Power does not exist in a vacuum

Power does not exist in a vacuum. It is either controlled by those who run corporations or those who have amassed massive wealth or by those who control government. Our Founding Fathers were not naïve simpletons who placed power in the hands of man based upon good will alone. They gave us a system in which the actions of our elected officials may be monitored and drawn into the light of public scrutiny and even the poor have a voice. This does not mean that the rich have no influence but when organized and armed with a passionate cause, regular people have the capacity to set the rules by which they live regardless of their circumstances. It also does not infer that the common man is always right and the rich are always wrong, it merely means the resources exist for a balanced playing field which has not existed for mankind throughout history.

The fact that Barack Obama could be elected following a two-term George Bush demonstrates exactly how much control the American people have over the political process while simultaneously demonstrating the volatility of the electorate’s judgment.

"Out, out, brief candle!

Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player

That struts and frets his hour upon the stage

And then is heard no more. It is a tale

Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,

Signifying nothing."

A favorite tactic of the Tea Party zealots has become the use of historical references as a justification for the most tenuous connections. Waving the banner of Socialism as a form of Scarlet Letter while attempting to brand the policies of the Democratic Party as un-American is yet another example of their intellectually void approach to winning political arguments.  It is not a coincidence that the United States became a superpower at the same time that the federal government enacted waves of social programs designed to improve the conditions of the working class.

The tired mantra of the Republican Party that somehow Democrats long for a Soviet Union style government is trite and absent any true intellectual foundation. The reality is that the United States is a unique combination of capitalism and socialism and has been for nearly a hundred years. No legitimate voice of the Democratic Party advocates the total control of the private sector by the government yet the leading voices of the Republican Party proudly champion an unfettered capitalistic system oblivious of the poverty and corruption which coincides in such an arrangement.

The Nobel Peace Prize, President Obama, and Little Men

Frankly, and without surprise from those who know me, I feel the George W. Bush Administration was a disaster for our nation. BUT, following 9/11, I supported his rallying of the nation and the sending of the troops into Afghanistan. I even applauded his defense of Muslims when some wanted to blame all followers of Islam for the cowardly deeds of a few. It is possible to disagree with the policies of a President and not behave like a two year old child who simply adopts an opposite position on everything because they wish to be contrary.
The Nobel Committee has selected the President of the United States as their choice for the Nobel Peace Prize. They have explained that he was selected because of his having changed the tone of the conversation around the world. After having sunk to a low in the public opinion of our fellow nations on the Earth, the election of Barack Obama has once again returned United States to being the # 1 most admired nation in the world. For most Americans, regardless of their political allegiance, this should be a source of pride for our citizens. Unfortunately, the leadership of the Republican Party has allowed their zealotry to blind them to the well-being of the United States. Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, and Michael Steele are but a few of the GOP hatchet men that relish the fact that the United States did not win the Olympics and now feel the need to attack the Nobel Peace Prize as a meaningless event. The Chairman of the RNC, Michael Steele, sent out this e-mail message in response to the President of the United States receiving the honor.
"Dear Friend,I'm sure you've heard the news -- Barack Obama has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. It's a stunning, if not truly surprising, indication of just how meaningless a once honorable and respected award has become. What has President Obama actually accomplished? It is unfortunate that the president's star power has outshined tireless advocates who have made real achievements working towards peace and human rights. Even the normally fawning media have expressed shock at the clearly political and unmerited award. But the Democrats clearly see it differently, with DNC spokesman Brad Woodhouse stating "the Republican Party has thrown in its lot with the terrorists -- the Taliban and Hamas this morning -- in criticizing the President for receiving the Nobel Peace Prize."Like most Americans, the DNC can't think of one achievement that the president has accomplished, so they resort to their predictable response and standard playbook of demonizing anyone who disagrees with them. First they call Americans concerned over health care "rabid extremists" and "angry mobs." Now, when challenged to answer the question of what the president has accomplished, Democrats are lashing out calling Republicans terrorists. That type of political rhetoric is shameful. Friend, the Democrats and their international leftist allies want America made subservient to the agenda of global redistribution and control. And truly patriotic Americans like you and our Republican Party are the only thing standing in their way. Help our Party spread the word about the Obama Democrats' dangerous naivete and power grab. Please support GOP elected officials as they work to hold the Democrats accountable to the American people for their failed policies and irresponsible rhetoric by making a contribution of $25, $50, $100, $500 or $1,000 to the Republican National Committee today. Your gift will also help support the recruitment and election of principled candidates who will defeat the Democrats in 2009 and 2010 and promote policies that put America first. Sincerely,Michael S. SteeleChairman, Republican National Committee P.S. Friend, President Obama's award of the Nobel Peace Prize puts the cart before the horse. Help us remind the Democrats that trendy slogans and international esteem don't create new jobs for Americans, reduce the national debt, or keep our country safer in a dangerous world by making asecure online contribution of $25, $50, $100, $500 or $1,000 to the RNC today. Thank you."
There is no denying, as the Republicans themselves admit that Obama's popularity around the world has significantly improved the perception of the United States around the globe and restored a sense of admiration and respect for our nation among the citizens of the planet. Yet, in a twist of logic that is truly mind-boggling, the leaders of the Republican Party claim that all of this is actually a bad thing for our country and that people need to give them money so they can expose the real Democratic Party as bad for the country.
They have obviously lost their minds? Of all of the things they could be complaining about with regard to the policies of the Democrats and Obama, the fact that our President wins this award is not one of them. It is an honor for our nation and our people. For the Republicans to complain about Obama receiving this honor makes them look petty and cheap and is not worthy of one of the two major parties in the United States of America. It is the kind of response I would expect from a third world petty tyrant angered that he was not in the spotlight. It is time for Michael Steele and the other Republicans to suck it up and behave as if they belonged in the public debate and were not here as a divine act of comedy.

Obama Drama

After eight years of the bungling Bush administration, it is both interesting and sad to hear the minions of George W. as they fan out across the media in a calculated effort to shift the responsibility of our nation's fiscal crisis from their tainted hands onto the shoulders of our new president.

Obama has an enormous task before him and the outcome of his efforts will determine the quality of life for our children for the next 50 years or longer. For the bloated voice of the Republican Party, in the form of Rush Limbaugh, to attack any actions of Obama rings hollow but specifically for them to criticize his handling of the economy is ridiculous. They were a complete and utter failure. It is time for them to shuffle off of the public stage and carefully take up their seats in the dust bin of history next to Warren Harding and James Buchanan.

Beware Obama, Palin, and McCain

Like millions of people, I have had a good chuckle or two at the expense of our fellow citizens who consistently have raised the alarm against Barack Obama and John McCain as secret operatives planted here to trigger the overthrow of our nation. On the face of it, our dear friends appear to have been a tad late in receiving their medication. After all, what kind of nut would think that if Obama was a plant by the Islamic extremists to enslave our proud land, the mullahs would not have named him Ralph Cramden or Joe Plumber in order to throw us off guard? And what kind of lunatic would believe that John McCain had been brainwashed by the Communists nearly 40 years ago just so that some day his handlers could use him to destroy our economy? Absurd. Ludicrous. Or is it?

Last week’s Letter to the Editor and plenty of unsupervised time on the Internet has led me to the startling revelation that our nation is at risk from a secret attack. The heroic work of the brave Alaskans who revealed Palin’s ties to the Alaskan Separatist Movement were my first clue to the puzzle. Watching her being sanitized from witchcraft by an evangelist from Kenya was the next piece to fall in place. But it wasn’t until I heard Obama mention that his father had been from Kenya as well that it all started to become clear.

Until 1898, Hawaii was an independent sovereign state, recognized by the United States, Great Britain, France and Germany with exchange of ambassadors. After years of subversion by American and European interventionists, on January 17, 1893 Hawaiian Queen Liliʻuokalani yielded to the superior force of the occupying American Army and wrote, “Now to avoid any collision of armed forces, and perhaps the loss of life, I do this under protest and impelled by said force yield my authority until such time as the Government of the United States shall, upon facts being presented to it, undo the action of its representatives and reinstate me in the authority which I claim as the Constitutional Sovereign of the Hawaiian Islands.”

Add to this that Alaska was sold to us by the Russians and that both Alaska and Hawaii became states during the Cold War, I think it is pretty clear what is at work here. We are not at serious risk from a group of nations dressed in robes and drop cloths armed with laser tipped camels. No ladies and gentlemen, the real threat to our republic is the insidious fifth columnists safely embedded in our political system waiting for the day when they can spring free and liberate Hawaii and Alaska from the Imperial hands of the United States.