It's Time to Deal with Car Violence

There were over 10,000 deaths caused by cars operated by drunk drivers in 2014. It's time for us to confront the rising tide of car violence plaguing our country. Many of these deaths were caused by cars with automatic transmissions which allows rapid acceleration just by pushing the pedal to the metal without having to manually change gears. We need to ban interstate sales of cars, ban the manufacture of cars with automatic transmissions, and require background checks of all persons engaged in private sales. We need to close the car show loophole now! We don't need to ban cars, but we do need some "common sense" laws. My thoughts and prayers go out to all the victims of this senseless car violence. Thank you.

WHY AMERICA IS HEADED DOWN THE WRONG TRACK

WHY AMERICA IS HEADED DOWN THE WRONG TRACK

A few years back my wife sent me an email thread that she'd been having with my accountant at the time.  He was an excellent CPA, but until I read their exchange, I had no idea what an uber-Liberal and Obama sycophant he was.  Like most knee jerk Progressives, my opposition to Obama's policies was seen as racist.  I felt compelled to respond.  Below is my response to my former CPA. 

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Dear Mikey:

Carole sent me the “thread” you two have written to each other.  I just want to interject my thoughts at this point.  First of all, if we’re going to have any discussion of a political nature, it has to be an honest one.  I frankly thought it was a cheap shot to ask Carole if Obama were “evil”.  It’s a non relevant question that doesn’t advance the conversation.  It’s a diversion.  Just like questions of Obama’s citizenship are a diversion.  In the meantime, the private sector is being crushed, jobs are being destroyed, and the country is going bankrupt.  How dare you suggest that her legitimate concerns, and mine as well, are driven by “anger”.  Again, another distraction from the truth. 

Just because I and Carole may not favor a government controlled, centralized, top-down health care system, doesn’t translate into throwing the sick, sore, lame, and disabled into the street to starve or freeze to death.  Your tacit argument that says “anything” is better than what we had, is intellectually lazy. Sure things needed reform, but not replacement.  The same private employer-based system of insurance you abhor somehow managed to produce the highest level of health care treatment for its citizens, and a life span that increased year to year. Now what have we got?  A bureaucracy  larger than anything we’ve ever seen that  seizes property from its citizens without their consent; dictates the level of care that can be provided and what treatment you may or may not be allowed to have; and adds ten trillion dollars to the debt while destroying MediCare.  Your well intended compassion produced a bill that was produced by the most corrupt political process in modern times, in the middle of the night, with no transparency.  One thing I have to say positive about Nancy Pelosi is that at least she doesn’t try to hide how dopey she is.  She puts it right out there...”we have to pass the bill before we find out what’s in it.”  If ObamaCare is so damn good, why is this administration granting hundreds if not thousands of waivers?  Who is benefiting from those waivers and who’s going to pay for them?

As for your comments about those terrible bankers and arbitragers, I’d suggest you do some reading about “crony capitalism”.  Then you’ll know why the same people from Goldman Sachs that Bush the Devil relied on permeate this administration at all levels.  Hey, how about the deal that Jeff Imelt and GE got?  $15B and no taxes.  While we’re at it, let’s let the government take over the country’s largest car maker and screw the bond holders in the process, reversing over 100 years of bankruptcy law.  Fantastic. And now the government wants to sell its GM stock at a loss of billions of dollars to the taxpayers.  Can you say U.A.W. health and welfare trust?  Our Punk in Chief in our present miserable economic climate doesn’t have any problem rewarding his union buddies by having the NLRB sue Boeing to prevent their expansion, and creation of over a thousand new jobs in South Carolina.  And where was Obama when the Communists, Socialists, and Unionists took over the capitol building in Wisconsin?  Did he condemn the vile language and death threats?  Did he blink an eye when the “protesters” wreaked over a million dollars in damages, and defaced a memorial to veterans?  Nope, no way Jose`.  But he can step out in front of a microphone during an official press conference and refer to American citizens as “tea-baggers”.  Ask one of your friends in the gay community what a tea-bagger means.

Since we’re on the subject, don’t ya think that was just wonderful shutting down the whole gulf oil drilling and exploration?  While you’re at it, do some more research into how many jobs were actually destroyed now, and permanently because of that?  But don’t let that stop the insanity.  Let’s loan $2B to Brazil to drill in the gulf where American companies are forbidden to drill from.  How’s that $4+/gal gasoline working out for you?  And don’t tell me it’s “speculators” driving up the cost of oil.  It’s the Federal Reserve monetizing our currency that is the “peg” for oil prices worldwide that is resulting in the hike. Yep, it’s the economy stupid.  Bush may have signed onto TARP (a total failure) but your boy Obama supported it too.  Then of course he had his own stimulus which as we all now see was another smashing failure. He promised that if we gave him a couple of trillion dollars he’d solve  all our problems (even those caused by Bush).  He also promised several times that he’d “cut the deficit in half by the end of his first term”.  He’ll say anything he needs to say even if it’s the exact opposite of what he is actually doing. 

 

Oh yeah, and how’s that Libya thing going?  “Splain me Lucy” why we give $25M to rebels who may have significant links with Al Queda.  If we went into Libya to prevent the massacre of innocents, why aren’t we rushing to the aid of the really courageous people rebelling in Syria or Iran? 

And for God’s sake, stop blaming Bush.  All you touchy-feely liberals never take responsibility for your actions.  Lot’s of world leaders including Bush honestly believed there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.  Did you forget that Hussein had used them on his own people?  And what happened to the thousand of liters of weaponized  anthrax your beloved UN said he had?  At least Bush went to Congress before he went to war.  I don’t recall Obama following the Constitution when he went into Libya.

You want to know why I am angry?  It’s not because Obama is half white. I look around after almost two years, and from what I see, I know the country is NOT going in the right direction.  And I look at this administration and I see card carrying Communists, Unionists and socialists who attack this country every day, including our military, and our citizens.  May I suggest you do some research on some of the past and present presidential aides, advisers, and “czars”.  Van Jones, Cass Sunstein, Valerie Jarret, Richard Trumpka, Andy Stern, Rev. Wright, Bill Ayers.  All I see is Obama running around telling the whole world that America is a bad place and that we really need to change things.  I will tell you what I believe and why I am deeply opposed to Obama.  I believe Obama is a punk.  He’s an angry community organizer that was mentored by Communists in his youth (read his auto biography) and continued to purposefully surround  himself with “revolutionaries”.  He is a ruthless thug.  He is a vicious political operative.  He plays the race card, gender card, religion card, and class card anytime he finds it advantageous.  He seeks to coercively re-distribute income based on his own conceptions of fairness.  Just listen to what he told “Joe the Plumber”. He insults the Supreme Court which is supposed to be a co-equal branch of government in his State of the Union address.  He has no respect for the Constitution and has publicly expressed his resentment that the Constitution is a limitation on the powers of government to act. This is an administration that can’t call a Muslim army officer who yells “Allah akbar” and kills and wounds dozens of soldiers and people a terrorist.  And he equates immigrants who came to this country through Ellis Island, with those who sneak across the border.

I wouldn’t calI Obama “evil” just as I wouldn’t call Karl Marx or Friedrich Engels evil. But I do believe he’s destroying the country I love.  He told us he’s going to “fundamentally transform America”.  I will do anything within law to stop him from accomplishing that goal. 

So my friend, you can continue to fiddle while Rome burns.  Continue drinking the Kool-Aid and buy the propaganda that anything the present administration and Obama does is just fine.  Not me.  Just don’t confuse my or Carole’s resistance and opposition to the policies of Barry Soetoro as something shallow, misguided, or racist.

Love,

Ricky

Why we need cops and guns

I find it quite disturbing that there seems to be two very ugly trends taking place right now.  The first is a coordinated attack on local police departments.  This is accomplished by community organizing activities often with the guidance of professional agitators, that casts all police departments as being racist or engaging in racial profiling. To make things worse, the DOJ then is either called in to investigate and take control or they just decide to do it themselves.  The second ugly trend is an all out attack on the Second Amendment.  This administration has signed international trade agreements and treaties that call for outright disarmament of civilian populations. The President has indicated he will act in accordance with these agreements with or without Senate approval.  Within the last week, using his pen, and the obsequious and powerful federal agencies at his disposal, regulations have been issued which severely impact an individual's’ exercise of their constitutional rights.  So you may ask “Why is this happening?”  The answer is rather straightforward.  The administration has less than two years left to accomplish the “fundamental transformation” of America.  In order to achieve its goal of complete, central, and authoritarian power in that time, the people must be rendered defenseless.  And there you have it.  Destroy local police departments and take away everyone’s firearms. 

RINO Treachery Post-Mortem

By Rick Fineberg

June 1, 2015

It's bad enough that the Nevada Legislature just approved the largest tax hike in history, now I just heard on the radio that they're thinking of raising the minimum wage after previously refusing to do so.

Honestly folks, I can't tell the difference anymore between the Progressive Socialists aka Democrats and the establishment donor class Republicans. I do have more respect for the Democrats because they don't try to hide who they are. On the other hand we have a number of RINO hypocrites running around and campaigning to get elected that they're the "most conservative" politicians who will uphold the principles of free markets, limited government, and individual liberty. They profess to be ardent supporters of the Second Amendment. They champion their support for less regulation on business and that they will "sunset" temporary taxes. They bloviate about the dangers of enacting margin taxes that will be job killers.

To put it mildly, they were all less than truthful.

If the Governor had asked for your vote so that he could raise your taxes by $1.5 billion, would you have voted for him? Did he tell you when he first ran for office that he'd be all in for ObamaCare, that he'd be all in for the expansion of Medicaid, and that he'd push Common Core down your throats?

When Pat Hickey ran for the Assembly, did he tell you he would author a bill that would give drivers' licenses to illegal aliens? Did he tell you that he'd vote to extend taxes which were promised to sunset three times, and then vote to make those tax increases permanent?

Did Greg Brower tell you that he would run his committee just like Harry Reid and prevent bills like campus carry from even getting a hearing?

Did John Hambrick warn you that he'd do a complete about face and break almost every promise he'd made?

There's a great deal of anger at what has just happened in our legislature, and I share that anger. It's justifiable anger too. These turncoat politicians are clearly tone deaf to the will of the people who rejected higher taxes just last November by an 80% margin. What's even worse is that just like POTUS, they demonstrate an almost psychopathic narcissism and arrogance about their actions. In a kind of disconnect from reality, they cloak their treachery with claims that are patently false. With a straight face they proclaimed that the increase payroll and modified business taxes "wouldn't be harmful". But perhaps the most dangerous and yet subtle canard is that these tax hikes are "needed", and that we have to provide more funding for "the children".

Our State Controller, Ron Knecht and Assemblyman Jim Wheeler took up the Governors' challenge and proposed an alternative budget that would not have increased taxes at all. And if you go back and look at newspapers from the last 30 years, you'll find the education establishment during each and every election cycle whining that they need more tax dollars.

All I can say is no more excuses. Hold on to your anger. Don't forget this betrayal. Make sure every politician who broke their promise to you on these very important issues is challenged when they run for election again. Never believe anything they say again. Never contribute to them. Write letters to your newspapers expressing your disgust with these politicians for what they have done, and also when homes are lost, businesses close, and people lose their jobs.

Most importantly, talk to your neighbors and strangers every chance you get and educate them. Inform them of the issues and how they will be affected. Remind them how important it is to vet candidates for office and look at their records and actions and not just listen to their empty rhetoric.

Thanks for allowing me to vent my frustration. I feel a little better now. God bless us all.

SECOND AMENDMENT: THE LAST STAND AGAINST TOTAL "TRANSFORMATION"

First, they came for your healthcare (ACA).  Then they came for your children (Common Core).  Now they control all communications (Net Neutrality) and the only thing standing in the way of a complete "transformation" of America is the Second Amendment. The Rule of Law was thrown out the window today when the path for confirmation of Loretta Lynch was cleared to become the new AG.   The onslaught against your right to keep and bear arms is already well underway with executive orders limiting importation of certain firearms, banning commonly used ammunition for over 40 years, and pressuring financial institutions to deny credit and other services to firearms dealers.  This is happening because there is no effective political opposition to anything that is done by the President with his cellphone and his pen.  He actually doesn't even have to sign an executive order.  He can simply signal to his sycophants in every major administrative agency that they should enact or modify their regulations in order to accomplish his proclamations.  Shame on every politician who campaigned on the promise that they would do everything within their power to change course and get us back on track to being a Constitutional Republic.  You lied, plain and simple and all of your "double speak" will not alter that fact.  We are at this terrible place in our country's history because you enabled fascism to take root.  You have remained silent in the face of evil.

We Need True Leadership

There's been a lot of talk lately about "leadership" and whether or not our elected representatives are demonstrating it.  What exactly does leadership mean?   

Let me start by giving you my definition of leadership. For me, leadership is an act. It is a decision to take a stand in order to encourage, inspire or motivate others to move with you. What's more, the most effective leaders do not rely on their title, or power, to lead. Rather it is the assertion of their personal character combined with their use of strategic influence that makes them effective leaders. This implies of course that there is a platform from which to lead.  The support for that platform comes from our values and beliefs. For the true leader there is a defined goal, and the ability to lead others in achieving it.  For our political leaders the goal is established by communicating with the electors.  A leader listens to the People.  A leader finds out what works and what doesn't work and fashions  policies that will advance the general well being of the citizenry.  Most importantly a real leader acts to the best of his ability to fulfill the promises made to the people who elected him.

So do you think that we are getting any leadership from our elected representatives?  

I don't think we are, and increasingly large numbers of people don't think so either. The reason for this disappointment in our elected politicians is that they campaign on promises that they don't keep. Through several election cycles candidates for office have been making very specific promises in order to deal with very specific issues. This isn't simply promising that you will work to create jobs, or improve the economy, or reform our immigration policy.

By way of illustration, let me mention just 25 broken promises made to the country by our President:

1. If you like your health insurance plan, you can keep it.

2. If you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor.

3. This administration is the most transparent, ever.

4. Our borders are more secure now than ever.

5. My executive orders are just what Reagan and Bush did.

6. Benghazi was a reaction to an anti-Muslim internet video.

7. Your health insurance premiums are going to be reduced by $2500 per year.

8. There's not a smidgeon of corruption at the IRS.

9. Bill Ayers is just some guy I met in the neighborhood.

10. Jonathan Gruber? Never heard of him.

11. We've defeated core Al Qaeda, and ISIS is a JV basketball team.

12. America is not a Christian country.

13. America is not exceptional.

14. I won't have any lobbyists in my administration.

15. There's nobody more outraged about the VA abuse than me.

16. All healthcare negotiations will be broadcast on C-SPAN.

17. I'll reduce the deficit by 50% before the end of my first year in office.

18. The border fence is "basically" complete.

19. I did not set a "red line". The world set it.

20. We've got shovel-ready jobs all across America to be funded.

21. The NSA is completely transparent and doesn't collect data on citizens.

22. Before I sign a bill I will post it online for 5 days.

23. I will not support the Patriot Act.

24. I will close Guantanamo Bay.

25. I promise to defend the Constitution from all enemies foreign and domestic.

There is a disconnect between the professional political class and the voters. We have been lied to plain and simple. The people have lost trust with their elected representatives. All of this is very dangerous because it represents a failure of the political system. And once the people feel the political system has failed, apathy sets in and history teaches us that chaos and revolution is not far behind.

In the last several election cycles, the voters have sent a very clear messages to Congress. We have said we don't want our taxes raised. We have said that we want Obama-care to be stopped by any means possible including de-funding and outright repeal. We have demanded that before citizenship rights are extended to those criminally entering the country, we should strengthen our borders.  We demanded new leadership in Congress.  We want those bad actors who commit crimes to be held accountable. 

In last November's election we told our representatives loud and clear, we want you to oppose Obama's policies.  We did not tell our representatives we want you to compromise where compromise means giving something up and getting nothing in return. We did not tell them to increase the size of government and raise the deficit to $18 trillion. We did not tell them to abdicate their legislative role and grant law-like regulatory powers to gargantuan bureaucracies. We didn't tell them we want to have our business taxes raised, have service fees imposed, and endure crushing regulations imposed upon us that diminish our freedom and opportunity.  We didn't tell them we need to nationalize our healthcare system and do the same with our educational system via Common Core.  And we certainly didn't tell them that it was ok to pretend the Constitution doesn't really apply to them, because they're smarter, they know better, and are morally superior to you and me. 

But, that's exactly what happened. When House Speaker John Boehner had the opportunity to do so, he didn't put an end to Obama care, he fully funded it.  After saying he would fight to block executive amnesty, he funded that too.  Right after the election, Mitch McConnel, the Senate Majority Leader, trotted out to a microphone to announce that he was "ready to work" with Obama. Whenever an opportunity arose to show any kind of leadership on the budget, the borders, even national security, the leaders in both the House and Senate took every tool in their arsenal out of play by promising that impeachment was off the table; there would be no government shutdown;  it's impossible to undo ObamaCare;  and that we are really not going to be able to do much about executive amnesty after all. 

Unfortunately, we face the same disconnect between our politicians and We the People right here in Nevada.  In his recent State of the State address, Gov. Sandoval broke virtually every campaign promise he made when he first ran for office in 2010.  In his campaign literature

the governor promised to:

1.      Balance the budget and solve the budget deficit in 2010 without raising taxes.

2.     Cut runaway spending by fighting to pass state spending caps that would rein in government  spending.

3.     Stop job killing tax increases that will kill Nevada jobs and weaken our ability to compete for new business.

4.     Reduce government bureaucracy because I'm a true conservative who believes in limited government and that limited government is the best government and I will fight for states' rights.

5.      End illegal immigration.  I oppose any plan that encourages or excuses illegal immigration and I support  the Arizona immigration law. From amnesty to driver's licenses for illegal immigrants Brian Sandoval says not now, not ever.  (Even I had to reread this one!)

6.      Protect Nevada values.  Gov. Sandoval opposes gay marriage and will work to preserve the definition of marriage as the union of one man and one woman.

It is apparent that in Carson City we now have a well-connected corporate sponsored statist, bureaucratic, top-down, donor class gang of politicians more concerned about getting reelected than they are about the effects of their failed policies upon the citizens of Nevada.  Like John McCain in Arizona, the RINOs in our own Assembly have purged important leadership positions of conservatives. 

We don't have to accept this kind of government. The early founders of our great country who wrote the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution had a different vision. They too were facing an intrusive, oppressive bureaucracy and a tax burden that crushed liberty and opportunity. And now it is time for us to return to that same vision of individual freedom, economic opportunity, and a government that protects property rights.

It is time "We the People" make it clear that we will no longer tolerate business as usual. We need to remind the politicians that have been elected, that they are our servants. Remind them of their campaign promises.  Let them know that there are no more excuses. Tell them where the lines have been drawn and that if they step over the line they're finished.  Let them know they will be challenged in every primary. Tell them that where possible, you will seek their removal from office. Write and call their office.  Write letters to the editor in support of your views and call out these politicians for their blatant hypocrisy. 

In the future it is vitally important that we elect true conservatives who believe in limited government, constitutional governance, no new taxes, and free markets unfettered by burdensome regulation. We need people to run for office who can be trusted to do what they say and not just give lip service to conservative principles. We need to elect people who have shown that they take their guidance from our Constitution. 

If we do this, we are fulfilling our responsibilities as citizens and voters and we might even have a shot at electing "true leaders".

We don't need no education !

I turned on my radio for some background noise today and found myself listening to one of those public interest radio shows about Nevada.  This show happened to feature a panel of northern Nevada's   "finest high school students" from varying disciplines.  Asked what issues were important to them and what they wanted to talk about, the topics of immigration, foreign policy, and school dress codes and gender equality were mentioned.

Now I do want to say up front that from what I heard, these are bright kids.  But in a very short time it also became quite clear to me that they'd never taken a course in logic, and there was no indication in any of their answers that they were capable of critical thought.

As different students voiced their opinions on these and other topics, all I heard was the parroting of several radical-Left, progressive memes.

The influence of the "Blame America" crowd was on full display as these high school students portrayed the United States as blatantly racist, with a poor record towards women, minorities, and immigrants.  Our greatness was achieved only through exploitation and conquest. We're now reaping what we have sown.

All of our modern problems with terrorism today are only because we have inserted our military into the affairs of other countries the world over.  A young lady remarked "we need to understand (empathize) and cooperate with our enemies" because there is no military solution to anything,

On immigration, everyone thought it terribly unfair that there were legal and economic impediments to the ability of a poor, uneducated person just stepping across the border and becoming a citizen.  A male student said: "I heard some people say they want to have a 50 caliber machine gun on the border and just shoot anything that moves." Some one please tell this guy what a "straw man argument" is.  Oh, and in case you didn't know, "Immigrants do the jobs that Americans won't."

It was after hearing a student panelist wonder if dress codes were discriminatory and may have a disparate impact on females that I had to turn the radio off.

Really?   I feel sorry for these students.  I don't think they're getting any bang for their bucks, energy, time or effort.  They are being robbed of their future because our schools are not instilling skills or values that will be the tools for their future success.

If this is what an education today means, "we don't need none of it."

    

Does the GOP have a future?

Immediately after the first leadership team was ELECTED in the Nevada Republican Assembly Caucus, Gov. Sandoval tweeted that "our team is in place" and expressed his desire to work with them and "get going".

This ugly chaos could have been nipped in the bud if the Governor would have stood by his comments and expressed confidence in his "team".  Instead in the most disdainful and cowardly manner, he stepped back while the donor-class Republicans made their move to purge any conservative from a leadership role in the Assembly. When confronted with the situation, Gov. Sandoval meekly distanced himself from the whole sordid affair by stating this was a "legislative concern", and not something he would be commenting upon.

Hmm, never stopped him before.

Here in Nevada as in Washington, DC, Republicans have joined with Democrats to destroy any political influence that people who believe in lower taxes, smaller government, less regulation, and more personal freedom might have.

This is an enormous mistake for the Republican Party.

I've previously posted comments by pollster Pat Cadell who states he's never seen a political party so alienated from its base. He wonders if today's Republican party may go the way of the Whigs.

The "base" of the Republican party is large, expressed its will last November. They are very angry at what they see going on, and the infantile retaliation already being meted out by the donor-class Republicans against those who would challenge their orthodoxy. I predict the "base" is not going to be fooled again. They will not forget.

If you want to see the lowest voter turnout in history, just run Hillary Clinton and Jeb Bush in 2016.