Rep. Pittenger (R-NC) Throws In the ObamaCare Towel

Posted on August 21, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard 3

To his credit, US House Rep. Robert Pittenger (R-NC) is facing his constituents at a half-dozen town hall meetings this month while most of his counterparts in Congress are on vacation, stoking barbecues and fishing. I attended one of his meetings at the Mathews Town Hall this evening, and understood why most legislators are spending the month out of the public eye.

Pittenger was braced for confrontation even before the event began. He had prepared a brief two-part introduction: 1) he demanded that the audience be “civil”, and 2) he only wanted to spend a minute or so on any given topic. Pittenger knew there was one question burning in the minds of most attendees, and he knew his position was not popular with the group, which I would characterize as two-thirds Tea Party and Conservatives, and one-third Democrats and moderate Republicans.

The first volley was predictable, in light of earlier criticism leveled at the Congressman: “Will you vote for a House bill that funds the entire requested appropriation only if ObamaCare is defunded?” As the crowd roared its approval, Pittenger dismissed the issue with a wave of his hand. “No,” was the answer. “The political reality is that such a bill can’t be passed.”

“I voted against funding ObamaCare 15 times,” he repeated several times during the discourse. Critics noted that it is easy to vote for no-risk bills that clearly will not pass the Senate or be signed by the President, but much harder to take a principled stand that could result in shutting down the government.

He repeatedly called out critics with the line, “Do you really want to stop the paychecks of our soldiers in Afghanistan?” He did not ask if the group would mind emptying some desks in the nation’s capital, or cutting back on any of the numerous corrupt, obsolete, frivolous and costly federal programs.

Pittenger insisted that there is no chance to get such a bill through the Senate and the President, despite protests from the audience that it would be the Democrats who be risking public condemnation for “shutting down the government.” Several conservatives in the audience chided Pittenger for lack of courage. “We weren’t expected to win the Revolutionary War either,” said one. “But we kept fighting.”

Pittenger urged the group to support Republican candidates, instead of “standing around and beating your chests”. He exhorted them to express their frustrations to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, rather than to him. And he defended his conservative voting record, citing a 100% rating from the Heritage Action Scorecard so far this year.

Congressman Pittenger is opposed to Common Core and insists on securing the borders before considering any amnesty for illegal immigrants. He smacked all of the conservative fastballs thrown his way out of the park. Except one. And that one left conservatives filing out of the Mathews Town Hall shaking their heads.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

So let’s leave it alone,
‘Cause we can’t see eye to eye.
There ain’t no good guys,
There ain’t no bad guys.
There’s only you and me and we just disagree.

We Just Disagree – Dave Mason

A More Conservative Senate in 2014 – the Rocky Mountain Way

Posted on July 17, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard 1

Senator Max Baucus (D-Montana) was forced into retirement after admitting the damage he and his liberal colleagues had done via the ObamaCare “train wreck”.

Scandals caught up with heir-apparent former Montana governor Brian Schweitzer, forcing him to pull out of the upcoming Senate race.

Senator Jon Tester, while not on the ballot next year, has been trying his best lately to move to the right, away from the mess his Democrat party and the Obama administration have created. He knows his incumbency hangs by a thread.

Steve Daines, Montana’s conservative representative in the House, is the leading candidate to replace Baucus in the Senate. There are no viable Democrat contenders. And today Liz Cheney threw her very large hat into the ring, squaring off against squishy Republican Senator Mike Enzo in the Wyoming primary.

Anyone who has paid attention to Liz Cheney over the last several years knows that she is tough, intelligent, polished, deeply educated on the issues, and solidly conservative. She is virtually impossible to defeat in debate. Establishment (as in moderate) Republicans are outraged. Alan Simpson, former Wyoming senator, said Cheney’s candidacy “threatens to start a civil war within the state’s Republican establishment, despite the reverence many hold for her family.”

The electoral losses in 2012 were devastating to conservatives. Many “right-siders” threw up their hands and decided to just let the liberal Democrats and moderate incumbent Republicans hang themselves with their own ill-conceived policies.

Maybe that plan is coming to fruition – the Rocky Mountain Way.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ on the Right Side

And, we don’t need the ladies
Crying ’cause the story’s sad
‘Cause the Rocky Mountain Way –
It’s better than the way we had!

Rocky Mountain Way – Joe Walsh

Where’d All the Good People Go? to MontKotaWyoRasKanRado!

Posted on July 12, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard Reply

MontKotaWyoRasKanRado Residents of ten counties in northern Colorado have had enough. Even though they provide most of the money for school funding in their state, and the vast majority of oil and gas revenues, they feel like the ‘Rodney Dangerfield’ of the state house – they get no respect.

The conservative rural counties are outnumbered and outgunned by liberal city slickers in the legislature, which led to new restrictions on energy production, stricter gun controls, and a heaping helping of government overreach in the recent legislative session. Colorado’s rapidly growing minority population and low-information urban voters handed control of the governor’s office and both houses over to the Democrats, who are now chugging full speed down the track of destruction behind the liberal federal freight train. Feeling underrepresented, and expecting the demographic shift to worsen before it gets better, the northern counties are considering a drastic move – secession from the state.

The 51st state of the union would be called North Colorado, and it would instantly be an economic powerhouse, leaving the rest of Colorado to a California-like fate – lots of Agenda 21 spending and no revenue.

No sooner had the plan been announced than other rural counties in the state wanted in, as well as counties from Nebraska and Kansas.

Residents of rural Montana counties feel the same way. You won’t find the Missoula gang and eastern Montana ranchers and oilmen exchanging back-slaps and buying each other beers any time soon. Wyoming and North Dakota have quietly set the standard for good conservative government in recent years.

Conservatives all over the US are mystified by the counter-intuitive and self-destructive tendencies of our current leadership. While personal wealth, employment, and standards of living continue to tumble, they focus on gay rights. As the middle east boils over, threatening our national security and energy supply, they do everything possible to damage our ability to be energy self-sufficient. If providing medical care for all Americans wasn’t tough enough, they impose a “train wreck” new system that will drastically raise the cost while destroying quality and quantity of health care.

Why not let conservatives start fresh, building a place where common sense, minimal government interference, constitutional rights, free market economics, personal responsibility, and family values are the orders of the day?

I think it’s a great idea. The gerrymandering might be kind of complicated. But I’ll bet a new 51st state – let’s call it MontKotaWyoRasKanRado – would be a GREAT place to live. A place for all the good people to go!

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

You win, it’s your show, now
So what’s it gonna be?
‘Cause people will tune in
How many train wrecks do we need to see?
Before we lose touch of . . .
We thought this was low,
It’s bad, getting worse, so
Where’d all the good people go?

Where’d All The Good People Go? – Jack Johnson

Max Baucus Was Right – ObamaCare CrazyTrain Wreck Will Be Brutal

Posted on July 2, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard 2

A few months ago Montana senator Max Baucus committed political suicide by telling the truth. The finance committee chairman pulled back the ObamaCare curtain when he told Health and Human Services secretary Kathleen Sebelius, “I just see a huge train wreck coming down.” He was immediately thrown under the Obama/Democrat bus and announced his retirement, relieved of the burden of living lie after lie for the benefit of his party.

The ObamaCare train is barreling down the tracks full speed even as we speak, and in a few months the inevitable, explosive wreck will occur when millions of Americans find that their employers have dropped their coverage, leaving them at the mercy of a government bureaucracy that doesn’t know what it’s doing, and the rest take a huge hit to the pocketbook, jolting the already-fragile economy.

Employers have been weighing whether to pay higher benefit costs or take the cheaper route of paying the penalties for dropping health care coverage. Neither is good for business, employees, or the economy. Workers who still have employer-provided health care will find their premium cost share much higher. Those who don’t will begin paying their own premiums to the government exchanges, which are years from being functional (if any government program can actually be functional). And employees who refuse to sign up will face stiff tax penalties at the end of the year.

Sebelius said, “I don’t know what he [Baucus] is looking at . . . we are on track to fully implement marketplaces in Jan. 2014, and to be open for open enrollment.” Yeah, right.

Enrollment is supposed to start October 1 – ninety days from now. Do you see any evidence that the Dept. of Hope and Change is ready to provide health care to millions and millions of new dependents? Is the health care exchange ready to go in your state? Have you been informed of your options?

The Obama administration soldiers on in the face of adversity, doing what it has always done when faced with a difficult problem – more campaigning. Sebelius is trying to enlist the NBA, NFL, and other celebrities to launch a propaganda campaign promoting ObamaCare. Response has been tepid, at best – not surprising, considering Kobe Bryant’s taxes will go up by a quarter million dollars because of ObamaCare.

Oh yeah, this is going to be ugly.

Conservatives in the House have voted to repeal parts or all of the train wreck, but it’s like putting pennies on the track – not going to even slow the behemoth down.

Of course we will all be watching – you can’t help but look at a train wreck, even though the carnage is gut-wrenching. Let’s just hope somebody steps forward in the upcoming elections who can clean up the mess from this crazy train.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

I’ve listened to preachers,
I’ve listened to fools,
I’ve watched all the dropouts,
Who make their own rules,
One person conditioned to rule and control,
The media sells it and you live the role.
I’m going off the rails on a crazy train!

Crazy Train – Ozzy Osbourne

Here’s some fun for all you Headbangers on the Right Side!

The Lies About the Tea Party Go On and On and On . . .

Posted on June 10, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard Reply

They just can’t give it up. The lies and distortions and boogie-men-ifications of the Tea Party go on, and on, and on . . .

Tea Party people are racists. I have been attending Tea Party events for years, have met thousands of Tea Party people at every level from small town sign-holders to the top echelon of national organizations. I have NEVER seen a racist or a racist act. Quite the opposite, I have met many wonderful, happy, and intelligent Tea Party people who are . . . gasp . . . minority. And you know what? Nobody cares! The Tea Party doesn’t give a flip what color you are. If you are intelligent enough to realize that the continued expansion of government at the expense of individual freedom and national prosperity is the wrong path for our country, you belong here! There has never been any evidence of racism in the Tea Party, any time, anywhere, ever.

Meanwhile, many Progressives continue to practice soft racism daily by insisting that minorities are incapable of feeding their children, competing for jobs on a level playing field, or taking care of themselves.

Tea Party people are hateful, mean and violent. See above. I have never seen a hateful and mean Tea Party person. Look at the group of mostly senior citizens at any Tea Party event. They smile and wave. They carry flags. They bring cookies and deviled eggs. They clean up behind themselves, and behind others. Their group name probably includes the word “Patriots”, meaning people who love their country and care about making it a better place for everyone.

Now look at the other guys – the perverse side of the Progressive party. Here are some direct quotes from the Montana Cowgirl blogsite, the state’s leading progressive web voice. Please forgive me for not editing this:

Here’s a comment in Montana Cowgirl about the Montana Tea Party:

In case anyone missed this, this is really some excellent reporting by Marnee Banks. It shows the real ugliness of what Kockhsuckers look like. Assman, Fart Fetish, and Pervert Priest have perverted their party into something that does NOT even resemble the old Republican Party of Montana. These three appear to be truly proud of being assholes for hire to the Big Kockhs! Nasty, nasty pieces of human feces! But don’t take my word for it. Watch this excellent piece and judge for yourselves. And then, you’ll have a little more sympathy for the courageous Republicans that stood up to these dipshits. These three have NO place in Helena, and hopefully, the word will get out and these turds will be flushed! Ugly, ugly stuff! Kudos to Ed Buttrey, Jim Peterson, and heck, even Taylor Sencha Brown! And all the others. They done good!

Here’s another from Montana Cowgirl – a comment in response to the blog editor’s snarky photo of Michelle Bachman:

bwhahahahahahahahahahahahaahhahaa!I only saw an attractive woman inserting a long, dark colored, wiggly thingy INto her mouth in a provocative fashion while mightily enjoying such a stimulating, smile provoking, pleasure inducing throat reaming! BTW, what did you see? Did we really see the same pic? MAN you’re a pervy dude! You been there, done that maybe?????

Now that’s some cogent political analysis, isn’t it? Do your neighbors and friends talk like this? Not if they are Tea Partiers. You may disagree with conservatives on issues, but you can’t say that they are not civil, thoughtful, well-intentioned and intelligent. You will never find garbage like this on any Tea Party or conservative website.

To Messrs. Buttrey, Peterson, and Brown – I’m sure these potty-mouthed Progressives are as repulsive to you as they are to me and everyone else – even some of their fellow Democrats. And I’m sure you know that your Tea Party friends (most of whom voted for, and manned phone banks for, and wrote checks for, and attended rallies for, and held forums for Republican candidates) are serious about real issues. I know you do not want to align yourselves with people like this, nor do you want to go to war against those who mostly agree with you.

In the absence of facts, or the ability / willingness to debate on the merits of the issues, weak zealots will always resort to name-calling, lies, and ugliness. It doesn’t elevate them in the minds of sensible people, but nonetheless it goes on, and on, and on . . .

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

On and on, he just keeps on tryin’
On and on, on and on, on and on.

On And On – Steven Bishop

From “Midnight Special” 1977

Stop Those Montana Extremists!

Posted on June 2, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard 2

Montana BASE 2 A group of “responsible” Republican Montana legislators, led by Sen. Jim Peterson, Sen. Llew Jones, and Sen. Ed Buttrey, has banded together to “stand up against political extremists.” The group, Montana Business Advocates for Sensible Elections (BASE), is seeking donations from businesses, for whom they promise protection from the forces of evil.

Who are these extremist bad guys? Democrats? Environmental whackos? Overreaching federal bureaucrats? Al Qaeda? Nope, Montana BASE says the bad guys are: conservative Republicans. I guess these would be the “irresponsible” Republicans, the other 93%.

The BASE website warns:

“. . . an extremist group of outsiders has begun operating within the Republican community. These zealots rarely understand or even care about business friendly economic conditions or jobs, yet frequently choose to attack Republican Business Candidates over social issues, state militias, or other non-business issues. We must recruit problem solvers as the antidote to extremism.”

The group’s website bullet-points say education is good, natural resources are good, infrastructure is good. High insurance rates and frivolous lawsuits are bad. Pretty fresh, out-of-the-box thinking, eh? I guess they think this distinguishes them from the “extremist” Republicans. Looking at the list of claimed legislative victories on their website, I have to question – how did those bills get passed without voting help from the “extremists” they want to eliminate?

What they don’t mention is any concern about federal overreach into state affairs, restrictive state administration and regulations, or Montana’s massive unfunded liabilities, largely due to union government pensions. They don’t promote running the business of Montana using Zero Based Budgeting, as every private business does. The tax reductions they claim to have supported were vetoed, yet they claim as successes increased spending on government projects.

Senator Peterson and Montana BASE joined forces with Democrat Governor Bullock against “dark money” after, according to the AP, “some Republicans were attacked in primaries last year as too liberal by anonymous conservative groups.” No mention of unions (mostly government employees), and the corrupt kickback scheme that is the butter to Democrat bread. And there is an unsettling similarity between the enforcement features of Peterson’s dark money bill and the actions of the IRS against conservative groups which are currently under intense national scrutiny.

Another strange bedfellow emerges, as Montana BASE has aligned with and frequently quotes the Center for Public Integrity, which claims to be “one of the country’s oldest and largest nonpartisan, nonprofit investigative news organizations.” Nonprofit, maybe – but nonpartisan? A quick look at their board of directors reveals a Who’s Who of liberal media bigwigs: a half-dozen hotshots from NPR and the NY Times; a class-action tort lawyer extraordinaire; Arianna Huffington (needs no introduction); Steve Kroft (60 Minutes correspondent and Barack Obama’s favorite reporter), Henrick-Jan Laseur (UNICEF/Union for Conservation of Nature/SustainAbility/Agenda 21), Dr. Gilbert Omenn (associate director of OMB for Jimmy Carter). Every business in Montana should want to be advised by Jimmy Carter’s Office of Mgmt. and Budget, wouldn’t you think?

I can’t criticize the “responsible” Republicans for any position they take on bills or issues. They are elected representatives and their votes should reflect the wishes of their constituents and their best individual judgments. But I can see why some constituents are alarmed when their representative campaigns one way and then sides with the opposition after the election. The voters in Sen. Peterson’s own district did not view the redistricting loss of their elected Republican seat to a Democrat from a distant district as “responsible”. As Senate president, Peterson had, or should have had, considerable influence over redistricting.

Senator Peterson and friends have been roundly criticized for voting with the Democrats and against the majority of Republicans in the Montana Senate. How does voting against the majority of one’s party, on its own, make one “responsible”? Would any Democrat break ranks to vote with the Republicans? Who are the extremists?

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Darling, I don’t know why I go to extremes
Too high or too low, there ain’t no in-betweens
And if I stand or I fall
It’s all or nothing at all
Darling, I don’t know why I go to extremes

I Go To Extremes – Billy Joel

Pat Buchanan: Competition – It’s A Good Thing!

Posted on May 31, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard Reply

pat-buchanan Pat Buchanan is right on the money. Again.

In a recent editorial he points to a Senate hearing where Apple CEO Tim Cook (former darling of the Dems) was excoriated for tax avoidance. You see, Apple has paid zero US income tax on its earnings from outside the country in recent years, and it’s perfectly legal. Ireland won Apple over with its 2% corporate tax, compared to the 35% Apple would pay our Treasury. Corporate income tax now makes up less than 10% of federal revenues, and will continue to decline as long as we fail to compete with other nations.

Buchanan says the solution to our economic woes is to abolish the corporate income tax in a revenue-neutral exchange for a 10% tariff on all imported goods. This would bring American corporations (and their off-shore money) racing back to the homeland, and would invite foreign manufacturers to move here as well, reversing the death-spiral of our currency and our ghastly trade imbalance.

Instead of blaming entrepreneurs for avoiding taxes, our fearless leaders should work on attracting and retaining businesses, along with the jobs and wealth they create.

Adam Smith, the father of free market capitalism, taught us that any attempt to control commerce externally is a bad thing. Free and natural competition is a good thing.

The best solutions are usually the simplest.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Seems this worlds got you down
Your feelin’ bad vibrations frown
Well, open your eyes girl, look at me
I’m gonna show you how it ought to be

We’re gonna’ have a good thing
Such a good thing baby

Good Thing – Paul Revere and the Raiders

Here’s an unusual video for you Rockers on the Right Side. Yeah, it’s GOOD THING by Paul Revere and the Raiders, but from a different perspective – behind the drums. Unless you have played drums, you would not know that everything is different back there – the sound, the lights, the distance from the audience, even the “feel” of the music. It’s kind of a lonely world for drummers. This video features Raider drummer Tommy Scheckel. And even Tommy is different – a left-handed drummer playing a right-handed setup. It makes for some unusual moves! Scheckel is a relative newcomer to the Raiders after playing for 27 years with the Buckinghams (“Kind Of A Drag”,” Susan”,”Don’t You Care”). Enjoy! Oh, and hug a drummer today.

How Do You Do It, Max Baucus?

Posted on January 20, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard 5

baucus Max Baucus has represented Montana in the U.S. Senate since 1978, and has been re-elected six times. He plans to run again next year.

Baucus has overcome a slew of criticisms to maintain his grip on the biggest pot of money on planet Earth. Critics say Baucus has lost touch with Montana, doesn’t live there, and rarely visits the state he represents. I believe voters cut him some slack on that one. His work is in the nation’s capital, and it makes sense that he should have a home there. Still, many Montanans are concerned that 91% of his previous campaign funds came from out-of-state sources.

Max’s personal morals have also been called into question, including lurid stories in the national press of divorces and infidelity, jobs for girlfriends, and crony capitalism. The video of Baucus’ apparently-inebriated speech on the Senate floor has 2 million YouTube hits. Defenders say he was just “tired” – watch the video and judge for yourself. But Bill Clinton lowered the threshold of voter pain on skanky behavior, and Barack Obama has established crony paybacks as an acceptable primary fundraising strategy in the expensive world of national politics. The “Foster Brooks” impersonation was avoided by the mainstream media. Montanans might believe lapses in personal ethics can be overlooked if their congressman votes right.

Montanans should be alarmed, however, when Baucus’ votes and considerable influence run counter to their principles. Responses from the last five years of Montana Chamber of Commerce surveys indicate:

64% (5-yr. avg.) of Montana voters say our national economy is on the ‘wrong track’, versus 23% ‘right track’, with chronic unemployment, anemic GDP growth, and irreparable debt and deficits. All that time Senator Baucus has been at the helm of Senate committees including Finance, Taxation, IRS Oversight, Long-term Growth, Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Growth, and Deficit Reduction. The Senate has not passed a budget for four years, and looks as if they never will.

While Montanans’ top financial concern continues to be health care costs, Senator Baucus led the charge for ObamaCare, despite knowing it would raise taxes on Americans, damage Medicare, and add to the national debt and deficits. He has always been tight with “Big-Pharma” lobbyists, and remains one of the leading recipients of political contributions from health insurance and pharmaceutical companies.

A solid majority of Montanans have unfavorable opinions of environmental groups, labor unions, and trial lawyers. Baucus supported unpopular global warming legislation, the unions salivate over the millions of new members they will gain thanks to his health care reform plans, and trial lawyers shovel endless money to Baucus campaigns in exchange for avoiding tort reform in Max’s health care bills.

With all of this baggage, and Baucus’ apparent disdain for Montana voters, how does he keep getting re-elected?

Is it the huge sums of money required for an opponent to even consider going toe-to-toe with the well-connected incumbent Senator? (He has already amassed a $3 million war chest for the the next go-around.)

Is it the decades of pork he has funneled to his state? (Montana receives $1.47 back from the federal government for every dollar it pays in taxes.)

Is it his personal charm and boyish good looks? (Women do tend to vote for Democrats.)

It’s time for good conservatives (some of whom are Republicans) to start a serious search for a Senate contender who does not have personal baggage, who can win the hearts and minds of those with financial means, and who is serious about a calling higher than re-election.

Can anybody displace Max Baucus? It just doesn’t seem like it should be that hard.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

How do you do what you do to me?
I’m feeling blue.
Wish I knew how you do it to me,
But I haven’t a clue.

How Do You Do It? – Gerry and the Pacemakers
(also recorded by the Beatles)
Here’s a great video of one of the most under-rated musicians (Gerry Marsden) and bands (the Pacemakers) of the sixties and the British Invasion. Enjoy!

Cowboys and Cowgirls Needed – Apply Now

Posted on January 6, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard 1

I am more concerned every day about the lack of leadership in our national affairs. As the well-being and security of our citizens continues to decline, the dearth of leadership among our federal political officials becomes more evident and more critical.

There’s a big difference between leadership and arrogance. Just saying “follow me” isn’t helpful when the leader is stumbling off a cliff. A true leader must have:

vision – a clear understanding of the situation as it is and the correct path to what it should be
honesty – zero-tolerance of any person or action motivated by personal gain ahead of mission
optimism and inspiration – the genuine desire to make things better for all, and the belief that improvement is not only possible, it is necessary
resolve – shared goals that are unshakeable, and determination to accomplish those goals
responsibility and accountability – willingness to shoulder burdens for the benefit of others, to admit and recover from failures, and to be open to criticism
courage – the ability to stay cool under fire and focused on the goal

Where are the true leaders today? We have plenty of idealogues. Demagoguery has become an art form. Politicians have learned to exploit the weaker instincts of their constituents – fear, envy, selfishness and laziness – using psychology to manipulate voters. Public officials seem to be only inspired to gain and hold power, without even bothering to seek solutions.

Where are the principled journalists? The pursuit of truth has been replaced by a vapid addiction to titillation and sensationalism. We are told that “sex sells”, and that the pursuit of profit is now the sole motivator in the the news business. That in itself is deceitful because consumers of news are not given a choice. The reality is our elite news media seek to empower themselves using the same psychological manipulations employed by our self-serving political leaders.

Is the lack of leadership a symptom of what’s wrong with America? Or is it the cause? Do we still believe that the qualities of true leadership matter? Do we employ them in our own lives?

I contend that we don’t need more new ideas. We don’t need more laws. We certainly don’t need more self-absorbed charlatans in public office.

We can get out of this mess and back on the right track. We just need to find, encourage, elevate, and empower true leaders at every level of our society, bottom to top. Are you one?

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Where is my Marlboro man?
Where is his shiny gun?
Where is my lonely ranger?
Where have all the cowboys gone?

Where Have All the Cowboys Gone – Paula Cole

Budgeting For Dummies

Posted on October 29, 2012 by Tom Balek Standard 1

My wife and I were so excited when we bought our first home back in the 1970s, just a few miles west of Malmstrom Air Force Base in Great Falls. We hadn’t been there more than a month and were outside in the yard, raking leaves. Suddenly we saw a huge plume of thick, black smoke rolling out of the base.

“What the heck is that?” We looked at each other, and guessed that a plane must have crashed and exploded.

We looked in the newspaper the next day, and watched the TV news, anticipating a story about the mystery explosion at the base. But there was no report.

Still curious, a few days later I asked a friend who worked at Malmstrom, “What was that big cloud of smoke at the base all about? Was there a plane crash?”

Puzzled, he said nothing out of the ordinary had occurred. Then he said, “Wait a minute, was that Friday?” I said yes. He said, “Oh, that’s normal. On the last day of the month, they always pour their excess jet fuel on the ground and burn it so they get their full allocation for the next period. They call it fire fighter training.”

It’s common knowledge. The way budgeting works in every government department is thus: you get what you got before, plus a little more. Whether you need it or not. Whether your department is functional or not. Whether the program is still needed or not. Whether we have the money or not.

Is it any wonder our governments are bloated, inefficient, and ineffective? Can you imagine any family or business running like this?

Our US Senate has not even bothered to write a budget for over three years. Didn’t seem to matter much, did it?

I can give countless other examples of the idiocy of our government budget process, but I’m sure you have plenty of your own.

Rick Hill, Montana candidate for governor, really got my attention when he said he would work to implement “Priority Based Budgeting” if elected. It didn’t get much of a reaction in the press, but I think it is the singular most significant promise I have heard this year by any candidate for any office.

Imagine if Hill’s common-sense idea were implemented at all levels of government. We would find thousands of government buildings and other assets no longer needed, agencies who compete inefficiently with each other to provide the same services, and buildings full of desks full of people whose purpose became obsolete long ago.

There is no excuse for the laziness of our elected officials, who shirk their oversight responsibilities for the myriad of government agencies and departments.

If elected, Rick Hill and Mitt Romney and other elected executives have a golden opportunity before them: they can press the RESET button. It might work like this:

CITIZEN RESET – Every citizen who receives an entitlement (other than social security) has one year to re-apply for program qualification. Are you receiving disability? Let’s make sure you are still disabled (or ever were). Are you on unemployment? You will be required to show that you are actively making yourself available and employable.
GOVERNMENT RESET – Every department has one year to justify its existence, demonstrate and quantify the value it offers taxpayers, and request its first zero-based budget. The executive will require legislative oversight that is meaningful, detailed, and transparent. And all payments made by the government will be audited against the budget.

Using the data management capabilities that are commonplace in business today, fraud and waste in government are easily preventable. In spite of their promises, our elected officials have never even tried, and there is no time like the present.

Oh, and all government employees will be required to read “Budgeting for Dummies.” There will be a quiz.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Zero-based budgeting,
according to Billy Preston
(gotta love the hair!)

Nothin’ from nothin’ leaves nothin’
You gotta have somethin’
If you wanna be with me

Nothin’ From Nothin’ – Billy Preston