Saturday, July 30, 2011

Cup of Compromise Tea, Senator Reid?

This week the House has passed TWO bills and sent to the senate for the debt ceiling adjustment. All the while Obama, Reid and Pelosi have hammered the GOP for not being able to "compromise" to get a deal done. BOTH of those bills were not even debated on in the Senate. Voted down without debate.

To me, this stinks of hypocrisy... if they truly believed in the poser of compromise they would take those bills, open them up for debate, modify one and send it back to the house. Instead they vote to not even bring them to the floor.  Now this morning we hear they are working on their own bill in the Senate that includes triggers for TAX increases because they may not have the votes in the Senate without tax increases. Do they seriously think that will pass in the House? Not in my lifetime. Now I guess now it's the House's turn to shoot one down.

This whole August 2nd deadline is a farce anyway. How many times has it been moved already? I say call the President bluff. Without the tea party, we would have MORE massive spending, more government control, more taxes, more DEBT and less and less liberty and freedom. WWFD ? What Would the Founders Do? They would surely not be in the position to begin with. There beliefs on debt would have not permitted this kind of madness.

America, STAND UP. We do not have to put up with this game. Both sides are showing us how incapable they are of truly leading this nation. The President lost that role a LONG time ago.

Mr. Reid, would you like a cup of compromise tea?


Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Surrounded by Patriotism

Recently my wife and I were fortunate to visit Mt. Rushmore in South Dakota. The first day was a sunny and hot July day and the place was full of people. People of all nationalities and all races, and all political and religious beliefs. What a glorious memorial to the these great Presidents. On this trip we saw nature and America at its best. Every corner you turn you see wonderful landscapes and open praries with roaming buffalo, prarie dogs and antelope mixed with mountain peaks, flowing crystal clear creeks with dragonflies and wildflowers. The silence at the top of some of these peaks is stunning.


"The purpose of the memorial is to communicate the founding, expansion, preservation, and unification of the
United States with colossal statues of Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt." Gutzon Borglum

We went back the next evening to see the nightly lighting ceremony at the memorial. Thousands of people filled the park and the large ampitheatre. The program with the singing of the National Anthem, and singing it there felt very different than singing it before the first pitch of a baseball game. Then the speaker began with some facts about the monument and the individual presidents. He also spoke about the Lewis and Clark expedition that discovered the west and the trials and their journey to the west coast and the pacific ocean. They then showed a film about America and about the things that make this country great, primarily FREEDOM !!


My photograph of Mt. Rushmore after fully illuminated during the ceremony.

It was very nice to be in a setting to feel and express our patriotism without fear of how someone might interpret that or might be "offended" by America and it's greatness. This IS the best country on earth. Those of you that may not share that opinion, please visit Mt. Rushmore, because you have freedom to live and work where you want, travel where you want, worship how you want and believe what you want. If you need a reminder, please visit the Berlin Wall Exhibit in Rapid City. Below is my photograph of two pieces of the actual Berlin Wall on display. Stirring reminder of the kind of evil that soldiers and citizens of this country fight against. Not to take over new land but to keep people of the world free.

Two segments of the Berlin Wall and two tank traps. I hope we never forget what can happen when freedom is discounted.