Do You Vote By Color?

Posted on by Standard 10

I have enjoyed some outstanding speakers on television from the Republican convention.

Condi Rice was firm, clear and decisive about the importance of maintaining our military strength in the face of a “chaotic and dangerous world”.  And she hit the nail on the head when she said, “When the world looks at us today, they see an American government that cannot live within its means.  They see a government that continues to borrow money, mortgaging the future of generations to come.”  I’m a huge Condi Rice fan.

But I wouldn’t vote for her or support her just because she’s black.

I was impressed by Puerto Rico’s young and very bright governor, Luis Fortuño.  He has proved Paul Ryan’s contention that “we can do this”.  “We cut government expenses by almost 20 percent, starting with my own salary,” Fortuño said.  “We reduced our deficit 90 percent, while continuing to invest in our schools, hospitals, and highways.  At the same time, we slashed taxes 50 percent on individuals and 30 percent on businesses, the largest tax cuts in Puerto Rico’s history.  And our private sector – the real economy – began to create jobs again.”  As I listened I realized that this is a government leader who ‘gets it’.

But I wouldn’t vote for him or support him just because he’s Hispanic.

Nikki Haley is a pistol.  I couldn’t help but grin when she talked about “watching that first brand new, mac daddy plane rolling onto the runway sporting a ‘Made With Pride In South Carolina’ decal and surrounded by 6,000 nonunion employees, cheering, smiling and so proud of what they had built.”  And I felt pride in America hearing how her family came from India and muscled together a $30 million company that started in their living room.

But I wouldn’t vote for her or support her just because she is a woman.  Or from an immigrant family.

I could care less what color our political leaders are, or where they were born, or whether they cry at sad movies.

I just want people who understand the realities of economics, love the USA, and are LEADERS.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Said the fight to make ends meet
Keeps a man upon his feet
Holding down his job
Trying to show he can’t be bought

Ooh, it takes every kind of people
To make what life’s about, yeah
Every kind of people
To make the world go ’round

Every Kind of People – Robert Palmer

Still Bush-Bashing After All These Years

Posted on by Standard 1

This week as Hurricane Isaac zeroed in on New Orleans, Democrat pundits were quick to remind us of the “George Bush” hurricane, Katrina.

To this day Bush faces the wrath of the Left, who still believe that he intentionally ignored the pleas of stranded, suffering, and dying Delta residents during that horrible part-natural and part-man-made disaster, and insist that his alleged failures were due to racism.

In his autobiography “Decision Points”, Bush explains “the rest of the story” – the part that even his supporters never explained, and which is still ignored by the media.

He admits that he didn’t manage the PR aspects of Katrina well, and he should have landed his helicopter instead of flying over during the first few days. He did not want to hamper the rescue effort with the complications required by his security people.

From a policy standpoint, in the early going he deferred to state and local administrators, standing ready, waiting for their request for help, as is the protocol.

As Katrina escalated into a real disaster, Bush was reminded that he could not mobilize the National Guard without the express request and permission of Louisiana governor Kathleen Blanco.  Bush reached out to the governor, and she assured him she did not need or want any help from him, thank you very much.

His early contacts with New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin were also rebuffed.   “We have this under control,” said Nagin.  Nothing could have been further from the truth, as buses that could have been used for evacuation were moved to safe storage, and police officers were seen carrying TV sets out of storefronts.  But the mayor and the governor, both Democrats, did not want to appear unprepared and needing help from a Republican president.

President Bush became increasingly alarmed, and forcefully urged the governor to allow him to send in troops.  By then Mayor Nagin was ready for help, but the governor held firm.

“That left me in a tough position,” Bush wrote in his memoir.  “If I invoked the Insurrection Act against her wishes, the world would see a male Republican president usurping the authority of a female Democratic governor by declaring an insurrection in a largely African American city. That would arouse controversy anywhere. To do so in the Deep South, where there had been centuries of states’ rights tensions, could unleash holy hell.”

Realizing that Governor Blanco was paralyzed and incapable of making a responsible decision, he finally did send in troops without her permission.  A massive Federal rescue effort hit the Delta region, but for many Katrina victims, and for President Bush’s reputation, it was too late.

President Bush still agonizes over the loss of life to Katrina, and takes deep offense to the charge of racism.  He should not have to suffer more undeserved criticism from the Monday morning quarterbacks of the Left.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

But I would not be convicted
By a jury of my peers
Still crazy after all these years

Paul Simon – Still Crazy After All These Years

Isn’t It Ironic?

Posted on by Standard 2

Today’s little list of ironies:

  • Union leaders claim to represent the best interests of their workers – which would be “get us more jobs”.  So why do the unions oppose energy development and infrastructure in our country that would spur the economy, enhance our security by providing energy independence, rebuild our manufacturing base, and create thousands (maybe millions) of jobs?
  • Conservatives love the NRA (National Rifle Association) because of its defense of the second amendment.  But the NRA helped Harry Reid win a very narrow re-election over a true conservative opponent.  Reid, the Democrat Senate leader, is the single biggest obstacle to everything the conservatives believe in and has caused untold damage to the nation in recent years!
  • President Obama promised the most transparent administration in history.  Yet his own social security number does not pass E-Verify (which US businesses are required by federal regulation to file for every new hire), his college records are sealed, and he won’t instruct his Dept. of Justice to release records about the Fast and Furious scandal after years of direct demands by Congressional investigators!

Isn’t it ironic?  Or, as the social media set says: “WTF?”

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Enjoy a classic tune by one of America’s
finest songwriters, Alanis Morissette

And isn’t it ironic
Don’t you think?
A little too ironic
Yeah, I really do think

Ironic – Alanis Morissette

Montanans Don’t Care About Their Kids

Posted on by Standard 3

What do you want your child to be able to do when he or she becomes an adult?

Let me guess:  How about “make a good living, have a nice home, raise a family?”  Perhaps “have a comfortable lifestyle without being burdened with debt and insecurity?”  Maybe “save some money for a comfortable retirement?”

You may have other, more fuzzy aspirations for your child, such as “happiness” or “love” or “fulfillment”.  But I’ll bet the items I mentioned above are at the top of your list.

Then why have you and I and every Montana parent not DEMANDED that our schools teach our children about money?

Except those who are on welfare, or are retired, or are so disabled that they are excluded from work, every American wakes up each morning and sets out to improve his or her family’s standard of living.  It’s the essence of life.  We have wants and needs, and we strive to fulfill them within the economic system in which we live.  One would think that our education system would be geared toward that top priority of life, and our children would leave school with a fundamental working knowledge of the role of money, finance, and economics in our free-market democratic republic.

But no.  Our state requires high school students to learn mathematics, language skills, social studies, science, health, art, world languages, and vocational/technical studies.  An extensive array of fine arts is recommended.  But my search of the Montana Office of Public Instruction website did not find the word “economics” mentioned EVEN ONCE.

The OPI website includes numerous articles trumpeting the importance of Indian studies, but none about how to make our Native American students financially successful and independent.

Can you name one human activity that does not involve money?

Can you guess how many high school athletes become professional athletes?  Basketball: .03% .   Football: .09%.   We know how much attention and money is paid to those pursuits.

But how many high school students will need to earn a paycheck or make a profit, file a tax return, handle financial transactions with confidence, understand how their government handles their money, buy insurance, manage a family budget, make intelligent borrowing, saving, and investing decisions?  100%.

(By the way, most professional athletes are bankrupt within a few years of the end of their playing careers, because they weren’t taught economics in school either.)

Some Montana schools offer consumer economics classes or a make a minimal attempt at teaching economics within other courses.  But I’ll bet the participation rate is miniscule where offered.

The biggest failure in our education system is the refusal to provide our children the financial literacy they need to thrive and survive.  As we continue to matriculate generation after generation of walking economic victims, our nation flounders in debt, our dependency on government explodes, and we elect whichever pandering politician promises to give us the most free “stuff”.

One can only conclude that Montana parents either haven’t seriously thought about the importance of economics, or they think their kids are destined to become professional athletes.  Either way, the kids are screwed.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

We don’t need no education
We don’t need no thought control
No dark sarcasm in the classroom
Teachers leave those kids alone

Another Brick In the Wall – Pink Floyd

Fast and Fretless

Posted on by Standard Reply

EDITOR’S NOTE – As a guitar nut, I just couldn’t resist sharing this hilarious sendup of the Dept. of Justice “Fast and Furious” scandal.   This was written by David Burge in his terrific blog “Iowa Hawk”.  Enjoy! – Tom

NEW SCANDAL AT DOJ AS ILLEGAL GUITARS END UP IN HANDS OF MEXICAN DRUG LORDS

WASHINGTON – Today’s uncovering of secret multi-agency program for shipping illegal Gibson guitars to Mexican drug cartels left red-faced officials of the U.S. Department of Justice scrambling for an explanation amid angry calls for a Congressional investigation.

“I have ordered all agency personnel to fully cooperate in any Congressional inquiries, including all reasonable document request, as soon as we can redact them with Sharpie pens and lighter fluid,” said U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder.

The secret program came to light early this morning in the border town of Nogales, Arizona, after what was described as a wild battle of the bands between members of the Sinaloa cartel and Los Zetas, two of Mexico’s most notorious violent drug gangs.

“Usually these guys are armed with Mexican Strats and Squires, Epiphones, small caliber stuff like that,” said Pedro Ochoa, 36, an eye witness to the sonic melee. “This time they were packing the heavy firepower.”

The steady barrage of power chords and piercing solo attacks attracted the attention of nearby U.S. Border Patrol agents, who arrived at the scene just as Los Zetas broke into Led Zeppelin’s ‘Immigrant Song.’ By the time the dust had cleared, U.S. Border Patrol Agent Oscar Jimenez was found in a catatonic state of headbanging. He was later flown to University of Arizona Hospitals, where his condition is listed as seriously rawked.

The spandex-clad suspects were able to flee back into Mexico, but not before abandoning their arsenal of axes – the quality of which shocked Border Patrol agents.

“I’ve been working the border for over 25 years and have never seen a weapons cachet like this,” said Patrol Supervisor Mike Foreman. “A ’53 Goldtop, a ’59 Black Beauty, Flying V’s, a whole armory of SGs. Enough for an entire guitarmy. It’s a wonder there weren’t any total shreddings.”

Suspicions that the U.S. Department of Justice was involved in the case first arose after agents noticed “Property of the U.S. Department of Justice” embossed on the back of each guitar. A trace of the serial numbers confirmed that they were confiscated only days earlier by DoJ agents from the Gibson Guitar Company in Memphis.

Responding to a Freedom of Information Act request, Justice Department officials admitted that the guitars were part of a complicated sting program know as “Operation Fast and Fretless,” ostensibly designed to stem traffic of illegal guitars and amplifiers between the U.S. and Mexico. The multi-agency program – involving Justice, ICE, TSA, EPA, IRS, FDA, Fish & Wildlife, USDA, and the Bureau of Whiskey, Groupies & Hotel Rooms – reportedly encourage border area pawn shops to sell the guitars to known drug kingpins.

Justice spokesman Gary Evans said the Nogales incident yesterday showed the program was a success. “By putting American guitars in the hands of Mexican gangs, I think we’ve proven what we’ve warned all along – that Mexican gangs have access to American guitars. Hopefully this will lead to sane and sensible guitar controls.”

Despite the defense of the program, Darrel Issa (R-CA), Chairman of the U.S. House Committee on Heavy Metal Affairs is expected to call hearings soon.

“We need to get to the bottom of this thing before it gets out of hand,” said Issa. “We have reports that Justice is also providing Colombian cocaine gangs with AutoTune.”

Romney: Why Are We the Fed’s BITCH?

Posted on by Standard 1

Those of you who have followed Rockin’ On the Right Side (thank you!) through its infancy know that my main concern is our nation’s fiscal viability.   No, make that fiscal survival.

And you know that Mitt Romney was not my favorite presidential candidate.  In fact, I was solidly in the Cain camp in the early going, as he led the charge against corruption and the crazy growth in our bloated federal government.   9-9-9!   Sadly, Cain was taken out by a dirty Chicago-style maneuver, one of many ugly tricks I have watched in horror in my virgin year of full-contact politics.

So when Romney filtered through as the last Republican standing, I, like many of my brethren, fell in line, knowing that anybody — Elmer Fudd, Curly of the Three Stooges, Rodney Dangerfield – ANYBODY would handle our national piggy-bank better than Barack Obama.

Last time around, we conservatives held our noses and voted for John McCain.  I hoped that Romney would not be as oderiferous.

And then, last week, Romney picked Ryan.  That told me he is serious about tackling THE BIG PROBLEM: the debt, deficit, and economy.

And now, Romney says “Heck yes, let’s audit the Fed.”  WOO HOO!  He really does get it!

I know, my man Cain didn’t think a Fed audit was necessary.  And Ron Paul – bless his heart, he is so right on so many issues – was just not viable as a world leader.  But he was SO right about auditing the Fed.  The damage done by the Federal Reserve from 2008 through today will be required reading for economics and history students for generations to come.

Let’s not stop at an audit.  Let’s figure out who these guys are, who they work for, who profits from their actions, what possible benefit can come from holding interest rates to zero, how watering down the value of the US dollar by printing fiat currency is a good thing, and . . . why the entire free world is their BITCH!

Mitt Romney – Paul Ryan.  There may be hope for this nation after all.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Sometimes you just gotta ROCK!

Bitch – the Rolling Stones

What Happened to Jon Tester?

Posted on by Standard 4

This is a subject that saddens me.

Our American political system has deteriorated into such a polarized, intransigent mess that the only way legislation can be passed is when one party holds the house, the senate, and the presidency.

Now, I’m not saying that every issue should be negotiated, and the parties should always meet in the middle.  In any debate, one side usually is right, and the other is wrong.  If there is gray area the question at hand may be too broad, and should be refined until there is an obvious correct answer, or at least one that a thoughtful, bipartisan majority can agree upon.

In the US Capitol today independent thought, or at least the expression of it, is frowned upon – especially in the Democrat party, as evidenced by their fairly consistent party-line votes for the last many years, and the robotic talking points they recite.

It’s all about the money.  Congressmen are no longer citizen legislators.  Because of the enormous cost of getting elected, candidates must sell their souls to their parties and to their financial backers to even enter a race.  Once elected, they are part of the big money machine.  The federal government has become so huge (and in some cases corrupt) that top-down control is rigidly enforced.  A rebel in the ranks must be quickly brought into line or summarily dispatched.

Even if a legislator starts out well-intentioned, he or she soon finds out that failure to follow instructions is fatal; conversely, going with the party flow can be very rewarding for both careers and pocketbooks.  Isn’t it amazing how legislators become wealthy “one-percenters” so quickly on a civil servant’s salary?  And, once elected, staying in office is pretty easy with access to the big money and the political machine.

A case in point – I was one of Jon Tester’s high school teachers, and he impressed me.  I found him to be an outstanding young man in every way – honest, motivated, sincere, intelligent.  I expected great things from him.  On my return home to Montana after 25 years away, I was not surprised to learn that that he was a state legislator.  A Democrat?  Well, that was something of a surprise.

Senator Jon Tester – (D-Montana)

When he was elected to the US Senate, I really hoped that he would remain the straight-shooting small-town guy I knew from school.  But predictably, it was not to be.

Looking at his voting record, I know that Jon is forced by his party to support many positions that are against the best interests of his fellow Montanans.  If there were no parties, no personal financial interests, no rigid political hierarchies to maintain, I’m sure that Jon would vote quite differently – based on who he was, where he was raised, the values he grew up with, and the needs and wishes of his friends and neighbors.   Instead, he must cater to the government employee unions, the radical environmentalists, and the other special-interest supporters of his party.

So we can no longer vote for a Democrat for Congress based on his or her merits and expressed viewpoints.  We know that his or her personal convictions won’t matter.  Independent Republicans have become an endangered species.  Independent Democrats are now extinct.

I would love to support the guy Jon Tester was.  But because he is now in lock-step with the Democrat party leaders whose actions I can’t condone, I can’t support the senator he has become.  A vote for Jon is a vote for Obamacare, for Harry Reid’s refusal to present passed House bills to the floor or to write a budget, and for bigger government and more debt.  I’m not sure Jon supports any of that stuff in his heart.  But his future votes have already been bought and paid for.

And that’s sad.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

I’m looking through you, where did you go?
I thought I knew you, what did I know?
You don’t look different, but you have changed
I’m looking through you, you’re not the same

I’m Looking Through You – the Beatles

Montana Charity vs. Share The Wealth

Posted on by Standard 2

There was a time when we Americans watched out for each other.  If someone needed help, his friends, family, and neighbors would jump in to do what was needed.  As a teenager, my small-town dad taught me to always offer help.   Flat tire?  Hey, let me help you with that jack.  Dead battery?  We can give you a jump.   Cows got out of the fence?  Let’s help you get them back in.  House burned down?  The whole town will pitch in to help you get back on your feet.  It’s the Montana way.  And you never know when you might be the one who needs help.

But voluntary charity wasn’t good enough for the “progressives” among us.  They have never trusted their neighbors to help.  Maybe it’s because they never felt compelled to offer help to others.  So the expectation in recent years is to have government answer every need.

There’s a big difference.  An important difference.

You see, the good Lord knew what he was doing when he created the human psyche.  Voluntarily helping somebody else feels good.  You know it’s true – it really is better to give than to receive.

But when someone takes something from you – something you worked for – and gives it to somebody else whether you like it or not –  well . . . it just doesn’t feel so good, does it?

Volunteers load hay for Montana neighbors – photo by Don Danell

There was a big fire near Roundup, Montana a few weeks ago.  Thousands of acres of timber and agricultural land were destroyed, along with dozens of homes.  A small group of nearby ranchers realized that their fellow cattlemen were going to have a problem feeding their stock.  They weren’t asked to help.  And they didn’t wait for the government to do a series of studies about what was needed.  They took action on their own.

In short order, 18 fire-stricken ranchers from the Roundup area received truckloads of hay, courtesy of their concerned neighbors – even the delivery and fuel was donated.

This is how charity used to work.  This is how it SHOULD work.

Can you imagine how much it would have cost and how long it would have taken for our government bureaucracy to get hay to these ranchers in need?

Yes, it does take a village to raise a child and to help those in need.  It takes neighbors, family, and friends.  And it works a lot better without forced charity – and the complication and inefficiency of government.

 

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side
thanks to Deb Hill

Enjoy this all-time classic by James Taylor

If the sky above you
Should turn dark and full of clouds
And that old north wind should begin to blow
Keep your head together
And call my name out loud
Soon I’ll be knocking upon your door

You’ve Got A Friend – James Taylor (Carole King)

60s and 70s Protest Music – It’s Relevant Today

Posted on by Standard 1

Country Joe McDonald at Woodstock

Ah, the great music of our youth – all those protest songs extolling the virtues of Freedom, and railing against government corruption.  Songs about how a person shouldn’t be judged or given favors because of the color of his skin.

It was a time when the Leftist youth of our nation took us all by the sleeve and cried out for peace, and justice under the law, and tolerance for others who might have a different point of view.  “Let us run the world!” they sang.  “We’ll make it all better!”

And now, the Leftists are in power.  They got their wish.  They do rule the world.

Funny thing is, I listen to those lyrics and they still ring true today – only the players have changed.  Our government is more corrupt than ever, picking winners and losers based on contributions and voting blocs.  Our laws are a shambles as our administration chooses which ones to enforce and which to ignore.  Racial and social divides continue to widen as self-serving politicians separate us into groups to pit against each other.

Now it’s the aging Tea Party people who cry out for Freedom from a government that has turned its back on the Constitution.  It’s the grandparents who fear that government corruption will destroy their life savings and the economic futures of their grandkids.

I can’t make the case any better than Pete Townshend did in 1971 (below).

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

There’s nothing in the street
Looks any different to me
And the slogans are replaced, by-the-bye
And the parting on the left
Is now the parting on the right
And the beards have all grown longer overnight

I’ll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around me
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
Then I’ll get on my knees and pray
We don’t get fooled again

We Won’t Get Fooled Again – the Who