Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Aaron Shock, Generation Y Conservative Republican Success Story

Elizabeth Meinecke has a great piece in Human Events on Aaron Shock.

He’s from Illinois, young, smart and has a natural talent for relating to voters. And no, he’s not Barack Obama: he’s Aaron Schock, the newly elected U.S. representative for Illinois’ 18th district. Even Biden would like him -- he’s young, clean, and articulate, and at 27, will bring a Generation Y voice to Congress in January.

In four campaigns (school board, state legislature twice, and now U.S. representative), he’s never run a negative ad. Instead, he talks about what he wants to do. He has taken his message into an urban district, even to the pulpits of his constituents’ churches. And when the mud starts slinging in Shock’s direction, he always has a clean and clear response...

“She’s a Democrat in a Democrat district, and she’ll be there as long as she wants,” Schock said people told him. He ran against her anyway, and he won.

He’s done all this, unlike the Kennedys, without wealth or the backing of a political family.

“People look at me and my age and say, “Oh, you know, [he] must …come from this political family. Couldn’t be further from the truth,” Schock said. “Nobody had ever run for office. My parents never said, “Hey, you should run someday for office.” When I decided to run for the school board at 19, they thought I was crazy...”

He comes battle-tested from an Illinois environment where conservatives could claim protection only as an endangered species. As a state representative, the Republican Schock’s demographic was an urban district where 20,000 of the 40,000 voters were on food stamps. 25 percent of his constituents were African American. He had to overcome $980,000 worth of attack TV commercials against him in his first state house race (it was the most expensive house race in state history). His re-election race set a new record. When he got to the state legislature, the good old boy network advised him to keep quiet if he wanted re-election -- in fact, they told him he shouldn’t vote like a Republican.

“I said, you know what, I’m 23 years old, I ran because I wanted to do what I think is right…I don’t need to be here, and if I lose, so be it, ” Schock said, and ended up voting twice against increase in minimum wage. “I have one of the most conservative voting records in the state house. I’ve got a 100 percent pro-life, pro-family, 100 percent with the second amendment. “

Aaron Schock will vote his conscience, and that may be lucky for conservatives.


Aaron Shock shows that conservatism can win in districts once thought impregnable to Republicans. He shows the power of someone who walks the conservative Republican talk. I hope he is representative of many of the future leaders of our party, & we elect many more who will vote their conscience - conservative Republican conscience.

Crossposted at Rebuild The Party.

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

Conservatism Without "Cliques"

Crossposted at Rebuild The Party.

We need to be conservative Republicans, not segregating ourselves into little High-School type cliques. We have the winning strategy for elections & governance:

  • Strong National Defense

  • Fiscal Responsibility

  • Limited Government

  • Conservative Social Values


  • Standing alone, these are winning issues. Together, they are almost invincible. We have the watershed victories of 1980 & 1994 as evidence of what happens when Republicans run as total conservatives, expousing all conservative principles in bold, unafraid colors. We also have the negative watershed elections of 2006 & 2008 which show that Republicans lose when the party does not hold fast to all planks in the conservative Republican platform. Far too many of our elected leaders abandoned fiscal responsibility - they spent money & acted exactly as the Democrats they replaced. They grew government outside of what was needed for national security. Because of that they lost control of congress & the White House.

    IMHO, absolutely nothing in the conservative Republican platform needs to be watered down. This country is not Puritanical, however it's not left of center by any stretch. Economic & national security issues must be in the forefront, especially given they are the major concerns of the day. Conservative social values undergird everything else. We cannot legislate morality, however we can stand for what is right. Voters usually like those who stand for what is right.

    Concluding, we must communicate respectfully, politely, but also firmly with our elected leaders the critical need to reclaim fiscal responsibility & limited government conservatism without watering down or fading the colors of any other part of the conservative Republican platform. We win as a party of all bold colors.

    Sunday, November 23, 2008

    Michael Steele

    Michael Steele is "running" to be the Chairman of the Republican National Committee. To say we need new, bold, strong leadership is understating it. We have quite a fight ahead of us to keep as much of Obama's & the Democrat Congress' negative agenda from enactment, as well as position ourselves for the 2010 elections.

    I have been an advocate for a strong reclamation of limited government & fiscally responsible conservatism, & from Martha Zoller's recent article in Human Events, Steele seems to get it.

    Some Steele quotes from the article:

    “We have over the course of the last seven or eight years ticked off a lot of people in this county. Not because we’re conservatives…but because we failed to speak to those issues -- because we failed to lead on these issues.”


    He's speaking to the leaders of the Republicans in the Senate, House, & White House - & he's dead on correct.

    “Over the past decade or so, conservatives seem to have lost their way. The disparity between our rhetoric and our actions has grown to the point that our credibility has snapped. People just don’t believe us.”

    “We’ve become our own worst enemy,” said Steele. “We in fact as much as anyone else have become the party of big government. We lost our principles our credibility, we dishonored our nation. Frankly, we behaved like Democrats.”


    Again, right on target. Republican leaders, far too many, abandoned limited government & fiscally responsible conservatism.

    “Our best hope for a brighter future is in the empowerment of individuals and families; not in constraints imposed by a bloated bureaucracy. It is still morning in America because America is morning. My mother told me that. She knew that the freedoms may not reach her doorstep, but she had faith that it would reach mine…Don’t make excuses for what we believe in -- that time is over, let’s get busy.”


    Very true, it's the time to get to work. Let our leaders & representatives know in polite but crystal clear terms that it's time to reclaim limited government & fiscally responsible conservatism. As I say, it not only wins elections but also allows positive policies to be put into action for OUR country.

    Obama's Attack on Talk Radio - Localism

    Jim Boulet, Jr.'s article in the American Thinker discusses the concept of localism as a means for attacking & watering down talk radio. It's no secret that, especially since 1994, Democrats have wanted to silence voices like Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, & Laura Ingraham. Instead of blaming their own policies for the Republican takeover of the congress in 1994, they blame Limbaugh. The Fairness Doctrine is getting most of the attention, however Boulet lays out a very cogent message regarding another avenue of attack on free speech via "Alinsky jujitsu."

    Needless to say, for those of us who believe the 1st amendment still means something, this is a wrong idea & non-starter. We must fight any implementation of the Fairness Doctrine, Localism, or any attempt to shut down free speech in our country.

    Friday, November 21, 2008

    WaPo's Top 10 Republicans - & my additions

    The Washington Post came out with their top 10 Republicans to watch. They've got a pretty decent list - they, though, leave out Sarah Palin & Mike Huckabee. Here is their top 10 in ascending order:

    Steve Poinzer, possible Republican candidate for California Governor
    Haley Barbour, current GOP Governor of Mississippi
    Jon Huntsman Jr., current congressman from Utah
    Eric Cantor, current congressman from Virginia
    Mark Sanford, current governor of South Carolina
    Bob McDonnel, current Virginia Attorney General
    Mitch Daniels, current Indiana Governor
    Mitt Romney, former Governor of Massachusetts governor & presidential candidate
    John Thune, current South Dakota Senator
    Bobby Jindal, current governor of Louisiana

    Call me a "homer," however I would add Marsha Blackburn to this list. She is a solid conservative congressman & on the policy committee. I would also add Bill Frist, who may choose to run for Governor of Tennessee.

    I believe the WaPo & the rest of the media hope Sarah Palin will just go back to Alaska & not be heard from again. I don't think they'll get their wish. Huckabee is a conundrum for me, he's a great social conservative however I think he's more of a "big government" guy. He may find success on his Fox News show too much to leave.

    Monday, November 17, 2008

    Fred is Right - Time to Look Ahead

    Fred Thompson has a great piece on Townhall.com, focusing on the future. The time for licking wounds among conservatives & Republicans is over, it's time to get back to work for the next 2 years & beyond.

    ...But our gratitude for life and liberty should also serve as a reminder that what we were working so hard to achieve these past few years still very much hangs in the balance. And it is up to each of us to continue that fight. Our participation as citizens of the United States does not end once we’ve pulled the lever in the voting booth. That ballot is just the beginning...

    But if the time I spent traveling around America the past 18 months has given me anything, it is hope. And it if has confirmed anything for me, it is this: America remains the greatest country in the history of the world, and our citizens who care about our nation’s founding values—freedom, free markets, respect for life and the rule of law—will not stop defending these values as much as some of our fellow citizens and leaders might wish they would...

    We are going to have to use every tool we have—grassroots organizations, think tanks, magazines, talk radio, the Internet—while building new institutions to blunt the efforts of a left-wing establishment that appears willing to use uncertainty to impose an agenda that would never see the light of day in normal times...

    We have the formula—a conservative formula—that has worked before and will surely work again. It is grounded in our first principles. It’s time we moved past the recriminations and seven stages of grief. It’s time to look ahead, to stay united and to defend the values that we know must endure if our nation is to do the same...


    Fred is right, we do have the winning formula that even the Democrats recognize - that's why so many Democrats have ran to the right of their Republican opponents, many successfully. Now that the Democrats will have all the responsiblity & blame to go along with credit, these Democrats who ran right can be held accountable. We simply have to get to work & use the tools available, especially the internet. Information can be worldwide in a matter of seconds, & a call to action can be as well. It's time to go on the offensive positively with something to be for, not just against.

    Bill Kristol Gets It!

    Bill Kristol's recent editorial in the NYT is very good. I'll post the most salient excerpt here:


    Republicans and conservatives today face a similar challenge to that of 1976. A hawkish foreign policy, social conservatism and middle-American populism aren’t the problems. Those elements, as embodied on the Republican ticket by John McCain and Sarah Palin, produced a respectable 46 percent of the national vote — in the midst of an economic meltdown, with the Bush administration flailing and House Republicans rebelling and the Republican ticket lacking any coherent economic message.


    The lack of economic message is a direct result of too many of the Republican leaders eschewing limited government fiscally responsible conservatism. They went "Washington" & paid for it by losing the majority in 2006 & further losses to a feckless Democrat-led congress in 2008. Reclaiming the mantle of limited government fiscally responsible conservatism will be key to not only reclaiming power but also putting in place good policy for our country.

    Saturday, November 15, 2008

    On Abortion & Restoring the Conservative Republican Party - Bold Colors, not Pale Pastels

    Far too many of the pale pastel crowd want Republicans & conservatives to shut up about abortion. As I believe abortion is wrong, I believe "shutting up" about it to be wrong also.

    Many people say they're pro-choice just so that the pro-abortion crowd will not shout them down. I believe that the right to life plank should always remain in the Republican platform. People want strong leaders with strong morals, & this plank has served the conservatives & Republicans well.

    Going back to my soapbox, what the Republican party needs are conservative leaders who can reclaim the mantle of limited government fiscally responsible conservatism. THIS is what has been missing, & has cost the Republicans in 06 & 08. It is horrible that Obama won the tax cut argument in this election - though he will not make good on his promise. We need leadership to emerge that will fix the stool & have all three legs - strong conservative moral & social views, strong national defense, & limited government fiscally responsible conservatism. This is the way we will not only win elections, but make a positive impact on our country for ourselves & future generations.

    Thursday, November 6, 2008

    Work for what you believe in

    More lessons from the election.

    First, and absolutely foremost, we can not allow anyone like John McCain to ever be our candidate ever again. Republicans win when they act like Republicans, not when they do some 'reaching across the aisle' nonsense. Oh, John McCain was popular with Democrats? How wonderful for him. When Democrats got a choice between voting for a Democrat and voting for their favorite Republican who sometimes acted like a Democrat, they chose the Democrat...


    Senator McCain is a true American Hero & was a better choice than Obama. However, he was not the right candidate. He did not differentiate himself enough from Obama on key issues, with the financial crisis & bailout bill being the big "surprise" of the election. We needed a candidate who would have stood up against the bailout, the global warming cap & trade garbage, & illegal immigration - that candidate would have won.

    Second, the world is not ending. It's also not magically better. Liberals are dumb, let them believe that Obama is going to bring some mythical change and hope to their lives. Good on them, they fall for this kind of thing often, it's more than a little sad...


    In Biden's infamous "Obama will be tested" speech, he said Obama would make "unpopular decisions. I take this to mean that his supporters won't have their mortgages paid & they may be unhappy that he doesn't do everything all at once.

    This leads me to number three: don't be like them. You know what I mean. Liberals acted like animals for the past 8 years and there's this feeling among Republicans that we must make the Obama presidency hellish on a day-to-day basis...


    Good advice. We must oppose the bad things, things which will hurt our country. We can oppose them in a rational manner & not be like the coarse thugs on the left. That differentiates us positively, we can discuss & debate, disagree in a civil manner.

    Finally, Republicans as a party have a lot of work to do for the next four years...The next four years have to be about focus and honing our message...


    We have the winning message, we simply need to get back to it. Core conservatism, individual freedom and economic opportunity for all.

    However many years of the Obama presidency there are, we will have much work to do. We must not shirk from the struggle. Too much is at stake for us, our children, & those generations to come.

    Time to Stop Digging

    Marsha Blackburn has an excellent article at RealClearPolitics. Following are some excerpts:

    The core lyric of my favorite country song is "When you're in a hole, stop diggin'." That also sums up the message voters have given Republicans.

    Tuesday night, our party suffered a resounding electoral defeat. President-elect Obama and his congressional partners deserve our sincere congratulations on their victory. As the country catches its breath, the conservative movement must regroup and set upon a course to prevent November 4th from repeating itself in two years.

    Traveling around the country in the closing days of this campaign I heard the same frustration from voters over and over. We in Washington are long on talk and promises, but short on action...

    The time has come to return to our foundation; to the party of Lincoln that President-elect Obama rightly said was founded on the principles of self reliance, freedom, and national unity. Conservatives and Republicans must admit that our focus, message, and methods have erred. We grew content and reliant with Ronald Reagan's words, yet failed to exercise the energy required to preserve the freedom his revolution earned from one generation to the next.

    Committed Republican leaders must reassert the relevance of our party to a generation of voters born after 1988. Rather than focus on "branding" our cause, let us simply pursue it. In that pursuit, we will rebuild trust and regain purpose...



    Marsha eloquently puts it into focus. The "we" of whom she speaks is the Republican leadership in Congress & in the White House. It is high time that conservatives reassert control of the Republican party.

    The most accurate polls of 2008

    Thought it would be a good idea to save this for future reference. Here's the list:



    1T. Rasmussen (11/1-3)**
    1T. Pew (10/29-11/1)**
    3. YouGov/Polimetrix (10/18-11/1)
    4. Harris Interactive (10/20-27)
    5. GWU (Lake/Tarrance) (11/2-3)*

    6T. Diageo/Hotline (10/31-11/2)*
    6T. ARG (10/25-27)*
    8T. CNN (10/30-11/1)
    8T. Ipsos/McClatchy (10/30-11/1)
    10. DailyKos.com (D)/Research 2000 (11/1-3)

    11. AP/Yahoo/KN (10/17-27)
    12. Democracy Corps (D) (10/30-11/2)
    13. FOX (11/1-2)
    14. Economist/YouGov (10/25-27)
    15. IBD/TIPP (11/1-3)

    16. NBC/WSJ (11/1-2)
    17. ABC/Post (10/30-11/2)
    18. Marist College (11/3)
    19. CBS (10/31-11/2)
    20. Gallup (10/31-11/2)

    21. Reuters/ C-SPAN/ Zogby (10/31-11/3)
    22. CBS/Times (10/25-29)
    23. Newsweek (10/22-23)

    Wednesday, November 5, 2008

    Thoughts on the election of 2008

    Obama won, the Republicans took over the Tennessee state house as well as the senate. Congressional Democrats added members.

    Republicans now control the TN state legislature because they ran as conservatives.

    McCain made a mistake that probably cost him the election when he voted for the bailout bill. If he had taken a very conservative stance against it, he very well may have pulled this out.

    Another mistake was relying on public financing. He should have gotten out of that as soon as Obama did. The money allowed Obama to drown out McCain.

    The Republican party as a whole will need to change the way we play the game with early voting. The majority of votes cast will likely from here on out be early. The timing of the financial crisis shows that the elections will be won & lost in September & October - waiting for a final election day push will not cut it any more. I heard where those who made up their minds in the last days before 4 Nov. went for McCain by 6%. It was, however, too late to make up for early voting. The deal will need to be sealed in September & October, before early voting.

    We conservative Republicans have work to do. We would have work to do if McCan was elected, however the game has changed with Obama. IMHO, I believe the Democrats in Congress will succumb to the temptation for over-reaching. We need to lay the groundwork now for the elections of 2010 & then, in 2012, nominate a strong, articulate, unabashed conservative. They are out there.

    Tuesday, October 21, 2008

    Palin Hating?

    Below is a partial response to a post on the Tennessean's political forum & my response to it. The original post is from a fellow I've conversed with regarding political issues for some time now &, while we don't agree on everything he's pretty level headed. For some reason, however, he displays a visceral dislike of Sarah Palin & what he believe she represents.

    ...But then something went horribly wrong and Powell, last Sunday, put his finger right on it. The party that had a guy at the front who appeared to have all the right moves, lurched hard to the right. Whitehorse, in another post, glowed that Palin is the new face of the Republican party. For the sake of the Grand Old Party I certainly hope not. Suddenly uneducation has become fashionable (in fact to be educated is to be derided as "elitest"). The conservative base denies all things science, particularly if they see an apparent contradiction to their bible. Rather than adopt the traditionally conservative position of live and let live, they now want government intrusion in personal areas such as casual drug use, abortion, sex, and marriage. (Except for the topics they sound like old style Democrats who wanted the govn't involved in everything) ...



    What is uneducation? Palin is a college educated person & quite intelligent. Todd Palin is highly skilled in his profession. I am one of these Republicans, & see no one deriding education or calling educated people elitist because of their education. The elitists are those who do not use their education – they are the highly educated incompetents such as Obama. Tek, I suggest to see if there are scales on your eyes &/or to see where this information is coming from. Conservatives/Republicans like me value education immensely & want everyone who wants education to have the equal opportunity to work for it. The difference, I guess, is that with patricians like Powell, only education from certain places is acceptable & the person must adhere to certain orthodoxy to be accepted. These snobbish people look down on those in the skilled trades as uneducated rubes, whereas we conservative Republicans understand these people are not only educated, but they are able to utilize what they’ve learned to actually do something.



    “The conservative base denies all things science.” Baloney is not a strong enough word. This is BS, completely. I think of sound wildlife management - the Obamas of the world likely do not know where the egg comes out of the chicken, much less what the relationship is between the whitetail deer & the bobwhite quail. Yet, we have Obama supporters who will fight like lobotomized howler monkey against sound wildlife management done by highly trained biologists. We deny manmade global warming because it has not been proved, & the evidence shows recent cooling. We agree on nuclear. The lie of scientific consensus & the attacks on scientists who disagree with scientific orthodoxy has been happening since there has been science. MMGW has become a cultish religion – something I thought you would eschew. Damn the heretics who do not bow down to the consensus – just like the heretics who would not bow down to the flat earth consensus were damned.



    Live & let live – that’s fine, if it were practiced by both sides. There is very little in “drug use” (even casual) that does not affect far more than just the user. You seem to have forgotten that Palin indulged in legal pot in her younger days. I have seen no laws proposed from “mainstream Christian conservatives” which would draconically punish someone for the occasional toke. We’re not going to legalize all drugs for “casual” drug use & who in their right mind on any side can or would try to support that position? Abortion – what happened to live & let live? Abortion is an issue, like marriage, that is not a federal issue. A constitutional amendment should not be needed – neither should some activist legi-court create a law for either. As far as sexual activity, we are live & let live. Don’t, however, expect us to endorse & teach our kids it’s right if we don’t agree.



    You’re getting some incredible misinformation on Sarah Palin – I don’t care if you like her or not, just get some unbiased information that is not from self-loathing Democrat chattel-women or misogynistic Democrat partisans.

    Friday, October 17, 2008

    For the Working Poor - Expand the Economic Pie

    What I'd want for the working poor is policy that makes it possible to rise above being the working poor. To do that, the economy must expand. Businesses across the spectrum must expand, & punishing them through increased confiscation of profits as the profits increase will contract the economy. If every penny over $250K is taxed at an increasingly higher rate, there is less & less incentive to expand & create more jobs & opportunity.



    Taking someone else's money, having the government bureaucracy take a big cut & doling out the rest will not expand the economic pie.



    The old Marx saying of "to each according to need from each according to ability" is a recipe for disaster because it punishes ability and success. When that is put into play, more & more become needy because needy is positively incentivized. That does not mean letting people starve or suffer; that means that needs are taken care of (doesn't have to be the pittance from the government) however economic expansion & job creation are incentivized for the long run.

    Obama's economic policy would shrink the economy, incentivizing "being needy" & punishing economic expansion, business & job creation. McCains policy focused on expanding the economic pie for everyone is a much better fit for the Greatest Country on Earth.

    They Don't Get It

    Thuggish Ignorance is on full display with the attacks on "Joe the Plumber. Instead of skillfully trying to change the subject, the Obama team is trying to destroy this man.



    Joe did not go to Obama - Obama went to Joe. Obama went to Joe's house, doing a little door to door. Obama, I guess, forgot to get his handlers to visit these homes first.



    Joe is a real person, much like most of us. He is a blue-collar guy who breaks a sweat & gets his hands dirty working. Continuing the attack on him, trying to destroy his life, is paramountly ignorant. This is not the 1990's, & Barack Obama is no Bill Clinton. Voters see this real person being attacked by the Obama campaign & lackeys in the Media, & know it could be them if they actually got to speak to Obama & exposed his scheme to redistribute EARNED wealth. Joe is definitely the everyday guy underdog, being attacked by a sleazy & greasy machine. What effect is has on the election, most people side with the underdog who finds himself attacked by sleaze.

    Tuesday, September 16, 2008

    Obama to Iraq - "Wait on Troop Withdrawal"

    Barak Obama, we now know, tried to get the Iraqis to hold off on any strategic agreement regarding troop reductions, possible now that the surge has worked. He said they should wait until the new administration is in place. This was an attempt - perhaps unwitting - to undermine the negotiations with the current administration. McCain's campaign came out with a hard hitting response.

    This is another blunder by Obama & his campaign. There is not a good answer for it. If he didn't realize what he was doing was wrong, how can he claim to be qualified in any way for the presidency? If he knew he was undermining the administration, so much the worse.

    Sarah Palin

    What else is there left unsaid about the Republican VP nominee? I cannot remember such a concerted attack from the opposition for a VP candidate, so she must really give the Democrats cause for concern. I post frequently on the Tennessean's political forum, & the sheer number of Palin-hating posts is educational. It looks like PDS (Palin Derangement Syndrome) has exploded to even eclipse BDS (Bush Derangement Syndrome) in simple animus & vitriol.

    The Wannabe Elitists "Snark" TCPR

    Most of us in Middle Tennessee are familiar with the Nashville Scene, a weekly free publication. Politically, it's on the snobbish side of the left. Jeff Woods wrote a hit piece on Drew Johnson with the Tennessee Center for Policy Research, done in the condescending way the Scene's staff generally looks at those who do not share their elitist world-view. One may read it at the above link - if you want to. The TCPR has done a wonderful job exposing financial gaffes in the Bredesen administration, & it's funny to me that those at the Nashville Scene enjoy being the attack/lap dogs for the Democrat machine here in Tennessee.

    Friday, July 25, 2008

    Obama CHOSE to Not Visit the Wounded Soldiers

    Presumptive Democrat nominee Barak Obama had an opportunity to visit wounded US troops at Landstuhl in Germany, but chose not to do so.

    He first said the visiting the troops would be disrespectful. That did not fly.

    His campaign then said that the pentagon would not allow him to visit. That did not fly, because pentagon officials advised that Obama was welcome to visit - but he could not take his campaign staff & media entourage in with him. Obama could have visited the troops in his official capacity as a US Senator, but he (or someone not very bright on his campaign staff) made a choice to not visit.

    Being somewhat versed in political campaigns, I know the details of things like this are usually handled by staff. Regardless of who made the blunders, Obama is the candidate. Not only did the campaign first make a dumb remark that the visit would not be respectful, after that the campaign told an untruth, trying to pass the blame onto the military officials at the pentagon. Thankfully, the pentagon officials set the record straight. Obama, his campaign, made a huge blunder by not visiting and made it worse by erroneously foisting blame on pentagon officals.

    Think about what might have been. Obama could have visited the wounded troops as a Senator. The fawning media who are with him would have made sure that story came out & out big. Obama could have said something along the lines that "while it's a rule to not have media on such visits, it's also the right thing to do to show respect to our brave, wounded fighting men & women." Obama desparately needs blue collar & military affiliated voters, & this could have helped him immensely with these voters. However, his campaign really screwed up big-time.



    Link
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    Tuesday, June 10, 2008

    Firearms Clubs on College Campuses

    Dwight Springthorpe learned how to shoot out of necessity. Growing up in rural North Carolina, his parents’ farm was plagued with coyotes. Springthorpe learned gun safety and marksmanship from his father. And, he says, he was pretty effective in keeping the coyotes off his family’s land.

    Now a senior at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, Springthorpe continues to shoot for sport as president of the Tar Heel Rifle and Pistol Club (THRPC). For college students to participate in a gun club – or even work on their own to start one – seems almost an anachronism, antithetical to the political correctness of the academic world.

    But, as HUMAN EVENTS found, it’s a lot more common than most of the academic world would have us believe for one reason: students value their Second Amendment rights and are willing to work to protect them...


    I think this is a great idea.

    Checking for Moles?

    What’s going on inside the McCain campaign? Maybe I’ve read too much Conan Doyle and Le Carre. Maybe too much of my young professional life was spent in the company of people who built satellites to detect faint electronic signals in enemy lands. Nevertheless, there are too many faint signals coming out of McCain’s inner circle to ignore. And they do not bode well for the candidate.

    McCain’s June 3 speech -- designed to rob Obama of some media attention -- might have been a good idea and it might not. But it was poorly-written, badly staged and obviously a text McCain wasn’t comfortable with. McCain’s themes were good, but the speech made him sound petty, almost as if he were a challenger competing against an incumbent Obama.

    So some in McCain’s camp convinced him to grasp for media attention on Obama’s night, and then pushed him to make a speech that wasn’t right for him. And then?

    These supposed “advisers” and “strategists” immediately leaked to the McCain-hostile press that the only problem was McCain, not the speech or how it was managed as a media event. All you need to know about these problem “insiders” is in the Politico piece by Jonathan Martin entitled, “McCain Bumbles Delivery.”

    Martin refers to people among McCain’s “inner circle” who believe that the, “…the visual and stylistic contrast with Obama on Tuesday night was both plain to see and painful in the extreme.” He quotes one McCain adviser saying the contrast between McCain’s speaking skills and Obama’s was, “Not good,” and “It’s never going to be his strong suit, and it will always be Obama’s.” So McCain’s “inner circle” believes that a guy who’s spent decades in politics doesn’t know how to make a decent speech?

    If that’s not bad enough Martin writes, “What most everybody inside and out of McCain’s campaign agreed upon was that the address was well-written,” and goes on to quote another (?) McCain aide saying, “It just wasn’t delivered the best…He has to get sharper on delivery.”

    How much do you want to bet that the guys who wrote the speech or convinced McCain to give it (or both) are the same ones badmouthing him to Politico?

    It’s depressingly familiar. This is the same sort of problem that hurt Fred Thompson’s campaign badly, when purported “aides” and “advisers” were -- on the day of the Iowa caucus -- leaking the falsehood that Thompson would drop out and endorse McCain if Thompson didn’t win Iowa.

    It might even be the same guy. At this point, the best addition to McCain’s team might be a cloned version of CIA mole-hunter James Jesus Angleton.


    I've often wondered about these "insiders" and "advisors" who leak harmful information to the press or make harmful claims.

    Saturday, April 19, 2008

    Kudlow on Obama's Economics

    Why Not Blame Obama?

    It's rather amusing watching the liberal media launch a full-scale attack on George Stephanopoulos and Charles Gibson, with General Tom Shales of the Washington Post leading the charge. ABC's Stephanopoulos and Gibson had the audacity to ask Obama some tough questions during the Democratic debate Tuesday night. Challenge Obama with well-informed questions on tax policy and politics? Wound the media favorite? How dare they?

    The fallout is fascinating. With members of the mainstream liberal media lunging at each others throats, it's kind of like watching Hillary and Obama go at it.

    But here's the deal: During the debate, Obama bungled his answers on tax policy, big time. Period. End of sentence. End of story. To my liberal friends in the media, all I can say is: Get over it. Your guy has a very poor grasp of basic economic principles.

    First off, you don't raise taxes during a recession. That's a no-brainer. Second, doubling the capital-gains tax rate will affect Americans up and down the income ladder, not just rich hedge-fund managers. In addition, capital-gains tax cuts are self-financing, and they stimulate jobs and the economy. You want to raise budget revenues and spark economic growth? Cut the cap-gains tax rate. That's what history shows.

    The Wall Street Journal's Steve Moore points out that in 2005, almost half of all tax returns reporting capital gains came from households with incomes under $50,000, while more than three-quarters came from households earning less than $100,000.

    Obama also proposed uncapping the payroll tax, another blunder that will hit people up and down the income ladder. While Obama pledges tax hikes only for folks earning more that $200,000 a year, his tax hike on payrolls would actually slam middle-income earners. The cap on wages subject to the payroll tax is presently $102,000. By eliminating that cap Obama will be soaking veteran firemen, cops, teachers, and health-service workers, along with a variety of other occupations.

    In fact, in America's largest cities, a firefighter married to a school teacher can earn close to $200,000 filing jointly. So not only will each spouse separately pay more for Social Security and health care under Obama's plan, together they'll also be slammed by Obama's cap-gains tax increase.

    This is more than just a failure to understand the Laffer curve. It's another cultural misstep by Obama. I can't help but wonder if the senator knows any cops or firemen. His appeal is to well-educated latte liberals. That remark about middle-income folks having turned to God, faith, and guns because of economic setbacks? Not only was it ill-advised, it illustrates the wide cultural chasm that exists between the candidate and the rest of America.

    In effect, Obama's economics are bad and his social circle is very limited. This is one of the many reasons why a quarter of the Hillary Democrats are telling pollsters they'll likely move to John McCain in the general election.

    Obama's real agenda is far-liberal left. It's an ideology that places income redistribution above economic growth. That's his real message. And it's the same one that sunk Carter, Mondale, Dukakis, Gore, and Kerry. Bill Clinton? He was a growth Democrat. So he won twice. But Obama is aligning himself with the Democratic losers. And that will make him a loser as well.

    The Gallup poll taken after the Democratic debate reveals that Hillary's pit-bull routine may have worked. We'll learn more on that front come Tuesday when Pennsylvanians head to the voting booths. But that's a different issue. What I'm saying is that liberals need to quit blaming Charlie Gibson and George Stephanopoulos for Obama's shortcomings. Instead, they need to blame Obama for failing to grasp how tax penalties on upward mobility will hurt the very people he thinks he's going to help.

    Jack Kemp has effectively made the point that African American communities desperately need capital in order to create new businesses and jobs. Yet as Obama takes the capital out of capitalism, all those who are not rich will be hurt when the rich folks with capital have less of it -- after tax -- to invest in those new businesses and new jobs.

    That's exactly why wealth-redistribution plans always backfire. Robbing Peter to pay Paul is a surefire economic loser. So is putting government in charge of the economy, which is what Mr. Obama is proselytizing.

    This marks the third mistake for the Illinois senator. Not only does he not understand economics; not only is he set apart from middle-class values and beliefs; he apparently hasn't read much history either.

    Did someone say inexperience?

    Saturday, March 29, 2008

    Not Like Skynard Did It

    The Leningrad Cowboys sing Sweet Home Alabama. The backup singers are the Russian Red Army Choir.

    Saturday, March 22, 2008

    Donner Party Democrats

    This comes from a source unabashedly pro-democrat party, from the democrat perspective. It is a wonderful read, however, once one gets past the pro-dem bias. I love the first line...

    When they set out, it all looked so bright — away to the West, to the Denver convention, nothing but blue skies ahead. They had a continent to cross, a nation to convince, and they vowed to do it in a way that had never been done before. They moved briskly across the plains of the Bush presidency. There was the scarecrow president who didn’t know the price of fuel or the ways of war. Flapping in the wind, he pointed one way, while 70 percent of the country wanted to go the other.

    On to the arid side of the prairie, they passed one sunbaked skeleton after another — Larry Craig and his wide stance, Scooter Libby and his breach of trust, and a man from the Arabian Horse Association, Brownie. Each had the stench of yesterday on them.

    Along the way, they moved by Mitt the Muddler, who couldn’t decide which way to go, and Rudy the Robo, muttering, “9/11, 9/11, 9/11.” Dining on squirrel was a guitar-plucking Huckabee, who at least knew how to keep folks entertained around the campfire.

    These refugees from the other party had their nutty preacher, Pat Robertson, who blamed fellow Americans for the big attack. It was their fault, he said: the civil libertarians, the gays, the feminists brought this mass murder upon themselves. Uphill now, through the high plains, and still the Dems held together. They would not be like that tragic Donner Party of 1846, feuding and scrapping. It would all be over before the snows were gone. They shared their rations and steeled their will, convinced that one way or the other they would make history: a black man or a woman would lead them. They were Democrats doing the impossible: moving in one line, together.

    Deep in the treeless expanse of the West, they came upon one of the stragglers from the other party: John McCain. Once, he had been a maverick. Now he looked old and worn and lost. His own party had left him for dead, he explained. Called him amnesty man. He seemed harmless enough, saying he knew nothing about the economy, confused about who was fighting whom in a distant part of the world. They didn’t give him a second thought.

    And then, as the snow piled high deep into March, the Dems turned on each other. One of their leaders had been hanging around the camp of another preacher man, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr. — a nutball like Robertson, blaming America for bringing on the horrid attack. What is it with these men of God? Should have left them home.

    The Dems grew raggedy, worn, desperate. Whereas the first Donner Party was bogged down in the snow of the high Sierra, these Dems could not get out of the Rockies. One faction wanted to declare it over, based on greater popular support. The other one wanted simply to stick around long enough, waiting for the rival to self-destruct.

    Their former leader, Clinton the Elder, was kept on a leash — nothing but cards at night. He said he’d seen far worse in his time. “Will there be more animosity as this
    thing goes on? Yes.” That didn’t help.

    Looking for leadership, they turned to a quiet man in the rear, a doctor from Vermont: Howard Dean. Do something, Doc! Scream! But he cowered, mumbling about do-overs and going back to Michigan or Florida.

    At their lowest ebb, they looked back and again saw the straggler, McCain. He was stronger, walking with renewed vigor despite his age. He was joined by a grizzled old cuss named Cheney. One strange hombre, Cheney had shot a man in the face. He’d forgotten that his country was a democracy. When he was told that two-thirds of the nation wanted to heed the founders’ advice and avoid prolonged foreign conflicts, he spit on the ground, and said, “So?”

    His party was united. What had been hatred for McCain was now hatred for the other party’s preacher. They could direct all their historic resentments, their bound-up frustrations, against this preacher, the Rev. Wright. So long as they hissed and booed at his picture every night, they stayed together, saying the nastiest of things. The original Donner Party made history for one reason: by eating their dead. Cannibalism — it was all they could do to stay alive.

    These modern Dems press on, tearing into each other, crawling to get to the summit, still five months away, in the mile-high city. They are now ravenous with hunger, and it is starting to show.



    What are they hungering for? Power. Not service, nothing as altruistic as that. Hillary & Obama want the power, & want to make sure the other doesn't get it. How does this guy say Dean is quiet???

    Sunday, March 16, 2008

    A Compilation of Random Musings

    Needless to say, there's a lot going on in our world today. The war in Iraq to keep it out of islamist hands is going well, so it's out of the news. Economic worries are heightening with the falling dollar & the price of oil & gasoline. We're not hearing much from the presidential candidates on the economic issues, especially what can be done with oil & gasoline prices.

    Regarding the presidential race, all the focus in on Clinton v. Obama. This has not been a good last couple of weeks for the Obama campaign. Clinton leads in Pennsylvania. Obama's "former" pastor Jeremiah Wright's comments that have come to light are giving him heartburn. The "super delegates" are getting a little ancy.

    NY Governor Elliot Spencer's dalliance with a high-priced call girl have been in the news this week.

    In Tennessee there is a push in the legislature for more openness in records, we'll see how far that goes. I've posted some issues on the Tennessean's forums which have received copious response. One is regarding Obama's record on the 2nd Amendment, Obama, No Gun Shops Within Five Miles of Schools; Porn Shops OK. Obama's words on the 2nd amendment extrapolated to all individual rights troubles me - he seems quite flippant on the importance of individual rights in regard to legislating how these rights may be enjoyed. It is fun, however, to read the back & forth between Clinton & Obama supporters. Getting back to the national race on the democrat side, it's getting nasty down in the grassroots.

    I'll have more as time goes on & events play out in our world.

    Saturday, March 8, 2008

    Possibly a Shrewd Move?

    This is piggybacked from a Redstate Diary "A Sure Sign Hillary is in Trouble." The diarist does have a great point - it's easy to see that Clinton is behind in the delegate count. Both Hillary & Bill have made remarks that would lead to the thought that they see Obama as a possible VP candidate. There may be a different reason for this, however:

    No one (democrat) sees her as being satisfied with anything less than the presidency. Democrats don't want the "bloodshed" of a tight campaign to go on through the convention. Obama is new on the scene. CW says that someone like him would be honored to be chosen as VP. If Clinton can get democrats to see him as VP - an alternative to the continued nasty campaign (or really nasty floor-brawl at the convention) - these democrats may lose some fire to push his presidency.


    The Clintons are nothing if not shrewd & calculating political animals.

    Monday, March 3, 2008

    Another Bad Idea from Tennessee Democrats

    Detailed in the article entitled Bill would let candidates feed poll workers.


    Tennessee lawmakers are getting ready to cross a line — the invisible 100-foot boundary that's supposed to separate candidates from the inside of a polling place on Election Day.

    Nashville Democrats Sen. Joe Haynes of Goodlettsville and Rep. Gary Moore of Joelton, propose letting candidates for public office enter polling places, bearing gifts of doughnuts, pizzas, beverages and other goodies to feed poll workers.

    Supporters call it a gesture of good will and kindness for the poll workers, many of whom are elderly volunteers working grueling 12-hour shifts. Opponents point out that the dividing line between the candidates and the voting booth is there for a reason.

    An attempt to pass the House bill Thursday was derailed when supporters weren't able to kill an amendment by Rep. Donna Rowland, R-Murfreesboro, that would block the candidates from delivering the food in person.

    "We need to make sure we're above reproach," Rowland said.

    Lawmaker sees problem

    The motion to set her amendment aside was defeated by a vote of 46-45. Opponents characterized the amendment as "heartless."

    State Rep. Frank Buck, D-Smithville, warned that letting candidates deliver gifts of any sort to poll workers "will open the door for fraud."

    "If your opponent brings a meal in, that means you've got to bring a meal in," Buck said. "People will try to fudge. Historically, that's what happens."

    Moore, the House sponsor, bristled at the implication.

    "I'm not trying to buy anybody's vote," he said. "To think that anybody's going to buy a vote for a sandwich is ludicrous."

    State Election Coordinator Brook Thompson took no official position but noted that some counties have provisions for feeding poll workers.


    Frank Buck is a true conservative democrat who is not liked by the democrat machine in Tennessee.

    I don't think we really need to lay out all the potential issues with this? Especially with the more local elections - I know that some democrats in counties like mine are seeing the dramatic increase in conservatives elected to local offices, & they want to "stem the tide" as much as possible. I guess it's easier to try & get around the rules than to get better candidates with better ideas?

    Thursday, February 28, 2008

    More Freedom, More Guns; More Guns, More Freedom

    Another H/T to Bill Hobbs for bringing this to our attention.

    A comparative study of 59 countries finds that "the nations with the highest rates of gun ownerhsip tend to have greater political and civil freedom, greater economic freedom and prosperity, and much less corruption than other nations."

    Now do you understand why liberals hate guns?

    I would change "liberals" to "statists" to be more correct - otherwise, spot-on!

    Guns Save Lives

    It's all too predictable. A day after a gunman killed six people and wounded 18 others at Northern Illinois University, The New York Times criticized the U.S. Interior Department for preparing to rethink its ban on guns in national parks.
    The editorial board wants "the 51 senators who like the thought of guns in the parks -- and everywhere else, it seems -- to realize that the innocence of Americans is better protected by carefully controlling guns than it is by arming everyone to the teeth."
    As usual, the Times editors seem unaware of how silly their argument is. To them, the choice is between "carefully controlling guns" and "arming everyone to the teeth." But no one favors "arming everyone to the teeth" (whatever that means). Instead, gun advocates favor freedom, choice and self-responsibility. If someone wishes to be prepared to defend himself, he should be free to do so. No one has the right to deprive others of the means of effective self-defense, like a handgun.
    As for the first option, "carefully controlling guns," how many shootings at schools or malls will it take before we understand that people who intend to kill are not deterred by gun laws? Last I checked, murder is against the law everywhere. No one intent on murder will be stopped by the prospect of committing a lesser crime like illegal possession of a firearm. The intellectuals and politicians who make pious declarations about controlling guns should explain how their gunless utopia is to be realized.
    While they search for -- excuse me -- their magic bullet, innocent people are dying defenseless.
    That's because laws that make it difficult or impossible to carry a concealed handgun do deter one group of people: law-abiding citizens who might have used a gun to stop crime. Gun laws are laws against self-defense.
    Criminals have the initiative. They choose the time, place and manner of their crimes, and they tend to make choices that maximize their own, not their victims', success. So criminals don't attack people they know are armed, and anyone thinking of committing mass murder is likely to be attracted to a gun-free zone, such as schools and malls.
    Government may promise to protect us from criminals, but it cannot deliver on that promise. This was neatly summed up in book title a few years ago: "Dial 911 and Die." If you are the target of a crime, only one other person besides the criminal is sure to be on the scene: you. There is no good substitute for self-responsibility.
    How, then, does it make sense to create mandatory gun-free zones, which in reality are free-crime zones?
    The usual suspects keep calling for more gun control laws. But this idea that gun control is crime control is just a myth. The National Academy of Sciences reviewed dozens of studies and could not find a single gun regulation that clearly led to reduced violent crime or murder. When Washington, D.C., passed its tough handgun ban years ago, gun violence rose.
    The press ignores the fact that often guns save lives.
    It's what happened in 2002 at the Appalachian School of Law. Hearing shots, two students went to their cars, got their guns and restrained the shooter until police arrested him.
    Likewise, law professor Glenn Reynolds writes, "Pearl, Miss., school shooter Luke Woodham was stopped when the school's vice principal took a .45 from his truck and ran to the scene. In (last) February's Utah mall shooting, it was an off-duty police officer who happened to be on the scene and carrying a gun".
    It's impossible to know exactly how often guns stop criminals. Would-be victims don't usually report crimes that don't happen. But people use guns in self-defense every day. The Cato Institute's Tom Palmer says just showing his gun to muggers once saved his life.
    "It equalizes unequals," Palmer told "20/20". "If someone gets into your house, which would you rather have, a handgun or a telephone? You can call the police if you want, and they'll get there, and they'll take a picture of your dead body. But they can't get there in time to save your life. The first line of defense is you."

    Not much to add, he's right.

    Emma Beck's Post Abortion Suicide

    Crossposted at the Tennessean's Political Forum.

    An artist killed herself after aborting her twins when she was eight weeks pregnant, leaving a note saying: "I should never have had an abortion. I see now I would have been a good mum."Emma Beck was found hanging at her home in Helston, Cornwall, on Feb 1 2007. She was declared dead early the following day - her 31st birthday.


    Her suicide note read: "I told everyone I didn't want to do it, even at the hospital. I was frightened, now it is too late. I died when my babies died. I want to be with my babies: they need me, no-one else does."


    The inquest at Truro City Hall heard that Miss Beck had split up with her boyfriend, referred to as "Ben" after he "reacted badly" to the pregnancy...



    Much more at the link. This is not a post about making abortion illegal or making it more difficult to get an abortion. This is about the reality of what an abortion does & the effect that the realization of the reality of abortion can have on a woman.

    What is wrong with making sure a woman or couple has all the information regarding alternatives to abortion? What is wrong with couseling a woman or couple before an abortion to the possible negative mental effects?

    Though He Hit the Jackpot, Sergeant Plans to Return to Iraq for a 3rd Tour

    Crossposted at the Tennessean's Political Forum.

    After completing two tours in Iraq, Sgt. Wayne Leyde won $1 million from a scratch-and-win lotto ticket on Tuesday.

    Now that he's won, Leyde, a 26-year-old member of the Washington National Guard, says he's still going to volunteer to go back to Iraq for a third tour and won't spend any of the money in the meantime.

    Leyde was driving near his home in Mead, Washington when he stopped at a store on the side of the road and bought a ticket.

    "I decided to walk into a local Zip Trip. I got a Coke and beef jerky and walked up to the counter and thought I'd pick up a few scratch tickets and try my luck. I was on my way out when the lady said, 'Do you have a lucky scratch coin?'

    "I said 'no, you gave me a dime and nickel back.'"

    "She said 'no, try this,'" handing Leyde a penny. "On my way home I started scratching tickets. They were losers. I'm thinking, boy, that lady didn't know what she was talking about."

    Leyde couldn't believe it when he scratched a winning ticket, but he still plans to return to Iraq.

    "It was a commitment I made about three months ago. I'm going to stick to it," Leyde said about his decision...


    Very cool, definitely representative of the high quality of our military members.

    William F. Buckley, Jr., R.I.P.

    Crossposted at the Tennessean's Political forum.

    Our revered founder, William F. Buckley Jr., died in his study this morning.

    If ever an institution were the lengthened shadow of one man, this publication is his. So we hope it will not be thought immodest for us to say that Buckley has had more of an impact on the political life of this country — and a better one — than some of our presidents. He created modern conservatism as an intellectual and then a political movement. He kept it from drifting into the fever swamps. And he gave it a wit, style, and intelligence that earned the respect and friendship even of his adversaries. (To know Buckley was to be reminded that certain people have a talent for friendship.)

    He inspired and incited three generations of conservatives, and counting. He retained his intellectual and literary vitality to the end; even in his final years he was capable of the arresting formulation, the unpredictable insight. He presided over NR even in his “retirement,” which was more active than most people’s careers. It has been said that great men are rarely good men. Even more rarely are they sweet and merry, as Buckley was.

    When Buckley started National Review — in 1955, at the age of 29 — it was not at all obvious that anti-Communists, traditionalists, constitutionalists, and enthusiasts for free markets would all be able to take shelter under the same tent. Nor was it obvious that all of these groups, even gathered together, would be able to prevail over what seemed at the time to be an inexorable collectivist tide. When Buckley wrote that the magazine would “stand athwart history yelling, ‘Stop!’” his point was to challenge the idea that history pointed left. Mounting that challenge was the first step toward changing history’s direction. Which would come in due course.

    Before he was a conservative, Buckley was devoted to his family and his Church. He is survived by his son Christopher and brothers Reid and James and sisters Priscilla, Carol, and Patricia. Our sadness for them, and for us, at his passing is leavened by the hope that he is now with his beloved wife, Patricia, who died last year.


    Whether one considers one's self a conservative, liberal or whatever - if one is politically astute one will know of Buckley. Incredible intellect who championed conservative libertarianism, individual liberty & economic freedom, & the expansion of nanny-state socialism/statism. Famous for his debates with Gore Vidal & Noam Chomsky, during which he systematically fileted their arguments with charm & wit.

    Sunday, February 17, 2008

    Interview with Arthur Laffer

    We've been "treated" to condemnations & vitriol regarding supply side or "trickle down" economics for almost 30 years. The Tennessean has an interview with recent Nashville transplant Arthur Laffer, a giant in conservative supply side economics. A very interesting interview, especially from a political perspective - if one looks at the presidential candidates he's voted for over the years. I'll pull out a few quotes, but take the time to read the entire interview.

    But I love bashing Republicans more than anyone, cause they can be just as dumb as stumps. I voted for Clinton twice. I voted for Jimmy Carter, not when he ran against Reagan, but when he ran against Ford I voted for him. I did Jerry Brown's flat tax. I've worked with Democrats as much as … with Republicans. I mean Reagan was my favorite, as you might imagine. But it's not a partisan issue.


    If you look at the top 1 percent of income earners in 1981 (Reagan's first year in office) … those people paid 17.5 percent of all the income taxes in the United States. As the years, have gone on that number has climbed up. Today, that group pays 39.6 percent of all income taxes. The percentage has more than doubled.


    The highest taxpayers paid a lot more when Kennedy cut those tax rates, dramatically; and the lowest groups paid a lot less. In the lowest groups, if you cut tax rates, you will collect less money.

    Laffer has some "interesting" choices in the presidential arena, especially given his economic bent. He is, however, 100% correct on how economics work and the effect of tax rates on those of varying income levels.

    Sunday, January 27, 2008

    Almost 3 Months

    Since I last posted here. I've posted "muchly" at tndeer, Redstate, & the Tennessean. Loads of "stuff" has gone on since my last post. Fred's out of the race, & I'm as bummed as any Fred Thompson supporter; however, I didn't go to the ledge. It looks like it's going to be between Mitt Romney & , with Huckabee & Guliani losing steam. On the democratic side, there's a race war brewing between Obama & Hillary, with Bill Clinton as the rabid attack dog. One my simply use Drudge to keep up with it. This has the potential to really split the democratic coalition.

    Personally, we had a great loss at out church. Evette Allison, our pastor's wife, passed away unexpectedly. Talk about bad things happening to good - no, great - people. Anyone who reads this, please pass along prayers for the family.

    Bill Hobbs, the "godfather" of Tenessee political blogging, recently lost his mother. Please keep that family in your prayers also.

    My uncle Guy "Doc" Anglin is in the hospital, blood clot on the brain caused a stroke.

    The grandson is getting bigger - almost 6 months old now. He was a little sick last weekend, with constipation, & you'll never guess who got suppository duty! He's better now & a joy to watch grow & develop.

    Deer season was a bust for me; didn't get out much & was sick when I went. Actually, it wasn't a bust because hunting is not about the kill - it's the experience. It does look like we're losing the great lease we've had. I've been fortunate to have the time there & will cherish those memories & experiences.

    Work is good. Staying busy is the watchword, & it's not hard to do!

    I'll try to post for my reader(s) more often - with everything going on time is precious. Perhaps I'll post some of my better blogs & posts from my travels around the 'net?
     
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