I re-listened to a talk the other day by economist Paul Zane Pilzner, that reminded me just where we are in today's world, both politically and economically. The main point he brought to light, is we focus on a economic theory of scarcity. Basically that we maintain the earth's resources are limited and finite, and if we abuse them, we'll run out. This opens the door for economic gain to step in. Orrin read me a passage out of a book he was reading the other day, that said, "Inflation has only two sources, the first is a scarcity of supply,(The demand exceeds the supply), or the government has played with the money supply." Our spending power is at the mercy of those in control of the money supply. Here's why....
While we do have limited resources, we control our use of those resources through our advancements in technology. To use one of Pilzner's examples, back in the 1970's we were faced with a world oil shortage, and prices and demand skyrocketed, causing lines at the pumps and panic ensued. The government was forced (by means of an artificial crisis) to step in and "regulate." Anyone ever wonder where that crisis went? Did we run out of oil as predicted and no one told us? Nope! Demand forced new technology, cars were made more efficient and used 1/2 the gas as the older models, with the invention of fuel injection and electronic ignition. There was new oil exploration and we found unknown deposits of oil in Alaska, which led to the construction of the Alaskan Pipeline.
Here's the point....Government intervention has never solved anything. Demand creates innovation, and that drives our creative juices to flow. The answer to all our problems lie within our own minds. Taxation, regulation, and government controls, are economic tools to feed the hungry Washington machine. They don't increase the supply, they simply put constraints on demand by making your needs less attainable. Ingenuity is the answer, it drives innovation, and innovation provides solutions. Isn't a solution what we all desire?
Next time someone says we need a candidate/president/politician/government official to solve our problems, we need to answer with. " I used to feel that way too, until I got more information!" Then turn briskly and walk away!
God Bless
Capt. Bill
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
A Blast From The Past!
The other day I was reminded of the contrasts between my generation and the youth of today. Terrible as this is I remember my parents telling me similar analogies. So I guess it's true, we do eventually turn into our parents. Although I've yet to yell, "turn that music down," I have thought it. So here we go......
This is addressed to all the American children who've survived their upbringing born in the 1930' through the 1970's. You know those of us who were born to mothers who smoked cigarettes and drank alcohol while they were pregnant.
It wasn't uncommon for them to take aspirin, eat blue cheese, or make tuna sandwiches from a can. None of them got tested for diabetes, or as they called it ,"The sugar!"
We, as infants, slept on our stomachs, in cribs painted with lead based paint. There were no childproof lids on the stuff in the medicine cabinet, our parents never locked the doors to our house, or gun cabinets. I rode a bicycle with a baseball hat on my head not a helmet, and padding was for organized football and hockey. When we played it on our own we were pad free.
My parents car had no airbags, and you sat in a baby seat only as long as it could contain you. I don't remember seat belts being worn either, sudden stops were combated by an arm across the chest to keep you from slamming into the metal dashboard. It was a treat to ride in the bed of a pickup truck, on the way to the store to get ice cream.
I drank water from every hose in the neighborhood as a child, they would have laughed at a bottle of water. All my friends shared one bottle of soda through straws, when we were blessed enough to be treated to one. We ate cupcakes and homemade cookies, washed it down with kool-aid sweetened with real white sugar. I didn't have any overweight friends, we were outside playing too much. We'd leave home first thing in the morning, not return till lunch, then disappear till it was dinner time. If you were late your name rung through the neighborhood at the top of Mom's voice, a sign you were in trouble, especially if she used your given name. We had no cell phones, Internet or video games. If you tired to hang around the house you were asked to go outside and play!
We made go carts of scraps found in the junk pile, then rode them down hills, only to find out we forgot to design a brake system. Another lesson learned! We fell out of trees, got cut, lost teeth, burnt from firecrackers and not a lawsuit was filed. We got spanked by our parents and the neighbors if we misbehaved, and no one called children's services.
We survived fishing worms and mud pies. We played in the rain without our coats on and came home soaked much to Mom's dismay. We swam in the river and the pond unsupervised, and still here we are today.
Little league had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Some how the one's that didn't survived the embarrassment. In fact, they either strove to get better or actually went and found an activity suited for them. When those contests were played, we actually kept score, and there were winners and losers. Only the best got the recognition of a trophy, so it meant something to the recipient. There was no recognition for participation.
Our generation didn't turn out so bad. We put a man on the moon, invented the Internet, cell phones, video games, plastic, and a host of other achievements. Fifty years of innovation and new ideas. We survived failure, success, responsibility , and freedom.
Oh, and I went to church every Sunday, confessed my sins every Saturday. Maybe that's what helped me survive!
God Bless
Capt. Bill
This is addressed to all the American children who've survived their upbringing born in the 1930' through the 1970's. You know those of us who were born to mothers who smoked cigarettes and drank alcohol while they were pregnant.
It wasn't uncommon for them to take aspirin, eat blue cheese, or make tuna sandwiches from a can. None of them got tested for diabetes, or as they called it ,"The sugar!"
We, as infants, slept on our stomachs, in cribs painted with lead based paint. There were no childproof lids on the stuff in the medicine cabinet, our parents never locked the doors to our house, or gun cabinets. I rode a bicycle with a baseball hat on my head not a helmet, and padding was for organized football and hockey. When we played it on our own we were pad free.
My parents car had no airbags, and you sat in a baby seat only as long as it could contain you. I don't remember seat belts being worn either, sudden stops were combated by an arm across the chest to keep you from slamming into the metal dashboard. It was a treat to ride in the bed of a pickup truck, on the way to the store to get ice cream.
I drank water from every hose in the neighborhood as a child, they would have laughed at a bottle of water. All my friends shared one bottle of soda through straws, when we were blessed enough to be treated to one. We ate cupcakes and homemade cookies, washed it down with kool-aid sweetened with real white sugar. I didn't have any overweight friends, we were outside playing too much. We'd leave home first thing in the morning, not return till lunch, then disappear till it was dinner time. If you were late your name rung through the neighborhood at the top of Mom's voice, a sign you were in trouble, especially if she used your given name. We had no cell phones, Internet or video games. If you tired to hang around the house you were asked to go outside and play!
We made go carts of scraps found in the junk pile, then rode them down hills, only to find out we forgot to design a brake system. Another lesson learned! We fell out of trees, got cut, lost teeth, burnt from firecrackers and not a lawsuit was filed. We got spanked by our parents and the neighbors if we misbehaved, and no one called children's services.
We survived fishing worms and mud pies. We played in the rain without our coats on and came home soaked much to Mom's dismay. We swam in the river and the pond unsupervised, and still here we are today.
Little league had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Some how the one's that didn't survived the embarrassment. In fact, they either strove to get better or actually went and found an activity suited for them. When those contests were played, we actually kept score, and there were winners and losers. Only the best got the recognition of a trophy, so it meant something to the recipient. There was no recognition for participation.
Our generation didn't turn out so bad. We put a man on the moon, invented the Internet, cell phones, video games, plastic, and a host of other achievements. Fifty years of innovation and new ideas. We survived failure, success, responsibility , and freedom.
Oh, and I went to church every Sunday, confessed my sins every Saturday. Maybe that's what helped me survive!
God Bless
Capt. Bill
Monday, March 29, 2010
More Ammo For Your Pouch!
Through life's course we are bound to encounter people who just don't share the same political philosophy as we do, and yet they insist upon trying to sway you toward their side of the fence. Inevitably it's usually an overbearing relative, who is armed to the teeth with left wing rhetoric, just the kind of thing you want to avoid at a family outing. Some how they fail to realize your a free thinking American and your entitled to your opinion, and if you really thought theirs had any merit, you'd gleefully adopt it.
So how does one discontinue their assault upon your beliefs? I have a fool proof method to deflect and quiet the Saul Alinsky trained left wing political advocate. It works every time and more often than not they'll never engage you in a political discussion again. I call it, Capt. Bill's golden rule of political philosophy. Here's how it works......
When the misguided political advocate tries to corner you and impose their overbearing opinions into your head, you let them first make their opening statement. Like say they open with, "I'm so glad the healthcare bill has finally passed.", just as an example. You immediately counter with a very strongly worded,"Oh really, why is that?" They will then proceed to lay out their argument supporting their position in detail, trying to leave no stone unturned, hoping to convince you to agree with them. After they've bloviated and relieved themselves of their political constipation, you simply smile and reply in a loud but firm voice, "I used to feel that way too, until I got more information!" then turn briskly and walk away. It works every time.
God Bless
Capt. Bill
So how does one discontinue their assault upon your beliefs? I have a fool proof method to deflect and quiet the Saul Alinsky trained left wing political advocate. It works every time and more often than not they'll never engage you in a political discussion again. I call it, Capt. Bill's golden rule of political philosophy. Here's how it works......
When the misguided political advocate tries to corner you and impose their overbearing opinions into your head, you let them first make their opening statement. Like say they open with, "I'm so glad the healthcare bill has finally passed.", just as an example. You immediately counter with a very strongly worded,"Oh really, why is that?" They will then proceed to lay out their argument supporting their position in detail, trying to leave no stone unturned, hoping to convince you to agree with them. After they've bloviated and relieved themselves of their political constipation, you simply smile and reply in a loud but firm voice, "I used to feel that way too, until I got more information!" then turn briskly and walk away. It works every time.
God Bless
Capt. Bill
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Let Freedom Ring!
Today I have to bow to the master, Orrin's post the other day inspired some replies I just have to bring to light. I make available to my readers links to both Chris Brady, and Orrin Woodward's post over on the right>>>>>. Please take advantage and read them as they are both ranked in the top 20 worldwide as leadership guru's. Their teachings inspire international comments like I've posted below. From Orrin's post 3/25 titled; America We Lost- Dr. Mario Pei
Reply;
Orrin,
Congratulations to another fantastic blog. I think I lot of people who came to America from Eastern Europe or from other countries for freedom know exactly what your blog is about. It is unfortunate that not enough people have noticed the scary trend. Fortunately there are people like you and others who did notice the change and bring it to people's attention. I was glad to read an interesting article today about how Google Inc. co-founder Sergey Brin pushed the Internet giant to take the risky step of abandoning its China-based search engine as that country’s efforts to censor the Web and suppress dissidents smacked of the “totalitarianism” of his youth in the Soviet Union."
The entire article is available at this website: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB20001424052748704266504575141064259998090.html
I really liked the last sentence of the "Childhood in the Soviet Union" section listed in Sergey's Wikipedia profile http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sergey_Brin
"At an interview in October, 2000, Brin said, "I know the hard times that my parents went through there, and am very thankful that I was brought to the States." A decade earlier, in the summer of 1990, a few weeks before his 17th birthday, his father led a group of gifted high school math students, including Sergey, on a two-week exchange program to the Soviet Union. "As Sergey recalls, the trip awakened his childhood fear of authority" and he remembers that his first "impulse on confronting Soviet oppression had been to throw pebbles at a police car." Malseed adds, "On the second day of the trip, while the group toured a sanitarium in the countryside near Moscow, Sergey took his father aside, looked him in the eye and said, 'Thank you for taking us all out of Russia.'"
I am really glad to see that successful people like Sergey can appreciate how much different his future could have been had his father not taken the huge step of leaving everything behind a taking his family to a new country for freedom.
Gyorgy Veszpremi
And then it was followed by this reminder......
Well said Orrin and Dr. Pei. However I must point out that merely being foreign born resident is not enough as you will see below. Born in Sri Lanka and raised in Nigeria, I migrated to Canada as a teenager in 1988 along with my parents and siblings. At the time and well into the early 2000's I was naive enough to think that we lived in the free world. I was thankful for democracy and all the things the Canadian government was doing for its citizens. In my mind there was not a better place to be than in Canada. We had this view only because, on the surface, things were so much better in Canada than in Nigeria or Sri Lanka AND we were not sharp enough to observe, study and find out what was truly taking place. As my wife recently commented, we were at peace only because we were like the characters in Animal Farm by George Orwell….blindly following the story told by the pigs in charge. Yes how naive we were. Once we slapped our selves silly, read some books and looked around at some of the ridiculous things that were happening then we could see and understand how Canada was no different than Nigeria or Sri Lanka - subjects of the British Empire. I must point out that it was then that I understood that the United States of America is, dare I say was, the only remaining free country. I have since come to have a deep appreciation for the American people and their country. In conclusion, foreign-born or not, critical thinking and a questioning mind are essential in keeping America free from the British (Global) Empire.
Ameen
It's easy to see why Orrin's in the top 10 and won international fame. He sure leads people to thought! What a great reminder to not take our freedom for granted! If you've not read the post please take the time to absorb the ideas!
God Bless
Capt. Bill
Reply;
Orrin,
Congratulations to another fantastic blog. I think I lot of people who came to America from Eastern Europe or from other countries for freedom know exactly what your blog is about. It is unfortunate that not enough people have noticed the scary trend. Fortunately there are people like you and others who did notice the change and bring it to people's attention. I was glad to read an interesting article today about how Google Inc. co-founder Sergey Brin pushed the Internet giant to take the risky step of abandoning its China-based search engine as that country’s efforts to censor the Web and suppress dissidents smacked of the “totalitarianism” of his youth in the Soviet Union."
The entire article is available at this website: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB20001424052748704266504575141064259998090.html
I really liked the last sentence of the "Childhood in the Soviet Union" section listed in Sergey's Wikipedia profile http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sergey_Brin
"At an interview in October, 2000, Brin said, "I know the hard times that my parents went through there, and am very thankful that I was brought to the States." A decade earlier, in the summer of 1990, a few weeks before his 17th birthday, his father led a group of gifted high school math students, including Sergey, on a two-week exchange program to the Soviet Union. "As Sergey recalls, the trip awakened his childhood fear of authority" and he remembers that his first "impulse on confronting Soviet oppression had been to throw pebbles at a police car." Malseed adds, "On the second day of the trip, while the group toured a sanitarium in the countryside near Moscow, Sergey took his father aside, looked him in the eye and said, 'Thank you for taking us all out of Russia.'"
I am really glad to see that successful people like Sergey can appreciate how much different his future could have been had his father not taken the huge step of leaving everything behind a taking his family to a new country for freedom.
Gyorgy Veszpremi
And then it was followed by this reminder......
Well said Orrin and Dr. Pei. However I must point out that merely being foreign born resident is not enough as you will see below. Born in Sri Lanka and raised in Nigeria, I migrated to Canada as a teenager in 1988 along with my parents and siblings. At the time and well into the early 2000's I was naive enough to think that we lived in the free world. I was thankful for democracy and all the things the Canadian government was doing for its citizens. In my mind there was not a better place to be than in Canada. We had this view only because, on the surface, things were so much better in Canada than in Nigeria or Sri Lanka AND we were not sharp enough to observe, study and find out what was truly taking place. As my wife recently commented, we were at peace only because we were like the characters in Animal Farm by George Orwell….blindly following the story told by the pigs in charge. Yes how naive we were. Once we slapped our selves silly, read some books and looked around at some of the ridiculous things that were happening then we could see and understand how Canada was no different than Nigeria or Sri Lanka - subjects of the British Empire. I must point out that it was then that I understood that the United States of America is, dare I say was, the only remaining free country. I have since come to have a deep appreciation for the American people and their country. In conclusion, foreign-born or not, critical thinking and a questioning mind are essential in keeping America free from the British (Global) Empire.
Ameen
It's easy to see why Orrin's in the top 10 and won international fame. He sure leads people to thought! What a great reminder to not take our freedom for granted! If you've not read the post please take the time to absorb the ideas!
God Bless
Capt. Bill
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Uttoh!
Today I'm going to borrow a story from Terri Brady to illustrate my point. Terri is one of my favorite teachers, and uses stories of her children to highlight her message. Some background on the characters involved....
Terri's daughter is the cutest little thing with eyes as big as planets. She is the attention of every room she enters as her personality just shines through.
As Terri tells it, and all parents know, potty training can be a challenging time. Mistakes are made, and lessons are learned, Terri's daughter was no exception! A mother's keen senses can smell a soiled diaper rooms away and Terri had picked up the scent of an accident. Upon questioning her daughter, her bubbly personality came shining through as she admitted the accident, but seemed unphased as she attempted to turn a negative into a positive. While she explained to her mother how she had gone #2 in her britches, she batted those big eyes and invited her mother to join her in going #2 in her pants as well. Apparently it would make her feel more comfortable if others would join her in her situation, as unappealing as it was. A toddler's peer pressure! As tempting as the invitation was, Terri passed!
Terri's point was that we are often tempted to join in what we know is wrong by the pressure and influence of our peers. They can make it seem, oh so inviting, even though it's against our principles and everything we believe in. They can make it seem to be the right thing to do, because everyone is doing it, or the popular people are. Don't you want to go #2 in your pants too?
In a totally unrelated story, Fidel Castro, the United Nations , and the president of the World Health Organization have united in their praise of President Obama's healthcare victory. They were all so pleased to see he joined them in going #2 in his pants as well, and moved us all one step closer to the socialist model they all endorse.
God Bless!
Capt. Bill
Terri's daughter is the cutest little thing with eyes as big as planets. She is the attention of every room she enters as her personality just shines through.
As Terri tells it, and all parents know, potty training can be a challenging time. Mistakes are made, and lessons are learned, Terri's daughter was no exception! A mother's keen senses can smell a soiled diaper rooms away and Terri had picked up the scent of an accident. Upon questioning her daughter, her bubbly personality came shining through as she admitted the accident, but seemed unphased as she attempted to turn a negative into a positive. While she explained to her mother how she had gone #2 in her britches, she batted those big eyes and invited her mother to join her in going #2 in her pants as well. Apparently it would make her feel more comfortable if others would join her in her situation, as unappealing as it was. A toddler's peer pressure! As tempting as the invitation was, Terri passed!
Terri's point was that we are often tempted to join in what we know is wrong by the pressure and influence of our peers. They can make it seem, oh so inviting, even though it's against our principles and everything we believe in. They can make it seem to be the right thing to do, because everyone is doing it, or the popular people are. Don't you want to go #2 in your pants too?
In a totally unrelated story, Fidel Castro, the United Nations , and the president of the World Health Organization have united in their praise of President Obama's healthcare victory. They were all so pleased to see he joined them in going #2 in his pants as well, and moved us all one step closer to the socialist model they all endorse.
God Bless!
Capt. Bill
Friday, March 26, 2010
Thumbsuckers?
It's funny how times have changed. When I was a teen we fought for the legal age to be lowered to 18. The rational behind our thinking was if we were old enough to go off to war and serve our country, we were old enough to vote and consume alcohol. We, of course, won our independence and were granted being considered responsible adults once we achieved the ripe old age of 18. Personally I was out of my parents house like I was shot out of a gun, eager to make my way in the world and be independent. I loved my freedom!
There were regrets, but I grew up quickly. I learned I had responsibilities, and needs. I had to work to keep a roof over my head and beer and food in the fridge. I grew fond of indoor plumbing, electricity, and running water,(probably my parents fault for mollycoddling me), so it was necessary to make enough money to keep those turned on as well. Soon I added a girlfriend to the mix and darn if she didn't have needs as well. Not only needs but expectations! She had plans and dreams, those included me, and me being a better provider yet! I wasn't yet 21 and I was up to my neck in responsibilities, and I liked to think, all grown up. As grown up as that seemed, it didn't hold a candle to the 18 year olds who had went off to war and served their country. I always admired the discipline they had achieved so early in life.
So I hold that in contrast to today. The legal age to consume alcohol has been raised to 21, I guess the powers to be decided 18 wasn't responsible enough. And the latest development has the federal government allowing parents to keep their offspring on their insurance till they reach 26. I think I would have gone crazy watching my freedom held off for eight more years. Where did the age of 26 come from? Four years of college would put you at 22 and ready to make your way in the world. Is every child expected to stay under mommy and daddy's wing, and go to eight years of post high school education, before putting their toes in the water of personal responsibility? Insurance companies did provide coverage for college children under their parents policies as long as they attended school already.
So, are we enabling a new society of 26 year old thumb suckers? Man, if I was a teen I'd be screaming for freedom, not asking for my parents to have more control over my life. But, that's just me....What do you think?
God Bless
Capt. Bill
There were regrets, but I grew up quickly. I learned I had responsibilities, and needs. I had to work to keep a roof over my head and beer and food in the fridge. I grew fond of indoor plumbing, electricity, and running water,(probably my parents fault for mollycoddling me), so it was necessary to make enough money to keep those turned on as well. Soon I added a girlfriend to the mix and darn if she didn't have needs as well. Not only needs but expectations! She had plans and dreams, those included me, and me being a better provider yet! I wasn't yet 21 and I was up to my neck in responsibilities, and I liked to think, all grown up. As grown up as that seemed, it didn't hold a candle to the 18 year olds who had went off to war and served their country. I always admired the discipline they had achieved so early in life.
So I hold that in contrast to today. The legal age to consume alcohol has been raised to 21, I guess the powers to be decided 18 wasn't responsible enough. And the latest development has the federal government allowing parents to keep their offspring on their insurance till they reach 26. I think I would have gone crazy watching my freedom held off for eight more years. Where did the age of 26 come from? Four years of college would put you at 22 and ready to make your way in the world. Is every child expected to stay under mommy and daddy's wing, and go to eight years of post high school education, before putting their toes in the water of personal responsibility? Insurance companies did provide coverage for college children under their parents policies as long as they attended school already.
So, are we enabling a new society of 26 year old thumb suckers? Man, if I was a teen I'd be screaming for freedom, not asking for my parents to have more control over my life. But, that's just me....What do you think?
God Bless
Capt. Bill
Thursday, March 25, 2010
To Be Or Not To Be?
I'm not a big TV guy, but I was noticing that the History Channel isn't part of a basic package with my service provider, yet MTV is. Why is that? Why do we have to opt to pay extra to learn about history, yet we can watch "Cribs" for free? Wouldn't MTV be a draw to entice you to purchase an upgrade? It is extremely popular, and could be an incredible revenue generator, where the History Channel, not so much. So from where I'm sitting, the people who control your media input, hold meaningful history for ransom, yet they'll pollute your mind with meaningless dribble for free. Ask yourself, to whose advantage does that play into?
I also got an e-mail the other day that informed me that Oklahoma is denying people who cannot read English the right to possess a driver's license. The qualifier is the road signs are all in English, so to not have a grasp on the language would put others at risk. Just like they won't give you a license to drive if your blind or deaf. So I began to think, why is it we push Americans to go bilingual and have to offer Spanish rather than teach English to those who don't understand it? Isn't it more cost effective to teach 11 million or so people to speak English than to teach 300 million to be fluent in Spanish? Why don't we give the same considerations to the French speaking population, or the German, or the Japanese, etc?
I was then led to the push for America to recognize ebonics as a language. We were asked to consider allowing street slang to be accepted as a form of communication as if it were the dialect of our nation. This outrageous proposal was thankfully shelved.
So you might be wondering what led me to ponder these unrelated subjects. Well, if you look at them they all have one thing in common. They all promote ignorance, the hand tool of the progressive agenda. How can you possibly know what's being proposed in Washington if you don't have a grasp of the language? How can you know if what they are doing is in line with the founding father's principles if you don't understand history? How do you even know who the founding fathers are if you don't understand our history? It's difficult enough for people who are fluent in English and a base knowledge of history to keep a handle on the controlled confusion promoted by our government. How would you expect someone who didn't understand the foundation of our government nor completely mastered our language to be a responsible voter? Is this agenda preconceived to enhance the progressive voter base? They give them entitlements, but keep them confused so they vote for the hand that feeds them.
How hard is it to dazzle the uninformed by offering them food stamps, welfare, immigration reform, and free healthcare, and all you ask for in return is to register to vote and cast that ballot for your benefactor? Why isn't it mandatory that entitlements come with strings attached like a drug test? As a ships master I have to submit to drug tests to continue earning a living, it's for the safety of all concerned. Isn't it a concern that our unemployed, needy citizens live a healthy drug free existence so the needs and welfare of their family be met?
What the progressive's fail to meet with their social justice agenda, is social justice. It's not fair to lower the bar, keeping people uneducated and poor. They enable this behavior to enrich their voter base, insuring strong election turn out by simply telling them their entitlements will be threatened if the other party comes to power. I submit to you the continuing decline of the inner cities, whose representation has been from the liberal left for decades as rock solid proof. It's documented, appalling, and contagious. Now they want to infect the rest of society with this disease, and why not? It's been effective for them to date, and it's attractive to the nar-do-wells, because it involves no effort at all!
I love the stories of people who rose out of poverty to become productive citizens. Show me one that did so without a struggle. Show me one who did it without education. Those who did it succeeded because they refused to accept the status quo. If they accepted entitlements it was to use them as a stepping stone till they educated themselves out of poverty. They had a dream, they had a struggle, then they had a victory!
God Bless!
Capt. Bill
PS Happy Birthday to a great leader and friend. Thanks for your guidance and all you do Orrin!
I also got an e-mail the other day that informed me that Oklahoma is denying people who cannot read English the right to possess a driver's license. The qualifier is the road signs are all in English, so to not have a grasp on the language would put others at risk. Just like they won't give you a license to drive if your blind or deaf. So I began to think, why is it we push Americans to go bilingual and have to offer Spanish rather than teach English to those who don't understand it? Isn't it more cost effective to teach 11 million or so people to speak English than to teach 300 million to be fluent in Spanish? Why don't we give the same considerations to the French speaking population, or the German, or the Japanese, etc?
I was then led to the push for America to recognize ebonics as a language. We were asked to consider allowing street slang to be accepted as a form of communication as if it were the dialect of our nation. This outrageous proposal was thankfully shelved.
So you might be wondering what led me to ponder these unrelated subjects. Well, if you look at them they all have one thing in common. They all promote ignorance, the hand tool of the progressive agenda. How can you possibly know what's being proposed in Washington if you don't have a grasp of the language? How can you know if what they are doing is in line with the founding father's principles if you don't understand history? How do you even know who the founding fathers are if you don't understand our history? It's difficult enough for people who are fluent in English and a base knowledge of history to keep a handle on the controlled confusion promoted by our government. How would you expect someone who didn't understand the foundation of our government nor completely mastered our language to be a responsible voter? Is this agenda preconceived to enhance the progressive voter base? They give them entitlements, but keep them confused so they vote for the hand that feeds them.
How hard is it to dazzle the uninformed by offering them food stamps, welfare, immigration reform, and free healthcare, and all you ask for in return is to register to vote and cast that ballot for your benefactor? Why isn't it mandatory that entitlements come with strings attached like a drug test? As a ships master I have to submit to drug tests to continue earning a living, it's for the safety of all concerned. Isn't it a concern that our unemployed, needy citizens live a healthy drug free existence so the needs and welfare of their family be met?
What the progressive's fail to meet with their social justice agenda, is social justice. It's not fair to lower the bar, keeping people uneducated and poor. They enable this behavior to enrich their voter base, insuring strong election turn out by simply telling them their entitlements will be threatened if the other party comes to power. I submit to you the continuing decline of the inner cities, whose representation has been from the liberal left for decades as rock solid proof. It's documented, appalling, and contagious. Now they want to infect the rest of society with this disease, and why not? It's been effective for them to date, and it's attractive to the nar-do-wells, because it involves no effort at all!
I love the stories of people who rose out of poverty to become productive citizens. Show me one that did so without a struggle. Show me one who did it without education. Those who did it succeeded because they refused to accept the status quo. If they accepted entitlements it was to use them as a stepping stone till they educated themselves out of poverty. They had a dream, they had a struggle, then they had a victory!
God Bless!
Capt. Bill
PS Happy Birthday to a great leader and friend. Thanks for your guidance and all you do Orrin!
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