Thursday, November 25, 2010
Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! Wishing all of you a wonderfully blessed holiday full of fun, food, family, love, and gratitude. Remember, we all have so much to be thankful for. Enjoy your day!
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Just In Time For The Holidays
We've all heard about. Here's my take on what the TSA has in store for the travelling public just in time for the holidays.
I don't fly. I have flown in the past but I don't like it and haven't done it in about 10 years, so the TSA's new security measures aren't going to affect me any time soon. Still, I've been following the controversy and I think the body scans and pat-downs are a bit outrageous.
Yes, I want Americans to be protected from terrorism. As a supporter in limited government I believe that such protection is one of the federal government's few responsibilities, but the TSA's security measures just doesn't past the smell test to me. They're questionable on several levels.
First, the measures are just so intrusive. You have to submit to being virtually stripped by a machine or groped by a stranger in order to get on a plane. And if you refuse you can be fined $11,000! That's the second problem I have with this situation. The TSA is being quite heavy handed and arrogant toward the public. It reminds me of the way anti-Obamacare protestors were held in contempt by elected officials. Once again the government is copping an arrogantly paternalistic we're-going-to-force-you-to-do-what-we-know-is-best attitude. The TSA isn't listening to the people's concerns and that's creating as much anger as the intrusive security measures themselves.
The third problem with the TSA's new policy is that it puts TSA employees in an unfair situation. Imagine it's your job to "protect" the public by looking at the naked bodies of and/or fondling the "junk" of thousands of strangers. Now imagine that a lot of those strangers deeply resent what you're doing. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that TSA employees could come in for some abuse from those strangers. Now, that shouldn't happen. The TSA workers are just doing their job and they shouldn't bear the brunt of the public's ire. Unfortunately, the government has put them in this unenviable position, and it could've been avoided if the feds had some courage. And that brings me to the most offensive problem with these security measures: they're a capitulation to political correctness.
Let's face it. The current admininstration is obsessed with not offending Muslims. So obsessed that it'll design "security" policies for Americans with "sensitivity" to Muslims in mind. Thus, the TSA's new security actions treat all fliers as if they pose an equal threat to America; they don't. Muslims--especially young, Middle Eastern, male, Muslims--are the likeliest perpetrators of terrorism today. But rather than acknowledge that fact the TSA implements anti-terrorism procedures so that Muslims don't feel--gasp!--profiled.
Ah, yes. Profiling! The most heinous act of racial oppression known to man, based on the way liberals react to it. Profiling Muslims is certainly worse than Muslims actually murdering Americans. Even if the profiling is based on behavior and not race, as the Israelis do it, it's still unacceptable to the PC whipped crowd. Why? Most likely because behavior-based profiling would still nab a lot of terrorist wannabes named Ahmed. So, the TSA strains to avoid profiling of any type, and opts instead to subject all American fliers to fondling and/or a virtual strip search. Fondling, strip searches, and privacy violations. All brought to you by your friendly federal government.
Just in time for the holidays.
I don't fly. I have flown in the past but I don't like it and haven't done it in about 10 years, so the TSA's new security measures aren't going to affect me any time soon. Still, I've been following the controversy and I think the body scans and pat-downs are a bit outrageous.
Yes, I want Americans to be protected from terrorism. As a supporter in limited government I believe that such protection is one of the federal government's few responsibilities, but the TSA's security measures just doesn't past the smell test to me. They're questionable on several levels.
First, the measures are just so intrusive. You have to submit to being virtually stripped by a machine or groped by a stranger in order to get on a plane. And if you refuse you can be fined $11,000! That's the second problem I have with this situation. The TSA is being quite heavy handed and arrogant toward the public. It reminds me of the way anti-Obamacare protestors were held in contempt by elected officials. Once again the government is copping an arrogantly paternalistic we're-going-to-force-you-to-do-what-we-know-is-best attitude. The TSA isn't listening to the people's concerns and that's creating as much anger as the intrusive security measures themselves.
The third problem with the TSA's new policy is that it puts TSA employees in an unfair situation. Imagine it's your job to "protect" the public by looking at the naked bodies of and/or fondling the "junk" of thousands of strangers. Now imagine that a lot of those strangers deeply resent what you're doing. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that TSA employees could come in for some abuse from those strangers. Now, that shouldn't happen. The TSA workers are just doing their job and they shouldn't bear the brunt of the public's ire. Unfortunately, the government has put them in this unenviable position, and it could've been avoided if the feds had some courage. And that brings me to the most offensive problem with these security measures: they're a capitulation to political correctness.
Let's face it. The current admininstration is obsessed with not offending Muslims. So obsessed that it'll design "security" policies for Americans with "sensitivity" to Muslims in mind. Thus, the TSA's new security actions treat all fliers as if they pose an equal threat to America; they don't. Muslims--especially young, Middle Eastern, male, Muslims--are the likeliest perpetrators of terrorism today. But rather than acknowledge that fact the TSA implements anti-terrorism procedures so that Muslims don't feel--gasp!--profiled.
Ah, yes. Profiling! The most heinous act of racial oppression known to man, based on the way liberals react to it. Profiling Muslims is certainly worse than Muslims actually murdering Americans. Even if the profiling is based on behavior and not race, as the Israelis do it, it's still unacceptable to the PC whipped crowd. Why? Most likely because behavior-based profiling would still nab a lot of terrorist wannabes named Ahmed. So, the TSA strains to avoid profiling of any type, and opts instead to subject all American fliers to fondling and/or a virtual strip search. Fondling, strip searches, and privacy violations. All brought to you by your friendly federal government.
Just in time for the holidays.
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Happy Veteran's Day. We Remember.
Here's a video for Veteran's Day. This video is 4 years old. I first saw it, if memory serves, on The O'Reilly Factor. It is one of the most moving tributes to our troops I've ever seen. If you don't tear up when you see it you're not human. It's called, "Remember Me". And that's what we should do, remember. And say, thank you. God bless our vets, living and dead, active duty and retired, combat and peace time. God bless them all. We remember.
"Remember Me"
"Remember Me"
Saturday, November 06, 2010
Tuesday, November 02, 2010
Judgement Day
It's finally here! 2010 election day, the day that's been looming in the minds of Americans for a year.
I did my civic duty after work and voted. It was a cold and rainy day today and it would've been much nicer to just go home after work and curl up with a cup of hot chocolate. But I was going to vote, no matter what. And not just because I believe voting is an important duty of citizenship and not just a right. No, I was determined to vote today because I wanted to be part of putting a stop to Obamaism. No matter how liberals will try to spin it, this election is a referendum on Obama's policies. I wanted to go on record with my disgust for the president's socialistic, fiscally irresponsible, and unconstitutional "change". Millions of other Americans did too. Now that we have, the results are coming in.
I've been glued to Fox News for nearly two hours now. I can't believe I'm following election results like a Cowboys game. I've never been this excited about an election, ever. So far, the election is breaking pretty much like all the polls said it would. The Republicans are poised to take over the House and to make gains in, but not win, the Senate. The exciting part, for me at least, is seeing by how much the Republicans are winning, what the unexpected wins and losses are, and how the Dems are spinning it all.
One of the most interesting races to me is the Senate race in West Virginia. The Democrat Joe Manchin defeated Republican John Raese which, at first glance, looks bad for the Republicans. But how Manchin won might make the Dems wish he'd lost. Manchin, a pro-life Democrat, won in West Virginia by running from Obama's policies like a vampire running from sunlight. That all but guarantees that Manchin will vote with Republicans on many issues. That will be a Republican gain by proxy and the Dems will NOT be happy about it. But I say, sweeeeeet!
This has been a great election for America. Even though the Republicans didn't take the Senate I'm going to bed happy. Tomorrow when I awake it'll be morning in America again. Obamaism will be on the ropes and Americanism will be on the rise. That's the kind of change I can believe in. Yes I can!
I did my civic duty after work and voted. It was a cold and rainy day today and it would've been much nicer to just go home after work and curl up with a cup of hot chocolate. But I was going to vote, no matter what. And not just because I believe voting is an important duty of citizenship and not just a right. No, I was determined to vote today because I wanted to be part of putting a stop to Obamaism. No matter how liberals will try to spin it, this election is a referendum on Obama's policies. I wanted to go on record with my disgust for the president's socialistic, fiscally irresponsible, and unconstitutional "change". Millions of other Americans did too. Now that we have, the results are coming in.
I've been glued to Fox News for nearly two hours now. I can't believe I'm following election results like a Cowboys game. I've never been this excited about an election, ever. So far, the election is breaking pretty much like all the polls said it would. The Republicans are poised to take over the House and to make gains in, but not win, the Senate. The exciting part, for me at least, is seeing by how much the Republicans are winning, what the unexpected wins and losses are, and how the Dems are spinning it all.
One of the most interesting races to me is the Senate race in West Virginia. The Democrat Joe Manchin defeated Republican John Raese which, at first glance, looks bad for the Republicans. But how Manchin won might make the Dems wish he'd lost. Manchin, a pro-life Democrat, won in West Virginia by running from Obama's policies like a vampire running from sunlight. That all but guarantees that Manchin will vote with Republicans on many issues. That will be a Republican gain by proxy and the Dems will NOT be happy about it. But I say, sweeeeeet!
This has been a great election for America. Even though the Republicans didn't take the Senate I'm going to bed happy. Tomorrow when I awake it'll be morning in America again. Obamaism will be on the ropes and Americanism will be on the rise. That's the kind of change I can believe in. Yes I can!
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