Cash For Clunkers a Preview of Things to Come.

There are a whole lot of things about "Cash for Clunkers" that I don't like.

One thing I don't like about it is that they are basically taking $3,500 or $4,500 from the average American taxpayer and basically GIVE IT to somebody else. That is redistribution of wealth, period. That's socialism.

However, what I hate even more is the fact that this program, which was estimated to run through November 1 of this year, is already being cancelled because it's running out of money.

What I hate even more is that this morning, Congress indicated that they will add 2 billion to the program. That's more socialism.

What I hate the most... Our government couldn't even manage this relatively simple little program predictably or competently. Yet that same government thinks that they can somehow rush into law a seriously complicated health care reform that is arguably flawed and definitely not fully understood by anybody, and expect us to believe that they can manage this program any better than Cash for Clunkers.

Let's just see. Congress originally estimated that the Cash for Clunkers would run from August to November at a cost of $1 billion. One week into the program (1/12th of the total program period), they had to add $2 billion more to meet the demand.

Let's extrapolate that to the health care overhaul...

Retired Navy Pilot Highlights Danger of Old Age.

Read this: Article.

Virginian pilot John Pendergrast, a retired U.S. Naval Aviator, created havoc in the controlled airspace of John F. Kennedy airport when he wandered into the landing approach for runway 22L while trying to figure out where the heck he was.

He was trying to find Republic Airport in Long Island, while flying an home-built experimental Ryan RV-7A.

It is clear from maps provided of the blundering pilot's aerial escapades that he must have been flying under visual flight rules and mistook Long Island for Captree Bridge island, where he then intended to turn north.

Just like when a lost person drives a car, when that person finally realizes that they are lost, they often do crazy and unsafe things while driving that can create havoc for the others that are sharing the roadways.

What is extremely surprising is that as a former naval aviator (we don't know the type of aircraft he flew, could be anything from propeller cargo aircraft to high-speed jet fighters) he should be highly experienced with the use of navigational aids as well as communication protocols when flying through controlled airspace.

Could it be that Mr. Pendergrast is simply too old to be permitted to fly? How else do you explain the amateurish mistakes made by a man who likely has thousands of hours of flight time in highly controlled environments. To compound his error he circled through the approach lanes for JFK airport in an attempt to get his bearings. In doing so he forced controllers with whom he was NOT in communication to divert several aircraft and an Eva Boeing 747 had to abort a landing approach.

Fortunately, the NY police department sent a helicopter to guide him down to Republic Airport, where he was able to land his aircraft safely without further incident. What is likely to be much less fortunate is that I would expect that his pilot's license will be either revoked or he will be cited and heavily fined for essentially putting the lives of hundreds of people in serious jeopardy.

If you look at national statistics with regards to who causes car crashes, we find that the most common offenders are teenagers with very little time behind the wheel of a car. This is followed by elder citizens, who have lost the motor skills or eye-hand coordination to safely operate a car. It has been my opinion for a long time that anybody above 59 years of age should be required to take a driving test every two years. Remember: Driving a car or piloting an aircraft is a privilege, not a right. Unsafe drivers need to be taken off the streets or out of the air. The consequences are simply too tragic to ignore these statistics.

President Obama Oversteps His Bounds.

President Obama's background, like most U.S. politicians, is law. Prior to his political career he was a lawyer. A Constitutional lawyer if you read his own bios.

So why would a highly-regarded lawyer inject himself into a situation that has not yet even resolved itself yet?

The situation is between Professor Gates of Harvard university, an African-American (how I hate hyphenation) who was arrested just outside his own home for disorderly conduct. The arresting officer was James Crowley. Officer Crowley was responding to a report of a crime in progress. Apparently, Prof. Gates may have locked himself out of his own house (whom among us haven't done that once or three times in our lives?) and was trying to force his way in. This gave the appearance of a break-in, which some concerned neighbor responded to by reporting the activity.

When Officer Crowley showed up, Prof. Gates had managed to get into his home. According to Officer Crowley Prof. Gates initially refused to show his identification and immediately started yelling imprecations at the officers.

We don't really know the facts of the case. But what I do know, as a WHITE man, is that when a police officer asks for your ID, you hand it to them. And you do so in a non-threatening manner. Prof. Gates' behavior, if it is as documented in the police report, would only heighten suspicion amongst the officers on the scene.

Nonetheless, President Obama has now stated from the bully pulpit of the White House that this officer "acted stupidly". I seriously doubt that our Fearless Leader has all the facts of this case. And considering his long law experience, I find it fascinating that he would make such a perjorative statement prior to the initiation, much less conclusion of any investigation that the authorities might conduct.

Is there racism in America? You bet. There is much intolerance on both sides of this debate and it may never be fully solved. But I still say that we can't be doing too badly when we have persons of color currently sitting in the White House, the Attorney General's office and other high positions of government.

And as for Prof. Gates. A lesson in how to respond when stopped by a police officer might be in order.

The World is Different Without Michael Jackson

As I've been working on my computer today I had tuned in my favorite talk radio channel and listened, not entirely willingly, to the memorial service held at the Los Angeles Staples Arena for Michael Jackson.

I was entirely surprised by the nature of the event, for it was an event to be sure.

It was in good taste. It was a who's who of R&B stars present and past who performed brilliant, soulful and touching pieces of music in honor of their deceased compatriot. There were a number of speakers who shared their memories, declared their love, or attested to Michael's universalist nature and his ability to break down barriers and unite all peoples with his music. I was reminded that Michael gave more to philanthrophy than any other popular recording artist in history. He made HIV aids and starving children in Africa his own concerns.

I was surprised.

I was moved.

I was saddened. Saddened that this great entertainer went down a path that troubled many of us. Who can come away from Michael's scandalous behaviour amongst children visiting his Neverland Ranch? Or the tremendously wierd transfiguration of his facial appearance from a appealing and handsome young man to a semi-robotic visage, repleat with painted lips and misproportioned nose and chin?

And yet... I wonder. Because we expect people to grow up we gave his Neverland Ranch and his interaction with children on their level as bizarre, wierd or just plain dangerous.

But if you look at Michael Jackson's philanthropies, the lives he improved with his music and his message, the children that he uplifted at his Neverland Ranch and in countless countries in Africa, maybe the "Man in the Mirror" that Michael always saw was the innocent child trying to get along in a caustic and suspicious adult world.

So for once, I will set aside my evil neo-con self and I will make an effort to try and see Michael Jackson in the eyes of the children and fans that loved him. What would the world be like if more people looked at the world through the eyes of Peter Pan? I suspect that I would like that place very much.

Palin Quits.

Governor Sarah Palin announced on July 3 that she will step down as Alaska's governor. She claimed she wanted to spare her family from continuing media-spawned attacks on her and her family's character as well as her state from more "pain and expense"as ongoing ethics investigations continue to shadow her administration.

The "chatting classes" speculated all weekend on what this might mean. Is this her opening gambit for a 2012 Presidential election run? Is she seeking to hide from an FBI investigation?

Well, for me, it simply means that she is a quitter. I say this very sadly because I thought she was the only true conservative voice in the McCain campaign. But politics in America is pain. Politicians and regrettably, their families are targets of malicious lies and super focused scrutiny that practically no household could endure. She knew this when she was Mayor of Wasilla, and she knew it when she took the Governor's Oath of Office.

When she accepted the nomination and later the actual vote of the people of Alaska she made a contract with them that she would see this through. She has now welched on that contract.

I cannot in good conscience vote for a candidate who has proven that they will not see it through to the bitter end. George Bush, for all of his perceived faults, stuck to his principles right to the last day of his administration.

Good bye, Sarah Palin. Don't count on my vote in 2012.

What's Wrong with our Arizona Schools?

The Goldwater Institute, a prestigious political think-tank organization centered in Arizona conducted an interesting test. They culled 10 questions from the 100 question citizenship test (USCIS) that all immigrants must take and pass with at least a 60% in order to qualify for U.S. citizenship. According to the Institue, the average immigrant passes this test with a 92.4% score. That means they only miss, on average, 8 of the 100 questions on the test.

Through a private research firm, they then administered this test to three groups of high-school age students in Arizona by telephone. They had 1,134 participants. The questions were not multiple choice. The participant had to provide the correct answer from memory.

Here are the questions:
1) What is the supreme law of the land?
2) What do we call the first ten amendment to the (U.S) Constitution?
3) What are the two parts of the U.S. Congress?
4) How many Justices are on the (U.S.) Supreme Court?
5) Who wrote the Declaration of Independence?
6) What ocean is on the East Coast of the United States? <== I'm not convinced this is a civics question.
7) What are the two major political parties in the United States?
8) We elect a U.S. Senator for how many years?
9) Who was the first (U.S.) President?
10) Who is in charge of the executive branch?

I blew question 8. I got the other 9 correct. But Arizona high-school students. Not one student answered correctly more than 7 of 10. Here's how Arizona students did:
Question 1: Only 30% could answer this question correctly.
Question 2: Only 25% could answer this question correctly.
Question 3: 23% got this one right.
Question 4: 9% knew this answer. You've gotta be kidding me!
Question 5: Just over 25% knew the correct answer to this one. Again, you've gotta be kidding me!
Question 6: Surprisingly, over 40% of the students interviewed still got this one wrong.
Question 7: Slightly less than half of the students could not identify the two major political parties in the United States.
Question 8: I fall into the 85% who got this one wrong.
Question 9: Only 27% got this one right. Can you believe that 1.6% actually said that "Barack Obama" was the first president of the United States?
Question 10: 74% of those interviewed do not know who is in charge of the Executive branch of the Federal government.

Only 3.5% of Arizona high-school students that took this telelphone survey scored 60% or better on this test, which was only a subset of the 100 questions that must be correctly answered by an immigrant applying for U.S. Citizenship. And I suspect that the other questions are probably harder and more specific than the slow-ball 10 questions listed above.

Civics are not being taught in our schools. Period. End of story. How can young people be expected to think and act like Americans when they are not being taught how?

Yet I bet if you would ask 100 people on the street what Michael Jackson's most popular and best selling album was, I bet over 90% would answer "Thriller" (which would be correct.)

Our forefather's correctly identified that public schools were absolutely necessary in order to preserve the precious freedoms that we have been gifted with, by the brilliance of extraordinary men and the priceless sacrifice of American blood on numerous battlegrounds of freedom. Ben Franklin, in answering the question "What sort of government has been created?" answered "A Republic, if you can keep it.".

A primary objective of our public schools has been, until recently, the teaching of American civics. It appears that this objective has either been entirely suborned from the American public school system, or it is considered of no great worth by those responsible for administering our public schools. In either case, the result will be the same. An uneducated and untutored electorate, being ignorant of their rights as granted to them by the U.S. Constitution, will be unable to prevent those rights from being eroded away by those who wish for power to gravitate from us, the people to the professional ruling class and the elites (money, industrialists, or progressives makes no difference).

In conclusion, I will quote from the executive summary of this study which was entitled "Freedom From Responsibility: A Survey of Civic Knowledge Among Arizona High School Students".

"In the end more than they wanted freedom, they wanted security. When the Athenians finally wanted not to give to society but for society to give to them, when the freedom they wished was freedom was from responsiblity, then Athens ceased to be free."

Guns in Bars??? Welcome to the Wild, Wild West.

So today the Arizona legislature passed a law that will permit concealed carry permit holders to carry their weapons into bars and restaurants.

Restaurants? I guess I can almost see the sense in that. Bars? No freakin' way! You've gotta be kidding me! Even the most diligent person occasionally let's their hair down. The idea of a concealed carry permit holder packin' heat while also sluggin' down whiskey or whatever their personal choice of poison is scares me to death. It should also scare all the other bar patrons as well as the bar owners.

Good intention. Bad idea. Horrendous execution.

Governor Brewer, please do NOT sign this legislation!

Letter to a Friend in Despair.

I wrote a couple of days ago about a fine young man who succumbed to a long battle with leukemia. Unfortunately, one of the girls that were very close to him, and also my son's girl, is bearing the loss in a hard way.

I sent her what I hope were comforting words. I then realized that others may be feeling the same way. So I share what I told here with you...

Hi Alex.

I'm so sorry that we are all so far away from you right now. I know that you are hurting for Danny Record. It's so hard to come up with the right words right now to help you... because even if you are Christian it seems so unfair that somebody so young was taken from us so soon. It's hard for a young person such as yourself to accept. And that's OK.

I don't normally talk like this to even my wife, but I want you to know that I'm entirely confident that Danny and you and I will all meet again in that wonderful time when the Kingdom of God is restored on this earth. And when we see him next, he will be free of the pain and suffering that he endured in this existence. I take much solace in this firm belief that Danny is not lost to us.

But much more immediately, I try to remember all the wonderful things that Danny did or who he was. I remember him as one of a bunch of Record boys in R.W. Moore, who eventually became Master Councilor of a Chapter. Who impressed people by his stubbornness and obstinate refusal to just lay down and die, so much so that he was made a Master Mason on Sight by the Grand Master of Utah.

I cried a lot on Monday. Alone. It sucks. But remember that we all must eventually be called back to our creator. And that trip back, the release from this existence, is a blessing and not a curse. Therefore, I am happy that Danny's next experience will be in the direct warmth and light of the wisdom of mercy of the Creator.

This is all pretty deep, but I don't want you to despair too much. It is OK to miss him. We all will. But please don't be sad for him anymore. He is beyond the suffering that he endured here.

With lots of love and a virtual shoulder to cry on...

"Dad" Glen