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With a terrible feeling of pain and loss we announce the passing of Andrew Breitbart.
Andrew passed away unexpectedly from natural causes shortly after midnight this morning in Los Angeles.
We have lost a husband, a father, a son, a brother, a dear friend, a patriot and a happy warrior.
Andrew lived boldly, so that we more timid souls would dare to live freely and fully, and fight for the fragile liberty he showed us how to love.
Andrew recently wrote a new conclusion to his book, Righteous Indignation:
I love my job. I love fighting for what I believe in. I love having fun while doing it. I love reporting stories that the Complex refuses to report. I love fighting back, I love finding allies, and—famously—I enjoy making enemies.
Three years ago, I was mostly a behind-the-scenes guy who linked to stuff on a very popular website. I always wondered what it would be like to enter the public realm to fight for what I believe in. I’ve lost friends, perhaps dozens. But I’ve gained hundreds, thousands—who knows?—of allies. At the end of the day, I can look at myself in the mirror, and I sleep very well at night.
Andrew is at rest, yet the happy warrior lives on, in each of us.
STTPP BEACON – A Publication of Southern Tier TEA Party Patriots
February 2012, No. 14
He Did Quoth in Error by Mel McGinnis - Cheers for politicians using the Bible to quote scriptures in their context, but when quoting verses out of context to advance a political agenda, they need to be called on it. A national leader at a prayer breakfast quoted Luke 12: 48: “To whom much is given much will be demanded” in order to justify increasing taxes on a targeted group of people. There’s nothing in the context remotely suggesting anything to do with taxation. The context is about being watchful and prepared for the second coming of Jesus. Government and taxes aren’t even mentioned once. This national leader made it sound like “to whom much is given much will be demanded” means “the more people make, the greater percentage the government shall take.” You can hardly mangle the text more than that unless you’re more interested in hoodwinking the gullible than maintaining interpretive integrity.
If this leader was intellectually honest, he would have avoided using the Bible altogether and gone instead straight to the Christian-hating Communist Manifesto. Bluntly, it advocates taxing persons who earn more than others at a higher rate. We have this now, only this leader wants to make the progressive income tax more manifesto-like. It’s easier to spot Marxism when it’s upfront, but much harder when it’s tucked under the Bible. If he sincerely wanted to be biblical, he would have cited from the Bible how God implemented a 10% flat rate tithe and added, “Should a government take more in taxes than God demands in tithe?”
The national leader also cited the Golden Rule. Once again, out of context, this leader used the verse to spread his agenda for coercing taxpayers to fund his brand of government-run compassion. First, any coercion in compassion is crony compassion. Second, compassion is voluntary. Government and compassion are inherently opposites. Government is force. Compassion is freely exercised. While this leader seeks to put the Golden Rule into force, he yet favors the right to have unborn children killed. Moreover, he supports forcing citizens morally opposed to abortion to be taxed to pay for the killing. How would this leader like it if what is done lethally to the unborn was done unto him? Isn’t there a plank in the leader’s eye?
The name of the leader is not the real issue though you probably know who it is. Not to mention any names but his initials are Barack Obama. Oops…. The misuse of Scripture is the real issue, especially when it is used to trample on liberty. At future prayer breakfasts, a politician careless with Scripture should just attend, sit still, and be prayed for. Isn’t that what the prayer breakfast is about?
My Thoughts by Jim Walker - I am affiliated with the Tea party in this country. I live in New York where it is necessary to stay in touch with Tea Party politics throughout this country, otherwise I would view all politics through the cynical, clouded lens of NY. I am Independent, but I have voted for Democrats and Republicans. Republicans and Tea party are seeking a nominee for president of the United States. The Democrats will send forth their incumbent President who is everything Tea Party members are against. Being charming isn’t a requirement for being a good President and leader of the free world, demonstrated daily by President Obama.
All legislators—county, state, and federal—need to be vetted on these points:
For any bill, policy, or procedure, ask this question: Is this the government’s job?
Whether state, federal, or county: Is this constitutional?
The governmental entity I represent has no money or rights other than those taken from citizens whom I represent: Whom does this legislation benefit? Whom does it harm?
Regarding Occupy Wall Street, they want “all debt forgiven.” Who is to pay? They want to eliminate big, immoral corporations. Which ones? What makes a corporation immoral? Why is it necessary to destroy property, fight with police, and defecate in public places to make points?
I find three issues on which I am able to figure out compromise:
Turning my constitutional republic form of government into to a socialist form of government. We have compromised too many issues on this already.
Most budget models agree we cannot raise enough money in taxes to continue our current level of spending, so (a) we must have a budget, and (b) it must be no greater than our income.
I don’t know how many babies should die so that we can compromise between a mother’s right to choose and an infant’s right to life.
The Republican Party is right on one thing: introducing a third party candidate will mean four more years of Obama. To my way of thinking, these will be the last four years of the union. Politicians operate on two principle: (a) Can I get re-elected? (b) How much can I get? Neither serves me as a citizen and taxpayer.
Duped Again! By Mel McGinnis - The jobless rate is down, but the numbers don’t add up. We’re told that the unemployment rate stands at 8.3%, but look beneath the surface and you find that something doesn’t look right. In an article appearing on Kitco.com (Feb.7) called “By the Numbers,” Scott Silva wrote, “The government reported that 234,000 new jobs were added in January, bringing down the national unemployment rate to 8.3%. This would be great news…if it were true. But the BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics) is not reporting the actual unemployment rate. If the BLS reported truthfully, the headline unemployment rate would be 11% for January, much worse than the number reported… Here’s why the true unemployment rate is grossly understated. The January data does not account for 1.2 million qualified workers who dropped out of the job market last month. This is the largest monthly reduction in the available workforce by the dropout of ‘discouraged’ workers ever. The labor participation rate declined to 63.7% in January, down from 65.7% when the president took office. Many qualified workers have simply quit looking for jobs.” Add to that, the number of people on food stamps is also at a record level. It doesn’t stop there.
Bob Beauprez on Townhall.com in the article “Government Assistance: Safety Net or Hammock” wrote, “One in five Americans—the highest in the nation’s history—relies on the federal government for everything from housing, health care, and food stamps to college tuition and retirement assistance. That’s more than 67.3 million Americans who receive subsidies from Washington. Government dependency jumped 8.1 percent in the past year, with the most assistance going toward housing, health and welfare, and retirement. The federal government spent more taxpayer dollars than ever before in 2011 to subsidize Americans. The average individual who relies on Washington could receive benefits valued at $32,748, more than the nation’s average disposable personal income ($32,446). At the same time, nearly half of the U.S. population (49.5 percent) does not pay any federal income taxes… As of now, 70 percent of the federal government’s budget goes to individual assistance programs, up dramatically in just the past few years.” Never mind those stats, just listen to the media repeat what the administration wants you to hear: the unemployment rate is 8.3%.This administration has opened a “fudge” shop and uninformed Americans are buying it.
Cross-posted from “WhatsRightNews“ OUR PRESIDENT’S DAY MESSAGE HERE AT “WRN” IS QUITE SIMPLE REALLY – WE NEED A NEW ONE ! HOW WE LONG FOR WHAT ONCE WAS AND WHAT SHOULD HAVE ALWAYS BEEN. THE AMERICAN PRESIDENT; AN ADMINISTER AND … Continue reading →
Thanks to generous supporters like you, for the first time ever, Hillsdale College is offering a no-cost 10 week online Constitution course based on the course our students must complete, in order to graduate.
I am proud to be teaching part of our NEW Constitution 101 Course and hope YOU will be one of my students!
Many in our country, particularly those in elected leadership, have strayed from the principles of individual liberty and limited government that the Constitution upholds.
That’s why Hillsdale College has launched one of its most ambitious undertakings yet . . .
Constitution 101 Schedule:
Lectures and other study materials will be released by noon each Monday.
Approximately 40 minutes in length, these lectures are pre-recorded and available to view at your convenience.
Introduction: The American Mind Larry P. Arnn Monday, February 20
The Declaration of Independence Thomas G. West Monday, February 27
The Problem of Majority Tyranny David Bobb Monday, March 5
Separation of Powers: Preventing Tyranny Kevin Portteus Monday, March 12
Separation of Powers: Ensuring Good Government Will Morrisey Monday, March 19
Religion, Morality, and Property David Bobb Monday, March 26
Crisis of Constitutional Government Will Morrisey Monday, April 2
Abraham Lincoln and the Constitution Kevin Portteus Monday, April 9
The Progressive Rejection of the Founding Ronald J. Pestritto Monday, April 16
The Recovery of the Constitution Larry P. Arnn Monday, April 23
“Constitution 101: The Meaning and History of the Constitution” is a 10-week online course presented by Hillsdale College.
Featuring an expanded format from the “Introduction to the Constitution” lecture series with Hillsdale College President Dr. Larry Arnn, Constitution 101 follows closely the one-semester course required of all Hillsdale College undergraduate students.
In this course, you can:
watch lectures from the same Hillsdale faculty who teach on campus;
study the same readings taught in the College course;
submit questions for weekly Q&A sessions with the faculty;
access a course study guide;
test your knowledge through weekly quizzes; and
upon completion of the course, receive a certificate from Hillsdale College.
Hillsdale College is nationally known for its refusal to accept federal or state taxpayer support. We aim to raise up a new generation of leaders for America who share a passion for liberty, who believe in the free-enterprise system, and who want to restore the principles of limited government enshrined in the Constitution of the United States.
–>You must register in order to participate in Constitution 101. Even if you have already signed up for a previous Hillsdale webcast or seminar, we ask that you complete the simple registration process for Constitution 101. There is no cost to register for this course, but we ask that you consider a donation to support our efforts to educate millions of Americans about our nation’s Founding documents and principles.
Also: Morning Bell: Voter ID Prevents Election Fraud(yet the Democrats, Obama, and his DOJ led by A.G. Holder are doing everything they can to stop it, compromising one of our most valued rights as Americans, and their excuses in doing so are absurd!)
“Last night’s nail-biter in Iowa marked the beginning of election year 2012. And with Americans heading to the polls — next in New Hampshire, then South Carolina and beyond — they will hope to rely on the integrity of the election system to ensure that every legitimate vote counts and that fraud is not the deciding factor on the local, state or national level. Unfortunately, despite all the technological advances in our modern democracy, voter fraud still occurs, and yet there is still resistance to one very simple tool that …” More
Great interview with Matt Kibbe and David Webb, if only they had corrected the news anchor on one point: The Tea Party is not anti-establishment per se and this is important to point out because that is so often defined as meaning anti-government. We support our government when not corrupt, when not off the rails, when small, limited, and operating within it’s delegated powers, and it’s defined purpose, therefore functioning properly. Unlike some fringe elements out there, we do not support anarchy, and where we are most certainly anti-judicial fiat/dictat, we support American jurisprudence and the “proper” rule of law.
Some amount of government is necessary in any civilized society, and as the ancient Greeks found, “without law there can be no freedom”. Then again the ancient romans made some observations such as Cicero “the more laws the less justice” and Tacitus “the more corrupt the state, the more it legislates”. (The latter statement reminds us one one of the great, and few, 20th century constitutionalist Presidents, Calvin Coolidge. He would proclaim that “It is more important to kill bad bills than to pass good ones”. He helped reverse in his day much of the progressivism of Presidents Wilson and TR Roosevelt, the latter whom we are reminded that President Obama recently tried to channel in his miserable attempt to further his aims of class warfare.)
Back to the point, The beauty of America, and our founders, is that they took all such knowledge of the history of the world and it’s various goverments, and with wisdom, and a strict adherence to divine guidance, they found the right balance, checks and balances throughout the entire American system to be specific, and they gave us the means to protect and preserve such.
With no kings, no royalty (ie. no ruling class), no dictorial powers able to amass in any particular branch of government, and most importantly with said checks and balances instilled throughout every level of government and society (between the 3 branches of fed gov, between fed gov and state gov, between all gov and the people, between the people and the people), they gave us the ability to be civilized, be free, and to achieve maximum individual liberty. It was for these very reasons they not only rejected the obvious forms of government, but that they also rejected forming a Democracy (a consistently failed experiment in mob rule).
Considering the role of political parties in America provides for similar thought. Where George Washington warned us of the perils of such (specifically when not checked and balanced), he and others also recognized they would always exist in the same sense that government must, as long as properly limited. So long as parties are two sides of the same American coin, they provide for the debate and representative process that carries our nation forward. It is today however, after many years of politicos playing games on the proverbial slippery slope, that one must wonder, especially though not exclusively with the Democrats, what coin are you the other side of – a Greek? a Soviet? a Chinese? perhaps a 1930′s German one? or a Euro?, to name a few. Of course the same can be asked of many office holders, unfortunately including our President, exactly what country are you trying to turn us into?
So you see, unlike some in this country who are unhappy with our present dismay and decline, and who are either fine with dictorial powers and un-american forms of governance so long as it benefits them, or who have relegated themselves to wanting to take down goverment altogether resulting in chaos and anarchy, it is the Tea Party that strives to simply reign in goverment, restore it to it’s proper role, and see it once again be Constitutionally adherent – which is what for over 200 years has made America not only exceptional but the greatest nation and free-est prople on earth.
It is not the Tea Party that seeks another civil war, God forbid, but rather to prevent one. It is not the Tea Party that seeks another revolution (which again God forbid, for if so – it would probably more resemble the French rev than the American one). No, if the Tea Party can be said to be revolutionary it is because we believe in the principles set forth from the original and we continue in that struggle to see it through. We recognize that the Tree of Liberty was planted at that time and through the devotion, the toils, and the sacrifice, our forefathers and mothers, they saw it to fruition for us. Now today it is we who seek not to abandon it or replace it, but rather to continue to protect and nuture it, so that generations to come may also benefit from the blessings of it’s fruit, as have we!
To reinforce these sentiments check out the following graphics and then re-familiarize with this video (pay special attention to the segment on anarchy which seems largely at play today, here at home, and abroad):
President Obama says they are the same. Really? The Democrats endorsed party, the Occupy Party. The Republican endorsed party, the Tea Party.
The Democrats and the liberal media have said that the Occupy Party was a civic group “just like” the Tea Party.
I report……you decide…….
REPORTED
OCCUPY PARTY
TEA PARTY
ARRESTS
4149+
0
RAPES
12
0
DAMAGE
$10,000,000.00
$0
PUBLIC DEFECATION
YES
NO
ANTISEMITIC RANTS
12
0
COST TO TAXPAYERS ( by 11/9)
$19,327,487.00+
$0
PUBLIC MASTURBATION
3
0
MOLOTOV COCKTAILS THROWN
10
0
FIGHTS STARTED
YES
NO
CHILDREN EXPLOITED
YES
NO
POLICE CARS DAMAGED
2
0
PUBLIC DRUNKENNESS
YES
NO
DRUG POSSESSION ARREST
YES
NO
CONCEALED WEAPON ARREST
YES
NO
DRUG OVERDOSE
YES
NO
THEFTS
YES
NO
BURGLARIES
YES
NO
VANDALISM ARREST
YES
NO
TRESPASSING ARREST
YES
NO
NON FATAL SHOOTINGS
1
0
PUBLIC URINATION
YES
NO
URINATION ON OTHERS
YES
NO
ISRAELI FLAGS BURNED
2
0
AMERICAN FLAGS BURNED
1
0
AMERICAN FLAGS DANCED ON
1
0
AMERICAN FLAG DESECRATION
25
0
FELONY ASSAULT ON AN EMT
1
0
HEAD/BODY LICE OUTBREAKS
1
0
TUBERCULOSIS OUTBREAKS
1
0
MURDER
1
0
SUICIDE
1
0
SHOTS FIRED AT WHITE HOUSE
1
0
SCABIES OUTBREAKS
1
0
OBAMA ENDORSED IT
YES
NO
PELOSI ENDORSED IT
YES
NO
CAIR ENDORSED IT
YES
NO
SOCIALIST PARTY ENDORSED
YES
NO
NAZI PARTY ENDORSED
YES
NO
MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD ENDORSED
YES
NO
COMMUNIST PARTY ENDORSED
YES
NO
BIDEN ENDORSED
YES
NO
HUGO CHAVEZ ENDORSED
YES
NO
BLACK PANTHERS ENDORSED
YES
NO
HEZBOLLAH ENDORSED
YES
NO
MARXIST UNION ENDORSED
YES
NO
9/11 TRUTHER ENDORSED
YES
NO
BOLSHEVIK ENDORSED
YES
NO
IRAN GOVERNMENT ENDORSED
YES
NO
AYATOLLAH ENDORSED
YES
NO
NORTH KOREA ENDORSED
YES
NO
FARRAKHAN ENDORSED
YES
NO
NATION OF ISLAM ENDORSED
YES
NO
SEE THE SIMILARITIES!
In this new year “Remember 9-12″
THE 9 PRINCIPLES:1. America is good. / 2. I believe in God and He is the Center of my Life. / 3. I must always try to be a more honest person than I was yesterday. / 4. The family is sacred. My spouse and I are the ultimate authority, not the government. / 5. If you break the law you pay the penalty. Justice is blind and no one is above it. / 6. I have a right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, but there is no guarantee of equal results. / 7. I work hard for what I have and I will share it with who I want to. Government cannot force me to be charitable. / 8. It is not un-American for me to disagree with authority or to share my personal opinion. / 9. The government works for me. I do not answer to them, they answer to me.
THE 12 VALUES:• Honesty / • Reverence / • Hope / • Thrift / • Humility / • Charity / • Sincerity / • Moderation / • Hard Work / • Courage / • Personal Responsibility / • Gratitude
Did you know? Americans make up half of the world’s richest 1%. According to the article: It only takes $34,000 a year, after taxes, to be among the richest 1% in the world. That’s for each person living under the same roof, including children. (So a family of four, for example, needs to make $136,000.) http://money.cnn.com/2012/01/04/news/economy/world_richest/index.htm
He intends to do whatever he can via executive branch agencies.
Will President Obama Fool America Again? American Spectator: I am not surprised that President Obama sees fit to negotiate with the Taliban…. this is the President who was prepared to engage Iran, North Korea, and Venezuela without precondition. … whose administration saw fit to give guns to Mexican drug cartels. This is the President who thought it sensible to give in excess of half a billion dollars to the sinkhole known as Solyndra to manufacture overpriced solar panels no one wanted to buy. This is also the President who has accumulated more debt in less than three years in office than all his predecessors accumulated in 220 years…
INVESTOR’S BUSINESS DAILY: President Obama Becomes King Barack.“Not only is Obama trampling precedent that says recess appointments are to be done only after the Senate has been out of session for 10 days or more, he’s also trying to circumvent legislation.”
In digging a bit deeper it turns out that GOP senators said they believe the bureau as constructed is too powerful and lacks oversight. They want changes including replacing the director position with a multimember board and subjecting the agency’s budget to the congressional appropriations process. Just for the record, last month Richard Cordray was rejected after Democrats failed to achieve the 60 votes they needed to move his nomination forward. The vote was 53 yes, 45 no. At any rate, the Republicans at this point are not arguing about Cordray as a person they are arguing about the seat. The GOP again finds itself arguing process vs policy.
On Climate Change fraud, Government fostered Junk Science, Cap n Trade scemes and scams, the UN and Agenda 21, these issues have both Federal implications as well as State implications especially in, but not limited to, NY:
U.S. Funds Nearly 50% — $31 Million — of U.N.’s Global Warming Panel The report also found federal funding for global warming had increased by 116 percent between 1993 and 2004, to $5.1 billion. EXCERPTS: The GAO also found that this funding information “was not available in budget documents or on the websites of the relevant federal agencies, and the agencies are generally not required to report this information to Congress.” The report said documents on U.S. financing for the IPCC were “not available in budget documents or on the websites of the relevant federal agencies, and the agencies are generally not required to report this information to Congress.” Conflicting State Department numbers also made it more difficult for the GAO to assemble the data. The GAO “reviewed documents and interviewed officials from federal agencies and IPCC” to reach its findings. A 2005 GAO report entitled “Federal Reports on Climate Change Funding Should Be Clearer and More Complete” found that federal funding for climate change was not adequately accountable. “Congress and the public cannot consistently track federal climate change funding or spending over time,” the report concluded. http://cnsnews.com/news/article/us-taxpayers-cover-nearly-half-cost-un-s-global-warming-panel
Fake! Fake! Fake! Fake![by S. Fred Singer, professor emeritus at the University of Virginia and director of the Science & Environmental Policy Project. He is a senior fellow of the Heartland Institute and of the Independent Institute. His specialty is atmospheric and space physics. An expert in remote sensing and satellites, he served as the founding director of the U.S. Weather Satellite Service and, more recently, as vice chair of the U.S. National Advisory Committee on Oceans & Atmosphere. He is co-author of Climate Change Reconsidered (2009 and 2011) and of Unstoppable Global Warming (2007)]
“Within the United States, and also elsewhere, global warming scares have become a means of transferring taxpayer money to politically influential cronies. There is now so much “crony capitalism” that it would be difficult to reverse or even stop the ongoing subsidies, outright grants, tax breaks, and other transfers to privileged groups.” “Time is becoming short. We’re reaching a tipping point — not of the earth’s climate, but of the financial schemes that permanently divert funds from productive activities into wasteful ones, all in the name of “saving the climate.” The results are evident: higher levels of spending, deficits, or taxes; higher prices for energy and electricity and therefore for all manufactured goods; less productive activity; less employment; and more misery.”
On December 15, four leading scientists appeared before the Canadian Senate Standing Committee on Energy, the Environment and Natural Resources to challenge global warming advocacy. The hearing was the first of its kind in Canada. (Video of the hearing can be found here.)
Guelph University Professor of Economics Dr. Ross McKitrick led off the hearing, explaining that the foundation of the climate scare — the science as promulgated by the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) — cannot be trusted: more…
In other words, it’s a make or break year for constitutional conservatism.
The United States is at a fork in the road regarding which way we will go as a people. The 2012 election could be the most important in our lifetime, and conservative leaders have reached a consensus on how to channel the energy and concerns of the American people to realize historic change this year.
The status quo will not survive the year. Our debt and spending have reached catastrophic proportions in the context of global financial difficulties and political upheaval. Consequently, by the end of 2012, America will either have taken a decisive step toward socialistic collectivism in the name of “equality” and “social justice,” where businesses and owners are punitively taxed to “pay their fair share,” or America will take a major step in the direction of returning to our Founders’ constitutional government, restoring the rule of law, federalism, free enterprise, and individual initiative and responsibility.
The American people will decide which path to take in the 2012 elections, not only in the general election on November 6 but also in the nominating process in primaries over the next several months for all major offices, including the presidency. Conservatives must act in a concerted and informed fashion in all of these contests to shape the public dialogue and thoroughly vet the candidates.
To achieve these ends, top conservative leaders acting under the umbrella of the Conservative Action Project have released “A Conservative Consensus for 2012” announcing agreement on major policies. These issues span all three wings of the conservative movement: economic, social, and national security.
The Conservative Consensus speaks to economic issues of fundamental tax reform, Obamacare, overhauling regulation, and energy production. It tackles social issues of strengthening families and advocating traditional values and religious liberty. And it covers defense issues of protecting the homeland, military superiority, and national sovereignty.
This document also advocates specific issues all conservatives must regard as essential. America needs a strong Balanced Budget Amendment to the U.S. Constitution that caps federal spending. Immediate and drastic cuts to the federal budget. No corporate bailouts. The Second Amendment right to bear arms is a fundamental right, as is voting, so the ballot box must be protected from fraud and corruption. Because voting is also a citizen’s duty, reasonable conditions must be enacted to safeguard our democratic process. And none of these can succeed unless the right people are appointed as judges to our federal courts.
Achieving these goals is a tremendous challenge, and true constitutional conservatives must relentlessly pursue building a true coalition between the three wings of the conservative movement.
This means that true conservatives must not allow anyone to redefine conservatism as only about fiscal issues and the reach of government. Constitutional conservatives understand that strong families are the essential foundation for long-term economic prosperity. The demographic reality is that declining birth rates and rampant abortion creates a devastating loss of human capital that cannot sustain our entitlement systems or economic growth, and also result in millions of unfilled job positions that become a magnet for illegal immigration.
Fortunately most conservatives understand that national security is crucial to America’s success. But some wrongheaded individuals seek to silence or marginalize social issues, oblivious to the profound reality — proven throughout history — that where families crumble there is an unstoppable public outcry for government to fill the void with massive entitlements and programs. Government always grows when families fail.
Some economic leaders with libertarian or liberal beliefs fail to grasp this simple fact, and so pervert the concept of freedom to mean that individuals are free to do whatever they like, free of any concept of right-and-wrong or of personal responsibility or self-control. They willfully ignore our Founding Fathers, who believed that limited government only endures when individuals govern themselves.
Some social conservative leaders are making the same mistake. They were right to reject an unrealistic “truce” on social issues. But some are essentially calling for a truce on economic issues, supporting candidates who stand for traditional values but are not reliably conservative on limiting the size, scope, and cost of government.
While both social and economic issues are indispensable, and both move votes, the reality is that fiscal issues are moving more swing votes in this cycle than value issues. Social conservatives will overreach if they force voters to choose between the two by insisting on traditionalist candidates who are not also warriors for free markets, federalism, fundamental entitlement reform, and a strong Balanced Budget Amendment. Social conservatives must demand equal standing, not superior standing.
A perfect example where all three branches of conservatism can join forces is our national debt. America is now $15 trillion in debt, an unprecedented level exceeding 100% of our Gross Domestic Product. The only time we even approached such a proportion was the end of World War II, where we were in a global war that threatened our very survival as a nation. Instead of a temporary military emergency, our current debt is being fueled by deficits of over $1 trillion every year Barack Obama has been president.
In addition to an economic issue, this debt is a social issue. Our profligate spending is intergenerational theft, saddling each member of the next generation with over $120,000 in debt once they become taxpayers. That’s a mortgage on a house, with no house.
It is also a defense issue. The former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said our national debt is the single greatest threat to national security. We are on track to be paying $600 billion per year just in interest on the national debt, more than our entire military and security budget. This hamstrings our ability to defend our nation today while developing weapons and systems to protect us tomorrow.
Another reality is that constitutional conservatism cannot become our national policy without all three branches of government. If conservatives retake both houses of Congress it can only block bad legislation. Without a two-thirds supermajority, conservatives in Congress cannot override presidential vetoes of good legislation or undo harmful administrative regulations through the Congressional Review Act.
We need a constitutional conservative in the White House. Not all Republicans are part of the solution, and some leading Republicans are even part of the problem. America needs a president who is reliable on fiscal issues, and social issues, and defense issues. Two out of three is not enough. Ronald Reagan was all three, and only a Republican solid on all three bases can pick up President Reagan’s mantle to lead this country through the daunting challenges we face.
In our system of government, none of this will succeed without the right people serving in the federal judiciary. But judges are nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate, so if the American people elect a constitutional conservative president and a Senate willing to fight for judges, there are scores of spectacular lawyers and scholars who are faithful to the original meaning of the Constitution. If we elect the right people, they can take care of the courts.
The courts are imperative for all branches of the conservative movement. In addition to abortion, same-sex marriage and religious liberty, the Supreme Court is deciding all-important economic issues like Obamacare and national security issues like Bill of Rights protections for terrorists captured by our military on foreign battlefields. All conservatives must demand that only principled originalists be nominated to the Supreme Court and lower courts.
So America faces a historic choice. And conservatives face a historic task, of making the case to the voters for how and why constitutional conservatism is the way to return our nation to strength and stability, and electing national leadership that will honestly and definitively tackle these challenges for the sake of our children and grandchildren.
About the Author Ken Blackwell, a board member of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, is a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Human Rights Commission and a senior fellow at the Family Research Council.
About the Author Ken Klukowski is a fellow and senior legal analyst with the American Civil Rights Union.
The left invariably frames its policy pronouncements under the mantle of so-called “rights” that only the government can guarantee…
Out of this mindset has come the minimum wage laws, the creation of innumerable federal agencies to regulate and monitor all aspects of business, 160,000 pages of federal regulations and a tax code exceeding 80,000 pages, Medicare and Medicaid, an overwhelming litany of various welfare and social programs, Social Security, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, the creation of seven new presidential cabinet secretaries since Franklin Roosevelt, ObamaCare, federal intrusion into local education matters, the institution of public-sector unions, and the loss of liberty and individual freedom through the unfettered growth of government.
What has this cost the people of the United States? A society at odds with itself while bent on class warfare and self-satisfaction as the future of succeeding generations is made untenable. From a strictly financial perspective, the picture comes into focus by comparing the last fifty years (1962 to 2012, with 1962 inflation adjusted to 2012 dollars).
1962
2012
Difference
Total National Debt
$ 2.3 Trillion
$ 15.2 Trillion
$ 12.9 Trillion
Debt as a percent of Gross Domestic Product
50.1%
100.1%
Total Government Spending (all levels)
$ 1.3 Trillion
$ 6.2 Trillion
$ 4.9 Trillion
It is projected that by 2016, if no changes are made, the total national debt will be over $21.5 trillion; the debt as a percent of GDP will be in excess of 113%, and overall government spending will exceed $8.0 trillion… More…
Senate Democrats have refused to propose a budget for three years.
The US Senate has not passed a budget since April 29th, 2009!
The Last time the United States Senate passed a budget bill was April 29th, 2009. Since that time, the senate has used parliamentary tools like continuing resolutions (CRs), omnibus spending bills, and minibus bills to enact the president’s budget requests.
Sadly, our main stream media (MSM) has failed the American people. The MSM consistently complains about “the congress” and how it needs to “put it’s fiscal house in order.” The US House of Representatives has done just that, every year in fact.
The majority in the senate is very different than the majority in the house. The senate leadership is lacking in every measure. Under Majority Leader Harry Reid’s careful hand, the senate and MSM blames the House as a “do nothing congress” when it is actually the senate that cannot do anything.
So the next time you see someone on CNN, MSNBC, CBS, NBC, ABC, Fox News, or you read a paperor a website that complains about the “do nothing ‘republican’ congress”, realize they mean “Harry Reid and the Democrats in the do nothing senate”.
Harry Reid and the democrat’s failure to produce a budget bill continues…
As a proud American Taxpayer, I request that Members of the United States Senate pass a complete budget. Everyday citizens are forced to make difficult decisions regarding their finances. Congress, specifically, the US Senate has failed for over 900 days to pass a budget. This is slap in the face of every American! One of the requirements by Congress mentioned in the Constitution is to pass a budget. How hard can it be? Do the right thing and pass a budget!
It is easy to decry the state of higher education in the United States, an arena in which William Ayers is a decorated figure. But if you have access to a computer with an internet connection, you can rediscover a lost faith in academia and reaffirm the principles of republican government by watching and, more importantly, listening to Hillsdale College president Larry P. Arnn and members of his Hillsdale faculty teach a ten-week course on the United States Constitution beginning in February.
As you may have read in Imprimis, the speech digest of Hillsdale College of Hillsdale, Michigan, Arnn is overseeing an online seminar entitled “Constitution 101: The Meaning and History of the Constitution.” Anyone can register for the course here. There is no financial obligation, but donations are welcome.
Arnn’s lectures bookend the course, which as a whole examines the fundamental aspects of the Constitution. These aspects include the separation of powers, how religion and morality relate to property, and the rejection of the Constitution by the so-called Progressive movement. Registrants may submit questions to Hillsdale faculty, participate in quizzes, and study readings identical to those assigned in the course taught to Hillsdale students.
While the course lecturers include first-rate scholars such as Thomas G. West, Will Morrisey, and David Bobb, Arnn is the main attraction. If this country revered education as much as so many politicians and self-styled educators claim, Arnn would be a household name. So who is this man?
Arnn is many things. This man with the gray beard and graying hair is affable, deadpan, impish, and brilliant in person or behind the lectern. He can and does rattle off phrases and paragraphs from Aristotle, Churchill, and the Declaration of Independence from memory. He does this not to show off, but to demonstrate his reverence for the English language and the power of constitutional ideas and ideals, and to invite you to share in that joy and the joy of learning. Simply, he loves to teach. (The Unity and Beauty of the Declaration and the Constitution: An Interview with Larry P. Arnn)
He bluntly — and correctly — calls the Republican Party the stupid party — not for a cheap laugh, but to express his deep disappointment in and frustration with that organization for regularly squandering its many opportunities that arise to defend ordered liberty and limited government. He is at his best when making the profound ideas and concepts of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution applicable to contemporary issues. He is unafraid to put the words and ideas of people like Barack Obama against people like Thomas Jefferson and demonstrate the differences and the consequences of those differences. There is no relativism in the life of Larry Arnn. Of how many other academics can one say that?
No college takes its mission, its charter, and its founding principles more seriously than Hillsdale College. This is so because of the leadership of Arnn. He came to Hillsdale by way of Pocahontas, Arkansas, Oxford, and the Claremont Institute. He was the founding chairman of the California Civil Rights Initiative, later led by Ward Connerly. He is not merely an administrator out of touch with and out of reach to those in his charge; on the contrary, he teaches courses to Hillsdale students on subjects such as Aristotle’s Ethics. Again, how many administrators do that in academia today? He is both an homme sérieux and a man with whom it would be fun to share a drink. He is what we wish all of our professors to be. I think you will enjoy studying with him, too.
The purpose of this brief article is to let you know that Arnn and Hillsdale are giving a gift to the American people in the form of their online seminar on the Constitution. It could not come in a more timely fashion as we approach a year in which we, as a republic, will make a significant decision in what kind of government we shall have and what kind of society we shall have. It could not be easier to carve out an hour or so now and then and let a learned American professor and president of the finest undergraduate institution in the country into your home. Class is in session beginning February 20.
Matthew May is the author of Restoration: The God and Country Education Project, which can be purchased here. He welcomes comments at may.matthew.t@gmail.com.
AND A MESSAGE (AND A STORY) FROM OUR FRIENDS AT HUDSON VALLEY MOMS:
THE NEW ANT and the Grasshopper, Two Versions: from Monty Pelerin’s World
**** OLD VERSION
The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter.
The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and dances and plays the summer away.
Come winter, the ant is warm and well fed. The grasshopper has no food or shelter, so he dies out in the cold.
MORAL OF THE OLD STORY: Be responsible for yourself !
**** MODERN VERSION Theantworks hard in the withering heat and the rain all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter.
The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and dances and plays the summer away.
Come winter, the shivering grasshopper calls a press conference and demands to know why the ant should be allowed to be warm and well fed while he is cold and starving.
CBS, NBC, PBS, CNN, and ABC show up to provide pictures of the shivering grasshopper next to a video of the ant in his comfortable home with a table filled with food.
America is stunned by the sharp contrast. How can this be, that in a country of such wealth, this poor grasshopper is allowed to suffer so?
Kermit the Frog appears on Oprah with the grasshopper and everybody cries when they sing, ‘It’s Not Easy Being Green’. Occupy the Anthill stages a demonstration in front of the ant’s house where the news stations film the SEIU group singing, We Shall Overcome. Then Rev. Jeremiah Wright has the group kneel down to pray for the grasshopper’s sake, while he damns the ants.
President Obama condemns the ant and blames President Bush 43, President Bush 41, President Reagan, Christopher Columbus, and the Pope for the grasshopper’s plight.
Nancy Pelosi & Harry Reid exclaim in an interview with Larry King that the ant has gotten rich off the back of the grasshopper, and both call for an immediate tax hike on the ant to make him pay his fair share. Finally, the EEOC drafts the Economic Equity & Anti‑Grasshopper Act retroactive to the beginning of the summer.
The ant is fined for failing to hire a proportionate number of green bugs and, having nothing left to pay his retroactive taxes, his home is confiscated by the Government GreenCzar and given to the grasshopper. The story ends as we see the grasshopper and his free-loading friends finishing up the last bits of the ant’s food while the government house he is in, which, as you recall, just happens to be the ant’s old house, crumbles around them because the grasshopper doesn’t maintain it.
The ant has disappeared in the snow, never to be seen again.
The grasshopper is found dead in a drug related incident, and the house, now abandoned, is taken over by a gang of spiders who terrorize the ramshackle, once prosperous and peaceful, neighborhood.
The entire Nation collapses bringing the rest of the free world with it.
MORAL OF THIS VERSION: Be careful how you vote in 2012.
You might want to send this on to other ants like yourself. Don’t waste time with grasshoppers, they have no incentive to understand.
RIGHT WING HANDBOOK
“Disspelling 10 Liberal Lies”. God knows in 2012 we’ll hear these plenty so here’s a helping hand to be prepared.
“In the chain of human events, the birthday of the nation is indissolubly linked with the birthday of the Savior. The Declaration of Independence laid the cornerstone of human government upon the first precepts of Christianity” – John Quincy Adams
Each year, our family observes with due respect and reverence six national days of recognition: Patriots Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Constitution Day, Veterans Day and Thanksgiving.
However, the most hallowed religious observance in our family, and the one with the most deeply rooted traditions, is Christmas. It is not a commercial feeding frenzy for us, but a quiet and reverent time of rest and celebration of the birth of Christ, punctuated by extended family festivities.
Unfortunately there is a perennial societal tension now associated with Christmas. If not for its dire implications for the future of Liberty, the seasonal contortions over “non-offensive greetings” would be humorous.
Our Founders, the framers of our Declaration of Independence and Constitution, had no such concerns about public expressions of faith, as none was warranted. Conversely, they were bold about promoting Christianity and speaking about their own faith.
“How many observe Christ’s birth-day! How few, his precepts! O! ’tis easier to keep Holidays than Commandments.” –Benjamin Franklin (1743)
Historian Peter Lillback, author of “Sacred Fire,” an exhaustive scholarly treatise on George Washington, notes that it is only in recent years, with the searchable digital publication of our Founders’ writings, that we get an accurate picture of their faith, and expression of same.
Lillback writes, “Washington referred to himself frequently using the words ‘ardent,’ ‘fervent,’ ‘pious,’ and ‘devout.’ There are over one hundred different prayers composed and written by Washington in his own hand. He described himself as one of the deepest men of faith of his day when he confessed to a clergyman, ‘No Man has a more perfect Reliance on the alwise, and powerful dispensations of the Supreme Being than I have nor thinks his aid more necessary.’ Although he never once used the word ‘Deist’ in his voluminous writings, he often mentioned religion, Christianity, and the Gospel. He spoke of Christ as ‘the divine Author of our blessed religion.’ He wrote of ‘the blessed religion revealed in the Word of God.’ He encouraged seekers to learn ‘the religion of Jesus Christ.’ He even said to his soldiers, ‘To the distinguished Character of Patriot, it should be our highest Glory to add the more distinguished Character of Christian.’”
Believe it or not, Washington did not need to consult pollsters or focus groups, as General or President, before issuing proclamations of faith. He spoke them from his heart, just as most of our Founders did.
From a humble servant: George Washington -
1778 The Hand of providence has been so conspicuous in all this, that he must be worse than an infidel that lacks faith, and more than wicked, that has not gratitude enough to acknowledge his obligations.
1783 The establishment of Civil and Religious Liberty was the Motive which induced me to the Field — the object is attained — and it now remains to be my earnest wish & prayer, that the Citizens of the United States could make a wise and virtuous use of the blessings placed before them.
1790 All see, and most admire, the glare which hovers round the external trappings of elevated office. To me there is nothing in it, beyond the lustre which may be reflected from its connection with a power of promoting human felicity.
1790 May the father of all mercies scatter light, and not darkness, upon our paths, and make us in all our several vocations useful here, and in His own due time and way everlastingly happy.
1796 — Farewell Address
[W]here is the security for property, for reputation, for life, if the sense of religious obligation deserts the oaths…?
Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, Religion and morality are indispensable supports. In vain would that man claim the tribute of Patriotism who should labor to subvert these great Pillars of human happiness.
FOR AMERICA THERE SHALL BE NO KING BUT CHRIST!
George Washingtonour nation’s first president from April 30, 1789 – March 4, 1797, above all others he made it so, and he set a high example not only for his countrymen but especially for all future presidents to follow.
President Washington and his wife, Martha, were very big entertainers at Christmas. Although Christmas cards were not used until the mid 19th Century, George and Martha Washington sent many invitations during the eight Christmas seasons that George ran the United States, and they were often joined by relatives, friends and many prominent people of the times.
Long before the presidency though he spent many of his years in service and sacrifice to his country and this included many Christmas seasons.
George was the first child born to Augustine and Mary Ball Washington in Westmoreland County, Virginia on February 22, 1732. George had two older half brothers. He was raised and educated their home, Ferry Farm, by his father and eldest brother, Lawrence. He spent his early Christmases as many young Virginian boys did, enjoying fox hunting and eating special Christmas meals.
When he was 11, his father died and that was the year that George copied the poem “On Christmas Day” into his exercise book from the Gentleman’s Magazine of London. George was the oldest child and he helped his mother manage the small plantation where they lived while attending local schools.
By 1753 George was now the young Major Washington and that year French troops were trying to expand their territory and came down from Canada and built forts in an area claimed by Virginia. He was sent with a message from Governor Dinwiddie to the French demanding that they leave the area immediately. He left in the fall of 1753 on a 900 mile trek through snow, woods, and an ice choked river. His guide suffered frostbite, but Washington had no ill effects from the journey except a rather cold and wet Christmas spent in the wilderness. Two years later, now a lieutenant colonel, Washington was back on the frontier aiding General Braddock. When a battle ensued, he had two horses shot from under him and four holes shot through his jacket while trying to rally the troops for an organized retreat. He was later given command over all of the Virginia militia and was expected to guard the frontier. This area was 350 miles long and he had a few hundred men at his supervision. He learned how to command, which served him well in future years. When the war on the frontier ended Washington resigned his position to return to Mount Vernon. He was 27 years old at the time and had the distinction in Virginia as the most experienced native military officer with a vast knowledge of the frontier.
Shortly after Christmas of 1758, George and Martha Washington were married on January 6, 1759 and moved with her two children, Jack (4) and Patsy (2), to Mount Vernon. George was a very successful gentleman farmer during the quiet years before the Revolution. He became a member of the House of Burgesses and had a front row seat for the progression of grievances against the British. Washington was instrumental in setting up the first Continental Congress and after fighting broke out in Massachusetts, he came to the second Continental Congress dressed in military uniform to show he was prepared for war. The Continental Army was created on June 14, 1775 and Washington was appointed as major general and elected by the Continental Congress to be Commander-in-Chief of the army.
Having once again accepted a commission, he now led a small army of colonial troops that was first billeted outside Cambridge, Massachusetts before the real intense fighting began. Martha Washington and George’s stepson and his wife, Jack and Nelly, along with several friends joined him at his winter quarters just two weeks before Christmas, 1775. It appears that his first Christmas as a general was the last cheerful one spent for several years.
What may be George Washington’s most famous Christmas occurred the following year. While commander of the colonial forces, Washington made a bold move that helped breathe new life into the fledgling republic. Without sending Christmas cards or announcements to warn the enemy, General Washington crossed the Delaware River from Pennsylvania into New Jersey with 2,400 men on Christmas Day of 1776. They marched to Trenton and captured almost 1,000 Hessian troops stationed there. After taking what supplies they needed, Washington and his troops retreated back across the Delaware for a few weeks and in early January did another successful surprise attack on Princeton.
The famous painting by Emanuel Letuze, Washington Crossing the Delaware, is probably the most well-known depiction of the American Revolution. This painting has been depicted on several cards and may have been used as a patriotic Christmas card.
During the next eight years while Washington governed the army, he spent Christmases in Cambridge, Massachusetts; Valley Forge, Pennsylvania; and Morristown, New Jersey. Often he was short of supplies and he had to deal with betrayals, deserters, and the burden of command. Washington had as many defeats as successes, but he finally was able to defeat Cornwallis at Yorktown in 1781. Although many people wanted him to be king or emperor, he remained true to his democratic beliefs and turned down the offer of power. He remained with the army until December 23, 1787 when he formerly retired his commission as commander-in-chief with the intention of retiring to a quiet life at Mount Vernon. Washington arrived home in time to celebrate Christmas Day.
Two days before Christmas in 1783, Washington resigned as General of the Continental Army and relinquished the power to become king. Shortly thereafter, he headed home to Mount Vernon to spend Christmas with Martha.
In 1787, Washington was convinced by friends that he should attend the Constitutional Convention where he was promptly made the president of the convention. Although he rarely gave his opinion, he was able to keep the other participants working on the Constitution. Because of the great respect for Washington, his support of the Constitution helped the colonies decide to quickly ratify it. Shortly after ratification, Washington was unanimously elected President of the United States by the electoral college. He originally turned down the salary, but was convinced to accept $25,000 a year so he didn’t set a precedent for only wealthy men to hold the office.
During the following eight years, President Washington set foreign and domestic policies, established how the President would conduct his office, appointed the most Supreme Court justices of any president, and began the practice of having regular cabinet meetings. He preferred the address of “Mr. President” to more exalted titles that were suggested. Washington wanted to keep the office free of any hints of royalty and straight on the road of republicanism. He was able to select where the District of Columbia would be and saw the building of the nation’s capitol started by laying the cornerstone for the White House. Although he was asked to run for a third term, Washington firmly refused and retired to private life after a farewell address that set the plans for the government for the next few years.
President Washington missed the Christmas of 1799 when he fell ill on December 12th and died on December 14th. George Washington is, to this day, considered the most honorable and beloved president. There are many places that bear his name including the nation’s capital.
Congressman Henry Lee, a comrade from the Revolution, said upon his death that Washington was:
First in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen, he was second to none in humble and enduring scenes of private life. Pious, just, humane, temperate, and sincere; uniform, dignified, and commanding; his example was as edifying to all around him as were the effects of that example lasting…Correct throughout, vice shuddered in his presence and virtue always felt his fostering hand. The purity of his private character gave effulgence to his public virtues…Such was the man for whom our nation mourns…
This is America’s first and greatest Christmas story, yet one known only to few. It is deeply moving and uniquely American. It reveals much of the man and the fledgling nation.
What transpired between late November and Christmas Eve 1783 could not have happened anywhere but America. It shaped our republic in ways being felt today and cemented Washington as the greatest man of his era. In an age filled with hollow hyperbole, A Mount Vernon Christmas is an authentic feel-good classic to be shared with the entire family.
Prequel: December 25, 1776 – Crossing the Delaware
On Christmas Day 1776 Washington was desperate; that year had been the darkest in American history. He had just endured a succession of military disasters. The morale of his remaining army, starving and freezing, was low; hundreds desert during the night. He is down to 2,400 troops. At least one-third have no shoes and wrap their feet in burlap during the all night march, leaving a trail of blood in the snow as a sudden and fierce northeast storm engulfs his Continentals. It all has come to this; facing impossible odds the American revolution is down to one last desperate throw of the dice.
“The reflection upon my situation and that of this army produces many an uneasy hour when all around me are wrapped in sleep. Few people know the predicament we are in.” George Washington 1776
Although Washington leads one of the most successful surprise attacks in history, it only buys time. Still to come is the desperate winter of 1777-1778 at Valley Forge. Indeed, every winter and Christmas until 1783 was to be the same story of hunger, cold and privation. In late November of that year Washington received word that the peace treaty ending the war had been signed. Only then could he resign his commission and return home to Mount Vernon.
A Mt. Vernon Christmas: November 17 to December 24, 1783
As soon as Washington learned of the treaty, he wanted very much to return home to Mount Vernon for Christmas. Except for a few days enroute to Yorktown, he had been away for about eight years. However, he had less than six weeks, many duties to perform and many miles to travel. This is the story of his incredible 38 day Christmas journey.
Quelling Revolt of Officers
Just before learning of the peace treaty, Washington dealt with a rebellion while quartered in Newburgh, New York. Washington called a meeting, gave a short speech and then reached for a letter from Congress in his pocket to read aloud. He gazed upon it and fumbled with it without speaking. He then took a pair of reading glasses from his pocket which none had seen him wear.
He said, “Gentlemen, you will permit me to put on my spectacles, for I have not only grown gray but almost blind in the service of my country.” This moved everyone to tears as they realized the sacrifices Washington had made; the rebellion died instantly.
Farewell Orders to the Troops
On November 17th Washington issued his “Farewell Orders”. He lauded his troops for their extreme hardship and urged them never to forget the extraordinary events to which they bore witness. He closed by announcing his retirement from service stating, “The curtain of separation will soon be drawn . . . and closed forever” meaning for all future offices.
Instead of using such an opportunity to promote himself, he appeared above all human ambition. When his remarks reached King George III, he called Washington “the greatest man of his age”.
New York and Fraunces Tavern
Washington, arriving in New York from Newburgh via West Point on November 21st, believed it necessary to reoccupy New York but had to wait for the British to evacuate. While there he made sure Tories who had secretly assisted the American cause were shielded from retribution. He also protected the British withdrawal to prevent untoward actions.
Everywhere Washington was greeted as a hero with cheering and enthusiastic crowds; nearly every home had a drawing or lithograph of him displayed in the window. Receptions and dinners were held nightly in his honor.
On December 4 Washington hosted a farewell reception for his officers at Fraunces Tavern. He realized the inadequacy of any formal address and did not trust his emotions to read one. When all the glasses were filled, Washington offered a toast, “With a heart filled with love and gratitude, I now take leave of you. I most devoutly wish your later days may be as prosperous and happy as your former ones have been glorious and honorable.”
Following the toast, blinded by tears and voice faltering, Washington continued, “I cannot come to each of you but shall be obliged if each of you will come and take me by the hand.” Each officer came forward suffused with tears and unable to utter an intelligible word.
Philadelphia, Wilmington and Enroute to Annapolis
From December 5-18 Washington’s journey took him to Philadelphia where he spent several days and then onward, via Wilmington, toward Annapolis, where Congress was sitting. At every stop and all along his route (throughout his entire journey) citizens gathered to pay tribute. Always courteous, the general accepted every proffered hand and returned every greeting.
America never before had and never again will experience such an emotional outpouring for one man. Every citizen understood he conducted them through a long and bloody war that achieved glory and independence for their country. All knew viscerally there never again would be such a moment or such a man.
Annapolis and Returning His Commission
Washington arrived in Annapolis, then the Capitol and seat of Congress, on December 19. From December 20-22 he was feted endlessly at lavish dinners and balls always preceded with 13 toasts followed by 13 cannon shots.
On December 23 there was a special session of Congress to honor Washington and to accept his resignation. Attendance overflowed the facilities with people everywhere.
He closed his address by stating, “I retire from the great theatre of action and . . . here offer my commission and take my leave of all the employments of public life.” Then he withdrew from his coat pocket the parchment given to him in 1775 that was his appointment as Commander-in-Chief and ceremoniously returned it. Some consider it the most significant address ever delivered in civil society.
Christmas in Mount Vernon and Post Script
Immediately after returning his commission, Washington set out for Mount Vernon, still hoping to arrive in time for Christmas. It was so late on the 23rd and the days so short, he got only as far as Bladensburgh, Maryland before retiring for the night.
The next morning, Christmas Eve, he rode to the Potomac River, crossed with a ferry to Alexandria and rode the final miles. It already was dark when he approached Mount Vernon. About a mile away he could see its many green-shuttered windows – now all ablaze with candles; it was, after all, Christmas Eve.
Much of the material is sourced from one of the best books I have read, “General Washington’s Christmas Farewell – A Mount Vernon Homecoming 1783″ by Stanley Weintraub. The 174 page book is readily available.
As hard as I tried, this summary is woefully inadequate to describe the events of November 17 to December 24, 1783 and the true character of George Washington. I beseech anyone with young children or grandchildren to read it to them in installments over the holidays. I can think of no better gift you can bestow than to expose young minds to the extraordinary character of George Washington.
In Vernon’s groves you shun the throne, Admired by kings, but seen by none.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all our readers from the More Liberty – Less Government Foundation – Florida Political Press
Ronald Reagan Christmas address (12/23/81)
In a world of political correctness and Christmas culture wars, Reagan’s national address is almost unbelievable! It is a breath of fresh Christmas air! What happened to the politicians like him who are not afraid to hold fast to the Christian faith despite what others think or say about their Christmas beliefs. God help us by sending more like him back into our country!
In these few months since the holidays, I’ve told a couple of Christmas stories on these broadcasts and, as a result, received one in return. Or possibly it was because of a broadcast about the Ukraine. Whatever the reason, I’m grateful for it.
When the Ukraine was free and not under Soviet bondage, Christmas was, of course, the religious event that it is in the Western world. A favorite Ukrainian carol was ‘Nova Radist Stala’ — ‘The Joyous News Has Come To Us.’ A Ukrainian now teaching at the University of Utah has written an article about the evolution of Christmas under Communism, at least as it applies to this carol. In the good days of freedom, the people of the Ukraine sang these verses:
The joyous news has come which never was before. Over a cave above a manger a bright star has lit the world, where Jesus was born from a virgin maiden, clad in raiment poor like a peasant baby, the shepherds with the lambs surrounded the child, and on flected knees they Him glorified. We beg you our King, we pray to you today, grant happiness and joy to this family.
Now, of course, this was neither fitting nor permitted under Communism. Still the commissars were a little leery about an outright ban. They chose to allow the song after some rewriting. In fact, they provided the Ukrainians with two versions, neither of which could be expected to have made the Ukrainian Hit Parade. Here’s the first version:
‘The joyous news has come which never was before, a red star with five tails has brightly lit the world.” See they only changed one line in that verse, but wait –
The altars have crumbled and all the kings have fallen, glory to the working people, to shepherds and the plowmen, glory to our host and to his fair hostess. May their friendly household know only happiness. May all their family, especially the children, grow up to be strong and happy so as to fight the rich men.
You know, our own kids could probably get away with singing that one in the classroom. The second version is a little meatier, even though they got the Christmas story down to two verses instead of four.
‘The Joyous News has come which never was before. Long-awaited star of freedom lit the skies in October.’(If you’re wondering about what happened on the date, the revolution took place in October.) ‘Where formerly lived the kings and had the roots their nobles, there today with simple folks, Lenin’s glory hovers.’
The people of the Ukraine, both in and outside the Iron Curtain, were so carried away by these verses, they added one of their own. They sing it, but carefully refrain from putting it in the songbooks. It goes: ‘We beg you our Lord, we pray to you today. Grant us freedom, return glory to our Mother Ukraine.’ I guess we all hope their prayer is answered.
This is Ronald Reagan – thanks for listening.”
President Reagan’s New Federalist Platform (The defining conservative platform for this American Century):
(NOTE: President Reagan’s effort to re-establish the proper role of the federal government {the most serious effort made since President Coolidge in the 1920′s } through this Executive Order on Federalism, was revoked in 1998 by Bill Clinton’s new EO 13083, which largely re-justified the excessive unconstitutional role the federal government has assumed since the time of Franklin Roosevelt. Never the less, Reagan’s vision of a shining city upon a hill, and his unwavering goal of returning to founding intent and Christian roots, had a profound and lasting effect.)
[ And to those who follow him, he instructed: "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." (Matthew 5:14-16) ]
How “Merry Christmas” is said …..Afrikaans: Geseënde Kersfees Afrikander: Een Plesierige Kerfees African/ Eritrean/ Tigrinja: Rehus-Beal-Ledeats Albanian:Gezur Krislinjden Arabic: Milad Majid Argentine: Feliz Navidad Armenian: Shenoraavor Nor Dari yev Pari Gaghand Azeri: Tezze Iliniz Yahsi Olsun Bahasa Malaysia: Selamat Hari Natal Basque: Zorionak eta Urte Berri On! Bengali: Shuvo Naba Barsha Bohemian: Vesele Vanoce Bosnian: (BOSANSKI) Cestit Bozic i Sretna Nova godina Brazilian: Feliz Natal Breton: Nedeleg laouen na bloavezh mat Bulgarian: Tchestita Koleda; Tchestito Rojdestvo Hristovo Catalan: Bon Nadal i un Bon Any Nou! Chile: Feliz Navidad Chinese: (Cantonese) Gun Tso Sun Tan’Gung Haw Sun Chinese: (Mandarin) Kung His Hsin Nien bing Chu Shen Tan Choctaw: Yukpa, Nitak Hollo Chito Columbia: Feliz Navidad y Próspero Año Nuevo Cornish: Nadelik looan na looan blethen noweth Corsian: Pace e salute Crazanian: Rot Yikji Dol La Roo Cree: Mitho Makosi Kesikansi Croatian: Sretan Bozic Czech: Prejeme Vam Vesele Vanoce a stastny Novy Rok Danish: Glædelig Jul Duri: Christmas-e- Shoma Mobarak Dutch: Vrolijk Kerstfeest en een Gelukkig Nieuwjaar! or Zalig Kerstfeast English (UK, Australia): Happy Christmas Eskimo: (inupik) Jutdlime pivdluarit ukiortame pivdluaritlo! Esperanto: Gajan Kristnaskon Estonian: Rõõmsaid Jõulupühi Ethiopian: (Amharic) Melkin Yelidet Beaal Faeroese: Gledhilig jol og eydnurikt nyggjar! Farsi: Cristmas-e-shoma mobarak bashad Finnish: Hyvaa joulua Flemish: Zalig Kerstfeest en Gelukkig nieuw jaar French: Joyeux Noel Frisian: Noflike Krystdagen en in protte Lok en Seine yn it Nije Jier! Galician: Bo Nada Gaelic: Nollaig chridheil agus Bliadhna mhath ùr! German: Fröhliche Weihnachten Greek: Kala Christouyenna! Haiti: (Creole) Jwaye Nowel or to Jesus Edo Bri’cho o Rish D’Shato Brichto Hausa: Barka da Kirsimatikuma Barka da Sabuwar Shekara! Hawaiian: Mele Kalikimaka Hebrew: Mo’adim Lesimkha. Chena tova Hindi: Shub Naya Baras (good New Year not Merry Christmas) Hungarian: Kellemes Karacsonyi unnepeket Icelandic: Gledileg Jol Indonesian: Selamat Hari Natal Iraqi: Idah Saidan Wa Sanah Jadidah Irish: Nollaig Shona Dhuit, or Nodlaig mhaith chugnat Iroquois: Ojenyunyat Sungwiyadeson honungradon nagwutut. Ojenyunyat osrasay. Italian: Buone Feste Natalizie Japanese: Shinnen omedeto. Kurisumasu Omedeto Jiberish: Mithag Crithagsigathmithags Korean: Sung Tan Chuk Ha Lao: souksan van Christmas Latin: Natale hilare et Annum Faustum! Latvian: Prieci’gus Ziemsve’tkus un Laimi’gu Jauno Gadu! Lausitzian:Wjesole hody a strowe nowe leto Lettish: Priecigus Ziemassvetkus Lithuanian: Linksmu Kaledu Low Saxon: Heughliche Winachten un ‘n moi Nijaar Luxembourgish: Schèine Chreschtdaag an e gudde Rutsch Macedonian: Sreken Bozhik Maltese: IL-Milied It-tajjeb Manx: Nollick ghennal as blein vie noa Maori: Meri Kirihimete Marathi: Shub Naya Varsh (good New Year not Merry Christmas) Navajo: Merry Keshmish Norwegian: God Jul, or Gledelig Jul Occitan: Pulit nadal e bona annado Papiamento: Bon Pasco Papua New Guinea: Bikpela hamamas blong dispela Krismas na Nupela yia i go long yu Pennsylvania German: En frehlicher Grischtdaag un en hallich Nei Yaahr! Peru: Feliz Navidad y un Venturoso Año Nuevo Philippines: Maligayang Pasko! Polish: Wesolych Swiat Bozego Narodzenia or Boze Narodzenie Portuguese:Feliz Natal Pushto: Christmas Aao Ne-way Kaal Mo Mobarak Sha Rapa-Nui (Easter Island): Mata-Ki-Te-Rangi. Te-Pito-O-Te-Henua Rhetian: Bellas festas da nadal e bun onn Romanche: (sursilvan dialect): Legreivlas fiastas da Nadal e bien niev onn! Rumanian: Sarbatori vesele or Craciun fericit Russian: Pozdrevlyayu s prazdnikom Rozhdestva is Novim Godom Sami: Buorrit Juovllat Samoan: La Maunia Le Kilisimasi Ma Le Tausaga Fou Sardinian: Bonu nadale e prosperu annu nou Scots Gaelic: Nollaig chridheil huibh Serbian: Hristos se rodi. Singhalese: Subha nath thalak Vewa. Subha Aluth Awrudhak Vewa Slovak: Vesele Vianoce. A stastlivy Novy Rok Slovene: Vesele Bozicne Praznike Srecno Novo Leto or Vesel Bozic in srecno Novo leto Spanish: Feliz Navidad Swedish: God Jul and (Och) Ett Gott Nytt År Tagalog: Maligayamg Pasko. Masaganang Bagong Taon Tamil: (Tamizh) Nathar Puthu Varuda Valthukkal (good New Year not Merry Christmas) Trukeese: (Micronesian) Neekiriisimas annim oo iyer seefe feyiyeech! Thai: Sawadee Pee Mai or souksan wan Christmas Turkish: Noeliniz Ve Yeni Yiliniz Kutlu Olsun Ukrainian: Srozhdestvom Kristovym or Z RIZDVOM HRYSTOVYM Urdu: Naya Saal Mubarak Ho (good New Year not Merry Christmas) Vietnamese: Chuc Mung Giang Sinh Welsh: Nadolig Llawen Yoruba:E ku odun, e ku iye’dun!
English (USA, Canada): Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!
If you cherish your rights and freedoms as an American then you will want to recognize this special day to remember the foundation for all of them: Bill of Rights Day December 15th.
Congress OF THE United States begun and held at the City of New-York, on Wednesday the Fourth of March, one thousand seven hundred and eighty nine.
THE Conventions of a number of the States having at the time of their adopting the Constitution, expressed a desire, in order to prevent misconstruction or abuse of its powers, that further declaratory and restrictive clauses should be added: And as extending the ground of public confidence in the Government, will best insure the beneficent ends of its institution
RESOLVED by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America, in Congress assembled, two thirds of both Houses concurring, that the following Articles be proposed to the Legislatures of the several States, as Amendments to the Constitution of the United States, all or any of which Articles, when ratified by three fourths of the said Legislatures, to be valid to all intents and purposes, as part of the said Constitution; viz.:
ARTICLES in addition to, and Amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America, proposed by Congress, and ratified by the Legislatures of the several States, pursuant to the fifth Article of the original Constitution.
VISIT OUR LIBRARY PAGE(S) FOR ADDITIONAL MATERIALS
*** A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed. – Second Amendment, U.S. Constitution
The INDIVIDUAL Right to Keep and Bear Arms is the palladium of liberties: As a Free American, it’s YOUR RIGHT, it’s YOUR DUTY. It’s not about Guns. It’s about defending yourself, your family, your property, and our God given Bill of Rights from governmental tyrants and oppressors. Such is a last resort when all else has failed, and is necessary to secure the blessings of liberty and freedom.
“Who are the militia? Are they not ourselves? Congress shall have no power to disarm the militia. Their swords, and every other terrible implement of the soldier, are the birth-right of an American … The unlimited power of the sword is not in the hands of either the federal or state governments, but where I trust in God it will ever remain, in the hands of the People.”
“Firearms are the people’s liberty teeth” – George Washington
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“BORD” Sample Op-ed Piece (315 words)
The United States of America might never have existed without one thing: the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights limits the power of the government and protects the rights of the people. It was so important that several of the original 13 states would not ratify the Constitution without it.
Nearly everything that makes an American proud to be one comes from the Bill of Rights. Freedoms to speak, print, read, assemble, pray, petition the government, keep and bear arms. Protection from unreasonable arrests and searches, excessive bail, double jeopardy, coerced confessions, cruel and unusual punishment. Rights to due process, jury trials, counsel, and to present defense witnesses. These are the freedoms and rights that define America.
Surprisingly, Americans do not celebrate the foundation of our political freedom, the Bill of Rights — but we should. After all, the Bill of Rights is part of our Constitution, it is what our military people pledge to serve and die for. It is uniquely American. People on the political left, center, and right can all rally around the Bill of Rights because it expresses our shared basic values.
On December 15, 1791, the Bill of Rights was ratified and has since protected American citizens for 206 years. We should celebrate December 15 every year. By officially designating December 15 as Bill of Rights Day, we would be reminding our fellow citizens and younger generations of our heritage. Bill of Rights Day would declare America’s commitment to civil and human rights to the world. The special day would annually remind politicians, bureaucrats, prosecutors, and judges that their authority and power are limited — that the government serves us Americans, it does not rule us.
December 15, Bill of Rights Day, reminds us of the liberty we have and what it costs to keep it. By celebrating Bill of Rights Day every year, perhaps we shall never forget.
“BORD” Sample Op-ed Piece (340 words)
The Bill of Rights defines America. Why don’t we celebrate it?
The Constitution of the United States would never have become the law of the land without the Bill of Rights. Several states refused to join the Union unless there was a Bill of Rights to limit the federal power and protect individual rights. Why don’t we celebrate it?
The Bill of Rights guarantees fundamental civil and human rights: the freedoms of speech, press, assembly, religion; protections against unreasonable searches and coerced confessions; rights to counsel and a jury trial. For these rights and freedoms people have struggled for centuries. The Bill of Rights remains a beacon to freedom-loving people worldwide. Why don’t we celebrate it?
The Bill of Rights does more: it defines the limits of government power. More directly than any other single document of law, the Bill of Rights stands between tyranny and liberty. Refugees flee to the United States, not for its “three separate branches of government,” not for its arrangement of senators and representatives, but for its liberty. The foundation of that liberty is the Bill of Rights. Why don’t we celebrate it?
We have special days for the birthdays of great leaders, to remember special events, and to honor our military services. But all of these remarkable people and events aimed to advance the cause of liberty — the cause of the Bill of Rights.
Let’s celebrate it! Every town, city, and state should designate one day as Bill of Rights Day. The logical date would be December 15, because on that date in 1791 the Bill of Rights was finally ratified. Just one day per year, let us fly the flag, put up a poster, and most important of all: read the Bill of Rights. And read it to our kids, in libraries, in schools, in homes.
Let’s celebrate December 15 as Bill of Rights Day, and declare our support for all of the Bill of Rights for all citizens. We owe it to our forefathers, and we owe it to our kids.
“BORD” Sample Letter to the Editor (277 words)
Recently I learned about a movement to establish December 15 as Bill of Rights Day. I would like to urge our town to celebrate the Bill of Rights for several reasons.
First, the Bill of Rights declares the idea that makes America unique. We have rights as individuals, it says, and government must respect them. Most other countries do not have a constitution with such a clear statement.
Second, our Constitution would not have become the law of land without the Bill of Rights. Several states refused to join the Union unless the Bill of Rights was included. When Virginia ratified the Bill of Rights on December 15, 1791, only then could the United States become a new nation.
Third, our military men and women have served, fought, and died to preserve the Constitution and our Bill of Rights. To celebrate Bill of Rights Day on December 15 would annually remind us of how their sacrifices preserved not just “the country,” but some very specific guarantees of liberty.
Fourth, an annual Bill of Rights day would remind all members of government — policemen, prosecutors, bureaucrats, judges, and politicians — that government exists to serve, not to rule, the people.
Whether as individuals we are on the political Left or Right, whether we care passionately for one particular right or another, we should come together to celebrate our core values. Our civic core values lie in the Bill of Rights. We should set aside at least one day each year to read and ponder the rights we sometimes take for granted. What American could oppose the concept of preserving all of the Bill of Rights for all citizens?
“December 7, 1941 — a date which will live in infamy — the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan. … Always will we remember the character of the onslaught against us. No matter how long it may take us to overcome this premeditated invasion, the American people in their righteous might, will win through to absolute victory. … With confidence in our armed forces — with the unbounded determination of our people — we will gain the inevitable triumph — so help us God.” –Franklin D. Roosevelt, a Democrat far removed from today’s crop of defeatists
On that fateful “Day of Infamy,” 70 years ago today, 353 Japanese planes attacked a military target at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, killing 2,390 American servicemen and civilians and wounding 1,282. The attack sank or damaged eight battleships, three cruisers, three destroyers and one minelayer and destroyed 188 aircraft. It took four years and the full military-industrial capability of the United States to defeat Japan.
It is with honor and respect for those who died or suffered terrible injuries that Sunday morning that we should never again fall into the slumber that allowed such a tragedy as Pearl Harbor — or the attack on Sept. 11, 2001 — again.
Mark Alexander – PatriotPost.us
On a related note, did you know or have you ever considered why the imperial Japanese didn’t invade the U.S. mainland?
“You cannot invade the mainland United States. There would be a rifle behind every blade of grass.” is a quote by Isoroku Yamamoto, Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. Of course it was originally stated in Japanese, this is the English translation.
Yes, in America we are a nation of Riflemen/women and this is just but one of many testaments as to the importance of our 2nd Amendment. For more on this see our next post about Dec 15th – Bill of Rights Day.
The Constitution entrusts our elected representatives in Congress with legislative power, but in recent years much of that power has been delegated away to unelected, unaccountable federal bureaucrats.
This week the House of Representatives has an opportunity to fix this. On Wednesday, the House will vote on H.R. 10, the REINS Act, to make it clear that Congress makes the laws in this country, not agency bureaucrats.
The Small Business Administration reported recently that it cost American businesses $1.75 trillion to comply with federal regulations in 2008, more than individual and corporate income taxes combined. With such significant costs, clearly something has gone awry in the process.
The REINS Act helps correct this problem. Whenever an agency seeks to finalize a new “major” regulation – one with an economic impact of $100 million or more – the House and Senate must first vote to approve it, and the President must sign it before it can take effect. Sound familiar? This is how the Framers intended the legislative process to work!
The REINS Act won’t stop every costly federal regulation or solve our existing regulatory problems, but it will ensure that when a new regulation takes effect every citizen will know exactly who voted for it and will be able to hold them accountable. We’ll soon find out how many Members of Congress are willing to accept that responsibility.
Get involved by signing the petitions and sending your messages above. Once at the site be sure to review recent posts and various pages containing a wealth info pertaining to various mandate relief efforts, long overdue and needed now more than ever, in New York State.
By Scott Shelters sshelters@post-journal.com , The Post-Journal
The local chapter of Blue Star Mothers, a group of mothers who have sons and daughters in the military, want to give U.S. soldiers fighting overseas some Christmas gifts and cards again this year. The group’s members currently have sons and daughters serving in Afghanistan, Iraq, Germany, Japan and South Korea, as well as some stationed in the United States. Collection boxes for the Blue Star Mothers Lake Erie New York Chapter 4 Christmas-care packages can be found at several locations throughout the area, and the organization encourages the community to donate a wide-variety of items.
The group will accept donations through Friday, Dec. 2 and will pack the boxes on Dec. 3 in Frewsburg’s Zion Lutheran Church.
If you know a soldier who you would like to receive a care package this year, or if you would like to join Blue Star Mothers, contact Rowley at bluestarmothersny4@yahoo.com or 499-6897. The group also needs help with postage costs. Those interested in making a monetary donation may send it to Blue Star Mothers of America Inc. P.O. Box 162, Westfield, NY 14787.
For a list of drop off locations, suggested items (which also includes a greetings card drive), and to read the entire article, please click here.
The holiday season is just around the corner and it’s time again to start thinking about being part of the 2011 American Red Cross Holiday Mail for Heroes. For a fifth year, American Red Cross and Pitney Bowes are partnering to ensure all Americans have an opportunity to send a touch of home this holiday season to members of our U.S. military, veterans and their families, many of whom will be far away from home this holiday season.
Starting this fall and throughout the holiday season, the Red Cross is working with Pitney Bowes, a mail stream technology company, to collect and distribute holiday cards to American service members, veterans and their families in the United States and around the world.
The process is very simple and takes no time at all – All you need is a pen and piece of paper to share your appreciation for the sacrifices members of the U.S. Armed Forces make to protect our freedoms The Holiday Mail for Heroes mail box is open and ready to receive for your cards. Please send all mail to:
Holiday Mail For Heroes, P.O. Box 5456, Capitol Heights, MD 20791-5456
Sending a “touch of home” to American men and women who serve our country is the perfect way to express your appreciation and support during the holiday season.
The Fisher House programis a unique private-public partnership that supports America’s military in their time of need. The program recognizes the special sacrifices of our men and women in uniform and the hardships of military service by meeting a humanitarian need beyond that normally provided by the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs.Because members of the military and their families are stationed worldwide and must often travel great distances for specialized medical care, Fisher House Foundation donates “comfort homes,” built on the grounds of major military and VA medical centers. These homes enable family members to be close to a loved one at the most stressful times – during the hospitalization for an unexpected illness, disease, or injury.
Established in 2003, USO Operation Phone Home delivers prepaid international phone cards to deployed troops free of charge. The phone cards are distributed through USO centers overseas and most oftenor delivered directly to military units abroad. As deployments increase and the needs of the military change, the USO has developed a private telephone network (PTN), available in USO centers throughout Southwest Asia. The phone cards and PTN are ways deployed troops can stay connected with their family. One hundred percent of the money raised for the USO Operation Phone Home program goes to the purchase of phone cards and operation of the PTN.
For more on this and other USO programs click here.
Toys For Tots Accepting Donations Throughout County
November 24, 2011 The Post-Journal
The Resource Center has kicked off its campaign to make the holidays brighter for area children and their families…
There are about 110 local businesses and organization that have Toys for Tots collection barrels or boxes so area residents can donate toys to the cause. Toy donations will be accepted through Dec. 16…
Cash donations also are encouraged so that money is available to buy gifts for those age groups that typically don’t see a lot of donated toys, particularly older children. To make a monetary donation, send a check to The Resource Center at 200 Dunham Avenue, Jamestown, NY, 14701. Do not make checks payable to The Resource Center; instead, checks must be made payable to Toys for Tots…
For more information about collection barrels, call Volk at 661-1433. For information about applying for toys, call Ms. Johnson at 661-1472. For information about toy distribution or holding a holiday event to support Toys for Tots, call Ms. Brown at 661-1042.
To read the full article, for the full list of drop off locations, and more details on the program, please click here.
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The Salvation Army: Change millions of lives. For good.
Last year, we served over 30 million individuals in need, provided 60 million meals for the hungry, and sheltered 10 million people with nowhere else to go. All thanks to your generosity.
To volunteer locally, whether for a shift to ring the bell at a Red Kettle location or in many other ways, contact: Majors Douglas and Judy Hart – S.A. Temple Corps, 83 South Main Street, PO Box 368, Jamestown, NY 14702-0368 Telephone: 716-664-4108
Another way to spread the joy. The donations your raise in your Online Red Kettle will help feed hungry families, provide presents for needy children, heat the homes of struggling senior citizens, and bless millions in need.
The most common way for you to give online to The Salvation Army in your community.
“An informed citizenry is the bulwark of a democracy..” – Thomas Jefferson
General Membership Meetings: 4th Tuesday of Every Month – At The Legion Hall (see below)
“If we ever forget that we are one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under.” - Ronald Reagan
Support/join our partners at TARA: Informing fellow Americans of Constitutional rights and responsibilities; Constitution classes; and teaching the Principles of Liberty.
*Browsing Tip: US Congress, State Senate and Assembly roll call vote (feeds), are located below in the footer of this page.
*Browsing Tip: Menu above is a drop down, hover to view. If you have trouble accessing any page from there, go to the bottom right column for a full listing of all pages.
This new feature, “ALG’s One Minute,” boasts ALG experts discussing important topics within the realms of government and politics in a simple one-minute audio package. This product is then distributed to radio broadcasters for use on their programs. (Right click-Open new.. to listen)
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Selected Quotes
"Government is not reason; it is not eloquence; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master."-George Washington
Unlike politicians today, Washington's statements were clear and unambiguous. President Washington said "A free people ought to be armed." - Jan 14 1790, Boston Independent Chronicle
"The construction applied ... to those parts of the Constitution of the United States which delegate Congress a power ... ought not to be construed as themselves to give unlimited powers." -Thomas Jefferson
“Government is at its best, a necessary evil, at its worst, an intolerable one."-Thomas Paine
"Congress can raise taxes because it can persuade a sizable fraction of the populace that somebody else will pay.”-Milton Friedman
“We contend that for a nation to try to tax itself into prosperity is like a man standing in a bucket and trying to lift himself up by the handle.”-Winston Churchill
“Our Constitution was not written in the sands to be washed away by each wave of new judges blown in by each successive political wind.” - Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black
“Don’t interfere with anything in the Constitution. That must be maintained, for it is the only safeguard of our liberties.” - Abraham Lincoln
"Plant your feet in the right place, and then stand firm!" - Abraham Lincoln
For additional quotes see the slideshow on the Audio-Video page, see 2nd Amendment page, see the Quotes page in the Library...
YouCut Legislative Record for the 112th Congress; Learn more about the YouCut votes from the prior Congress; YouCut Citizen Review; Submit Your Ideas.
Continue to scroll down for "US Congress roll call votes" and "State Senate and Assembly votes" - (feeds) are located below in the footer of this page.
Other important documents library; studies, reports, books, more…
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Hillsdale College – IMPRIMIS: America’s Digest of Liberty!
For years, Hillsdale College has provided thinking Americans with IMPRIMIS (Latin for “in the first place”) FREE of charge. This always timely, always informative monthly publication is a digest of current speeches delivered by the world’s most respected conservative luminaries and defenders of liberty from virtually every field of endeavor.
Now you, too, can be privy to the wisdom of the most influential thinkers on the world stage. Our past contributors include ...
1. Conservative thinkers such as Ronald Reagan, Milton Friedman, William F. Buckley and Margaret Thatcher.
2. Media figures such as Sean Hannity, Fred Barnes, Mark Levin, and Rush Limbaugh.
3. Acclaimed authors such as David McCullough, Victor Davis Hanson, Richard Brookhiser, and Walter Williams.
4. Former and present government leaders such as Dick Armey, Jeb Bush, Dan Quayle, and Zell Miller.
From hard-hitting analysis to philosophical inspiration, you’ll find it all in IMPRIMIS. But most important, you’ll find the unvarnished Truth.
About Hillsdale College:
Hillsdale College is nationally known for its refusal to accept federal or state taxpayer support. We aim to raise up a new generation of leaders for America who share a passion for liberty, who believe in the free-enterprise system, and who want to restore the principles of limited government enshrined in the Constitution of the United States.
The future of liberty depends on reclaiming America's first principles. "If a nation expects to be ignorant and free in a state of civilization," as Thomas Jefferson warned, "it expects what never was and never will be." Widespread ignorance of American history is but the most recognized symptom of the troubling decline in popular knowledge of fundamental principles. We face an education system that upholds mediocrity in the name of relativism; an ever-expanding and centralized government, unmoored from constitutional limits; judges openly making laws and shaping society based on pop-philosophy rather than serious jurisprudence; and growing confusion over America's legitimate role in the world, made all the more apparent by the fundamental threat posed by radical Islamists. At the root of all these problems is a pervasive doubt about the core principles that define America and ought to inform our politics and policy.
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DTOM gear – a NY Company – Made in the USA
Freedom Road – The Music, the Message, & Norm’s notes
TPP Action Center
TeaParty Sunshine
NY Sunshine Center
NY Family Research Foundation
Support NYFRF and NYCF’s stand for Traditional Marriage
Citizen’s Bill For Immigration Reform
Debut of The Tea Party Review magazine
Watch the trailer-Host a screening-and more…
Get it at Amazon
In THE TEA PARTY GOES TO WASHINGTON, the newly elected senator and self-described "constitutional conservative" explains why his party has to stand by its limited government rhetoric and why the federal government must be stuffed back into its constitutional box. Given the problems our nation faces, these are not mere suggestions, but moral imperatives.
Rand Paul and those who voted for him want to stop borrowing, end the bailouts, and entitlements and the spending. In THE TEA PARTY GOES TO WASHINGTON you'll learn:
* The history of the Tea Party and why it isn't "extreme"
* How both parties operate outside the Constitution
* Rand's plan for a balanced budget
* Why the Tea Party will endure
Now is the time to get America back on track-- this is the moment of the new revolution that will take us back to our grass roots, to the country of our founding fathers.
From Citizen to Citizen:
One statistic on government growth = 650%
We only need to look at ONE statistic to understand how pervasive government growth has become. Since 1970 the population is the United States has grown by just about 48%. Over that same period the government grew at a rate 14 times faster than the population – a whopping 650% compared to that 48%. And the growth legislated over the past year will far surpass 650% going forward.
Why does the government continue to grow despite your protests?
Why are your concerns never on the Government Agenda?
Why you cant’ talk to your (child, sibling, spouse, friend) about politics?
Why every politicians #1 priority (EDUCATION) continues to fail?
Why is cap and trade is even more dangerous than government run health care?
The fact that we have an issue as pervasive as cap and trade on the agenda is indicative of the governments thirst for complete control of everything and everyone.
Citizen to Citizen explores the implications of that control, the methods the government uses to establish control of the agenda, and the government partners and dependents who are complicit in that control.
“We certainly live in times when our constitution is in jeopardy of becoming extinct. Every sane United States taxpayer needs to read this book. The time is now to awaken the sleeping giant, the true owners of the country, before it is too late.” Lee Pantel, Singer, Songwriter and concerned American citizen
"If you ever think of those that have paid the ultimate price to protect our freedoms, if you believe in Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness, if you believe in a government of the people, by the people and for the people, if you are not afraid to think for yourself, Citizen to Citizen is a must read.” Spike Boutsikaris – Automotive Manufacturing Manager and concerned American citizen
To read more reviews and to order the book, click the book graphic above.
Thomas Paine was called the “pamphleteer of the revolution.” His words inspired many Americans to oppose the oppression of King George’s Redcoats.
“Every Tea Partier and political candidate must read John Armor’s revival of Thomas Paine’s works to best understand what we’re fighting for, and against, in 2010 and 2012." — Jed Babbin
Also: 
A 2012 Conservative Case for America’s Future
No college takes its mission, its charter, and its founding principles more seriously than Hillsdale College. This is so because of the leadership of Arnn. He came to Hillsdale by way of Pocahontas, Arkansas, Oxford, and the Claremont Institute. He was the founding chairman of the California Civil Rights Initiative, later led by Ward Connerly. He is not merely an administrator out of touch with and out of reach to those in his charge; on the contrary, he teaches courses to Hillsdale students on subjects such as Aristotle’s Ethics. Again, how many administrators do that in academia today? He is both an homme sérieux and a man with whom it would be fun to share a drink. He is what we wish all of our professors to be. I think you will enjoy studying with him, too.
Historian Peter Lillback, author of “Sacred Fire,” an exhaustive scholarly treatise on George Washington, notes that it is only in recent years, with the searchable digital publication of our Founders’ writings, that we get an accurate picture of their faith, and expression of same.
Related:
Now Online:
If you know a soldier who you would like to receive a care package this year, or if you would like to join Blue Star Mothers, contact Rowley at 
The phone cards and PTN are ways deployed troops can stay connected with their family. One hundred percent of the money raised for the USO Operation Phone Home program goes to the purchase of phone cards and operation of the PTN.
The Resource Center has kicked off its campaign to make the holidays brighter for area children and their families…
