Month: April 2010

Arizona And Gun Rights Gone Mad! :(

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Arizona is trying to promote itself as the “Wild, Wild West”, based on its latest state legislative action!

Already allowing a person with a permit to take a gun into a restaurant or bar serving alcohol as long as the establishment doesn’t prohibit it and the person is not drinking alcohol, now the governor, Jan Brewer, the successor to Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, has signed a bill making Arizona the third state allowing people to carry a concealed weapon without requiring a permit. Napolitano had vetoed similar gun legislation when she was Governor until 2008.

Governor Brewer is, seemingly, more concerned about a person’s gun rights under the Second Amendment than concern over gun safety. Only Alaska and Vermont allow the same thing as this legislation in Arizona.

The problem is that people over the age of 21 will not have to undergo background checks and take classes, as are now required under the present law. Are people at that young age really mature enough and responsible enough to have no controls or checks on their ownership of guns?

There is concern that there will be more gun violence, and that people will accidentally discharge guns because of lack of education on firearm safety. Also, people under stress will be more likely to fire weapons and injure bystanders with stray bullets.

Can the average 21 year old be trusted to know how to use a weapon safely? Many have doubts about this. And with more than 150,000 people having permits now to carry concealed weapons, it is thought many more will now have it without the need for a permit.

Forty five states require permits for concealed weapons, with only two–Illinois and Wisconsin–completely banning hidden guns.

Arizona received public attention last year when a citizen carried a weapon openly at a protest in Phoenix near where President Obama was speaking to a gathering.

On this, the 15th anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing by Timothy McVeigh, this new legislation signed a few days ago is alarming, and portends violence on the level of the Columbine Massacre or the Virginia Tech Massacre.

When gun rights are more significant than public safety, we are playing literally, with a “loaded weapon”. God help us as we face an era of growing gun violence, including against our own government! 🙁

Obama, Wall Street Regulations, And Mitch McConnell

Ronald 1 Comment

One would think the collapse of the economy in the Fall of 2008 would motivate everyone in Congress to promote strict regulations of Wall Street, so that what happened can never occur again!

It was lack of regulation that allowed the Wall Street abuses to happen, but apparently that does not affect the Republican opposition, most of whom seem dedicated to prevention of any real regulatory reform!

Well known as friends of Wall Street, they now are trying to play a shell game, and claim that all bailouts must be prevented in the future, when many of them backed the original bailout that took place under President Bush!

Despite Tea Party protests, it is a fact that the so called “bailout” saved the country from a worse economic downturn, and much of the bailout money has been paid back by the banks, insurance companies, and auto companies, and the rest will be paid back.

Would it have been better to do nothing, and let the economy slip into a total depression? Why is it that now when it is urgent that reform be accomplished, suddenly the GOP is acting like an innocent child, as if they had nothing to do with the lack of regulation during the Bush era?

It is good to see President Obama declare that, just like with the Health Care legislation, he will not allow GOP intransigence to stand in the way of essential reform! It is time for action, no matter what Mitch McConnell, Senate Minority Leader, or anyone else does to block reform! It has been the height of hypocrisy for McConnell to attack the legislation, when he is well known for being close to Wall Street financiers! What a disgrace! 🙁

Obama And The Nuclear Security Summit

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President Obama accomplished a great agreement at a Nuclear Security Summit held in Washington, DC last week.

47 nations agreed to track down all nuclear material over the next four years, and the goal of the meeting, a gathering of more nations than at any time since World War II, was to work together to promote the eventual elimination of all nuclear weapons.

This comes on top of the Russian-US agreement to cut nuclear arsenals by one third, with verification means to insure that both sides keep the agreement.

What Obama did this past week is the fulfillment of what, ironically, President Ronald Reagan promoted as a goal, when he made arms agreements with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev.

This is something, therefore, that all should embrace, but instead, predictably, conservatives and Republicans are forgetting what Reagan enunciated in his second term in office, and already promise a battle over the strategic arms reduction treaty (START) when it comes to the Senate.

This will happen, despite the fact that Republicans from earlier administrations have spoken up in favor of the treaty and the move toward nuclear security. But rather than unite around the danger of nuclear proliferation and attempt to promote progress on this, the opposition would rather use it as a political issue, so the treaty will incite a new struggle! 🙁

Bill Clinton Compares Oklahoma City Bombing Atmosphere To Today

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Former President Bill Clinton has warned that the country is in a dangerous political environment similar to 1995, when we saw anti government militias spewing forth anti government rhetoric, which influenced Timothy McVeigh to make the decision to bomb the Oklahoma City Federal Building on April 19, 1995, killing 168 and injuring a thousand people.

This was the greatest domestic terrorist attack in US history, and many are concerned that as the 15 year anniversary of that event comes on Monday, that a similar event might happen.

Clinton pointed out that he was not criticizing those who wish to be critical of government, but the hot political rhetoric fuels the fires of extremists who go too far. He referred to Michele Bachmann at a Tax Day Tea Party rally calling the government a bunch of “gangsters”, which he said is not acceptable language, as the people running the government were elected by a majority of the American people.

Clinton pointed out that with the growth of the internet, the danger of extremist and violent groups to organize and conspire has grown, so he expressed his hope that we could keep our political opposition within legal bounds.

Monday, April 19, will be a day that all law abiding Americans will watch to see that we can keep our disagreements and anger within legal means!

Obama And Gay Visitation Rights In Hospitals: Important Step On Human Rights!

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President Obama took a great step forward on human rights yesterday, when he ordered that the Department of Health and Human Services immediately move to promote the right of gay and lesbian couples to have hospital visitation rights, something often denied in many health crises involving gays across the nation up to now.

While there is much more that needs to be done regarding the subject of gay rights, Obama is bringing about changes in a more measured way to avoid conflict with Congress in the short run.

This will not, of course, please gay activists who want immediate and dramatic changes on gay rights on the part of the Obama Administration.

But this move to allow better treatment in hospital situations is still to be applauded as a move in the right direction! One must remember that there are so many areas that Obama is working on at the same time, and some patience is therefore required!

The main point is that Obama’s attitude and mind is in the proper place, and he will be seen as having made great progress on a difficult subject as time goes by!

Barack Obama And The Space Program: New Direction!

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President Obama outlined a new vision on space travel at the Cape Canaveral base of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in central Florida on Thursday.

His plan is to develop a new space vehicle and a heavy lift booster to carry it beyond earth; to have a manned mission to an asteroid within fifteen years; and to use this as a stepping stone to the moons of Mars, and then reach Mars itself by 2040.

Obama sees this as a new mission, rather than following those who say we should go back to the moon. Astronaut Buzz Aldrin agrees with him, while interestingly, Neil Armstrong, Jim Lovell and Gene Cernan are critical of Obama’s abandonment of the space shuttle program, and his plan to promote privatization efforts and to count on the Russians and others for travel to the space station.

While there may be a short term loss of jobs at the Cape, it seems that Obama’s vision will, hopefully, be seen over time in the same light as John F. Kennedy’s vision of landing on the moon by the end of the 1960s. The one major issue now, above all, will be finding the necessary funding to accomplish this space goals that looks so promising and doable over time, with patience!

Senator John McCain Losing His Dignity And Good Sense!

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Senator John McCain of Arizona is a very admirable person in many ways.

He has been often seen as a man of principle and independence, and even if one has disagreed with him at various times in his 28 years in Congress, one can always admire him for his courage, his convictions, and his decency.

But now that he is seeking another term in the Senate, and is facing a conservative revolt led by former Congressman J. D. Hayworth, he is conducting his campaign in a way that is causing him to lose his dignity and good sense!

First, as reported earlier, he claims that he is not now, and never has been a “maverick”, despite his regular use of that term over the years, and the reality that he has written his own memoir of earlier years with the word “maverick” in the title. Additionally, Sarah Palin called him a “maverick” when campaigning for him a few weeks ago, and this was constantly emphasized during his 2008 Presidential campaign!

Now, McCain is suggesting that the danger of Iran requires that we “pull the trigger” and go to war with that nation, to prevent them from developing nuclear weapons!

While Iran is certainly a worrisome situation, how can Senator McCain suggest we go into a third war when we cannot deal with the dual wars of Iraq and Afghanistan? And the likelihood is that if we were to go to war with Iran without being provoked, China and Russia, who are considering going along with sanctions on Iran, would likely condemn us and back Iran politically if we invaded that country. Plus we would turn off the large number of Iranians who don’t like their government, but do not wish to be bombed and invaded by any other nation. This is what we call the power of nationalism!

So McCain is making one wonder about his sanity and stability, something always worried about regarding him, because of the torture and imprisonment he experienced long ago during the Vietnam War.

John McCain may be a hero, but he may be showing evidence that he is no longer fit to serve in the Senate, based on his trying to revamp his image in ways that are troublesome! 🙁 It is really a very sad situation regarding Senator McCain! 🙁

The Truth About Taxes: They Must Go Up, Especially On The Wealthy!

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A study by the NY Times demonstrates that tax rates have fallen for the wealthy in the past thirty years by a far greater amount than for middle income taxpayers, while their incomes have soared.

At the same time, the incomes of most workers have grown only slightly, and their taxes have only gone down a bit.

The rich have become much richer, a with a greater share of income concentrated at the top, and they are taxed less than they once were on every dollar.

But the study shows that if taxes are not raised on the wealthy, the only alternative is to raise taxes on everyone else a lot more than would occur otherwise,or there will have to be deep cuts in Medicare, Social Security, military spending, and other large spending programs.

It is clear that affluent families have the ability and means to hide much of their income, and are therefore putting the burden of taxation on the middle class. There is no sense of responsibility or patriotism that their being more fortunate requires that they willingly pay more taxes as they used to, without complaint, since it is the American system that allowed them the opportunity to achieve more success, and they owe support to the country that gave them that chance.

No one “enjoys” paying taxes, but it is a responsibility of citizenship. It has become a mark of greed and selfishness that those on the top do everything they can to avoid taxes and put the burden on those less fortunate and less able to pay higher taxes.

Future increases in taxation, in any case, is inevitable, whether one likes it or not!

This is a sobering thought on Income Tax Day, April 15!

The Growing Threat Of Military Disloyalty To The Commander In Chief

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An alarming rise of military disloyalty to their oath to back the Commander in Chief, the President of the United States, no matter their personal feelings toward him, has been noticed lately.

First, there is Lt. Colonel Terrence Lakin, an 18 year Army veteran who is chief of primary care and flight surgeon for the Pentagon’s DiLorenzo Health Clinic. Last month, he declared his belief in the “Birther” idea, that Barack Obama was born overseas and is not eligible to be President. He stated in a You Tube video that he would refuse orders to deploy for a second tour in Afghanistan until the President produces his birth certificate!

The Patriot Foundation, a group backing the “Birther” movement, says Lakin is a “martyr’ for the cause of the movement, and Lakin will be court martialed because of his open advocacy of defiance of military orders.

Additionally, there is an Armed Forces Tea Party Patriots movement, headed by Sergeant Gary Stein of the US Marines, who has served in the military for seven years, including service in Iraq, and who has spoken of the political rights of active duty servicemen, and the group apparently has at least 400 members. He has written and spoken of “tyrannical government”, and said that soldiers do not have to obey unconstitutional orders.

After Talking Points Memo revealed the group’s existence, Gary Stein said that his group accepted the authority of President Obama as Commander in Chief, and that they were not supportive of a military uprising against the President. The name has now been changed to Armed Force Tea Party.

One wonders, however, whether Stein’s activism, and his group under whatever name, is not skirting the limits of appropriate activities by people in the military. One can be sure we have not heard the last of this political activism in the military, which is highly unusual, and still something to be concerned about! 🙁

Reflecting On The Meaning Of Abraham Lincoln’s Assassination 145 Years Later!

Ronald 1 Comment

Today, April 14, marks the 145th Anniversary of the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln!

This was one of the most tragic moments in American history, and transformed the future of the nation, both in the South and nationally!

Assassination always affects the long term future of a nation, and certainly, the assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert Kennedy in 1968, and other political assassinations as well, had a deleterious effect on the future of the nation!

Political extremism is always evil, when it provokes marginal personalities to seek fame and notoriety by murdering a political leader, whether in America or anywhere else historically.

The political atmosphere today is so poisonous, with extremism and hot rhetoric so common, that it makes one concerned that it would not take much to convince some unbalanced individual to set out to assassinate our President, or our Speaker of the House, or some Governor, or any other political leader.

Nothing good can come out of this, and were this to happen, there would be a revulsion against those who had provoked it!

Why can’t we all realize how dangerous a situation we are in during the year 2010, and that we must pledge to lower the temperature of our debate, and recognize the common humanity of those who we might disagree with?

We do not want to mourn the loss of another leader, and this should be the message as we remember the sacrifice of Abraham Lincoln, who gave his life for his country to preserve the Union he took the oath to defend!