Written by: John SullinvanVisit John’s Blog Here It is sad to hear stories of hate throughout history, but it is a part of human nature, it has been happening for thousands of years. In the case of NYC, the city has seen a good chunk of hate, the Irish, Italians, Blacks, Catholics, Indians, Spanish, and now Muslims, are all some of the different groups persecuted. Muslims stand out in the list though, reason being, it is a religious group rather than a race, but why a religion, and why now? Recently a film student was arrested here in NYC for stabbing a Muslim, it seems that hate is[....]
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Tag: US Politics
I’m old enough to remember when a doc took two dollars to see you in his office, and the entire staff was his wife (when I became a doctor, only 6 percent of docs were women, so yes, the doc was a “he). In the 1980’s, I had one secretary, one nurse.and a part time typist to help me. In 2000 I worked for the government, and we had three nurses for two doctors (and yet often I was left trying to find one to help me…this was a government clinic, after all, so coffee breaks tended to be long). Then we had 6 folks in medical records, and another four in the office [....]
The so called “Ground Zero Mosque” (the real name of the project is Park 51) is proposed as a 15-story Islamic Community Center containing a mosque, a swimming pool, and a 500-seat auditorium. Detractors first called the project the “WTC Mosque” but then someone came up with the name “Ground Zero Mosque” because that name stirred up a more emotional response. It certainly worked! The proposed Park 51 complex is NOT intended to be located on the site where the World Trade Center stood; if built, Park 51 will be 2 blocks away from there. This begs the[....]
I have to be honest. I haven’t been feeling the creative juices this last week. Thus, I haven’t written anything in almost a week. I sat down this morning looking for a little inspiration. As is often the case, I needed to look no further than the words of Ronald Reagan. If you scan through his speeches and writings, it is apparent that he was able to see the socialized nation we were becoming. His famous speech in 1964 to the Republican National Convention gave us great insight to his wisdom and his knowledge that we were already headed down the road to socialism. I linked a[....]
I’ve come out in favor of the Electoral College before (see here). Among other things, the EC ensures that Presidents get broad support as opposed to simply the most support, it gives minorities a bigger voice, and it makes vote fraud much more difficult. See here for an FEC paper on the origins of the EC, and it makes for very informative reading, especially on the reason that the Founders decided not to go with a direct popular vote for the President. (The paper was last updated in 1992, but the history is what’s important.) In Wednesday’s “Best[....]
A bit of an uproar in Massachusetts, where the local papers have discovered that Senator Kerry bought a yacht, but has parked it in nearby Rhode Island to get out of paying the local sales tax. The good news is that, now that he has been caught and shamed, he will pay the half million dollar sales tax. The dirty little secret is that there are lots of places where people buy “big ticket” items across the state line to save a couple of bucks. This is illegal, but rarely prosecuted for small ticket items. And then there are internet sales. I used to buy books from Amazon, since[....]
New and interesting ideas are important in politics. All too often voters are stuck with candidates who mindlessly pander to whatever audience may be in front of them at any given time. Between the time split between pandering and attacking the other side we the public rarely are given any serious ideas for solving this countries complicated problems. However, on occasion a politician separates him or herself from the pack and comes to the American public with solid ideas that are actually within the realm of possibly working. But even when we are given fresh ideas, that does not mean[....]
There is a minor kerfuffle in the right wing blogs about Michael Bellesiles being caught publishing fiction as truth. The right wing has it in for Bellesiles, since he once faked data on gun ownership in early America, trying to prove no one owned guns then (and ergo the second amendment was meant to refer to the National Guard, not to private ownership of guns). So there are a lot of people out there to “get” him when he writes. What is interesting is that, when he wrote a very nice essay published in the Chronicles of Higher Education, that no one at that magazine bothered to[....]
Over the past year and a half under President Obama, I can note many decisions his regime has made which are disturbing at best. Nothing; however, goes more against the grain of everything our nation has stood for than the antagonistic stance we have taken towards Israel. President Obama has gone to great lengths to weaken our relationship with Israel, at times behaving in a completely disrespectful manner toward Prime Minister Netanyahu. The current administration has taken a very stern, almost confrontational attitude with Israel. This is extremely irresponsible and ill-advised. [....]
As we close in on our Independence Day, it is becoming increasingly clear that our independence and sovereignty are under direct attack. Almost every day there is a new episode of violence on our nations borders. As I write this article, the top story in the news is a shootout between rival cartels on the Mexico-Arizona border. In the last month or so we have seen incident after incident, story after story, detailing exactly how “open” our borders truly are, and the type of violent individuals who roam freely across it. There are now actually signs in Arizona which identify areas[....]
Recently at an RNC fundraiser in Noank, CT, Republican National Committee Chair Michael Steele made comments regarding Afghanistan that have caused members within the Republican Party to call for his resignation as committee chair. In addition, the cited statement has been interpreted to mean that Steele is both against the war in Afghanistan and that our presence there has been the sole decision of President Barack Obama. My opinion is that his phrasing was inarticulate and pandering at best but that his actual statement was wildly misinterpreted. Here’s the statement in its entirety:[....]
Okay, so maybe I’ve just become too negative. Maybe I have allowed the state of our nation to pull me into a deep state of pessimism. I read numerous articles earlier this week celebrating the Supreme Court’s ruling on McDonald v Chicago. All of the articles seemed to celebrate the court’s reaffirming the right of Americans to bear arms. I have to be honest, initially I celebrated it as well. Then I started thinking more about it. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 to uphold the 2nd Amendment of our Constitution. 5 to freaking 4!!!! Really!!! Seriously!!! Are we[....]
What can I say about the U.S. Constitution that others do not already know. I am not sure I can find the proper words to describe the pain we are all feeling at it’s passing. Our Constitution had an amazing life even though it was rather short. It was the kind of friend that stands by you when you need somebody to be there. So many times in my life it protected me from tyranny, oppression, and corrupt government influence. I remember once The Constitution shared with me that it’s intent was not to define what rights I had as an individual, but was formed by the people of this[....]
Andrew Malcolm over at the LATimes is wondering what to make of Sarah Palin. Her poll numbers are low, both when the polls ask if she is qualified to be president and also when asked if people would vote for those she supports, yet in this primary season a lot of those she endorsed have won victories in the primaries. So what is going on? The answer is that the polls forget that publicity can mean votes, and that having Mother Palin endorse you and your positions on her Facebook page means a headline for you, and a “headsup” to teaparty voters (both grassroots Republicans and[....]
With all the overspending by the Obama administration, on top of an economic downturn, I have figured all along that the next step would be inflation. You see, if the government “owes” one billion, and inflation goes up, then voila, in a few years the “one billion” they owe is now only half a billion in terms of real money. Some of us are old enough to remember when Jimmy Carter pulled this stunt. I was in Africa at the time, and had saved one year’s salary so that on my return I would be able to live until I found a job. (It was a good plan: I was in Africa[....]
Finally – someone has had the guts to say something. Iowa Congressman Steve King, in a June 16, 2010, FOX article by Cristina Corbinon, reaffirmed his belief that President Obama has “a default mechanism that breaks down on the side of the minority.” While he stopped short of calling the president a racist, saying “I don’t know if I want to go so far as to make that allegation,” King ”made no apologies for his comments about Obama favoring Minorities.” The Iowa Representative meant exactly what he said on G. Gordon Liddy’s radio[....]
As Summer rolls out its hazy crazy days, pimp hands are blooming all over. From White House plots to the gardens of assorted local governments and/or crime scenes. Though pimp hands are invasive (hence their common name “traveling pimp hands”) and if unchecked, will strangle all other growth, there’s no denying these fleurs du mal are showy. In DC, Michelle Obama’s virtuous veggies are being outshone by a variety of pimp hand called the Scarlet Faced Clintonis, which first appeared in the presidential digs in the 1990’s. Folks (including me) figured President[....]
Dear Sir;While I respect the concern you have regarding racial profiling, I believe that the Law Enforcement Officers of Arizona are professionals. Many of us in the north are appalled that our southern neighbors have been forced by the federal government to live with violent drug runners racing through their property. I can’t imagine how frightening that must be. The fact that a rancher was murdered last month while minding his business, driving on his own land, doesn’t seem to bother the White House at all. What is our federal government there for, if not to organize and[....]
So…after again behaving with arrogance during a private meeting with Senate Republicans yesterday, and giving them the impression that he wasn’t interested in sending troops to help secure our southern border, President Obama waltzed out of the room and immediately announced that he’s sending up to 1,200 National Guard troops to the border as well and $500 million for “enhanced border protection and law enforcement.” He hadn’t said a word to the Republicans, even though they had been discussing this very thing with him. In fact, Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ)[....]
As we begin to edge closer to the midterm elections this fall, an obvious pattern is beginning to develop. Anti-incumbent sentiment is at an all-time high, and rightfully so. Unfortunately, it seems that when the people of our nation are dissatisfied with the party holding power, they tend to go to extremes in the other direction (see Barack Obama). The recent success of Ron Paul in Republican polling has me, at a minimum, raising an eyebrow. Many of my fellow, alleged conservatives, have jumped on his bandwagon and I pray it is not the beginning of a trend. I know, I know, Ron Paul is the[....]