"When the people find they can vote themselves money, that will herald the end of the republic." - Benjamin Franklin;
"And when politicians find that honor and character matter less than buying votes and a constituency, that too will herald the end of the Constitution. When that happens we must work tirelessly to change their minds, or their occupation!" - Hoping The Blind Will See

Saturday, October 3, 2009

Politics As Usual? It's Up To You!

Naked Power Play Las Vegas Review Journal Editorial September 24, 2009 http://www.lvrj.com/opinion/naked-power-play-61022482.html If Democrats remain mystified by "tea parties" and other recent expressions of outrage against Washington, they ought to look no further than what their own are trying to pull in Massachusetts as a perfect example of why many Americans are fed up with politicians and politics. The shenanigans involve the U.S. Senate seat held by the late Ted Kennedy. Until 2004, Massachusetts law empowered the state's governor to fill an unexpected Senate vacancy. But the state had a Republican governor that year, and Sen. John Kerry won the Democratic Party's presidential nomination. Worried that a Republican might be appointed to replace Sen. Kerry if he were elevated to the White House, Bay State Democrats, enjoying large legislative majorities, changed the rules to mandate that any vacancies be filled via special elections. Fast forward five years. A Democrat now sits in the governor's office. Sen. Kennedy loses his life fighting brain cancer. It will be at least four months before Massachusetts can hold a special election, and Democrats are one vote short of a filibuster-proof 60 in the U.S. Senate as they race to pass a radical agenda. Solution? Massachusetts Democrats rewrite the rules again. On Tuesday, the state Senate voted 24-16 to allow Gov. Deval Patrick to select Mr. Kennedy's successor. The House passed the bill last week. End of story? Nope. Turns out that under the state constitution, laws passed by the legislature take effect 90 days after they're signed by the governor -- unless lawmakers attach a so-called "emergency pre-amble." Such emergency measures must be approved by a two-thirds majority -- a benchmark lawmakers failed to achieve in ramming through changes in the succession process. Not to worry. The president of the Massachusetts Senate argues that the governor can get around the two-thirds problem by writing a letter to the secretary of state declaring his own "emergency." Presto! He can then appoint a favored Democrat immediately to save the day for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. The lesson all this nonsense sends to schoolchildren is clear. Maintaining power is the primary purpose of political life. And if politicians don't like the rules or constitutional restrictions that stand in their way, they simply change them -- and if they can't change them, they ignore them. It's the attitude that has given us a government that has grown far beyond the boundaries imposed by the nation's founding document, a government that meddles in even the most minute aspects of daily life, a government fast heading off a financial cliff thanks to big spenders and redistributionists who view the productive classes as their own giant Treasury. It's the attitude that has a great many Americans up in arms. And they may have finally gotten sick enough to do something about it. Wake Up America!

Life Lessons

Written By Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The Plain Dealer, Cleveland , Ohio "To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 44 lessons life taught me. It is the most-requested column I've ever written. My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:" 1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good. 2. When in doubt, just take the next small step. 3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. 4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch. 5. Pay off your credit cards every month. 6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree. 7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone. 8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it. 9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck. 10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile. 11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present. 12. It's OK to let your children see you cry. 13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about. 14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it. 15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks. 16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind. 17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful. 18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger. 19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else. 20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer. 21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special. 22. Over prepare, then go with the flow. 23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple. 24. No one is in charge of your happiness but you. 25. Frame every so-called disaster with these words ''In five years, will this matter?". 26. Always choose life. 27. Forgive everyone everything. 28. What other people think of you is none of your business. 29. Time heals almost everything. Give time, time. 30. However good or bad a situation is, it will change. 31. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does. 32. Believe in miracles. 33. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do. 34. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now. 35. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young. 36. Your children get only one childhood. 37. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved. 38. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere. 39. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back. 40. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need. 41. The best is yet to come. 42. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up. 43. Yield. 44. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift.