Liberal Thinking

I'm an avid listener of sports radio stations. My favorite host on Sports Radio 1130 WDFN, Sean Baligian, brought up the possibility of the State of Michigan implementing a new tax on tickets for such things as sporting events and concerts. Sean was rightfully outraged, as were all of the callers.

Then I just received an email from a conservative friend living in the liberal/socialist haven of California. The email was a humorous, fictitious story about how big government is.

Whenever a new tax is proposed a group of citizens starts calling radio stations and elected officials' offices, sending emails and faxes, and so on, in protest. What never seems to happen is enough people speaking up and stating clearly why their state or national economy is in the shape it is. Some people will not say it out of guilt. Others will not say anything because they are the benefactors of what all of our taxes are paying for.

We have done nothing but create a welfare state for millions of people in the United States. We don't need the government to tell us what is best for our lives and I'm so sick of the fact that there are millions of people in this country who want them to. Listen to candidates for public office when they speak, regardless of what political party they are affiliated with. All they talk about is what they're going to do for us, what they're going to give us, etc. Enough is enough. I'm so flustered and angry that I can barely put my thoughts down right now.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt is heralded as this great president who brought us through World War II and the Great Depression. The man was a good leader. But do you realize what his New Deal programs started? Government dependency! The government fed people. The government employed people. Was anyone naive enough to think that was only going to be temporary?

Folks, the taxes we pay are outrageous. The solution was real simple a long time ago but now we're so far in over our heads that we can't go back. If government, state and federal, wasn't so large then we wouldn't be paying so many taxes. Government programs are killing us financially! There's no excuse that someone who makes $75,000 a year only receives a little over $50,000 of it. Then that person pays sales tax, property tax, and every other tax that exists. We can't even buy a ticket to a baseball game without paying service charges and taxes on top of the ticket price.

That's liberalism, people! I don't care if you're Democrat, Republican, or independent. Liberal thinking has been destroying this country for many years and it's now spiraled out of control. The more programs that the citizens ask the government to create, the more we are going to get taxed. It's that plain and simple. You can be a "bleeding heart" and want to help out your fellow man as much as possible, but be prepared to pay for it.

Another Deplorable Lawsuit

I am sitting here absolutely astonished at what I just read on ESPN's website. Hundreds, possibly thousands, of frivolous lawsuits are filed in this country each day. Rarely do we hear about most of them though unless they involve someone famous or the case is so outlandish that we find out about it.

St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Josh Hancock tragically died a few weeks ago when he drove his vehicle into the back of a parked tow truck on a St. Louis highway. Hancock was drunk (nearly twice the legal limit) and there was marijuana found in his vehicle. At the time of the crash Hancock was also talking on his cell phone and not wearing a seat belt.

The latest news regarding this tragic event should infuriate anyone that hears about it. Dean Hancock, father of Josh, has filed a lawsuit against the restaurant that was serving Josh all of the alcohol that he consumed, and the manager of the restaurant. That isn't the unbelievable part because a lot of people file lawsuits against bars and restaurants for serving patrons too much alcohol. Are you ready for the real kicker?

Also being sued by Dean Hancock are the towing company, the tow truck driver, and the owner of the vehicle that had stalled on the highway prompting the tow truck driver to stop and help. I'm not making this up. By the way, the stalled vehicle became a stalled vehicle because the driver had to swerve to avoid a vehicle that was going to hit him. The driver is being sued because he "was negligent in allowing his vehicle to reach the point where it stalled on the highway, and for failing to move it out of the way of oncoming traffic." Again, I couldn't make this up if I tried.

The tow truck company and its driver are named in the lawsuit because they apparently didn't get the stalled vehicle out of the way of a drunk in a large SUV talking on his cell phone quickly enough. The tow truck company wasn't even called about the incident. The two truck driver noticed the stalled car and was nice enough to stop and offer help. So much for human kindness, huh?

Congratulations to lawyer Keith Kantack for filing this despicable lawsuit. He actually had the nerve to ask, "Were the police contacted?" and "Why weren't flares put out?" Oh, those are some fantastic questions. I get it, the police being on the scene or flares being visible would have stopped a heavily intoxicated person driving while talking on his cell phone from hitting anything in his path. That makes a whole lot of sense Mr. Kantack.

The question was even raised in the article of whether or not the St. Louis Cardinals and Major League Baseball could eventually be named in the lawsuit. Once again, two organizations that had absolutely nothing to do with the accident.

Is it possible that our legal system is the best, and the stupidest, in the world at the same time?

Personal Responsibility

What in the world is wrong with people? Has a large portion of the human race always been so stupid, or is this a recent phenomenon? Maybe it's always been this way but we're just more aware of it now because of the internet and 24-hour cable news.

That rich snob Paris Hilton gets caught drinking and driving but only receives probation. Ok, I guess I can deal with that because it happens to thousands of people every day. Good people make stupid mistakes and don't need to be locked up in jail the first time they do so. But this arrogant, selfish girl (I won't dare refer to her as a woman) just recently got pulled over again. Oh, and guess what?! Her driver's license is presently SUSPENDED!

Well, if you haven't heard the whole story she got hauled before a judge the other day for violating her parole. Instead of slapping her on the wrist and telling her she's a bad, little rich girl the judge ordered her butt to spend 45 days in jail. I have no idea what the sentencing guidelines were, but she should have at least received the 45 days. So, her mom has the NERVE to go in front of the cameras and microphones and whine about the sentence being too harsh. TOO HARSH? When she receives life in prison next time because she gets behind the wheel of a car and kills an innocent person is that going to be too harsh of a sentence?

Not to be outdone by her mother, Paris decides that she's going to plead with the Governator to pardon her. For a 45 day sentence?! I love Arnold Schwarzenegger's laugh and I hope he uses it right in front of her face. I am about as far from perfect as anyone can be, but people like Paris Hilton and her mother make me ill.

Then there's my new favorite. Just weeks after leading the fight to have Don Imus unfairly fired, Al Sharpton opens his big mouth and gets called out on the carpet. Big Al said not to worry about Mitt Romney, a Mormon, being elected president because those who believe in the real God will defeat him.

Oh, so Don Imus can't make a stupid off-the-cuff comment because it had racially-charged language in it that only black gangsta rappers are apparently allowed to use, but Sharpton can say that those who share Romney's religious beliefs don't believe in the real God. Don't worry Al, those of us who think differently than you politically don't know how to respond like you do to other people's comments. We tend to be pretty good at brushing things off and forgiving people. Our goal in life isn't to sit around all day doing absolutely nothing for society while waiting to be offended by someone.

Which brings me to something I've always wanted to say or write. I've noticed that Sharpton puts the title of reverend before his name. That's interesting. I've seen Sharpton on my television more times than I count over the years and I've never once heard him express his faith in God or Jesus Christ. Not once have I ever seen or heard about him sharing the love of Christ with others. No, the only thing I've ever seen Al Sharpton do is lie, cause trouble, hold marches, verbally attack people, organize boycotts, and more. That's rather troubling that a so-called "man of God" is so focused on the here-and-now and not on eternity.

I thought a reverend or pastor's job was to win souls and grow the Kingdom of God. The only thing Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, and their ilk care about is how quickly they can get in front of a camera with the hopes that it will make them as much money as possible. They are despicable and have done nothing but hold their fellow blacks back from advancing themselves all of these years. Thank goodness millions of blacks have ignored them and made the best lives possible for themselves. If only 100% of blacks would tell Sharpton and Jackson to take their message and go to...well, you know.

I could go on for hours about more people, but I'll give it a rest. At least until next time.

Tragedy on Campus

I find myself awake late at night watching the television coverage of the mass murder that took place this morning at Virginia Tech University. I am at an incredible loss for words. How can anyone possibly explain why something so horrible happened? What in the world do we say to the family and friends of the victims?

The timing of this tragedy is so odd because my dad and I just took our concealed weapons course yesterday. One of the most important things to learn is where a permit holder can and cannot carry a gun. Would you believe that the two places a person cannot carry a gun on a college campus in Michigan are a classroom and a dormitory? Yes, those are the two places on the campus of Virginia Tech where everyone was killed today.

Bad people have guns, folks. That means that good people need them too. If bad people lived in fear that more people were armed, we would see fewer tragedies such as the one we witnessed today. That's not to say that bad guys won't continue to harm others, but I guarantee you the number of incidents would drop.

Good, honest, decent citizens need to arm themselves. The 2nd Amendment thankfully gives us the right to arm ourselves against the government, but it also allows us to protect ourselves from fellow citizens. As long as sin and evil controls people, terrible things will happen. It's sad, but true.

We are not promised tomorrow. The murdered Virginia Tech students and staff members had no idea when they woke up this morning that they were taking their last few breaths. We all have two options: protect ourselves or don't. What's your choice?

The Decline of Metropolitan Detroit

According to new data, the nine counties in southeast Michigan that comprise what we know as Metropolitan Detroit have fallen to 12th in the country in terms of metropolitan population. Places such as Atlanta have soared past the Detroit area. I have been trying to figure out how the discussion went from concern about urban sprawl to pure astonishment at what I will call "metro Detroit flight." I remember only a few years ago reading and listening to people complain about those who had left the city of Detroit and its near surroundings for the suburbs. Now we can't even keep people in the suburbs.

Drive down any street in a Detroit suburb and you will most likely see more than one "For Sale" sign. Maybe it happened gradually but it sure seemed to hit the area like a lightning bolt just in the last couple of years. When examining why this is taking place, one realizes that many industries have been devestated by it.

I cannot think of a bigger reason for Metro Detroit's population decline than the end of the Industrial Revolution. We now live in the Information Age because of the internet and other amazing technology. The area once dominated by the automobile industry appears to be dying a slow death. Very few metropolitan areas in the country have been affected by one industry the way the Detroit area has for 100 years. Michigan will continue to lose a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives every time the census is taken and it's due largely to people leaving southeast Michigan for other states.

Drive up and down I-75 through Oakland County and nothing out of the ordinary will stand out to you. But get off one of the exits and drive through the tech parks and the office complexes. The buildings are empty and weeds are growing through the cement. I've driven through them and I know what I'm talking about. I was astonished. There is a multiple-story office complex along Stephenson Highway that once housed thousands of workers that sits completely empty today. There is not one business located in the enormous buildings anymore.

I spoke with a gentleman just yesterday who once owned a thriving manufacturing business with about 50 employees located along I-75 in Troy. By the time he was out of business, he was the only employee and his building that appraised for $1 million was sold for $500,000. That's real, folks. What happened to him is happening to Detroit area business owners in droves.

The auto industry is struggling mightily and its taking its connected industries down with it. Auto suppliers are either declaring bankruptcy or moving to other states. We don't hear about the automobile and manufacturing sectors creating jobs anymore. Now when we turn on the news it's Google creating jobs in the area. That's the reality of the age we have moved into. The reason this all seemed to happen so fast should not be shocking. All we have to do is look at how quickly computers, cell phones, the internet, MP3 players, DVR's, and the like have changed our lives. We cannot be amazed at what has happened in metro Detroit if we take that into consideration. It was bound to happen just as quickly as those things became popular and easily accessible.

How many realtors do you know that are doing well financially right now? I don't know one. Every realtor that I know is either looking for a new job or have taken on a second job. I live in Waterford Township, which at one time was the largest township in Michigan. When I tried to sell my house last year there were 150 houses in my size and price range for sale just in Waterford. I bought that house in 2001 and when I sold it I received about $2000 more than I paid for it. Go stand in front of a classroom of high school or college students and give them a list of reasons why they should live and work in metropolitan Detroit when they are out of school. Good luck writing that list.

I wish I had an answer for how to change what has taken place. The only thing I can think to do is to not give up on the area and keep spending my money at the restaurants, stores, and other businesses. I sure hope this is just a phase that our area is going through, but it is certainly hard to see it that way.

People have to make the effort to access the wealth of information that is available about how to utilize technology, such as the internet, to make the Detroit area strong again. I am committed to doing my part. I can only hope that thousands of others will also. The days of "In GM We Trust" are over.

Hypocrisy of Democrats

What skin color did Bill Clinton's secretaries of state have? Answer: white. What skin color did Bill Clinton's attorney general have? Answer: white.

President Bush's first secretary of state was a black man. His second secretary of state is a black woman. His current attorney general is Hispanic.

Do you think that Democrats would sit back for one second and watch a black, female secretary of state and a Hispanic attorney general get politically attacked if the two of them were Democrats? Answer: NO WAY! If Alberto Gonzales was a Democrat he would never be getting treated the way he is. First of all, Republicans in Washington, D.C. have proven they are wimps so we know they wouldn't be attacking anyone. Second, if any Republican WAS attacking a high-ranking, minority Democratic presidential appointee the Democrats would be crying racing, sexism, or whatever label would fit. That fact cannot be denied.

One of the reasons I can't stand Democrats is because they're so good at playing politics and it's irritating. They know that if they get any of Gonzales' staff up to Capitol Hill to testify then they have the opportunity to catch that person in some type of lie. It doesn't matter that Karl Rove, Gonzales, or any staffer didn't break any laws in the firing of U.S. attorneys recently. It matters that Democrats use their subpoena power to get as many Republicans as possible to testify "under oath" because then they can nail them. Call it "getting the Scooter Libby treatment", if you will.

Even better for the Democrats would be to get any of those people before a U.S. attorney and a grand jury. Once that happens it doesn't matter what the original situation was. Forget that no one broke any laws. It's a prime opportunity to bring charges against a political enemy, or someone associated with them, and let the press run with it.

That's how the game works, folks. Too many Americans are busy with American Idol, The Bachelor, and Dancing with the Stars to notice.

Politicians: Real and Fake

I watched Attorney General Alberto Gonzales yesterday as he calmly responded to calls for his resignation by people such as Sen. Chuck Schumer, and it reminded me of something that bothers me a lot. I can't stand listening to politicians and political appointees as they deliver prepared remarks or "talking points."

Enemies of President Bush want Gonzales out of the Justice Department because they think there was "politics" involved in the recent dismissal of some U.S. attorneys. Well, folks, the appointing of U.S. attorneys IS political! The president has absolute authority to hire and fire government employees whenever he feels like it. Bill Clinton fired EVERY U.S. attorney when he became president. Not 8 attorneys, but ALL OF THEM! He had every right to do so.

I wish Gonzales would have stood at the podium yesterday and told Schumer, Hillary Clinton, and their cronies to take a long walk off of a short pier. But Gonzales kept his cool and was professional. I suppose that's the correct thing to do, but it drives me nuts.

Remember Michael Douglas as the president in "The American President"? He unexpectedly walked into the White House Press Room during a press update and verbally ripped his opponent (played by Richard Dreyfuss) to shreds on camera. While I didn't agree whatsoever with the character's politics, I wanted to jump up and cheer what he had just done. His opponent was an obnoxious idiot and needed to be put in his place. I wish so much that elected officials would throw away the prepared speeches and just say what's truly on their mind.

Wouldn't it be funny to watch a mild-mannered man like President Bush lose his cool and unleash a verbal onslaught directed at a critic? Either our jaws would drop, we would fall out of our chair, or drive off the road! I'm willing to take the risk just to see it happen once in my life.

Who Looks Foolish, Alamo Heroes or Us?

Instead of writing my own entry today I have chosen to recommend an article that is a "must read." Please enjoy.

http://chuckbaldwinlive.com/c2007/cbarchive_20070306.html

The Duping of the Black Community

I often wonder whether a majority of black Americans are ever going to wake up to the fact that they are being used by disgusting, selfish politicians (both black and white). If I hear Hillary Clinton spewing her garbage at this past weekend's commemoration of the March on Selma one more time I might scream. How dare her stand before those people quoting scripture and black authors while using the phoniest southern accent I've ever heard in my life! But, why does she get away with it? It's not just her. It's her husband, it's Al Gore, and so many others over the years. They will continue to fool black people for as long as they are allowed to.

Can you imagine where the black population would be if they didn't blindly follow people such as Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton. Jackson, Sharpton, and their ilk have been telling black people for decades how terrible it is to be black and that it's someone else's fault. To call what they have done deplorable is an understatement.

I'll never forget speaking to my friend Erica during the 2000 Presidential Election. Erica is one of the finest, young Christian ladies I've ever met in my life. Erica is black. I asked her who she was going to vote for. She told me that she probably wouldn't vote but that if she did she would vote for Gore. I asked her why and she said that she didn't know. I asked Erica if I could tell her why she would do that and she said yes. I told her that she would be doing the same thing that so many other black people would be doing because they have been told their whole lives that they were supposed to vote for Democrats and that the Democrats would give them what they need and want. Erica didn't hesitate for one second to tell me that I was right.

White pastors across the United States live on pins and needles during election seasons because they fear that word may get out about their political beliefs. They wonder when the government is going to step in and revoke their tax exempt status because a politician or candidate stood up in front of their congregation to give a quick hello or short message. Do you think black pastors have that fear? Not a chance.

I certainly wish there was more integration in God's church. There isn't a more segregated place in America than the church. But let's be honest, black people mostly attend church with black people and whites attend with whites. So, when white politicians and candidates have the nerve to stand in a pulpit at a church that they would never join or attend and spew their message of hate while disguising it as a message of hope to the congregation, it makes me sick to my stomach. It's such a terrible feeling to know that those nice people in the black churches are being used by the likes of the Clintons.

We all know what's going to happen in 2008. Over 90% of blacks will vote for the Democratic presidential candidate, and the other Democrats on their ballot, and will live through four more years of their lives not improving. Look what happens when Bill Cosby, a person you would think would be revered in the black community, speaks up and tells black people to quit complaining and make something of themselves. He gets verbally attacked. But Barack Obama, a black man running for president, echoed some of Cosby's sentiments at the Selma event and was praised. Please tell me how that makes sense.

Liberal politicians need black people to continue to suffer. They need black women to keep having children without a father at an alarming 80 percent. If large numbers of blacks keep joining the middle class then the Democrats will lose more and more of their base. Call me and those who think like me racists, biggots, or whatever you want, but the truth is the truth.

The Power of the Internet

Thought of the Day: Am I the only one who laughs during Elton John's "Rocket Man" when he talks about missing his wife?

Thought of the Day #2: I was wondering the other day why Barbra Streisand seems to be fighting for the "common man" and the "downtrodden", but if I wanted to take my wife to see her in concert I might have to refinance my house.

I can't believe what this thing called the internet has done to our lives. Thanks, Al Gore (sorry, had to say it). If you don't realize the future of business is via the internet then you are not paying attention. I didn't realize it completely until the last six months or so. Electronic commerce (e-commerce) is changing product and service distribution in an incredible way. Just as Sam Walton changed product distribution years ago, people who are getting involved in e-commerce have a similar vision to Walton's.

Product distribution doesn't have to go through all of the steps that it does. That is why you and I pay $100 for something that only cost $5 to manufacture. People are slowly realizing that products can go right from the manufacture to customers through the internet. And what millions of people don't realize yet is that there are ways to buy products online and keep the profit for themselves instead of it going to distributors and dealers.

Experts will tell you that by the time a college student reaches his/her junior year, the information learned during their freshman year will already be outdated and worthless. That's unbelievable. In the last few years I have met and done business with people from all four corners of the world and it's only cost me the price of monthly internet service. I would have never believed ten years ago that I could have done that.

If you aren't involved in an internet business, you need to start looking real quick. And don't allow yourself to think or say, "Something like that is not for me." I said that four years ago when a friend tried to introduce me to an internet-based business and I'm kicking myself for not listening to him. I let my ignorance and pre-conceived notions get in the way. Who knows where I could be today if I would have listened to him.

You may not like the power of the internet, but reality is reality.