper procedure, not Miranda Rights and a free lawyer. We don't need another "circus in town" Mr. President; we need to send a message. In the future I can only hope Mr. Obama comes to the realization that this is a real war, not the acts of a few fanatics. Americans deserve "constitutional rights" not traitors or terrorists!!

"Leftovers!!"

A few weeks ago I caught a bad cold, you know, runny nose, cough, fever, headache, the whole nine yards. I took cold pills, nose spray, vitamins, cough medicine, the whole "drug store"; nothing was giving me relief. I finally reached back to my childhood and tried a home remedy, homemade chicken soup. Now I don't like to brag but my chicken soup is legendary in it's curative powers and it's deliciousness. I went to the grocery store and purchased fresh chicken, carrots, onions, broth, and all the necessary spices to make my magic elixir. I went home and prepared enough soup to cure a regiment, I always cook more than I need a habit I acquired from watching my mother cook for ten people every day. Well the soup did it's job and my cold rapidly lost it's hold on me. I felt 100% better, the magic of home cooking! Now there is a down side to this, leftover chicken soup, not a little leftover chicken soup, quarts of leftover chicken soup. I ate chicken soup for lunch, dinner, snack, and all over again for several days. When I was finally finished with the soup I didn't want to see it again for a very long time. As I stated earlier my chicken soup is very tasty, yet a steady diet of it is quite tiresome. Now imagine a steady diet of something that you couldn't stand, liver, lima beans, or mystery meat from high school(apologies to those who actually like that stuff). Last night I got a major helping of leftovers in Barack Obama's State of the Union Address, and it was mostly liver and lima beans! Once again he dragged up the Bush administration, like resurrecting a rotting corpse. I think all of America is weary of this ploy. He insisted the worse was over yet we still see 10% unemployment with no relief in sight. He demonized partisan politics, yet over the last twelve months the democrats have practiced nothing but partisan politics. He demonized the banks, yet made a plea to them to loan more money to small business. He again wants to tax large investors, a policy that makes no sense if you want investment to spur new business and job growth. He wants to eliminate earmarks, yet his proposed health-care bill smells of earmarks and political buy-offs. He was critical of political pundits, who are opposed to his policies, he believes they are divisive, evidently opposition is un-American. He continues to endorse the fallacy of global warming even after a scandal of managed facts and spurious science, the horror of cap and trade is still in his play book. National security was a bouquet of platitudes with little substance, just a rehash of old policies that have yielded little fruit. He compared himself to John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan, at best this is delusional, he is the polar opposite of both of these men who preached smaller government and strong national defense. The main message of Mr. Obama's address was he will continue his leftist policies regardless of public opposition, calling those who refuse to endorse them as obstructionists. In an unprecedented move he even criticized the Supreme Court, one more example of his enormous ego. This speech was a huge plate of Obama leftovers shoved on America's dinner plate. We are supposed to eat it and shut up. For those of you who wanted a tastier dish all I can say is you need a new cook!!

"Masked Man?"

"Mission Impossible" what a great t.v. show that was. I remember spending Sunday evenings watching this show with my folks. What was great about it was that it was so different from the rest of the programs on at that time. There were westerns, cop shows, variety shows, and situation comedies; yet "Mission Impossible" was something totally different. The main premise was a select group would take on a mission that was so delicate that no recognized government agency could tackle it, and if they failed the government would dis-avow any knowledge of their actions. One of the characters was "Rollin Hand", played by Martin Landau, was a master of disguise and deception who through amazing make-up could imitate any villain and deceive their minions. The many faces he would wear was one of the attractions of the show, I was always curious as to what image this chameleon would take. As always the team would be victorious at the end, leaving their victims stunned and surprised, caught completely by surprise. It was a gigantic "con operation" that maneuvered the bad guys into the teams well developed plan, a great deception. The bad guys were always heinous villains as bad as Stalin or worse and it was always fun to see the look on their faces when they realized that they were out smarted. Tonight is the State of the Union Address by President Obama, it will be his first since taking office, and the people of the United States are sitting on the edge of their chairs waiting to see what the President is going to say. Over the past several weeks we have seen quite a bit about campaign promises, and what has actually happened over the last twelve months. Many Americans don't know which Barack Obama they will see tonight. Will we see Barack the "liberal free spender", or will we see Barack the "Chicago deal maker", or will we see Barack the "Promise Maker", what face will we see? I don't think we will see Barack the "Promise Keeper"(apologies to promise keepers) because Barack hasn't kept any of his campaign promises! Tonight we will see a master juggler at work, spinning facts and fiction at such speed no one will have time to think about what has recently happened in the United States over the last few months. We will see the democrats cheer at the most innocuous claims of accomplishments, they will stand up smile and act as if this has been a great year for America. We will see a face of victory, yet we will not see any results to accompany that face. We will see a face of concern over the economy, yet the token remarks about budget cuts will barely scratch the surface of the tremendous debt that we have seen thrown on the backs of the American people. We will see a face of hope, yet we have seen no improvement in the worst economic collapse since the "Great Depression" with no recovery in sight. Yes America we will see many faces from Mr. Obama tonight, but the real question is, what is the real face of our President? After twelve months we still don't know the real Barack Obama. When will the mask come off !?

"Because I Said So!"

In today's world most parents have taken on the theory that you must always try to reason with your children when any problem arises, be it a behavior problem, a school problem, or a social problem. The order of the day now is showing the child that they have equality in all decisions that pertain to them. Punishment today consists of a "time out" or stopping driving privileges. I grew up in a different time, a time when questioning a parent was something one couldn't even imagine. I had a very understanding mother and father, yet I understood that when I was told no it meant no and I would not profit by pursuing the matter further. At times I would mutter under my breath, this was always a mistake, insolence was a bigger infraction than whatever the problem might have been. If discussion were allowed about any situation the final word was always Dad's. At times he would become frustrated, as any man who had a multitude of children pestering him over any issue that he knew was not good for them. The final answer, when all explanation had failed was the infamous "Because I said so!", and usually closed the issue with very little discussion. When push came to shove it always came down to it was Dad's house and he was in charge. By today's standards Dad would be considered intolerant, but I have to admit in retrospect I have to admit Dad was right, it was his house and he was the head of the household, regardless of how the rest of us felt. It all came down to the fact that dad was in charge, and we were not. Last week when Massachusetts elected Scott Brown to the Senate America sent a message to Washington, it was that the people were in charge. Currently Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid are trying to do an end around with the health-care bill in an attempt to push it through regardless of America's will. President Obama said recently "I would rather be a good one term president than a mediocre two term president". If one reads between the lines of this statement he is saying I am committed to my own agenda and regardless of the outcome of the next election, my will is what is most important. Like a stubborn child Barack Obama is holding his ground no matter what the people of the United States think or how they feel. Over the last few months the Obama administration has seen elections that made it clear that the direction that has been taken is not acceptable to America, but Barack Obama refuses to accept this fact. My fellow Americans it is time to show this "stubborn child" who owns the house and who makes the rules. Perhaps he should be a one term president, after all if he believes his will is more important then the will of America then he is in the wrong job. It's time for America to say to Barack Obama and Congress to do it "Because We Said So!" Sometimes a spanking is the only thing a child understands!

"A Giant Step Back!"

Jesus told us through his teachings that humility was a key to being a good servant to others. Throughout Jesus's first appearance he exhibited humility while serving the needs of others. Even though He was the son of God He never used all of the power at His disposal to impose His will on those who refused to recognize who He was. Since the beginning of biblical history God has given man the right of free will, choose what you want, it is up to you. Now if we examine the Constitution of the United States we will find out that this philosophy of free will and choice are quite prominently exhibited throughout this document. In the Declaration of Independence we see that our founding fathers believed that certain truths are self evident, that God has given men rights that extend beyond the reach of the government. Jefferson, Adams, Franklin, and all those who signed a document that was an endorsement to a government that would serve the people, follow their will, and protect their freedom understood the importance of their action on that fateful day. We also see by their actions that they believed in the humbling honor it was to serve their fellow citizens. George Washington could have been president for life had he wished to do that, yet he choose to return to his home after his service. He believed this nation belonged to it's citizens, not to any elite group who felt they knew better than the people. Those who founded this nation had no idea that the people in government would spend twenty or thirty or forty years as politicians. Their view was of a citizen government, run by people from the community who would serve one or two terms then return to the private sector to pursue the dream of America, not career civil servants whose main goal was to perpetuate their longevity in public office into perpetuity. We are now in a very different situation, we have people in government from both major partys whose only goal is to remain in office and use their influence to acquire more individual power for their own glorification and wealth. I wonder what Thomas Jefferson or George Washington would say today as they observed the back-door dealings and the total disregard that is now being shown toward the will of the people of America? Even now after an election that has shown the current administration that the American people are dis-satisfied and upset with the direction the nation has been following a continued arrogance and indifference is exhibited by those who hold power. As you are reading this the current administration is behind closed doors once again trying to force through a health-care package before the people have a chance to examine it, and before a new young senator can take his elected seat. As an American I'm past the point of anger toward this administration, I believe we need to be in survival mode or the United States as we know it will cease to exist. "We the People" will be dis-enfranchised, and the dreams of our fathers will be destroyed. As November approaches we need to protect our Constitution, elect men who understand they are servants who should feel honored and humbled by the office that they have been entrusted to keep. Also they need to remember those offices belong to the people, not to any political party or ideological principle. It is only then that America will begin the journey back to it's roots of freedom and individual liberty. It is up to us to take that first step in a fateful journey. Let's bring America back!

"Accomplishments?"

Next week is the State of the Union Address, the annual event at which the President speaks before Congress with a commentary of the previous years accomplishments and a presidential "shopping list" that will describe the agenda that the chief executive wishes to follow in the next twelve months. I'm not much of a fan of President Obama, not a surprise to most of you who read my commentaries, yet I'm quite interested in seeing what the President is going to ask for and what he believes his accomplishments were in the first year of his administration. Let's look at some of our previous chief executives achievements and see how Mr. Obama stacks up to his predecessors. Jack Kennedy, Cuban Missile Crisis, launched N.A.S.A.,lowered taxes, encouraged investments,and promoted higher education; not bad for a president who's life was stolen by a lunatic. Dwight D. Eisenhower, guided our nation through two recessions with minimal job loss followed by a period of great prosperity and growth, promoted a strong national defense, and firmly established the United States as the leader of the free world; considered one of the most likable men ever to hold the office of President. Richard M. Nixon, of course Watergate, yet he also established diplomatic break-throughs with the Peoples Republic of China, and the Soviet Union, gained a peaceful end to the war in Viet Nam, but unfortunately resigned in disgrace. Ronald Reagan, in some circles he is considered the greatest President we've ever had. He took our nation from the brink of economic collapse to prosperity, he forced the Soviet Union to tear down the Berlin Wall, his defense policy caused the collapse of the Soviet Union, and after a failed Carter administration he restored the United States to a position of respect and power around the world. William Jefferson Clinton, not a great President, but not horrible either, his accomplishments were minimal as we lost ground in the world market with the signing of N.A.F.T.A., cutting off American manufacturing at the knees causing numerous job losses, and allowing Osama Bin Laden to slip through his fingers. All in all not a stellar presidency. I won't even talk about Jimmy Carter, it's too painful! I realize I have capsulized the entire terms of the above Presidents and Mr. Obama has only been in office one year, so I will try to be as fair as I can in my assessment of his job performance thus far. Let's start out with his pledge to be a bi-partisan president, I have yet to see one bi-partisan act come from the Oval Office; the republicans have had zero input to any of this president's policies thus far. He pledged to be financially responsible, we are now in the greatest debt this nation has ever experienced. We now have a debt equivalent to all the debt of every previous administration added together, not very financially responsible by any stretch of the imagination. National defense has basically come to a halt under this president, nuclear threats from two rogue nations have been addressed by little to no response from the White House, giving an impression of weakness to all who oppose our nation. Transparency of government, wow, perhaps the biggest disappointment thus far from Barack Obama. His health-care program that was supposed to be totally constructed in full public view on C-Span; all done behind closed doors with no in-put from the republican party at all. All this in only twelve months. I can't wait to see what he has in mind for the next twelve months. If I were Barack Obama I would appear in front of Congress with a bag over my head, like the "Unknown Comic", he doesn't have much to cheer about. I'm curious as to the reception our President will receive when he walks into Congress next week, will it be overwhelming cheers or polite applause? Mr. Obama you may not be listening right now, but America isn't cheering!