They Call This Helping?
From: The Cincinnati Enquirer
Moyer said the best way lawyers can help is by mediating disputes between homeowners and their banks. He believes such mediation could head off the possibility of foreclosure filings filling court dockets.
Seriously? This is helping? I believe this is nothing more than sticking fingers in the dikes. If you want to help these people, spend $16 or whatever it costs now for Dave Ramsey’s book and send it to them. The radio show is free.
North of the Mason-Dixon Line
So Katharine, the dogs and I loaded up the Jeep and made the journey back to my hometown in the Cincinnati area for Christmas on Saturday and I’m sitting here at Mom’s house in Indiana typing this post. I did my political duty this week. I told everyone in my family (and anyone who would listen) about Ron Paul. Almost everyone had either never heard of him or knew little if anything about him. I did my best to tell all of them everything I could. Initially, everyone was feeling about the same as I had been before I really looked at Dr. Paul, but after I gave my little pitch I think I was able to raise some interest. I followed up with a little email about him and some info on the primaries up here. They all felt like they couldn’t make a difference, but when I explained that I came up here and told ten people about him and that if each of them would do the same, it would spread pretty quickly. As George Washington said,
Liberty, when it begins to take root, is a plant of rapid growth.
I guess all of the focus has been on the early states: South Carolina, New Hampshire and Iowa. I pitched in up here, so now it’s their turns!
Could It Be? They’re Actually Concerned?
Yahoo News has an article today (one of the most emailed, I might add) about Dr. Ron Paul possibly being a “spoiler” in the upcoming primaries.
It wasn’t long ago that Rep. Ron Paul was an anti-war asterisk in the race for the Republican presidential nomination. Then his campaign raised a record $6 million in a single day.Now the libertarian-leaning Texas congressman is looking like a possible spoiler, with an eclectic, tech-savvy following and an astounding $18 million in donations raised in less than three months.
“It’s sort of gotten out of control. I don’t know what to do about it,” he told one audience recently in mock frustration.
I’m going to go out on a limb here and venture to guess it’s going to be slightly worse than they think (or better, depending which side you’re on). It seems to me that Dr. Paul’s numbers are usually underestimated, and as Penn & Teller inform us below, polls are usually worthless. Fsck You, Frank!
You see, in all this “scientific” polling, they’re leaving out a few folks. The folks who might not be registered Republicans and the Democrats who are sick of more of the same. Honestly, people, what’s the difference between Hillary and Rudy, anyway? Is there one? I think not.
Sneezing and Coughing On A New Laptop
Well, I was certain that it wasn’t going to happen, but it’s here. I’m sick. My wife brought a cold home with her two days ago and I swore that I would not succumb to her viruses, but I have. Drinking Nyquil by the cupful and mixing it down with Alka-Seltzer is not my idea of a holiday season. Hopefully it’ll be gone by Saturday for the six hour (if we’re lucky) drive home to see my family.
In other news, my old laptop bit the dust a couple weeks ago and I bought a new one today. Nothing fancy, just some Acer from Wal-Mart. Unfortunately, getting my beloved Linux up and running has proved to be quite a chore. I guess that’s the breaks for those of us on the cutting edge.
Good Press for the Good Doctor?
Something’s changing, folks. After the amazing $6 million dollar run on Sunday, some really good attention has been on Dr. Paul. He had five great interviews today on CNN, Headline News, Fox News and MSNBC. Glenn Beck gave him an entire hour on his program (which I’m sure helped his ratings, too) that was completely fair and honest. I was very impressed.
Ron Paul on “Morning Joe” 12-18-07
Ron Paul on CNN American Morning 12-18-07
Ron Paul on Fox & Friends 12-18-07
Tea Party on CNN Cafferty File
Kent Snyder on Tucker: The Tea Party Success
I’m excited to be a part of this movement. This campaign is something for the history books. It’s the first time in my lifetime that a candidate who isn’t manufactured, packaged and delivered has been able to gain such great momentum. It’s amazing to see disenfranchised Americans actively participating. Dr. Paul is truly being lifted by his supporters!
Mittney in Spartanburg
The event, scheduled for 11:40 a.m., is open to everyone. It will be at the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office, though Sheriff Chuck Wright says that nothing should be read into the visit.
Well, lucky for us Mitt’s coming! Apparently the three people here in Sparkle City who support him got together and plastered every column and piece of grass all the way around Hearon Circle with Mittney signs, too. It does make me wonder what interest they have in the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office (warning: world’s worst website), though. It’s in such a scenic part of town. Perhaps he’s looking for more “hired help” for his house South Carolina votes. There’s quite a community just down the road!
It’s not all bad news, though! If you’re a real, live journalist type, you can pony up $300 and ride along in Mitt 1.
After Spartanburg, Romney will fly to Columbia, Savannah, Ga., Charleston and Myrtle Beach. Reporters have been invited to fly along - if they pay up to $300 for each leg of the flight they’ll be on.
I can only imagine the how exciting it must be to take that trip. Maybe you get to watch them reboot him afterwards.
Don’t Vote for This Guy
Honestly, is this what we need? I know this is a parody, but it does seem to sum up Rudy Guiliani’s campaign nicely.
A Response - Support the Troops
Over at Earl Capps’ blog about a week ago, he posted this and explained he was upset that NBC had refused to run some commercials produced by Freedom’s Watch - which is completely acceptable. I started writing here for the exact same reason. I wanted a place to voice my opinion and maybe even have a little debating now and then. Apparently, Earl doesn’t want any debating on his site.
My reply was that I totally support our military men and women but that I do not support the overall war efforts. Those soldiers are doing more than any of us could ever ask of them. But why? To bring democracy to an area that neither wants it nor knows how to use it once it’s given to them? We will not drag others, kicking and screaming, to embrace our ideologies. It doesn’t work that way. I also linked to the Southern Avenger’s video with a similar title, since he outlined it much better than I ever could in a few words on this blog.
Here it is, for your viewing pleasure:
This is How It’s Supposed to Work
I’ve only been around for a few presidential campaigns but I’m pretty sure THIS is how its supposed to work.
I saw that comment earlier today. He was referring to the Ron Paul campaign and it’s ground-up, grassroots feel. It stuck with me and I added it here. He’s right. This IS how it’s supposed to work. We the people choose the candidates. We shouldn’t just accept whatever the media throws in front of us and hammers in to our heads. Just because they make for good TV doesn’t make them a good president.
Read something. Participate. Don’t just sit on your couch and accept the status quo.
Please Allow Me to Introduce Myself
Oh no! Another blogger! Just what we all need, right?
I thought the same thing. In fact, I’m still thinking it as I write this first ever post. Hopefully the first in a long line of posts. I made a decision tonight that it was finally time to stand up and speak out. We all have access to the same soapbox on the internet - for a while, anyway. It’s December 17, 2007 - one day after the 234th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party. The same one we all read about in our fifth grade history books. The one where a bunch of “unruly” colonists, enraged by taxation without representation had had enough. That is how I feel this evening.
I should probably begin with a bit of personal history. My entire life I’ve considered myself a Republican. My personal values always seemed to mesh right into the message they were sending. Something has since happened to the Republican Party I knew back then. It morphed into a fear-mongering, big government, we-know-whats-best-for-you party that it’s become today. The neocons took it away and made it theirs to run as they see fit. With little, if any, regard to what you or I think.
For the past year or so I’ve been questioning my belief in politics, parties and our country as a whole. I wondered if perhaps *gasp* I had become a Democrat or, even worse, a Liberal!
No, I hadn’t. My views on politics and government hadn’t changed at all. The party did. As it turns out, I really am a Republican. I believe in fiscal conservativeness, smaller government, fewer taxes and more individual liberties. I believe in the free-market system, trade with any and all nations. I believe that it is not our role to fight other nation’s wars or to go looking for them. I believe that in order for us to continue to “form a more perfect Union,” we must take care of ourselves first and others later.
Fortunately, there exists today a candidate who shares the same beliefs as I. His name is Dr. Ron Paul, and he has cured my apathy. I first learned of Dr. Paul here on the internet. It seemed he had invaded everything. His name was everywhere and links to his website were popping up left and right. He had a wildly supportive following, almost rock star like. I decided to investigate further.
Dr. Paul believes in the same ideas in which I believe. He ran in 1988 as the Libertarian candidate with little fanfare. He has an impressive history. As an OB/GYN he delivered over 4,000 babies. He served as a flight surgeon in the United States Air Force during the 1960s. He’s served multiple terms as a United States Congressman from the 14th congressional district of Texas. He’s never voted once to raise taxes. He voted against the Patriot Act and the war in Iraq. He believes in the United States Constitution.
Here’s the best part: if you disagree with something that Dr. Paul does, he’s a big enough man to be okay with that. He understands that it’s your right to choose. He’s a Christian and that is his right, but he’ll never force it on anyone. Atheists, Baptists, Catholics, Jews, Muslims - whatever! It’s your decision, not the government’s! What a concept, huh?
As Americans, we all did what we thought was the patriotic thing to do after September 11th. We allowed the Patriot Act to be passed. We were sold on a war we thought was the right thing to do at the time. I freely admit that I was duped. I bought it hook, line and sinker like so many others.
Well, I’ve had enough. I refuse to sit on the sidelines and watch our country slide in to the cesspool further and further every day. Our dollar is at an all time low. Our national debt continues to climb to ridiculously new heights. China has a $1.4 trillion stake in this Great Nation. As a young person, I have a say in the direction of our country and it’s time I voice my opinions.
That’s why I’ve decided to start writing. I might not be the best at it, but I’ll improve. It might even help me to dust off the parts of the brain that remember what infinitives and conjugation are exactly. If nothing else, I have a place to collect my thoughts and to, hopefully, connect with others. If you’re still interested, there is more about me on the aptly titled page About Me. It’s a little more personal and less political.
On a side note, in just twenty-four hours yesterday, the Ron Paul campaign raised over $6,000,000 United States dollars online from over fifty-eight thousand Americans. I’m not the only one who feels this way. I hope it’s a sign of things to come.