And now there are four

Don't Steal - The Government Hates Competition

I heard local radio talk show host/Ron Paul hater on the radio this morning bemoaning the fact the Dr. Paul has passed no significant legislation during his 10 terms in Congress. Although Dr. Paul has passed little or no 'significant' legislation, that is more of an indictment of Paul's fellow Republicans than of Dr. Paul because he has introduced lots of significant legislation. It is all available for you to browse at the Library of Congress. It is telling of the supposed "conservatives" in the Republican party that most of the legislation introduced by Dr. Paul languishes in committee, dying a slow death.

Recent legislation introduced by Ron Paul includes H.J. RES.23 which would repeal the 16th amendment (that is the income tax for those of you educated in government schools). The income tax provides approximately half of the federal budget. I believe that the nation can survive with the government the size it was in 1994. And if turns out to be such a bad idea, I'm sure there will be plenty of politicians (Democrats and Republicans alike) ready to 'pass significant legislation' and recoup the government's losses.

H.J. RES.46 would end birthright citizenship for the children of illegal aliens. Sounds like a good idea to me. Of course the Republican party is afraid of offending the Hispanic voters (who are going to vote democrat anyway).

Finally, H.R 1094 would establish human life at conception, redefining personhood and effectively ending abortion. If the Republicans really wanted to end abortion they would all be behind this legislation. But the Republican establishment doesn't want to end abortion, because then they would no longer have it as a campaign issue. And the Republican establishment know that the sheep that fill church pews every Sunday morning (the people who do care about ending abortion) are going to vote Republican regardless. You would think that the evangelicals would finally wake up and figure it out. But I don' see it happening.

Anyway, maybe we should have a 10-year moratorium on all legislation. The federal budget has grown from $1.9 trillion in 2001 to $2.9 trillion in 2008 and that does not include the cost of our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. That is a 50% increase in 7 years. The federal debt has increased from $5.7 trillion to $9 trillion since the "conservative" Bush took office. That is $11,000 thousand dollars of additional debt for every man, woman and child in America. The US military budget is larger than the rest of the world's military budgets combined. To quote Pat Buchanan, "We are thus in the position of having to borrow from Europe to defend Europe, of having to borrow from China and Japan to defend Chinese and Japanese access to Gulf oil, and of having to borrow from Arab emirs, sultans and monarchs to make Iraq safe for democracy." I believe it is immoral to leave our children and grandchildren to bear this burden because someday the bill will come due. Obscene is the only way that I can describe it.

Wake up, vote Ron Paul and end the madness.

And then there were five

Happy Confederate Heroes Day

Could there be anything more politically incorrect? I'm sure our Yankee cousins north of the Mason-Dixon line recoil in horror, but here in Texas Confederate Heroes Day is an official state holiday. Confederate Heroes Day combines the celebration of Robert E. Lee's and Jefferson Davis's birthdays. I'll be firing up the grill this evening in honor of the holiday and as a thumb in the eye to political correctness.

A Nation of Sheep

"If our fear of terror makes us give up the rights that make us free, then the terrorists have won." Judge Andrew Napolitano

In "A Nation of Sheep", Judge Andrew Napolitano reminds us that "Government is not our friend". The book was a quick read at only 180 pages, but presents a well-documented laundry list of government abuses that should be enough to enrage any American. Unfortunately, as long as the government's boot is on someone else's neck the American people are content with bread and circuses; and hence the title of the book. Judge Napolitano divides the American people into two categories - sheep and wolves. And the overwhelming majority of Americans are sheep; which does not bode well for our country.

Judge Napolitano's point of view is based on his belief that "natural law" is the basis for our freedoms and liberty and that the Constitution is the guarantor of our rights. Like the Founding Fathers, Napolitano believes that men are "endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights". Our liberties and rights are not granted to us by the government and they are not the governments to take away. Taking away our rights is a violation of the natural law and is unjust (and should be resisted). The Judge explains that there is an opposing camp known as positivists who believe that the law (whatever that may be), and ultimately the lawmaker, is almighty. This "might equals right" philosophy breeds totalitarianism. President Bush pays lip service to natural law, but actions speak louder than words and Napolitano presents plenty of examples of Bush's accumulation of power at the expense of the liberty of American citizens. Napolitano pulls no punches in his attacks on the lawlessness, or at least casual disregard of the law, of the Bush administration (you can be guaranteed that Napolitano did not receive a Christmas card from Bush).

Napolitano describes how Bush administration propagandists have created a "culture of fear" and the government has used the premise of our "national security" as the excuse for a litany of abuses; including speech suppression, state secrets privileges, National Security Letters, illegal domestic surveillance, the suspension of habeas corpus, and on and on...

I was amused to see the endorsements for the book from Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity on the book cover jacket. Since their praise for the book is not consistent with their daily recitation of Bush administration talking points I assume that they did not actually read the book before recommending it. Anyway, maybe their recommendation of the book will attract and open the eyes of an otherwise unreceptive audience.

Don't be a sheep. Read the book. I'll loan it to you.

Who's Missing?

Race At A Glance

Total Primary Votes:	Romney	McCain	Huckabee	Giuliani	Thompson
Iowa	29,494	15,559	40,841	4,097	15,904
New Hampshire	75,202	88,447	26,760	20,387	2,884
Total	104,696	104,006	67,601	24,484	18,788
Total Delegates:	30	10	21	1	6

The graphic above is from hughhewitt.com. The "conservative" pundits and the MSM, from Fox News (fair and balanced my a%&) to Hugh Hewitt, have adopted the same strategy. They all think that if they ignore Ron Paul he will go away.

I am a realist and realize that Dr. Paul's chances of winning the Republican nomination are slim to none. However, take a look at the graphic revised to include Paul, and decide for yourself whether Ron Paul should be excluded from coverage. Note that his vote totals outnumber those of both Benito and Fred, yet they are both regarded as contenders.

Total Primary Votes: Romney McCain Huck Paul Rudy Fred Iowa 29,494 15,559 40,841 11,817 4,097 15,904 NH 75,202 88,447 26,760 18,267 20,387 2,884 Total 104,696 104,006 67,601 30,084 24,484 18,788 Total Delegates: 30 10 21 2 1 6

Update: Fred's done.

Mitt Romney is Mr. Wonderful

I had a revelation yesterday during a slow moment at the office. It was nothing earth shattering, but I came to the realization that Mitt Romney is Mr. Wonderful.
Of course Hugh Hewitt, with his odd case of man love for Romney, could have told me all along that Mitt and Mr. Wonderful are one in the same.

Notice the resemblance. Both of them cut a striking figure. And both of them are full of crap. Romney will say anything just to get a little advantage over his political opponents, and Mr. Wonderful will say anything just to get a little.

Iowa

The results from Iowa were respectable for Dr. Paul , who garnered nearly 10% of the vote. I was hoping against the odds that Paul would finish in the top three. Although placing fifth, only 3-4 points out of third behind Fred and McCain, keeps Paul in the hunt.

Really though, what do the Iowa caucus results portend. After all, Pat Robertson finished second in Iowa in 1988, ahead of George Bush (41). And for that matter, Pat Buchanan won the New Hampshire primary in 1996. Super Tuesday (February 5) is the day that matters, with over 20 states holding primaries in a single day. Fortunately, Ron Paul's faithful supporters have donated enough money ($19.5 million in the 3rd quarter) to keep him in the race until then. By the way, you can make a donation to the campaign at RonPaul2008.com.