Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Random Thoughts

I’m just back from a business meeting in Las Vegas. I think I did better than most—I found a dime on the floor walking through the casino.

All that fake opulence in Vegas—built from the dollars spent by the losers. What is the upper limit on casinos and slot machines in America?

Wandering around the casinos, I was struck that someone should apply for federal dollars to do a research study to determine if—as I suspect—the average IQ of a woman with breast implants is inversely proportional to the size of the implants. Other than to correct a deformity caused by disease or accident, it strikes me as the most foolish surgery possible.

It used to be you tipped a bellman to take your luggage from the cab to the room. Now you tip one to take it from the cab and another one to take it to the room. This is better service how?

Even the casino profits are down 10%. I wonder if they’ll get a bailout, being in the home state of Harry Reid?

I think the Republicans and the media need to give President Obama a break. Yes, he’s had a rocky start. But he’s a rookie. He only has four years Washington experience (and most of that he was out running for president). And he has a lot less executive experience than, say a two-year governor. Especially if the governor was a mayor first. So with a couple of years of on-the-job training, I’m sure he’ll do better. Be patient.

Am I the only one who grows furious as soon as I hear, “Please listen carefully, as our menu has changed.” It’s because I know what I’m calling about will likely NOT be on the menu. No organization that has a machine answering incoming calls can claim to have good customer service.

Have you noticed that left-wing groups who claim to speak for “the people,” would never want “the people” to vote on things like affirmative action, or guns, or increased welfare spending, or funding for the arts or a lot of other things dear to their hearts? Here in Illinois, the Democrats have done back flips to avoid letting “the people” vote on a replacement for senator Obama.

And the same folks who speak of the people much prefer political decisions to be made by bureaucrats through regulations or by the courts, because they are protected from losing their jobs if “the people” don’t like the decisions and want to vote them out of office.

And have you noticed that “public” TV and “public” radio is mostly set up to use tax dollars to produce programs the elites love, but that the public wouldn’t pay for, if given the choice? That’s the same reason they have to use tax dollars to fund the arts. The elites like it, but “the people” wouldn’t pay to see it, if given free choice.

If the IRS audits me this year, how much can I claim on the “honest mistake exemption”? Or is that only available to Obama appointees?

As the desire of the left to ensure that every murderer gets every ounce of possible due process drags out court cases for years and year, neither the death penalty nor the threat of prison is a deterrent. And the clogged court system, thanks to the lawyers, has huge costs, in that many criminals walk or plea bargain out, to commit more crimes we all pay for, as victims or through insurance and higher costs for goods. These burdens fall most heavily on the poor and minorities, the folks the left claims to care so much about. I am surprised we don’t already have a lot more vigilantism. It’s coming.

Did you notice that it took President Obama longer to find a White House Dog than to line up most of his cabinet? I assume he was looking for a pup that had paid taxes. Maybe a vet should vet his appointments?

I’ve been hoping Europe would be the canary in the coal mine for us. Their social welfare programs are far larger, their unfunded liability makes Social Security look like a good investment, their native population is having children well below the replacement rate, their Muslim “guest worker” populations are growing rapidly (the most common baby boy’s name in many European cities is Muhammad) and much of it is on welfare. With their governments spending around 48% of the GDP, I think I may live to see the collapse. But the deficit and having the League of Leftwing Lawyers in charge here means we are catching up, and government spending here may soon reach 40% of GDP.

Have you noted how often people speak as though “Democracy” and “Freedom” were the same thing? But they aren’t. A majority can vote to send armed police to take away your home to build a shopping mall or your income to spread the wealth around, or can vote stop you from saying what you want by outlaying anything it considers “hate speech.” Hitler and Hamas both came to power through elections.

It doesn’t matter what your kids will pay for the bailout in twenty years, as long as your Congressman gets reelected in 2010 by spending your money. It’s why Obama was lying about stopping earmarks—he can’t and get the Congress to go along with his programs.

People talk about “public funding of campaigns.” But what, really, are earmarks but spending tax dollars to get Congresscritters re-elected?

If people really hated lawyers, would they have voted to put lawyers, and only lawyers, in complete charge of all branches of the federal government?

A last tip. If you are staying at a fancy hotel, they give you nice bars of soap. Take along a zip lock bag and bring them home when you leave. They throw used soap out. You’ll save money on soap and help protect the environment. I wonder if Al Gore does that on his trips? Or am I “Greener than Gore” in that way too?

39 comments:

  1. Thank you, Sir!

    Patrick Taylor

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  2. Sir,
    I just read your "I'm Tired" post sent by a true friend. You are so right on. I and most of my friends wish you were in the White House. Keep up the good work. I'm 61 now and, like you, will perhaps be on some other cosmic plane when the collapse occurs. I'm sad for my daughter, your granddaughter and all those who will never know the freedoms you and I knew when we were young.

    You honor us all as a great American.

    Steve
    White Water, California

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  3. I agree with you 100%. speaking of Al Gore
    from Tenn, his Father and Ed Crump Mayor of
    Memphis ran that State for years, two of the
    biggest Crooks in that State at the time.
    Al Gore could not carry his own State in the election for President, the people did not forget
    the past. I was born and raised in Tenn

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  4. I was introduced to your blog via-WC at IBA-Your posts are exactly what I say, think and believe...so--I do not have to write in my blog anymore!...Just kidding --I will come here often though...thanks for telling it like it is...
    C-CS

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  5. Well I guess the last great hope for the world (the USA) is falling headlong into the same shark infested waters that Europe is already swimming in. In the UK truth, justice and freedom have mostly disappeared. Hard working families struggle because they are taxed almost out of existance to pay for those who dont want to work or want to destroy our Judeo/Christian heritage and replace it with either a moral-less free-for-all or an authoritarian Muslim state under Sharia law. To be British and proud of it is almost a crime here now. Please do not laud Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. They have systematically destroyed the UK over the last 12 years with their social programmes, multiculturalism, dumbing down of education, legitimisation of family and social disfunctionality..... I could go on and on. What we have in the UK is a Marxist state with the sole aim of bringing everyone down to the same low level and making control of the populace easier for the politcal elite and rich. You have to fight to stop that happening in the USA!!

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  6. I read your tired message. I could not stand talk radio but now i am a 72 year old believer.
    Just an Army soldier that was in Korea.
    Al Gore _ Kennedy John Kerry some of the old boys, we need some new blood. People fell in love with the WORDS Barack Obama. He would say anything to get elected. My 2 sons were selling hubcaps when they were 7 and 8 years old. This guys experience is the jungle of Chicago and the terrible politics that are practiced there. I was born in Illinois and my thoughts were not to migrate to chicago. There are lots that think like you and me.
    We need to do something about it. I am proud to say I supported a fellow heroe John Mc Cain.
    Spending a million dollars a day to the time of Jesus is not being responsible.

    do you think he really meant he would go line by line to veto some of this pork. He is too busy looking at himself in the mirror. Now he is trying to distract us to go after military contractors. Unbelievable. when will it stop.

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  7. HooRah, Marine!!!

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  8. i FIRST STARTED WORKING WHEN I WAS THIRTEEN, I'LL BE 53 SOON, WE HAD OUR SON, 'BRYSON' BACK IN OCT.05 HE IS SUCH A BLESSING.BUT YES I'VE BEEN TIRED FOR A LONG WHILE, BUT I AM DETERMINED TO WORK ON AND DO THE VERY BEST THAT I CAN FOR MYSELF AND MY FAMILY.THE ONLY RETIREMENT THAT I CAN SEE RIGHT NOW IS DEATH.THE WORLD AND OUR LOCAL 'WORLD' IS IN A MESS. I DIDN'T VOTE FOR OBAMA, BECAUSE I LET COMMON SENSE RULE MY MY VOTEING FINGER,AS HISTORY HAS PROVEN AT LEAST AFTER JFK, WHEN THE DEMOCRATS RULE THEN WE ARE IN FOR REALLY TOUGH TIMES. THAT IS MY OPINON, YOU CAN TAKE YOURS LIKE I TAKE MINE, WITH COFFEE OR YOUR FAVORITE BEERAGE, IT REALLY DOESNT MATTER. BUT WHAT DOES MATTER IS THE DIRECTION THIS COUNTRY IS GOING IN.WE HAVE A NUT JOB IN THE FORM OF AL GORE TELLING US THAT THE SUN EITHER WILL NOT SHINE TOMMORROW OR THAT IT WILL FRY EVERYONE SOON, CHECK ON SOME BLOGS AND MEDIA OVERSEAS, THEY ARE LUAGHING AT THIS GUY,BUT WHAT IS SCARY IS THAT HE ACTUALLY MIGHT GET HIS WAY, HE HAS A WHOLE BEVY OF LOON SCIENTIST ON HIS SIDE.HIS WHOLE AGENDA IS ONLY SELF ENRICHMENT.NOW WE HAVE A PRESIDENT THAT HAS OFFICIALLY OUT SPENT IN RECORD TIME YET ANY AMERICAN PRESIDENT IN THE HISTORY OF OUR COUNTRY, SOMEONE CALL 'GUINNESS''WOW.MY DAD, WHO DIED IN 95, GREW UP IN THE GREAT DEPPRESSION, HE DIDN'T GET MUCH IN THE WAY OF EDUCATION, BUT HE WOULD HAVE MADE A GREAT PRESIDENT,HE TAUGHT US ETHICS MORALITY, HONESTY,WORK ETHICS,REAL LEARN FROM IT DISCIPLINE.I WAS SO BLESSED IN HAVING HIM AS MY DAD.WHILE HE WAS STILL ALIVE, BACK WHEN HE WAS GETTING ALONG IN YEARS I TOLD HIM ALMOST EVERYDAY THAT I LOVED HIM. BEFORE ALZHIEMERS TOOK THAT AND HIM AWAY.FOR MY CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN I WROTE A BOOK THAT HAS BEEN PUBLISHED, BUT IS MAINLY FOR THEM ABOUT THE TIMES OF MY LIFE AND THE LESSONS THAT CAN BE LEARNED FROM IT THROUGH ALL THE THINGS THAT HAPPENED IN IT. I HAVE WRITTEN MANY THINGS IN A SPIRAL NOTEBOOK TO MY CHILDREN, RANDOM THOUGHTS, VIEWS, EXPERIENCES, THINGS THAT MATTER OR MIGHT MATTER LATER IN THIER LIFE.HOPEFULLY. I'VE RESEARCHED MY FAMILY OUT, ALL THE GOOD,BAD, UGLY OR INDIFFERANT,SO THEY CAN SEE THAT TOO.LET ME SAY THAT WHAT MY FAR FAR RELATIVES HAVE DONE WAS THIER DESCISCION NOT MINE, EACH TO THIER OWN.AT AGE FOUR I WAS DIAGNOSED WITH EPELEPSY, AT 17 WHEN I FINALLY GOT MY LISCENSE TO DRIVE I HAD TO GO THROUGH MANY EXSTENSIVE MED TEST THAT SHOWED I NO LONGER HAD EPELEPSY, BEEN OFF THE MEDS WITH NO PROB, EVER SINCE. MANY THINGS HAVE HAPPENED TO ME TO WHERE I CAN SAY THAT I HAVE BEEN A VERY BLESSED MAN.THE DAY IS COMING SOON THAT I WILL NO LONGER BE ARROUND FOR MY KIDS AND GRANDCHILDREN, I JUST HOPE THAT I HAVE PASSED ON ENOUGH TO THEM THAT THEY WILL COME OUT OK IN THE END.BUT HOW DO YOU STOP THE BLEEDING IN WASHINGTON? YOU CAN CONTACT THEM BUT THEY DONT LISTEN. THEY JUST KEEP ON DOING WHAT THEY WANT AS LONG AS THEY GET THIER AGENDA FILLED.COLOR OR RACE IS NOT AN ISSUE WITH ME, IT IS THE CHARACTER THAT DETERMINES WHO I GO WITH ON ANYTHING IN LIFE.IF THIS GOVERNMENT WAS BY AND FOR THE PEOPLE THEN WE THE PEOPLE SHOULD BE ABLE TO VOTE ON THE RELLY CRITICAL ISSUES, LIKE LETTING MISMANAGED COMPANYS FAIL, OR THE WALL STREET BUMS HAVING TO GO OUT AND GET A REAL JOB,OR HAVING OUR POLITICIANS GO AND FIGHT OUR WARS,THEY WOULDN'T LAST LONG AND THEN WE WOULD SAVE A TON OF MONEY.JUST PUT ALL OF EM IN A BOXING RING AND LET THEM GO AT IT, NOW THAT WOULD BE A SHOW HUH?WELL ENOUGH RAVING FROM ME. MARINE I AGREE WITH YOU WHOLEHEARTEDLY. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK.YEAH I SERVED MY TIME IN THE 70'S IN THE US ARMY.BUT ANYWAY THESE DAYS AND TIMES THAT DOESNT MATTER MUCH IN THE WAY OF THE COST OF A CUP OF COFFEE, BEEN THERE.KEEP THE FAITH AND DONT GIVE IN OR UP UNTIL THE END.-HARV AND FAMILY.

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  9. Robert, Thank you for your service!! I just wanted to let you know that I just posted your column "I'm Tired" to my blog
    http://quintessentialconservativeramblings.blogspot.com check it out if you wish and feel free to pass it on.

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  10. Robert A. Hall - thank you for being there and speaking out! I just received a copy of your "I'm Tired", and, while wishing I had written it, followed the link here to your blog. You say so very well what so many of us are thinking - I wonder why we seem to be in the ever shrinking minority. America, why are you changing for the worse when there are so many believers still out there? Keep talking, Marine!

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  11. The military is the core of the security of our great country. THANK YOU for your service! It grieves me to sense the pain of our military who fought to keep our country free from communism, Marxism, the Nazis and now terrorist bent on destroying us, only to see this country implode from within with extreme liberal beliefs. That's the way I see it at least.
    I had to write in your blog to thank you for speaking for so many of us ( I hope it is a majority). I am 61 and , yes, I have worked since the age of 12 with no time off except for school, college and medical school. (And I never considered that time off either!) As a child growing up, my dad expected us to work for two months in the summer picking berries and green beans. Only in August, could we sleep in and be "lazy". And that was the time we did a family vacation. Yes, I am tired too. I planned on retiring in August at the age of 62 but that won't happen now. All my hard work, taking so much emergency call at night and weekends, never really complaining about it unless I got to the point of sleep-deprived exhaustion, and now I'm am concerned that I may have to live in a trailer park! I don't have a mansion, only a nice piece of property that I have loved for 35 years, babying the flower beds with gorgeous Iris beds, raising my children here, sacrificing to keep this place so that they could come home. Now with the great ideas of the liberals, I will have to share my hard earned wage with those who don't even have a clue about work ethic, pride in accomplishments. No, my taxes may not go up BUT I will pay so much more for my needs because the tax load will be sent down to the consumer. I am so ashamed of those who expect my taxes to pay for their needs because they won't work!
    There is a resentment building in this country that will make it fall apart. I don't know how we can go back to the values that this country was built on. I get some hope listening to some very intelligent young men and women who do maintain the dreams our fore-fathers had for this country. But the liberal mentality has a plan. Make Americans dependent on big government and those people will vote to keep the entitlements they are expecting. God help this country!
    Thank you for writing such a great "I'm tired" blog. I am sending it to all my friends. May God deeply bless your life. Pat

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  12. I am an Air Force Veteran (I was only able to serve 6 years, however, because I was a single parnt). I would have liked to have retired, but couldn't because they didn't let me have that choice. My whole problem is the same as yours. I am 55 years old now and I have to use my money earned from two full-time jobs to pay for the people who are considered the "minorities" who don't work to their skill level in order to keep the food stamps coming. They are quite able to work, and they have no problem with using those food stamps to buy things like stuffed crab and lobster tails and roasts. They also pay for their nails being done and their cell phones with their credit cards!! I can't qualify for welfare because I choose to work to support my kids and myself instead of taking the easy way out. What does that say for our government? I can't believe that these people get upwards of $550 a month for groceries and still have credit cards and things for paying the differences (anything other than food). I have to pay rent, all my bills that I have, plus keep my car running, all on two full-time jobs and I am very "tired." I fully agree with your tired e-mail and I am very "tired" of people complaining about how they are being held back from obtaining the American dream beause they are minorities when they live in houses and I am still in a two-bedroom apartment with my two grown sons (they live with me because they can't afford to work and pay bills). It's ridiculous. What changes was Obama talking about? I haven't seen any??!! What were people thinking when they elected him? Just to get a Black in the White House. Who cares. As long as he delivers, that's okay, but so far, nothing.

    That's my opinion.

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  13. Bob

    Just read a piece that you get credit for writing and all you do is complain about all those people that getting something your not. Well don't you think it's about time you stop crying about what others are doing, and just live the life you think they should. If you are doing that, you should be to busy to think about them. What do say Bob, should I get you another towel?

    Tim

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  14. excellent food for thought..yes.. public financing.. too funny..all the problems we have go back to the well being of a major part of our society.. something that is almost inbred into our people now.. greed..and more greed. Part of that is caused in my opinion by the breakdown of the family unit..if we can get back to family unity and ethics, morals, friendship and compassion, honor and respect perhaps there will be some hope for our society.. Until we do that..we will continue to go downhill.. irregardless of who is in power.. However, this socialist elitist who has shown the most arrogance ever in public life, is leading the sheeple down the garden path into the pit of socialism.. government control and power is well and alive in DC.. it will continue as LONG AS WE LET IT CONTINUE.. TIME FOR THE PEOPLE TO TAKE BACK THEIR COUNTRY AND TELL THE GOVERNMENT WHAT W E WANT.. what WE demand .. and lay off our rights and freedoms NOW.

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  15. Have you guys ever picked cotton with a mexican?

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  16. I'm TIRED of hearing that President Obama is African American. He is NOT African American! He is HALF African American and HALF white. Why does everyone leave out the white half? Call him our first "bi-racial" President or "mixed" President, or, as he called himself once, call him our first "mutt" President.

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  17. Mr. Hall, you're a gem and I'm blessed to have found this blog! Thank you for your service to our country. Thank you, too, for writing and maintaining this blog. You're just so chock-full of common sense and you truly are a treasure.

    Tish

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  18. Tim said, "Just read a piece that you get credit for writing and all you do is complain about all those people that getting something your not."

    No, Tim. From what I have read, the complaining is generally about others taking (or demanding) what they haven't earned. Apparently you haven't taken the time to read through Mr. Hall's posts thoroughly.

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  19. Mr. Hall quit complaining about President Obama. Give his presidency a chance to get the country stabilized, then complain. Forget the Left and Right, think American!
    I'm a 20-year veteran, no degree, enlisted, 70 years old worked all my life, don't like paying for others who live off the dole: BUT I've had a good life, a free life, love my country, don't trust my government and am happy to live and be an American. So quit your bitching about how the minorities and poor folks are ruining our country.

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  20. I can only say one word "AMEN" from a 71 yrs old
    grandmother. Dedicated men like you are becoming
    obsolete. Thank you so much for serving our
    country.
    Jeanne
    P.S. TIM, you are an idiot"""

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  21. Excellent thoughts, Mr. Hall! Thank you for your service to our still (as of now, at least) great country. "Tim" needs to get a clue, stop drinking the Kool-aid, and start using spell check.

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  22. Same old TIRED rhetoric. Being in the senate you have a means of changing this mess. Why don't you try instead of just bitching about it? Everybody in congress and positions of responsibility that are supposed to be helping run this country and individual states, keep voting themselves a raise, putting pork in their bills. No one is exempt, EVEN YOU! work to fix it, don't just bitch about it Marine.

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  23. Running Wild
    by Bruce Alan Niles

    I wonder what would have happened if I had been raised in the church. As it turned out, I was a sometimes Catholic. Sometimes I went - more often - not.

    I went to two Parochial schools and failed both. I was self-centered and felt the world should revolve around me.

    I was born almost a year before the wedding and I grew up gaining and losing seven step dads. A kid really needs a dad and there was no authority figure in my life. I traveled so much I felt at home on the trains that plied the West coast and knew most rail schedules by the age of 12. I got to be an accomplished shoplifter by the age of 8. I didn’t need to steal and can’t tell you to this day why I did. I started smoking grapevine by the age of 12, and stole a car at the age of 14. I was going to drive south, but drove instead into a man’s garage and pushed his car into his back yard, so I went to jail! From that time on I was on probation continuously.

    The foster home was five miles beyond the electric lines in the logging country of Washington State. I learned to cut trees over eight feet through. I carried all the water from the spring to the house. I learned to plow using logging horses. Believe it or not, I seemed to like it. I believe now that this was the beginning lessons in discipline.

    I went to church there, but I never listed to what the pastor talked about. He seemed to be talking above the kid’s heads. I really couldn’t reach the concept of a personal God.

    I was paroled home at the age of 16. One year later, at my probation officer’s “suggestion” I joined the army. I was a demolition man in the Korean War.

    I went to a Billy Graham meeting in 1951, in South Carolina, and went forward to accept Christ. I think I really wanted the Lord then, but there were things I didn’t want to give up. I didn’t want to appear different from my friends. Within six months I was back in my former habits. I just wouldn’t listen to God. And God was a gentleman, as always; he didn’t force me.

    After the army, I went to another church in Southern California and was rebaptized. I only thought I was serious, so I started playing church, but God knew.

    Nothing went right so I went into the Air Force, still running away from myself. I was sent to the Far East and tried to drink it dry, but failed. I was transferred back into the U.S. and found a beautiful Texas girl and married. Lo and behold, her father was a Pentecostal preacher. Then the change started. I didn’t know that Christ was closing in on me while I was still playing church.

    After the Air Force, I had one job after another: salesman, aircraft worker, deputy sheriff, truck driver . . . One day, working as a life insurance agent in Seattle, my financial world started coming unglued. We had been attending a church close to our home, so I went to see the pastor. I poured out my problems for about 30 minutes. He listened and then, with tears in his eyes, he said, “God sure must love you.”

    He explained that sometimes God let our little house of cards get knocked down to show us that He is the One to turn to. So, there with Pastor Jim and God, I gave my life to Christ. In prayer I asked Jesus to save me.

    Oh, I lost the job that I had, but God had a better idea. Soon after that, at home, my wife, Joy, and I received the Baptism in the Holy Spirit and a new prayer language.

    I realize now that in all those prior years of running wild I was looking for something real. When I stopped playing and came to Christ and let Him share my life, I found that something I had been looking for. You know, I don’t feel unwanted anymore.

    Christ is all I need. Praise the Lord.

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  24. Semper Fi! Wonderful what you wrote in your column, "I'm Tired." You are saying what so many of us feel. God bless you.

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  25. Wait, Mr. Hall, do I dare use a ziploc bag to pack my soap? Won't that "HURT" the enviroment? What to do - What to do?


    Thank you for your service, keep up the good work!

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  26. Where is your contact information, Robert?

    Have a look at these Obamaisms:

    http://barackobamaisms.blogspot.com

    And for good measure:

    http://11mostexpensivecatastrophes.blogspot.com

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  27. Sir, I thank you from the depths of my Marine heart for saying all the things that need to be said. As you have held an elected office I would be honored to serve in any capacity in assisting you in being elected to one of the houses or even better the White House.

    Semper Fi,

    Marty Adcock

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  28. Hoo Rah.

    Just got your I'm tired think in an e-mail.

    Well written behind you 100%.

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  29. I just read your excellent article, "I'm Tired.."

    I run the Apathetic Voter web site (www.ApatheticVoter.com) and I am 65 years old and a U.S Army Vietnam veteran.

    My most recent article speaks in the very terms of your "I'm Tired.." article, and I assume you would want to read it (below):

    Who Will Pay Off the Catastrophic Debt?

    “The American people will never knowingly adopt socialism. But, under the name of ‘liberalism’, they will adopt every fragment of the socialist program, until one day America will be a socialist nation, without knowing how it happened.” - Norman Thomas, U.S. Socialist Party presidential candidate 1940, 1944 and 1948.

    Under the tutelage of the Obama administration, and with in-step Nazi Stormtrooper collusion of the Democratic Congress, America is metamorphosing from a barely alive “free enterprise” conservative power to a mindless “politically correct” socialist third world nation in the span of a few short years, with bankruptcy of the entire country and imminent collapse looming on the horizon. With the recently enacted Stimulus Package and the effective nationalization of much of Wall Street and other industries, we are rapidly approaching the fundamental premise of communism that the state should own the means of production.

    The Wall Street Journal has coined the phrase, “Obama’s Revolution,” to describe the leftist assault on America. More appropriately it should be called “Obama’s Tsunami.”

    Conservatives take a dim view of the regulation-bound, economically psychotic, socially stagnant, nanny state that is the European Union, but that’s precisely our direction. To witness our future, all we need do is observe the imminent collapse of this incompatible collection of nation-states, as it self-destructs on a daily basis. When all is said and done, the only unity they share will be their common currency, the Euro.

    The Next Great Depression

    So why is the Obama administration screaming, “Chicken Little, the sky is falling,” by comparing the current economic downfall to the Great Depression? This is utter nonsense. There is no comparison whatsoever. It’s simply good politics to feed to the sheep.
    The national unemployment rate at the end of February 2009 was 8.1%, with California leading the way with 10.1%. In 1933, the national rate was 24.9%. With the intervention of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal, the huge increase in government had miniscule effect on the unemployment rate. Even in 1939, the rate was still 17.9%. Preparations for and our participation in World War II in 1940-1941 was the only reason the unemployment rate fell dramatically.

    If Obama succeeds, he’ll be able to pound his chest and claim he nipped another Great Depression in the bud because of massive government intervention. If he fails, he can always claim the sheer decadence of the downfall was too great even for government to correct.
    BIG Government is Your Salvation
    President Obama and his liberal supporters are spinning tales of how government control of the economy is in the best interests of American citizens.

    Paraphrasing a renowned philosopher, George Santayana, “Those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it.” The future of virtually every civilization that has espoused big government and a planned central economy, including the now defunct Soviet Union, points to our imminent collapse because of its inherent largesse.
    As one example, most middle class taxpayers can see the dire proof every time you open your paycheck. 25-40% of your hard earned money is ripped from your paycheck to pay for the Socialist Security system, which now has locked in over 50 million Americans (1 in 6), Medicare, and other programs recently implemented such as the Family Leave Act by the darling of the liberal establishment, Ted Kennedy. Liberals claim you won’t miss the $1 or $2 removed from your paycheck, but when you add up the deductions for all of their social welfare programs, you have significantly less money in your pocket to spend to revitalize the economy.
    Government spending, between the Bush and Obama administrations, has shot up from 34 to 40% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in just the last 10 years.

    The Obama administration claims that the Stimulus money will be used to create 2.5 million new jobs. That is NOT government’s purpose. On top of that, the statement is wild exaggeration. The only solution is for government to dramatically reduce – not increase - government spending – that in itself will revitalize the economy. There are now over 22 million government employees in the country, approximately 11% of all adults. When you remove the military, health, police and fire departments from the statistics, a total of perhaps 5 million, we want to know what functions or services do the other 17 million employees perform? Ask yourself, have you personally seen an increase in “vital” services? I don’t know about you, but all I know is my wallet is much thinner. My personal dealings with these dedicated public servants has made my blood boil. In many cases, their indifferent and arrogant manner is understandable considering that it’s almost impossible to fire them.

    The only purpose these employees serve is to play the role of Robin Hood to take from the rich and give to the poor by redistributing wealth from the “haves” to the “have nots,” via programs like Socialist Security, Medicare and the frightening new universal healthcare plan being contemplated by Congress as examples that will literally break the back of the country. Liberals tout the experiences of the government controlled and enormously expensive healthcare systems in Canada and the United Kingdom, which are non-competitive and an unmitigated disaster with people dying waiting for service, an average wait of 23 months for hip replacement surgery, and government bureaucrats deciding which operations are cost effective. I can personally attest to the treatment I received from the Veteran’s Administration (VA) in which they almost killed me botching a routine biopsy.

    I can predict now that the $600 billion budgeted to implement Obama’s Universal Healthcare program will very quickly balloon to $2 trillion if for no other reason the inefficiencies, waste and corruption inherent in government. On a par with Socialist Security, we can safely predict that within a few short years another 10-15% will be deducted from your paycheck to pay for this failed experiment. Purportedly, Obama plans on paying for many of his programs by taxing the rich. Less than 10 years ago, “rich” was defined as people who made over $1,000,000; then it dropped to $250,000 combined family income. Don’t be surprised within 3-4 years if “rich” means anyone making over $75,000.

    The BIG Picture - America’s Debt

    Now that Big Government plans on spending $3.6 trillion in 2009 on more massive socialist programs, waste and the ever present “pork,” the federal government (with $1.75 trillion more in debt in the 2009 budget alone) has exceeded the $11 trillion threshold in federal debt equivalent to over $35,000 in debt for every man, woman and child in the country.

    And that doesn’t even include the $700 billion in bank bailout money or the $410 billion spending bill under consideration on the Hill that represents Obama’s spirit of “change” with 9,286 earmarks (“Pork”) for a total of $12.8 billion covering such economic stimulating items as $200,000 to remove gang tattoos in California or $150,000 for a rodeo museum in South Dakota.
    It’s nauseating enough witnessing these fatal errors being committed by Court Jester politicians who have never held a real job or (Heaven forbid) owned a business, but then we regurgitate while we watch the idiots in Congress jump up and down making statements like House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s childish outburst, “What an exciting day it is for us.” In case you haven’t heard the mind boggling statements made by Pelosi, she would have startled Karl Marx with her radical ideas about redistribution of wealth.

    Where is much of this money going? It’s being taken away from the citizens who worked hard to achieve an education and pay their bills on time, to pay for those ignorant citizens who supposedly need our help in paying for mortgages they could never afford, and to mainstream companies, major banks and the Big 3 auto makers, who have demonstrated unparalleled incompetence in running their companies. It’s too late now, but all of the citizens and companies should have been booted in the ass, and let the chips fall where they may. Sure, it will be rough for a while, but at least a lesson would hopefully be learned that there are consequences for stupid actions, and after a few years the American economy would have rebounded without incurring massive amounts of debilitating new debt.

    Now we sheep aren’t supposed to give any thought to this issue. We are to believe that Big Government is much smarter that we are. Sometimes we have to wonder. As unbelievable evidence of the stupidity of an exceedingly large percentage of the American people was evidenced from a poll commissioned by Fox News on Obama and the Stimulus, when the poll asked the following question, “Where does the government get its money anyway?” an evaluation of the response to that question stated, “While 65 percent understand the government's money is their taxpayer dollars at work, some 24 percent think the federal government has "plenty of its own money without using taxpayer dollars."
    The frightening reality is that we have to assume some of these people vote.

    The Real Story

    What the media doesn’t tell you is that this $11 trillion amount of debt is barely the tip of the iceberg. When you take into account the debt incurred by all government entities including local, county, state and federal agencies, the total well-documented debt is somewhere between $45 and $54 trillion, which frighteningly means every household has an equivalent debt of $450,000.

    And yet the professional politicians keep borrowing and spending, or printing money to cover the enormous gaps.

    Who is going to pay back this debt? The answer is simple. Your children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren will have no money to spend because their income will eventually be taxed at the rate of 80-90% to pay the piper, which more importantly means there will be no money circulating in the economy destroying American free enterprise as we know it, which is likely the goal of the liberal class as the ultimate coup de grace.

    However, the real world will be quite different when the money finally runs out. An ominous possibility exists that the country and its economic system will collapse by 2020-2025 with a very real possibility of armed rebellion and a military dictatorship filling the void. But we should have no fear for liberals and Democrats will assure us that Big Brother will take care of all of your needs. For disgruntled citizens, can the KGB and the gulag be far behind?
    As one of my associates suggested, ten years down the road citizens will be screaming, “Why didn’t someone tell me about this?”
    For an excellent example of the debt issue, watch this 3-minute video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCyR7C0r3Dk

    So What Can We Do?

    How can we stop the onslaught of the leftist agenda that will most likely bankrupt the country, with California being the first state to fall into the Black Hole of Calcutta, with New Jersey immediately thereafter?
    We’ll need to employ a few simple ideas to convince the thinking citizens of the country, especially the middle class taxpayers, that the streets of America are not lined with gold;
    • Everywhere you go, open a low key dialogue with customers at supermarkets, hair cutters/barbers, movie theaters and gas stations to educate citizens of the escalating evil.
    • Talk to your neighbors. Create handouts on your home computers so you are prepared to defend your position.
    • Research and support independent candidates for office who have not yet been poisoned by the political machines.
    • Join any political organization that’s dedicated to defeating the liberal agenda. As a very long shot, perhaps if the Republican Party can ever derive a meaningful platform to defend middle class taxpayers, they may remotely be a viable choice.
    • As a last resort, send letters or emails to your Congressional representatives denouncing this foolhardy course. Now we know that your letter is intercepted by a lowly clerk, and you will receive a stereotypical response from the representative’s office, but if we can inundate them with a huge volume of very forceful complaints, such as “we’ll throw you out of office,” perhaps a message will get through their thick skulls.

    Bob DeLaet
    The Apathetic Voter
    apathetic_voter@earthlink.net

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  30. WOW

    Just received I'm tired from a friend.

    You are a treasure. You will now be on my daily read list.

    I started my work quest at 13. After many trails retired as USMCR Col, then from HPQ.

    Now 65 and trying to figure out what to do next to help our challenged nation.

    God bless you.

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  31. anon, you are my brother and hero.
    much love, and tanerite.

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  32. I have chopped cotton, stomped cotton and yes picked cotton with mexicans...Was raised "No worky..NO eatie". I am now a baby boomer who is also tired of people who want something for nothing. I am glad people are speaking up..time to stop this growing socialist society and become a nation that works and has some morals and standards...like our forefathers did. Affirmative action. aclu are not working anymore.They are creating hate and discontent among those who are making their own way on their own efforts. Time to stop handouts simply becausse one is a person of color. I want to choose my own charities...not one madated by our government. Time to reeturrn to "NO worky, No eatie".

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  33. My Father just sent me your post "I'm Tired"- I loved it, and am so pleased to read such eloquent work by you and many of the other posts. I, too am tired- let me explain my recent camel-back-breaking straw- I was grand rounds at our cancer center 3 weeks ago (all of the staff meets to discuss pt.'s and their treatments-) One middle aged woman (with a very treatable, and likely curable breast cancer ---read:"Non-emergent" ---was presented for review- Her treatment plan was outlined (6 cycles of chemo followed by 6 weeks of radiation with placement on 5 years of oral therapy (she had already had surgery...)-the financial assistant in attendance noted "We've contacted the federal gov. program that helps pay for illegals to receive their treatment here" I incredously stated: "There is a Gov. program THAT HELPS ILLEGALS GET TREATMENT IN THE U.S.!!!" My next question was "Who has contacted the immigration authorities to report her??????????????? " Cold, icey "have a heart" liberal stares responded "That's not the policy of our county hospital, and probably would be breaking HIPPA rules and regulations if we did.......-SHE IS AN ILLEGAL ALIEN (NOT AN UNDOCUMENTED WORKER-I HATE THAT TERM)-THAT HAS BEEN IN OUR COUNTRY FOR OVER 6 YEARS, RECEIVING NON-EMERGENT SURGERY/CHEMOTHERAPY/ AND RADIATION PAID FOR BY OUR COUNTY TAXES TO THE TUNE OF WELL OVER $200,000 DOLLARS!!!!!!! She doesn't qualify for ANY of this, and if I recall HIPPA rules and regulations are for CITIZENS!!!!!!!!!! Absolutely incredible! And they wonder why the cost of medicine is so very high- it sure as hell isn't because of greedy doctors and nurses anymore- with its focus on universal health care, this country will be lucky if there will be any future competent MD's, mid levels, and nurses to care for those in need- especially when the gov. plans to tell us what is and is not to be ordered AND how much will be reimbursed for said services ( I say "reimbursed" because what people always forget is- reimbursement is completely different then what is charged- what a joke- Thank you for letting me drone on- I, too, feel sorry for my children and grand children... A tax-paying hard working NP

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  34. I was born and raised in Massachusetts and still have most of my small family there. You don't sound liberal enough to have been a politician from there.

    I was just sent your post "I'm tired". Well said. I'm an ex-CPA and business consultant. Now I'm a business coach working mostly with small businesses and doing my part to get people to understand that the government can't be depended on to take care of us. Even if they had the money (which they don't), politicians are too governed by politics and not by economics or even fairness. Depending on the government is liking depending on a corporation. The days of working a lifetime for the company are gone. And trusting that the government will do a better job of taking care of us is just lunacy. But it's comforting to believe someone will be there so I don't have to accept personal responsibility.

    My partner and I are launching a website specifically for people starting and running home based businesses. It's for people who are serious, not people who have a hobby that the call a business. According to the government, home based businesses already makes up over 50% of US business. Having your own business is one way to recession proof your business. Not by buying into a scam, but by smartly running your own business. That's where the wealth is. That's where the freedom it.

    Please keep speaking the truth. If enough people listen Karl Marx won't see his dream accomplished in the USA.

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  35. Don't you think it may be time for us to set term limits on our Congress like we have for the President?

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  36. Sir,
    I just read your 'I'm tired' and i wish we had more people like you in our government.

    also thank you for your years of service in the military.

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  37. Sounds like your running for something....

    just like a politician all talk, no show.

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