Tuesday – November 30, 2010
Who’s doing what to whom?
In 1782, on this date in Paris, representatives from the United States and the Kingdom of Great Britain signed preliminary peace articles that would end the war for America’s independence from England.
During the Revolutionary War, we fought and we spied. Britain also fought and they also spied. After the war, we became allies and we still spied on each other. We knew the activity was going on and it was mutually respected by both sides. It was respected and it was necessary to keep the peace.
Yesterday, our Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton gave a scripted and unemotional response to the leaked State Department documents on Wikileaks. Yesterday, the President said he was freezing the salaries of some 2 million civilian federal employees. That action will save over five billion dollars over five years. He said nothing in response to the Wikileaks episode of leaking sensitive state department files. Yesterday, the Attorney General gave a scripted response, saying that the Justice Department will see if any laws were broken and if they were, he would take the necessary response against Wikileaks and the perpetrators.
If I were a betting man, I would say that Hillary will take the fall. Eric Holder will come up with some legal precedent that will not allow the U.S. to prosecute Julian Asange of Wikileaks and the President will get his wish of Hillary being marginalized. But then, I am not a betting man.
In the days of our revolution, our nation was united. We knew who the enemy was and we knew who was an ally. We didn’t necessarily go out of our way to offend and embarrass each other.
I don’t necessarily live in the days of revolution, but I think there are lessons to be learned. In the days leading up to this administration, there was a felling that the office of the presidency was something to fear or at best something to consider. In the days leading up to this administration, our Secretary of State seemed to have a handle on things. There was respect and there was a feeling of fear. In the days leading up to this administration, there was a feeling that the Attorney General was able to fight a legal question on the merits and the severity of the offense. There was a sense of fear.
In the days of the Revolution, Washington was feared, especially after he crossed the Delaware on Christmas morning in 1776. During the American Revolutionary War, it was the first move in a planned surprise attack organized by George Washington against the Hessian forces in Trenton, New Jersey. If you remember, I devoted my FORUM to this last year.
We want a President to show outrage, like George Bush did on that fateful day in New York City when he said, “I here you and those who knocked down these buildings will hear from all of us soon.” This was a seminal moment in the Bush administration and in American history. The President missed his seminal moment yesterday. He had a moment in history when he could have said many things, but didn’t. China has blocked Wikileaks via a firewall and other countries have now taken action to cover their tracks as well. Julian Asange is still alive, but cannot be found to answer for his actions.
The material that was leaked jeopardizes many relationships. The material that was leaked demonstrates the fundamental problem of this administration. They are naive and are not ready for prime time. They have the scars of battle that now show, because they are not healing. Like the Presidents lip with visible stitches it will leave a scar. Unlike Washington, who led his military across a river in the dark of winter, he came out on the other side victorious and without a scar. He, too, had his seminal moment and recognized that something bold had to be done to save the country.
The leaks that have appeared on Wikileaks have happened on this President’s watch. It has happened on the Secretary of States watch and the Attorney Generals watch. Each one of these people has said, at one time or another, we have to have a shared sacrifice. What we are seeing now is that the sacrifice that is being shared is by us and not the ones who are responsible. But then again, the word responsible seems to roll off their backs and on to us.
Our Foreign Policy is something we should all be aware of. We rely on our elected officials to oversee the efforts of every administration official. George Washington, in his farewell address, spoke about the importance of Foreign Policy and the importance of what strong and even relations would mean to the future success of the country. The breakdown of strong relations begins with the 500,000 people who have daily access to State Department and Governmental records, all of which have varying degrees of clearance. All total there are over three million governmental officials who also have access. Anyone of these people can leak the information that is now in the public domain. However, in this case there was only one a Private in the military.
The President, the Secretary of State and the Attorney General are also three more that could have done this. We know they didn’t, but they are still responsible!
In the days of our Revolution a battle for the heart and soul of the nation was being fought. Secrets were kept and a system was devised to secure information when it was needed. Our enemies now know many secrets and more so - who is doing what to whom!
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: As I see it a simple system works best. Washington knew a strong and fair handed approach to Foreign Policy was essential to the nation’s success. He also knew that information should not be shared with just anyone.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Monday, November 29, 2010
Secrets, secrets and more secrets, what happened on this date in 1775?
Monday – November 29, 2010
Secrets, secrets and more secrets, what happened on this date in 1775?
The inside secrets are out. Wikileaks released national security secrets on their website that are now causing a global diplomatic crisis. Julian Asange, the man behind Wikileaks, is a threat and is jeopardizing America’s National Security. Every American citizen should be calling for the President to sign an executive order to disable his website.
The leaks give a profile of State Department activities and secret correspondence by our State Department, and military officials to other officials in other countries around the world.
For example: a sampling of the 251,000 documents that have been released have Saudi Arabian officials calling for the U.S. to “cut the head of the snake off”. This is in reference to Iran’s growing nuclear program that is now threatening the region.
These leaks should call for great concern, not only here, but abroad. These leaks will cause distrust at the highest levels of friendly governments. These secrets will cause governments that are paranoid to act on their paranoia.
Julian Asange says that the leaks he has released in the past have not “caused any deaths.” My fear is that these leaks will in the future cause deaths when one government acts against another, because of some misperception in diplomatic circles.
********
The acts of Diplomacy and of keeping secrets, secret date back to the beginning of our country. This activity is crucial for the protection of our citizens and the free world. Oddly enough if we go back in history we will see that - on this date in 1775 - The Committee of Secret Correspondence was created by the Second Continental Congress. It reads:
Secrets, secrets and more secrets, what happened on this date in 1775?
The inside secrets are out. Wikileaks released national security secrets on their website that are now causing a global diplomatic crisis. Julian Asange, the man behind Wikileaks, is a threat and is jeopardizing America’s National Security. Every American citizen should be calling for the President to sign an executive order to disable his website.
The leaks give a profile of State Department activities and secret correspondence by our State Department, and military officials to other officials in other countries around the world.
For example: a sampling of the 251,000 documents that have been released have Saudi Arabian officials calling for the U.S. to “cut the head of the snake off”. This is in reference to Iran’s growing nuclear program that is now threatening the region.
These leaks should call for great concern, not only here, but abroad. These leaks will cause distrust at the highest levels of friendly governments. These secrets will cause governments that are paranoid to act on their paranoia.
Julian Asange says that the leaks he has released in the past have not “caused any deaths.” My fear is that these leaks will in the future cause deaths when one government acts against another, because of some misperception in diplomatic circles.
********
The acts of Diplomacy and of keeping secrets, secret date back to the beginning of our country. This activity is crucial for the protection of our citizens and the free world. Oddly enough if we go back in history we will see that - on this date in 1775 - The Committee of Secret Correspondence was created by the Second Continental Congress. It reads:
RESOLVED, That a committee of five would be appointed for the sole purpose of corresponding with our friends in Great Britain, and other parts of the world, and that they lay their correspondence before Congress when directed;
RESOLVED, That this Congress will make provision to defray all such expenses as they may arise by carrying on such correspondence, and for the payment of such agents as the said Committee may send on this service.
Another law that was written is the Espionage Act it reads: The US defines espionage towards itself as "The act of obtaining, delivering, transmitting, communicating, or receiving information about the national defense with an intent, or reason to believe, that the information may be used to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of any foreign nation. Black's Law Dictionary (1990) defines espionage as: "...gathering, transmitting, or losing...information related to the national defense". Espionage is a violation of United States law, 18 U.S.C. § 792–798 and Article 106 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice".[4] The United States, like most nations, conducts espionage against other nations, under the control of the National Clandestine Service. Britain's espionage activities are controlled by the Secret Intelligence Service.
I believe that the level at which these documents were released rises to espionage. Earlier this year, a private in the military, Bradley Manning, performed a data dump. In other words, he stole these sensitive documents and released them to Wikieaks. The private is in custody and is facing serious charges. This does not rectify what has happened with the release by Julian Asange. My question is where his funding is coming from and what enemies of the U.S. might be supporting him now?
As we are facing another show down in the Korean Peninsula this week, these dumps will have an impact in the trust we need to put a coalition together to help with a regime change in North Korea. This is only one example of where the activity of Julian Asange if permitted to go on, will impact the security of the world and its peace. Mr. Asange is not acting in a patriotic way. He is reckless and has no idea of the threat he poses. He is acting out of self interest and is dangerous, in my opinion.
Our transmission and collection of secrets date back to our founding. Our founding fathers and military agents dealt with those who committed espionage in the appropriate way. These matters of state were kept secret. These matters of state are best kept as matters of state. We have laws and protections. Our officials follow these laws and they hopefully protect us. Members of the government, like Private Manning, will be dealt with. I personally don’t care if the government throws away the key. However, he will get his day in court. Hopefully, he will be sentenced to hard labor!
People like Julian Asange and Private Manning might think they are contributing to better the society by bringing into focus some of the things the U.S. says and does. What they are not thinking about is that most of what we do on the world scale is dictated by what others do first. In my opinion, the U.S. is not the bad guy in the world.
The President must sign the documents that will disable the Wikileaks website. This government must also take the appropriate measures to prohibit this from happening again.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: If we look back in history, we will realize what the intent of our original laws was meant to do. If we look back, we will see that our Founding Fathers knew secrets were best kept as secrets! If we look back, we will see that men like Manning and Asange are the enemies our Founders wanted to protect us from.
Another law that was written is the Espionage Act it reads: The US defines espionage towards itself as "The act of obtaining, delivering, transmitting, communicating, or receiving information about the national defense with an intent, or reason to believe, that the information may be used to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of any foreign nation. Black's Law Dictionary (1990) defines espionage as: "...gathering, transmitting, or losing...information related to the national defense". Espionage is a violation of United States law, 18 U.S.C. § 792–798 and Article 106 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice".[4] The United States, like most nations, conducts espionage against other nations, under the control of the National Clandestine Service. Britain's espionage activities are controlled by the Secret Intelligence Service.
I believe that the level at which these documents were released rises to espionage. Earlier this year, a private in the military, Bradley Manning, performed a data dump. In other words, he stole these sensitive documents and released them to Wikieaks. The private is in custody and is facing serious charges. This does not rectify what has happened with the release by Julian Asange. My question is where his funding is coming from and what enemies of the U.S. might be supporting him now?
As we are facing another show down in the Korean Peninsula this week, these dumps will have an impact in the trust we need to put a coalition together to help with a regime change in North Korea. This is only one example of where the activity of Julian Asange if permitted to go on, will impact the security of the world and its peace. Mr. Asange is not acting in a patriotic way. He is reckless and has no idea of the threat he poses. He is acting out of self interest and is dangerous, in my opinion.
Our transmission and collection of secrets date back to our founding. Our founding fathers and military agents dealt with those who committed espionage in the appropriate way. These matters of state were kept secret. These matters of state are best kept as matters of state. We have laws and protections. Our officials follow these laws and they hopefully protect us. Members of the government, like Private Manning, will be dealt with. I personally don’t care if the government throws away the key. However, he will get his day in court. Hopefully, he will be sentenced to hard labor!
People like Julian Asange and Private Manning might think they are contributing to better the society by bringing into focus some of the things the U.S. says and does. What they are not thinking about is that most of what we do on the world scale is dictated by what others do first. In my opinion, the U.S. is not the bad guy in the world.
The President must sign the documents that will disable the Wikileaks website. This government must also take the appropriate measures to prohibit this from happening again.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: If we look back in history, we will realize what the intent of our original laws was meant to do. If we look back, we will see that our Founding Fathers knew secrets were best kept as secrets! If we look back, we will see that men like Manning and Asange are the enemies our Founders wanted to protect us from.
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Wednesday – November 24, 2010
Tomorrow!
On Monday, I intimated that North Korea would be making news this week. Yesterday, they launched an assault on South Korea. What makes these two countries different from ours?
South Korea, or the Republic of Korea, has a democratic government. North Korea, or Democratic People's Republic of Korea, ironically isn't a democratic state, it has a communist government.
When our country was founded, there was no doubt as to the type and choice of government would be best suited for a free people. There was no doubt that a country that was free would grow and prosper. There was no doubt that a country that had free elections would be a model for others to follow.
When the Pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock they had settled onto something that was stable and that would attract others by the millions to settle there, as well.
Thanksgiving or Thanksgiving Day, currently celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November, has been an annual tradition in the United States since 1863. Thanksgiving was historically a religious observation to give thanks to God.[1]
The event that Americans commonly call the first Thanksgiving was celebrated to give thanks to God for helping the Pilgrims of Plymouth Colony survive their first brutal winter in New England.[2] The first Thanksgiving feast lasted three days, providing enough food for 53 pilgrims and 90 Native Americans.[3] The feast consisted of fish (cod, eels, and bass) and shellfish (clams, lobster, and mussels), wild fowl (ducks, geese, swans, and turkey), venison, berries and fruit, vegetables (peas, pumpkin, beetroot and possibly, wild or cultivated onion), harvest grains (barley and wheat), and the Three Sisters: beans, dried Indian maize or corn, and squash.[4][5][6][7]
The modern Thanksgiving holiday traces its origins from a 1621 celebration at the Plymouth Plantation, where the Plymouth settlers held a harvest feast after a successful growing season. This was continued in later years, first as an impromptu religious observance, and later as a civil tradition.
George Washington was the first American president to issue a proclamation, as President. On October 3, 1789, he created the first Thanksgiving Day designated by the national government of the United States of America. Soon after, John Adams and later James Madison issued a Thanksgiving Day proclamation. The dates differed and the time of year also was in question. However, one thing remained constant. There was a need and desire for the nation’s people to gives thanks to God and to enjoy a celebration with a feast.
In the middle of the American Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln, prompted by a series of editorials written by Sarah Josepha Hale,[19] proclaimed a national Thanksgiving Day, to be celebrated on the final Thursday in November 1863: Depending on when you considered the first Thanksgiving, it has endured more than three centuries from the first Thanksgiving celebration to present day. Tomorrow we will give thanks for the 389th time as a people. This tradition is one that other countries like North Korea cannot boast about. This is one tradition that our President’s supported. This is a tradition that was started by free people and not by a dear leader like the one that rules North Korea.
When we discuss what makes us different from other countries this should be the first thing that we should consider. The earliest settlers knew that it was important to take time out for celebration and to give thanks. I think the early settlers would be pleased that this holiday is so important for our national dialog, as well a model for the world to follow.
I am taking a few days off to give thanks, enjoy my family and consider just how lucky we are to have a place like America to call home, especially during the holidays.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: I hope that we are all around next year to celebrate the 390th time that we give thanks as a nation and as a people.
Tomorrow!
On Monday, I intimated that North Korea would be making news this week. Yesterday, they launched an assault on South Korea. What makes these two countries different from ours?
South Korea, or the Republic of Korea, has a democratic government. North Korea, or Democratic People's Republic of Korea, ironically isn't a democratic state, it has a communist government.
When our country was founded, there was no doubt as to the type and choice of government would be best suited for a free people. There was no doubt that a country that was free would grow and prosper. There was no doubt that a country that had free elections would be a model for others to follow.
When the Pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock they had settled onto something that was stable and that would attract others by the millions to settle there, as well.
Thanksgiving or Thanksgiving Day, currently celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November, has been an annual tradition in the United States since 1863. Thanksgiving was historically a religious observation to give thanks to God.[1]
The event that Americans commonly call the first Thanksgiving was celebrated to give thanks to God for helping the Pilgrims of Plymouth Colony survive their first brutal winter in New England.[2] The first Thanksgiving feast lasted three days, providing enough food for 53 pilgrims and 90 Native Americans.[3] The feast consisted of fish (cod, eels, and bass) and shellfish (clams, lobster, and mussels), wild fowl (ducks, geese, swans, and turkey), venison, berries and fruit, vegetables (peas, pumpkin, beetroot and possibly, wild or cultivated onion), harvest grains (barley and wheat), and the Three Sisters: beans, dried Indian maize or corn, and squash.[4][5][6][7]
The modern Thanksgiving holiday traces its origins from a 1621 celebration at the Plymouth Plantation, where the Plymouth settlers held a harvest feast after a successful growing season. This was continued in later years, first as an impromptu religious observance, and later as a civil tradition.
George Washington was the first American president to issue a proclamation, as President. On October 3, 1789, he created the first Thanksgiving Day designated by the national government of the United States of America. Soon after, John Adams and later James Madison issued a Thanksgiving Day proclamation. The dates differed and the time of year also was in question. However, one thing remained constant. There was a need and desire for the nation’s people to gives thanks to God and to enjoy a celebration with a feast.
In the middle of the American Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln, prompted by a series of editorials written by Sarah Josepha Hale,[19] proclaimed a national Thanksgiving Day, to be celebrated on the final Thursday in November 1863: Depending on when you considered the first Thanksgiving, it has endured more than three centuries from the first Thanksgiving celebration to present day. Tomorrow we will give thanks for the 389th time as a people. This tradition is one that other countries like North Korea cannot boast about. This is one tradition that our President’s supported. This is a tradition that was started by free people and not by a dear leader like the one that rules North Korea.
When we discuss what makes us different from other countries this should be the first thing that we should consider. The earliest settlers knew that it was important to take time out for celebration and to give thanks. I think the early settlers would be pleased that this holiday is so important for our national dialog, as well a model for the world to follow.
I am taking a few days off to give thanks, enjoy my family and consider just how lucky we are to have a place like America to call home, especially during the holidays.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: I hope that we are all around next year to celebrate the 390th time that we give thanks as a nation and as a people.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
It doesn't take much!
Tuesday – November 23, 2010
It doesn’t take much!
On this date in 1765, the people in Frederick, Maryland refused to pay England’s Stamp Act. In 1783, Annapolis, Maryland became the nation’s capital, until June of 1784. In all, both events helped shape the American landscape. In political terms, the center of power was consolidated and in social terms Americans just got mad at paying more tax.
This year, we have seen the revolt of American politics with the turn over of the House. This year, we have seen the President bend and sway in this country and abroad. This year, we have had a dialog of what change truly means and we have changed the makers of change into the unemployed.
We are not done. We are beginning to realize what the true meaning of patriotism is and the importance of controlling our government. We are beginning to learn about our history and organizing others to do the same. We are beginning to realize that it doesn’t take much.
Our enemy also realizes that it doesn’t take much to bring a country down. With the busiest day of travel approaching, our airports will be teeming with security and the security pat downs that we have been hearing about for the past week. We have rejected the notion that this should not be done in America.
Our enemies are the same, but we have changed. We have sacrificed liberty for security and this is the first rung of what the enemy views as a defeat for us and victory for them. The earliest settlers viewed their security and their liberty as one. The early settlers viewed the enemy as one that could be defeated. Our nation is still under assault ten years after the first major blow. While some protest the notion of profiling we are now doing that to every citizen that travels except for the enemy. If a passenger refuses to be x-rayed by the body scanners at the airport they are immediately profiled as being hostile and are subject to invasive body pat downs and humiliation. While all of this is going on our enemy is studying our response. They now know it doesn’t take much to slow down our system of travel and our avenues of commerce.
While our enemy is studying us we are refusing to have the dialog that is necessary to end the war. While our enemy is plotting their next move on softer economic targets we are refusing to speak the language that will end the war.
This country has spent over four billion dollars for the body scanners that are now in question. These scanners will violate your person and it will not prevent certain explosives such as PETN from being brought aboard an airplane. We have seen a creative enemy use a printer cartridge to house a bomb. We have seen a shoe bomber and we have seen a guy wearing explosive underwear get on an airplane. We have been playing the odds and the odds are not in our favor. While the body scanners might have been a brilliant idea then they are now obsolete in the fight for our security. The enemy now knows we have blown 4 billion dollars in the search for security.
The way to get back to our normal travel routine is to reduce the risk. The way we reduce the risk is to go to the source. We do not reduce the risk by holding public trials of those who know it doesn’t take much to bring the system down.
The President must be smart. Our government must be smart. The war is not against us, it is with our enemy.
While we celebrate our Thanksgiving, a truly American thing, we must dedicate ourselves to fight this war. We must give thanks and realize what the day means. I am going to reflect back on better times. I am going to remember the times when travel was easy. I am going to remember the times when culture was important, but didn’t overshadow this American holiday. I am going to tell stories about the settlers and what their new freedom meant. I am going to read about the first Thanksgiving and the presidents who made the holiday possible. I am going to enjoy the start to the season that we all anticipate every year. I am going to enjoy my family like I have never enjoyed them before. We have our traditions and we might start a few more. Our house will be decorated and I promise my light for freedom will burn brightly.
I know this will be easy, because it doesn’t take much!
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: Pay attention to those you love and be thankful that you can share their love!
It doesn’t take much!
On this date in 1765, the people in Frederick, Maryland refused to pay England’s Stamp Act. In 1783, Annapolis, Maryland became the nation’s capital, until June of 1784. In all, both events helped shape the American landscape. In political terms, the center of power was consolidated and in social terms Americans just got mad at paying more tax.
This year, we have seen the revolt of American politics with the turn over of the House. This year, we have seen the President bend and sway in this country and abroad. This year, we have had a dialog of what change truly means and we have changed the makers of change into the unemployed.
We are not done. We are beginning to realize what the true meaning of patriotism is and the importance of controlling our government. We are beginning to learn about our history and organizing others to do the same. We are beginning to realize that it doesn’t take much.
Our enemy also realizes that it doesn’t take much to bring a country down. With the busiest day of travel approaching, our airports will be teeming with security and the security pat downs that we have been hearing about for the past week. We have rejected the notion that this should not be done in America.
Our enemies are the same, but we have changed. We have sacrificed liberty for security and this is the first rung of what the enemy views as a defeat for us and victory for them. The earliest settlers viewed their security and their liberty as one. The early settlers viewed the enemy as one that could be defeated. Our nation is still under assault ten years after the first major blow. While some protest the notion of profiling we are now doing that to every citizen that travels except for the enemy. If a passenger refuses to be x-rayed by the body scanners at the airport they are immediately profiled as being hostile and are subject to invasive body pat downs and humiliation. While all of this is going on our enemy is studying our response. They now know it doesn’t take much to slow down our system of travel and our avenues of commerce.
While our enemy is studying us we are refusing to have the dialog that is necessary to end the war. While our enemy is plotting their next move on softer economic targets we are refusing to speak the language that will end the war.
This country has spent over four billion dollars for the body scanners that are now in question. These scanners will violate your person and it will not prevent certain explosives such as PETN from being brought aboard an airplane. We have seen a creative enemy use a printer cartridge to house a bomb. We have seen a shoe bomber and we have seen a guy wearing explosive underwear get on an airplane. We have been playing the odds and the odds are not in our favor. While the body scanners might have been a brilliant idea then they are now obsolete in the fight for our security. The enemy now knows we have blown 4 billion dollars in the search for security.
The way to get back to our normal travel routine is to reduce the risk. The way we reduce the risk is to go to the source. We do not reduce the risk by holding public trials of those who know it doesn’t take much to bring the system down.
The President must be smart. Our government must be smart. The war is not against us, it is with our enemy.
While we celebrate our Thanksgiving, a truly American thing, we must dedicate ourselves to fight this war. We must give thanks and realize what the day means. I am going to reflect back on better times. I am going to remember the times when travel was easy. I am going to remember the times when culture was important, but didn’t overshadow this American holiday. I am going to tell stories about the settlers and what their new freedom meant. I am going to read about the first Thanksgiving and the presidents who made the holiday possible. I am going to enjoy the start to the season that we all anticipate every year. I am going to enjoy my family like I have never enjoyed them before. We have our traditions and we might start a few more. Our house will be decorated and I promise my light for freedom will burn brightly.
I know this will be easy, because it doesn’t take much!
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: Pay attention to those you love and be thankful that you can share their love!
Monday, November 22, 2010
Where do we go from being brilliant?
Monday-November 22, 2010
Where do we go from being brilliant?
Last week, Vice President Joe Biden said that, “the reason people don’t get the president is that he’s so brilliant.” What does that say about us? I wrote last week that you have to be intelligent to run for president, but that you need to be smart when you are president.
We have had many leaders who have occupied the Oval Office. Some have been smart and some have been brilliant. Eisenhower won World War II with brilliant intelligence and was smart enough to become President. Kennedy demonstrated how smart he was to guide this country and Russia through the Cuban Missile Crisis. Reagan was an actor, he was not the best that Hollywood turned out. However, he was a brilliant politician and a smarter President. Because of that, he was responsible for bringing Russia to the point of collapse. George H.W. Bush then went onto complete the job and bring down the wall that Reagan was smart enough to ask Gorbachev to tear down.
Einstein was brilliant and he had the intelligence to develop nuclear energy. He was smart enough to know the dangers of what nuclear energy could do, if it wasn’t used for peaceful measures. This will be the focus over the next few weeks as the nuclear question raises the eyebrows of both the brilliant and more so the smart ones among us.
It was reported over the weekend that North Korea has, in fact, built nuclear centrifuges and are now producing fuel from these centrifuges. It has also been confirmed that Iran, Syria and North Korea have been trading secrets and exchanging technology, as these countries now move into the nuclear age. Siegfried Hecker, a Stanford Professor, was given a tour of one of these North Korean facilities. He walked away and in his words was “stunned” at what he saw. These are complex facilities capable of producing vast amounts of nuclear fuel. Over the course of the last fifteen years North Korea, with the aid of Iran and Syria, has been developing their nuclear programs. The question is, is it for peaceful or military purposes? The Obama administration said this is a “provocative act of defiance.” The Chairman of The Joint Chiefs, Mike Mullen, has serious concerns over this development.
North Korea would sell its technology and/or a bomb to any buyer with cash. If our enemies, such as Al Qaeda, could buy a bomb they would and it could be bought in North Korea. The fear is this could be a profit center for the regime of Kim Jong il.
It takes intelligence to produce the capability and develop the technology for producing nuclear fuel. It takes a brilliant person to cover their tracks in this process. It takes a smarter person to recognize this. Our intelligence sources are limited in detecting the development of these facilities. Spy satellites cannot detect the fingerprint that denotes a centrifuge facility. These buildings are constructed fast and are in many cases hidden from view. The facilities number in the hundreds and house thousands of centrifuges.
What exactly is nuclear fuel and a centrifuge?
Uranium is an element that is similar to iron. Like iron, you dig uranium ore out of the ground and then process it to extract the pure uranium from the ore. When you finish processing uranium ore, what you have is uranium oxide. Uranium oxide contains two types (or isotopes) of uranium: U-235 and U-238. U-235 is what you need if you want to make a bomb or fuel a nuclear power plant. But the uranium oxide from the mine is about 99 percent U-238. So you need to somehow separate the U-235 from the U-238 and increase the amount of U-235. The process of concentrating the U-235 is called enrichment, and centrifuges are a central part of the process.
U-235 weighs slightly less than U-238. By exploiting this weight difference, you can separate the U-235 and the U-238. The first step is to react the uranium with hydrofluoric acid, an extremely powerful acid. After several steps, you create the gas uranium hexafluoride.
Now that the uranium is in a gaseous form, it is easier to work with. You can put the gas into a centrifuge and spin it up. The centrifuge creates a force thousands of times more powerful than the force of gravity. Because the U-238 atoms are slightly heavier than the U-235 atoms, they tend to move out toward the walls of the centrifuge. The U-235 atoms tend to stay more toward the center of the centrifuge.
Although it is only a slight difference in concentrations, when you extract the gas from the center of the centrifuge, it has slightly more U-235 than it did before. You place this slightly concentrated gas in another centrifuge and do the same thing. If you do this thousand’s of times, you can create a gas that is highly enriched in U-235. At a uranium enrichment plant, thousands of centrifuges are chained together in long cascades.
At the end of a long chain of centrifuges, you have uranium hexafluoride gas containing a high concentration of U-235 atoms.
The creation of the centrifuges is a huge technological challenge. The centrifuges must spin very quickly -- in the range of 100,000 rpm. To spin this fast, the centrifuges must have:
1.Very light, yet strong, rotors
2. Well-balanced rotors
3. High-speed bearings, usually magnetic to reduce friction
Meeting all three of these requirements has been out of reach for most countries. The recent development of inexpensive, high-precision computer-controlled machining equipment has made things somewhat easier. This is why more countries are learning to enrich uranium in recent years.
Now you need to turn the uranium hexafluoride gas back into uranium metal. You do this by adding calcium. The calcium reacts with the fluoride to create a salt, and the pure uranium metal is left behind. With this highly concentrated U-235 metal, you can either make a nuclear bomb or power a nuclear reactor.
I am not intelligent enough to construct a facility to produce nuclear material. However, I am smart enough to see the dangers of this type of program. With men like Kim Jong il of North Korea, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran and Bashir Assad of Syria trading their secrets and technology, this will result in complete control of their regions. The bigger problem, as I see it, is what happens when they want control over each other.
I am smart enough to understand that in our system of government we have elections. Our elections make it possible for us to elect a brilliant leader’s or a smart leader’s. In Korea, Iran and Syria their people do not get a chance to elect their leaders. This is why these programs go unabated and the construction of these facilities goes unnoticed by the masses.
I am smart enough to understand that we have a Constitution and that our leaders are restrained by the scope of the constitution. When our leaders display tendencies that threaten our well being we have an opportunity and duty to use our voice. When our voice is spoken the rest of the world takes note. When our leaders hide behind their brilliant deductions it is viewed as weakness, but when our leaders are smart and use their brilliant deductions to an advantage our adversaries take note.
The problem I have is that the administration doesn’t think we understand the president, because he is so brilliant. However, I am smart enough to realize the consequences of him not being very smart. Take your choice do you want a brilliant leader or do you want a smart leader?
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: I am sure that our great leaders were smart. I am also sure that they were not so brilliant that we couldn’t understand them!
Where do we go from being brilliant?
Last week, Vice President Joe Biden said that, “the reason people don’t get the president is that he’s so brilliant.” What does that say about us? I wrote last week that you have to be intelligent to run for president, but that you need to be smart when you are president.
We have had many leaders who have occupied the Oval Office. Some have been smart and some have been brilliant. Eisenhower won World War II with brilliant intelligence and was smart enough to become President. Kennedy demonstrated how smart he was to guide this country and Russia through the Cuban Missile Crisis. Reagan was an actor, he was not the best that Hollywood turned out. However, he was a brilliant politician and a smarter President. Because of that, he was responsible for bringing Russia to the point of collapse. George H.W. Bush then went onto complete the job and bring down the wall that Reagan was smart enough to ask Gorbachev to tear down.
Einstein was brilliant and he had the intelligence to develop nuclear energy. He was smart enough to know the dangers of what nuclear energy could do, if it wasn’t used for peaceful measures. This will be the focus over the next few weeks as the nuclear question raises the eyebrows of both the brilliant and more so the smart ones among us.
It was reported over the weekend that North Korea has, in fact, built nuclear centrifuges and are now producing fuel from these centrifuges. It has also been confirmed that Iran, Syria and North Korea have been trading secrets and exchanging technology, as these countries now move into the nuclear age. Siegfried Hecker, a Stanford Professor, was given a tour of one of these North Korean facilities. He walked away and in his words was “stunned” at what he saw. These are complex facilities capable of producing vast amounts of nuclear fuel. Over the course of the last fifteen years North Korea, with the aid of Iran and Syria, has been developing their nuclear programs. The question is, is it for peaceful or military purposes? The Obama administration said this is a “provocative act of defiance.” The Chairman of The Joint Chiefs, Mike Mullen, has serious concerns over this development.
North Korea would sell its technology and/or a bomb to any buyer with cash. If our enemies, such as Al Qaeda, could buy a bomb they would and it could be bought in North Korea. The fear is this could be a profit center for the regime of Kim Jong il.
It takes intelligence to produce the capability and develop the technology for producing nuclear fuel. It takes a brilliant person to cover their tracks in this process. It takes a smarter person to recognize this. Our intelligence sources are limited in detecting the development of these facilities. Spy satellites cannot detect the fingerprint that denotes a centrifuge facility. These buildings are constructed fast and are in many cases hidden from view. The facilities number in the hundreds and house thousands of centrifuges.
What exactly is nuclear fuel and a centrifuge?
Uranium is an element that is similar to iron. Like iron, you dig uranium ore out of the ground and then process it to extract the pure uranium from the ore. When you finish processing uranium ore, what you have is uranium oxide. Uranium oxide contains two types (or isotopes) of uranium: U-235 and U-238. U-235 is what you need if you want to make a bomb or fuel a nuclear power plant. But the uranium oxide from the mine is about 99 percent U-238. So you need to somehow separate the U-235 from the U-238 and increase the amount of U-235. The process of concentrating the U-235 is called enrichment, and centrifuges are a central part of the process.
U-235 weighs slightly less than U-238. By exploiting this weight difference, you can separate the U-235 and the U-238. The first step is to react the uranium with hydrofluoric acid, an extremely powerful acid. After several steps, you create the gas uranium hexafluoride.
Now that the uranium is in a gaseous form, it is easier to work with. You can put the gas into a centrifuge and spin it up. The centrifuge creates a force thousands of times more powerful than the force of gravity. Because the U-238 atoms are slightly heavier than the U-235 atoms, they tend to move out toward the walls of the centrifuge. The U-235 atoms tend to stay more toward the center of the centrifuge.
Although it is only a slight difference in concentrations, when you extract the gas from the center of the centrifuge, it has slightly more U-235 than it did before. You place this slightly concentrated gas in another centrifuge and do the same thing. If you do this thousand’s of times, you can create a gas that is highly enriched in U-235. At a uranium enrichment plant, thousands of centrifuges are chained together in long cascades.
At the end of a long chain of centrifuges, you have uranium hexafluoride gas containing a high concentration of U-235 atoms.
The creation of the centrifuges is a huge technological challenge. The centrifuges must spin very quickly -- in the range of 100,000 rpm. To spin this fast, the centrifuges must have:
1.Very light, yet strong, rotors
2. Well-balanced rotors
3. High-speed bearings, usually magnetic to reduce friction
Meeting all three of these requirements has been out of reach for most countries. The recent development of inexpensive, high-precision computer-controlled machining equipment has made things somewhat easier. This is why more countries are learning to enrich uranium in recent years.
Now you need to turn the uranium hexafluoride gas back into uranium metal. You do this by adding calcium. The calcium reacts with the fluoride to create a salt, and the pure uranium metal is left behind. With this highly concentrated U-235 metal, you can either make a nuclear bomb or power a nuclear reactor.
I am not intelligent enough to construct a facility to produce nuclear material. However, I am smart enough to see the dangers of this type of program. With men like Kim Jong il of North Korea, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran and Bashir Assad of Syria trading their secrets and technology, this will result in complete control of their regions. The bigger problem, as I see it, is what happens when they want control over each other.
I am smart enough to understand that in our system of government we have elections. Our elections make it possible for us to elect a brilliant leader’s or a smart leader’s. In Korea, Iran and Syria their people do not get a chance to elect their leaders. This is why these programs go unabated and the construction of these facilities goes unnoticed by the masses.
I am smart enough to understand that we have a Constitution and that our leaders are restrained by the scope of the constitution. When our leaders display tendencies that threaten our well being we have an opportunity and duty to use our voice. When our voice is spoken the rest of the world takes note. When our leaders hide behind their brilliant deductions it is viewed as weakness, but when our leaders are smart and use their brilliant deductions to an advantage our adversaries take note.
The problem I have is that the administration doesn’t think we understand the president, because he is so brilliant. However, I am smart enough to realize the consequences of him not being very smart. Take your choice do you want a brilliant leader or do you want a smart leader?
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: I am sure that our great leaders were smart. I am also sure that they were not so brilliant that we couldn’t understand them!
Friday, November 19, 2010
The way to greatness!
Friday – November 19, 2010
The way to greatness!
On this date, in 1863, our 16th President, Abraham Lincoln, gave a speech at a cemetery dedication in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The speech is known as the Gettysburg Address. Standing at the dedication of the cemetery at Gettysburg, Lincoln struggled to find meaning in the violence that played out where he stood. With fresh graves in plain sight of the viewers, it was the Civil War’s bloodiest battle - only four months old. Lincoln searched for words to alleviate the suffering. The living, Lincoln proposed, must take up the “unfinished work” of preserving the nation. So that “these dead shall not have died in vain,” the nation must ensure “that government of the people, by the people and for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” In just three minutes, Lincoln delivered one of the greatest expressions of democracy in our nation’s history. In just three minutes, his presidency grew to greatness.
On June 1, 1865, Senator Charles Sumner commented on what is now considered the most famous speech by President Abraham Lincoln. In his eulogy on the slain president, he called it a "monumental act." He said Lincoln was mistaken that "the world will little note, nor long remember what we say here." Rather, the Bostonian remarked, "The world noted at once what he said, and will never cease to remember it. The battle itself was less important than the speech."
At the very beginning of Lincoln's presidential term, the Civil War started. A group of "Peace Democrats" proposed a peaceful resolution to the conflict by offering a truce with the South and forming a constitutional convention to amend the U.S. Constitution to protect state’s rights. The proposal was ignored by the Unionists of the North and not taken very seriously by the South. However, the Peace Democrats, also called Copperheads by their enemies, publicly criticized Lincoln's belief that violating the U.S. Constitution was required to save it as a whole. With Congress not in session until July, Lincoln assumed all powers not delegated in the Constitution.
Yesterday, I began to connect the pieces of history through four Presidents. They were Washington, Adams, Lincoln and Reagan. Lincoln had the responsibility of holding together a nation in Civil War and then curing the nation in its aftermath. Lincoln was criticized and even used his Constitutional Powers to suspend Habeas Corpus. After much more criticism and many more American fatalities, the ageing Lincoln defeated the South militarily and ended slavery as it was known then.
We forget the trials of freedom’s path. We forget the stress of what history brings. We forget how the events of past history affect us today. We forget that those who were enemies of the United States, the Union and our way of life still threaten it today. In Lincoln’s day, it was the “Peace Democrats” that threatened the Union. The North had the manufacturing capability to make war a possibility. The South housed the enemies that wanted to separate from the Union.
To run for President you must be intelligent. But to be President, you must be smart. Lincoln was smart enough to realize the forces that were against him, but more importantly, against the Union and the United States.
Today, as in Lincoln’s day, there still exists the same forces that would destroy the foundation of our freedom. These same forces work to enslave through taxation, redistributive economic polices and the power that greed creates.
At a private meeting on Tuesday afternoon, George Soros, a longtime supporter of progressive causes and this president, voiced blunt criticism of the Obama administration. He suggested to Democratic donors in attendance that they might need to direct their support somewhere else other than the president.
Soros, a Hungarian-American financier and global destroyer of economies, was speaking to a small side group of donors who had met in Washington D.C. for an annual gathering of the “Democracy Alliance.” This is a formal community of well-funded, activist organizers who are progressive-minded individuals. According to many sources with knowledge of Soros’s remarks, he told those in attendance that he is "used to fighting losing battles, but doesn't like to lose without fighting."
He went on to say, "We have just lost this election, we need to draw a line," he said, according to several Democratic sources. "And if this president can't do what we need, it is time to start looking somewhere else."
There is no difference between the Peace Democrats of Lincoln’s era and the progressive Democrats of our era. The question of slavery today is not between blacks and whites; it is not between the North and the South. The question of slavery today is global economic domination, through the tentacles of men like Soros and the many organizations that he funds and whose donations find there way to our political leaders on the left.
Men like Obama, who are intelligent, but not smart, are now finding themselves on the wrong side of men like Soros. Men like Soros will find others to do their evil work. They have in other countries and they will here if they are not stopped.
Lincoln was a true American. He believed in freedom and he died because of it. He died, as the result of an assassin’s bullet. He died, because he was on the right side of the struggle.
I end each week with a quote from history. Today, I have a few of Lincoln’s words that I believe still apply today. He said:
"I have never had a feeling politically that did not spring from the sentiments embodied in the Declaration of Independence."-- February 22, 1861 - Address in Independence Hall
"The will of God prevails. In great contests each party claims to act in accordance with the will of God. Both may be, and one must be, wrong."-- September 1862 - Meditation on the Divine Will
"We have, as all will agree, a free Government, where every man has a right to be equal with every other man. In this great struggle, this form of Government and every form of human right is endangered if our enemies succeed."-- August 22, 1864 - Speech to the One Hundred Sixty-sixth Ohio Regiment
In my FORUM yesterday I wrote – “we must be leaders of the cause and not leaders of the problem.” I believe Lincoln was one of these people, because he led the cause of freedom. He knew the way to greatness. He knew that greatness doesn’t come by pretending to be great.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: Please read Lincoln’s Gettysburg address it will take you only three minutes – but it will be with you all day! (http://www.gettysburg.com/bog/address.htm)
The way to greatness!
On this date, in 1863, our 16th President, Abraham Lincoln, gave a speech at a cemetery dedication in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The speech is known as the Gettysburg Address. Standing at the dedication of the cemetery at Gettysburg, Lincoln struggled to find meaning in the violence that played out where he stood. With fresh graves in plain sight of the viewers, it was the Civil War’s bloodiest battle - only four months old. Lincoln searched for words to alleviate the suffering. The living, Lincoln proposed, must take up the “unfinished work” of preserving the nation. So that “these dead shall not have died in vain,” the nation must ensure “that government of the people, by the people and for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” In just three minutes, Lincoln delivered one of the greatest expressions of democracy in our nation’s history. In just three minutes, his presidency grew to greatness.
On June 1, 1865, Senator Charles Sumner commented on what is now considered the most famous speech by President Abraham Lincoln. In his eulogy on the slain president, he called it a "monumental act." He said Lincoln was mistaken that "the world will little note, nor long remember what we say here." Rather, the Bostonian remarked, "The world noted at once what he said, and will never cease to remember it. The battle itself was less important than the speech."
At the very beginning of Lincoln's presidential term, the Civil War started. A group of "Peace Democrats" proposed a peaceful resolution to the conflict by offering a truce with the South and forming a constitutional convention to amend the U.S. Constitution to protect state’s rights. The proposal was ignored by the Unionists of the North and not taken very seriously by the South. However, the Peace Democrats, also called Copperheads by their enemies, publicly criticized Lincoln's belief that violating the U.S. Constitution was required to save it as a whole. With Congress not in session until July, Lincoln assumed all powers not delegated in the Constitution.
Yesterday, I began to connect the pieces of history through four Presidents. They were Washington, Adams, Lincoln and Reagan. Lincoln had the responsibility of holding together a nation in Civil War and then curing the nation in its aftermath. Lincoln was criticized and even used his Constitutional Powers to suspend Habeas Corpus. After much more criticism and many more American fatalities, the ageing Lincoln defeated the South militarily and ended slavery as it was known then.
We forget the trials of freedom’s path. We forget the stress of what history brings. We forget how the events of past history affect us today. We forget that those who were enemies of the United States, the Union and our way of life still threaten it today. In Lincoln’s day, it was the “Peace Democrats” that threatened the Union. The North had the manufacturing capability to make war a possibility. The South housed the enemies that wanted to separate from the Union.
To run for President you must be intelligent. But to be President, you must be smart. Lincoln was smart enough to realize the forces that were against him, but more importantly, against the Union and the United States.
Today, as in Lincoln’s day, there still exists the same forces that would destroy the foundation of our freedom. These same forces work to enslave through taxation, redistributive economic polices and the power that greed creates.
At a private meeting on Tuesday afternoon, George Soros, a longtime supporter of progressive causes and this president, voiced blunt criticism of the Obama administration. He suggested to Democratic donors in attendance that they might need to direct their support somewhere else other than the president.
Soros, a Hungarian-American financier and global destroyer of economies, was speaking to a small side group of donors who had met in Washington D.C. for an annual gathering of the “Democracy Alliance.” This is a formal community of well-funded, activist organizers who are progressive-minded individuals. According to many sources with knowledge of Soros’s remarks, he told those in attendance that he is "used to fighting losing battles, but doesn't like to lose without fighting."
He went on to say, "We have just lost this election, we need to draw a line," he said, according to several Democratic sources. "And if this president can't do what we need, it is time to start looking somewhere else."
There is no difference between the Peace Democrats of Lincoln’s era and the progressive Democrats of our era. The question of slavery today is not between blacks and whites; it is not between the North and the South. The question of slavery today is global economic domination, through the tentacles of men like Soros and the many organizations that he funds and whose donations find there way to our political leaders on the left.
Men like Obama, who are intelligent, but not smart, are now finding themselves on the wrong side of men like Soros. Men like Soros will find others to do their evil work. They have in other countries and they will here if they are not stopped.
Lincoln was a true American. He believed in freedom and he died because of it. He died, as the result of an assassin’s bullet. He died, because he was on the right side of the struggle.
I end each week with a quote from history. Today, I have a few of Lincoln’s words that I believe still apply today. He said:
"I have never had a feeling politically that did not spring from the sentiments embodied in the Declaration of Independence."-- February 22, 1861 - Address in Independence Hall
"The will of God prevails. In great contests each party claims to act in accordance with the will of God. Both may be, and one must be, wrong."-- September 1862 - Meditation on the Divine Will
"We have, as all will agree, a free Government, where every man has a right to be equal with every other man. In this great struggle, this form of Government and every form of human right is endangered if our enemies succeed."-- August 22, 1864 - Speech to the One Hundred Sixty-sixth Ohio Regiment
In my FORUM yesterday I wrote – “we must be leaders of the cause and not leaders of the problem.” I believe Lincoln was one of these people, because he led the cause of freedom. He knew the way to greatness. He knew that greatness doesn’t come by pretending to be great.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: Please read Lincoln’s Gettysburg address it will take you only three minutes – but it will be with you all day! (http://www.gettysburg.com/bog/address.htm)
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Go west, young man:
Thursday – November 18, 2010
Go west, young man:
We all know the term, “go west young man”. The connotation of this term means a direction for great wealth and opportunity. It says all there is to know about freedom and liberty!
On this date, in 1805 Lewis and Clark, reached the Pacific Ocean. They are the first Americans to cross the Continent. The Lewis and Clark Expedition (1804–1806) was the first overland expedition undertaken by the United States to the Pacific coast and back. The expedition team was headed by the United States Army soldiers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark and assisted by George Drouillard, who was half Shawnee and half French. The expedition's goal was to gain an accurate sense of the resources being exchanged in the Louisiana Purchase. The expedition laid much of the groundwork for the westward expansion of the United States.
The expedition was commissioned by Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson had dreamed of exploring the west twenty years before he became President.
When our country was first founded, it was based on freedom and the liberty that freedom gives. It was also an economic proposition dating years before the Declaration and Constitution were ever written. It was a proposition to create wealth, because of the natural resources that were abundant in the New World. This is part of the fabric that America was created upon. This fabric still makes it possible to create wealth. The missing element in this picture today is that the government does not want us to keep our wealth and, consequently, the freedom that wealth ensures.
The efforts to redistribute our wealth have occurred, because of the process of liberal legislation and the liberal thought of indoctrination to socialism. Slowly, but surely, it has been the Progressive Liberals who are now inviting the thoughts of Communism and Marxism into the dialog of economic policy and global economic policy expansion.
The founding fathers, Jefferson included, did not consider redistribution of the wealth through government. They did not envision a day when our economy would be incorporated into a global exchange of economic maneuvers. The reason they didn’t consider it was because of what they believed in. They knew that if we stayed the course and kept exploring the fabric of our own wealth potential we would not enter into the prospect of redistribution.
The documents that were created to ensure our freedom and that were authored in part by Jefferson outlined what the limits of government are. When the new Congress meets next year this term of redistribution must be addressed. When we speak about Health Care, we speak of redistribution. When we speak of fast tracking illegal aliens under new immigration policies that the left wants to employ, we speak not only of redistribution of wealth, but we are also redistributing our freedom.
The Republicans called for a ban on earmarks this week. The Democrat Senate Majority Leader, Harry Reid, has said “no” and blocked the effort. The liberals in the new Congress and the Senate will move further to the left. While the Republicans move further to the right, we will start to see the clear cut picture of the issues.
Nancy Pelosi was elected the Minority Leader yesterday and immediately said “we will continue to fight”. We should not be fighting, we should be discussing how not to redistribute wealth, freedom and the liberties that our founding documents guaranteed. It is apparent that the left will not give up, so the right will just have to step up to the plate and be leaders of the cause and not leaders of the problem.
The Democrats have enlisted Senator Schumer of New York to coordinate all communication of policy initiatives so the public will better understand what the Democratic Party is doing. This is fine, because the public has understood what the left is attempting to do and this is why they rejected it. The Democratic Party will continue to legislate against the will of the people.
The left thinks they lost the election because they did not communicate effectively. The left thinks that all Americans should enlist in the efforts of redistribution so that competition, when it occurs, will occur fairly. The founding fathers and Jefferson would scoff at this idea.
It was not redistribution of wealth that Lewis and Clark explored the vast west for. Jefferson’s dream for nearly twenty years was not due to establish a policy for redistribution. It was not redistribution that gave the U.S. an upper hand in economic growth. It was not redistribution that sent men to the moon. I am sure that if Jefferson had the means to do that as well he would have. Redistribution causes exploration to cease. Redistribution causes competition to halt. Redistribution of wealth is not what Meriwether Lewis and William Clark felt when they saw the Great Pacific Ocean for the first time.
The Lewis and Clark expedition created wealth and opportunity so that a young man could go west in search of the American dream before liberals conceived, conspired and started on their journey to redistribute that dream.
The young man that also realized what westward expansion meant was Abraham Lincoln. During the summer of 1860, the Chicago Press and Tribune asked Republican presidential nominee Abraham Lincoln to prepare a short autobiographical sketch to introduce himself to voters. Writing about himself in the third person, Lincoln focused on family genealogy, migration, and work. He closed with a brief mention that his opposition to slavery’s expansion into the West motivated him to enter national politics after 1854. Today, we can recognize in this autobiography how Lincoln was shaped by the central contests of nineteenth-century political culture, including westward expansion and the development of a national infrastructure. Two issues in particular — westward expansion and the future of slavery in the United States — would dominate nineteenth-century American politics and define Lincoln’s career and legacy.
Between 1809 and 1860, from Lincoln’s Kentucky frontier birth to his election as president, the United States changed dramatically. Flatboat travel gave way to steamships and railroads, which revolutionized transportation and commerce. The frontier pushed beyond the Mississippi to the Pacific. The Whig Party rose and fell. It was replaced by the Republican Party. In the midst of these developments, slavery divided the nation. For Lincoln, born in a slave state, but residing for most of his life in free states, this divide was both personal and political.
If it weren’t due to the dream Jefferson had and the foresight of what Lincoln saw this nation would be far different from what is today.
I will have more on Lincoln tomorrow. My purpose for relating this story is for you to consider the hard work and the dedication it takes to preserve our freedom. I have written before that Washington set the seeds of our free nation and our government. John Adams fought for the importance of our Constitution in the American fabric of legislation and law. Lincoln mended the country and Reagan cured the country.
Tomorrow is an important date in history. It was the time when Lincoln mended all that needed mending. What we need today, in leadership, is the curiosity that Jefferson displayed and the intelligence of Lincoln to know what is needed to save a nation.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: The time has come for exploring the roots our freedom so that we can mend the country once again.
Go west, young man:
We all know the term, “go west young man”. The connotation of this term means a direction for great wealth and opportunity. It says all there is to know about freedom and liberty!
On this date, in 1805 Lewis and Clark, reached the Pacific Ocean. They are the first Americans to cross the Continent. The Lewis and Clark Expedition (1804–1806) was the first overland expedition undertaken by the United States to the Pacific coast and back. The expedition team was headed by the United States Army soldiers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark and assisted by George Drouillard, who was half Shawnee and half French. The expedition's goal was to gain an accurate sense of the resources being exchanged in the Louisiana Purchase. The expedition laid much of the groundwork for the westward expansion of the United States.
The expedition was commissioned by Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson had dreamed of exploring the west twenty years before he became President.
When our country was first founded, it was based on freedom and the liberty that freedom gives. It was also an economic proposition dating years before the Declaration and Constitution were ever written. It was a proposition to create wealth, because of the natural resources that were abundant in the New World. This is part of the fabric that America was created upon. This fabric still makes it possible to create wealth. The missing element in this picture today is that the government does not want us to keep our wealth and, consequently, the freedom that wealth ensures.
The efforts to redistribute our wealth have occurred, because of the process of liberal legislation and the liberal thought of indoctrination to socialism. Slowly, but surely, it has been the Progressive Liberals who are now inviting the thoughts of Communism and Marxism into the dialog of economic policy and global economic policy expansion.
The founding fathers, Jefferson included, did not consider redistribution of the wealth through government. They did not envision a day when our economy would be incorporated into a global exchange of economic maneuvers. The reason they didn’t consider it was because of what they believed in. They knew that if we stayed the course and kept exploring the fabric of our own wealth potential we would not enter into the prospect of redistribution.
The documents that were created to ensure our freedom and that were authored in part by Jefferson outlined what the limits of government are. When the new Congress meets next year this term of redistribution must be addressed. When we speak about Health Care, we speak of redistribution. When we speak of fast tracking illegal aliens under new immigration policies that the left wants to employ, we speak not only of redistribution of wealth, but we are also redistributing our freedom.
The Republicans called for a ban on earmarks this week. The Democrat Senate Majority Leader, Harry Reid, has said “no” and blocked the effort. The liberals in the new Congress and the Senate will move further to the left. While the Republicans move further to the right, we will start to see the clear cut picture of the issues.
Nancy Pelosi was elected the Minority Leader yesterday and immediately said “we will continue to fight”. We should not be fighting, we should be discussing how not to redistribute wealth, freedom and the liberties that our founding documents guaranteed. It is apparent that the left will not give up, so the right will just have to step up to the plate and be leaders of the cause and not leaders of the problem.
The Democrats have enlisted Senator Schumer of New York to coordinate all communication of policy initiatives so the public will better understand what the Democratic Party is doing. This is fine, because the public has understood what the left is attempting to do and this is why they rejected it. The Democratic Party will continue to legislate against the will of the people.
The left thinks they lost the election because they did not communicate effectively. The left thinks that all Americans should enlist in the efforts of redistribution so that competition, when it occurs, will occur fairly. The founding fathers and Jefferson would scoff at this idea.
It was not redistribution of wealth that Lewis and Clark explored the vast west for. Jefferson’s dream for nearly twenty years was not due to establish a policy for redistribution. It was not redistribution that gave the U.S. an upper hand in economic growth. It was not redistribution that sent men to the moon. I am sure that if Jefferson had the means to do that as well he would have. Redistribution causes exploration to cease. Redistribution causes competition to halt. Redistribution of wealth is not what Meriwether Lewis and William Clark felt when they saw the Great Pacific Ocean for the first time.
The Lewis and Clark expedition created wealth and opportunity so that a young man could go west in search of the American dream before liberals conceived, conspired and started on their journey to redistribute that dream.
The young man that also realized what westward expansion meant was Abraham Lincoln. During the summer of 1860, the Chicago Press and Tribune asked Republican presidential nominee Abraham Lincoln to prepare a short autobiographical sketch to introduce himself to voters. Writing about himself in the third person, Lincoln focused on family genealogy, migration, and work. He closed with a brief mention that his opposition to slavery’s expansion into the West motivated him to enter national politics after 1854. Today, we can recognize in this autobiography how Lincoln was shaped by the central contests of nineteenth-century political culture, including westward expansion and the development of a national infrastructure. Two issues in particular — westward expansion and the future of slavery in the United States — would dominate nineteenth-century American politics and define Lincoln’s career and legacy.
Between 1809 and 1860, from Lincoln’s Kentucky frontier birth to his election as president, the United States changed dramatically. Flatboat travel gave way to steamships and railroads, which revolutionized transportation and commerce. The frontier pushed beyond the Mississippi to the Pacific. The Whig Party rose and fell. It was replaced by the Republican Party. In the midst of these developments, slavery divided the nation. For Lincoln, born in a slave state, but residing for most of his life in free states, this divide was both personal and political.
If it weren’t due to the dream Jefferson had and the foresight of what Lincoln saw this nation would be far different from what is today.
I will have more on Lincoln tomorrow. My purpose for relating this story is for you to consider the hard work and the dedication it takes to preserve our freedom. I have written before that Washington set the seeds of our free nation and our government. John Adams fought for the importance of our Constitution in the American fabric of legislation and law. Lincoln mended the country and Reagan cured the country.
Tomorrow is an important date in history. It was the time when Lincoln mended all that needed mending. What we need today, in leadership, is the curiosity that Jefferson displayed and the intelligence of Lincoln to know what is needed to save a nation.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: The time has come for exploring the roots our freedom so that we can mend the country once again.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
What goes hand in hand?
Wednesday – November 17, 2010
What goes hand in hand?
We often times wonder why people go in the direction that they do. When we travel we generally go north, south, east and west. The direction is plotted on a map or on our GPS and or a simple note. Direction goes hand in hand in with your travels.
When we wonder why people are the way they are they generally have had a direction that was plotted for them. The direction we decide to go in is often driven by our experiences. This goes hand in hand.
When we use our political system to determine a direction it is usually driven by the philosophy of party or the ideology of a leader. This goes hand in hand.
When our forefathers started down the road to freedom they knew that revolution and liberty went hand in hand. They knew that one does not exist without the other.
Our President will be going to Europe for yet another meeting on the world’s economy. Remember Greece? They, again, need more money. Remember the near collapse of the European Union? Remember Portugal, Spain and even Ireland needing economic assistance? This is the result of spending the people’s money on programs that fuel dependency and loss of liberty and the freedoms that many have forgotten about in these countries. China is fighting inflation and threatening not to buy more of our debt. Their stock market has plummeted in past days.
This unstable condition raises tensions and the prospect of trade wars and protectionism. This unstable condition promotes philosophies that differ from culture to culture. This unstable condition will bring the worst kind of competition and promote an environment of distrust. Economic strife, due to government policy and control, go hand in hand.
Over the years, the government has indoctrinated our elected officials to earmark funds for votes. This has made us immune to the spending habits of a Congress that was unaccountable. The Republican Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell has gone public and has now requested that there be a two year moratorium on earmarks. This is a small step but it is a start. Control of spending and the health of liberty go hand in hand.
Today, I am questioning why Charlie Rangel is still in office. I question the voters who kept him in office and I question why the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, has also kept him there. Congressman Rangel walked out of his ethics violations hearing and was complaining that he is not being treated fairly. He went on to say that he has served the public for fifty years and he should not be treated like this. Mr. Rangel has had two years to prepare for this weeks hearing. He fired his attorney and said he does not have representation.
Yesterday, Mr. Rangel was unanimously found guilty of 11 out of 13 ethics violations. He complained that he did not receive due process.
He said at one point in his defense that a sloppy accounting practice was the reason he was being investigated. If he is guilty of that then maybe he is guilty of the economic mess we are now in. They go hand in hand.
As the Republicans plot their way and go in the direction of reform and spending controls we are still reminded of the bloated and selfish practices of the Democrats. As Nancy Pelosi is retaining her power she has created a new position for Congressman James Clyburn so that he remains third in the pecking order. This was done because he is the leader of the congressional black caucus. Power and selfishness go hand in hand.
As we move into the next phase of organizing and selecting those who will run in 2012, we must bring into focus the abuses and the longevity of congressmen like Charlie Rangel. I believe that Rangel is what is wrong in Washington. I believe that when you serve for as long as Rangel has served you place yourself above all others. Mr. Rangel’s career has spanned 39 years in Congress. Look at the legislation that has come from the House in that time span. Look at the money that has been spent and stolen in that time frame. A career of 39 years cannot be overlooked, if it has been a career of honest politicking.
When members of his party were asked about the guilty charges, they said look at what the man has done “for the people” in his career. Corrupt power brokers and the rewriting of history by those who protect their own go hand in hand. Corrupt leaders who plot the direction of their party by using the system are why the system is broken. Power and longevity go hand in hand.
On this date, in 1800, Congress held its first session in an uncompleted Capital Building. The need for governing could not wait for a completion of its house. The need to do the peoples business could not wait for the completion of its house. I wonder if the direction to create a government that obeyed the laws of liberty set forth in the founding documents was done because of a collective philosophy or because of the need to have a house. You see a House that fights for liberty is never complete until the philosophy becomes a collective effort to retain liberty and freedom. It goes hand in hand.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: The House is on the right road. The House is not yet complete, but that shouldn’t stop the members from doing the right thing! That shouldn’t stop them from doing what they were sent to do! Doing the right thing and going down the right road go hand in hand!
What goes hand in hand?
We often times wonder why people go in the direction that they do. When we travel we generally go north, south, east and west. The direction is plotted on a map or on our GPS and or a simple note. Direction goes hand in hand in with your travels.
When we wonder why people are the way they are they generally have had a direction that was plotted for them. The direction we decide to go in is often driven by our experiences. This goes hand in hand.
When we use our political system to determine a direction it is usually driven by the philosophy of party or the ideology of a leader. This goes hand in hand.
When our forefathers started down the road to freedom they knew that revolution and liberty went hand in hand. They knew that one does not exist without the other.
Our President will be going to Europe for yet another meeting on the world’s economy. Remember Greece? They, again, need more money. Remember the near collapse of the European Union? Remember Portugal, Spain and even Ireland needing economic assistance? This is the result of spending the people’s money on programs that fuel dependency and loss of liberty and the freedoms that many have forgotten about in these countries. China is fighting inflation and threatening not to buy more of our debt. Their stock market has plummeted in past days.
This unstable condition raises tensions and the prospect of trade wars and protectionism. This unstable condition promotes philosophies that differ from culture to culture. This unstable condition will bring the worst kind of competition and promote an environment of distrust. Economic strife, due to government policy and control, go hand in hand.
Over the years, the government has indoctrinated our elected officials to earmark funds for votes. This has made us immune to the spending habits of a Congress that was unaccountable. The Republican Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell has gone public and has now requested that there be a two year moratorium on earmarks. This is a small step but it is a start. Control of spending and the health of liberty go hand in hand.
Today, I am questioning why Charlie Rangel is still in office. I question the voters who kept him in office and I question why the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, has also kept him there. Congressman Rangel walked out of his ethics violations hearing and was complaining that he is not being treated fairly. He went on to say that he has served the public for fifty years and he should not be treated like this. Mr. Rangel has had two years to prepare for this weeks hearing. He fired his attorney and said he does not have representation.
Yesterday, Mr. Rangel was unanimously found guilty of 11 out of 13 ethics violations. He complained that he did not receive due process.
He said at one point in his defense that a sloppy accounting practice was the reason he was being investigated. If he is guilty of that then maybe he is guilty of the economic mess we are now in. They go hand in hand.
As the Republicans plot their way and go in the direction of reform and spending controls we are still reminded of the bloated and selfish practices of the Democrats. As Nancy Pelosi is retaining her power she has created a new position for Congressman James Clyburn so that he remains third in the pecking order. This was done because he is the leader of the congressional black caucus. Power and selfishness go hand in hand.
As we move into the next phase of organizing and selecting those who will run in 2012, we must bring into focus the abuses and the longevity of congressmen like Charlie Rangel. I believe that Rangel is what is wrong in Washington. I believe that when you serve for as long as Rangel has served you place yourself above all others. Mr. Rangel’s career has spanned 39 years in Congress. Look at the legislation that has come from the House in that time span. Look at the money that has been spent and stolen in that time frame. A career of 39 years cannot be overlooked, if it has been a career of honest politicking.
When members of his party were asked about the guilty charges, they said look at what the man has done “for the people” in his career. Corrupt power brokers and the rewriting of history by those who protect their own go hand in hand. Corrupt leaders who plot the direction of their party by using the system are why the system is broken. Power and longevity go hand in hand.
On this date, in 1800, Congress held its first session in an uncompleted Capital Building. The need for governing could not wait for a completion of its house. The need to do the peoples business could not wait for the completion of its house. I wonder if the direction to create a government that obeyed the laws of liberty set forth in the founding documents was done because of a collective philosophy or because of the need to have a house. You see a House that fights for liberty is never complete until the philosophy becomes a collective effort to retain liberty and freedom. It goes hand in hand.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: The House is on the right road. The House is not yet complete, but that shouldn’t stop the members from doing the right thing! That shouldn’t stop them from doing what they were sent to do! Doing the right thing and going down the right road go hand in hand!
Monday, November 15, 2010
He's back!
Monday – November 15, 2010
He’s back!
I ended last week with this quote.
In a letter to Jedidiah Morse, in 1822, Thomas Jefferson wrote - four years before he died at the age of 83:
“We are to guard against ourselves; not against ourselves as we are, but as we may be; for who can imagine what we may become under circumstances not now imaginable.”
I offer up this quote to bring into focus the circumstances that we cannot imagine. The new Congressional members are in Washington D.C. this week learning how to be members of Congress. They are being given their House Manuals, Blackberries, Laptops and the rules by which they should conduct themselves.
As the new members of Congress are learning the many rules of their new job, the President is also arriving back in Washington D.C. from his failed mission abroad. These new members will be responsible for rectifying the circumstances and failed measures that this President has gotten his country into. Jefferson was right when he wrote: “for who can imagine what we may become under circumstances not now imaginable.” The new members of Congress come into office with their constituency paying close attention to the way they conduct themselves and how they vote. We should all take time to consider what circumstances might occur that we cannot imagine.
This week, The Lame Duck session of Congress will meet to finish old business and to decide on what tax cuts will be appropriate to save the economy and help get people back to work. The Lame Duck session must pass the Bush tax cuts, so that America can have a chance next year at recovery.
John F. Kennedy knew exactly what to do to revive a stagnant economy and to stimulate the economy. He said: "A tax cut means higher family income and higher business profits and a balanced federal budget. Every taxpayer and his family will have more money left over after taxes for a new car, a new home, new conveniences, education and investment. Every businessman can keep a higher percentage of his profits in his cash register or put it to work expanding or improving his business, and as the national income grows, the federal government will ultimately end up with more revenues." John F. Kennedy, Sept. 18, 1963, radio and television address to the nation on tax-reduction bill.
I cannot imagine that our President will not encourage and sign on to extending the Bush tax cuts. I cannot imagine what our economy will look like in a year from now if this Lame Duck session does not act. I cannot imagine one more year of this assault on business and our personal liberties. With the failed economic agenda of this President, I cannot imagine his party supporting him if he doesn’t sign a new tax reduction package.
This week, look for unimaginable circumstances to start playing out in Afghanistan. Hamid Karzai, the president of Afghanistan, is showing signs of weakness, as he is telling the U.S. to reduce its “visibility and Intensity” in fighting the Taliban in his country. He is now negotiating with the Taliban in efforts for peace. We cannot imagine an Afghanistan under Taliban rule. This will happen, if Karzai continues down this road. The biggest threat in that part of the world is Pakistan and its nuclear arsenal. An Afghanistan under Taliban dominance would be destabilizing for that part of the world and would severely impact the security, given the Taliban threat and possible war with Pakistan to secure their nuclear weapons.
This is a scenario that is unimaginable and would be circumstances that a new Congress is going to have to deal with starting in January of 2011. The new Congress will deal with the unforeseen and the troubling scenarios that this President is now getting us, as a country, into.
The new Congress will have to learn very quickly the procedures and the rules so that they can be effective with legislation that will ultimately work its way up to the president for his signature. The new Congress, as they learn the ropes this week, will have to be forceful and use the voice that they were elected to use, even if the rules work against them. The new Congress will have a new majority that, if used effectively, can send the signs to the rest of the world that they have a plan and that they have a voice that will be heard soon. The new Congress will emerge from this Lame Duck session with new leadership and a leadership that can see the “circumstances not now imaginable.”
It is up to us to know our history and to make sure the new Congress does exactly what they were sent to do.
I think we should pay particular attention to the words of Washington, as we go into this Lame Duck Session and as the president gets ready to start his second half of his first term: “ It should be the highest ambition of every American to extend his views beyond himself, and to bear in mind that his conduct will not only affect himself, his country, and his immediate posterity; but that its influence may be co-extensive with the world, and stamp political happiness or misery on ages yet unborn.”
You see, a trip back into history can become a lesson in direction.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: Pay close attention to this Lame Duck session, it will dictate the circumstances that might not be imaginable now.
He’s back!
I ended last week with this quote.
In a letter to Jedidiah Morse, in 1822, Thomas Jefferson wrote - four years before he died at the age of 83:
“We are to guard against ourselves; not against ourselves as we are, but as we may be; for who can imagine what we may become under circumstances not now imaginable.”
I offer up this quote to bring into focus the circumstances that we cannot imagine. The new Congressional members are in Washington D.C. this week learning how to be members of Congress. They are being given their House Manuals, Blackberries, Laptops and the rules by which they should conduct themselves.
As the new members of Congress are learning the many rules of their new job, the President is also arriving back in Washington D.C. from his failed mission abroad. These new members will be responsible for rectifying the circumstances and failed measures that this President has gotten his country into. Jefferson was right when he wrote: “for who can imagine what we may become under circumstances not now imaginable.” The new members of Congress come into office with their constituency paying close attention to the way they conduct themselves and how they vote. We should all take time to consider what circumstances might occur that we cannot imagine.
This week, The Lame Duck session of Congress will meet to finish old business and to decide on what tax cuts will be appropriate to save the economy and help get people back to work. The Lame Duck session must pass the Bush tax cuts, so that America can have a chance next year at recovery.
John F. Kennedy knew exactly what to do to revive a stagnant economy and to stimulate the economy. He said: "A tax cut means higher family income and higher business profits and a balanced federal budget. Every taxpayer and his family will have more money left over after taxes for a new car, a new home, new conveniences, education and investment. Every businessman can keep a higher percentage of his profits in his cash register or put it to work expanding or improving his business, and as the national income grows, the federal government will ultimately end up with more revenues." John F. Kennedy, Sept. 18, 1963, radio and television address to the nation on tax-reduction bill.
I cannot imagine that our President will not encourage and sign on to extending the Bush tax cuts. I cannot imagine what our economy will look like in a year from now if this Lame Duck session does not act. I cannot imagine one more year of this assault on business and our personal liberties. With the failed economic agenda of this President, I cannot imagine his party supporting him if he doesn’t sign a new tax reduction package.
This week, look for unimaginable circumstances to start playing out in Afghanistan. Hamid Karzai, the president of Afghanistan, is showing signs of weakness, as he is telling the U.S. to reduce its “visibility and Intensity” in fighting the Taliban in his country. He is now negotiating with the Taliban in efforts for peace. We cannot imagine an Afghanistan under Taliban rule. This will happen, if Karzai continues down this road. The biggest threat in that part of the world is Pakistan and its nuclear arsenal. An Afghanistan under Taliban dominance would be destabilizing for that part of the world and would severely impact the security, given the Taliban threat and possible war with Pakistan to secure their nuclear weapons.
This is a scenario that is unimaginable and would be circumstances that a new Congress is going to have to deal with starting in January of 2011. The new Congress will deal with the unforeseen and the troubling scenarios that this President is now getting us, as a country, into.
The new Congress will have to learn very quickly the procedures and the rules so that they can be effective with legislation that will ultimately work its way up to the president for his signature. The new Congress, as they learn the ropes this week, will have to be forceful and use the voice that they were elected to use, even if the rules work against them. The new Congress will have a new majority that, if used effectively, can send the signs to the rest of the world that they have a plan and that they have a voice that will be heard soon. The new Congress will emerge from this Lame Duck session with new leadership and a leadership that can see the “circumstances not now imaginable.”
It is up to us to know our history and to make sure the new Congress does exactly what they were sent to do.
I think we should pay particular attention to the words of Washington, as we go into this Lame Duck Session and as the president gets ready to start his second half of his first term: “ It should be the highest ambition of every American to extend his views beyond himself, and to bear in mind that his conduct will not only affect himself, his country, and his immediate posterity; but that its influence may be co-extensive with the world, and stamp political happiness or misery on ages yet unborn.”
You see, a trip back into history can become a lesson in direction.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: Pay close attention to this Lame Duck session, it will dictate the circumstances that might not be imaginable now.
Friday, November 12, 2010
What are they up to?
Friday – November 12, 2010
What are they up to?
The President is in Asia attending a G20 economic Summit. So far, he has not delivered on much. He has a trade deal with India that will create 56,000 jobs. He met with South Korea’s President and nothing came of it. He met with China and nothing came of it. He met with Germany and nothing came of it.
He is spending 200 million dollars a day for this mission and nothing has come of it. If he is trying to be a salesman, he has failed. If he is trying to be a trade minister, he has failed. If he is trying to be the President of The United States of America, he has failed.
What has he succeeded in? Well, he, along with Pelosi and Reid, has passed the most liberal agenda in the history of the country. He has spent more than all the Presidents combined going back to George Washington.
The President left the country under a veil of humiliation and repudiation. He now has a hat in his hand at the G20. He is there with a failed agenda. No wonder the world leaders are not listening, nor are they paying attention to him, as he asks for participation in our downfall and as he is presiding over a looming debt, stagnant economy and a country that is in suspended economic growth. Our unemployment rate is still at 9.6%. This could be the new normal. If this number does not come down, our foreign competitors are poised to clamp down and bring this country to a halt.
I ask what they are up to. I have written in past FORUMS that the actions of this president will affect our posterity. I have written in past FORUMS that the actions of Congress will affect our posterity. I have written in past FORUMS that they, this current administration, know exactly what they are up to.
The report on deficit spending is out and it has surprised some and has alarmed some. The thing that stands out in my mind is that the debt commission suggested raising the retirement age to 69 from the current age bracket of 65. There will be exceptions, if you are physically unable to work. I have written that the agenda of this President and this Congress will have an affect on our posterity. If you are 4 years old now you will be affected by this new age limit. Our posterity, in essence, will have to work longer and harder to pay for the mistakes that have been made in the last four years. This is proof that our posterity will not have the quality of life that we enjoy today.
If you ask what they are up to - I offer you this. Future generations will not know what changed from one generation to another. Future generations will have the difficulty of debt and the prospect of a country that is not leading, but following in the footsteps of the countries that turned down the president that went to the G20 with his hat in his hand. This is proof that our posterity will be forced to accept the economic demands that they are now responsible for. They did not ask for it and they did not have a voice to say no to it.
The simple solution to all of this is to create an environment for growth. How do you do that? One way is to lower taxes on corporate and personal income. This will give more discretionary income for consumers to spend. When consumers spend, sales are made. When sales are made, production rises, because inventory needs to be replaced. The result of replacing inventory is a rise in production. When production rises, then jobs are created.
What our leaders forget is that this is a simple formula. It’s called free enterprise and capitalism. It works all the time. When money is in circulation, commerce occurs. When commerce occurs, revenue to the government rises. When people are working, revenues to the government also rise. When revenues to the government rise, then spending can occur at the governmental level, providing that the proper caps are in place and our politicians don’t rob from Peter to pay Paul.
Thomas Jefferson copied this quote of Montesquieu into his Commonplace Book: [Montesquieu wrote in Spirit of the Laws] “When once a republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.”
The last step to this formula, robbing Peter to pay Paul, was taken care of last week. What I worry about is the bigger picture and that is the first part of the formula that even the debt commission didn’t get. What I worry about is that the corruption may still be kept in place, but hidden for the time being.
David Axelrod the President’s closest advisor said, in an interview with the Huffington Post about the extension of the Bush Tax cuts, “We have to deal with the world as we find it.” This is the advice that I would give to that four year old that will now have to work until age 69 to collect his government check. The government check is and will always be the problem. The government check is drawn from an account that we are forced to contribute to but have no control over.
In a letter to Jedidiah Morse, in 1822, Thomas Jefferson wrote - four years before he died at the age of 83:
“We are to guard against ourselves; not against ourselves as we are, but as we may be; for who can imagine what we may become under circumstances not now imaginable.” –
I end this week with this quote, because Jefferson knew then what would happen if we didn’t continually rein in and restrict our government from robbing our liberties and our posterity.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: The President would be better served to take the hat out of his hand, and do the things that would encourage growth and encourage strength in our dollar. His ideology has not only been rejected here at home but it has now been rejected abroad. I would also say that our posterity would reject it if they had anything to say about it!
What are they up to?
The President is in Asia attending a G20 economic Summit. So far, he has not delivered on much. He has a trade deal with India that will create 56,000 jobs. He met with South Korea’s President and nothing came of it. He met with China and nothing came of it. He met with Germany and nothing came of it.
He is spending 200 million dollars a day for this mission and nothing has come of it. If he is trying to be a salesman, he has failed. If he is trying to be a trade minister, he has failed. If he is trying to be the President of The United States of America, he has failed.
What has he succeeded in? Well, he, along with Pelosi and Reid, has passed the most liberal agenda in the history of the country. He has spent more than all the Presidents combined going back to George Washington.
The President left the country under a veil of humiliation and repudiation. He now has a hat in his hand at the G20. He is there with a failed agenda. No wonder the world leaders are not listening, nor are they paying attention to him, as he asks for participation in our downfall and as he is presiding over a looming debt, stagnant economy and a country that is in suspended economic growth. Our unemployment rate is still at 9.6%. This could be the new normal. If this number does not come down, our foreign competitors are poised to clamp down and bring this country to a halt.
I ask what they are up to. I have written in past FORUMS that the actions of this president will affect our posterity. I have written in past FORUMS that the actions of Congress will affect our posterity. I have written in past FORUMS that they, this current administration, know exactly what they are up to.
The report on deficit spending is out and it has surprised some and has alarmed some. The thing that stands out in my mind is that the debt commission suggested raising the retirement age to 69 from the current age bracket of 65. There will be exceptions, if you are physically unable to work. I have written that the agenda of this President and this Congress will have an affect on our posterity. If you are 4 years old now you will be affected by this new age limit. Our posterity, in essence, will have to work longer and harder to pay for the mistakes that have been made in the last four years. This is proof that our posterity will not have the quality of life that we enjoy today.
If you ask what they are up to - I offer you this. Future generations will not know what changed from one generation to another. Future generations will have the difficulty of debt and the prospect of a country that is not leading, but following in the footsteps of the countries that turned down the president that went to the G20 with his hat in his hand. This is proof that our posterity will be forced to accept the economic demands that they are now responsible for. They did not ask for it and they did not have a voice to say no to it.
The simple solution to all of this is to create an environment for growth. How do you do that? One way is to lower taxes on corporate and personal income. This will give more discretionary income for consumers to spend. When consumers spend, sales are made. When sales are made, production rises, because inventory needs to be replaced. The result of replacing inventory is a rise in production. When production rises, then jobs are created.
What our leaders forget is that this is a simple formula. It’s called free enterprise and capitalism. It works all the time. When money is in circulation, commerce occurs. When commerce occurs, revenue to the government rises. When people are working, revenues to the government also rise. When revenues to the government rise, then spending can occur at the governmental level, providing that the proper caps are in place and our politicians don’t rob from Peter to pay Paul.
Thomas Jefferson copied this quote of Montesquieu into his Commonplace Book: [Montesquieu wrote in Spirit of the Laws] “When once a republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.”
The last step to this formula, robbing Peter to pay Paul, was taken care of last week. What I worry about is the bigger picture and that is the first part of the formula that even the debt commission didn’t get. What I worry about is that the corruption may still be kept in place, but hidden for the time being.
David Axelrod the President’s closest advisor said, in an interview with the Huffington Post about the extension of the Bush Tax cuts, “We have to deal with the world as we find it.” This is the advice that I would give to that four year old that will now have to work until age 69 to collect his government check. The government check is and will always be the problem. The government check is drawn from an account that we are forced to contribute to but have no control over.
In a letter to Jedidiah Morse, in 1822, Thomas Jefferson wrote - four years before he died at the age of 83:
“We are to guard against ourselves; not against ourselves as we are, but as we may be; for who can imagine what we may become under circumstances not now imaginable.” –
I end this week with this quote, because Jefferson knew then what would happen if we didn’t continually rein in and restrict our government from robbing our liberties and our posterity.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: The President would be better served to take the hat out of his hand, and do the things that would encourage growth and encourage strength in our dollar. His ideology has not only been rejected here at home but it has now been rejected abroad. I would also say that our posterity would reject it if they had anything to say about it!
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Veteran's Day
Thursday – November 11, 2010
Veterans Day:
The word veteran is defined: 1. old, of long experience: an old soldier of long service. 2. A former member of the armed forces. b. A person of long experience in some occupation or skill (as politics or arts). Some might say that a politician is artful and some might say that a soldier turned politician is an occupation that needs skill in leading.
Veteran’s Day is a holiday that we celebrate our veterans. World War I – known at the time as “The Great War” - officially ended when the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919, in the Palace of Versailles outside the town of Versailles, France. However, fighting ceased seven months earlier when an armistice or temporary cessation of hostilities, between the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. For that reason, November 11, 1918, is generally regarded as the end of “the war to end all wars.”
The original concept for the celebration was for a day observed with parades and public meetings and a brief suspension of business beginning at 11:00 a.m.
The United States Congress officially recognized the end of World War I when it passed a concurrent resolution on June 4, 1926, with these words:
Whereas the 11th of November 1918, marked the cessation of the most destructive, sanguinary, and far reaching war in human annals and the resumption by the people of the United States of peaceful relations with other nations, which we hope may never again be severed, and
Whereas it is fitting that the recurring anniversary of this date should be commemorated with thanksgiving and prayer and exercises designed to perpetuate peace through good will and mutual understanding between nations; and
Whereas the legislatures of twenty-seven of our States have already declared November 11 to be a legal holiday: Therefore be it Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), that the President of the United States is requested to issue a proclamation calling upon the officials to display the flag of the United States on all Government buildings on November 11 and inviting the people of the United States to observe the day in schools and churches, or other suitable places, with appropriate ceremonies of friendly relations with all other peoples.
An Act (52 Stat. 351; 5 U. S. Code, Sec. 87a) approved May 13, 1938, made the 11th of November in each year a legal holiday—a day to be dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be thereafter celebrated and known as "Armistice Day." Armistice Day was primarily a day set aside to honor veterans of World War I, but in 1954, after World War II had required the greatest mobilization of soldiers, sailors, Marines and airmen in the Nation’s history; after American forces had fought aggression in Korea, the 83rd Congress, at the urging of the veterans service organizations, amended the Act of 1938 by striking out the word "Armistice" and inserting in its place the word "Veterans." With the approval of this legislation (Public Law 380) on June 1, 1954, November 11th became a day to honor American veterans of all wars.
Later that same year, on October 8th, President Dwight D. Eisenhower issued the first "Veterans Day Proclamation" which stated: "In order to insure proper and widespread observance of this anniversary, all veterans, all veterans' organizations, and the entire citizenry will wish to join hands in the common purpose. Toward this end, I am designating the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs as Chairman of a Veterans Day National Committee, which shall include such other persons as the Chairman may select, and which will coordinate at the national level necessary planning for the observance. I am also requesting the heads of all departments and agencies of the Executive branch of the Government to assist the National Committee in every way possible."
On that same day, President Eisenhower sent a letter to the Honorable Harvey V. Higley, Administrator of Veterans' Affairs (VA), designating him as Chairman of the Veterans Day National Committee.
In 1958, the White House advised VA's General Counsel that the 1954 designation of the VA Administrator as Chairman of the Veterans Day National Committee applied to all subsequent VA Administrators. Since March 1989 when the VA was elevated to a cabinet level department, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs has served as the committee's chairman.
Dwight D. Eisenhower the 34th president was a soldier, a vet and President he signed the legislation with the word veteran that we celebrate today. Eisenhower led our troops and our allies to victory in World War II, by bringing freedom to the world and eliminating oppression and tyranny in foreign lands. Eisenhower represents a small minority of soldiers turned politician and even a smaller group who would become president.
There are only 13 men that have served our country in active duty that went onto serve the country as it Commander in Chief. They are: George Washington, Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant, Benjamin Harrison, James A. Garfield, Chester A. Arthur, Rutherford B. Hayes, Theodore Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman, Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy and George H. W. Bush. This is an elite group of tacticians in their own right. This is an elite group of leaders and this is an elite group of men who fought for freedom along side every other veteran. They lived by a code and they fought by a code, they considered them selves a soldier first even in the presidency.
I wonder, on this day, what these veterans would think of the loss of our liberty that they fought to preserve. I wonder what Washington would say about an organization such as the Institute for Policy Studies funded by George Soros that is encouraging President Obama to rule by Executive Order bypassing Congress and the Constitution. I wonder what Abraham Lincoln would say about oppression and tyranny that now exist in the country that he died to unite with “malice toward none.” I wonder what JFK would say about the continued nuclear threat that he embargoed the seas over. I wonder what George H.W. Bush is talking about with his son, the former president. I wonder when the spirit of these presidents will be celebrated by all Americans in the light of their sacrifice and in the light of every soldiers sacrifice. I wonder when the rest of America will unite and wake up to realize that soldiers and veterans have died to keep us free. I wonder if we can realize and resist the threats that now confront us. I know that these veterans did and I trust that future veterans will keep the fine company of these 13 men.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: Regardless of the day we should celebrate the contribution that our vets made to history’s story of freedom and liberty. Regardless of the day we should recognize that this is an American tradition and it is America that continues to be that shining city upon a hill. Regardless of the day this is what our veterans serve to preserve
Veterans Day:
The word veteran is defined: 1. old, of long experience: an old soldier of long service. 2. A former member of the armed forces. b. A person of long experience in some occupation or skill (as politics or arts). Some might say that a politician is artful and some might say that a soldier turned politician is an occupation that needs skill in leading.
Veteran’s Day is a holiday that we celebrate our veterans. World War I – known at the time as “The Great War” - officially ended when the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919, in the Palace of Versailles outside the town of Versailles, France. However, fighting ceased seven months earlier when an armistice or temporary cessation of hostilities, between the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. For that reason, November 11, 1918, is generally regarded as the end of “the war to end all wars.”
The original concept for the celebration was for a day observed with parades and public meetings and a brief suspension of business beginning at 11:00 a.m.
The United States Congress officially recognized the end of World War I when it passed a concurrent resolution on June 4, 1926, with these words:
Whereas the 11th of November 1918, marked the cessation of the most destructive, sanguinary, and far reaching war in human annals and the resumption by the people of the United States of peaceful relations with other nations, which we hope may never again be severed, and
Whereas it is fitting that the recurring anniversary of this date should be commemorated with thanksgiving and prayer and exercises designed to perpetuate peace through good will and mutual understanding between nations; and
Whereas the legislatures of twenty-seven of our States have already declared November 11 to be a legal holiday: Therefore be it Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), that the President of the United States is requested to issue a proclamation calling upon the officials to display the flag of the United States on all Government buildings on November 11 and inviting the people of the United States to observe the day in schools and churches, or other suitable places, with appropriate ceremonies of friendly relations with all other peoples.
An Act (52 Stat. 351; 5 U. S. Code, Sec. 87a) approved May 13, 1938, made the 11th of November in each year a legal holiday—a day to be dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be thereafter celebrated and known as "Armistice Day." Armistice Day was primarily a day set aside to honor veterans of World War I, but in 1954, after World War II had required the greatest mobilization of soldiers, sailors, Marines and airmen in the Nation’s history; after American forces had fought aggression in Korea, the 83rd Congress, at the urging of the veterans service organizations, amended the Act of 1938 by striking out the word "Armistice" and inserting in its place the word "Veterans." With the approval of this legislation (Public Law 380) on June 1, 1954, November 11th became a day to honor American veterans of all wars.
Later that same year, on October 8th, President Dwight D. Eisenhower issued the first "Veterans Day Proclamation" which stated: "In order to insure proper and widespread observance of this anniversary, all veterans, all veterans' organizations, and the entire citizenry will wish to join hands in the common purpose. Toward this end, I am designating the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs as Chairman of a Veterans Day National Committee, which shall include such other persons as the Chairman may select, and which will coordinate at the national level necessary planning for the observance. I am also requesting the heads of all departments and agencies of the Executive branch of the Government to assist the National Committee in every way possible."
On that same day, President Eisenhower sent a letter to the Honorable Harvey V. Higley, Administrator of Veterans' Affairs (VA), designating him as Chairman of the Veterans Day National Committee.
In 1958, the White House advised VA's General Counsel that the 1954 designation of the VA Administrator as Chairman of the Veterans Day National Committee applied to all subsequent VA Administrators. Since March 1989 when the VA was elevated to a cabinet level department, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs has served as the committee's chairman.
Dwight D. Eisenhower the 34th president was a soldier, a vet and President he signed the legislation with the word veteran that we celebrate today. Eisenhower led our troops and our allies to victory in World War II, by bringing freedom to the world and eliminating oppression and tyranny in foreign lands. Eisenhower represents a small minority of soldiers turned politician and even a smaller group who would become president.
There are only 13 men that have served our country in active duty that went onto serve the country as it Commander in Chief. They are: George Washington, Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant, Benjamin Harrison, James A. Garfield, Chester A. Arthur, Rutherford B. Hayes, Theodore Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman, Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy and George H. W. Bush. This is an elite group of tacticians in their own right. This is an elite group of leaders and this is an elite group of men who fought for freedom along side every other veteran. They lived by a code and they fought by a code, they considered them selves a soldier first even in the presidency.
I wonder, on this day, what these veterans would think of the loss of our liberty that they fought to preserve. I wonder what Washington would say about an organization such as the Institute for Policy Studies funded by George Soros that is encouraging President Obama to rule by Executive Order bypassing Congress and the Constitution. I wonder what Abraham Lincoln would say about oppression and tyranny that now exist in the country that he died to unite with “malice toward none.” I wonder what JFK would say about the continued nuclear threat that he embargoed the seas over. I wonder what George H.W. Bush is talking about with his son, the former president. I wonder when the spirit of these presidents will be celebrated by all Americans in the light of their sacrifice and in the light of every soldiers sacrifice. I wonder when the rest of America will unite and wake up to realize that soldiers and veterans have died to keep us free. I wonder if we can realize and resist the threats that now confront us. I know that these veterans did and I trust that future veterans will keep the fine company of these 13 men.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: Regardless of the day we should celebrate the contribution that our vets made to history’s story of freedom and liberty. Regardless of the day we should recognize that this is an American tradition and it is America that continues to be that shining city upon a hill. Regardless of the day this is what our veterans serve to preserve
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
A view of tomorrow:
Wednesday – November 10, 2010
A view of tomorrow:
As we continue to digest the November elections, a few things stand out. The Democrats would have you believe they lost, because of a bad economy. They would have you believe they lost, because they might not have been forceful enough in defense of their position. Truth is they lost, because the population had soundly defeated the Democratic platform through rejection and repudiation.
Fifty six percent (56%) of those who voted want a partial repeal or a complete repeal of the healthcare legislation. 8 out of 10 Republicans who voted want a total repeal of the healthcare legislation. These are not voters that voted against the Democrats, because of a bad economy. The president’s agenda is what brought defeat. The president’s agenda is why we have a stagnant economy and no job growth.
As we move on into the second half of this president’s term, we must start to compare his style of leadership and his ability to lead to that of past presidents. It is time to consider the comparisons, because of its historical implications. We should make no apologies in our attempt to compare and contrast this presidency.
Our past president, George Bush, just released his book, “Decision Points.” President Bush wrote the book to set the record straight. I have watched the interviews and I have come away with a few thoughts. President Bush loves his country. He loved to serve and he loved the Office of the President and what it stood for. His feeling of preserving the dignity of the office was his greatest concern and it still is. I will read the book with those thoughts in mind.
His greatest responsibility of the job, as he put it, was to keep the American people safe and he did. He truly lived up to his responsibility and to the oath he took. I believe President Bush will be a consequential President. I believe his actions and his decisions, when put into a historical context, will be monumental.
As we approach Veterans Day, we must celebrate it with a contextual view of history. I will view it with how George Washington led the Continental Army with a tested temper, with a tested strength and with the knowledge that he knew his mission had to succeed. He also led his Army to fight for principles yet unwritten in constitutional form.
I will view it with how George Bush had to encourage the troops and how he came to know the importance of protecting the Home Land. I will view it in a context of how The Constitution is protected by the Veterans who fought for it.
I will view it with a historical context of what the Mayflower Compact gave to the early colonies. The Compact was signed on November 11, 1620 and it provided the model for future governments of the colonies. I will view Veterans Day with the knowledge that our military history dates back to the colonies and that the veterans of the Revolutionary War had offspring that fought in the Civil War. I will view Veterans Day with the knowledge that great presidents, such as Washington and Bush, led Armies to victory and that the soldiers who gave the ultimate to country and to the Commander in Chief would be respected and would go down is history’s record as great men and great soldiers.
Both Washington and Bush were criticized in the midst of battle and in the midst of their administrations. Both were challenged and both stood their ground because they knew their mission and they knew what history told them. Both of these leaders had an opportunity to serve and to have the troops serve them. Bush now has a chance to relate his story in an historical essay on his presidency. Washington never did have that chance but then we knew what his record was because history was recorded in a true context.
Veterans Day is to honor America’s veterans for their patriotism, love of country, and their willingness to serve and sacrifice for the common good. I believe Washington and Bush worked to this end and I believe they led their troops to accomplish that end.
Our current President will be out of the country on Veterans Day. The ceremonies will still be conducted and the Vice President will lay the ceremonial wreath at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the veterans will get their day. This will never change. The only thing that changes is that presidents will come and presidents will go. Some presidents will be great, because of their respect for tradition and some will be great because they will win revolutions. Some will keep us safe and some will be analyzed to determine what context to view them in.
What we need to view is the meaning of Veterans Day and the meaning of what our Veteran’s give to us. They protect our freedoms and they preserve the meaning of freedom and liberty because they defend it. They follow orders and they make history so that we can read their stories. A soldier is a citizen. A soldier lives by the creed of military service. A soldier is someone for us to admire and to thank.
On today’s date in 1775 the U.S. Marine Corp was founded, it is part of the tradition of why we celebrate Veteran’s Day. The Corp along with every other unit of the Military is why we continue to celebrate our exceptionalism.
Tomorrows view is one of gratitude and thanks, because of their service and their trust in us that we will preserve what they fight for by being responsible citizens.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: Tomorrow, remember to thank a vet. They don’t ask for it and they don’t require that you do, it is only out of respect that you should!
A view of tomorrow:
As we continue to digest the November elections, a few things stand out. The Democrats would have you believe they lost, because of a bad economy. They would have you believe they lost, because they might not have been forceful enough in defense of their position. Truth is they lost, because the population had soundly defeated the Democratic platform through rejection and repudiation.
Fifty six percent (56%) of those who voted want a partial repeal or a complete repeal of the healthcare legislation. 8 out of 10 Republicans who voted want a total repeal of the healthcare legislation. These are not voters that voted against the Democrats, because of a bad economy. The president’s agenda is what brought defeat. The president’s agenda is why we have a stagnant economy and no job growth.
As we move on into the second half of this president’s term, we must start to compare his style of leadership and his ability to lead to that of past presidents. It is time to consider the comparisons, because of its historical implications. We should make no apologies in our attempt to compare and contrast this presidency.
Our past president, George Bush, just released his book, “Decision Points.” President Bush wrote the book to set the record straight. I have watched the interviews and I have come away with a few thoughts. President Bush loves his country. He loved to serve and he loved the Office of the President and what it stood for. His feeling of preserving the dignity of the office was his greatest concern and it still is. I will read the book with those thoughts in mind.
His greatest responsibility of the job, as he put it, was to keep the American people safe and he did. He truly lived up to his responsibility and to the oath he took. I believe President Bush will be a consequential President. I believe his actions and his decisions, when put into a historical context, will be monumental.
As we approach Veterans Day, we must celebrate it with a contextual view of history. I will view it with how George Washington led the Continental Army with a tested temper, with a tested strength and with the knowledge that he knew his mission had to succeed. He also led his Army to fight for principles yet unwritten in constitutional form.
I will view it with how George Bush had to encourage the troops and how he came to know the importance of protecting the Home Land. I will view it in a context of how The Constitution is protected by the Veterans who fought for it.
I will view it with a historical context of what the Mayflower Compact gave to the early colonies. The Compact was signed on November 11, 1620 and it provided the model for future governments of the colonies. I will view Veterans Day with the knowledge that our military history dates back to the colonies and that the veterans of the Revolutionary War had offspring that fought in the Civil War. I will view Veterans Day with the knowledge that great presidents, such as Washington and Bush, led Armies to victory and that the soldiers who gave the ultimate to country and to the Commander in Chief would be respected and would go down is history’s record as great men and great soldiers.
Both Washington and Bush were criticized in the midst of battle and in the midst of their administrations. Both were challenged and both stood their ground because they knew their mission and they knew what history told them. Both of these leaders had an opportunity to serve and to have the troops serve them. Bush now has a chance to relate his story in an historical essay on his presidency. Washington never did have that chance but then we knew what his record was because history was recorded in a true context.
Veterans Day is to honor America’s veterans for their patriotism, love of country, and their willingness to serve and sacrifice for the common good. I believe Washington and Bush worked to this end and I believe they led their troops to accomplish that end.
Our current President will be out of the country on Veterans Day. The ceremonies will still be conducted and the Vice President will lay the ceremonial wreath at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the veterans will get their day. This will never change. The only thing that changes is that presidents will come and presidents will go. Some presidents will be great, because of their respect for tradition and some will be great because they will win revolutions. Some will keep us safe and some will be analyzed to determine what context to view them in.
What we need to view is the meaning of Veterans Day and the meaning of what our Veteran’s give to us. They protect our freedoms and they preserve the meaning of freedom and liberty because they defend it. They follow orders and they make history so that we can read their stories. A soldier is a citizen. A soldier lives by the creed of military service. A soldier is someone for us to admire and to thank.
On today’s date in 1775 the U.S. Marine Corp was founded, it is part of the tradition of why we celebrate Veteran’s Day. The Corp along with every other unit of the Military is why we continue to celebrate our exceptionalism.
Tomorrows view is one of gratitude and thanks, because of their service and their trust in us that we will preserve what they fight for by being responsible citizens.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: Tomorrow, remember to thank a vet. They don’t ask for it and they don’t require that you do, it is only out of respect that you should!
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Location, location, location:
Tuesday- November 9, 2010
Location, location, location:
On today’s date, in 1620, the Mayflower ship landed at a location in Cape Cod, Massachusetts with 101 colonists. On November 11, the Mayflower Compact was signed by 41 men, establishing a form of local government in which the colonists agree to abide by majority rule and to cooperate for the general good of the colony. The Compact set the precedent for other colonies, as they set up their governments. Today’s title tells everything about our history. The location of time and history made it possible for the early colonies to grow and prosper in a location that was largely unknown to the rest of the world. By 1700, our population topped 250,000 people.
Our leaders forget our history. The president is abroad in India speaking to the youth about Gandhi and how, as a young boy, Gandhi made an impression upon him. As the President is selling a debt package on location, he must compliment the buyer. However, he also has an obligation to communicate our history and how the United States is still the greater hope of what Gandhi stood for. Our leaders always talk about foreign figures of history. This President and the out going House and Senate leaders never speak about the founding fathers, their struggles and consequent success. The reason is that their story and struggle for freedom and liberty does not exist in their dialog.
We all know when we invest in real-estate location is everything. In politics location is everything especially when we review the Red versus Blue States. In 2011, redistricting will be a topic of particular concern, not only for the Republicans, but also for the Democrats.
While we look for location on the maps to redraw the lines from one district to another to reflect population and political shifts, we must also remember that communication is just as important as location. The new make up of the House must be active in repealing bad legislation, such as healthcare, but they must also offer new solutions. The new solutions must and will bring back a strong America. However, the new solutions must be communicated and must be understood in all the locations of the new map.
When the Democrats start to rebuke the new solutions, we must be out there discounting what the other side is saying. When the Democrats filibuster in media interviews, we must stop the filibuster with a common sense dialog that connects with the viewing audience. Like selling a location in real estate we must concentrate on how to sell the dialog and that comes with the opportunity to communicate.
The Democratic Party knows they are in serious trouble. As they were saying two years ago about the Republican Party becoming nothing more than a regional party, the tables have turned. The Republican Party is now positioned to be the dominant Party in the first quarter of this century. The Democrats know that their leader is a political disaster. This is what makes that Party even more dangerous in defending their decisions. The Democratic Party has become the dumping ground for radical thought and now radical behavior.
While the Democrats are deciding who will lead them in the House and Senate they will also play the verbal filibuster game and support the practices that they employed. We must also remember that this party still believes in the ends justify the means style of governing. In knowing this we must ask if this president has ever invoked the words of Washington and Jefferson. Has he spoken about the struggles of the early patriots while our country was being founded? Has this president ever invoked the words of the revolutionaries in a dialog about freedom? In India our struggle for freedom can be an example of what liberty means to an individual. The American struggle is one of great sacrifice like Gandhi’s struggle was.
When we look at the map of the United States, we see a land mass. When we see a land mass, we think of a struggle for freedom. We think of the American advancement from the east to the west and we remember the stories of revolution and civil war. When we see the map of the United States, we see the Appalachian Mountains and the great Rockies. We see the mighty Mississippi and we see the Black Hills. We see States and Capitals and we see the boundaries of locations politically. What the New House members and the Republicans must do is start communicating about their location in history. They must draw a line and defend freedom, so that our liberty has a chance to be restored. When that is done, we will not have to sell our debt to another land in another location of the world.
If we look back we will find the location at which we became free. When we rediscover that location it will be worth the struggle we have fought for. When we find that location we can start to communicate to the youth of other lands the story of our struggle and be proud of it.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: The location of freedom was determined by where a ship named Mayflower landed in 1620. That ship landed upon the soil that is now known to the world as the land of the free and the home of the brave. It takes brave people to keep the light of freedom alive - it will take you to communicate that story no matter where your location is.
Location, location, location:
On today’s date, in 1620, the Mayflower ship landed at a location in Cape Cod, Massachusetts with 101 colonists. On November 11, the Mayflower Compact was signed by 41 men, establishing a form of local government in which the colonists agree to abide by majority rule and to cooperate for the general good of the colony. The Compact set the precedent for other colonies, as they set up their governments. Today’s title tells everything about our history. The location of time and history made it possible for the early colonies to grow and prosper in a location that was largely unknown to the rest of the world. By 1700, our population topped 250,000 people.
Our leaders forget our history. The president is abroad in India speaking to the youth about Gandhi and how, as a young boy, Gandhi made an impression upon him. As the President is selling a debt package on location, he must compliment the buyer. However, he also has an obligation to communicate our history and how the United States is still the greater hope of what Gandhi stood for. Our leaders always talk about foreign figures of history. This President and the out going House and Senate leaders never speak about the founding fathers, their struggles and consequent success. The reason is that their story and struggle for freedom and liberty does not exist in their dialog.
We all know when we invest in real-estate location is everything. In politics location is everything especially when we review the Red versus Blue States. In 2011, redistricting will be a topic of particular concern, not only for the Republicans, but also for the Democrats.
While we look for location on the maps to redraw the lines from one district to another to reflect population and political shifts, we must also remember that communication is just as important as location. The new make up of the House must be active in repealing bad legislation, such as healthcare, but they must also offer new solutions. The new solutions must and will bring back a strong America. However, the new solutions must be communicated and must be understood in all the locations of the new map.
When the Democrats start to rebuke the new solutions, we must be out there discounting what the other side is saying. When the Democrats filibuster in media interviews, we must stop the filibuster with a common sense dialog that connects with the viewing audience. Like selling a location in real estate we must concentrate on how to sell the dialog and that comes with the opportunity to communicate.
The Democratic Party knows they are in serious trouble. As they were saying two years ago about the Republican Party becoming nothing more than a regional party, the tables have turned. The Republican Party is now positioned to be the dominant Party in the first quarter of this century. The Democrats know that their leader is a political disaster. This is what makes that Party even more dangerous in defending their decisions. The Democratic Party has become the dumping ground for radical thought and now radical behavior.
While the Democrats are deciding who will lead them in the House and Senate they will also play the verbal filibuster game and support the practices that they employed. We must also remember that this party still believes in the ends justify the means style of governing. In knowing this we must ask if this president has ever invoked the words of Washington and Jefferson. Has he spoken about the struggles of the early patriots while our country was being founded? Has this president ever invoked the words of the revolutionaries in a dialog about freedom? In India our struggle for freedom can be an example of what liberty means to an individual. The American struggle is one of great sacrifice like Gandhi’s struggle was.
When we look at the map of the United States, we see a land mass. When we see a land mass, we think of a struggle for freedom. We think of the American advancement from the east to the west and we remember the stories of revolution and civil war. When we see the map of the United States, we see the Appalachian Mountains and the great Rockies. We see the mighty Mississippi and we see the Black Hills. We see States and Capitals and we see the boundaries of locations politically. What the New House members and the Republicans must do is start communicating about their location in history. They must draw a line and defend freedom, so that our liberty has a chance to be restored. When that is done, we will not have to sell our debt to another land in another location of the world.
If we look back we will find the location at which we became free. When we rediscover that location it will be worth the struggle we have fought for. When we find that location we can start to communicate to the youth of other lands the story of our struggle and be proud of it.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: The location of freedom was determined by where a ship named Mayflower landed in 1620. That ship landed upon the soil that is now known to the world as the land of the free and the home of the brave. It takes brave people to keep the light of freedom alive - it will take you to communicate that story no matter where your location is.
Monday, November 8, 2010
Monday – November 8, 2010
When I was Speaker:
This week, we will hear about the President’s successful trade trip to India and Asia. He will spend two hundred million dollars a day on this junket. He said on Friday that there would be 56,000 jobs created from the trade deal in India alone. You do the math. Why spend two hundred million a day for a hand full of jobs that won’t be created for at least another three years?
This trade mission will posture the president as the Free Trader in Chief. He left town amidst the most humiliating political loss in over six decades to re-create himself. He said in front young people in India, that there would be “mid course corrections and adjustments”. He went to say, “We will see how they play out in the coming months.”
I have to pose one question. Whenever this president gets himself into trouble politically, he addresses the young. Could it be the young are still impressionable and still wants to see the magic that has disappeared in the eyes of the mature? Alex Sink, a Democrat and former candidate for the governor’s office in Florida, said she did not get the backing of the White House because she was critical of the Presidents liberal positions. She lost to a Republican. Could it be that there are more who have matured politically than those who are mature and still idealistic? What ever the case, we are still feeling the repercussions of the vote last Tuesday.
Congressman Boehner of Ohio, the next Speaker of the House, has been humbled by the win. He has met his destiny and that is the history he will make when the Republicans challenge the spending initiatives, challenge the healthcare bill and finally question the improprieties that will require investigations.
The next Speaker is mature enough to lead. He is experienced enough to lead and he has the courage to lead and, better yet, the courage to ask the tough questions when he leads. On the other hand, Nancy Pelosi, the outgoing Speaker who made history herself, will ask her fellow democrats to support her for the minority leadership position in the House. She will then be able to push every one down a peg so she can retain power. James Clyburn, the Chairman of the Congressional Black caucus, will also be forced to step down a peg in leadership to accommodate Pelosi’s wish.
Ms. Pelosi’s only purpose in doing this is to remind everyone that she was once Speaker. She will say: “ When I was Speaker”, at every point in the tenure of Mr. Boehner. She will steel the stage and reserve the clout that she will require when the inevitable mismanagement of her office is discovered. She will stay in power to reserve her power. This is not only selfish, but it becomes dangerous to our system and to our freedoms.
When Ms. Pelosi reminds us that “when she was Speaker”, we will be reminded of the back room deals and the gross abuse of power that she, Harry Reid, the President and every House member and Senate member of the Democratic Party were part and parcel to. When Ms. Pelosi reminds us of “when she was Speaker”, Mr. Boehner must also remind us of what occurred when she was Speaker.
Thomas Jefferson wrote to Richard Price in 1785: “The happiness of governments like ours wherein the people are truly the mainspring is that they are never to be despaired of. When an evil becomes so glaring as to strike them generally, they arouse themselves, and it is redressed. He only is then the popular man and can get into office who shows the best dispositions to reform the evil. This truth was obvious on several occasions during the [Revolutionary] war, and this character in our government saved us. Calamity [is] our best physician."
On today’s date, in 1725, The New York Gazette newspaper began publication. It was edited by William Bradford and it would chronicle events of the day until 1744. It was the colonies first newspaper.
Bradford has numerous "firsts" to his credit in the history of American printing. From 1725 to 1744 he published the New York Gazette, the colony's first newspaper. After 1733 it had a rival, the Weekly Journal, published by Bradford's former apprentice and partner, John Peter Zenger. Bradford, as public printer, supported the government. Zenger was sponsored by a faction opposed to the government. When attempts were made to suppress Zenger, Bradford took a new side, against the government, in the famous freedom-of-press controversy.
Since the inception of Bradford’s newspaper, we have had a tradition of excellence in this country. Part of that excellence is made possible through the freedom of the press. In recent years, the freedom of the press has been bought and paid for by big corporate concerns. Journalists have been able to offer their opinions, regardless of fact or falsity and have been given support by accommodating an agenda, instead of writing and speaking about the differences of the agenda.
Keith Olbermann was suspended indefinitely by NBC for contributing to Democratic political campaigns. It is the policy of NBC news that any donation to a political campaign be given prior approval by the president of the news organization. Olbermann obviously violated the rules when he donated $2,400.00 to each of three Democratic political campaigns. They were: Kentucky’s Senate candidate Jack Conway and Arizona’s Reps, Paul Grijalva and Gabrielle Giffords. Why these three, one can only speculate. But when Olbermann was over the top in his criticism of Rand Paul and the other Republican candidates how can you become impartial and deliver the news regardless of preference, to an audience who must have the facts to vote their conscience. I am sure that many of NBC’s and MSNBC’S viewers do have a conscience. It is Olbermann that didn’t and still doesn’t.
Jefferson also wrote about the freedom of the Press – In a letter to John Tyler in 1804, he wrote: "No experiment can be more interesting than that we are now trying, and which we trust will end in establishing the fact, that man may be governed by reason and truth. Our first object should therefore be, to leave open to him all the avenues to truth. The most effectual hitherto found, is the freedom of the press. It is, therefore, the first shut up by those who fear the investigation of their actions."
Mr. Olbermann, Ms. Pelosi and Mr. Reid and the others who drive an agenda that is despised and that is fraught with threats to liberty and freedom, should review the writings of the men that came before them. There are lessons and more importantly fact that was preserved, because of a free press. It is the opinion that becomes a fact by agenda that remains the threat. When Pelosi reminds of “when she was Speaker” remember the opinion vs. the fact by agenda scenario of the past four years.
I hope that when Mr. Boehner faces the end of his tenure he can say, without a doubt, “When I was Speaker, it was out of a fondness of serving and not out of a fondness of power.” I believe he will, because he started with a humble acceptance of preserving liberty and freedom and not wanting it destroyed. I believe he has read the words of Jefferson and I believe that he believes them.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: Remember fact is far easier to report on when opinions are taken out of the scenario. Fact is far easier to absorb when opinions are taken out of the news cycle. Truth in the press is what guarantees our liberties and freedoms.
When I was Speaker:
This week, we will hear about the President’s successful trade trip to India and Asia. He will spend two hundred million dollars a day on this junket. He said on Friday that there would be 56,000 jobs created from the trade deal in India alone. You do the math. Why spend two hundred million a day for a hand full of jobs that won’t be created for at least another three years?
This trade mission will posture the president as the Free Trader in Chief. He left town amidst the most humiliating political loss in over six decades to re-create himself. He said in front young people in India, that there would be “mid course corrections and adjustments”. He went to say, “We will see how they play out in the coming months.”
I have to pose one question. Whenever this president gets himself into trouble politically, he addresses the young. Could it be the young are still impressionable and still wants to see the magic that has disappeared in the eyes of the mature? Alex Sink, a Democrat and former candidate for the governor’s office in Florida, said she did not get the backing of the White House because she was critical of the Presidents liberal positions. She lost to a Republican. Could it be that there are more who have matured politically than those who are mature and still idealistic? What ever the case, we are still feeling the repercussions of the vote last Tuesday.
Congressman Boehner of Ohio, the next Speaker of the House, has been humbled by the win. He has met his destiny and that is the history he will make when the Republicans challenge the spending initiatives, challenge the healthcare bill and finally question the improprieties that will require investigations.
The next Speaker is mature enough to lead. He is experienced enough to lead and he has the courage to lead and, better yet, the courage to ask the tough questions when he leads. On the other hand, Nancy Pelosi, the outgoing Speaker who made history herself, will ask her fellow democrats to support her for the minority leadership position in the House. She will then be able to push every one down a peg so she can retain power. James Clyburn, the Chairman of the Congressional Black caucus, will also be forced to step down a peg in leadership to accommodate Pelosi’s wish.
Ms. Pelosi’s only purpose in doing this is to remind everyone that she was once Speaker. She will say: “ When I was Speaker”, at every point in the tenure of Mr. Boehner. She will steel the stage and reserve the clout that she will require when the inevitable mismanagement of her office is discovered. She will stay in power to reserve her power. This is not only selfish, but it becomes dangerous to our system and to our freedoms.
When Ms. Pelosi reminds us that “when she was Speaker”, we will be reminded of the back room deals and the gross abuse of power that she, Harry Reid, the President and every House member and Senate member of the Democratic Party were part and parcel to. When Ms. Pelosi reminds us of “when she was Speaker”, Mr. Boehner must also remind us of what occurred when she was Speaker.
Thomas Jefferson wrote to Richard Price in 1785: “The happiness of governments like ours wherein the people are truly the mainspring is that they are never to be despaired of. When an evil becomes so glaring as to strike them generally, they arouse themselves, and it is redressed. He only is then the popular man and can get into office who shows the best dispositions to reform the evil. This truth was obvious on several occasions during the [Revolutionary] war, and this character in our government saved us. Calamity [is] our best physician."
On today’s date, in 1725, The New York Gazette newspaper began publication. It was edited by William Bradford and it would chronicle events of the day until 1744. It was the colonies first newspaper.
Bradford has numerous "firsts" to his credit in the history of American printing. From 1725 to 1744 he published the New York Gazette, the colony's first newspaper. After 1733 it had a rival, the Weekly Journal, published by Bradford's former apprentice and partner, John Peter Zenger. Bradford, as public printer, supported the government. Zenger was sponsored by a faction opposed to the government. When attempts were made to suppress Zenger, Bradford took a new side, against the government, in the famous freedom-of-press controversy.
Since the inception of Bradford’s newspaper, we have had a tradition of excellence in this country. Part of that excellence is made possible through the freedom of the press. In recent years, the freedom of the press has been bought and paid for by big corporate concerns. Journalists have been able to offer their opinions, regardless of fact or falsity and have been given support by accommodating an agenda, instead of writing and speaking about the differences of the agenda.
Keith Olbermann was suspended indefinitely by NBC for contributing to Democratic political campaigns. It is the policy of NBC news that any donation to a political campaign be given prior approval by the president of the news organization. Olbermann obviously violated the rules when he donated $2,400.00 to each of three Democratic political campaigns. They were: Kentucky’s Senate candidate Jack Conway and Arizona’s Reps, Paul Grijalva and Gabrielle Giffords. Why these three, one can only speculate. But when Olbermann was over the top in his criticism of Rand Paul and the other Republican candidates how can you become impartial and deliver the news regardless of preference, to an audience who must have the facts to vote their conscience. I am sure that many of NBC’s and MSNBC’S viewers do have a conscience. It is Olbermann that didn’t and still doesn’t.
Jefferson also wrote about the freedom of the Press – In a letter to John Tyler in 1804, he wrote: "No experiment can be more interesting than that we are now trying, and which we trust will end in establishing the fact, that man may be governed by reason and truth. Our first object should therefore be, to leave open to him all the avenues to truth. The most effectual hitherto found, is the freedom of the press. It is, therefore, the first shut up by those who fear the investigation of their actions."
Mr. Olbermann, Ms. Pelosi and Mr. Reid and the others who drive an agenda that is despised and that is fraught with threats to liberty and freedom, should review the writings of the men that came before them. There are lessons and more importantly fact that was preserved, because of a free press. It is the opinion that becomes a fact by agenda that remains the threat. When Pelosi reminds of “when she was Speaker” remember the opinion vs. the fact by agenda scenario of the past four years.
I hope that when Mr. Boehner faces the end of his tenure he can say, without a doubt, “When I was Speaker, it was out of a fondness of serving and not out of a fondness of power.” I believe he will, because he started with a humble acceptance of preserving liberty and freedom and not wanting it destroyed. I believe he has read the words of Jefferson and I believe that he believes them.
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: Remember fact is far easier to report on when opinions are taken out of the scenario. Fact is far easier to absorb when opinions are taken out of the news cycle. Truth in the press is what guarantees our liberties and freedoms.
Friday, November 5, 2010
The landscape and the agenda:
Friday – November 5, 2010
The landscape and the agenda:
I wrote yesterday that the president will use the new political landscape to his advantage. He is already demonizing the winners and has started on his new excuse agenda. He said yesterday that he didn’t articulate the meaning of the liberal agenda and its legislation. He said, “The agenda as opposed to an emergency.” What does this mean? It means that the emergency drove the President, the Speaker of the House and the Senate leader to pass the most liberal agenda and legislation in our history, all under the guise of an emergency.
The President went onto say that the electorate confused the emergency and consequent legislation, as government intrusion. In other words, the emergency made us do it. This is very artful and creative articulation of the facts. This is exactly what the new incoming House and its leaders will have to put up with. This is exactly what is wrong with this administration and the leaders still in power in this administration.
This is how the president his advisors and the remaining leaders in his party will defend the mistakes made since the president took office. They will continue to use the excuse of the emergency to defend their brand of radical liberalism. Truth be told, the democrats labored for all these programs well before the “emergency.”
The president has no intention on changing course and this is why the Republicans should publically defend their position at every step in the process to repeal, defund and reject the agenda and future desires of this president. Call it obstruction, call it not playing by the rules, call it what you will, the agenda is still alive and can still take our liberties away. The debate over healthcare will grow quickly, the debate will center on 16,000 pages of regulation within the bill. This will bring into focus why the Republicans said “no” to the bill. Pay close attention to the debate and view the landscape with these regulations in mind.
If the liberal can’t pass their agenda through legislation, they will do it, administratively, through cabinet department heads. This is more dangerous than some of the legislation itself. This is why the president moved so quickly to appoint the czars and to place other individuals in powerful positions with in the government.
They will rewrite the history of the emergency to craft a political platform for the 2012 election. They have already scripted the scenario with the televised cabinet meeting yesterday. They have already scripted the economic landscape with the passage of QE II that I wrote about yesterday. The market may rise, but the job loss numbers will also rise. Just today, new unemployment claims unexpectedly rose from last weeks numbers and the unemployment rate is still 9.6%.
What we fail to understand is that more money injected into the system only satisfies the urges of the liberal. If they don’t spend tax payer money they don’t get satisfaction. What we need to do is send a message to Congress that says we don’t need money being injected into Wall Street. We need sales on Main Street. If companies don’t sell their items then they’re not manufacturing, and when they aren’t manufacturing they are not employing people. This is a simple formula, but it has to be communicated to Congress. QE II might be great for Wall Street and the IPO coming for General Motors, but it does nothing for you and me, unless we’re heavy hitters or investment bankers.
I end this week with some words by Ronald Reagan. Some have equated the political earthquake that happened this week to a second coming of Reagan conservatism. It took Jimmy Carter to bring us Reagan. It will take the presidency of Barack Obama to give us another great president like Reagan. We must remember one thing about Reagan. He raised government spending, but he had the revenue to do it, because he lowered taxes and created job growth. This president still does not have a plan that will create jobs. This is the big difference and this is why the words of Reagan still resonate today.
January 11, 1989 farewell speech to the nation:
“I’ve spoken of the shining city all my political life, but I don’t know if I ever quite communicated what I saw when I said it. But in my mind it was a tall proud city built on rocks stronger than oceans, wind-swept, God-blessed, and teeming with people of all kinds living in harmony and peace, a city with free ports that hummed with commerce and creativity, and if there had to be city walls, the walls had doors and the doors were open to anyone with the will and the heart to get here. That’s how I saw it and see it still.”
Reagan and Entrepreneurs:” Entrepreneurs and their small enterprises are responsible for almost all the economic growth in the United States.”
Reagan and Government:” Government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.”
Now you tell me what landscape makes sense to you? What part of the argument are you still unsure of? Can you communicate some of this to your friends?
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: These arguments are still appropriate in today’s articulation of the issues. The difference is that most of us understand the simple view of the landscape that these words are meant to convey!
The landscape and the agenda:
I wrote yesterday that the president will use the new political landscape to his advantage. He is already demonizing the winners and has started on his new excuse agenda. He said yesterday that he didn’t articulate the meaning of the liberal agenda and its legislation. He said, “The agenda as opposed to an emergency.” What does this mean? It means that the emergency drove the President, the Speaker of the House and the Senate leader to pass the most liberal agenda and legislation in our history, all under the guise of an emergency.
The President went onto say that the electorate confused the emergency and consequent legislation, as government intrusion. In other words, the emergency made us do it. This is very artful and creative articulation of the facts. This is exactly what the new incoming House and its leaders will have to put up with. This is exactly what is wrong with this administration and the leaders still in power in this administration.
This is how the president his advisors and the remaining leaders in his party will defend the mistakes made since the president took office. They will continue to use the excuse of the emergency to defend their brand of radical liberalism. Truth be told, the democrats labored for all these programs well before the “emergency.”
The president has no intention on changing course and this is why the Republicans should publically defend their position at every step in the process to repeal, defund and reject the agenda and future desires of this president. Call it obstruction, call it not playing by the rules, call it what you will, the agenda is still alive and can still take our liberties away. The debate over healthcare will grow quickly, the debate will center on 16,000 pages of regulation within the bill. This will bring into focus why the Republicans said “no” to the bill. Pay close attention to the debate and view the landscape with these regulations in mind.
If the liberal can’t pass their agenda through legislation, they will do it, administratively, through cabinet department heads. This is more dangerous than some of the legislation itself. This is why the president moved so quickly to appoint the czars and to place other individuals in powerful positions with in the government.
They will rewrite the history of the emergency to craft a political platform for the 2012 election. They have already scripted the scenario with the televised cabinet meeting yesterday. They have already scripted the economic landscape with the passage of QE II that I wrote about yesterday. The market may rise, but the job loss numbers will also rise. Just today, new unemployment claims unexpectedly rose from last weeks numbers and the unemployment rate is still 9.6%.
What we fail to understand is that more money injected into the system only satisfies the urges of the liberal. If they don’t spend tax payer money they don’t get satisfaction. What we need to do is send a message to Congress that says we don’t need money being injected into Wall Street. We need sales on Main Street. If companies don’t sell their items then they’re not manufacturing, and when they aren’t manufacturing they are not employing people. This is a simple formula, but it has to be communicated to Congress. QE II might be great for Wall Street and the IPO coming for General Motors, but it does nothing for you and me, unless we’re heavy hitters or investment bankers.
I end this week with some words by Ronald Reagan. Some have equated the political earthquake that happened this week to a second coming of Reagan conservatism. It took Jimmy Carter to bring us Reagan. It will take the presidency of Barack Obama to give us another great president like Reagan. We must remember one thing about Reagan. He raised government spending, but he had the revenue to do it, because he lowered taxes and created job growth. This president still does not have a plan that will create jobs. This is the big difference and this is why the words of Reagan still resonate today.
January 11, 1989 farewell speech to the nation:
“I’ve spoken of the shining city all my political life, but I don’t know if I ever quite communicated what I saw when I said it. But in my mind it was a tall proud city built on rocks stronger than oceans, wind-swept, God-blessed, and teeming with people of all kinds living in harmony and peace, a city with free ports that hummed with commerce and creativity, and if there had to be city walls, the walls had doors and the doors were open to anyone with the will and the heart to get here. That’s how I saw it and see it still.”
Reagan and Entrepreneurs:” Entrepreneurs and their small enterprises are responsible for almost all the economic growth in the United States.”
Reagan and Government:” Government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.”
Now you tell me what landscape makes sense to you? What part of the argument are you still unsure of? Can you communicate some of this to your friends?
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: These arguments are still appropriate in today’s articulation of the issues. The difference is that most of us understand the simple view of the landscape that these words are meant to convey!
Thursday, November 4, 2010
The landscape:
Thursday – November 4, 2010
The landscape:
The one thing we know is that this week’s elections changed the political landscape in this country. Electorally, the President lost with big gains in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Ohio going to the Republicans. These states are considered battleground states in general elections. Additionally, the president lost over 500 seats in 19 state legislatures. The new lines of congressional districts will be redrawn to represent this shift in 2011.
This is all fine and good, the Republicans are in and they control the House. The Republicans made significant gains in the Senate. Harry Reid is presiding over a significantly diminished Senate majority and Nancy Pelosi is out, for sure, as Speaker. She will be replaced by John Boehner of Ohio as Speaker of the House, the 3rd most powerful man in Washington D.C., after the President and the Vice President.
The new Speaker will have a significant majority with many chairman ships of the House committees going to senior Congressional members. Congressman Boehner will be a great Speaker, if he can control the spending and control the President. Mr. Boehner will have his challenges and will move ahead with his mandate.
His biggest challenge will be to stave off any more legislation that might come from this lame duck session. Remember, Pelosi and Reid can still have their day until January of 2011.
Another challenge that he will have is that he has no power over is what’s happening in the Fed. The QE II - Quantitative Easing from the Federal Reserve will inject over 500 billion dollars into the economy almost immediately. This is simply just another stimulus. The Fed will print this money and it will go directly into the stock market. The market will get a boost and it will appear that the stimulus scheme of 2008 is working.
The other side of the coin will reflect an uptick in inflation. In other words, your money will be worth less, only to have the appearance of an improving economy. Guys like the big Wall Street Bankers that the President says are the villains will profit from this. Guys like George Soros who, “wants a controlled devaluation of the dollar”, will profit.
Guys like Boehner will get the blame when this stimulus scheme goes south like every other scheme of government.
As the House and Senate prepare themselves for a new landscape of compromise and consensus, one thing remains constant. The President is still presiding over the bank of fiscal and monetary policy. The people sent a message to our elected officials. The message was to go in a different direction. The Congress wants to, they have to. Some in the Senate want to go in a different direction, because 21 of those seats will be up for election in 2012.
The president, on the other hand, doesn’t necessarily have to change direction right now, because he still has support. He will use this landscape to his advantage. The landscape will be painted with a stock market on the rise and a Senate who is still beholding to the false promise of liberalism. The landscape will also consist of the unemployed and large deficits. The question is: who will get the blame, if these two issues don’t improve?
The Fed will also use the landscape to do what they do best and that is to print money. This is the only thing the rest of the world wants from America. That is the only thing we produce and when our wealth is eaten up by inflation the landscape will again require a change. The 2012 election will be a part of that scenario going forward.
To be, Speaker of the House Boehner, and to be, Senate Minority leader McConnell will have to bring their story to the landscape of America and be truthful about the ideas coming from these institutions. We know one thing, the ideas that have come from these institutions were bad and that is why the landscape has changed.
When exit polling questions were asked about repealing healthcare, 51% responded yes. When the president was asked about this his response was there are still 49% who don’t want to repeal it. It is this part of the landscape that we need to cultivate with the seeds of conservatism. It is this part of the landscape who still thinks that they are going to get something for nothing. This is the lie and this is what our new leaders must address.
What we will address is the landscape of conservative values and fiscal restraint. The new landscape will require that more changes be made at Pinecone Conservatives. I have spoken to many key leaders and their interest is now peaked. We made it through one election cycle and we are preparing to go through another in two years. We will organize with chapters that you manage. We will organize to cultivate the seeds of conservatism because our leaders are now in a position to take note of what we are all about.
Hang on, because the landscape now requires an organization to cultivate the message of conservative thought and action.
John F. Kennedy held a dinner in the White House for a group of the brightest minds in the nation at that time. He made this statement: “This is perhaps the assembly of the most intelligence ever to gather at one time in the White House, with the exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone.”
Jefferson wrote to Roger C. Weightman, June 24, 1826 (in the last letter that he penned): “May it be to the world, what I believe it will be, (to some parts sooner, to others later, but finally to all,) the signal of arousing men to burst the chains under which monkish ignorance and superstition had persuaded them to bind themselves, and to assume the blessings and security of self-government. All eyes are opened, or opening, to the rights of man. The general spread of the light of science has already laid open to every view the palpable truth, that the mass of mankind has not been born with saddles on their backs, nor a favored few booted and spurred, ready to ride them legitimately, by the grace of God.”
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: The landscape has changed and the importance of organizing has gotten that much more important to the landscape.
The landscape:
The one thing we know is that this week’s elections changed the political landscape in this country. Electorally, the President lost with big gains in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Ohio going to the Republicans. These states are considered battleground states in general elections. Additionally, the president lost over 500 seats in 19 state legislatures. The new lines of congressional districts will be redrawn to represent this shift in 2011.
This is all fine and good, the Republicans are in and they control the House. The Republicans made significant gains in the Senate. Harry Reid is presiding over a significantly diminished Senate majority and Nancy Pelosi is out, for sure, as Speaker. She will be replaced by John Boehner of Ohio as Speaker of the House, the 3rd most powerful man in Washington D.C., after the President and the Vice President.
The new Speaker will have a significant majority with many chairman ships of the House committees going to senior Congressional members. Congressman Boehner will be a great Speaker, if he can control the spending and control the President. Mr. Boehner will have his challenges and will move ahead with his mandate.
His biggest challenge will be to stave off any more legislation that might come from this lame duck session. Remember, Pelosi and Reid can still have their day until January of 2011.
Another challenge that he will have is that he has no power over is what’s happening in the Fed. The QE II - Quantitative Easing from the Federal Reserve will inject over 500 billion dollars into the economy almost immediately. This is simply just another stimulus. The Fed will print this money and it will go directly into the stock market. The market will get a boost and it will appear that the stimulus scheme of 2008 is working.
The other side of the coin will reflect an uptick in inflation. In other words, your money will be worth less, only to have the appearance of an improving economy. Guys like the big Wall Street Bankers that the President says are the villains will profit from this. Guys like George Soros who, “wants a controlled devaluation of the dollar”, will profit.
Guys like Boehner will get the blame when this stimulus scheme goes south like every other scheme of government.
As the House and Senate prepare themselves for a new landscape of compromise and consensus, one thing remains constant. The President is still presiding over the bank of fiscal and monetary policy. The people sent a message to our elected officials. The message was to go in a different direction. The Congress wants to, they have to. Some in the Senate want to go in a different direction, because 21 of those seats will be up for election in 2012.
The president, on the other hand, doesn’t necessarily have to change direction right now, because he still has support. He will use this landscape to his advantage. The landscape will be painted with a stock market on the rise and a Senate who is still beholding to the false promise of liberalism. The landscape will also consist of the unemployed and large deficits. The question is: who will get the blame, if these two issues don’t improve?
The Fed will also use the landscape to do what they do best and that is to print money. This is the only thing the rest of the world wants from America. That is the only thing we produce and when our wealth is eaten up by inflation the landscape will again require a change. The 2012 election will be a part of that scenario going forward.
To be, Speaker of the House Boehner, and to be, Senate Minority leader McConnell will have to bring their story to the landscape of America and be truthful about the ideas coming from these institutions. We know one thing, the ideas that have come from these institutions were bad and that is why the landscape has changed.
When exit polling questions were asked about repealing healthcare, 51% responded yes. When the president was asked about this his response was there are still 49% who don’t want to repeal it. It is this part of the landscape that we need to cultivate with the seeds of conservatism. It is this part of the landscape who still thinks that they are going to get something for nothing. This is the lie and this is what our new leaders must address.
What we will address is the landscape of conservative values and fiscal restraint. The new landscape will require that more changes be made at Pinecone Conservatives. I have spoken to many key leaders and their interest is now peaked. We made it through one election cycle and we are preparing to go through another in two years. We will organize with chapters that you manage. We will organize to cultivate the seeds of conservatism because our leaders are now in a position to take note of what we are all about.
Hang on, because the landscape now requires an organization to cultivate the message of conservative thought and action.
John F. Kennedy held a dinner in the White House for a group of the brightest minds in the nation at that time. He made this statement: “This is perhaps the assembly of the most intelligence ever to gather at one time in the White House, with the exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone.”
Jefferson wrote to Roger C. Weightman, June 24, 1826 (in the last letter that he penned): “May it be to the world, what I believe it will be, (to some parts sooner, to others later, but finally to all,) the signal of arousing men to burst the chains under which monkish ignorance and superstition had persuaded them to bind themselves, and to assume the blessings and security of self-government. All eyes are opened, or opening, to the rights of man. The general spread of the light of science has already laid open to every view the palpable truth, that the mass of mankind has not been born with saddles on their backs, nor a favored few booted and spurred, ready to ride them legitimately, by the grace of God.”
Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives
A footnote: The landscape has changed and the importance of organizing has gotten that much more important to the landscape.
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