Ogre’s Politics and Views

So, did you read about the housing rescue that passed the House? In case you didn’t, let me sum it up for you:

There shall be no economic freedom in this country. You shall not be free to engage in monetary risk at all, because government has decided that’s not safe. You will not buy a house in the hopes it will increase in value if you and the seller agree, because government says that’s not safe. If you do it, you will be jailed. In addition, because everyone now has a right to housing, it’s much too dangerous to leave housing to the free market, so government shall control any and all housing transactions. In addition, government will now buy and sell houses because they know better than you how much houses should cost. If you want a house, ask government, and they will buy it for you. The conversion to complete socialism in the mortgage industry is now complete.

Seriously, that’s what it says. The government just spent (presuming it passes the Senate) nearly $5 trillion dollars (even if they won’t admit that’s what they spent). They have completely taken over the mortgage industry because government will now back ALL mortgage loans. They are going into the business of buying and selling houses — go ahead, try and compete with someone who has literally unlimited money. They’re buying votes from all sorts of people by taking money from responsible working people. I am starting to understand more people like Ed Brown who simply stop paying taxes because government is so corrupt it’s insane.

Go ahead, keep thinking this is a free country. You’re just plain wrong. We currently have some sort of government that’s between communism and total socialism. Government controls industry and we’re only allowed to vote for those that the two political parties choose. Oh, how I yearn for freedom.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Tags: America, Freedom, Government // Add Comment »

How about I show you how government specifically is interested in control and power instead of freedom and people? Here it is, on a tiny town level. Mooresville, NC has around 10,700 households. It’s not a big place. Their government is considering forcing people adding recycling. Yes, I’m well aware this is how you force people to recycle because you make it voluntary at first, then mandatory later on to “save costs.” It’s crappy, horrible, controlling, anti-freedom government at it’s worst.

But the government put together a presentation that shows they honestly do not care one bit about how much money they spend. Sure, if you take the presentation at face value, it looks like this effort would actually bring income to the city. But if you look a little closer, you see that’s not actually the case.

In one place, the presentation bases all its numbers, including those that show a “profit,” on a 70% household participation. However, on the previous page, they show the nationwide average figures of participation is 40-80%, and their own goal is only 50%! So the city is going to try and get 50% participation, but bases ALL the calculations and figures on 70%! I don’t know if you can call that outright lying, but it sure is dishonest in every sense of the word. They also don’t mention in the presentation the line that helps them “earn” money listed as “tax income.”

Worse, they go on to claim that it would cost more if they let a private company do the collections for them — and then provide the data to show that’s completely untrue! The presentation claims that a private company will pick up recycling for just $3.75 per house per month. That’s all. So what would happen in a freedom-based country? The claimed 72% of town residents that want recycling could just pay $3.75 a month and get it. That’s it. There would be no government employees to pay. There would be no administrators to pay. There would be no mismanagement by the government. And best of all — the 28% of residents who do not want to be forced to pay to make other people feel good WOULDN’T HAVE TO PAY!

In other words, the options are clear. Government can use force to require people to pay them, and government will spend nearly $70 a year per household; or people could be free to contract with other free people to get curbside recycling for less than $4 a month (around $48 a year). I bet you can guess what the board “suggested” that the town do, can’t you? Government today, even in small towns, is about using force to control people and nothing more.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Tags: Freedom, North Carolina Government, Uncategorized // 1 Comment »

Sad, but I’m sure, true.

I will miss most the wonderful Busch Gardens theme parks. I am quite sure they will be a casualty of InBev — and they were, by far, the best entertainment parks in the world. And yes, a LOT better than anything Disney has ever made.

Popularity: 5% [?]

Tags: Uncategorized // 2 Comments »

The “big” news is that the Democrats want to pass a new stimulus plan. Now I’m no longer a fan of the big-government Republican party, but some times they are actually different from the Democrats (not often). In this case, the difference is rather extreme:

Republican Stimulus: Give people some of their own money.

Democrat Stimulus: Let government spend more of the people’s money.

Then again, you can consider what would happen if people like Ron Paul, Libertarians, or the Constitution Party were running the place:

Stimulus: Government stop collecting and spending money that’s not theirs.

Popularity: 6% [?]

Tags: Freedom, Government, Political Parties // 2 Comments »

Let’s play a game, shall we? Some important government officials said the following statements. Can you guess who said them — or more importantly, WHEN?

1. “There is no cause to worry. The high tide of prosperity will continue.”

2. “It’s a safe banking system, a sound banking system. Our regulators are on top of it. This is a very manageable situation.”

3. “The Government’s business is in sound condition.”

4. “Our economy has got very strong long-term fundamentals, solid fundamentals. And you know, your policy-makers here, regulators, we’re being very vigilant.”

5. “Reports to the Department of Commerce indicate that business is in a satisfactory condition [today].”

6. “But again, it’s a safe banking system, a sound banking system. Our regulators are on top of it. This is a very manageable situation.”

7. “Definite signs that business and industry have turned the corner from the temporary period of emergency that followed deflation of the speculative market were seen today.”

8. “The fundamental strength of the US economy, and I’m talking about the long-term fundamentals, I believe they
compare favorably in this country with any other developed industrial nation around the world.”

9. “We have hit bottom and are on the upswing.”

10. “The bottom line is this: We’re going through a tough time. But our economy has continued growing, consumers are spending, businesses are investing, exports continue increasing, and American productivity remains strong.”

So, did you guess?

All of the statements above that are even-numbered were made in the past month by the Bush administration — either by Bush himself, or his secretary of treasury.

All of the statements above that are odd-numbered were made by members of the Hoover administration — between September 1929 and September 1930. And remember, in the first half of 1930, the government spent more money while people spent less. Wages did not start their substantial drop until 1931 — after all these statements were made. And the Great Depression really got into full swing in late 1930 and didn’t hit bottom until 1933.

Popularity: 5% [?]

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Popularity: 11% [?]

Tags: 2008 Elections // 4 Comments »

So let’s see… the US Treasury secretary says that things are bad — and they’re going to stay bad. Now this is someone who should know what they’re talking about. He says that the banking system is fine, but

The three big issues we’re facing right now are, first, the housing correction which is at the heart of the slowdown; secondly, turmoil of the capital markets; and thirdly, the high oil prices, which are going to prolong the slowdown

While the banking system is fine, banks are failing. Listen to my words, not reality. War is Peace. I understand.

So what is our ever-faithful Democrat-led Congress doing about these three big issues? They’re working hard to stop people from getting mortgages by crushing freedom. They’re working to pass laws to make it even harder for people to get loans, and make it easier to throw people in jail for lending money. So their solution to the housing correction is to make LESS people buy houses. Great.

The capital markets are in turmoil. What are the Democrat plans there? Spend trillions on government programs. And yes, capital gains taxes will have to be increased in order to pay for such employment programs. They are working to raise taxes to ensure that there will be less invested in companies so the capital markets will get worse.

How about oil prices? Oh right, Democrats are stopping drilling to ensure oil prices stay high, and they’re actually going to RAISE gas taxes to make sure gasoline stays affordable only for the “rich.”

So there you have it — Democrats in Congress are working hard, doing everything they possibly can to actually make the economy WORSE than it already is. No, seriously. Why? Because they believe that the worse the economy is, the better chances they have in the fall elections. Sorry, but that’s how politicians operate today. They want to get elected and will quite literally do anything they can, no matter the consequences, if they can just get re-elected and get more power.

What’s the solution? Vote them all out. Vote for a Libertarian. Vote for a non-politician. Don’t vote for lawyers. And yes, I’m aware that many people don’t have that option at all. In that case, just keep your ammo dry (while it’s still legal to own ammo) and wait until the people finally have had enough.

Popularity: 10% [?]

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Are you one of those people who switches radio stations all the time? I am. And I listen to different music depending on my mood at the moment. However, there’s a couple songs that I can *always* listen to, no matter my mood. Here’s one of them:

Lyrics:

Now if youre feelin kinda low bout the dues youve been paying
Futures coming much too slow
And you wanna run but somehow you just keep on stayin
Cant decide on which way to go
Yeah, yeah, yeah

I understand about indecision
But I dont care if I get behind
People livin in competition
All I want is to have my peace of mind.

Now youre climbin to the top of the company ladder
Hope it doesnt take too long
Cantcha you see therell come a day when it wont matter
Come a day when youll be gone

I understand about indecision
But I dont care if I get behind
People li vin in competition
All I want is to have my peace of mind.

Take a look ahead, take a look ahead, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah…

Now everybodys got advice they just keep on givin
Doesnt mean too much to me
Lots of people out to make-believe theyre livin
Cant decide who they should be.

I understand about indecision
But I dont care if I get behind
People li vin in competition
All I want is to have my peace of mind.

Take a look ahead, take a look ahead. look ahead.

Popularity: 12% [?]

Tags: Music // 2 Comments »

Well, why not? After all, that’s why we have courts, right? To determine when and where to kill people — even if the people don’t want to die, even when the people have done nothing wrong, and even when the people have others willing to care for them. This time it’s Lauren Marie Richardson in Delaware. Her mother wants her dead. No, really. The girl is sitting around, minding her own business. The girl isn’t causing anyone any harm. She just needs a little help eating. Her father is completely willing to feed her. Her mother isn’t. So the mother’s gone to court to withhold food from her. How is that not absolutely disgusting? I thought there was a law against killing innocent people. Apparently I was wrong.

Yes, this is similar to the Terry Schiavo case, but I think it’s much worse. Terry was married and one could question that her parents were more important than her husband. In this case, the girl’s own father is willing to take complete care of the girl. The mother says “no.” And we all know how courts rule when there’s a custody battle. By default, the woman wins. And in this case, the court order has been given: Murder Lauren because her mother says so.

And people claim we’re civilized. If this is civilized, I want to go live in a cave.

Popularity: 14% [?]

Tags: Freedom, News, Right and Wrong // 4 Comments »

So, word is that Dr. Dobson “might” endorse John McCain for president. Nice. Dr. Dobson, perhaps your own behavior may help explain why so many people don’t trust Christians today. Behavior like this is what causes people to say, “What’s so good about Christians?” Meanwhile, many people will follow Dr. Dobson — and his lies. I’m sorry, I like Dr. Dobson, but he’s just plain lying when he says:

Barack Obama contradicts and threatens everything I believe about the institution of the family and what is best for the nation. His radical positions on life, marriage and national security force me to reevaluate the candidacy of our only other choice, John McCain.

Dr. Dobson — there ARE more than two choices. And this is exactly the time when an influential leader such as yourself could propel this country into a much better place. This is the time when another candidate, one who matches your values, has the best chance of winning — especially if you would consider the endorsement of a good candidate. If Dr. Dobson endorses McCain, that will be a long-lasting statement saying, “Well, Christians want good things, but we’re perfectly willing to compromise if it means we get to say ‘We Win.’ If we vote for evil people, well that’s just fine because we don’t really have any principles that we won’t compromise on.” Nice job, Dr. Dobson.

Let’s look at the words of Dr. Dobson from just a few months ago:

I’m deeply disappointed the Republican Party seems poised to select a nominee who did not support a Constitutional amendment to protect the institution of marriage, who voted for embryonic stem cell research to kill nascent human beings, who opposed tax cuts that ended the marriage penalty, and who has little regard for freedom of speech, who organized the Gang of 14 to preserve filibusters, and has a legendary temper and often uses foul and obscene language.

…

I cannot, and I will not vote for Sen. John McCain, as a matter of conscience.

…

Should John McCain capture the nomination as many assume, I believe this general election will offer the worst choices for president in my lifetime. I certainly can’t vote for Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama based on their virulently anti-family policy positions. If these are the nominees in November, I simply will not cast a ballot for president for the first time in my life.

And he dares to call any politician a “flip-flopper.” Dr. Dobson? Pot meet kettle.

A quick side note — Dr. Dobson had as a guest on his show who is a Southern Baptist. I wonder, as does Laurence M. Vass, What Happened to Southern Baptists — especially as far as peaceful resolutions to conflict?

But Dr. Dobson claims that there’s no other choice. Perhaps I should send along to Dr. Dobson a few links: Bob Barr is running for president. Why won’t Dr. Dobson support him? His views on liberty and freedom are close to Dr. Dobson’s than McCain’s. Do you suppose Dr. Dobson knows that Chuck Baldwin is running as well? While he’s not on the ticket in a lot of states because of the two evils, you can be sure that Mr. Baldwin is a MUCH better match for Dr. Dobson than anyone else.

So why is Dr. Dobson continuing to imply support for McCain? I suspect it’s because Dr. Dobson is more interested in power and influence than in principles. I would guess that Dr. Dobson doesn’t want to be known for picking someone who didn’t win the election. If Dr. Dobson will accept all that he says is bad about McCain so he can be on the “winning team,” I wonder if he won’t switch over and endorse Obama if it looks like Obama will win. Are there any principles that Dr. Dobson actually holds that aren’t subject to the political winds? It sure doesn’t seem like it.

Popularity: 14% [?]

Tags: 2008 Elections, Official Election Endorsements // 3 Comments »

Hope you’ve got some time this weekend. This musical interlude is about 30 minutes long. In fact, it’s so long that YouTube won’t let people post the entire thing due to file sizes. But it’s a really, really neat song. Here’s the first part, you’ll have to head to YouTube for the other five parts.

Popularity: 17% [?]

Tags: Music // 2 Comments »

Oh sure, go ahead and dismiss this post because of the title. I’m sorry, but it’s true. There are a LOT of people in this world who honestly despise Christians and will do anything they can to destroy everything associated with Christianity (including freedom). And I’m not just talking about the Muslims who want to literally kill every Christian.

In Brasil, you may soon be jailed for reading the Bible. Yup, they don’t like those judgmental people down there in Brazil. Anyone want to defend that one? 5 years in prison for reading the Bible. Anyone?

Oh, I know we’re not that bad here in America. Instead, we’re supposed to hide being Christian. If not, you get fired. No, not for telling gays anything at all. If you simply don’t want to help someone be gay now, you are FIRED. It’s no longer about “accepting” gays — if it ever was — now if you do not openly approve and completely SUPPORT the gay lifestyle, you are not allowed in this country.

I want freedom. I wish the radical gays did, too.

Popularity: 19% [?]

Tags: America, Freedom // Add Comment »

via Kender:

Exercise for People over 40:

Begin your routine by standing on a comfortable surface, where you have plenty of room at each side.

With a 5-lb potato sack in each hand, extend your arms straight out from your sides and hold them there as long as you can. Try to reach a full minute, and then relax.

Each day you’ll find that you can hold this position for just a bit longer.

After a couple of weeks, move up to 10-lb potato sacks. Then try 50-lb potato sacks and eventually work up to where you can lift a 100-lb potato sack in each hand and hold your arms straight for more than a full minute. (I’m currently at this level.)

After you feel confident at that level, put a potato in each of the sacks.

Popularity: 20% [?]

Tags: Silliness // 4 Comments »

A few items caught my eye the past day or so. What do you think?

Did you know that in some places, if you call a member of the American Royalty (that’s a judge) something they don’t like, that you can be jailed for 6 months. Seriously. Call a judge a name and go to jail. I wasn’t aware that insults, especially to alleged public servants, were serious crimes. I guess I was thinking about that “other” America where there’s freedom of speech.

Supposedly this guy pulled down a girl’s shirt. More importantly, what I’d like to know is why a 17-year old girl was “outside” a Buffalo Wild Wings at 1:13am. Anyone? Mom? Dad?

Maybe I’m just paranoid, but am I the only one who thinks it’s incredibly suspicious that the FBI started investigating IndyMac only after the bank failed? It’s just coincidence, I’m sure. It’s got nothing to do with consumer confidence in a corrupt government.

We just passed cost of government day. You did realize that 100% of ALL the money you earned so far this year was to support government, right? Seriously, just think about that. Every single dollar you earned so far this year was to pay for government. Wow. This government really stinks, you know?

And yes, the Democrats still despite freedom. They strongly support high gas prices and will say and do ANYTHING to ensure gas prices get and stay as high as possible. Sorry, that IS what Democrats stand for.

Popularity: 21% [?]

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The Long Pass

By Nancy Matthis at ADMC

Former NFL quarterback and current US Congressman Heath Shuler (D-NC) has thrown a long pass over the heads of Nancy Pelosi and her cohorts. Now we urgently need a firestorm of letters, phone calls, faxes, and emails to Congress to put a receiver in the end zone.

On November 6, 2007 Rep. Shuler introduced the Secure America through Verification and Enforcement (SAVE) Act in Congress as H.R.4088. Shuler explained:
[Read more →]

Popularity: 23% [?]

Tags: Borders // 2 Comments »

Such a musical power, a great musician. Doesn’t know a thing about politics, but I love the old music:

Popularity: 22% [?]

Tags: Music // Add Comment »

“I hope I’ll see your face again baby…”

Thanks to Muslims Against Sharia for putting together a short video on the re-hijacking of Flight 93:

[Read more →]

Popularity: 24% [?]

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So, have you heard the latest from Congress regarding freedom of speech? In a nutshell, Congress, led by Democrats, are saying that if you are a member of Congress, you are not allowed to speak to anyone about anything that happens in the Congress — at least not in electronic form.

It appears that you’re allowed to speak about what happens in Congress, but if you make a blog posting, or put other information on a web site, the Democrats will shut you down. So if you want to explain to your constituents (I know, it’s an outdated concept) what’s happening and why you voted a certain way on a law, you cannot do so via the Internet. If you do, Democrats will actually bring you up on charges.

Despite what the Democrats claim, they want total control. They want to control all access you have to them and their inner workings in Congress. They know that if they are filtered through the formerly mainstream media, that they will only be shown in a good light. They also know that the Internet can show them as they truly are — which is why they so strongly oppose freedom of speech. Sorry, but that IS today’s Democrat Party. Don’t believe me? Watch how bad speech rules will get if Obama wins. After all, Obama wants to create a HUGE internal federal secret police force to enforce his own rules and desires on people.

Popularity: 24% [?]

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I have been trying to explain why the US government is completely and totally wrong and well-beyond it’s Constitutional boundaries regarding the recent economic news. I have been trying to explain that most of the current problems are because of government interference in freedom. I just read a news release from Chris Cole, running for the US Senate on the Libertarian Party ticket in North Carolina (against Liddy Dole (RINO)):

From Christopher Cole, Libertarian for US Senate

I am a collector of antique American currency. Included in my collection - and my personal favorites- are several gold certificates. Most Americans aren’t even aware that we once had bills that bore legends like “20 Dollars in Gold Coin Payable to the Bearer on Demand”. They are especially surprised by their orange back, intended to emphasize their value in gold. (The twenty bears the image of George Washington familiar from our modern one-dollar Federal Reserve Note.)

Why do I mention my collection? Because that twenty-dollar gold certificate was pegged at an exchange value of one ounce of gold. It was worth that ounce the first year, the second year, even ten years after it was printed. What is the price of an ounce of gold now? Over $800. In other words, the value of our currency has fallen more than fortyfold! No wonder the government no longer issues gold certificates, and no wonder our savings rate has fallen to about one-half of one percent. It is against self-interest to hold money that is worth less, the longer you hold on to it.

Thus, we have the setup for our current credit and foreclosure crisis.

When money is saved, its owner intends its use in the future, and the bank uses it to make loans, such as for the creation of new businesses. More savings mean lower interest rates, which in turn send a market signal for businesses and individuals to invest for future demand. The real interest rates based on savings have been replaced by artificial signals from Federal Reserve-set interest rates, along with home- and land-ownership incentives by government. The result has been a market expectation of future increases in demand for homes and land, and thus, a real-estate price bubble. All of which was fine, as long as there was an ACTUAL demand in the future. What has happened is that demand no longer matches the fake interest signal, and the housing bubble has burst.

The solution offered by politicians, such as Republican Senator Elizabeth Dole, is to pump Federal Reserve loans into Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, to finance MORE loans for folks who couldn’t otherwise
qualify for them, setting up ANOTHER housing bubble and MORE foreclosures, not fewer. Quick fixes can always be expected to result in longterm problems.

The longterm solutions are harder. Here are the ones I would institute as Senator:

First, restore the gold standard, so Americans can know that they will not lose their savings to inflation.

Second, phase out government programs that subsidize home ownership. This must include setting a date for the revocation of the charters of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (I suggest four years), so that they will cease sending false market signals, without stranding current buyers and sellers.

And third, abolish the Federal Reserve System, enabling interest rates to float in response to real savings, rather than to government social engineering.

For additional information, I recommend this article from the Ludwig von Mises Institute, an economic think tank based at Auburn University.

–
Christopher Cole
Libertarian nominee, US Senate
Huntersville, NC

Popularity: 26% [?]

Tags: Government, News, North Carolina Government // Add Comment »

Needville school district in Texas has a problem. They have a rule that says boys cannot wear their hair longer than their collar. Why? Well, no one seems to care why, they just have a rule, and they’re not making any exceptions to their rule. They do actually make a claim that boys who have short hair have better attendance records than those with long hair. No really, they do. Of course, since they have a rule that no boys can have long hair, I’m really not sure how they can back up that claim with anything remotely looking like actual evidence.

But of course, that doesn’t matter.

Can you believe that federal courts have already made rules saying that schools can have such directions? Aren’t you so glad to see that your tax dollars are being spent on absolutely critical things — like making rules about hair length of 5-year old boys in schools. But hey, we’ve got rules, so we have to follow them, no matter what. So the school district is saying that the 5-year old in question cannot attend school unless he cuts his hair.

So what if the boy doesn’t attend school? This is Texas, so you know what’s going to happen next — they WILL seize the child and take him from his family. Nope, no one will have done anything wrong, there will be NO court hearings, there will be no juries, no judgments. That’s how justice works in Texas, we have learned. If there’s a child involved, the child is taken first, then, well, whatever the judge wants to happen happens next. I imagine the state will strap the child down and cut his hair. Then they will put him in a foster home away from his parents because, in the eyes of government, the parent is dangerous because she didn’t cut his hair.

This sounds far-fetched, but it is reality today. This story is happening right now to real people. And people claim this is the “land of the free.” What a load.

And the Houston Chronicle, supporting the oppressive government actually claims:

The dispute illustrates a problem American schools have faced for decades: how to balance individual student rights against rules designed to maintain order and discipline in the classroom.

No, no it doesn’t at all. These lunatics are actually claiming that a boy with hair longer than his collar is dangerous! This doesn’t highlight a problem with American schools — it highlights a problem of a government that’s totally out of control. I can solve this “decades”-old problem in 1 second: get government out of the education business. It really is that simple.

Of course, that solution involves freedom and personal responsibility, so there’s just no way the current politicians will EVER allow it to happen. That solution will take money and power out of the hands of bureaucrats and puts it in people — and government simply cannot allow ANY reduction in their power, ever.

I just wish the “reporters” would be honest and report the facts, instead of claiming lies that support more government. But I’m no more likely to get that than I am educational freedom in this country today, am I?

Popularity: 33% [?]

Tags: Education // 21 Comments »