WFMJ Meets the Declaration of Independence Meets McDonald's Coffee

So it was five in the AM and I was watching the WFMJ Good Morning program today. It came time for the call in game segment of the program…you know…the one where people who don’t know their name call in for a chance to win a prize-pak consisting of a small McDonald’s coffee…and….well…a small McDonald’s coffee. What some people won’t do for a small McDonald’s coffee.

Being the 4th of July and all, WFMJ decided to ask some patriotic questions. This morning’s question was “What is the opening line of the Declaration of Independence?” Some guy called in from who knows where. He spent the weekend doing some four wheeling stuff.  He was given three choices:

1) When in the course of human events it becomes necessary….

2) Give me liberty or give me death.

3) Four score and seven years ago….

After some contemplative thinking, he picked “Four score and seven years ago….” I almost wet my pants. Not only did this guy NOT know the Declaration of Independence, he obviously didn’t know the Gettysburg address either. He must have slept through his history or civic classes, if he had any.

But it's not funny. In fact, it is pitiful. It is absolutely indicative of what is going in America today. I don’t blame this guy one bit. This is what our schools are producing. We had to memorize the Gettysburg Address when I was in 5th grade. We also had to memorize large portions of the Declaration of Independence, and studied the meaning behind these documents. This is America's foundation.

Why am I not surprised? Schools today worry about everything but what they are supposed to…teach the students. In Maryland, the state Board of Education, by decree, stated that all students in Maryland must graduate environmentally literate, whatever that means. Although guidelines have yet to be established, the environmental group charged with promulgating these standards has already said it wall contain knowledge of global warming, the waste of nature’s resources by mankind…you get the picture. It will be a propaganda indoctrination program.

And in the process, because there are only so many school hours in a day and so many school days in a year, other things will have to be shoved out for the left wing educators to mold the minds of our impressionable young people as to the evil ways of man…and to ride bikes instead of driving cars. Certainly there will be NO room for evil items like the Pledge of Allegiance, the Declaration of Independence, and the Gettysburg Address. No, those items stem from the racist bourgeoisie that founded this country. Global warming must trump everything, including our Constitution if they even bother to teach that we have one.

Governor Kasich sent his assistant to the Valley last week to talk with teachers about the merits of Merit Pay or the lack thereof. My wife attended the meeting. Midway through the session, another teacher stood up and said that the schools have to move to protect children. We have to keep the schools open to 10:00 at night to provide a safe haven for our kids…and to make sure that they get three meals a day. The schools must step up to the plate. Huh? My wife was dumbfounded, and asked this “educator” who is going to pay for all of this? Her question was met with stoic silence and rebuke.

So there you have it. Schools are becoming propaganda vehicles for the left wing environmentalists, and they want to keep the kids in school until 10:00 at night to make sure their minds aren’t polluted with ideas that might come from the families that are supposedly responsible for them.

No wonder the four wheeling dude couldn’t answer the WFMJ question. Guess he will have to spring for that small McDonald’s coffee himself. I would pay for a small McDonald's coffee if that would help fix the problem.

Greece is the Word

At the end of the day, the issue is always “Who pays?” If you don’t think Europe matters, think again. It will affect you both directly and indirectly. If you are watching rioting in the streets of Athens, you need to know that sort of thing could be heading here. In fact, I would argue that it is already here showing up in the anger that is currently rampant in the country. And you also need to know that it will reach directly into your pocketbook. Your money will be buying more than baklava over the next few years.

If you want to understand what is going on, you need to know that Greece has a complete cradle to grave socialist system with generous benefits. Although the official age for retirement is 61, the vast majority of Greeks can retire somewhere between the ages and 50 and 55 with full pensions. For example, a hairdresser’s job is classified as hazardous and she can retire at age 50.  The demonstrators are resisting governmnet efforts to raise the official retirement age to 63.

Greece manufactures very little. Its primary source of revenue is tourism and associated industries. Its government has been on a borrowing spree and right now owes something like 145% of its GDP. No matter how the Greek debt is sliced and diced, it is impossible to repay and there will be a default in one form or another.

Greece is part of the Euro zone. It consists of most European Union countries minus Britain, Switzerland and Sweden, and maybe a few others. It is a confederation of independent states with a central bank issuing its currency, the Euro, but with very little authority to control the fiscal integrity of the member nations other than to set “targets” for debt, GDP and the like.

The banks of all the various member countries are each other’s clients. So, Greek banks can buy Greek government debt, and the Euro Zone banks have to accept that debt as collateral for further Greek bank finances. The Greeks know this. So they continue to run up their debt, and lay it off to other European banks knowing full well there will be a default.  One might as well make a little money in the process.

The debt is worthless. Greece cannot pay it back. A default of Greek bonds would have ramifications clear around Europe as European banks move to increase their reserves to write off the Greek government debt. The solution is to bail them out…and the only two countries strong enough to bail out the Greek government is Germany and France, who would do so to protect the interest of the German and French banks holding all of this Greek debt.

While the Germans and French citizens are kicking and screaming that they are being made responsible for another country’s debt, the Greeks riot in the street because they continue to want to retire at age 50 with the Germans and the French picking up the tab. What a sticky wicket.

And here is where you come in. The German and French banks are going to have to borrow money to pay off the Greek debt. While the Chinese have been skulking around Europe offering to assist, the Europeans are rightfully suspicious about the strings the Chinese will attach to any bailout money.

So they are looking to the Federal Reserve Bank, that would be our Federal Reserve Bank, to give them to the money to prevent the collapse of the European banks while they give the money to Greece to pay off the debt incurred by its citizens retiring at age 50. And Greece being the cradle of democracy and all, the Greek citizens are rioting in the streets…which means the Greek government may look like it is instituting austerity programs, but in reality they are really kicking the can down the street to deal with later…borrowing forward so to speak.

And you will be paying the bill, even though financially we are not too far behind Greece with our worthless money.

Spanakopita anyone?

In Obama's America: Boeing and Jobs

In Obama’s America, things are never as they seem. Don’t look at what he says. Look at what he does.

Today, Barack held a jobs council in order to determine what to do to create some jobs. Seated next to him was Jeff Imelt, CEO of General Electric. His head is so far up Obama’s rear it would take the jaws of life to pull him out. How sad to watch this charade of a meeting. What a show for you. What a pity for the nation.

If you want to know how Obama handles the lack of growth and jobs in America, consider The Boeing Company…you know… the airplane people. One of Boeing's recent success stories is the development of the fuel efficient 787 Dreamliner. Years in development, it is estimated to increase fuel efficiency aircraft by 20%.

Boeing’s main plant is in Seattle, and it is unionized. The union relationship with Boeing has been tumultuous. There have been four major strikes against Boeing since 1989. In 2008, a 58 day strike cost Boeing $2.8 billion (with a “B”).

In an effort to build goodwill with the International Machinists and Aerospace Workers to build the Dreamliner plant in Seattle, Boeing voluntary entered into non-required negotiations with the union to see what could be agreed upon. This was NOT required under the existing contract. What Boeing got was a demand from the union that it be given a seat on Boeing’s Board of Directors, and that ALL FUTURE PLANES BUILT BY BOEING….EVER….BE BUILT IN SEATTLE. Obviously Boeing couldn’t agree with that.

So Boeing looked for an alternative site, and found one in South Carolina. It invested $2 billion (with a “B”) in the new facility located in North Charleston, SC. It had a ribbon cutting this past week and was about to hire over 1,000 workers when the Obama appointees to the National Labor Relations Board  (who have yet to be approved by Congress) filed a complaint against Boeing for building a plant in a Right to Work state. No union at the plant!!!

This is the first time in history that the NLRB, through its Obama appointees, has tried to say that if a company is located in a union state, it is not allowed to move OR EXPAND in a Right to Work state because that action alone is union intimidation and a threat to union workers. Never mind the fact that the workers in the new plant could agree to join the union if they so chose. The action of the NLRB is so far off the charts that Congress is having a difficult time processing it, and has threatened the legal counsel for the NLRB with subpoenas if he fails to show up to justify this type of action in front of the House Commerce Committee.

In effect, Obama’s America would be comprised of union states and non-union states in which there could be no free interaction of labor and services. It is kind of like the slave/non-slave states before the Civil War, with the new lines being drawn very close to the Mason Dixon line.

In Obama’s America, you will open you plant where he tells you to. But that will never happen. You see, American companies have foreign subsidiaries governed by laws of other countries. So if you are Boeing, where would you build you next plant? In South Carolina? No! In Washington State where the union want to take control of the company? No! The next Boeing plant will be in China or Mexico.  Boeing will NEVER build another plant in the United States.  Obama should be ashamed of himself.

And you wonder why unemployment in this country is 9.1%!!!!! It is in Obama’s America. Don't listen to what he says. Look at what he does...in Obama's America.

A Little Mustard with that Wiener (Weiner)?

Congressman Chris Lee(R) Resigns

Congressman Anthony Weiner(D) Refuses to Resign

Now I know the difference between a Republican and a Democrat. A Republican, after being caught with his pants down and pictures being scattered across the internet, resigns. A Democrat does not. This latest congressional peccadillo involving Congressman Anthony Weiner from New York City shows the spirit of Bill Clinton is alive and well in the halls of Congress.

This little wiener has reached new lows in hubris and narcissism. The scope of his online and telephone sexual escapades is growing by the day. I am sure there will be more to come. It has been pitiful watching this arrogant SOB wallow on television as he plays out his own inability to come to terms with his problems. Not only did he lie to Congress, the press, his constituents and his family last week, he used left wing attack groups such as Salon.com, The Dailey Kos, Media Matters, and MoveOn.org to blame conservative activist Andrew Breitbart for his problems. Breitbart now holds an outright explicit photo of Congressman Weiner, fully loaded, so to speak, which he is burying to save the Congressman’s family.  Weiner even introduced a bill into Congress to go after sexual predators on the internet and wrote about it at length on his Congressional web site.

Meanwhile, Republican Congressman Chris Lee resigned immediately upon disclosure of his sending a shirtless picture of himself over the internet last February. It was almost a non-issue, the Congressman moving quickly to avoid embarrassment to his family and the Republican Party. His Republican district just elected a Democrat after the Democratic Party ran ads showing Congressman Paul Ryan pushing an old lady in a wheel chair over a cliff.

I don’t like wallowing in other people’s misery. Bill Clinton set the standard as to what acceptable sexual practices in the White House. Anything short of sex in the Oval Office with a barely of age intern is apparently acceptable in the American value system. Internet and phone sex between a Congressman and another consenting adult doesn’t reach that level of perversion.

On the other hand, Congressman Weiner is a sanctimonious, arrogant little weasel, sex or no sex. He has a cocky (no pun intended) attitude. He has disdain for the American public. He represents the worst of Congressional politics generally. He is a liberal among liberals who has shown a major penchant towards spending other people’s money and thumbing his nose while he is doing it. He was media darling for awhile because he always put on a good show, but as of late has been overlooked interviews because he is just plain obnoxious.

He, along with Charlie Rangel, represents the worst the Democratic Party has to offer. That is the type of attitude we find in many of our office holders here in Mahoning County, and I find personally disgusting and distasteful. These hangers on who are all too willing to sit in judgment on everybody else while unable to admit their own foibles and shortcomings (again, no pun intended) represent politics at its worst. Minimally these folks have a defective value system and have very bad judgment. What kind of a Congressman would post a picture of his private parts on the internet? Would you want him to represent you?

Mr. Wiener should resign now, and save the country and his party another year of investigations and possible additional scandals. There are too many important things facing the country to waste any more time on Mr. Weiner’s ability to come to terms with his predilections and mental health issues. This is not a story that should be played out on the national stage.

Me and the Geek Squad

Today I am a man. I moved up to a 46” LED Samsung flat screen smart television. In the process, I learned much about myself. Mostly I am an old fart that was wallowing in some electronic limbo holding cell. Given that I run a website and even know some html which enables me to put all those fabulous You Tube videos into the site each week, I liked to think of myself as being somewhat technologically savvy. Of course, I still believe in the Easter Bunny.

Walking into to Best Buy was a humbling experience. But the digital gods must have been smiling on me as I entered the television section. Some guy named Dan…some kid named Dan…came up to help me. This dude knew his stuff.

He taught me about plasma televisions (great for dark rooms); LCD televisions (probably the brightest you can buy); and LED televisions with backlighting which make them perfect for bright rooms, and somewhat less desirable for dark rooms. There is a reason for that. I learned that when I turned the lights off in the family room, the television set dims itself. If I wanted to brighten the picture, I had to turn on a light. It was cool brightening and dimming the television by turning the sofa lamp on and off. I wised up and read the instruction booklet and figured out how to stop that from happening. But it was fun while it lasted!!

I decided to go all out. I wanted the best of everything, except for 3D which I never liked in the movies why would I want it on my living room’s television. So Dan of Best Buy had a field day with me. He sold me the television, a television stand, HDMI cables, screen cleaner. He sold me a new router to solve a long standing problem with my home network. This was important because the Smart TV hooks into my home network to access the internet so I can buy Samsung apps and download from Netflix!!!! My problem was ultra difficult so it needed an ultra router which cost an ultra $160.00!!!!

Then Dan sold me on the Geek Squad because there was no way in hell I was going to attempt to put all of this stuff together. The contract to buy my house was easier to understand than how the Geek Squad charges because they piggy back price reductions the more they install. Dan didn’t have to sell me, I just told him to sign me up. This he did, after he tried to sell me $175.00 universal remote that would “sync all of the functions” whatever that means. I passed on the remote.

So the cost of the television was $1,000.00 after price checks with the new JJ Gregg store in the middle of the Best Buy parking lot. But with the router, the cables, the 4 year warranty several consumer companies told me to buy for an LED television with little lights that go out, the router, the television stand, the installation and the sales tax…let’s just say I will be eating peanut butter all summer!!

But there was good news tonight. Best Buy Dan, the dude who sold me the stuff, was kicked upstairs. I was there on his last day of sales, and I was his last sale. Guess who came to my house to install the stuff. Good ole Dan. They moved him into service...and he could sell stuff off the truck!!!!

Dan, and for that matter me, was a little taken back by my lack of technologically advanced gizmos. No, I don’t have a desktop. I have a laptop and net book (“You actually bought one of those things?” he asked. “Dude, you need a pad.” Isn’t a pad a bachelor apartment?)

He was intrigued by the old style tube Phillips portable television in my “office”/spare bedroom. It is attached to an original Nintendo. It was like he was looking at an Edison Disc Player. And my router…how old is that piece of _______? And my old flat screen 32” television that weighs 200 pounds and has 10 year old circuitry that will last for next 25 years? Didn’t even know they made those. And my cable box???? Fuggetaboutit! Dude, there is no HDMI attachment to this cable box. They only made these for a year then dumped them. I was defeated. I was dejected. How could I be so un-cool?

But all’s well that ends well. Dan was a super salesman, and he and his partner Marc were even better installers. They were fast and efficient and knew their stuff. My network now actually reaches into my family room, which I couldn’t get to happen for years. My new television is up and running and is actually easier to use than my old television. It is connected to the internet and my blue-ray player…which is also now connected to the internet. My Bose radio, which I use as my “sound system” is attached to the television and linked to my computer. And the new cable box with the HDMI connection is so slim and tiny, it could fit into my wife’s purse. These guys were good. Oh ya... did you know the new televisions don't come with RCA plugs, the standard to connect stuff for years!!!!  When you're out, you're out!

I have to give snaps to the Geek Squad and Best Buy. I paid a lot of money, and it was worth every penny. I only have one problem, there doesn't seem to be a place to insert my VHS tape.  I think maybe I better call Dan.

Hello! Republicans! We need a candidate!!!!

In the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding, the Greek father of the bride said of his daughter's betrothed, Ian Miller, that he and his family were like white toast. That came to mind this morning when I heard a talking head on television say that Tim Pawlenty goes out each weekend to paint the town beige. He's a nice guy that has done a great job as Minnesota governor; but that pretty much sums it up. What’s a Republican to do?  Where is the sizzle?

In all my days I don’t think I ever seen such an array of white toast Republican candidates. My goodness…even the ones who decided not to run aren’t much better. Consider Governor Mitch Daniels of Indiana. I think they had to wake him up to say he wasn’t going to run. He did it by email at midnight on a Saturday night. Governor…Governor…wake up!!!!! He said it was to protect his family…maybe his on again off again on again wife? Hey…she doesn’t have any problems. Maria Shriver…now there is someone with problems.  Again, one of Indiana's finest and most successful governors, but a little like a glass of baking soda.

Then there is Mike Huckabee who gave us a big Huckano making his exploratory efforts a big Huckabust. He is the Lawrence Welk of politicians. I kept looking for Joe Feeney and the Lennon Sisters on his television show. And uh one…and uh two…thank you boys. Champagne music anyone?

So who is left? Mitt Romney has his Mormon robes wrapped around his health care legislation in Massachusetts. Seriously, cartoonists are already talking about Romney’s garments. Then there is Ron “let’s legalize heroine” Paul. I actually like the guy and agree with him more than disagree. But let’s get real!!!! There is always Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania. Who? You know…the guy who lost his senate re-election bid by 15 points. Ouch!!

My favorite candidate with no chance in hell of winning is Herman Cain. What a great guy and an absolutely boffo orator. I sure love a good political speech. He is African American and THE Tea Party favorite…you know, the folks that Nancy Pelosi said were just short two eye holes in their sheets. For those of you who don’t know, Herman Cain is African American and the former CEO of Godfather Pizza. He can’t win…but if he did we sure would eat good! There is always a silver lining!  Maybe he's not ready for prime time this cycle...but he has potential next time around.

Undeclared but threatening candidates are Sarah Palin (if only she could drop that whiney voice down an octave); Michele Bachmann (another Minnesotan running against her governor - Tim Pawlenty); Representative Paul Ryan (heavy hitter but looks soooo young); and some guy named Huntsman who served as Ambassador to China for Barack and is now back to run for President as a Republican.  He must be from Utah because he served as governor...another Mormon?  (let’s start with if I don’t know who he is, neither will anybody else notwithstanding his serious gravitas).

The same guy cracking Pawlenty this morning said the solution for the Republicans is to hire Tony Soprano to visit Chris Christie in New Jersey and make him an offer he can’t refuse…then pay a visit to Marco Rubio and tell him he will be VP or find a horse head in his bed.

THAT is who Republicans want. And I predict THAT is who Republicans will get.

Monitor School Lunches Today - Cavity Searches Tomorrow / Big Brother is Watching

I saw on the news where the City of San Antonio, Texas, is spending $2,000,000.00 (that’s two million dollars) to put cameras in local school cafeterias to keep tabs on what students are eating for lunch. And you want to know why Johnny can’t read. I am so angry I could scream. This is so wrong on so many levels that it almost unfathomable. What are we doing, folks? Are they really serious about this?

Here is how it works. Students are issued a bar code (I am not making this up). When they go through the pay the bill line, a camera takes a picture of the food on the plate. When the students are done eating, another camera takes a picture of what is left on the plate, then calculates the number of calories eaten by that student. The numbers are tallied, and sent home to the parents. It is being funded by the United States Department of Agriculture, and plans are to have these in all schools throughout the country.

I don’t even know where to begin. We are becoming so desensitized to this type of government behavior it only got mildly raised eyebrows on Fox News. It is in some of the print media that I have found some degree of appropriate outrage.

It is none of the government’s business what I eat…or what my kid eats. The food police in some schools have become so strong, they are banning home bagged lunches for fear some student might bring in some contraband into the school…like an Oreo.

Now you know why voters are outraged. Enough is enough. Kids are failing in schools. Many schools can’t afford to buy books. Class sizes in Detroit are approaching sixty students per class. And what does our government spend money on? Cameras to monitor school lunch trays. Unbelievable.

If the government wants to cut the budget, here is the place to start. It is a waste. It is Orwellian. It is just plain scary. But what else should we expect from a government that pats down our private parts before going onto an airplane. I know…cavity searches...which might be next for both the TSA and our school systems. You can hide Oreos in all sorts of places.

Shame on the United States government.