Category Archives: Liberals

Top Priority: Gay Marriage? Get Serious!

Posted on by Standard 2

gay marriage - photo from LA TimesHere we go again – the ruling class and the media avoid all of the big problems our nation faces by staging a mudfight over minutiae.

The bold type all last week was “gay marriage”.  According to the Census Bureau, gay couples constitute less than 1% of American households.  But most people think the number is 20% or greater.  Could it be because the Democrats constantly pound gay/lesbian rights as the most compelling issue of our time?

Among gay couples, how many want to be married?  Most heterosexual couples are not married, why would gays be any different?  If even half of gay couples actually want to be married, now we are talking about less than one half of one percent of US households.

I really don’t care if gays are married or not.  Actually I believe there are churches in every state which will perform the ceremony.  Regardless, THIS IS JUST NOT A BIG TICKET PRIORITY FOR OUR NATION.

The gay marriage issue may directly affect a few thousand people in the US, at most.  In comparison, how many Americans are unemployed or have dropped out of the work force?  How many are working ungodly hours, sacrificing family time to put food on the table and pay their taxes?  How many families struggle financially because the only work available is low-wage service jobs?  How many Americans have little or no savings and just squeak by, paycheck-to-paycheck?  How many families wait for a parent to return home from costly and dangerous military campaigns with no palpable objective?  How many suffer from medical crises, disabilities, substance abuse, and urban violence?

I guess our real unemployment rate of 11.3% is not important.  Our $17 trillion (and growing) debt just doesn’t matter.  Our nation’s declining status and security in an increasingly threatening and unstable international climate – who cares?  Gay Marriage!  That’s what really matters!

Come on.  Let’s get serious.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Rockin' On the Right Side

Let’s get serious
Let’s get serious
Let’s get serious
And fall in love

Let’s Get Serious – Jermaine Jackson

Here’s a cut by the “forgotten” Jackson,  Jermaine.   Damn good musician, and never seemed to have the personal drama that plagued his siblings, although he has had his share of marriages and flings.  He is now a devout Muslim and credits that for his calm demeanor.  Jermaine was nominated for a Grammy for this song.

People Got To Be Free – Including Black People

Posted on by Standard 1

Freedom plateI have worried about the racial polarity evident in our elections.  Minorities, especially blacks, have tended to vote in lockstep for Democrats.  I don’t understand it, because I can’t see where Democrats have elevated the lives of African Americans in any way – in fact, the opposite seems to be true.

And from a personal standpoint, if a group told me day after day, year after year, generation after generation that I am not capable of taking care of myself and my family – that I am inferior to others and unable to compete – I would be furious.

I have never really believed the statistics we are presented about the black community’s political leanings.   Everywhere I look there are black families who appear to believe in and live every principle of conservatism.   It’s hard to accept that all of these people close the curtain and pull the “D” switch every time.

This week a Democrat state senator from Louisiana, Elbert Guillory, switched to the Republican party, with a very polished and carefully crafted video speech explaining his decision.  Granted, the production had “campaign” written all over it, and Mr. Guillory will no doubt receive a great deal of notoriety.  Still, the message he delivers is a perfect analysis of the state of political affairs in the black community.

 

 

I hope we will see a burgeoning “emancipation” movement among African Americans – a reach for freedom from generations of what Guillory calls “plantation” treatment at the hands of Democrats who have taken their loyalty for granted for far too long.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Rockin' On the Right Side

All the world over, so easy to see
People everywhere just wanna be free
I can`t understand it, so simple to me
People everywhere just got to be free

People Got To Be Free – Felix Cavaliere and the Rascals

Isn’t it strange how so many of the “Peace” and “Freedom” songs of the sixties are appropriate now?  Today’s political “left side” claims these songs, but the roles are reversed – they are now the oppressors, the imperialists and the intolerant.  Check out this great concert clip of Ringo Starr’s band with guest Felix Cavaliere.

 

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

Posted on by 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!

bachmannsausageHere’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

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 by Standard 2

Montana BASE 2A 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

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

You better THINK!

Posted on by Standard Reply

Aretha - thinkAs I have pointed out to you, my fellow Rockers on the Right Side, I get regular e-mails from the Obama camp.  They ask me for $5 every day, and they assume that because I logged in to their website once during the last election campaign that I am one of them.  It’s amazing to me that they are still gathering campaign contributions despite the fact that their leader is a lame duck in his second term.

Anyway, the messages are usually amusing.   The Obama group often publishes a “letter” supposedly written by a kid to tug at my heartstrings and shame me into sending my daily $5.  They want me to FEEL, but they certainly don’t want me to THINK.

A while back they used this one, ostensibly composed by a 17-year old whose father was murdered by one of his former employees, along with a UPS driver and three other employees:

Friend —

My dad, Reuven Rahamim, was killed this past September in a mass shooting.   I was 17 years old, one of 15 children who lost a parent that day. I’m honoring his memory — and those of many others who have fallen — by doing something about gun violence.

Whether you’ve been personally affected by gun violence or not, you need to be part of this fight, too.   Since my dad’s death, I’ve learned that my family’s experience is not as uncommon as one might expect. The statistics are horrifying: 12,000 Americans are murdered with guns every year. But the true toll of gun violence is borne by the tens of thousands of sons, daughters, mothers, fathers, and wounded survivors left behind.

When I think of the number of lives that could have been saved by universal background checks or better access to mental health services, I simply don’t understand why Congress doesn’t act right away.

So join me in speaking out. Our stories from all across the country will reaffirm the all-too-real consequences of this unending violence and the need for sensible solutions. Share why you support legislation to keep dangerous weapons out of the wrong hands.

I know my dad is watching right now as I fight alongside many other Americans for common-sense legislation. He deserves a vote. We all deserve a vote. Now is the time.

Thanks,
Sami Rahamim, Minneapolis, MN

Sad story, and probably a good kid.  But think about it — this family is being used.  No way any 17-year old product of our public schools wrote that letter.  Look at the construction and vocabulary.  How many teenagers use phrases like “the true toll” and “reaffirm the all-too-real consequences”?  How many can correctly spell “borne”,  let alone use the word in a sentence?  If this letter had included the words “I’m like” twice in every sentence, I would trust that Sami wrote it, not a group of leftist zealots in a backroom of the White House.

The messages from the Obama camp are always simplistic and emotional.  They never include any background from which the reader can make an informed decision.  The premise of this letter is based on one statement: “12,000 Americans are murdered with guns every year.”  Okay, who pulled the triggers — mostly drug dealers and gang-bangers?  Who were the victims –mostly other drug-dealers and gang-bangers?  How many of these murders took place in areas under strict gun-control laws?  What is the real cause of gun violence, guns?  Or is it drugs and gangs?  And what are you doing about drugs and gangs, besides opening our borders to create more of both?

Unmentioned is this fact: gun violence decreased by 49% from 2003 to 2011, despite an increase in gun ownership.

Unfortunately, the average American is no longer capable of discernment.  With our embarrassingly tiny little attention-spans, and having been thoroughly indoctrinated by the education/news media/government cabal to swallow everything shoveled our way, we are easily steered to the desired conclusion.

Call us “low-information voters”.  “Sheeple.”  “Slacktivists”.

Like Aretha says, “We Better Think.”

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Rockin' On the Right Side You better think (think)
Think about what you’re trying to do to me
Yeah, think (think, think)
Let your mind go, let yourself be free

Let’s go back, let’s go back, let’s go way on way back when
I didn’t even know you, you couldn’t have been too much more than ten
I ain’t no psychiatrist, I ain’t no doctor with degree
It don’t take too much high IQ to see what you’re doing to me

Think – Aretha Franklin

You HAVE TO stop what you are doing and enjoy this classic cut  – ‘Aretha, Matt “Guitar” Murphy, Akroyd and Belushi, and the rest of the Blues Brothers – 1980

HEADLINES: 4/28/2018

Posted on by Standard Reply

Headlines from Al Jazeera BigSky –
Montana’s Number One News Source –
April 28, 2018:

    • PRESIDENT CLINTON DEFENDS “AMCARE” – President Hillary Clinton, speaking at the annual BFD (Brotherhood of Federal Doctors) union convention, defended “AmCare”, the one-year old nationalized health care system.  Fending off complaints about the elimination of heart surgery units and cancer clinics, President Clinton said, “If we had not cut off services for citizens over the age of 60, we would not be able to provide care for our 180 million underprivileged and unemployed new immigrants.”  Clinton won a landslide victory in November 2016, with 99.6% support from minority and immigrant voters, who swelled the polls after the Supreme Court ruled that requiring voters to register is unconstitutional.


    • BIKE LANES TO REPLACE MOST HIGHWAYS BY JULY –  Transportation Reduction Czar Al Gore announced yesterday the Dept. of Transportation Reduction will seize control of all U.S. bike manufacturing companies this summer, and will begin providing free bicycles for public use at all AmTrak locations.  Since fossil fuel use was banned, concerns have mounted that only the wealthiest Americans and government employees will be able to travel more than a mile from their homes.  The planned expansion of AmTrak electric train service has been stalled due to the inability to get repair parts transported to the many windmills which have become inoperative.  Gore, in a bold move, plans to convert unused highways across the country for bicycle use.  “In fulfillment of our United Nations Agenda 21 commitment to  ICLEI years ago, we will soon be a totally carbon-free nation,”  Gore said.

 

    • BRAZIL PLEDGES FOOD AID TO U.S. –  With 73% of Americans receiving food vouchers from the federal government, and farm production cut by two-thirds due to the fossil fuel ban, the food shortage in the United States has reached crisis pitch.  A coalition of South American nations, basking in their newfound wealth from development of liquefied natural gas and off-shore oil drilling, have offered to subsidize President Hillary Clinton’s AmFood program on humanitarian grounds, but only if austerity measures are put in place.  Vice-president Brian Schweitzer has been charged with heading up a task force to determine how food resources can be fairly distributed, and will provide his findings to the Food Utilization (FU) board this fall.

 

    • EDUCATION CZAR ACCUSED OF HUNTING – Al Franken, director of AmTeach, the federal education system, is under investigation by the DUH (Dept. of Urban Helplessness) after it was revealed that Franken owns a cabin hidden deep in the mountains of Montana.  Accused of possessing a gun and shooting wild game for food during the 8-month government holiday recess, Franken said, “I was just doing research.”

 

    • BLOGGER DEFIES MANDATORY RETIREMENT – Blogger Tom Balek, a long-time critic of the expansion of government and defender of the Constitution, vowed to continue his work, despite having long passed the mandatory bloggers’ retirement age of 50.  “People ask me why, at age 64, I’m still blogging,” Balek said in a recent interview.  “It’s the money, man.  I just can’t resist making all that money.”

 



Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Rockin' On the Right Side
Will you still need me?
Will you still feed me?
When I’m sixty-four?

When I’m Sixty-Four – the Beatles

Watch my favorite guitar player – Tommy Emmanuel from Australia – AMAZING!

Obama Regime Kicks Max Baucus Under the Bus

Posted on by Standard 3

Max BaucusI would bet that most of you who Rock with me On the Right Side probably are not on the President’s mailing list.  I am.

Call it espionage, if you must.  Actually, I just find the way the Obama regime manipulates its subjects so entertaining.

Today the administration is blasting Max Baucus for finally – finally – representing his Montana constituents.   And as they almost always do, they lied to their gullible subscribers without shame.  Here’s the e-mail they sent me:

Friend —

Senator Max Baucus is hoping you weren’t paying attention.

Last week, he was one of 45 senators who decided to stand with the gun lobby, blocking a bill to expand background checks — a measure that 79% of Montanans support.

OFA supporters across the country are holding their senators accountable — today, Senator Baucus needs to hear directly from the people who sent him to Washington. One simple, very public way of doing that is to get on Twitter.

Tweet @MaxBaucus now:

We have your senator’s Twitter handle and a sample tweet ready to go, but feel free to make it your own. As long as Senator Baucus hears from you today, that’s what counts. And believe me, the senator and his staff are watching their Twitter accounts pretty closely.

The reality is, keeping guns out of the hands of criminals and the mentally unstable should be a no-brainer. It’s overwhelmingly popular. Senator Baucus could have easily stood up to the gun lobby and said, “I have to do what my constituents sent me here to do.”

Instead, he caved and we took a step backward in the fight to prevent gun violence.

Whenever this happens — whenever Congress chooses to cater to special interests at the expense of the common good — OFA is going to hold them accountable in a very public way.

It’s why we’re here.

After years of selling out to the big political contributors who got him re-elected six times, Baucus finally grew a spine.  He admitted that the Obamacare program he co-sponsored is “a train wreck”.  He voted against the Democrats embarrassingly bloated budget, saying it raised spending too much.  He stood up to the over-reaching gun control extremists – and by the way, if you believe 79% of Montanans support gun control, you have never whiffed one breath of Big Sky air.

The left is on him like magpies on a road-killed whitetail.  Washington Post: “Baucus Retires, A Grateful Nation Cheers”.  The Daily Beast: “Good Riddance, Max Baucus”.  And, of course, the divider-in-chief, through his puppets, grabs his smelly bite of scavenged meat, booting his once-faithful comrade to the curb with snarling contempt.  Stay classy, Mr. President.

Announcing his retirement, Baucus said in an AP interview, “I don’t want to die here with my boots on. There is life beyond Congress.”  I think it’s kind of cool that he finally bought a pair of boots.  He hadn’t seen Montana for so long, I doubt he knows which one goes on which foot.

One of the last letters I wrote Senator Baucus was a promise.  I told him that if he continued to push for ObamaCare I would do everything in my power to see that he would never be elected again.  We both lost.  ObamaCare became law, and Max will never be elected again.

I guess Montana lost twice, though.  Here comes Brian Schweitzer.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Rockin' On the Right Side

No one knows what it’s like to be the bad man
To be the sad man behind blue eyes.
No one knows what it’s like to be hated
To be fated to telling only lies

But my dreams they aren’t as empty
As my conscience seems to be
I have hours, only lonely
My love is vengeance that’s never free

Behind Blue Eyes – the Who
with rare footage – Keith Moon Speaks!

It’s Only Words

Posted on by Standard 1

What they say to the public and the media:

WASHINGTON (AP) Nov. 7, 2012 – President Barack Obama is sounding a conciliatory tone after his re-election victory, saying he has learned from those who supported him and those who opposed him. And he says he returns to Washington “more determined” and “more inspired.”

He said he’s hoping to work with Republicans to solve the nation’s problems.

What they say to each other and their supporters (I am on the President’s mailing list and received this e-mail today):

organizing for action

Friend –I want to make one thing absolutely clear:

We’re up against a whole lot more than just opposition in Congress.

We’re up against interest groups with money to burn — organizations willing to drop every last penny they have to stop President Obama’s agenda in its tracks. We’re already seeing it on gun violence, and immigration reform — they’re going to spend millions to throw a wrench in the works of progress.

You can be damned sure that this is not going to stop.

Organizing for Action is going to shift the balance of power in Washington back to real people. People like you have shown over and over again that no amount of spending can stop millions of Americans calling for change.

It’s going to take each of us rolling up our sleeves, getting to work, and chipping in what we can when we can.

We have our first fundraising deadline this weekend. Donate $5 or more right now to become a founding member of this organization: https://donate.barackobama.com/First-Deadline

This is going to be fun. If we do this right, the other side won’t know what hit ’em.
Jim Messina, Chair – Organizing for Action

They have no intention of cooperating or “reaching across the aisle”.  “The other side won’t know what hit ’em”, says Messina.  They think it’s fun.  It’s not about the future of the country. It’s not about school safety.   It’s not about immigration reform.  This is a game to them.

God help us.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Rockin' On the Right Side

You think that I don’t even mean
A single word I say
It’s only words, and words are all
I have to take your heart away

Words – the Bee Gees

Change – Be Careful What You Wish For

Posted on by Standard 1

obama_change_01I had an interesting conversation with a liberal this week – a junior manager who works very hard, earns a modest salary, and would like to improve his family’s standard of living.

Our business conversation had turned to the hesitancy on the part of business owners to invest.  “No one is willing to pull the trigger on any major spending in the current political climate,” I said.

My friend asked, “What does politics have to do with whether or not a business owner wants to invest?”

I pointed out that politics and economics are inseparable.  After all, the only thing a government can do is spend other people’s money.  Everything the government does affects the economic environment, and conversely, voters and supporters of candidates make decisions based on their own current financial situations.  Business owners are not confident right now that risking additional capital will provide them with any financial reward.

“Well I have always been a liberal,” my friend said.  “And I agree with you, nobody wants to spend for anything right now.”

I let him talk.

“Nobody wants to upgrade their facilities or hire more employees.  They just don’t know if customers will be able to afford to buy their products.”

I nodded.  Keep thinking, young man.

“You know,” he continued, “wages sure aren’t what they used to be – if you can find a job at all.  People can’t afford to buy houses and cars and other things because they just aren’t making enough money.”

He was on a roll.

“If nobody can afford to buy things, why would you want to build a new store or hire more people?” he concluded. “Times are tough.”

I wanted so badly to deliver my speech about how government waste, corruption and misguided overspending takes a huge bite out of our GDP and personal wealth.  About how government social policies discourage savings and personal responsibility.  About how federal fiscal policy has devalued our dollar, destroyed our balance of trade and built an insurmountable debt.  About how we have become a nation of undereducated, disengaged sheeple, victim to any media-savvy, slick-talking promiser-in-chief.

I wanted to ask, “So why are you a liberal?”  Instead, I shook my head and said, “Gee, I wonder what has changed?”

He didn’t answer.  But the concerned look on his face told me he knew.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Rockin' On the Right Side

I still don’t know what I was waiting for
And my time was running wild
A million dead-end streets
Every time I thought I’d got it made
It seemed the taste was not so sweet

Changes – David Bowie

If I Had a Million Dollars, I’d Live Like a Retired Govt. Worker

Posted on by Standard 9

Richie_Rich_comic_No_1As a kid I thought it must really be something to be a millionaire.  We read “Richie Rich” comic books and imagined how cool it would be to live in a mansion, with servants and cooks and an indoor swimming pool.

Of course, it was the impossible dream.  Only a rare few Americans could ever be that rich, and they were born to wealthy families.  Still, back then, life was good for most Americans.  Dads went to work, paid the bills, bought modest homes and Chevies, and took the family on a summer road trip to Mount Rushmore.  Moms stayed home, raised the 2.1 kids, attended PTA meetings, and always had a hot, healthy meal ready when Dad came home from work.

What happened?

A million bucks sure isn’t what it used to be.  With CDs paying maybe 1% interest at best, those who worked hard and saved a million dollars can now look forward to a retirement income of – wow – $10,000 a year.  Add that to social security income, of course, but still.   No indoor swimming pool.  No servants.

And it’s not like there are other investment opportunities for retirees.   The only guys making money in the stock market are the hedge fund operators and the machine traders buying and selling at the speed of light.  Municipal bonds pay a couple percent and are tax free – oh that’s right, most city and county governments are bankrupt.

There is one group of really wealthy American retirees.   Retired unionized government workers get guaranteed pensions.  Most receive over $60,000 per year.  There are many government employees who toiled for 25 or 30 hard years, sometimes even working over 35 hours per week behind a hard, cold desk with only 7 weeks of vacation and 15 holidays off each year.  Poor souls, at retirement they must make do with $100k per year plus full medical benefits.

Do the math.  In order to pay a retired teacher $60k per year, we American taxpayers are putting up $6 million at 1% interest.  The retired county engineer who receives a $100k pension requires a taxpayer investment of $10 million to fund his checks.

In an economy where many moms and dads both work long hours and are barely able to feed their families, let alone save anything for retirement, it’s hard to feel sorry for government employees who will retire with multi-million dollar nest eggs.

When I see a headline like this:

Obama Sequester Speech: Republicans Are Putting Economy At Risk To Help The Wealthy

I shake my head in amazement at the level of deceit our President and his followers continue to get away with.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Rockin' On the Right Side
If I had a million dollars
We wouldn’t have to walk to the store
If I had a million dollars
We’d take a limousine cause it costs more
If I had a million dollars
We wouldn’t have to eat Kraft dinner

If I Had A Million Dollars – Barenaked Ladies