From the Ashes Comes Clarity.

Where to start, where to start?!

I have 2 blog site "Eric's Mad" and "Eric's Rants" about social issues and politics respectively.  I don't consider myself knowledgeable about politics, but I do have an opinion.  So it would seem odd that I have more content on my Political Blog by far, but I am truly interested how laws enacted impact me. I really care about my race (Human) and believe we are capable of incredible things, but sometimes we just need to get out of our way.

I've been following the Zeitgeist Movement for some time now, and they have an ideology I can really get behind.  But that is something I won't get into or discuss at this time, I'm more concerned in the immediate and present.  However if you are interested in where my head is google it.

So I'm going to hit a lot of topics and my view of the interpretation of the facts in a Rant that only I can bring/make.

Immigration:
Immigrants aren't the problem and they never were, they are actually the solution.  Immigrants aren't just from Mexico and other Hispanic Nations nor are they just from the Middle East.  This country has been driven by immigration since the start.  People come here from all over the world and contribute to its development everyday.  Immigration was a real problem only once in America, I won't give a history lesson, but I will say ask any Native American.

Without immigration this country would be no more then a third world country fighting to survive.  In the early days the immigrant were the ones bring industry to this country.  Immigration brought scientific advances, new ideas and a labor force that built this country.

BrExit or Corporate Globalization:
BrExit was about Corporate Globalization and not immigration policies.  Over the years we have been mislead to think that our jobs were being taken away by immigration, will that just is not true. Over the years through FTA (Free Trade Agreements), corporations have found it more compelling to move jobs to countries where they can get a better price for services and labor.  They move jobs to other countries to pay less and in turn charge us more.

America was once the hub of industry with goods and services sold all over the world.  Well we still sell all over the world, we just don't manufacture here anymore as "Made in China" has become common place in our households.

Bernie Sanders:
Bernie said a lot to appeal to the people and had a lot of policy ideas anyone can get behind, but they were unrealistic.  After 8 years of Congress doing nothing to help the people there is no way in the world they would agree to Bernie's agenda.  The Congress is not interested in free healthcare, free education, a livable wage, equal rights or anything else that does not benefit Corporate America. Our Congress has been bought and sold by Lobbyist along time ago and that's not changing anytime soon.

Bernie's solution was to put things to the people, well isn't that way we elect public officials in the first place so we don't have to spend the rest of our lives reading prepositions and marching for the things we have a Government to do.  If we have to put that much effort why are we electing people in the first place.

The election is rigged and SuperDelegates are unfair.  Well Bernie there was no change in the Democrats election process just because you decided to run.  As far as I know SuperDelegates have been around since the 80's and have worked pretty much the same way.  I still to this day remember a swimming event I had against a white school in Chicago.  One event I had won by only a few seconds so it was pretty close, but they gave the win to the other guy.  I mention this to my coach and she said, "No you didn't win!"  I ask why.  She said, "You weren't out of the water by the time he touched the wall.  Things are always going to be weighed against you, so if you want to declare victory you better damn well make sure no one can contest it."  Bernie you should have known the process before you decided to run, so don't blame other for you lack of commitment.

RNC:
The Republican National Convention just ended last week and I've never been prouder to announce I'm going Independent.  My party has been a huge disappointment to me over the past few DECADES.  I thought I understood and believed in what they stood for or use to stand for.  Well they have moved too far in the wrong direction for me.

Listening to the convention as I have in the past I was looking for hope, but what I found was me hoping for sanity.  I won't mention all the faux pas, I will just say it left with a less hope view of not only the party, but the country.  They painted a picture of this country being out of control, ravaged with violence and on the brink of collapse.  The level of negative speech towards Hillary Clinton was insane.  When it closed I knew this, the World was coming top and end and they didn't like Hillary.  I was no closer to finding out what "Make this Country Great Again" means or how they planned to do it.  In hindsight I'm trying to think of a time when this Country was Great for all.

Hillary Clinton:
She has 2 major issues, the email scandal and lack of trust by the people.

Yes she should have been convicted for the emails.  She is one of the top people in this countries chain of command and no matter how you dice it, that was lapse in judgement.  She got off on a technicality and that is the fact that no one have every been convicted for using their home computer for classified documents.  She still had classified documents on her home computer and it is a Federal Offense.

Her main complaint is that people don't trust her, will if you've watched the news since the invention of the Television you see nothing but reasons not to trust politicians.  The list of Politicians convicted of a crime is too large to fit here so we won't go into that.  Does that make it right, no!

DNC:
The Democratic National Convention is just starting and it already has it's setbacks.  The Wasserman Schultz email scandal....Seems like women in the Democratic party have a real problem with email, and Bernie Supporters protesting.  Can't wait to see what else it has to offer.

I don't really care much about the DWS email issue, so she preferred Hillary over Bernie.  Emails don't vote people do and no one is impartial about anything, everyone has a preference one way or the other.  Bernie lost get over it.

So at an event that should unify a party they are separated.  Bernie people want Bernie for President, I get that, but he lost.  They want Warren on the ticket, ok she wasn't picked.  Move on and either be a Democrat or leave.

Donald Trump:
He doesn't care about anything but Donald Trump.  He has no respect for women, minorities, the working class or anyone else whose name isn't Trump.  They say the appeal is that he's says and feel things we want to hear, so lets look at a few of these things:

1. Mexicans are criminals and rapist
2. Muslims are terrorist
3. Laziness is a trait in blacks
4. Who knows how much the Japs will pay for Manhattan property these days?
5. Build a wall at the border
6. Stop all Muslims from entering America
7. Doesn’t matter what the media write as long as you’ve got a young and beautiful piece of ass
8. He's supported by the KKK and does not think it's a problem
9. He's a war hero because he was captured. I like people that weren't captured
10. If you can’t get rich dealing with politicians, there’s something wrong with you

He has no political experience and no idea about foreign policy.  He doesn't offer many details and when he does they are either frightening or just frightening wrong.  He lies about any and everything. And on the domestic side he has filed Chapter 11 at least 4 times.  Whom do you think these bankruptcies helped, the people working for him or Trump?

Trump did not build a empire from nothing nor did it happen from a small loan.  Trumps father was in the Real Estate business and was very wealthy.  Donald worked for his father and later started his own business with a lot of help from his father in terms of finance, connection and a name.  So imagine you work at your fathers company, you get to learn the business and make connections.  You go off and start your own business, in the industry your father works in with according to him a 1 million dollar loan.  You decide to build X for a company and the company agrees with your father that even if Donald can't build X we will get together and build X.  Sound like a no chance to lose situation to me.

I've known a few really wealthy people in my life and by that I mean had a personal relationship with them and would call them friend.  There was no chance of them ever being poor, but they did receive a yearly stipends from their trust funds and all they had to do was manage other income.  By no stretch of the imagination would they ever be hurting financially, the combined sum of their stipends was a lot more than I will see a year.

How do you define successful?  The fact that he did not blow all the money left to him or his yearly stipend as well as his allowance...not salary, his father gave?

I heard today from a friend in Africa that there are some people in Africa hoping that Trumps wins, so there are Trump supporters in Africa...not exactly.  They think we deserve to be punished.  What does it say when people in other countries think a candidate is punishment.

So what does it say when the people in your party cannot say anything good about you, but instead try to make a case for how horrible your opponent is.  That most of the leaders in your party only support you because you are their candidate, in other words they have no belief in you just you are all we got.  That your party's message is not how or what they are going to do, but how bad they believe your opponent to be.

I heard that Trump offered Kasich was offered the VP position and turned it down when he found out he would be in charge of Foreign and Domestic issues, and when he asked what would Trump be doing the reply was, "Making America Great Again!".  If the VP is handling all the Foreign and Domestic issues what's left?

I don't understand the attraction to Trump, I think it is a worse case scenario.  And I understand the Bernie Supporters that are switching to Trump even less.  Trump incites violence, preaches division and exclusion, makes wild statements that are not true and is only concerned about himself.  I can only think that people behind and backing such a devious candidate are in their own words appealing to their inner racist.

BREXIT: What I know about it.

Ok there has been a lot of talk about something no one understands.  If you listen to the media which has historically steered you in the wrong direction, you have an opinion.  Not a good one, but one based on interest that probably don't represent yours.

Let's start with Globalization and what it means.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary - The development of an increasingly integrated global economy marked especially by free trade, free flow of capital, and the tapping of cheaper foreign labor markets

Cambridge English Dictionary

US:
The development of closer economic, cultural, and political relations among all the countries of the world as a result of travel and communication becoming easy

UK:
The increase of trade around the world, especially by large companies producing and trading goods in many different countries

Oxford English Dictionary - The process by which businesses or other organizations develop international influence or start operating on an international scale

BREXIT was about Globalization and by definition corporations.  Just like America Corporations have found it increasingly easier to conduct business in other countries at an impact to the american economy so have the rest of the world.  So that we are clear what we are talking about here are some examples of not UK, but British companies:

HSBC Holdings plc is a British multinational banking and financial services company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's fourth largest bank by total assets, with total assets of US$2.67 trillion.

BP plc also referred to by its former name, British Petroleum, is one of the world's seven "supermajor" oil and gas companies.

Vodafone Group plc a British multinational telecommunications company, has its headquarters in London and with its registered office in Newbury, Berkshire. Among mobile operator groups globally, Vodafone ranked fifth by revenue and second (behind China Mobile) in the number of connections (435.9 million) as of 2014.

Prudential plc is a British multinational life insurance and financial services company headquartered in London, United Kingdom.  It had a market capitalization of approximately £41,630 million as of 4 February 2015.

Standard Chartered PLC is a British multinational banking and financial services company headquartered in London. It operates a network of more than 1,200 branches and outlets (including subsidiaries, associates and joint ventures) across more than 70 countries and employs around 87,000 people. It is a universal bank with operations in consumer, corporate and institutional banking, and treasury services.

This is who Globalization in the UK is good for just to name a few.  So basically Globalization means that companies can move services once housed in it's own country to other countries.  Services like Support, Customer Service, Manufacturing and much more, because labor or services are cheaper in other countries.

Now lets talk about jobs, this may be educational for some.  When companies compete on the Global Market, it reduces it's operating budget.  Jobs in most cases are moved to 3rd World Countries, so in theory yes, our jobs are being taken by foreigners, but only because those jobs are being moved by the "Global Corporation".  Which means fewer jobs in the companies home country.  So they are not taking our jobs, our jobs are being given away, big difference.

The European Union was initially started after WWII and created trade agreements with other European countries mostly prosperous countries until the fall of the USSR.  So FTA (Free Trade Agreements) are great if you are dealing with your peers, but once you add in 3rd World Countries you find that corporations benefit and not the people.

BREXIT happened to try to prevent that, but that's not what the media will let you believe.  They will show pictures of immigrants lined up to get in Slovakia and say this is why you don't have jobs. There is an increasing amount of immigrants coming into any country and for the most part they work hard to make it in a foreign land.  Most work in job or position that most natives to that country refuse to work in and the few that do get non-menial jobs worked hard to get there.  They fill in position which because they are better trained and better at the job.  No one's taking anyone's job, your job was either given away or you didn't work hard enough to do the job you want.

They say it's a sign that Trump could win the election.  Ha, a country fighting against Corporation is nothing like a positive mark for Trump.  But that is a completely different topic.

So of course no one wanted Britain to leave the European Union, it's all about Corporations and not people.  The UK stood up and basically said they were tires of the country not acting in their interest and they wanted a change.

Just like with all change there is an adjustment period.  Britain is a Global Market and that's not going to change.  They have companies that touch all other countries and that's not going to change.  what does change?  The ability for companies to move resources to other countries, but that's not entirely true.  Because of the size of some of the companies in Britain alone we have to continue to maintain a relationship with the UK, just not as easily was in the past.

They parallel the American situation with that of the UK and it is, but it's not about immigration, it's about Corporations that are out of control.  I just heard that they are talking about trillions of dollars that were lost, funny when I looked at my bank account the balance looked the same to me.  Seems the only loss was the of corporations and not people.  It seems that the impact is that of corporations and not people.  Everything that has been said is about economics and not people.  Economics is about business.

The Media will have you believe that the separation is about immigration, but listen to the language they use and it all points to business and how business will respond to BREXIT.  Will there be an impact on the people of the UK?  Yeah, the privileged will no longer get to work in another country so easily.  The British Pound is down so their vacation is going to cast a little more.  The plus side is soon it will be prime time to visit Europe.

So what's next, possibly the fall of the UK, since the EU is good for Scotland and Ireland, which would break up the UK.  Since the larger global companies are in England it only makes sense.  This too shall pass.

So unless you are making an insane amount of money, own a company or a big stock player the impact to you is minimal.

This is an economic event and impacts business's.  Since England has some of the top business's in the world, the world will find a way to work with them.

Romney said Corporations are people too, but even then they still fall in the 1%.  Democracy is about the people or it's supposed to be at least.  How does the benefit and favor of 1% help the 99%?  Especially when the 1% only interest is the 1%.

The Good, Bad, and Ugly - Or What you Need to Know about Why? In 2016

This has been an incredible year for the Primary Election.  The outcome is something that no one would have ever thought was possible, and we wonder how and why we got here.

It's not rocket science the signs were on the walls for years now.  It started during the Bush years....actually his last term as POTUS (President of the United States), just in case some were wondering what they meant when referring to the current President as POTUS.

So if we look carefully at the Bush years we have 2 wars that were not financed, a shrinking job market, a Bank bailout and an economy that was rapidly spiraling downward.  Couple that with decades of lowered education expectation, an infrastructure crumbling literally beneath our feet, outsourcing of American Jobs and a growing contempt for our country it becomes a little clearer.

While we can unite after 9/11 the separation this country felt after electing it's first black president was shocking.  I remember the thing that were said at my work place at the time when he was elected, some of my dearest friends mentioned murder, kill and other words of contempt it chilled me to my core and this was before he spent his first day in Office.  People I thought I knew and that I trusted turned.  Well they didn't actually turn it was just a new presidency set for who could occupy the White House.  The country was split, fractured beyond belief with no hope and beyond repair.

As we slowly began to repair things, putting people back to work, making sure we had viable industry on American soil, increasing regulations and ensuring that Taxpayer dollars given to companies in a Free Market System were paid back we became even more divided.

How could so much good for the country be so bad?

Simple we have gotten to a point to where Corporate Interest ran the country and anything that was not good for them was bad for the country.  Why do we need more regulations?  Certainly not to make Oil companies responsible, to make working conditions safe, to make sure that Communism only applies when companies become "Too Big to Fail" or to provide the very necessary things that we pay taxes for like drinkable water.  No we do not need regulations for that, because it is not in the best interest of Corporate America.

But this is not about the Obama Presidency, it's about the lesson that we should have learned for his time in office.  First and most important is that the POTUS, Leader of the Free World or whatever title you want to endow on the position is basically pawn in a bigger game.  Of course this is by design, the POTUS can never become a dictator and is held accountable for his actions.  Our Government is designed so that no matter what the President wants to do he is accountable to Congress.  The idea is to make sure that the people have a voice in how this country is run. Democracy at it's best.

When elected officials no longer listen to the people they represent, you no longer have democracy, what you have is a bunch of elected Czar's acting on their own behalf and passing it off as the will of the people.  With unemployment at historical highs, American jobs being shifted to other countries, the decline of the middle class and a non-living minimum wage who can say the most important thing is something other than jobs.

While we are made to believe that Government is too big, we need less regulations, we need to be more involved in foreign activities, women are less then second class citizens, people do not have basic human rights and that somehow one's religious views should dictate how we live our lives as a collective we have forgotten a few things.

First and foremost, the Constitution, the document that all elected officials swore to uphold, but often cite guarantees separation of church and state.  That's the most important point anyone can make now days.  Basically no matter what you believe due to your religious morals and values have no place in Government.

Secondly, the Constitution states that all people in America, not just citizens are protected under the rights it provides.

Thirdly, the Constitution is designed to work for betterment of the people as a collective.

And finally, any elected official can be removed buy Articles of Impeachment.  That is also an important one that is never put in practice unless on a Federal Level and then only with one position in mind.

Our Constitution is a great document and it ensure prosecution from Religious, Racial, Gender and Social differences.

So how did we get here?

Currently, we are at a place where everything seems to be upside down.  at the beginning of the Primary the most likely person to win in my mind would have been Jeb Bush and the least likely person would be Donald Trump, but that's not the case.

Trump is all but assured to win the Republican nomination for President and many are asking how did this happen.  Even I thought he would never really run and was just doing it as some kind of stunt, but boy was I wrong.  When I look back at things I can clearly see how he got here and it makes perfect sense.

After the Bush years, the republicans ran a sensible candidate John McCain.  A war hero, a man with a solid background that was respected and someone that had a real a chance...until he pick a running mate.  How could he think that someone as idiotic as Palin could help his ticket.

The next election introduced the Clown Car to Politics.  They went from an electable candidate with running mate issues to a field of non-electable candidates.  We are not talking a bout bad candidates we are talking boarding insanity on all sides.  Boom, Obama's second term.

This year we have the Clown Car 2.0, with the most unlikely winner.  You want to know why Trump won?  The republicans are tired of their Personal Czar's and want real representation.  They describe insanity as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result and Trump was something different.

So we have a divided country and someone to speak about the division.  Someone to appeal to everything that is perceived to be lost.  A political party telling you 30 years ago was great and that rhetoric only speaks to one group of people, as for the rest like I said he is something different. So Republicans are here today.

The Democrats have a legacy to follow behind and not an easy challenge to compete with.  So the choice there is to follow what the vision of his Presidency should have been or being a compromise candidate.

So let's take a look at what a Social Democrat means.  It basically means that while the democratic process should be upheld under our Free Market system there are certain things that should not be run for profit such as education and healthcare.  These items appeal to the younger generation since they are not coming from established wealth and realize that the current model works against them.

While Bernie is saying all the right things and has the right vision for the country it comes down to one simple fact.  Who can do what.

What the Obama Legacy should have taught us is that the President can't much without the consent of Congress and if Congress refuses to work with the POTUS it's a never ending battle.

When considering a candidate forget what is promised, but think about what can be delivered.  For example Bernie is for a single payer health system, while he may accomplish dismantling the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare), he will never see his vision because Congress will never allow it.

On the bright side he will be able to repeal the Affordable Care Act.  Which some may think is a great thing until the Healthcare Industry start handing out crappy policies that cover little to nothing and raising your rates because they can now make you accountable for the uninsured at their price.  Or when your prescription drugs cost more than you make a month.

So on the Democratic side you have a choice of someone that can get some things done and someone who's ideology will be complete ignored by Congress.

So what should have been a simple election between Hillary and Jeb - Since he prefers not to be know as Bush, turned out to be a travesty.  And Why you say.

Simple the only one to blame are the voters.  We no longer vote in our interest or in the reality of what can be accomplished, we vote for issue which should never be on the political agenda. the SCOTUS (Supreme Court of the United States) have already said a woman has the right to do with her body as she pleases and it's the law of the land.  So why are we yielding to Christian Dogma about every sperm being secrete?  The Constitution guarantees civil rights for all so why are we have a biblical discussion of what constitutes a couple or marriage?  We give billions away in corporate welfare each year, but debate giving someone a living wage.

As an agnostic I do not believe these are issues of importance.  I think the only important issue to me is how I can better the quality of my life.

As a Republican I think government remain separate.  The Federal Government should handle nationwide issues and so on.

I often hear it's not the governments responsibility to create jobs, yes and no.  It is not the Governments responsibility to create sustainable jobs, but they do have the duty to create Works Programs to stimulate the economy.  Rebuild our crumbling infrastructure, bridges, roads and other public works programs that employ people for a few years.  Invest in our infrastructure with programs like high speed rail and more energy efficient  systems that not only create jobs during the construction phase, but creates long term jobs.  Every state has infrastructures issues which they have on the hill waiting to be passed....or at least we hope so.  Pass them and put America back to work.

This election is not about the issues, it's about who will do the least damage.  We have come to expect that, because we have been horrible at voting in the past and what we really need is a complete overhaul of our current Government Federal and State, some may say County and City as well.  The amazing thing is we have a process in place and no matter how unfair one thinks the process is, the process is the same for all candidates of a party.  Just because Trump didn't pay attention to the rules doesn't mean they were unfair, but that's a moot point now.

The Real Tea Party - Boy oh Boy was I wrong

Ok, Saw this and couldn't pass it up.  So if you are a republican and voted to open the government and raise the debt ceiling you are going to be kicked out of office on the next election.  The Tea Party is going to run candidates in about 80 something elections designed to defeat the incumbent candidate.

So do you know what this means?  

Do you understand how big this is?

It took time for me to understand myself, but I think I'm good at reading between the lines and all the signs are there.  Of course, I can't prove anything, but if you follow the logic you can't deny it's meaning.

It's sheer genius and I'm happy to be the first person to put it together.

So there is a faction of the Republican Party we refer to as the Tea Party, but that's not the case.  It's a deep, complex and heinous plot by the Tea Party on levels too convoluted for most rational minds to understand, but so simple that no one would have ever thought of it. 

The best way to fool someone is with the plan truth, put it right in front of their face and watch them deny it.  Throw in a little misdirection and watch everything fall into place.

So we have the Tea Party that came in on the Republican Ticket in order to completely disrupt our political system at all cost right? 

No, we have a wave of Democratic Freedom Fighters strategically placed to uphold the Constitution at all cost.  Yes, that's what I said and I shall show you their systematic process to do so.  Just as the Illuminati, Knights Templar and Freemason Societies have all set out to mastermind Worlds Affairs so have The Tea Party, only they are in the public or are they? 

Well I took the time to decipher the name to find out the real name of this secret society of Democratic Freedom Fighters and came up with the following choices for the true name of the party:

The Tea Party can be translated into "A Petty Hater", "A Threat Type" or "They Pet A Rat", the later is probably the most likely name of this society.

Now that we have unveiled the monster let's look at the tools they use to reach world domination a plan so simple how could they lose. 

So after Obama won the election they leaped into action, they had to move fast and place people in key position to get the foot hold they needed.  So with Obama in office they can play on the American fears and racism to unite a base of voters and what better party to do it from within then the Republican Party, yes the GOP was nothing more then a vessel for the movement of World Domination.

Now the first wave was not effective enough, they had to one up crazy to get the job done, and how do you one up crazy in politics?  Move so far to one side that even the most staunchest Republican would have a problem following the party policy.  They you just need to be complete obstructionist, not allow anything to happen and try to repel everything that happened before the party got in office.  Threaten your party member that if they don't vote your way you will have them voted out during their next election.  And while the candidate cannot win against the democratic candidate, regardless to how often the proclaim they aren't witches (Christine O'Donnell), you have effectively removed a Republican candidate from office.

When in the history of society has on faction worked so hard against themselves to ensure that their faction has no say or control in the governing of society.

Hence, Ergo, Q.E.D., Eureka or Ta-Da whichever you decide, yes it was that simple, that easy.

The small faction of influential member of "They Pet A Rat" (T.R.A.P.) infiltrated the Republican with a simple plan to kill the GOP and make this country a one Party Political System killing the idea and thought of Democracy and forever erasing it meaning from history.

See at the end of the day TRAP knows that all the politicians want is money and the will of the people will always take a second seat.  So with control of a single party government they own the world.

As Democrats you should be ashamed at they depths you've allowed things to go to, as a Republican I'm ashamed it took me this long to figure it out.  We are right around the corner from a government controlled World where we as the people have no say so.

Oh and if you have a problem with me using TRAP instead of TPAR write your own blog and you can get as creative as you like....Although TPAR is pretty good.  I could have had a lot of fun with that one.

Starbucks way to go F the NRA

Most people recognize this logo as a symbol of excellence in the hot brewed beverage industry and they are truly a giant in it.  While I'm not a fan of their products I am a huge fan of their policy’s and operating procedures.

Starbucks is described as one of the best companies in America.  While you may not get rich working there they do offer full benefits for part-time employees.

Now who does that?

A company that puts employees first.  A company that cares about their workers, because they understand that the workers are the backbone of their very industry.

I see places that proudly advertise "No shirt, no shoes no Service", as an Afro American I can tell you personally of places that would not serve me or provide lousy service just because of the color of my skin.  The mantra of American's among the group I'm about to direct is "We reserve the right!!!"

Well they have done something outrageous.  They have nerve and audacity to say they don't want patrons in their Coffee Shops with weapons.  What makes them so special that they are not willing to be the scene of the next violent rampage of some psychotic shooter.  Only thing I can think of is that they actually care about not only the Employees, but the Patrons as well.

So when I heard this I was like WOW they are doing it again, taking a stand for something they believe in and I respect.

Who did this upset?

The obvious, the NRA and their supporters.  So I guess the phrase "We reserve the right" means nothing now.

I still haven't figured out the purpose of this organization, I know what people believe and think, but I mean their true purpose.  As far as I can tell they are nothing more than a lobbying agent for the gun makers.  They don't care about you defending yourself, they just want to sell you a gun.

There is a reason that the majority of the banks across the country do not have armed guards any more and it's no accident.  They realized that armed conflicts were more likely to end in the loss of life and no one wants to lose a customer.

The actual number of home owners buying guns have went down, but the number of gun sells have went up.  So that can only mean that there are more and more bad guys with guns.  I guess gun owners got tired of their loved ones dying from accidents in the home.

No matter how many incidents like that of last week happen the NRA is there to tell you gun ownership is right and your mental capacity doesn't matter in their eyes, nor does your violent background or even your ability to see.  See in some states even if you are blind and I'm not talking legally blind you have the right and can own a gun.

I will give the NRA this much credit.  When there a shooing in a school they do not lobby to have the children armed, but that's a technicality.  I'm sure if they could the would lobby to get the age of gun ownership lowered.  On second thought they did try to arm the teachers, "Little Johnny I told you to sit down,  bam bam bam, I bet you listen to me next time!!!"

Gun laws and regulations is not the answer.  They do not work and we see that everyday.  The only Gun Reform that has a chance of working is to get rid of the guns, plane and simple.  Why are we lobbying and protecting a right that as outdated as the theory of the Earth being flat?

To stop gun violence you have to get rid of the guns....all of them.

I guess "We reserve the right" only means something when the people with the reservations aren't the one's being referred to.

I think Starbucks got it right, I can see where they might be in more harm from the beach bum without their shirt on then the guy with the Uzi.  I mean why worry about an automatic weapon when Skeeter doesn't have on a shirt or even worse spreading foot fungus.

Kudos to Starbucks once again, they keep it up like this and I may have to start patronizing them.

The Affordable Healthcare Act AKA Obamacare

Ok we are at this point again where we are inundated with the talks of appealing the Affordable Healthcare Act well known as Obamacare.

As on Jan 2014 everyone has to have healthcare or they can be assess a fee.

Is this a good thing?

Well, yes.  It insures millions of Americans that would normally go without healthcare.  Remember he won his second election by a landslide, which if you followed my blog you would have seen that I predicted that, but I digress.

I can remember a day when I didn't have healthcare, mainly because it was too expensive.  The HMO's had their way, now keep in mind that the HMO's are nothing more then middlemen charging exorbitant fees for services that they in dire cases will not cover.  As a working American without health insurance I could only hope I never needed treatment or a hospital visit which would have left me in ruins.

There is always talk of Health Reform, which is what the Affordable Healthcare Act originally was until he was forced to pass a striped down version.  So what do we get with this new striped down version?

Here's a list:

• Prohibiting health insurers from refusing coverage based on patients' medical histories
• Prohibiting health insurers from charging different rates based on patients' medical histories or gender
• Repeal of insurance companies' exemption from anti-trust laws
• Establishing minimum standards for qualified health benefit plans
• Requiring most employers to provide coverage for their workers or pay a surtax on the workers wage up to 8%
• Restrictions on abortion coverage in any insurance plans for which federal funds are used
• An expansion of Medicaid to include more low-income Americans by increasing Medicaid eligibility limits to 133% of the Federal Poverty Level and by covering adults without dependents as long as either or any segment doesn't fall under the narrow exceptions outlined by various clauses throughout the proposal
• A subsidy to low- and middle-income Americans to help buy insurance
• A central health insurance exchange where the public can compare policies and rates
• Allowing insurors to continue to dictate limits on evaluation and care provided consumers by their physicians ("managed" or "rationed" care)
• Avoidance of capitating or regulating premiums which are routinely and in accordance with this law, charged by an insurance company for coverage, which might make the coverage non-affordable with regard to a consumer's income
• Requiring most Americans to carry or obtain qualifying health insurance coverage or face a fine for non-compliance.
• A 5.4% surtax on individuals whose adjusted gross income exceeds $500,000 ($1 million for married couples filing joint returns)
• A 2.5% excise tax on medical devices
• Reductions in projected spending on Medicare of $400 billion over a ten-year period
• Inclusion of language originally proposed in the Tax Equity for Domestic Partner and Health Plan Beneficiaries Act
• Inclusion of language originally proposed in the Indian Health Care Improvement Act Amendments of 2009.
• Imposing a $2,500 limit on contributions to flexible spending accounts (FSAs), which allow for payment of health costs with pre-tax funds, to pay for a portion of health care reform costs.

Now what is bad about those points?

Forcing the insurers to cover people that pay them.  Stopping the insurers from charging whatever they want for a procedure.  Allowing people to shop around for better rates - I figure women will  love that one.  Requiring most companies to contribute less they they already do for their employees, keep in mind that about 35% to 40% of the companies do not contribute a dime to their employees healthcare.

In most cases the low income people are families are already cover by federally subsidized insurance so it's really geared towards the shrinking middle class, but that will not be a problem soon as the middle class slips into oblivion.

The only real problem with the Affordable Healthcare Act is that as of Jan 2014 it will be in place enough to dispel all the rumours.  Americans love it enough to re-elect the person that is in charge of the most ineffective Congress in our short history as a country.  Something needs to be done soon or no on can say, "The only thing that he pushed for as a President didn't make it!"

Well I'm a Veteran so good luck everyone else.

Cliff Diving: The American Debt Ceiling Debate

Victoria Falls also known as "Mosi oa-Tunya" ("the smoke that thunders") is positioned almost exactly half way along the mighty Zambezi River's 2700 km journey from its source to the sea.

While it is neither the highest nor the widest waterfall in the world, it is claimed to be the largest. This claim is based on a width of 1,708 meters (5,604 ft) and at a height of 108 meters (354 ft), forming the largest sheet of falling water in the world. The falls' maximum flow rate compares well with that of other major waterfalls

For a considerable distance upstream from the falls, the Zambezi flows over a level sheet of basalt, in a shallow valley bounded by low and distant sandstone hills. The river's course is dotted with numerous tree-covered islands, which increase in number as the river approaches the falls. There are no mountains, escarpments, or deep valleys which might be expected to create a waterfall, only flat plateau extending hundreds of kilometers in all directions.

As we head into the New Year we are once again faced with what to do about the money we already spent.  An insane argument if you ask me, but one that keeps our government divided.  Unlike Victoria Falls we do not need to go over this cliff, this is a man made crisis that has a very simple solution and not resolving this has a very big impact.

As we move closer to the date of decision the President has aligned himself with the business community and that makes prefect sense.  See the Business Community will be the hardest hit by this crisis, as the World watch our internal bickering and inability to govern they lose confidence in us as a country.  Just as the Government does, Corporate America does business using debt so all the goods and services used to make a company run are not paid for in cash.  No company is waiting with a stack of dollar bills when they ship goods or order essential office supplies.

Looking at things the first thing that happens is our countries credit rating will probably be lowered again and the impact of that is not just a loss of confidence in America, but American Business's as well.  Without Corporate America able to function on a debit and credit system, because goods and service providers do not have the confidence in them to pay their debt there will be mass lay-offs.  This is nothing unusual for America and the American population, we have been through this before and we will go through this again.  The secret is our last bout with mass unemployment taught the American people how to live on less, especially the shrinking middle-class and lower.  While Corporate America sat on billions of dollars, not hiring and not helping the people suffered, but they managed.

As unemployment increases the need for goods and services used internally by Americans will decrease, kind of a self fulfilling prophecy.  In order for American Business to be strong they need a strong American Economy.  So as bottom lines drop and corporations eat through their reserve capital and possibly go out of business, they will scream.  Yes we want smaller government but you need to help me and my business now.

In the immediate aftermath of this looming disaster decision are easy, we pay our debt on our Treasury Bonds and then we have the hard decision on what to pay next.  What Social programs do we not pay?  Do you tell mothers on Welfare that they have to starve, old people that they can't seek medical attention for what they need or do we tell the person that recently lost their job because of this Cliff Dive that they can't receive benefits to help them through their time of need?  But wait it gets more interesting, lets say we have another disaster similar to Sandy.  What do we do?  Do we allow this community ravished by disaster to tough it out on their own when we have told the senior, recently unemployed and the underemployed hey "It Sucks to be YOU!!!"?

Let's go over the cliff and see who the American people hold responsible.  Personally I think this will be the first time a Democrat has won the White House for 3 consecutive elections.  Talk about a party out of touch with reality even the business community which the GOP claims to be supporting has all but told them this is not good.

So sit back, laugh, enjoy the ride and watch as Hillary Clinton is elected the "First Woman President" in history in 2016.  Remember you heard it hear first, while others say she will run I say she will run and win by a landslide.  What does this mean?  Simply "Goodbye GOP" it was nice, but you wrote your own epitaph when you allowed the Tea Party to dictate your policy.