By definition, a republic is a union of independent entities, usually associated with common business and financial interests, favoring a restricted government role in economic life.
After winning independence from the British in 1776, the founding fathers became engaged in a debate as to exactly what form of government the new country should take.
Thomas Jefferson and his followers wanted government to be the “guardian of fair play,” as arbiter of disputes, whereas Alexander Hamilton and his followers wanted government to directly dictate and control the process.
Those who wanted little or no government, approximately one-third of the population at the time, were shut out of the process because they wanted nothing to do with it in the first place. Obviously, those who don’t want to be governed by others generally don’t become involved in organizing such a system.
Thus, the Republic of the United States of America came into existence in 1776 in the form of a set of individual democratic states, independent of each other, with a central body to deal primarily with internal disputes, international relations and a common defense.
In 1860, Presidential candidate Abraham Lincoln proposed an expansion of the role of the federal government, which included a national bank, protective tariffs and mercantilism (an economic system of strict government control of the national economy). Ironically, mercantilism was the very system of abuses the founding fathers revolted against.
Even though Southerners had only half the population as the North, they had been paying 87% of all federal taxes collected, mostly in import duties of foreign manufactured goods. The centerpiece of Lincoln’s Republican Party platform was a high protective tariff that would have raised existing import duties by 250 percent.
The South was willing to secede from the Union rather than succumb to the tyranny of the national government.
In his first inaugural address, President Lincoln stated, “I understand a proposed amendment to the Constitution has passed Congress, to the effect that the Federal Government shall never interfere with the domestic institutions of the States, including that of persons held in service [slaves]. I have no objection to this amendment being made express and irrevocable.”
This proposed amendment would have legalized slavery in the southern states forever. Lincoln supported it as an offering to the South not to follow through with their plans to secede from the Union.
On March 11, 1861, delegates in Montgomery, Alabama, adopted a new Confederate Constitution affirming that the states were “sovereign and independent” as envisioned by the founding fathers.
This set in motion events that erupted into the American Civil War.
Lincoln ordered federal troops to arrest anyone critical of the war and to shut down newspapers editorializing against it.
Lincoln's subsequent emancipation of the slaves was primarily a strategic maneuver to weaken the Southern economy (by reducing blacks from the southern labor force) and strengthen the Northern Army (by adding black soldiers).
In the end, states rights died at Appomattox. Our Republic of independent states became a national, centralized government. And the federal government has been expanding its power and control ever since.
Prior to the Civil War, people used the phrase “The United States of America are …”
After the Civil War, the phrase changed to “The United States of America is …”
Whether or not we would have been better off remaining a Republic of independent states rather than creating a strong centralized federal government is subject to debate.
Big government tends to become a self-protective, ever-expanding organism that feeds relentlessly off its subjects, demanding obedience, impeding progress, granting special favors and curtailing individual freedom.
Ultimately, a government big enough to give you all you want will cost you all you have.
But not to worry, we've borrowed against the future to cover our unrestrained spending addiction, creating a $9 trillion national debt that will be passed on to the next generation.
Ironically, our government-controlled public school system has children pledging allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands. Instead of indoctrinating our children into being good little robotic patriots, perhaps we should be teaching them that we are no longer a Republic.
And perhaps we should be advising our children that each of them is already approximately $40,000 in debt and they haven't even started working yet to pay it off.
___________
Quote for the Day – "If you put the federal government in charge of the Sahara Desert, in 5 years there'd be a shortage of sand." Milton Friedman
___________
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Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Sunday, September 7, 2008
State Mottos
Every state in America has a state motto. They tend to be inspirational catchwords, brief yet powerful, no doubt meant to inspire the populace to greatness. They are heavy on truth, justice and the American way – much like Superman without the blue tights, red cape and the need to masquerade as a mild-mannered reporter.
The most famous state motto is New Hampshire – “Live free or die.” It leaves little doubt where the citizens of the Granite State stand on various issues. Being an outsider in New Hampshire is a lot like being naked in a herd of buffalo -- no matter how much hair you have on your back, you’ll never blend in.
The smallest state in the Union, Rhode Island, has the shortest motto – “Hope."
Massachusetts, the state with the most letters in its name, has the longest motto – “By the sword we seek peace, but peace only under liberty.”
Some of the redneck states in the South tend to be high on machismo. Alabama – “We dare defend our rights.” Mississippi – “By valor and arms.” They're still upset by the Civil War way down wonder in the land of cotton, where old times there are not forgotten.
Other southern states are more reflective, such as Georgia – “Wisdom, justice and moderation.” I know a couple of guys from Georgia and the word moderation is not in their vocabulary. Live hard, drive fast and die young is more their style.
The state motto of Arkansas is “The people rule.” This seems like a reasonable proposition. If we must be ruled, people would be my first choice as opposed to non-people. I’m not quite sure what the alternatives would be. Perhaps raccoons or possums. Armadillos would also be a possibility but they tend to be illiterate.
Missouri has the only other state motto that contains the word people – “The welfare of the people shall be the supreme law.” Obviously, raccoons or possums could rule Missouri as long as the welfare of people came first.
At least one state hasn’t caught up with political correctness yet. Maryland – “Manly deeds womanly words.” Either there are no women in Maryland or they’re a bit more docile than most of the women I know.
The most confusing state motto is Connecticut – “He who transplanted still sustains.” In Latin, it reads, “Qui transtulit sustinet.” Even though I know nothing about Latin, except that Latin America is somewhere south of Texas, it somehow makes more sense than the English version.
I’ve asked several reasonably intelligent people to explain this motto but all I get is a look of bewilderment and a request to go away. Then again, I often get that sort of reaction whenever I mingle with real people.
To the good citizens of Connecticut, here are some suggestions on a new state motto.
1) Sustains still transplanted who he
2) Live free or move to New Hampshire
3) Non-people cannot rule
4) The gateway to Rhode Island
5) So close to New York, you can smell it
6) No loitering
7) Size isn’t everything
Someone in Connecticut once proclaimed, “He who transplanted still sustains.” Apparently, the people of Connecticut understood the deeper meaning, that he who has not transplanted no longer sustains, and adopted it as their state motto.
I live where the people rule. The raccoons and possums find it all very amusing.
___________
Quote for the Day – "So this is how the world works, all energy flows according to the whims of the great magnet.” Hunter S. Thompson
___________
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The most famous state motto is New Hampshire – “Live free or die.” It leaves little doubt where the citizens of the Granite State stand on various issues. Being an outsider in New Hampshire is a lot like being naked in a herd of buffalo -- no matter how much hair you have on your back, you’ll never blend in.
The smallest state in the Union, Rhode Island, has the shortest motto – “Hope."
Massachusetts, the state with the most letters in its name, has the longest motto – “By the sword we seek peace, but peace only under liberty.”
Some of the redneck states in the South tend to be high on machismo. Alabama – “We dare defend our rights.” Mississippi – “By valor and arms.” They're still upset by the Civil War way down wonder in the land of cotton, where old times there are not forgotten.
Other southern states are more reflective, such as Georgia – “Wisdom, justice and moderation.” I know a couple of guys from Georgia and the word moderation is not in their vocabulary. Live hard, drive fast and die young is more their style.
The state motto of Arkansas is “The people rule.” This seems like a reasonable proposition. If we must be ruled, people would be my first choice as opposed to non-people. I’m not quite sure what the alternatives would be. Perhaps raccoons or possums. Armadillos would also be a possibility but they tend to be illiterate.
Missouri has the only other state motto that contains the word people – “The welfare of the people shall be the supreme law.” Obviously, raccoons or possums could rule Missouri as long as the welfare of people came first.
At least one state hasn’t caught up with political correctness yet. Maryland – “Manly deeds womanly words.” Either there are no women in Maryland or they’re a bit more docile than most of the women I know.
The most confusing state motto is Connecticut – “He who transplanted still sustains.” In Latin, it reads, “Qui transtulit sustinet.” Even though I know nothing about Latin, except that Latin America is somewhere south of Texas, it somehow makes more sense than the English version.
I’ve asked several reasonably intelligent people to explain this motto but all I get is a look of bewilderment and a request to go away. Then again, I often get that sort of reaction whenever I mingle with real people.
To the good citizens of Connecticut, here are some suggestions on a new state motto.
1) Sustains still transplanted who he
2) Live free or move to New Hampshire
3) Non-people cannot rule
4) The gateway to Rhode Island
5) So close to New York, you can smell it
6) No loitering
7) Size isn’t everything
Someone in Connecticut once proclaimed, “He who transplanted still sustains.” Apparently, the people of Connecticut understood the deeper meaning, that he who has not transplanted no longer sustains, and adopted it as their state motto.
I live where the people rule. The raccoons and possums find it all very amusing.
___________
Quote for the Day – "So this is how the world works, all energy flows according to the whims of the great magnet.” Hunter S. Thompson
___________
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Friday, September 5, 2008
The Vice President Follies
Joe Biden and Sarah Palin were recently anointed as Vice President Elects of their respective political parties and the next possible leader of the free world, by Barack Obama and John McCain respectively.
It's amazing how the USA can spend countless months and zillions of dollars electing two main candidates to be our next President, then each of two candidates gets to choose their successor on their own. It doesn't exactly seem very democratic.
Dan Quayle was Vice President of the United States under the original George Bush, in 1988-1992.
During that period, I lived in the desert a few miles outside of Wickenburg, Arizona, which was basically a fork in the road, about 50 miles northwest of Phoenix, with one stoplight to control traffic coming up from Phoenix and splitting off to California or Las Vegas.
Wickenburg was also the unofficial headquarters of the Quayle family, originally from Indiana. Dan Quayle’s father owned a luxury home on the private golf course. His older brother owned and edited the local newspaper, The Wickenburg Sun, and his younger brother lived somewhere in the outlying hills trying to become a writer.
As Vice President, Dan Quayle and his family would often visit Wickenburg. Their arrival was always apparent because the secret service would actually shut off the electricity in the entire community thereby disabling the only stoplight in town in order to allow the Vice President and his caravan to whisk through the intersection with ease. This was most irritating to many of the locals, especially the ones using computers that would crash when the electricity suddenly went off without warning.
Dan Quayle loved to relax from his chores as Vice President and shoot a couple of rounds of golf. He was a good golfer but as a public figure his blunders were legendary.
He once visited a grade school during a spelling bee. On camera, he confronted a small boy who had correctly spelled the word “potato,” insisting the lad put an “e” on the end of the word.
When discussing the departure of a member of Bush's cabinet, Quayle remarked, "This isn't a man who is leaving with his head between his legs."
As a defender of family values, he lavished the Ozzie Osborne family, a bunch of crazed wombats, with praise as a role model family, proving that he’s either a comic genius or a blithering idiot.
The following dozen statements were also made by Dan Quayle during his Vice Presidency.
1) “It isn’t pollution that is hurting the environment, it’s the impurities in our air and water that are doing it.”
2) “It is wonderful to be here in the great state of Chicago.”
3) “Illegitimacy is something we should talk about in terms of not having it.”
4) “We have a firm commitment to NATO. We are a part of NATO. We have a firm commitment to Europe. We are a part of Europe.”
5) “If we don’t succeed, we run the risk of failure.”
6) “I love California. I practically grew up in Phoenix.”
7) “If you give a person a fish, they’ll fish for a day. But if you train a person to fish, they’ll fish for a lifetime.”
8) “We are not ready for an unforeseen event that may or may not occur.”
9) "Most women do not want to be liberated from their essential natures as women."
10) "I was recently on a tour of Latin America, and the only regret I have was that I didn't study Latin harder in school so I could converse with those people."
11) “What a waste to lose one’s mind. Or not to have a mind is being very wasteful. How true that is.”
12) ”It’s time for the human race to enter the solar system.”
Dan Quayle was next in line to assume the position of President of the United States and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the most powerful nation on Earth. It’s always comforting to know our country is in such competent hands.
George Bush, Sr. and Dan Quayle were defeated for reelection in 1992.
Go figure.
Perhaps when the human race enters the solar system we will have the sort of leadership we deserve. Then again, perhaps we always get what we deserve.
___________
Quote for the Day – "The only difference between a pitbull and a hockey mom is lipstick." Sarah Palin
___________
-
-
It's amazing how the USA can spend countless months and zillions of dollars electing two main candidates to be our next President, then each of two candidates gets to choose their successor on their own. It doesn't exactly seem very democratic.
Dan Quayle was Vice President of the United States under the original George Bush, in 1988-1992.
During that period, I lived in the desert a few miles outside of Wickenburg, Arizona, which was basically a fork in the road, about 50 miles northwest of Phoenix, with one stoplight to control traffic coming up from Phoenix and splitting off to California or Las Vegas.
Wickenburg was also the unofficial headquarters of the Quayle family, originally from Indiana. Dan Quayle’s father owned a luxury home on the private golf course. His older brother owned and edited the local newspaper, The Wickenburg Sun, and his younger brother lived somewhere in the outlying hills trying to become a writer.
As Vice President, Dan Quayle and his family would often visit Wickenburg. Their arrival was always apparent because the secret service would actually shut off the electricity in the entire community thereby disabling the only stoplight in town in order to allow the Vice President and his caravan to whisk through the intersection with ease. This was most irritating to many of the locals, especially the ones using computers that would crash when the electricity suddenly went off without warning.
Dan Quayle loved to relax from his chores as Vice President and shoot a couple of rounds of golf. He was a good golfer but as a public figure his blunders were legendary.
He once visited a grade school during a spelling bee. On camera, he confronted a small boy who had correctly spelled the word “potato,” insisting the lad put an “e” on the end of the word.
When discussing the departure of a member of Bush's cabinet, Quayle remarked, "This isn't a man who is leaving with his head between his legs."
As a defender of family values, he lavished the Ozzie Osborne family, a bunch of crazed wombats, with praise as a role model family, proving that he’s either a comic genius or a blithering idiot.
The following dozen statements were also made by Dan Quayle during his Vice Presidency.
1) “It isn’t pollution that is hurting the environment, it’s the impurities in our air and water that are doing it.”
2) “It is wonderful to be here in the great state of Chicago.”
3) “Illegitimacy is something we should talk about in terms of not having it.”
4) “We have a firm commitment to NATO. We are a part of NATO. We have a firm commitment to Europe. We are a part of Europe.”
5) “If we don’t succeed, we run the risk of failure.”
6) “I love California. I practically grew up in Phoenix.”
7) “If you give a person a fish, they’ll fish for a day. But if you train a person to fish, they’ll fish for a lifetime.”
8) “We are not ready for an unforeseen event that may or may not occur.”
9) "Most women do not want to be liberated from their essential natures as women."
10) "I was recently on a tour of Latin America, and the only regret I have was that I didn't study Latin harder in school so I could converse with those people."
11) “What a waste to lose one’s mind. Or not to have a mind is being very wasteful. How true that is.”
12) ”It’s time for the human race to enter the solar system.”
Dan Quayle was next in line to assume the position of President of the United States and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the most powerful nation on Earth. It’s always comforting to know our country is in such competent hands.
George Bush, Sr. and Dan Quayle were defeated for reelection in 1992.
Go figure.
Perhaps when the human race enters the solar system we will have the sort of leadership we deserve. Then again, perhaps we always get what we deserve.
___________
Quote for the Day – "The only difference between a pitbull and a hockey mom is lipstick." Sarah Palin
___________
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Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Surrounded by a Sea of Danger
The geographic North Pole is the northern point on the earth’s axis around which the earth spins. It’s located at 90 degrees north latitude. If you were standing on it, every direction on earth would be due south. You would also be freezing your tutu and on the lookout for polar bears that haven’t eaten lately.
The magnetic North Pole is the spot on earth where compasses point. Presently, it’s located in the Arctic Ocean, nearly a thousand miles south of the geographic North Pole, just southwest of Canada’s Ellef Ringnes Island.
The town of Resolute Bay, population 200, one of Canada’s most northerly settlements, is only a short plane ride away. Their motto is “Resolute is not the end of the world, but you can see it from here.”
Unlike the geographic North Pole, the earth’s magnetic pole is constantly on the move, caused by the movement of molten iron deep within the earth.
The precise location of the magnetic North Pole was first determined in 1831, hundreds of miles from its present location. Since then it has been resurveyed about once every decade and has historically been moving north-northwest at more than 10 miles per year. According to the latest satellite surveys, it also has a daily elliptical movement of approximately 50 miles from its average point.
Since 1950, the magnetic North Pole’s migrating speed has increased some 400 percent, covering closer to 50 miles every year, requiring the Hydrographic Office of the US Navy to update its maps every five years.
Not only is the magnetic North Pole wandering across the top of the planet, but the two poles have changed polarity many times throughout the eons. The North Pole becomes the South Pole and visa versa – positive becomes negative as negative becomes positive.
This can be verified because iron oxide in volcanic lava or igneous rocks is nonmagnetic when liquefied by extreme heat. Upon cooling, they obtain a magnetic orientation matching the Earth’s polarity at that given time.
Based on core samples from the Earth’s surface, as well as submarine mountain ranges, there have been numerous pole reversals, the last one occurring approximately 12,400 years ago. Evidently, our planet goes through a magnetic pole reversal on a regular basis.
Subterranean currents of molten lava create the magnetic poles. Changes in the flow lead to pole reversals.
Gauthier Hulot of the Globe Institute of Paris recently discovered that molten iron off the tip of Africa is now moving in a direction that is gradually weakening the dominant magnetic field, possibly leading to a global pole reversal.
Exactly what happens during a reversal isn’t clear.
A pole shift 12,400 years ago would possibly explain such events as the Biblical flood, the disappearance of the “mythical” continent of Atlantis, and such unexplainable phenomena as marine fossils found atop the Himalayan Mountains and evidence of tropical plant life discovered beneath the ice in Antarctica. In all likelihood, something dramatic happened in an instant global catastrophe rather than gradually over time.
In addition, the Earth’s crust is made up of gigantic tectonic plates. They rest on a liquid surface and are prone to movement, causing stress that generates volcanoes and earthquakes. A sudden, global slippage of the Earth’s crust is also a possibility.
Albert Einstein once wrote, “In a polar region there is a continual deposition of ice, which is not symmetrically distributed about the pole. The Earth’s rotation acts on these deposited masses [of ice], and produces centrifugal momentum that is transmitted to the rigid crust of the earth. The constantly increasing centrifugal momentum produced in this way will, when it has reached a certain point, produce a movement of the Earth’s crust over the rest of the Earth’s body, and this will displace the polar regions toward the equator.”
Earth is a very precarious place. The magnetic poles are prone to reversals in polarity and its surface crust can potentially slip in position. To mankind this rare occurrence would be a disaster of Biblical proportions. But to the planet itself, it’s just another bump in the road.
All in all, it makes things like politics and war seem trivial.
As a human being, I am merely a small glob of organic matter on a large spinning orb, hurtling through a vast void, destination unknown. Yet I reside at the center of the universe, basking in the spirit of my human essence, awed by the glory of my destiny unfolding before me.
I am an island named Bret, surrounded by a sea of danger, comfortable in the knowledge that we reap what we sow.
___________
Quote for the Day – "The universe that we inhabit and our shared perception of it are the results of a common karma. Likewise, the places that we will experience in future rebirths will be the outcome of the karma that we share with the other beings living there. The actions of each of us, human or nonhuman, have contributed to the world in which we live. We all have a common responsibility for our world and are connected with everything in it." The 14th Dalai Lama
___________
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-
The magnetic North Pole is the spot on earth where compasses point. Presently, it’s located in the Arctic Ocean, nearly a thousand miles south of the geographic North Pole, just southwest of Canada’s Ellef Ringnes Island.
The town of Resolute Bay, population 200, one of Canada’s most northerly settlements, is only a short plane ride away. Their motto is “Resolute is not the end of the world, but you can see it from here.”
Unlike the geographic North Pole, the earth’s magnetic pole is constantly on the move, caused by the movement of molten iron deep within the earth.
The precise location of the magnetic North Pole was first determined in 1831, hundreds of miles from its present location. Since then it has been resurveyed about once every decade and has historically been moving north-northwest at more than 10 miles per year. According to the latest satellite surveys, it also has a daily elliptical movement of approximately 50 miles from its average point.
Since 1950, the magnetic North Pole’s migrating speed has increased some 400 percent, covering closer to 50 miles every year, requiring the Hydrographic Office of the US Navy to update its maps every five years.
Not only is the magnetic North Pole wandering across the top of the planet, but the two poles have changed polarity many times throughout the eons. The North Pole becomes the South Pole and visa versa – positive becomes negative as negative becomes positive.
This can be verified because iron oxide in volcanic lava or igneous rocks is nonmagnetic when liquefied by extreme heat. Upon cooling, they obtain a magnetic orientation matching the Earth’s polarity at that given time.
Based on core samples from the Earth’s surface, as well as submarine mountain ranges, there have been numerous pole reversals, the last one occurring approximately 12,400 years ago. Evidently, our planet goes through a magnetic pole reversal on a regular basis.
Subterranean currents of molten lava create the magnetic poles. Changes in the flow lead to pole reversals.
Gauthier Hulot of the Globe Institute of Paris recently discovered that molten iron off the tip of Africa is now moving in a direction that is gradually weakening the dominant magnetic field, possibly leading to a global pole reversal.
Exactly what happens during a reversal isn’t clear.
A pole shift 12,400 years ago would possibly explain such events as the Biblical flood, the disappearance of the “mythical” continent of Atlantis, and such unexplainable phenomena as marine fossils found atop the Himalayan Mountains and evidence of tropical plant life discovered beneath the ice in Antarctica. In all likelihood, something dramatic happened in an instant global catastrophe rather than gradually over time.
In addition, the Earth’s crust is made up of gigantic tectonic plates. They rest on a liquid surface and are prone to movement, causing stress that generates volcanoes and earthquakes. A sudden, global slippage of the Earth’s crust is also a possibility.
Albert Einstein once wrote, “In a polar region there is a continual deposition of ice, which is not symmetrically distributed about the pole. The Earth’s rotation acts on these deposited masses [of ice], and produces centrifugal momentum that is transmitted to the rigid crust of the earth. The constantly increasing centrifugal momentum produced in this way will, when it has reached a certain point, produce a movement of the Earth’s crust over the rest of the Earth’s body, and this will displace the polar regions toward the equator.”
Earth is a very precarious place. The magnetic poles are prone to reversals in polarity and its surface crust can potentially slip in position. To mankind this rare occurrence would be a disaster of Biblical proportions. But to the planet itself, it’s just another bump in the road.
All in all, it makes things like politics and war seem trivial.
As a human being, I am merely a small glob of organic matter on a large spinning orb, hurtling through a vast void, destination unknown. Yet I reside at the center of the universe, basking in the spirit of my human essence, awed by the glory of my destiny unfolding before me.
I am an island named Bret, surrounded by a sea of danger, comfortable in the knowledge that we reap what we sow.
___________
Quote for the Day – "The universe that we inhabit and our shared perception of it are the results of a common karma. Likewise, the places that we will experience in future rebirths will be the outcome of the karma that we share with the other beings living there. The actions of each of us, human or nonhuman, have contributed to the world in which we live. We all have a common responsibility for our world and are connected with everything in it." The 14th Dalai Lama
___________
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Sunday, August 31, 2008
Am I my Brother's Son?
Some students have a way of writing things in a slightly different manner than intended, as demonstrated in the following excerpts from tests and essays of eight graders through college, complied by Richard Lederer, a teacher in St Paul.
The Bible is full of interesting caricatures. In the first book of the Bible, Guinessis, Adam and Eve were created by an apple tree. One of their children, Cain, asked, “Am I my brother’s son?”
Ancient Egypt was inhabited by mummies and they all wrote in hydraulics. They lived in the Sarah Dessert. The climate of the Sarah is such that the inhabitants have to live elsewhere.
Moses led the Hebrew slaves to the Red Sea, where they made unleavened bread, which is bread made without ingredients. Moses went up on Mount Cyanide to get the Ten Commandments. He died before he ever reached Canada.
Solomon had three hundred wives and seven hundred porcupines.
The Greeks were a highly sculptured people, and without them we wouldn’t have history. The Greeks also had myths. A myth is a female moth.
Homer was not written by Homer but by another man of that name.
In the Olympic games, Greeks ran races, jumped, hurled biscuits, and threw the java.
The Magna Carta provided that no man should be hanged twice for the same offense.
William Tell shot an arrow through an apple while standing on his son’s head.
The sun never sets on the British Empire because the British Empire is in the East and the sun sets in the West.
It was an age of great inventions and discoveries. Gutenberg invented removable type and the Bible. Another important invention was the circulation of blood.
Sir Francis Drake circumcised the world with a 100-foot clipper.
The greatest writer of the Renaissance was William Shakespeare. He was born in the year 1564, supposedly on his birthday.
Queen Victoria was the longest queen. She sat on a thorn for 63 years. Her death was the final event that ended her reign.
The winter of 1620 was a hard one for the Pilgrims. Many died and many babies were born. Captain John Smith was responsible for all this.
Thomas Jefferson, a Virgin, and Benjamin Franklin were two singers of the Declaration of Independence. Franklin discovered electricity by rubbing two cats together. Franklin died in 1790 and is still dead.
Abraham Lincoln became America’s greatest Precedent. Lincoln’s mother died in infancy, and he was born in a log cabin that he built with his own hands.
Gravity was invented by Isaac Walton. It is chiefly noticeable when apples are falling off the trees.
Johann Bach wrote a great many musical compositions and had a large number of children. In between he practiced on an old spinster which he kept in the attic. Bach died from 1750 to the present.
Handel was a great composer. He was half German, half Italian and half English. He was very large.
Beethoven wrote music even though he was deaf. He was so deaf he wrote loud music. Beethoven expired in 1827 and later died for this.
The nineteenth century was a time of many inventions. People stopped reproducing by hand and started reproducing by machine. The invention of the steamboat caused a network of rivers to spring up.
___________
Quote for the Day – "A virgin forest is a forest where the hand of man has never set foot."
___________
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The Bible is full of interesting caricatures. In the first book of the Bible, Guinessis, Adam and Eve were created by an apple tree. One of their children, Cain, asked, “Am I my brother’s son?”
Ancient Egypt was inhabited by mummies and they all wrote in hydraulics. They lived in the Sarah Dessert. The climate of the Sarah is such that the inhabitants have to live elsewhere.
Moses led the Hebrew slaves to the Red Sea, where they made unleavened bread, which is bread made without ingredients. Moses went up on Mount Cyanide to get the Ten Commandments. He died before he ever reached Canada.
Solomon had three hundred wives and seven hundred porcupines.
The Greeks were a highly sculptured people, and without them we wouldn’t have history. The Greeks also had myths. A myth is a female moth.
Homer was not written by Homer but by another man of that name.
In the Olympic games, Greeks ran races, jumped, hurled biscuits, and threw the java.
The Magna Carta provided that no man should be hanged twice for the same offense.
William Tell shot an arrow through an apple while standing on his son’s head.
The sun never sets on the British Empire because the British Empire is in the East and the sun sets in the West.
It was an age of great inventions and discoveries. Gutenberg invented removable type and the Bible. Another important invention was the circulation of blood.
Sir Francis Drake circumcised the world with a 100-foot clipper.
The greatest writer of the Renaissance was William Shakespeare. He was born in the year 1564, supposedly on his birthday.
Queen Victoria was the longest queen. She sat on a thorn for 63 years. Her death was the final event that ended her reign.
The winter of 1620 was a hard one for the Pilgrims. Many died and many babies were born. Captain John Smith was responsible for all this.
Thomas Jefferson, a Virgin, and Benjamin Franklin were two singers of the Declaration of Independence. Franklin discovered electricity by rubbing two cats together. Franklin died in 1790 and is still dead.
Abraham Lincoln became America’s greatest Precedent. Lincoln’s mother died in infancy, and he was born in a log cabin that he built with his own hands.
Gravity was invented by Isaac Walton. It is chiefly noticeable when apples are falling off the trees.
Johann Bach wrote a great many musical compositions and had a large number of children. In between he practiced on an old spinster which he kept in the attic. Bach died from 1750 to the present.
Handel was a great composer. He was half German, half Italian and half English. He was very large.
Beethoven wrote music even though he was deaf. He was so deaf he wrote loud music. Beethoven expired in 1827 and later died for this.
The nineteenth century was a time of many inventions. People stopped reproducing by hand and started reproducing by machine. The invention of the steamboat caused a network of rivers to spring up.
___________
Quote for the Day – "A virgin forest is a forest where the hand of man has never set foot."
___________
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Thursday, August 28, 2008
The Illusion of Democracy
There are three points of view when it comes to the federal government.
1) Everything is more or less going along just fine. Sure we have some problems but we’ll work them out.
2) It’s too cumbersome and intrusive, taxes are excessive, the national debt is a disgrace, and our foreign policy is long on machismo and short on goodwill. The Democrats and Republicans got us into this mess and probably can’t get us out.
3) If you ignore it, it will go away.
The presidential election will take place in November.
As usual, our so-called democracy gives you two choices.
The Democrats want an extensive, intrusive federal government to engineer social change by redistributing wealth. Higher taxes and more government programs, thereby suffocating the economy and diminishing individual freedom.
The Republicans want a strong, powerful federal government to nurture big business by supporting a vast military-industrial complex. Increased military expenditures and more self-appointed international police action, thereby contributing to global strife and tarnishing our relationship with the rest of the world.
Both of these philosophies are extremely costly. Democrats and Republicans have driven our national debt up to nearly $9 trillion, and it continues to rise. Future generations will bear the burden for this insane federal spending recklessness.
If you’re enthusiastic about one of these two options, by all means stay the course.
But if you’re stuck between a rock and a hard place trying to choose the lesser of two evils, perhaps it’s time to unscrew your head back out of the sand and seek an alternative. Even though the media will try to convince you that a vote for anyone other than a Democrat or a Republican is a wasted vote, there are other alternatives.
The election process is meant to give the voters the illusion of a free democracy without actually having one.
The two major candidates for president, one Democrat and one Republican, are basically chosen by a handful of small states (the New Hampshire Primary, the Iowa Caucuses, etc.), then each of the candidates personally selects their respective running mate and potential successor.
To maintain their position of power and control, the two major political parties enacted election laws that have given them a decisive advantage over any emerging alternative philosophies.
Democrats and Republicans in Congress have awarded matching campaign funds to the two major political parties (themselves) while making it difficult for third parties to qualify for them. The candidates of these two parties are automatically placed on ballots in every state, while third party candidates must contend with legal quagmires on a state by state basis to get on ballots.
To anyone with a brain larger than a pinto bean this doesn’t seem like much of a democracy.
To make matter worse, the mass media focuses only on the two major political parties, as if they’re the only two points of view, further diminishing a free democracy.
There aren’t many choices when there are only two alternatives.
This unbalanced, unfair system wasn’t the result of evil intent. But government operates on endless compromise and those in power tend to manipulate the system to favor those in power. And the mass media goes along with it to maintain a positive relationship with those in power in order to obtain access.
Basically, the system is rigged.
The two parties in power have made it difficult for a third party to compete and the mass media has become their ally by promoting an illusion of a democracy, encouraging everyone to participate in the process under the mistaken premise that the public is apathetic rather than disgusted.
So the masses turn out every four years to do their civic duty and vote for the lesser of two evils.
But a vote for the lesser of two evils is still a vote for evil and an illusion of a democracy is only an illusion.
A two-party system is not a democracy – it’s a closed system tightly controlled by the two parties in power.
Anyone who enthusiastically supports such a system is perpetuating a narrow, unjust form of government.
Every citizen has three choices.
1) You can participate in a rigged system, giving legitimacy to that system, by voting for one of the two major candidates as usual. Be sure to pat yourself on the back for doing your civic duty.
2) You can vote for a third party candidate, sending a message to the two major parties and the mass media that politics as usual is unacceptable. Be sure to pat yourself on the back for having a mind of your own.
3) You can choose to stay at home on Election Day and bang your head against the wall. Be sure to pat yourself on the back so you don’t swallow your gum.
Choose wisely. The fate of eternity is in your hands.
___________
Quote for the Day – "Everybody knows that the boat is leaking.... Everybody knows that the captain lied.... Everybody's got this broken feeling.... Like their father or their dog just died...." Leonard Cohen
___________
-
-
1) Everything is more or less going along just fine. Sure we have some problems but we’ll work them out.
2) It’s too cumbersome and intrusive, taxes are excessive, the national debt is a disgrace, and our foreign policy is long on machismo and short on goodwill. The Democrats and Republicans got us into this mess and probably can’t get us out.
3) If you ignore it, it will go away.
The presidential election will take place in November.
As usual, our so-called democracy gives you two choices.
The Democrats want an extensive, intrusive federal government to engineer social change by redistributing wealth. Higher taxes and more government programs, thereby suffocating the economy and diminishing individual freedom.
The Republicans want a strong, powerful federal government to nurture big business by supporting a vast military-industrial complex. Increased military expenditures and more self-appointed international police action, thereby contributing to global strife and tarnishing our relationship with the rest of the world.
Both of these philosophies are extremely costly. Democrats and Republicans have driven our national debt up to nearly $9 trillion, and it continues to rise. Future generations will bear the burden for this insane federal spending recklessness.
If you’re enthusiastic about one of these two options, by all means stay the course.
But if you’re stuck between a rock and a hard place trying to choose the lesser of two evils, perhaps it’s time to unscrew your head back out of the sand and seek an alternative. Even though the media will try to convince you that a vote for anyone other than a Democrat or a Republican is a wasted vote, there are other alternatives.
The election process is meant to give the voters the illusion of a free democracy without actually having one.
The two major candidates for president, one Democrat and one Republican, are basically chosen by a handful of small states (the New Hampshire Primary, the Iowa Caucuses, etc.), then each of the candidates personally selects their respective running mate and potential successor.
To maintain their position of power and control, the two major political parties enacted election laws that have given them a decisive advantage over any emerging alternative philosophies.
Democrats and Republicans in Congress have awarded matching campaign funds to the two major political parties (themselves) while making it difficult for third parties to qualify for them. The candidates of these two parties are automatically placed on ballots in every state, while third party candidates must contend with legal quagmires on a state by state basis to get on ballots.
To anyone with a brain larger than a pinto bean this doesn’t seem like much of a democracy.
To make matter worse, the mass media focuses only on the two major political parties, as if they’re the only two points of view, further diminishing a free democracy.
There aren’t many choices when there are only two alternatives.
This unbalanced, unfair system wasn’t the result of evil intent. But government operates on endless compromise and those in power tend to manipulate the system to favor those in power. And the mass media goes along with it to maintain a positive relationship with those in power in order to obtain access.
Basically, the system is rigged.
The two parties in power have made it difficult for a third party to compete and the mass media has become their ally by promoting an illusion of a democracy, encouraging everyone to participate in the process under the mistaken premise that the public is apathetic rather than disgusted.
So the masses turn out every four years to do their civic duty and vote for the lesser of two evils.
But a vote for the lesser of two evils is still a vote for evil and an illusion of a democracy is only an illusion.
A two-party system is not a democracy – it’s a closed system tightly controlled by the two parties in power.
Anyone who enthusiastically supports such a system is perpetuating a narrow, unjust form of government.
Every citizen has three choices.
1) You can participate in a rigged system, giving legitimacy to that system, by voting for one of the two major candidates as usual. Be sure to pat yourself on the back for doing your civic duty.
2) You can vote for a third party candidate, sending a message to the two major parties and the mass media that politics as usual is unacceptable. Be sure to pat yourself on the back for having a mind of your own.
3) You can choose to stay at home on Election Day and bang your head against the wall. Be sure to pat yourself on the back so you don’t swallow your gum.
Choose wisely. The fate of eternity is in your hands.
___________
Quote for the Day – "Everybody knows that the boat is leaking.... Everybody knows that the captain lied.... Everybody's got this broken feeling.... Like their father or their dog just died...." Leonard Cohen
___________
-
-
Monday, August 25, 2008
The Freedom to Flounder
In 1607, Captain John Smith founded the first permanent English settlement in America, called Jamestown.
Jamestown was named after King James I of England who commissioned the first “authorized” English version of the Bible, commonly known as the King James Version.
The Jamestown Colony was a business venture of the Virginia Company of London, a British firm formed by members of a secret society, including Sir Francis Bacon. The goal of this secret society was to build a New World Order by starting their own "ideal" community from scratch and expanding globally from there.
Sir Francis Bacon was the Grand Commander of the brotherhood order called the Rosicrucians and the founder of English Freemasonry. He's also considered by many historians to have been the true identity of the playwright known as William Shakespeare,
Not long thereafter, a second English Colony was assembled in Plymouth, Massachusetts, by a group of religious dissenters.
Britain had broken from the Catholic Church and formed the Church of England, but these two splinter groups had disdain for this new church. They were the Puritans and the Separatists who decided to journey to American in the pursuit of religious freedom. Collectively, they were known as Pilgrims.
Thus, the Jamestown Colony and the Plymouth Colony had been formed in the new land.
Initially, the first two colonies were each set up as collectives with a communal style of living, based primarily on the philosophy of Plato, where no one owned property and everyone was fed from a common store.
They were the hippie communes of their time – disdainful of authority, seeking freedom of expression, wanting to live in harmony with like-minded others.
It was a utopian scheme, lofty on idealism but short on practicality, that soon floundered. Both colonies suffered great hardships.
The leader of the Plymouth Colony, William Bradford, eventually realized that the lack of incentive was the root of the problem and instituted a system whereby each family was assigned a plot of land they could call their own and reap whatever rewards they could produce.
From then on, the Plymouth Colony flourished.
The leaders of the Jamestown Colony had no such enlightenment. If it weren’t for friendly Indians and the arrival of reinforcements in 1610, they likely would have perished.
This is another example of how the ideals of private property ownership and free enterprise work for the benefit of all.
Collectivism (socialism, communism, totalitarianism, or any large centralized excessive bureaucracy that feeds on productivity and suffocates individuality) will never be as effective as individual freedom simply because there is a lack of incentive to be productive or innovative.
In a free society, ambitious people are free to be rewarded for their efforts and are inclined to prosper, while lazy bums are free to avoid responsibility and are inclined to hang out with other lazy bums.
In a collective society, people have no incentive to be productive. No matter how hard they work, they will only receive an equal share for their efforts. And those who contribute little to the overall communal output will receive an equal share as well. There’s no point in working hard if there’s no reward for working hard.
In a free society, innovation is driven by competition. Rapid improvement leads to success.
In a collective society, there’s no incentive to be innovative. Everyone is merely a cog in a vast human machine, enslaved by a rigid system where decisions require a collective agreement, leading to a stagnant bureaucracy where change will be discouraged.
In a free society, a wide gap tends to exist between the rich and the poor, one of the chief complaints of those who endorse a collective system. But that’s the price of freedom. So be it.
In a collective society, a wide gap tends to exist between the illusion of common good and the reality of common sense. Another wide gap also exists between the ears of those who support the illusion.
Unfortunately, those who feel entitled to the efforts of others will invariably attempt to impose various forms of legalized plunder, such as a “progressive” income tax or an inheritance tax, against those who prosper. But whenever the plunder of successful people takes place, a free society becomes less free.
In a free society, everyone starts on a level playing field and the outcome is determined by effort.
In a collective society, the playing field is rigged because the outcome is determined in advance by a central committee. Such a system will almost certainly flounder.
If I flounder, I’d like it to be my choice.
___________
Quote for the Day – "Get born, keep warm.... Short pants, romance, learn to dance.... Get dressed, get blessed.... Try to be a success.... Don't want to be a bum, you better chew gum.... The pump don't work, cause the vandals took the handles..." Bob Dylan
___________
-
-
Jamestown was named after King James I of England who commissioned the first “authorized” English version of the Bible, commonly known as the King James Version.
The Jamestown Colony was a business venture of the Virginia Company of London, a British firm formed by members of a secret society, including Sir Francis Bacon. The goal of this secret society was to build a New World Order by starting their own "ideal" community from scratch and expanding globally from there.
Sir Francis Bacon was the Grand Commander of the brotherhood order called the Rosicrucians and the founder of English Freemasonry. He's also considered by many historians to have been the true identity of the playwright known as William Shakespeare,
Not long thereafter, a second English Colony was assembled in Plymouth, Massachusetts, by a group of religious dissenters.
Britain had broken from the Catholic Church and formed the Church of England, but these two splinter groups had disdain for this new church. They were the Puritans and the Separatists who decided to journey to American in the pursuit of religious freedom. Collectively, they were known as Pilgrims.
Thus, the Jamestown Colony and the Plymouth Colony had been formed in the new land.
Initially, the first two colonies were each set up as collectives with a communal style of living, based primarily on the philosophy of Plato, where no one owned property and everyone was fed from a common store.
They were the hippie communes of their time – disdainful of authority, seeking freedom of expression, wanting to live in harmony with like-minded others.
It was a utopian scheme, lofty on idealism but short on practicality, that soon floundered. Both colonies suffered great hardships.
The leader of the Plymouth Colony, William Bradford, eventually realized that the lack of incentive was the root of the problem and instituted a system whereby each family was assigned a plot of land they could call their own and reap whatever rewards they could produce.
From then on, the Plymouth Colony flourished.
The leaders of the Jamestown Colony had no such enlightenment. If it weren’t for friendly Indians and the arrival of reinforcements in 1610, they likely would have perished.
This is another example of how the ideals of private property ownership and free enterprise work for the benefit of all.
Collectivism (socialism, communism, totalitarianism, or any large centralized excessive bureaucracy that feeds on productivity and suffocates individuality) will never be as effective as individual freedom simply because there is a lack of incentive to be productive or innovative.
In a free society, ambitious people are free to be rewarded for their efforts and are inclined to prosper, while lazy bums are free to avoid responsibility and are inclined to hang out with other lazy bums.
In a collective society, people have no incentive to be productive. No matter how hard they work, they will only receive an equal share for their efforts. And those who contribute little to the overall communal output will receive an equal share as well. There’s no point in working hard if there’s no reward for working hard.
In a free society, innovation is driven by competition. Rapid improvement leads to success.
In a collective society, there’s no incentive to be innovative. Everyone is merely a cog in a vast human machine, enslaved by a rigid system where decisions require a collective agreement, leading to a stagnant bureaucracy where change will be discouraged.
In a free society, a wide gap tends to exist between the rich and the poor, one of the chief complaints of those who endorse a collective system. But that’s the price of freedom. So be it.
In a collective society, a wide gap tends to exist between the illusion of common good and the reality of common sense. Another wide gap also exists between the ears of those who support the illusion.
Unfortunately, those who feel entitled to the efforts of others will invariably attempt to impose various forms of legalized plunder, such as a “progressive” income tax or an inheritance tax, against those who prosper. But whenever the plunder of successful people takes place, a free society becomes less free.
In a free society, everyone starts on a level playing field and the outcome is determined by effort.
In a collective society, the playing field is rigged because the outcome is determined in advance by a central committee. Such a system will almost certainly flounder.
If I flounder, I’d like it to be my choice.
___________
Quote for the Day – "Get born, keep warm.... Short pants, romance, learn to dance.... Get dressed, get blessed.... Try to be a success.... Don't want to be a bum, you better chew gum.... The pump don't work, cause the vandals took the handles..." Bob Dylan
___________
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