Sanity Prevails (for once) – Crazy Airline Subsidy Ends

Posted on June 13, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard 2

airplane dropping money Last December you witnessed my rant about the ridiculous airline subsidies for “Essential Air Service” for small Montana cities. I facetiously thanked you taxpayers for chipping in $3,652 for my (and every) 120-mile flight from Lewistown to Billings.

Apparently ridership increased from 1 passenger per day to 1.5, so the annual subsidy turned out to be just over $2,000 per passenger. But here’s the good news: Today the Associated Press reported that the Essential Air Service subsidies for Lewistown and Miles City are no more. Unfortunately, the subsidies for the other Montana small cities were left in place.

Hooray! Chalk up one small victory for the taxpayers!

Now, how many other wasteful, fraudulent, unproductive, and obsolete federal government programs are out there? Hey, I know . . . let’s look first over at the IRS, who spent $4 million on a conference for 2,600 government workers, but can’t seem to figure out how to collect over $1 billion in past due taxes from federal govt. employees (did ya ever hear of payroll deduction?)

Maybe we should look into the estimated $2.5 billion in food stamp fraud, or the $1.5 billion spent for ObamaPhones. Senator Coburn found $18 billion totally wasted in 2012 without breaking a sweat. And then there’s ObamaCare.

I have applied for one of those government grants so I can do a study: “Why does the federal government waste our taxpayer dollars?” The report would be pretty short, so I only asked for a million dollar grant. But just in case my grant request doesn’t come through, I’ll give you a sneak preview of my findings. The federal government wastes your money because: it isn’t their money.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

That ain’t workin’. That’s the way you do it.
Let me tell ya, them guys ain’t dumb.

Get money for nothin’, and chicks for free.

Money for Nothing – Dire Straits

Classic rock by an all-star cast – Mark Knopfler, Sting, Phil Collins, Eric Clapton. Notice they left out all the politically-incorrect words. Wimps!

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

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back – the Obama Tango

Posted on June 8, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard 1

DC Celebrates Inauguration With Gala Balls The relationship between government and citizens is a delicate dance. In recent years, our federal government has insisted on taking the lead role, forcing citizens to step consistently backward, giving up their personal freedoms and national dignity. But recently the music has changed, and our president takes us by the hand to do the “Obama Tango” – an intricate, passionate dance with steps forward and backward and all over the place.

The Obama Tango:

One step back: Congressional hearings reveal the utter and apparently willful failure of the administration to defend the Libya embassy compound and personnel, and attempt a disgraceful coverup by sending U.N. ambassador Susan Rice to lie about it on all the major TV networks.

One step forward: Benghazi-gate finally gets some mainstream media coverage as a result of the hearings.

One step back and a slap in the face: President Obama selects Rice as his next National Security Advisor. What a slap in the face to the families of those who died representing the USA and defending our embassy and personnel, and to the American people who have always believed the word security implies honesty.

Another step back: The federal government is caught abusing the privacy of reporters and news agencies including the Associated Press.

One step forward and a turn: The mainstream media, whose fawning and “thrill-up-the-leg -ing” over the “Unvetted One” was the single biggest factor in Obama’s election and re-election, turn against their former lover. While defense of the Constitution has not been a priority with the fourth estate for a long time, they are reminded that “freedom of the press” is in there somewhere. Mainstream America has a good laugh at Mainstream Media’s expense – serves them right.

One step back and a pelvic thrust: The IRS systematically targets conservative groups and contributors for harsh treatment over the last several years, while throwing lavish parties on the taxpayer’s dime. The administration pretends it knew nothing about their political adversaries getting screwed.

One step forward, then grab and double-slap: The media, already upset at Obama and his crew (see above), grabs the momentum and gives him a slap, followed by a back-slap when they learn that the EPA has been setting up hidden “man rooms” in warehouses where its employees relax with couches, TVs, microwaves, etc. instead of laboring at their desks.

Stand still: It turns out the NSA has been gathering phone, e-mail, credit, web traffic and other information about every US citizen without our knowledge or consent. Citizens ask why data is collected from everyone instead of just the bad guys. Obama says, “I believe in the right to privacy, but there are some tradeoffs involved in our need for security.”

One step forward, deep dip, and kiss: The Obama administration, in a surprising concession to hunters and stockmen, announces that the feds will lift the ridiculous protections for the gray wolf that was “reintroduced” to the lower 48 states, resulting in untold damage to livestock and the decimation of elk herds and moose in Montana and other western states.

After all these years of only stepping back, it’s refreshing to get in a few forward steps.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

I take 2 steps forward, 2 steps back
We come together cuz opposites attract
It ain’t fiction, just a natural fact
We come together cuz opposites attract

Paula Abdul – Opposites Attract

Paula Abdul live in Japan, 1991 – kinda cheesey stage show, but the music is solid with a smokin’ band and backup vocalists.

Do You Know What Common Core Is Yet?

Posted on June 5, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard 3

classroom I posed this question almost a year ago, and today I ask again – do you know what Common Core is?

Common Core, the biggest change in education in US history, is underway, and yet it continues to fly mostly under the radar. If your child or grandchild is in a public school, it is almost certain that he or she is already caught up in this total overhaul of our public education system. Even if you don’t have children involved, you should be concerned because most citizens feel that education is the linch-pin to the success of our nation and way of life.

“Wait a minute,” you might ask. “If Common Core is such a big deal, why haven’t I heard anything about it?” And that is a very important question. Did your school ask you whether you wanted to implement Common Core? Were you involved in deciding what is important in your child’s education? Whenever a major government program is kept secret – especially one that will have such a major impact on your children – you should wonder why.

Here are the basic tenets of Common Core:

national standards will be applied to make education homogeneous across the country
teaching methods and content will be focused on preparation for college and careers, rather than the attainment of general knowledge and skills
courses will encompass more “rigor” (higher level learning)
content will be technical rather than general; reading materials will be primarily non-fiction; history and philosophy will be limited and focused; and emphasis will be placed on how students learn rather than acquisition of facts
teachers will become facilitators of group projects and discussions rather than classroom leaders and producers of information – students will collaboratively determine what they should learn and what the correct answers are

These intentions sound good. But like every process change, the devil is in the details. There are so many unanswered questions: if content is homogenized, how will students learn special and individual skills? If the primary instruction model is group work, will introverted students be left behind, or will competitive students be held back? Are we abandoning the building-block approach to knowledge that has traditionally established the foundation for higher learning? Are elementary students capable of determining what they should learn? Will schools cut back on the foo-foo to allow the necessary time to make this work?

And perhaps the biggest question of all: will parents, teachers and local school boards have any control over content, or will our schools become federal government factories spitting out ideologically cloned kids? Look back to pre-war Germany to see how dangerous top-down control of education can be. Defenders of Common Core insist that there will be a great deal of local control. Have you seen any yet? All decisions to this point have been made by a small, elite cadre of educational theorists, government wonks, and profiteers lined up at the Bill Gates money trough.

North Carolina Lt. Governor Dan Forest has it right – he says let’s slow down and take a good, hard look at Common Core before we just jump in, with no questions asked:

As a school board trustee I barged in and studied Common Core up close and personal, alongside the teachers. Although they had no choice in the matter (the train had left the station), many of them were not sold on the idea. An article in Education Week illustrates just how tough the leap from “zero to ten” is going to be. More teachers are now speaking out, and questions about Common Core are beginning to appear in the mainstream media.

Supporters of Common Core say conservative critics are uninformed and unnecessarily cautious – we are roadblocks to progress. We need hope and immediate change! Don’t ask questions, just trust us!

Sound familiar?

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

So, don’t ask me no questions
And I won’t tell you no lies
So, don’t ask me about my business
And I won’t tell you goodbye

Don’t Ask Me No Questions – Lynyrd Skynyrd

Here’s an EARLY Lynyrd Skynyrd clip (1974, before the plane crash). Look behind them – that’s a SERIOUS back-line of amplifiers!

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.

I Didn’t Serve

Posted on May 26, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard 1

photo by Henry Huet – AP

I didn’t serve in the military.

When I graduated from high school in 1971 the war in Vietnam was the ugliest wart on a butt-ugly year. Cambodia and Laos were dragged into the mess. American soldiers increasingly turned to drugs to numb the effects of the seemingly endless war. Anti-war protests turned violent. The US economy was in the tank, suffering ever-higher inflation, unemployment, and taxes. American cars were so bad the Chevy Vega was named “car of the year.” President Richard Nixon initiated wage and price controls – not exactly a free-market solution to our economic problems. The nightly news in 1971 was grim, to say the least.

As a high school senior I had been recruited by all the military branches, especially the Marines. I considered joining, because I wanted to go to college and didn’t have any way to afford it. But I knew I wasn’t tough enough to be a Marine, and nobody wanted to go to Vietnam.

August of 1971 was the last military draft lottery and my number was 228 – I was not going to be drafted. So my family scraped together a few dollars, I took a couple of part-time jobs, and off I went to college.

No, I didn’t serve in the military. And I have always regretted it.

I envy my friends who served. They have fond memories of the comradery, the travel, the hyper-organized “get-it-done” military attitude and lifestyle. They worked hard but served with pride and they smile as they look back on their military years. They seem to have a maturity that is absent in many of their peers.

I have a fascination with military technology and history, and can lose whole days of vacation time rattling around on a decommissioned aircraft carrier or studying the mechanical intricacy of WWII bombers. I watch war movies and get caught up in the patriotism and adventure. I admire the polish and confidence of the young men and women who return from service in the Middle East.

But I also know that war is hell, and I wasn’t ready for hell in 1971. I have profound respect and admiration for the guys who kept crawling up the hill on Tarawa, over the dead bodies of comrades and enemies. For the bomber crews who kept strapping in, knowing that the odds were against completing their required 25 missions over Germany. For the GIs who manned up for another breathless patrol into the steaming jungles of Vietnam – and another, and another.

I didn’t serve. But I mourn the loss and injury of every serviceman and woman who did. And I am infuriated when our government sometimes treats our warriors and their families so badly, while too-frequently coddling our enemies.

I didn’t serve. God bless all of you who do, and who did.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Paul Revere and the Raiders have been among our strongest supporters of Vietnam veterans. For many years Paul Revere led the “Rolling Thunder” motorcycle rally to the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, DC. He and the band donated the proceeds from their “Ride to the Wall” CD and tour events to veterans organizations, and still honor our veterans at every performance. If this super group of patriots is playing near you, don’t miss their top-notch show – they are just as hot as they were in 1966. Here’s a clip from one of their events, a shout-out to the Vietnam Vets.

You better THINK!

Posted on May 23, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard Reply

Aretha - think As 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

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

Livin’ In a Land Down Under

Posted on May 21, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard 2

kangaroos I spent a day with some friends from Australia last weekend. It’s sad to say, but they were more engaged in and knowledgeable about American politics and economics than most fellow Yankees I meet.

We had riveting discussions comparing the political and economic situations of our two countries. One thing became obvious right away – wage rates “down under” far exceed ours. While the Aussie dollar and the American dollar are near parity, Australian laborers earn $25 or more per hour, while the norm in my American city seems to be about $12 per hour. Australian professionals appear to earn considerably more than Americans do as well, but taxes take a pretty healthy bite, and prices are high on some items.

Our three guests were all government employees, yet they were very fiscally conservative. One was a nurse who works for a government-owned and operated health care system. She explained that citizens who purchase private health insurance can choose their own (presumably superior) doctors and care facilities. No one is refused care at the public hospitals.

I was surprised to learn that the unions and government are combatants in Australia. And my friends were shocked to hear about the circle of corruption in the US, where government employees’ unions get politicians elected in exchange for favors and more government jobs. They wondered why they had not heard about some of the issues I presented, and I explained that for many years our news media have been bedfellows with the democrats, and their reporting is rigidly slanted in that direction (with the exception of Fox News, for whom my guests had no respect). The Aussies are not impressed with the dearth of real news here, lamenting that they never hear their nation even mentioned in the media.

When we expressed our concerns about vote fraud in recent elections, especially in Montana, they described how their election system requires each citizen to vote – and failure to do so results in a hefty fine. “We don’t use voting machines, it’s all done manually under great scrutiny,” we were told.

They weren’t pleased that their current prime minister, Julia Gillard of the Labor Party, was not elected by the people. She assumed office in 2010 when her predecessor, Kevin Rudd, was ousted as the Labor Party leader. “And she won’t be elected this September, either!” they announced with firm resolve. It bothered me greatly that until our visit I didn’t even know who the leader of Australia is.

We shared common concerns about the leftward (and downward) drift in education, and the over-reaching environmental movement. They understood our worries about illegal immigration: “You mean your immigrants don’t have national identification cards?” they asked. Of course their border is protected by a rather large ocean.

The big eye-opener for the Aussies was our commitment to the second amendment. At age 30, one of our guests had never seen or touched a gun. I showed her mine, and it was as if all the oxygen was sucked out of the room. My wife and I explained concealed carry permits, and our belief in the fundamental right to protect ourselves, our families, and our property. They insisted that the bad guys in Australia don’t have guns, so the good guys don’t need them either. I hope they are right about that. In our case, unilateral disarmament would be suicidal.

Our friends are well aware of the United States’ tenuous economic condition and our stifling $16 trillion dollar debt. We pondered where is the “best place” to be, economically and politically, in a world where trouble lurks in every corner.

“We think we have it pretty straight,” they said. I couldn’t disagree.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Livin’ in a land down under,
Where women glow and men plunder,
Can’t you hear, can’t you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover!

Land Down Under – Men at Work

Are These the Good Old Days?

Posted on May 12, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard 2

Sometimes we fuss when things don’t go the way we want, and we wonder if we are stuck with life as it is. We tend to forget that before long, everything will have changed.

My wife’s grandfather told the most amazing stories about his life in the early 1900s. He recalled with startling clarity a lifestyle before electricity, air conditioning, and air travel that was simpler, if not necessarily better. I asked him one time if he missed the ‘good old days’.

“Good old days!”, he howled. “We had mud and horse shit in the streets! THESE are the good old days, and don’t you forget it!”

I have heard it said that the rate of change accelerates over time. I don’t even know how change can be measured – there is no unit of “change” – but it seems to be true.

We know change will happen, but attempts to predict the future usually fall flat. Didn’t you think that by now we would be flying around like George Jetson in little air-mobiles? Pushing a button in the wall for instant breakfast? Seeing and talking to each other on little flip phones? Oh wait, we have that. Well, one out of three ain’t bad.

Some change is disturbing. We put a man on the moon 44 years ago, but we can’t do it today. We built the Empire State Building in 410 days but it now takes longer than that just to get the required permits for a minor construction job. We have deteriorated physically into a nation of jelly-bellies. The average student gets a worse education every year and many don’t finish high school. And it saddens me that laws are selectively enforced and the miracle left us by our founders, the Constitution, is being shredded.

Most surprising to me in the second half of my life is the rapid social change, and especially the blurring of the sexes. I sat in a fast-food restaurant recently near a group of high-school kids. It was a scene right out of “Glee”. The boys and girls were nearly interchangeable – giggling about everything and nothing, alternately poking at their smart phones. They dressed the same, they sounded the same, they acted the same. As they got up to leave, it was hugs all around, boys hugging girls, girls hugging girls, boys hugging boys.

The old macho “boy gets girl” world of my youth is history. Marriage is old-school – not necessary. Child-rearing by one or more females is the norm. Gone are the days when a young man was expected to get a good job, move up the ladder, and bring the “bacon” home to his wife and family. Women serve in combat units and television sit-coms are filled with lame gay humor.

Fortunately, change comes somewhat more slowly in Montana, a place where men are still men and women like it that way. We still have brave and bright-eyed young people in our military. Medical and emergency personnel still save lives every day, and good people do the right thing everywhere.

When candidate Obama promised hope and change, it was a sure bet the latter would come true. Change is gonna come, but it usually does not follow the path anyone expects. Things will happen that none of us anticipated.

So don’t fret too much about the way things are today. It doesn’t always feel like it, but maybe these are the “good old days”. And maybe they will get better.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Stay right here . . .
Cause these are the good old days.
These are the good old days!

Anticipation – Carly Simon

one of my all-time favorite live performance videos – Carly Simon 1987 at Martha’s Vineyard