It’s Only Words

Posted on March 27, 2013 by Tom Balek 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):

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

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 March 19, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard 1

obama_change_01 I 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

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 February 24, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard 9

As 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

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

You’re A Rich Girl

Posted on February 17, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard 2

With so much recent talk about the rich, the poor, and fairness, maybe we should take a deeper look at wealth in America.

US_real_median_household_income_1967_-_2011 Real median household income in the US is about $50,000 per year. This includes wages, business income, and most forms of government assistance. Household income is roughly the same as it was in 1989, adjusted for inflation, after declining about 8 percent since President Obama took office.

There are many ways to categorize people by income. Location is one – Maryland residents top the list in per family income, largely because of the number of federal employees who work nearby in the nation’s capital. Montana ranks 44th.

One’s race, unfortunately, still affects income, with Asians doing the best and blacks worst. Education is also a factor, and the earnings curve between high-school dropouts and those with advanced college degrees is steep.

Statistics like these might suggest that we are doomed by our birth demographics. Not so. Consider that one of the biggest factors in one’s earning power is age. Younger people earn less – it’s just a fact of life. Younger people have less education. The average age of minorities is disproportionately younger. Age affects all the other classifications.

A recent shift in earnings and wealth is troubling – while the overall real median household income is somewhat stable, the income of workers has declined steadily as the income of those on government payments has increased. Some of this is the result of the graying of America, but government assistance programs have expanded significantly.

Still, whether an American household (the term ‘family’ has become obsolete with the demise of the institution of marriage) receives its income by redistribution from workers or directly from work, we live relatively well compared to the rest of the world. Comparison of real income is difficult because of currency exchange and other factors, and there are many ways to measure wealth. Only ten nations exceed our GDP per capita. While it is often said that most of the world’s citizens live on less than $2 per day, per capita GDP statistics indicates otherwise.

Our poorest citizens live like kings compared to the average Indian or African. We should ask why. What do we have that these other nations don’t? Many of them have tremendous natural resources – that’s not it. I will not accept that people from other parts of the world are just born inferior to Americans.

The answer, to me, is obvious. Our nation was built on the principles of free enterprise, unlimited opportunity, and limited government. We overlook this fact at our peril, and unless we restore the culture of productivity our grandparents championed, our grandchildren will pay a dear price.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

You’re a rich girl,
And you’ve gone too far
‘Cause you know it don’t matter anyway
You can rely on the old man’s money
You can rely on the old man honey

Rich Girl – Hall and Oates

Oath Keepers Defend the Second Amendment

Posted on January 29, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard 2

Obama Meets With Law Enforcement Officials

photo by CNN

As President Obama stokes the fires of gun control in our nation’s capital, some law enforcement officers are beginning to push back.

Obama recently initiated 23 executive orders related to gun violence, and is pressing Congress to take additional action, much of which is viewed by gun advocates as a threat to the second amendment of the Constitution.

Seeking to build support for his gun control mission, this week Obama gathered police chiefs and sheriffs from across the nation to Washington, DC for discussion, and (primarily) a campaign-style photo opportunity. Many big-city police chiefs support Obama’s gun control measures, while the sheriffs are generally supporters of the second amendment.

Skeptics question whether the police chiefs back Obama because they believe in the effectiveness of taking weapons from citizens, or because he has promised to increase federal spending on local police departments, a move that delights the public-sector unions who were instrumental in his election.

In Montana, a number of local sheriffs have come out with public statements pledging their support for the Constitution. Sheriff Scott Howard of Powell County said he would not enforce any “unconstitutional gun regulations.”

Most vocal among them was Cascade County Sheriff Bob Edwards. In a Great Falls Tribune interview, Edwards said, “Everyone wants to wipe out guns. I’m pro-Second Amendment, and I believe the laws we have in place should curb a lot of this, but there have to be people that enforce them. A lot of the laws are not being enforced.”

Many pro-Constitution law enforcement officials are members of the Oath Keepers, a growing organization made up of currently-serving military, veterans, peace officers, and firefighters who are sworn to protect the Constitution against all threats “foreign and domestic”. Their mission is summed up on their website:

Our oath is to the Constitution, not to the politicians, and we will not obey unconstitutional (and thus illegal) and immoral orders, such as orders to disarm the American people or to place them under martial law and deprive them of their ancient right to jury trial.

We Oath Keepers have drawn a line in the sand. We will not “just follow orders.”

Our motto is “Not on our watch!”

One of the Oath Keepers, a New Jersey police officer, calls on his fellow law enforcement officers to refuse any order to confiscate guns from law-abiding citizens.

It is reassuring to know that there are government and law-enforcement officials who recognize and will preserve the rights of US citizens, especially at a time when our most powerful national leaders usurp authority at a pace never seen before in our nation’s history.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

I’m robbin’ people with a six-gun
I fought the law and the law won
I fought the law and the law won

I Fought the Law and the Law Won
– Bobby Fuller Four

Here’s a great video of an original American rocker – Bobby Fuller. Bobby died young under very mysterious circumstances – was it suicide? Was it a mob hit? If interested, read the story here. And do watch the cool 2-minute video:

Here’s the video story of the Bobby Fuller mystery:

Cowboys and Cowgirls Needed – Apply Now

Posted on January 6, 2013 by Tom Balek Standard 1

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

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

Where Have All the Cowboys Gone – Paula Cole

Don’t Cry for Argentina, Cry for Us

Posted on December 26, 2012 by Tom Balek Standard 4

All of this talk about “the fiscal cliff” sounds so sudden, so personal. Like something that happens to you, and me, as individuals. We fall off the cliff, like Wiley Coyote, and it hurts for a minute. Then we are right back chasing the Road Runner.

The dirty little secret is we have screwed things up so badly for the next generation – maybe several generations – that it is beyond the point of repair.

Economics is not a mystery. There is a ton of historical evidence about what happens when you try to goose the economy and stave off debt by printing fiat money – it’s called inflation. Argentina wrote the book on how to create rampant inflation.

In the 1980s the inflation rate in Argentina ran in the triple digits. When it hit 12,000% in 1989, suddenly everybody was broke – even those who worked hard, saved money, and played by the rules. You have money? Big deal! It doesn’t buy anything! All of the predictable ugly behavior occurred – stores were looted, violent protests erupted, and politics devolved into a cesspool of corruption.

Argentina_158624432_620x350 In 2001 the IMF bailed out Argentina, preventing bloody revolution. In exchange, there were strings attached: you will manage your economy conservatively, and you will hold inflation to sane levels. Twelve years later, Argentina is on the verge of being tossed out of the IMF, and perhaps the G20 for failing both dictums. Stores are again being looted. Argentine president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner is accused of “cooking the books” by reporting much lower inflation rates than actual. While government reports claim inflation rates of 8% to 10%, life on the street shows a rate closer to 25%, and accelerating.

Sound familiar?

Our Federal Reserve, in cahoots with our administration, is pretending that we have no inflation in the US. By holding interest rates to near-zero, they “think” they are stimulating the economy and tempering unemployment. But it’s not working. Banks, because of the risk of a rapid increase in interest rates down the road, aren’t loaning money to businesses. Consumers who rely on interest from savings have puckered up. And investors seeking decent returns gobble up riskier investments, building dangerous bubbles just waiting to pop.

Our government is trying the old “cook the books” strategy too. While our administration claims success at creating jobs, our rate of labor force participation declines, and “real unemployment” takes a toll on American workers. Last week 20,000 applicants scrambled after 1,500 available flight attendant jobs at bankrupt American Airlines, who cut 2,200 higher-cost employees in a contract buyout. And another 90,000 Americans chose permanent disability over the fight for jobs in December – breaking another record and holding unemployment rates conveniently and artificially low.

We are told that there is no inflation in the US. But anyone who has been to a grocery store, a gas station, or any other destination not frequented by beltway-insiders knows better. I freaked when I recently saw plain old hamburger at $6 a pound at a discount supermarket.

In 2001, Pat Buchanan wrote a blistering and revealing article about the debacle in Argentina.

It is a catastrophe for South America’s second economy and nation. Four years deep in recession, with unemployment at 18 percent, tax revenues vanishing and credit rating ruined, Argentina will now resort to the printing press. Fiat money – a “third currency,” the “argentino” – will be introduced in January.

“Printing money to satisfy the popular desire for spending unmatched by taxation is a recipe for chaos,” warns the Financial Times. “The new currency would then swiftly disappear into the hyper-inflationary flames.” Rely upon it. For the Peronists are less concerned with chaos than victory in the March elections.

For this disaster, Argentinians are, themselves, to blame. They have repeatedly elected demagogues and wastrels who misruled and looted their nation.

His scary prediction came true then for Argentina. We’re next.

Who will write our epitaph? And will our children and grandchildren forgive us?

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Have I said to much?
There’s nothing more I can think of to say to you
But all you have to do
Is look at me to know
That every word is true

Don’t Cry For Me, Argentina (Evita) – Madonna

Shrinkage: Our Embarrassingly Tiny Attention Span

Posted on December 10, 2012 by Tom Balek Standard 4

Have you heard anything lately about the September 11 debacle in Benghazi? Me either.

In the weeks before the election, Obama and Clinton told us repeatedly that they would have to complete an investigation before they could explain why they lied repeatedly about the attack and the American deaths. benghazi_attack_us_politics_2012_09_12

Did they ever complete the investigation? Is there an investigation? Would they reveal what was learned if there actually was an investigation?

Maybe citizens think that Obama won, so there’s no point investigating any further, or even discussing what has been uncovered. Congressmen Issa and Chaffetz appeared to be very interested in getting to the bottom of the disaster. What happened?

Certainly the mainstream media will not besmirch their anointed ones. In the absence of any news, we Americans will either assume the matter has been satisfactorily resolved, or will forget it ever happened, our tiny attention spans distracted by the latest “crisis dujour”. The story would be buried forever but for reporting by bulldog conservative blogs such as Brietbart.com.

Here is a great synopsis and reminder of the severity and importance of the Benghazi story, and the cold-blooded complicity of our administration:

Let’s not let this important story, or the memory of Christopher Stevens, Sean Smith, Glen Doherty, and Tyrone Woods, fall victim to attention span shrinkage.

Thanks to EG Pettis

Tom Balek – Rockin On the Right Side

Ba de ya, say do you remember
Ba de ya, dancing in September
Ba de ya, never was a cloudy day

September – Earth Wind and Fire

American Patriotism – born 7/4/1776, died 11/6/2012

Posted on December 5, 2012 by Tom Balek Standard 3

graveyard American Patriotism died on November 6, 2012, after a long battle with complications of liberalism.

Born in 1776, in the thirteen colonies of the United States of America, Patriotism was a major contributor to the rapid growth and success of the nation. Because of Patriotism, citizens sacrificed for their country, and took great pride in their joint accomplishments. The United States became a beacon for democracy, personal freedom, and opportunity and led the world in economic and technological advances. Over the course of his life, American Patriotism caused millions of proud US men and women to join the fight to save other nations from tyranny.

In Patriotism’s declining years, the concept of “fairness”, where all citizens shared in the work and cost of running a nation, as well as the rewards, was replaced by a culture in which a shrinking group of workers was expected to take full responsibility for the welfare of everyone else.

On December 5, Detroit city councilwoman and former mayor JoAnn Watson presented the eulogy at Patriotism’s funeral. She spoke eloquently on behalf of the liberals of the United States, extolling their leader, President Obama, to take money from those who have earned it, and give it to those who have not, merely because they voted for him.

“Our people in an overwhelming way supported the re-election of this president and there ought to be a quid pro quo and you ought to exercise leadership on that . . . After the election of Jimmy Carter, the honorable Coleman Alexander Young, he went to Washington, D.C. He came home with some bacon,” said Watson. “That’s what you do.”

Patriotism is survived by Shameless Greed, Selfish Laziness, and Blissful Ignorance. He was preceded in death by Personal Dignity, Christian Values and Responsible Media.

The monument reads,

American Patriotism
1776 – 2012
“Ask Not What Your Country Can Do For You
Ask What You Can Do For Your Country” – JFK

Aside from a group of veterans, the funeral was sparsely attended, and prayer was not allowed.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Rockin' On the Right Side
“Kathy, I’m lost,” I said, though I knew she was sleeping
I’m empty and aching and I don’t know why
Counting the cars on the New Jersey Turnpike
They’ve all gone to look for America

America – Simon and Garfunkle

Canada and Mexico: Hey, Remember Us?

Posted on December 2, 2012 by Tom Balek Standard Reply

north-america-map Here is today’s current events quiz:

Who is the political leader of the largest exporter of oil to the United States?

Who is the political leader of the second largest exporter of oil to the United States?

Which nations are the top two importers of U.S. goods?

Answers:

Yesterday Enrique Pena Nieto was inaugurated as president of Mexico. He promises to create jobs and fight poverty in a nation that suffered 60,000 violent deaths and crushing corruption during the six year term of his predecessor, Felipe Calderon. Some say he is just another insider and not much will change. Have you heard anything about our southern neighbor in our mainstream media or from any of our own political leaders?

Stephen Harper was elected prime minister of Canada in 2006 and is now serving his second term. An advocate of individual freedoms and government accountability, Harper’s administration enjoyed considerable fiscal success early in his presidency, but lately Canada has been held back by the slowdown in the U.S. and world economies. How many times has President Obama met with the leader of our northern neighbor and largest import customer? I can’t find reference to more than one meeting between the two.

See numbers one and two above.

Few Americans know the answers to these questions because WE GET NO REAL NEWS. And because WE HAVE NO REAL POLITICAL LEADERSHIP.

I am embarrassed every time I visit Canada and find that my friends from the Great White North know infinitely more about what’s going on in our country than we do about theirs. Actually, they seem to know more about our government and events than most Americans do.

Recently a friend from Australia lamented to me that he and his wife drove around the United States for ten weeks this summer and never heard a single word about his home country in the news.

If this is how we treat our best friends, is it any wonder we have so few of them? And that those we have are lukewarm, at best?

Earlier this week I railed about our critically injured sense of priorities. What should the top priorities of our President be? He seems to spend most of his time campaigning, either for election or in support of his “tax the rich” non-solution to our economic woes. He engages in small social issues that affect very few Americans and don’t address the thundering herd of elephants in the room – unemployment, debt, and runaway government spending. His priorities are climate change, fairness, and social engineering.

A true leader would be learning about, supporting, and working hand-in-hand with our North American friends and neighbors. We should forge a regional alliance to take advantage of our human and natural resources to compete economically with China and Europe. We should stand side-by-side before the world in support of human rights. And for God’s sake, why aren’t we helping Mexico become the thriving democracy it should be – not only for our own economic well-being and security, but because it’s the right thing to do for a neighbor and friend?

I’m afraid our friends have, rightfully, lost confidence in us. It’s time for all Americans to demand that our political leaders reset their priorities.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

As you walk on by, will you call my name?
As you walk on by, will you call my name?
Or will you walk away? Will you walk on by?
Come on – call my name. Will you call my name?

Don’t You Forget About Me – Simple Minds