The New Minutemen are not
reaching for their muskets at a
moment's notice.  They are
pulling out the cell phones with
a video camera.  The New
Minutemen are not mustering
to the sound of drums on the
common green.  They are
posting their video on You-
Tube.

The New Minutemen are the
Citizen Journalists.  Those who
seek to root out corruption and
fraud in 'The System'.  They
are doing the real work of bear-
ing witness and exposing evil.
Something that our current
'legacy' journalists have all but
forgotten.

Just as television had replaced
newspapers, and cable news
replaced broadcast networks,
the Internet is putting them all
to shame.  The World Wide
Web gives everyone the oppor-
tunity to gather, review and
exchange information.  While
the Net has been around for
some 15 years, the user-tech-
nology is now sufficiently wide-
spread to allow for this next
paradigm shift.

If you had watched the Main
Stream Media this past week,
you probably think that the
biggest story of the week was
Obama's health care speech.
You would be wrong!  That was
not the biggest story.

The biggest story this week is
that the Citizen Journalists
scored three direct hits on the
Obama Administration.  First
was the resignation of green
jobs adviser, Van Jones.  Then
the re-assignment of NEA
official, Yuri Sergant.  Number
Three may be the best of all,
was the under-cover citizen
sting of ACORN.

A principal player in all three
was Andrew Breitbart and his
team at biggovernment.com.
The website was a key portal
in all three events.  It is little
wonder that Breitbart was
nursed at the first of the new
media websites, TheDrudge
Report.  Just as Matt Drudge
scooped all of the MSM with
his coverage of the Clinton
Administration, Breitbart is
now blowing away the MSM
in scrutinizing the Obama
White House.

Along with strong allies in
Glenn Beck and Fox News,
serious matters of personnel
with dubious backgrounds
and motives are being vetted
and exposed.  Van Jones was
only the first.  Information on
many other appointed officials
is being brought to the light
of day.

The citizen-sting of ACORN
has done a great deal of harm
to that corrupt organization.
So far, two offices have been
shown to be promoting illegal
behavior.  I'll bet that there will
be a steady drip of new video
and allegations to surface over
the upcoming weeks.

Today, all across America, the
TEA (Taxed Enough Already)
Party and 9/12 Project groups
held rallies in dozens of cities.
On the Mall in Washington,
DC, tens of thousands gather-
ed to voice their opposition to
the out of control spending and
profusion of bad legislation
coming from Congress.  Only
Fox News gave the rallies any
real coverage on TV.  A two-
hour show hosted by Glenn
Beck did a great job of showing
what this new, anti-big-govern-
ment movement is really all
about.

Beck summed it up best with
the new challenge he pre-
sented to his viewers.  To find
56 "Re-Founders" to elect to
Congress.  People who will
take their oath to protect and
defend the Constitution very
seriously.  Beck relates how
just 56 men signed the Decla-
ration of Independence, the
principle document that
founded America.

Beck railed against both
political parties for the cor-
ruption plaguing our nation.
During today's broadcast, he
threw down the gauntlet and
proclaimed that no legisla-
tion be passed until the corrup-
tion is rooted out.  No new
government programs should
be created until all of the exist-
ing ones have been cleaned
up and justified.

The events of this week show
the way to this objective.  We
cannot depend on the 'Legacy'
journalists to seek and reveal
the truth.  They are part of the
corruption!  It's for the New
Minutemen to find, see, record
and expose that which is
strangling our nation like a
giant serpent.  Squeezing the
life and freedom out of our
citizens.

All Hail the New Minutemen,
the Citizen Journalists!  Keep
your cameras dry and your
batteries charged!

We learned nothing new during
Obama's speech last night.  It
was just one of the vast num-
ber of speeches he has given
since taking office.  One count
puts him at over 30 more
speeches than days in office!
Obama sure likes to hear him-
self talk!  LOL!

Arriving late, as usual, and
going long, as usual, Obama
babbled away for some 53
minutes.  He did not utter one,
single new idea, position, or
talking point.  We've heard it
all before.

I suppose about the only thing
one can say is that he now
seems to be embracing the
Senate version, one of them
anyway, of the health care
legislation.  I'm sure that made
Nancy Pelosi happy!

The most amusing moment
of the evening was when
South Carolina Congressman
Joe Wilson yelled "LIAR" as
Obama tried to calm fears
that the legislation would not
cover illegal immigrants. This
caused a ruckus and he later
apologized for the outburst.
But I'm sure that many felt
like saying the exact same
thing during Obama's long,
rambling speech.

With his poll numbers in ra-
pid decline, and opposition
to the health care proposals
stiffening nationwide, some
pundits view last night's as
Obama's last chance to save
the legislation and his presi-
dency.  If it fails to get passed,
then Obama may wind up a
lame duck before the end of
his first year.

Obama continued his attacks
blaming Republicans and the
various special interest groups,
such as the insurance compan-
ies, for why the legislation is
in failing.  Of course, he does
not assume his own responsi-
bility for the lack of leadership.
Obama spends all his time
making speeches and is not
doing any real work.  He lets
others write the agenda and
details.

Listening to an Obama speech
is like dating somebody who
always wants to do the same
thing.  Eat at the same restau-
rant, order the same food.
There is nothing new.  He is
becoming a bore!  And a very
annoying bore at that!  His
arrogance feigns that you must
feel privileged to be receiving
his attention.  The mere fact
that he spends any time talking
to you should be enough to
satisfy you.

While this may be sufficient for
people like Chris Matthews, it
is not enough for anybody with
a brain.  LOL!  Obama has be-
come his own worst enemy.
Each time he opens his mouth
he is losing support, losing
ground.  His steady decline in
the tracking polls did get a
slight bump while he was on
vacation, since he only gave
four speeches during a six
day period.  Normally he would
have given eight or nine during
such a span of time.

Last night could have been
used by him to lay out a simple,
five point plan for reforming
health care.  Something that
may have been easier to pro-
mote and sell to the American
people.  Instead, all we got was
more rhetoric and platitudes.
Even some Democrat insiders
are now growing unhappy with
Obama's leadership.

This morning on MSNBC's
"Morning Joe", Laurence
O'Donnell, who often fills in
for Matthews on "Hardball",
joined the ranks of the dis-
heartened.  He said he was
very disappointed with the
lack of focus.  O'Donnell is
also tired of the same old
rhetoric, too.  The luster of
Obama's golden voice is
rapidly fading away.

I've said all along that Obama
is an empty suit.  Lately I have
added that he's lazy, too.  Last
night only reinforced my views.

All of last year, the Main
Stream Media fed us a steady
diet of news reports on how
wonderfully organized the
Obama campaign was.  They
portrayed his management
skills in glowing ways.  After
he was elected, this superb
organizing was again bally-
hoo'd as the MSM told us about
how in-depth the vetting pro-
cess was for selecting his
White House team.  A vetting
process that allowed Van
Jones to be hired by the White
House.

Of course, from the beginning,
this gold-class vetting process
came under scrutiny when a
series of appointees were
shown to have issues, from not
paying taxes to past legislative
woes.  Another trend began to
emerge as a large number of
'czars' and advisors were hired.
Such positions skirted the law
in regards to requiring Senate
approval.

This is how Van Jones, the
'green-jobs' advisor for Obama
got access to the White House.
Jones has had a very active
career since Yale Law School.
He was arrested during the
Rodney King riots.  Became
involved in a series of radical
activist groups like Cop-Watch,
RAW (Roots Against War),
STORM (Standing Together
to Organize Revolutionary
Movement).  These were all
very clear, Marxist groups,
who's objectives were to end
our current form of democracy
and capitalism.

Jones practiced an evolutionary
trend of reorganizing these
groups to make them appear to
be more centrist, more main-
stream.  New names, like the
Ella Baker Human Rights Cen-
ter, or Green For All, seemed
more innocuous, less radical,
however, their agenda had not
changed one bit from the
earlier incarnations.  As late as
this past March, Jones was still
preaching all of the classic
Marxist themes, such as the
redistribution of wealth and how
the White race was enslaving
and killing all people of color.

The MSM gave Jones a pass,
as they tended to agree with
his brand of politics.  But Fox
News and talk radio exposed
him for what he truly is.  The
past few weeks, numerous
speeches Jones had given
were actually given air time so
that the American people
could judge for themselves.
The White House began to
scramble over his more con-
troversial statements.  Then
came the last straw, that Jones
was a 9/11 'Truther', believing
that the Bush Administration
allowed the terrorist attacks,
possibly even assisting the
execution, in order to seize
more power and control.

Jones is just one of many of
czars and advisors in the White
House with a dubious history.
The Obama Administration has
hired an unprecedented num-
ber of such, more than double
any previous administration.
If the so-called in-depth vetting
process allowed Jones to slip
past scrutiny, what about the
rest?

Obama now has the distinction
of being third in presidents who
lost public support quickly.  As
his poll numbers fall below 50%
we now ranks between Jimmy
Carter (4th) and Bill Clinton
(2nd), neither whom were
elected with majorities.  In 1st
place is Gerald Ford, who was
not even elected.  

So how could the most organ-
ized and disciplined campaign
in history, if you believe the
MSM, quickly fall into confu-
sion and disarray?  Govern-
ing is much more serious and
harder than campaigning.
It requires leadership and
rational, sound policies.  Yet,
Obama has skirted much of
either, abdicating legislation
initiatives to Congress.  And
he has now structured his
executive branch into a hodge-
podge of czars and advisors,
skirting reliance on the actual
executive departments of the
government.  

It now seems like every action
taken by Obama is mired in
controversy.  From hiring tax
cheats, to excessive spending,
and turning companies over to
unions was just the beginning.
The next two major agendas,
climate change and health
care, will create more deficit
spending, higher taxes and
transfer more power to the
Federal government.  The only
ones to benefit from these are
the inner circle of corporate
elite who backed Obama dur-
ing his campaign, Goldman
Sachs, General Electric and
George Soros.  Even the up-
coming education speech he
will deliver this Tuesday has
devolved into another embar-
rassment, with parents now
resolved to keep their children
home and protect them from
Obama's agendas.

The mis-steps, gaffs and poor
choices by the Obama White
House indicate that we have
a serious leadership gap.  With
the world becoming more dan-
gerous (North  Korea, Iran,
Afghanistan, Pakistan) and
our economy still dysfunctional
(since the credit crunch still
is hurting small business and
individuals), it appears that we
may already have a lame duck
in the White House.  At the
very least, a wounded duck.

Obama has just over three
years left to impress us.  At
the rate he is going, we are
in for a lot of troubling times.
He can turn things around,
but it would require a major
house cleaning amongst his
staff.  Anyone who smacks
of any radicalism or contro-
versy has to be fired or asked
to resign.

He then needs to become the
centrist he pretended to be
during his campaign.  Obama
should initiate a new legislative
agenda, starting off with his
own, well defined, health care
proposal and the repeal of the
stimulus spending package.
Only some 10% of the $787
Billion has been spent so far,
with the average job created
by it costing tax payers some
$400,000+.  With over 15 mil-
lion Americans out of work,
it will cost some $6 Trillion
dollars to solve that problem,
more than half the current
National Debt.

This wild spending spree must
be stopped.  The long term
implications are too frightening.
If Obama were to reverse his
course on this alone, it may
save his presidency and allow
him to launch Agenda 2.0.
The resignation of Van Jones
may be the first brick in the
wall towards achieving a re-
bound.  But I will not be hold-
ing my breath.  To me, the
Obama Administration is the
most radical and arrogant
one we've ever had.  I foresee
nothing but trouble ahead.

Have you wondered what our
government intends to do with
all those cars that were turned
in during the Cash-4-Clunker
program?  I suspect they'll be
used to pay the Chinese some
of the $700 Billion dollars we
owe them.  Our government is
scrapping America for the
Chinese.

Why else would they demand
that the dealers scrap perfectly
good automobiles?  The cars
being scrapped really are not
very old and were generally in
good running condition.  The
difference in fuel mileage was
only 3 miles per gallon or so
less than the new cars which
were purchased.

The government only allowed
dealers to strip a limited num-
ber of parts from the older
cars for resale.  The engines
were trashed chemically to
render them unusable.  The
rest of the cars were reduced
to mere scrap.  So what does
the government intend to do
with all that scrap metal?  They
own it now, at least they do
once they pay the dealers the
money they're owed.

The answer may lie with a new
policy from the Department of
Defense.  The DOD recently
stopped shipping spent brass
cartridges back to ammunition
manufacturers for reloading.
Only a small percentage of the
spent ammo would be nicked
or damaged, requiring re-
smelting.  Most only required
a quick cleaning in a chemical
bath, then on to the reload
line.

But now, the DOD instead is
scrapping all spent rounds,
shredding the cartridges and
then shipping the scrap brass
to China.  Some conspiracy
types think that this is part of
a new plot by the government
to disarm Americans.  Making
ammunition more expensive
and in shorter supply.

But I suspect that this is part
of a new policy to pay back
the Chinese.  We owe them
a great deal of money.  With
our economy still in the rears,
and with the government
spending so much, we are
growing even deeper in debt
to the Chinese.  For months
now, The Chinese have been
very vocal about our currency
issues and have all but stopped
buying government Treasury
bonds, which help finance our
national Debt.

The Chinese are warning us
that they are very concerned
that we may not be able to
pay them back.  If I were
them, I'd worry, too.  LOL!
So it looks like to me that
Lord Barry wants to trade
our scrap metal to them.  
One wonder what we will
have to ship them next?
Slave labor?  Stay tuned!

We are not radicals.  We are
not the revolutionaries.  The
Main Stream Media and their
minions would like to paint us
as hostile, angry mobs.  That
we oppose the changes which
the current Congress and
administration are attempting
to ram through at break-neck
speed does not make us the
problem.

We are the ones who seek
to preserve and protect the
Constitution.  All we ask is
that our elected officials do
the same.  But in the past
year, we have seen the
exact opposite.

Yes, I fault George W. Bush,
too!  He started this mess
allowing Paulson and
Bernanke to bail out much of
the financial industry.  So do
not play your linear, ideological
games with me.

The bail outs were bad enough.
What we have seen since the
Obama Administration took
over is the privatization of the
auto industry, and some re-
markable events.  Bankruptcy
laws completely turned on their
ears.  Private companies, the
auto dealerships, were forced
out of business by the govern-
ment!  Most of whom were
earning a profit, or at least
prepared to ride out the reces-
sion.  

Now, the same politicians want
to take over 1/7th of the econo-
my, the health care industry.
They've done such a marvel-
ous job running the rest, they
believe they are better quali-
fied than the marketplace.
RRRRRRRRRIGHT!!!

Those of us who oppose this
insanity are not the ones to be
worried about or feared.  We
are not the ones exercising
force.  We are not the ones
spreading fear.  We are not
the ones with an eye on your
property, your wallet, or your
very life!

We are the thin red line which
stands between civilization and
chaos.  We are the Status Quo.
Would we like to see improve-
ments?  We sure would!  But
we do not believe that our en-
tire way of life should be scrap-
ped in order to effect construc-
tive change.

There have been alarming
trends in law enforcement to
vilify those who use words as
'Constitution'.  Several hand-
books and pamphlets distri-
buted amongst law enforce-
ment agencies highlight
such people as being very
dangerous.  Yet, as an older
FBI report concluded, a far
greater threat to society lies
with eco-terrorists, largely
supported by Far-Left groups.

Hardly any media coverage
is given to the numerous
eco-terrorist incidents.  A re-
cent story by Chris Arsenault
on IPSNews.Net from 8/27/09
tells how since October 2008,
there have been six bombings
of the EnCana natural gas
pipeline in British Columbia.
Handwritten letters left at the
scenes point to eco-terrorists
as being responsible.

The FBI has determined, for
over seven years now, that
such groups are the worst
domestic threat in America.
Earth Liberation Front and
similar organizations have
committed some 1,800 acts
of violence, causing over
$200 Million dollars in damage.
ELF, and sister groups like
Animal Liberation Front, want
to reshape society towards
green anarchy, or vegan
anarchy.  A world not depen-
dent on oil or meat to fuel
it's industry or people.

Some of these groups are
funded through 'legitimate'
organizations, such as the
Rainforest Action Network.
They sound familiar?  If
you've been reading my
blogs you may recall that
one of the leaders of RAN
is Jodi Evans, co-founder
of Code Pink.  Jodi was a
major 'bundler' for the Obama
campaign, raising large sums
of cash through her network
of California liberals and the
Hollywood elite.

So why is little to no attention
being paid to them by the
MSM?  Why are those who
protest against massive
government debt and expand-
ing powers singled out for
scrutiny?  The recent incident
in Denver of vandalism of the
Democrat offices is a good
example.  At first, the MSM
was all over the story, as they
tried to tie it to the health care
protests and GOP radicals.
But, as usual, the culprits had
turned out to be local anarch-
ists, who actually were funded
by Democrats!

No, we who believe in the
Constitution are not the threat.
We trust the Constitution.  It
does allow for change, but in
a thoughtful, deliberate fashion.
The process is slow on pur-
pose.  Our Founding Fathers
understood all too well the
danger of rapid change, of
rushing to judgment.  Liberty
is too precious to be tinkered
with.  Change must be deemed
as necessary and all angles
must be examined before any
final decision made.

In the health care debate,
every poll shows that the vast
majority like the care and the
insurance they have.  Only
about 15 million American
citizens do not have health
insurance, many by choice.  
They are largely young adults,
who have choose to spend
their money on other things,
rather than on health care
they do not have an immediate
need for.

There are better solutions to
accommodate them, and bring
other needed reforms.  Such
solutions only come from the
debate process, and only after
due course and time.  The mad
rush to change is the danger-
ous course.  It should be op-
posed.  So do not be fearful,
my friends.  Our cause is just
and our method is sound.
From the town halls to the
ballot boxes of next year, we
must continue to work in a
thoughtful, peaceful manner.

OK, folks.  For those who think
I was too mean, too disrespect-
ful for my previous Kennedy
blog, heads up!  You sure won't
like this edition!  Thursday
evening, I was listening to Mark
Levin's radio program.  Now,
Mark had been polite and
respectful initially concerning
the passing of Ted Kennedy.
He even publicly offered his
condolences to the Kennedy
family.  But I suppose all of the
non-stop glorification by the
Main Stream Media finally got
to Mark, hence his directing us
listeners to the SweetnessAndLight
website.  There, we find
an article dealing with how Ted
Kennedy attempted to under-
mind President Reagan in 1982
by offering to help then Soviet
Chairman, Yuri Andropov.  

A letter was written to
Andropov by V. Chebrikov
detailing a message delivered
by John Tunney.  Tunney had
been a U.S. Senator from
California from 1971-1977.  
Tunney was a life long friend of
Ted, having been his room-
mate at the University of
Virginia School of Law in 1959.
The letter itself was uncovered
by a British journalist who was
examining KGB documents
after the collapse of the Soviet
Union.  It got very little attention
until Paul Kengor's book, "The
Crusader - Ronald Reagan
and the Fall of Communism".
There, it appeared in the
book's appendix, pages 317
through 320.

At the SweetnessAndLight
website, the letter is posted
and makes fascinating read-
ing.  Tunney's message from
Ted Kennedy was that the
Senator from Massachusetts
was seeking an invitation
from Andropov to visit Moscow
in July of 1982.  Tunney was
in Moscow on May 9-10, 1982
to set up the meeting.

Kennedy wanted to help the
Soviet Premier to thwart the
efforts of President Reagan
in reigning in Communism.
Ted offered to coach Andropov
on how to deal with Reagan,
as well as other Western
leaders.  Kennedy even was
prepared to help Andropov
visit America and arrange for
a series of TV interviews.
Kennedy specifically mentioned
President of ABC, Elton Raul,
Walter Cronkite and Barbara
Walters, has potential inter-
viewers.

Kennedy believed that with his
help, Andropov could present
a friendlier image to the
American people, and cast
Reagan in a negative light
as being a militarist.  Ted
went on to point out that if
this could be achieved, it
would improve his own stand-
ing in politics, possibly even
opening a path to another
presidential run in 1988.

Marvelous!  So Ted Kennedy
was hoping to promote his own
personal ambitions by collabor-
ating with the Soviet Union.
It did not matter that he was
actively engaged in undermin-
ing the United States, our
Constitution, or helping to
keep hundreds of millions of
souls enslaved by Soviet
Communism.  He wanted to
use Andropov to belittle
President Reagan and set him-
self up to get elected in 1988.

So, let us add TRAITOR to
the long list of ills that was
Ted Kennedy.  As they say,
the apple does not fall far from
the tree.  Daddy Joseph
Kennedy was a big fan of
Adolph Hitler and supported
the policy of appeasement
as FDR's ambassador to
the UK.

Am I being too harsh?  Am I
being disrespectful?  NO!!!
I am pulling back the curtain
and showing you who the
wizard really is.  We must not
be afraid of the truth.  In the
end, the truth is all we have.
The truth of Ted Kennedy
was that he was no friend of
freedom, liberty, or life.  His
support of abortion, his oppo-
sition to the wars in Vietnam,
Iraq, Nicaragua and other
strongholds of Communism
and Fascism are real.  His
legislative career in the
Senate was one geared to
the muddling and deforming
our Constitution.  He was an
enemy of free markets.  Ted
Kennedy was in favor of the
government controlling every
aspect of your life.  True, he
was a patient man.  Death by
a thousand cuts was the
course he pursued in destroy-
ing our Constitution and our
way of life.

So keep the truth in mind as
you watch the ceremony on
TV.  Remember that what the
media is showing you is a LIE!

The White House has painted
a target on Glenn Beck.  They
want to silence him.  The most
recent incident has through an
organization called Color For
Change.  This group was co-
founded by activist, Van Jones,
who is currently the 'green jobs
advisor' to the Obama Admini-
stration.  CFC is campaigning
to get advertisers to drop from
Beck's show on Fox News.

CFC was founded in 2005
after Hurricane Katrina to
trash the Bush Administra-
tion and blame them for the
disaster in New Orleans (like
the Democrat governor and
mayor had nothing to do with
the mishandling of relief).  In
2008, CFC campaigned the
Democrat Black Congression-
al Caucus to force the DNC
to avoid Fox News.  So there
is a history of the CFC and
Van Jones to promote hatred
of Fox News.

During the recent 'dust-up',
the CFC claims that Beck
called President Obama a
racist, that he has a deep-
seated hatred of whites.  Of
course, this is a gross exag-
geration.  But the CFC is
making this claim and thus far,
several advertisers have re-
lented and moved ads from
being aired during Beck's
show to other time slots on
Fox.  None have pulled all
ads from the cable news
network.

All this week, Beck has been
digging deeper, providing
information no other network
will detailing the sorted pasts
of some of the advisors of
Obama.  Van Jones is one
who has a particularly inter-
esting biography, which in-
cludes being arrested and
convicted during the Rodney
King riots.  While in jail, he
transformed from being a
mere activist to a devout
Communist.  He formed a
group, STORM, for organiz-
ing revolutionary movements
which ties traditional protest
orgs, like anti-war and civil
rights, with the environmental
movement.

STORM was a tad too radical
so Jones retooled and gave
it a fresh name, the Ella Baker
Foundation.  The effort paid
off, with them providing the
U.N. with 'social justice' ma-
terial for World Green Day.
Jones later became involved
with the Apollo Alliance, which
was, according to Senator
Harry Reid, helpful in writing
the stimulus bill.  The Apollo
Alliance has as one of it's
leaders, Jeff Jones, who co-
founded the Weathermen with
Obama mentor, Bill Ayers.

Beck unravels the chain of
numerous organizations and
their relationships.  There is
definitely a clear pattern of
transformation and name
changes, as groups and their
leaders try to become more
mainstream.  Glenn frequently
uses chalk and dry boards
with pictures of trees to sym-
bolize the roots and branches
of the various orgs and players.

The White House did officially
email Beck to correct his use
of calling Van Jones a 'czar',
stating that he is only an ad-
visor.  When Beck asked if they
were aware of Jone's biogra-
phy, particularly his being a
Communist?  The White House
responded only that Jones is
focused on just one issue, the
creation of green jobs.

The rest of the news media is
asleep, or deliberately avoiding
investigating the backgrounds
of the many czars and advisors
who now work for the Obama
Administration.

On Wednesday, Beck intro-
duced America to Mark Lloyd,
appointed as head of the newly
created FCC Diversity Office.
Lloyd is a big fan of Hugo
Chavez and other Socialists
who secured power in their
countries by eliminating the
private media.  Lloyd is pro-
posing using existing laws
for diversity and local con-
tent to force radio and TV
stations and networks to pay
fees equally up to 100% of
a broadcaster's operating
costs.  The fees will be used
to fund public broadcasting,
NPR and CPB.

The common theme of most
of the various appointees and
'czars' is that they have their
origins in anti-capitalist organ-
izations.  At a time when our
economy is in decline, this
seems to be to Beck, and me,
as odd choices.  One would
think you'd recruit people who
understand economics, maybe
even have actual, job-creating
experience in the private sec-
tor?  Instead, Obama is sur-
rounding himself with those
who have a long history of
hatred against private enter-
prise.  

So Glenn Beck keeps rolling
along, despite efforts to
silence him.  His program
has been setting record ratings
and continues to surge for-
ward.  We are promised more
insights today as to the forces
being mustered to limit free
speech and free enterprise.
On Friday, Beck will wrap up
the week with information
on what we can do to oppose
the Obama Agenda.

Senator Edward 'Ted' Kennedy
has died.  Naturally, all of the
Media is now pushing all other
news to the side.  For the next
few days, we will be served a
steady diet of how great Ted
Kennedy was.  How compas-
sionate, how thoughtful, how
magnificent he was.

He was called the "Liberal
Lion" of the Senate.  I prefer
to call him another liar of the
Senate.  I apologize if this
offends you, but Ted Kennedy
and his ilk offend me.  Maybe
it is not nice to speak ill of
the dead, but we need to keep
a perspective here.

Ted Kennedy was many things.
A drunk, a philanderer, an en-
abler, and, in some minds, a
murderer.  Yes, one can easily
say he is directly responsible
for the deaths of others.  There
is, of course, Mary Jo Kopechne,
who died while he
was drunk at the wheel of his
car when he drove it off the
Chappaquiddick bridge.  His
efforts to cover up his involve-
ment was shameless and un-
forgivable.

Ted was the bad boy of the
Kennedy clan.  His drunken,
rowdy behavior was legend-
ary.  The testimony during the
rape case where one of his
nephews raped a college girl
near the family 'compound'
in Florida was shocking.  
Uncle Teddy wandering about
the compound drunk and pant-
less!  Yikes!!!

There were rumors about how
Ted and another senator would
take long lunches at a posh,
D.C. restaurant, using a private
dining room to have a 'waitress
sandwich'.  That is, where Ted
and the other senator would
assault a waitress, forcing her
to be squeezed by both men's
bodies.  Disgusting!

Kennedy was a major support-
er of every Liberal cause.  He
pushed hard for abortion, de-
spite his Catholic background.
For Ted, there was never an
entitlement he did not like.  He
was a major architect for much
of the wasteful and destructive
spending and programs which
are now burdening our nation.
He also led the fight against
those who support the U.S.
Constitution, such as Supreme
Court Justice, Clarence
Thomas.  Every major piece
of legislation that muddles or
side-steps the Constitution
has Kennedy's name on it.

He was also very responsible
for our current problem with
illegal immigrants.  It's no
wonder since his compounds
depend on their cheap labor.
Kennedy opposed the rights
of citizens to own and carry
firearms.  He opposed any
liberties guaranteed to us
via the Bill of Rights, includ-
ing free speech.  Kennedy
was an advocate for legisla-
tion to restrict use of the air-
waves, especially for talk
radio.

Ted was the classic tax-and-
spend Liberal.  One could
even call him the granddaddy
of the elitist, 'limousine
Liberals’.  He abused his
public powers whenever
possible.  His audacity was
recently reinforced when he
requested the state of
Massachusetts to change the
very law he helped pushed in
2004 for replacing him.  In
2004, Kennedy was worried
that Republican governor,
Mitt Romney, would have the
power to appoint a replace-
ment for John Kerry, had he
beaten George W. Bush in the
presidential race.  So Kennedy
got the state legislature to vote
in a new law stripping the state
governor of that power and
requiring an emergency elec-
tion for a new senator.  With
facing his own illness, Kennedy
recently requested that the
state revisit the law, and give
the new, Democrat governor
the power back.

This is an example of just how
Ted Kennedy thought.  In his
mind, anything goes in the pur-
suit of power and privilege.
So all of the hand-wringing
lamenting is nothing more than
a fraud!  For example, just con-
sider the hypocrisy when Ted,
a public supporter of green
energy, got a court order to
stop windmill generators from
being built off shore of the
family compound in Massachu-
settts.  I guess he figures it’s
ok for the rest of us, but he’s
special and above such an
inconvenience.

It’s nothing less than sheer
arrogance.  The sort that
comes easy for those who
are wired into the corrupt
politics of Democrat machines
which plague our nation.  
Kennedy was an Elitist.  What
is good for the rest of us is
NOT good enough for him.
He, and his family and pals,
need and demand more.  Even
if it bankrupts the country to
achieve their desires.  No
sacrifice on our part is too
great for serving him.

So spare me the fawning,
glowing tales and memories.
Good riddens, say I.  Ted
Kennedy symbolized every-
thing that is wrong and corrupt
in our nation’s politics.  Since
the morons in Massachusetts
were too stupid to vote him
out of office, then his death
has served a great purpose.
While I doubt they’ll vote in
somebody of true merit, who
actually will live up to their
obligation to defend and pro-
tect the Constitution, nearly
anybody will be better than
Ted Kennedy.

When watching Obama, Pelosi
or others preach morality, I
have to admit, I'm not sure how
to react.  Do I laugh, jeer, or
vomit?  This week, with health
care support plummeting, our
Democrat leaders are invoking
God into the debate.

For the Liberal/Progressives
to inject God into a government
take over of health care is
somewhere between an insult
and a joke.  This bunch has
been busy the past century
trashing our Constitution,
turning us into slaves of the
State.  How moral is that?

I suppose it is moral also for
the wholesale slaughter of
children also?  How many
millions of babies have been
aborted over the decades?
To what end?  Put money
in the hands of Planned
Parenthood?  They stand
to benefit from the pending
legislation, too.

The growing, steady enslave-
ment of the American people
is beyond immoral.  It is out-
right evil!  I am growing weary
of those who puppy-foot
around denying this truth.
The Liberal/Progressive
Movement is evil.  They mean
to do us all great harm.

So far, the American people
are doing a good job in re-
sisting the attempt to expand
government control of health
care.  Make no mistake, they
already control a substantial
portion of it.  In fact, one can
easily argue that what defects
our health care system does
have IS THE GOVERNMENT'S
FAULT!!!

They are the ones who deny
a true, free market, where by
anyone can buy insurance from
any company they choose.  It
is the government which has
bloated the system with miles
of bureaucratic red tape, add-
ing to the complexity and cost
of health care.

IF somebody REALLY wants to
reform health care, then by
Jove, GET THE GOVERN-
MENT OUT of health care!
Now that would be a moral
crusade I could get behind
and support.  But The Left
and their minions just do not
see things that way.

They want centralized control
over every aspect of our lives.
From cradle to grave.  And
with the proposed legislation
the grave will come a lot
sooner.  This morning I saw
a report that the average
life expectancy is now 78.
The highest it’s ever been.

Many of the Left’s pundit
decry the high cost of health
care here, saying that we
pay far more than other
developed nations.  Well,
maybe the reason it costs
more is because it is the
best in the world?  America
leads the world in new drugs,
new technology, new methods
and procedures.  Sure, one
could fly to Thailand and save
some money but what sort
of chances are you taking?
Hope you take your own blood
there with you since Thailand
has AIDS and other diseases
at epidemic levels.

Can we make health care
less expensive?  Sure.  I’ve
outlined a few items before,
such as allowing for nation-
wide policies, tort reform and
tax incentives.  All of which
are acceptable, free market
solutions which also qualify
as items Congress CAN do
under the Constitution.  What
they are trying to do is NOT
Constitutional!

Oh, how grand it would be if
the next time Obama or
Pelosi talk morality, they stop
and THINK for a minute.
That they consider how they
are robbing us of our freedom.
Wasting the fruits of society.
Squandering the promise of
generations to come.  Where
is the morality in destroying
the future?

First, I have a piece of advice
for Congressman Barney
Frank.  IF you intend to
insult your constituents, you
really ought to do so quoting
William Shakespeare.  It's
much more classier than any-
thing you can come up with:

"You blocks!  You stones!  You
  worse than senseless things!"

The health care debate con-
tinues to occupy the front
pages and broadcast media.
Town hall meetings are still
rowdy affairs, now that ACORN
and the SEIU have begun bus-
sing in their members to coun-
ter the grass-root protestors.
The only people who claim to
support it at the meetings
seems to be those claiming to
be doctors, and aren't!  LOL!

The Democrats are frustrated
by the challenges against their
plans.  Barney Frank met with
some at a senior center in
Dartmouth, MA, and insulted
many of those who oppose
the legislation.  One woman
made reference to the T-4
program of Nazi Germany
which set standards for who
would be considered healthy
enough to be worthy of being
allowed health care.  Those
deemed unfit mentally or
physically would often be steri-
lized or denied medical atten-
tion.

Frank, who is Jewish by birth,
used his heritage to counter
the woman's argument.  He
told her that discussing the
subject with her was the equi-
vilant to talking with a dinner
table!  Of course, Frank missed
the whole point.  Any socialized
medical care would force the
government to make choices
as to who could receive care.
He also neglected the dirty
truth of history that many Jews
did collaborate with the Nazis
in order to save their own hide.
By the way, the woman in
question was not a 'GOP plant'
but a Lyndon LaRouche Demo-
crat.

President Obama seems to be
wavering his position, particu-
larly with the 'public option'.
Such would establish a govern-
ment funded alternative to
private health insurance.  He
floated the idea of co-ops in-
stead, a sort of quasi-public
pool of subsidized private in-
surance options.  But when
many Democrats and their
legions who want 'single-
payer' public health care or
nothing began to complain,
the White House back-ped-
dled from discarding the
government-funded option.

The Main Stream Media
continues to paint those who
oppose the legislation as
kooks and morons.  Only a
handful of Democrats have
publicly been vocal in recog-
nizing that the opposition is
indeed a genuine, grass-
root movement.  They see
and hear the anger and frus-
tration over all of the recent
legislation, which were all
bloated in size, scope and
in cost to taxpayers.

Americans are growing weary
of the lack of progress in re-
storing the economy.  Credit
is still difficult for small busi-
nesses to obtain.  Home fore-
closures are still increasing.
Unemployment also is still
increasing.  The trillions of
dollars being shoveled from
Washington are having little
impact.  Even the 'cash for
clunker' program, which is
helping auto sales, may wind
up doing more harm than good
as nearly 80% of applications
filed by auto dealers are being
rejected.  This could cause a
backlash of dealers going bust
and consumers saddled with
paying an extra $4,500 they
cannot afford.

Meanwhile, nobody in their
right mind are buying U.S.
Treasury bonds.  Nearly half
of those sold in the last few
months were purchased by
our own Federal Reserve,
the effect of which will cause
inflation.  Some analysts are
already attributing recent gains
in the Dow Jones as a reflec-
tion of the expected inflation.

The Obama Administration
is losing support across the
board.  Polls show that the
needed Independents have
already gone negative, below
50%.  Even a sizable number
of Democrats are upset over
issues like the reversals in
policies on Iraq, Afghanistan
and domestic surveillance.  
The opposition to health care
has even turned the all impor-
tant senior voting block against
the administration.  They are
even mad at the AARP, so
much so that 60,000 have quit
in recent weeks.  Seniors are
concerned how the legislation
will effect current Medicare
plans.

The whole mess is the result
of the lack of focus and any
specifics from Obama and his
staff.  They have left the details
to Congress and to Pelosi,
Reid and the rest of the Far
Left loons.  Obama got elected
by promoting himself as a
centrist and willing to work bi-
partisan with Republicans.  But
there has been no effort to do
either since the election.  In
recent town hall meetings
where Obama himself spoke,
the audiences were stacked
and questioners ‘cherry-
picked’, including children of
campaign organizers.  Such
a farce is blatant and is not
flying with The People.

Obama is repeating all of
the mistakes made by the
Clinton Administration when
they first took office.  That
resulted in the 1994 revolt
where the GOP gained control
of the Congress for the first
time in 40 years.  Democrats
have only gotten control back
in the House in 2006, and the
Senate in 2008.  The way it
looks now as they may lose
one or both in 2010.  If so, he'll
then be forced to actually be
a centrist, or spend the remain-
der of his presidency as irrele-
vant.  Clinton's poll numbers
actually improved when the
GOP won in '94, since he did
compromise and went biparti-
san.

So, in many respects, the best
thing for Obama would be to
lose the fight over health care,
and a resulting culling of the
Democrats in Congress.  He
could regain ground by working
with a Republican controlled
Congress, setting himself up as
the 'experienced leader' in the
2012 campaign.  

The politics of fear have been
around since Themistocles
warned his fellow Athenians
to build a fleet for protecting
themselves from the Persians.
We've seen dire arguments
made against Republicans,
with Democrats targeting ads
to seniors that the GOP was
planning on reducing Medicare
and Social Security.  Or groups
like ACORN, NAACP and a
whole host of unions using
intimidation and shouting
matches to get their message
across.

What is different about the
current health care debate is
that it is average Americans
who are now holding the feet
of their elected officials to the
fire of public scrutiny.  There
may be some organizing here
and there, but for the most
part, those who have attended
recent townhalls to voice their
opposition are just regular
folks.  In the best tradition of
Thomas Jefferson, they are
practicing what he taught in
his quote:  "When the people
fear the government, there is
tyranny.  When the government
fears the people, there is
liberty."

And the Democrats in our
Congress are in FEAR!  YEAH!
About time!  Since January,
they have rammed through
huge, complicated legislation
with very little review, debate
or consideration of alternatives.
As tensions rise, voices get
louder and polls decline, it
might seem that a health care
bill is dead in the water.  But
I would not rule out a tone-
down, softer version being
passed yet.

President Obama really blew
it when he left the details of
the proposed legislation to
the likes of Nancy Pelosi and
Henry Waxman.  I wouldn't
let these two care and water
a bamboo shoot, let alone
1/7th of our nation's economy
and the health of the citizens.
The White House and the
Democrats have resorted now
to dehumanizing the opposition
by calling them Nazis, Klans-
men, corporate shills, etc.
An attempt to set up a snitch
line at the White House went
over like a lead balloon.

Running scared, they now have
enlisted their allies, such as the
Service Employee International
Union, SEIU, to attend townhall
meetings to counter the grass-
root opposition.  This has resul-
ted in violence.  Polls show that
support for health care reform
has plummeted below 50% and
that the vast majority believe
such will result in higher taxes
and rationed care.

These conclusions are rational.
If some 15% of the population
whom have no health insur-
ance are suddenly added into
the mix, it is reasonable to
assume that costs will increase
at least 15%.  It is also reason-
able to assume that there will
be longer waits and reduction
in service.  Most states already
suffer from a shortage of
nurses.  There has already
been a trend of doctors with-
drawing from Medicare pro-
grams for the past two years.
It would be a fair assumption
that many more would bail out
from any new public system,
perhaps even retiring altoge-
ther.

Every other nation that has
public health care suffers from
the same problems.  Patients
are limited to access to drugs,
treatments, diagnosis, and
even simple check-ups.  The
waiting periods for such in-
creases and the quality goes
down.  Statistics show that
surviving major illnesses such
as cancer is much lower in
those countries than it is here
in America.  About 82% of
Americans are satisfied with
their present health care in-
surance.

Any genuine solution to lower
health care costs and provid-
ing more service to those who
have none currently requires
the following three compo-
nents.  First, rules restricting
the purchase of insurance by
the states must be modified.
A family of four in Texas can
buy a reasonable, basic insur-
ance plan for about $150 a
month.  The same in states
like New York or Michigan
would cost 3 to 5 times more!

Second, tort reform must be
incorporated to reduce frivi-
lous lawsuits.  The AMA
estimates that as much as
15% of health care costs are
consumed by doctors practic-
ing C.Y.A. medicine.  Ordering
additional tests and such to
cover their butts from lawsuits.
Even a modest reform, of
forcing both the plaintive and
their lawyers to pay a portion,
say 25%, of the defendant’s
legal fees, should the defend-
ant win, would have a major
impact in reducing costs.

The third component of any
true reform to health care
must also include openness
in pricing.  Hospitals charging
$10 for a single tablet of
aspirin or a disposable tooth-
brush is a major reason for
the high cost of health care.
These details are generally
discovered after the fact when
the insurance company gets
the bills.  A public listing of
costs and pricing before hand
would make health care more
competitive and affordable
for all.

In short, health care will not
be solved until the day when
we hear an ad like this on
TV or radio:

“CANCER, CANCER,
CANCER!  HALF-OF ALL
THIS WEEK AT ABC
MEDICAL CENTER!
CHEMO, HALF-OFF!
RADIOLOGY, HALF-OFF!
MAMOGRAMS, TWO
FOR ONE!  ALL THIS
WEEK AT ABC MEDICAL
CENTER!”

Personally, I'm optimistic
that with some free market
solutions, and the ever
continuing advances in
science and technology,
that affordable health care
will be more available.  I
can easily foresee the day
when health care shifts
from the doctor's office to
an at-home appliance
which allows general moni-
toring for routine check-ups.
Knowledge-based software
would be able to make
reasonable diagnosis for
most common ailments.

Research done back in
the 1980s showed that people
were actually more honest
in giving personal information
to a robotic doctor than a
human one.  I suppose they
figure that the robot is less
judgmental on poor health
habits.  Unlike the various
review panels outlined in
the House version of the
current legislation.  Should it
become law (which seems
unlikely now), you will be
subject to all sorts of judg-
ments ranging from your
worthiness to receive care
or medicine to end-of-life
planning mandates every
5 years upon reaching 65.

The current House bill also
bans items that would reduce
health care costs, such as
a minimal, catastrophic plan.
It would make companies
who do provide insurance
less competitive, and may
force them to suspend such
and drive employees to the
government program.  The
mere fact of the sheer cost
of the House proposal should
be enough to scare away any
supporters.  So you do not
have to be a crazed Nazi to
be against the Democrat plan,
just a rational cheapskate is
enough!  LOL!

Kudos to Steve Sailer who's
isteve.blogspot.com is always
worth a visit.  Steve recently
wrote about the 'Cash For
Clunkers' (CFC) issue where
he tied in to the novel, "The
Door To Summer".  Written
by Robert A. Heinlein in 1956,
it depicts a man who enters
cryogenic sleep in the 1970s
and awakens 30 years later.
The hero does this for purely
selfish reasons, to mock a
woman who jilted him after
she ages, and he doesn't.
LOL!  What a guy!

But our hero finds himself in
an America that he no longer
recognizes.  He gets a job
at junk yard, destroying cars
that were unsold.  These two
year old cars are perfectly
good.  They work fine, and
have no mileage on them.

But the auto companies are
forced to turn the cars over to
the Federal government as a
repayment of loans and price
supports.  The relationship
is explained to our hero as
very necessary.  After all, if
the auto companies didn't
produce more cars than they
could sell, a lot of people
would lose their jobs!  All
this sounding familiar?

I love Heinlein!  He's my
favorite science fiction
author.  His works are very
well thought and technically
realistic.  But more impor-
tantly, his political viewpoint
is always very clear.  Which
is why the Left Wing hates
him so.

"Starship Troopers", for ex-
ample, was written for pre-
teens.  However, due to it's
political content, the National
Association of Librarians
actively campaigned against
the novel, forbidding it to be
in the children's section of
libraries.  The whole idea of
of a government where one
must essentially earn citizen-
ship, and the power to vote,
hold public office or even
teach in school, was not taken
very well by the Left.  The very
notion of a meritocracy stands
against socialism/communism.

Heinlein was always one for
glorifying individual achieve-
ment and private enterprise.
In "Destination Moon", it's
not the government that lands
man on the moon first, but
a consortium of private com-
panies.  He was also very
prophetic, probably more so
than Ayn Rand in her tome,
"Atlas Shrugged".  

In another of my favorites,
"Farham's Freehold", a man
sits out nuclear war in his
bomb shelter with his wife,
daughter and her fiancée
playing contract bridge. LOL!
A direct blast from a nuke
sends the bomb shelter right
through a tear in time and
space into a distant future.
One where the Earth is run
under Shiria Law by the
dominating Muslims.  The
four white devils are quickly
captured and enslaved being
the infidels they are.  But the
father makes the best of things
by teaching his master, a
local caliph, contract bridge.
Together, they start a company
selling all the classic games of
the forgotten past.  Wonderful!

Nearly all of Heinlein’s books
warn against the evils of
socialism and tyranny.  Some-
times with a twist of humor,
too.  All are good reads.  So
thanks, again, to Steve Sailer
for pointing us in a pleasant
direction.  It’s nice to see that
the notion of the government
using tax money to destroy
cars and fund jobs is not so
strange as to be considered
by the fertile mind of Robert
A. Heinlein.

California FINALLY has a
budget!  Well, MAYBE!

On Tuesday, Governor
Arnold Schwarzenegger
signed a new budget passed
by the state legislature.  He
did so after making additional
line-item vetoes.  All told, the
new budget of $86 Billion dol-
lars will balance out the $24
Billion dollar budget deficit.
That is, IF it passes the sure-
to-come court challenges.

The bill makes cuts in spending
across the board.  Education
is to have some $9.3 Billion
in reductions.  Other cuts in-
clude $3 Billion from Health
and Human Services, $1.7
in general spending, $785 Mil-
lion for prisons, $1.4 Billion by
delaying payments in payroll
and health premiums, and
$802 Million in state employee
work furloughs.  The deficit is
further reduced by shifting
funds from other sources, in-
cluding from local governments
and the state's highway ac-
count.

Needless to say, those local
governments, plus teacher
unions, state employee unions,
and a wide range of special
interest groups, will be taking
the state to court to over-turn
the cuts and restore funding.
Given past cases in the State
Supreme Court and the U.S.
9th District Court, it would
seem very likely that some of
the funding will be restored.
So, while California may be
looking a tad better at the mo-
ment, don't count on it lasting.

California has been spending
money  excessively for a long
time.  They are, what my old,
favorite radio talk show host,
Mark Scott, would call, "hand-
out heaven"!  Free everything
for everybody!  You don't even
have to be a legal citizen, or
even a legal, foreign resident.
Come one, come all and join
the Sunshine Circus!

I haven't read the actual bill
(after all, as John Conyers
would say, what difference
would reading the bill make?)
so I do not know if funds for
helping non-humans, like
the sea otters, have been
slashed.  Fortunately, they,
too, have special interest
groups to defend them in the
courts.  So all those "tiny
actresses" in Hollywood can
sleep soundly.

Facing outright bankruptcy,
California was reduced to
paying bills with I.O.U.s re-
cently.  Some have been
traded on various markets
for 30-50% of face value.
I'm surprised they got that!
LOL!!!  The citizens voted
down earlier proposals to
cut spending and raise taxes
to balance their budget.
And why shouldn't they?
It's the voters who keep on
electing the heroes of hand-
out heaven into office.  They
want free everything for every-
body, they just don't want to
pay for it.

California is not alone in this
mentality.  Many states are
facing budget problems.  New
York is busy raising taxes and
driving businesses and the
productive out of their state.
Massachusetts,  the state
whose health care system the
Federal government wants to
copy for the rest of the nation,
has been forced to reduce the
health care provided to it’s
citizens.  Some are now even
being denied access, like
legal, foreign residents.  Illegal
aliens can still visit doctors,
though.

The states in trouble have a
few things in common.  They
are usually run by Democrats
(or RINO Republicans) and
have large, union voting blocks.
They also all have high tax
rates, and declining econo-
mies.  Hmmm?  Are we seeing
a pattern here?

No, I am not watching the
Obama press lecture.  I will
admit that I simply cannot
stand listening to him drone
on, like some haughty pro-
fessor lecturing an entry
level course to undergradu-
ates.  The only tolerable way
to hear Obama has been
devised by none other than
Rush Limbaugh.  He now
plays Obama sound-bites at
high-speed, symbolizing his
rush to promote his agenda.

Limbaugh's method is a win-
win!  First, it transforms the
dull, confused stammer of
Obama into a cartoon-ish
voice that is actually fun to
listen to.  Second, it reduces
those 8-10 minute answers
to simple questions by at
least a third of the time.  The
result is we are less bored
hearing him.  Not that we really
want to hear him at all, but I
suppose since he is our pre-
sident, we should give him an
ear (not that he needs anymore
ears..., HA-HA-HA!).

I heard a pre-speech state-
ment from Rahm Emanuel
that today's presser would be
a victory celebrating Obama's
six months of success in im-
proving the economy.  HUH?
I'd like to try what he's smokin'.
Obama's first six months have
been an utter failure..., if your
objective was to preserve
individual liberty, the Constitu-
tion, and facilitate the free
market to thrive and the people
to prosper.

But if your objective is to de-
stroy the nation, then I'll give
Obama an A+.  Absolutely
everything he's done since
taking office has been ideal
for turning America into a
banana-republic-style Marx-
ist dictatorship.  He's even
adopted the time-honored
traditions of a Castro or a
Chavez in appearing on TV
nearly everyday, giving long,
boring speeches full of lies.

As of June, America is now,
for the first time in history,
as a Federal budget deficit
of $1 TRILLION dollars!  Of
course, a trillion doesn't seem
to have the same significance
as it once held in pre-Obama
times.  For example, last year,
the Federal Reserve pumped
at least $3 Trillion dollars into
the economy.  Nobody really
knows how much, since they
are a private entity and keep
their books secret.  But it's
been reported that the number
now is up to $9 Trillion dollars!
Who knows where it's all been
going?

One fellow who's been trying to
keep tabs is TARP Inspector
General, Neil Barofsky.  I wrote
about him recently as being
one of three I.G.s that the
Obama Administration is trying
to fire.  Barofsky released a
report estimating that the USA
may be in the hook for some
$23.7 TRILLION dollars in
debts and obligations due to
all of the government and
Federal Reserve money that
has been spent or promised.
Obama's budget projections
alone will double the National
Debt in 5 years and double
it again the next 5.  So he's
already matched ALL of the
over-spending of ALL previous
America presidents all by him-
self.

The stimulus bill, which Obama
promised would keep unem-
ployment at 8% has already
failed, with unemployment at
9.5% now and probably be-
tween 10-11% by year's end.
The Cap & Trade carbon tax
initiative, yet to be finalized, will
cost us another $5 Trillion or
more and several million more
unemployed.  Not content with
the government in control of
the financial, automobile and
soon the energy industries,
Obama now wants control of
1/6th of the economy which
is our medical and pharma-
cuetical industries.

Obama is beating the drum
daily for Congress to rush
through a new health care
that will put Uncle Sugar in
every aspect of health care,
despite the fact that the
proposed plan won't take
effect until 2013.  So why
the hurry?  Well, Obama is
now starting to slip in the
public opinion polls.  Worse
yet, many of his allies in the
Congress are concerned that
voters may remember what
they're doing and vote them
out of office.  They've already
been hammered by over-
whelming numbers of phone
calls and emails against pre-
vious legislation, like Cap &
Trade and the stimulus.

I suppose I could also men-
tion some of Obama's other
missteps, such as foreign
policy gaffes.  The famous
misspelled "ReStart" button,
the wrong-format DVD gift
set, or the video I-pod as a
gift to the British Royalty.
Or how he's been scolded
by Europe, Russia, China,
and even Iran.  His trashing
of America a broad with his
apology tours.

Under Obama, America is
now poised for the govern-
ment to have direct control
of 60% of the nation's econo-
my.  The value of the dollar
is in decline and may be
replaced as the currency of
international trade.  The
cost of food, energy, and
everything else will increase
while income declines as
taxes and interest rates gob-
ble up earnings.  Our legal
system has already been
trashed as a result of the
government's bail out of the
automobile industry.  

Yes,  he's done quite a bit
in his first six months.  None
of it good by any rational
standard.  But then, we are
no longer interested in the
rational.  All that matters is
the Obama worship cult.

Since switching from CNN to
Fox News, Glenn Beck has
become the new favorite
whipping boy for the Main
Stream Media and their evil
cousins in the Far-Left Blogo-
sphere.  Beck is probably the
most dangerous man on TV
these days.  Being a Libertar-
ian, he attacks both Democrats
and Republicans, holding all
politician's feet to the fire de-
spite party affiliation.

Beck is also the only regular
TV personage to raise issues
with the most powerful and
secret organization in America,
the Federal Reserve Bank.
This past week, he's taking on
another major power-broker:
Goldman Sachs.

Glenn's blackboard examina-
tion into the spider-web of
Goldman's power and influ-
ence in Washington has be-
come one of the most popular
videos on You-Tube.  Beck
outlines the connections and
time lines for how many of the
decisions made in the past
year have favored Goldman
Sachs.

The U.S. Government first
allowed Bear Stearns to fail.
Why?  Could it be that they
were a competitor of Goldman
Sachs?  Former Treasury
Secretary, Henry Paulson,
then allowed Lehman Brothers
to fail.  Why?  Could it be
because they were Goldman's
largest competitor?  Paulson,
it should be noted, used to be
CEO of Goldman Sachs.
Hmmmmmmmmm...

The day after Lehman crashed,
Paulson held a meeting to de-
cide the fate of insurance giant,
A.I.G..  The only non-govern-
ment attendee to that meeting
was the CEO of Goldman
Sachs.  Paulson chose to save
A.I.G. and $85 Billion taxpayer
dollars went to bail them out.
A.I.G. then paid off their largest
creditor, who, incidentally, was
none other than Goldman
Sachs, to the tune of nearly
$20 Billion dollars.

Coincidence?  Conspiracy?
Beck reports, you decide.

Who does Paulson appoint
to over see the TARP bailouts?
Neel Kashkari, from, where
else?  Goldman Sachs.  He in
turn decides, with Paulson’s
approval, to allow Goldman
Sachs to become a chartered
bank.  This gains access for
Goldman Sachs to more TARP
money, as well as money from
the F.D.I.C. and from the
Federal Reserve.

Hmmmmmm???

Enter the Obama Administra-
tion and the appointment of
Tim Geithner as it’s Treasury
Secretary.  While Giethner
is not part of the Goldman
Sachs alumni, his chief of
staff is, Mark Patterson.  He
was even given a waiver by
Giethner so Patterson could
still sit of Goldman’s board
of directors, and trade in their
stock, while working for the
U.S. Treasury.  Nice, huh?

Goldman Sachs reporting a
profitable 2Q this past week,
and a lucrative bonus program
for it’s employees.  Yet, there
is little outrage in the media,
despite the fact that the bonus
plan is several times larger
than those proposed by A.I.G.
and other.  True, Goldman
was ‘allowed’ to pay back
the TARP money Uncle Sugar
had lent them.  But a good part
of the reason that Goldman
Sachs as weathered the rec-
cession so well was due to
the pay-out from A.I.G. and
the access they now have to
other money sources, the
F.D.I.C. and the Federal
Reserve.

Perhaps if Goldman Sachs
is doing so well, maybe their
status as a charter bank should
also be retracted?  After all,
they are still dealing in very
speculative investments, such
as CDO’s.  Goldman recently
turned a tidy profit in oil specu-
lation, doubling their money
after they borrowed it from
the Federal Reserve at 5%
interest rate.

Beck isn’t the only one
railing against Goldman
Sach’s.  “Rolling Stone
Magazine” Matt Taibbi
has been writing about the
Goldman ‘cabal’.  How they
have been behind many of
the economic bubbles of the
past decade or so.  From
tech stocks, to energy specu-
lation (financing Enron), and
manipulating currency markets.
They are clearly a firm which
has benefited nicely from their
relationships with government,
primarily due to many of their
alumni being appointed to
government positions.

Goldman Sachs is now set to
exploit the carbon-credit
trading market and is sup-
porting the Obama Cap &
Tax legislation.  General
Electric, another corporation
well connected in Washington
is also looking to profit from
this bill.

It was bad enough when our
leaders in Washington were
too cozy with corporate lob-
byists.  Now, the lobbyists
and Wall Street execs are
part of the government!  The
laws they are passing are
such that benefit the corpor-
ations they came from.  
Meanwhile, small businesses,
which employ over 60% of
the people in America, and
are responsible for nearly
99% of new jobs created in the
past year, are left out to hang.
CIT Group, which has some
$70 Billion dollars in loans
outstanding to small business-
es, is on the verge of bank-
ruptcy.  Giethner has already
made it clear that TARP will
not be used to assist them.
The net result could see a
very long list of companies
going belly-up, this at a time
when unemployment is al-
ready soaring at unprece-
dented rates.

The economy could have
been helped for far less tax-
payer money if the assistance
had been directed to improv-
ing the financial climate of
America’s small businesses.
The credit crunch still exists,
despite bailing out the big
banks.  Pending legislation,
like Cap & Trade and Obama’s
health care plan will only serve
to cripple small business more.

What the hell are they thinking
in Washington?  They seem to
only being concerned about
what is best for Goldman
Sachs.