How Obamacare Passed

If you haven't heard the story of how Obamacare passed, it's very interesting.  I wouldn't be surprised if it's turned into an episode of 24 or House of Cards eventually.  Here we go...

1.  The Democrats in the House of Representatives were struggling to pass their version of the Affordable Care Act. 

2.  All revenue bills must originate from the House -- not the Senate.  

3.  The Senate took a separate bill that passed the House -- HR3590, a military housing bill -- and gutted it entirely until it became the "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act", also known as Obamacare.

4.  At this point, the Senate had 60 Democrats which was exactly enough to pass Obamacare.  It passed with exactly 60 votes.

5.  Ted Kennedy, a Democrat Senator for Wisconsin, died and was replaced by newly elected Republican Scott Brown.

6.  The Democrats new that if the House made any changes to the bill, it wouldn't pass on the next required vote in the Senate because they only had 59 instead of the necessary 60.

7.  The Democrat controlled House and Senate made a deal:  If the House will pass Obamacare without any changes, then the Senate will pass a new bill from the House with amendments to Obamacare without any changes.  This second bill from the House was called the "Reconciliation Act of 2010".

8.  So the House passed both Obamacare (without any changes) and the Reconciliation Act.

9.  The Senate then declared they were going to use the "reconciliation rule" to pass the Reconciliation Act because this allows bills to pass with only 51 votes instead of 60.  This rule is intended for quick changes in taxes, spending, or debt.

10.  The Affordable Care Act and Reconciliation Act were signed into law. 


So what is wrong with this process?  Firstly, the Affordable Care Act, with many revenue related items in it, clearly originated from the Senate.  It's like a 5th grader wrote a homework assignment on the Civil War, then his high school sibling re-wrote the entire thing for him.  It's called cheating. 

Secondly, the "reconciliation rule" was never intended to be used for items as huge as the Affordable Care Act.  It's meant for quick, minor changes to taxes, spending, or debt. 

And finally, our system of government is specifically designed to force compromise.  It is supposed to be impossible to get bills to pass without some level of bipartisanship.  If all else fails, the traditional filibuster can be used to not allow a bill to even be voted on.  The Democrats did what they had to do to get this unpopular bill to pass, and no one seems to care that they just made the rules up as they went along.  Is anyone surprised?

Go check out the collection of polls at Real Clear Politics to see just how unpopular this bill is. 

Voting is Broken

Let me start by saying that we should all vote.  Voting is important.  There, I said it.

Voting is broken.  In our system, we are allowed to select a single candidate for each elected position.  This inevitably leads to voting for the "lesser of two evils."  How many times have you heard this?  You don't really like either candidate, but you'd rather have X than Y.


Our voting method also discourages third party candidates from running.  Lets pretend that last year the Republican beat the Democrat candidate 52% to 48%.  This year, a third party candidate appears, taking 6% of the Republican's voters.  That would put the new totals at 48%, 46% and 6% where the Democrat wins.  So having more options for representation caused the 48% minority vote to win, because 6% of voters voted for a candidate that didn't really have a chance.

All of this has lead to the two major political parties in America having way too much power.  The people who control the party's agenda are essentially forcing any potential candidates to adopt that agenda or they don't have the support of the party.  It's a bad situation for new, evolving ideas.  It's a good situation if you want the same old, broken policies to keep driving our country.

Can you imagine a world where there is a Pro-Choice Republican?  What about a Pro-Life Democrat?  How about a Democrat who supports lowering taxes and is against amnesty?  Or maybe a Republican that supports raising the minimum wage and is pro gay marriage?  None of these things are possible because we have a two-party system that forces candidates to support the party's platform. 


Please watch the following video to get a better understanding of why our voting system is terrible.

Now watch the video below to see a much better method of voting!

We are Millennials and We've Had Enough

Born in the 80's or 90's, we are the generation of the selfish and entitled.  We are lazy and uneducated.  We don't know the meaning of hard work, and we definitely don't have it as bad as our parents did.  Have you heard this before?

We are Millennials and we've had enough.  

We've had enough of endless wars that our government always seems to get us involved in.  Who decided America is the world's police anyway?  Do you think that terrorists hate us so much because we are constantly fighting wars in their home land?  

We've had enough of the brutal job market.  We don't want to work as a bartender forever, but when no one is hiring, what do you expect us to do?

We've had enough of the ever expanding police state.  Why are militarized vehicles and full riot gear needed in suburban America?

We've had enough of police brutality.  We expect the police to be held to the same standards and accountability as the rest of us, and stop living above the law.

We've had enough of the polarizing, biased media.  It's no secret that the media has become more and more of a propaganda machine and less of a means of providing accountability in government.  

We've had enough of the runaway national debt.  Who do you think is going to be responsible for paying back 18 trillion dollars (and counting)? 

We've had enough of the rising costs of college education and the endless amount of student loan debt.  You told us we can't get a job without a college degree, but getting a college degree requires decades of debt.

We've had enough of intolerance and racism.  We just want everyone to be treated equally despite one's race, gender, sexual preferences, religion, or nationality.  Intolerance isn't something that we're born with -- it's something we learn from those who raise us.  

We've had enough of government spying.  You can have all our texts, emails, and Facebook messages if we can read all your government emails.  Deal?

We've had enough of career politicians.  Congress maintains a terrible approval rating, but somehow incumbents almost always win re-election.  Perhaps it's time for a new voice.

We've had enough of money in politics.  Millions of dollars are spent campaigning for a job that pays around $170k.  Our "representation" consists of about five hundred rich and powerful politicians that claim they want to help the middle and lower classes but nothing ever seems to improve.  

We've had enough of our opinions being ignored.  Who do you think is responsible for all the problems we experience today?  The older generations own the current state of America whether they want to admit it or not.  Now we are the ones paying for their mistakes.  We are the ones trying to build a life during a recession.  We are the ones who will be responsible for fixing the problems caused after forty years of bad decisions.  And anytime we try to speak up and make our voices heard, we are ignored because we're younger than the people with all the money and power.  

Politicians Dodging Questions

The media protects politicians in America.  Politicians dodge any question that could make them look bad.  This is quite possibly the most ineffective media/government relationship that our country has ever experienced.  The information provided by the main stream media is moving towards government propaganda and away from accountability in government.  Below are some questions that I would like to be answered.

For Obama
1.  One of your campaign promises that everyone agrees with is improving government transparency.  You executed executive privilege to protect the Fast & Furious documents.  There has been controversy surrounding your administration's response to Benghazi and the altered talking points.  The IRS and now EPA are involved in scandals where they have lost crucial emails and text messages.  Have you kept your promise of bringing transparency to government?

2.  In 2012, you pulled out our troops from Iraq.  Your administration -- yourself and Biden included -- boasted that this was a huge success and a "promise kept."  With the threat of ISIS growing stronger every day, do you think this was a mistake?  You have recently commented that the Iraqi leaders made us take our troops out of Iraq.  This is quite different from the message of a "promise kept" as something that you accomplished.  Was it your decision or their decision?

3.  You successfully targeted and killed an American citizen via your drone strike program.  Three other Americans have been confirmed killed, although they were not specifically targeted.  You are a lawyer.  The fifth amendment states that "no person... shall be deprived of life... without due process of law."  How do you defend killing Americans citizens without trial?

4.  We've heard countless times from your administration -- and you specifically -- that you find out about certain stories from the news reports.  This includes (1) spying on German Chancellor Angela Merkel, (2) the V.A. waitlist scandal, (3) the IRS targeting scandal, (4) the DOJ obtaining phone records of the Associated Press, (5) and the Fast and Furious gun running tactics.  Can you explain why/how you didn't know about any of these things?


For Harry Reid -- You are constantly complaining that the House is obstructing any policies from passing.  You have over 350 bills sitting on your desk that the House passed.  Over half of those passed unanimously and many were proposed by Democrats.  What is different from your obstruction that makes it okay?

For Al Gore -- You have profited millions of dollars from your work around "global warming" or "climate change".  Some would argue that your carbon footprint is many times greater than that of the average American due to your multiple homes, expensive cars, and frequent air travel.  Are you taking any steps to reduce your own carbon footprint?

For Eric Holder 
1.  In 2 weeks, the documents detailing the Fast and Furious gun running scandal have been ordered by the courts to be released.  Is there any correlation with the timing of your resignation as the Attorney General?

2.  The position of Attorney General is intended to be a non-partisan one.  Your responsibilities include enforcing federal laws, investigating violations of federal law, and providing advice/opinions to the President on legal matters.  However, we have seen you injecting yourself into countless political battles.  You've even implied that Republican opposition to yourself and the President is based on racism.  Can you explain these statements?

Here are some of the best question dodges I've seen!




There are plenty more questions that I would love to have answered, but these are just the first that come to mind.  What are some questions that you've heard politicians dodge?

Negative Side-Effects of the Technology Era

There is no doubt that we are experiencing an incredible period in history -- an era in which technology is making the impossible possible.  The rise of the internet has made the spread of information and ideas practically instantaneous around the globe.  The birth of the smart phone put this connectivity in the hands of pretty much every human being in a first world country.  It truly is remarkable.  Despite how incredible this era is, there have been some negative side-effects, especially for the younger generations.

The Art of Conversation -- Try calling someone younger than the age of 40.  Try calling someone younger than 25.  Odds are they didn't pick up.  It's actually pretty rare that someone will actually answer the phone when you call them.  The world has devolved to text messaging as the primary means of communication.  Sure, it's fast and effective in most cases, but we are losing the art of verbal communication.  The business world requires verbal communication.  There is no such thing as "texting" a client.  Email communication is huge as well, but short hand such as "lol", "ttyl", and "brb" are unacceptable in a professional environment.  Younger generations, who are growing up in a down economy and a tough job market, are not doing themselves any favors by avoiding verbal communication in favor of texting.

Ignoring People Entirely -- Another side effect of texting is the ability to ignore people entirely.  How many times have you messaged someone and you don't get a reply back?  The best is when you can see they read your message (via iMessage or Facebook) and they still don't reply.  We all do it.  Wouldn't you rather the person tell you they don't want to hang out instead of ignoring you completely?  Perhaps you should take that into account the next time someone asks you to do something that you don't want to do.  It's amazing to me that this is acceptable today.  We all have our phones practically attached to us at all times during the day -- there is no way that you "just saw your text" 6 hours later when it doesn't matter anymore. 

Punctuality -- When I was around 6th grade, I distinctly remember making plans with my friends to meet up.  Whether it was playing wiffle ball in the empty lot or going to eat at Sonic then walk to the local Cinema 4, I can guarantee you that we were all on time.  My parents always made sure we made it to all our events/sports/practices/parties/etc. at least a few minutes early.  Today, being on time is so rare it's incredible.  People are instantly connected to each other, so running late isn't seen as a big deal.  If you are one of those people who are constantly running late, just know that you are an annoyance to everyone.

Everyone Knows Everything -- Because of the lack of real-time communication (face-to-face or verbally), suddenly everyone has a built in buffer time to formulate smart/witty comments in every situation.  Do you know anyone that seems to be an outgoing genius online, but in real life they are pretty boring?  That's because they have the ability to google anything and everything before responding to that political facebook post or that tweet about nothing.  Talk to them face-to-face about the same topic and they struggle to regurgitate that article they read without having it right in front of them. 

In summary:  Answer the phone.  Respond to people.  Talk to people in person.  Be on time.  Be yourself. 

The American Police State

On July 17th, 2014, a man was murdered in broad daylight on the streets of New York.  Nothing was done to stop it.  No one tried to intervene.  Why?  Because the murderer was a NYPD cop.  The victim must have done something pretty terrible to have been killed by a policeman, right?  The man was selling un-taxed cigarettes.

In the early morning hours of June 29th, 2014, police respond to a call about a suspicious vehicle outside of a club.  The police reports claim the man was hitting the car and yelling.  The young man says he was watching videos on his cell phone while waiting for his girlfriend to get off work.  The results of the incident are a broken leg, black eye, and another run-in with the law that escapes significant accountability.

These are just 2 examples of the daily problems that come from over-confident, over-zealous cops that think they are above the law.  Think about it -- if a cop sees an individual make a right turn without signaling, they can make an illegal U-turn and break the speed limit before they pull someone over, search the car, and put them in jail with hefty fines for practically anything they want.

Have you seen an episode of "Cops"?  Think about how many lives are ruined because a cop wants to satisfy his monthly ticket quota.  He pulls over a young, black man -- still in college -- and convinces the man that he has the right to search his car because he "smells something suspicious."  He asks the man to step out of the car, and he is handcuffed for "procedural and safety reasons."  The man acts irritated and annoyed -- which are not crimes -- because he's being treated like a criminal during a routine traffic stop.  Whether the cop finds a joint in the car is irrelevant because at this point the man is going to be booked for something.  His record is going to be permanently blemished, and employers are going to be forever hesitant to hire someone who had issues with the law.  But it sure makes good television.

In the video below, you'll see a cop dramatically change his tone after he is told that he is being filmed.  Watch the cop squirm as he refuses to admit his guilt.  The truck driver signaled for the cop to pull over after the cop car sped past with the officer on his cell phone.  Cops are allowed to break the very law they are supposed to uphold.

Thankfully we live in an age where cameras are everywhere.  It would be incredibly naive to say that police brutality has only recently become a problem in America.  Twenty years ago, if you experienced a case of police brutality, it was commonly your word vs theirs -- and I bet I know who won those arguments.

This is the world we live in.  Cops can enforce the law however they see fit, and if they treat anyone with an unfair amount of force or coercion, they can rely on the lack of media coverage and their "official police report" to protect their heinous actions.  The examples of police brutality in America are practically infinite.  How have we gotten to a point where the police can literally murder a man with a choke hold and the media barely cover it?

July 1, 2014 -- Cop beats a homeless grandmother on the ground
June 16, 2014 -- Cop beats 19 yr old lesbian at a Gay Pride Parade
Jan 4, 2014 -- Cop beats 70 year old man having a diabetic attack
July 26, 2014 -- Cop stomps on the head of a man arrested for smoking weed
Nov 11, 2009 -- 2 Cops beat a man senseless, and were just now fired after a video surfaced in January
May 28, 2014 -- A SWAT team drug raid results in a flash bang nearly killing a child in a crib
May 2014 -- Police taze a sleeping passenger during a DUI stop in the EYE, twice 
April 25, 2014 -- Police break 3 bones in a mans face during a routine traffic stop for a cracked windshield

Gun Control and Voting Rights

Gun Control.  If you've read anything I've written, you know I'm a big fan of less government control.  But my view on gun control might surprise you.  Every gun-owner in the United States should take a gun safety class, have a gun license, and pass a background check.

Compare driving cars to owning guns.  The purpose of owning and driving a car is for efficient transportation.  Every American is free to choose to drive a car, but they first must pass a driver's test and get licensed.  Cars are dangerous.  There are tons of rules about driving cars that no one seems to complain about.  They keep people safe.  People who cannot prove that they can safely drive a car are not allowed to drive cars.  Seems simple enough.  Guns should be no different.  We all have the freedom to own and use guns, so asking for people to prove they can be a responsible gun owner is not too much to ask.  

Now compare voting to owning guns and driving cars.  Voting rights might seem to be an unrelated issue, but not when you think about it logically.  Voting in itself is not dangerous to the person voting, but the results of voting can have drastic effects on our country.  Does any American want someone to win an election as a result of voter fraud?  Doesn't everyone agree that we want our elections 100% free from corruption?  Just like driving cars and owning guns, the individual needs to prove they can be a responsible voter.  Vote once, and only once, in the elections that are available to you based on location/party/etc.  The best way to ensure that the power of the vote is not abused is by registering. The best way to assure guns don't easily get in the hands of criminals is by requiring registration.

So if you can't tell already, the hypocrisy around these issues is plenty.  Republicans scream that the government shouldn't be able to regulate guns, but they want voting more heavily regulated.  Democrats scream "voter suppression!" when registration is required to vote, but they want to heavily regulate guns.  This is why nothing ever gets accomplished in America -- our politicians are inconsistent on their views.  Republicans are pro-gun because southerners are more commonly gun owners and conservative voters, where as progressive voters are typically less likely to go register to vote.  This isn't rocket science.  It's all about votes and maintaining power to our politicians.

The majority of the people in America are honest and responsible.  But does that mean we should make it easy for the dishonest and irresponsible to misuse their power?   Owning a gun, driving a car, voting for our leaders... no one is saying that you can't do each of these things.  We all just need to be sure these things are done responsibly. 

Fixing Immigration: It will Never Happen

We will never achieve successful immigration reform until several things change.  Let's stop pretending that the Democrats have all the solutions to immigration.  Let's stop pretending that the Republicans can straighten out the immigration problem.  But the solution is a simple one, nonetheless, if only both sides could admit a few things.

The Democrats need to admit that a border is important.  The idea of a border has been around basically forever.  There is a border between my yard and my neighbor's, and there is a border between the United States and Mexico.  It is there to allow people and ideas to thrive separately, but co-exist with no issues.  For the same reason I can't decide to put a pool in my neighbors yard, all of Latin America can't just freely come into the United States.  I can institute an "eat your veggies or no dessert" policy for my son, but my neighbors don't have to follow that rule.  See?  Co-exist with no issues.  When you don't honor a border, the system falls apart.

The Republicans need to admit that immigration is a good thing.  Past, present, and future, the majority of Americans are here because of immigration.  Putting up a fence does not solve our immigration problem.  There are countless hard-working, motivated people that dream of coming to America.  These people would undoubtedly help put more money into our economy.  They would pay taxes just like every other American.  They would have the freedom to choose who to vote for just like every other American.  Republicans want you to think that every immigrant is a drain on society, but that simply isn't true.

Democrats need to admit that not every immigrant is going to help our country.  There are a lot of bad immigrants.  Some have criminal records, while others have a history of abusing the system.  There are diseases and viruses that could lead to the harm of other Americans.  And yes, there are even people who want nothing more than a free ride from our generous government.  Sweeping amnesty for all is not the solution, no matter what the Democrats tell you.

Both sides need to admit that they are mainly interested in votes.  In general, it takes generations of hard work, good choices, and responsibility to achieve success in America.  Rarely is success achieved over night.  Most immigrants would be just starting that path to success, and most low-wage workers would use any help they could get from the government.  And we all know Democrats love expanding entitlement programs.  Republicans simply don't want their opponents to secure more votes.  When it comes right down to it, this is the most important issue to the politicians in our country.

So now let me explain to you the logical solution to immigration reform in our country.  Firstly, let's secure the border.  Find a company in the private sector to manage the construction of a wall between Mexico and America.  Simple.  Secondly, completely scrap our current immigration process and start from scratch.  The current system takes years to legally become an American.  Again, contract out this process to a company in the private sector with plenty of checks and balances to assure a speedy, efficient immigration process -- it should take less than a month.  And finally, define the criteria to become an American.  You cannot have a criminal background, contagious sickness, or a history of joblessness.  You must have a minimal understanding of the English language.  There must be a time-limit established for those who enter our country and require government assistance.  These criteria make sense, right?  We can all agree that these things are not difficult to achieve -- don't be a criminal, have a job, learn some English.  It is common sense that these are qualities we expect in every American, so why should an immigrant be held to lesser standards?

So when pigs are flying and hell is frozen over, I expect Republicans and Democrats to have come to a successful solution to immigration in America.  It only took me 10 minutes.

America Today: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

The Good

People are good.  You can see it everywhere if you just look.  This country is made up of people from all over the world with varying ideas about how they want to live.  There is no denying how different we are.  But the one thing to remember is that the vast majority of the people in this country are good.

At a yard sale in California, a homeless man walks by.  He wanders up into the cluttered isles where he spots an old portable CD player.  The owner notices the homeless man's interest and runs inside.  Was she going to call the police?  Moments later, she came outside and approached the man with something in her hand.  "Some batteries.  Pick a few cd's to go with it and it's all yours!"  People are good.

In the very last row of a jam packed parking lot in North Carolina, a young woman unloads her shopping cart.  When she finishes, she looks around for a cart-return and doesn't see one anywhere.  She decides to push the cart all the way back to the store instead of leaving it by the bushes.  As she got closer, an older man noticed what she was doing and offered to take the cart the rest of the way.  People are good.


The Bad

The media in America is beyond terrible.  It is virtually impossible to find a non-biased news source.  You don't have to look far to find a poll that shows Americans have been losing trust in the main stream media in the last 20 years or so.

Over the past several months, MSNBC has pretty much had non-stop coverage of the Chris Christie "Bridge-gate" scandal.  When phone records are released that contain call-logs of Christie's aids contacting the Port Authority, you better believe MSNBC will devote a half-hour of each news program that night to the story.  Yet they have maybe given the IRS targeting story a few 6 minute segments in the past three months.  Now take that same example, switch the scandals, and replace MSNBC with Fox News.  Do you see the problem here?  MSNBC wants to do everything they can to stay away from stories that might damage the left while they cover stories that could damage a potential Republican Presidential nominee for 2016.  Fox News just wants to destroy the current administration.  Shame on you, main stream media.

Not only is the media extremely biased, but it is also encourages the people of this country to argue about everything.  Just look at MSNBC and Fox News specifically -- they probably couldn't exist without the other!  They can barely go a night without mentioning how biased the other is.  But I cant say I blame them.  Their ratings are crucial to their survival, after all, and who would watch the news if everything was running smoothly in America?


The Ugly

Money is the root of all evil.  It's also the "ugly" part in this article.  Our government has practically an unlimited supply of money -- $3,800,000,000,000.  No person has ever had that much money.  You probably had to count the sections to figure out how to say it -- millions, billions, trillions.  And our government wastes so much of that money, it's incredible.

The War on Drugs started in the early 1970's and we spend an estimated $51 billion dollars annually in this domestic fight against illegal drugs.  Sure, we might capture and prosecute some guy connected to a Mexican drug cartel.  We've probably had some pretty huge busts that they've made movies about.  But mostly we just permanently ruin the lives of college-age kids who want to smoke pot and end up with a criminal record for having a bag of weed.  That seems like something we should keep spending money on, right?

But the worst thing money does to America is it drives every single policy and decision that our government makes.  Behind every law, there is a donor.  Why do you think we really went to war in Iraq?  The giant oil companies wanted access to Iraqi oil -- and now they've got it.  Why do you think the Democrats are pushing for amnesty?  The Unions get more workers, which means more union dues and more campaign donations for Democrats (not to mention more Democrat voters). 

Our political system is designed so the rich and powerful get to spend our tax dollars while maintaining their money and power.  They spend more money than any other nation in the world, and yet no problems are ever solved.  The media and government successfully deflect all attention off of them, and the people fight among themselves instead of holding the rich and powerful government accountable.  Congress maintains a horribly low approval rating, yet somehow incumbents are rarely beat in their re-election campaigns.  Why is that?  It takes access to millions of dollars to unseat an incumbent.  So the rich and powerful continue to maintain their money and power in our "representative democracy."


People are good.  But people put trust in our media to educate them on the state of our country and hold the government accountable.  When those things don't happen, the power and wealth of the government increases, while the accountability of the government decreases.  The government takes our money, wastes our money, and the people play the blame game.  The goodness in people trusts that our government shares our best interests.  The goodness in people believes that our government wants to make our lives easier.  But money and power trump goodness -- and we are none the wiser. 

Case of the Missing Emails

Quite an exciting title, eh?  Perhaps someone should call Shaggy and Scooby or the Hardy Boys to solve this one.  Let's cut to the chase.

Before my time, there was the scandal of all scandals -- Watergate.  This involved the President of the United States wire-tapping the Democratic headquarters to gain a political advantage.  Perhaps the most infamous part of the entire story is the lost 18 1/2 minutes of the recorded tapes.  This portion was claimed to have been erased as a result of an error by President Nixon's secretary.  She received a phone call while transcribing the tapes for the court and meant to press stop but pressed record instead.  Or at least that's her story.  The lost portion of the tapes was quite possibly the most damning evidence that proved when and why this scandal began.

Now compare that to today's IRS scandal.  For over a year, Lerner and the IRS have claimed they are working to satisfy the subpoena by turning over all of her emails.  Yet suddenly, they've admitted that a computer crashed, resulting in all of Lerner's emails being lost from 2009-2011.

Is this the Obama administration's lost 18 1/2 minutes?  The purpose of the IRS targeting conservative groups was to gain a political advantage.  The purpose of wire-tapping the Democratic headquarters was to gain a political advantage.  The most damning evidence was lost in both scandals.  The similarities are uncanny.

The American people deserve to know the truth.  We always deserve to know the truth.  I don't know about you, but I'm tired of being lied to by politicians playing politics.  I'm tired of the media defending their favorite politicians instead of asking them the tough questions.  I'm tired of our government officials living above the law.  I'm tired of zero accountability. 

Wasteful Spending

Our government wastes more money than any normal person could fathom.  Lets look at some examples:

• $25 billion dollars annually spent maintaining unused/vacant federal properties
• The FCC spent $350k to sponsor NASCAR driver David Gilliland
• $7.8 billion dollars intended for aid in Iraq is "unaccounted for" 
• $3 billion dollars was spent on "re-sanding beaches" in 2009
• High ranking government officials commissioned portraits go for approximately $50k
• In 2006, the government helped fund a golf course in Atlanta ($1.8 million)
• The Conservation Reserve program pays farmers $2 billion annually to not farm their land
• $1.5 million is spent annually to help Hollywood movies and t.v. shows portray the FBI
• $300k spent to build an Agricultural and Motorsports Museum in Iowa
• National Science Foundation spent $350k in 2012 studying golfers envisioning a larger hole
• Air Force One costs over $200k per hour when in the air

Obamacare is another great example.  I'm all for finding a way to get healthcare to every American in our country.  Obamacare is not it.  It cost over $1 billion dollars to fund the federal Obamacare website.  I work in the software industry, and I could have created that website for around $300,000 from start to finish.  Think about how many people could have been saved from a lifetime of debt with $1 billion dollars.  Instead of wasting money on a broken website and countless advertisements, that money could have actually helped the American people directly.  

Green Energy and Global Warming are two more mind boggling examples of wasteful spending.  What is more important:  helping the poor and the sick, or putting some solar panels on top of a corporation so they can save $50k a year on electricity?  What is more important:  funding more research on global warming or helping kids with disabilities get the care they need to succeed in life?  It's a no-brainer.

Can anyone explain to me how this happens?  How do the leaders in our country get away with such wasteful spending?  Why do I constantly hear that the rich should "pay their fair share" when the government spends over $3.8 trillion dollars a year?  Is that honestly not enough money to solve our country's problems?  

WAKE UP PEOPLE!  Stop arguing with each other and start holding the government accountable for doing a terrible job.  

Sources

http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2009/10/50-examples-of-government-waste

http://thewastelist.nrcc.org/

Student Loans or Playing Politics?

Student Loans.  Just another issue that our government gets to play politics with.

So Elizabeth Warren decides she wants to do something great for the country.  She proposes a bill that will allow young adults with student loans re-negotiate for cheaper interest rates.  You see, back in the early 2000's, interest rates were 7-9%.  So of course it makes perfect sense for these now young adults to take advantage of the low interest rates of today.  And this would truly help put money back into the hands of the young generations that are working hard to succeed.  These are the people that are becoming the leaders of our country.  I admire what Elizabeth Warren is trying to do.

Except none of that is true.

Do you know what happens in November?  Mid-Term elections happen in November.  And the forecast for the Democrats does not look good.  So instead of finding ways to drive up the public's perception of Democrats, they've decided to try to drive down the perception of Republicans. 

This bill failed to make it through the Senate.  It needed 60 votes to overcome a Republican filibuster, and it only received 56.  Aww shucks.  I'm sure the Democrats are so upset.  I guess we get to blame those darned Republicans now!

So think about what the people in this country want.  We want Congress to pass a law that causes them to make less money.  These student loans are owned by the government, and they are profiting off of the high interest rates.  It would be a monumental task to successfully get our government to agree to make less money.  The last thing they are willing to do is to give up money or power.

So Elizabeth Warren decides to find a way to offset the profits -- the profits that are coming directly from the college educated lower/middle class -- by taxing the rich.  Sounds great in theory, doesn't it?  Let's make those evil people who are successful pay the government more money, so young adults can save a bit of money on their student loan debt.  Great idea Elizabeth. 

Every Democrat in the country knows that "taxing the rich" will never be something Republicans vote for.  In general, the rich support Republicans.  Those Republicans are not going to risk losing their financial supporters.  So they will never vote against their personal interest, despite the fact that the country would benefit greatly.  If Elizabeth Warren truly wanted to do something great for this country, she would have sat down with the Republicans and negotiated cuts that everyone can be happy with.  That's what any good politician would do if they were honestly interested in helping America.  But Republicans and Democrats aren't interested in helping America.  They just want to win their next election.

The Most Important Freedom

Freedom to choose is the most important ideal that this country was founded upon. Freedom to choose to own a gun. Freedom to choose to marry someone of the same sex. Freedom to choose how to discipline your children. Freedom to choose your own health care. Freedom to choose to get an abortion. Freedom to choose to smoke marijuana. Freedom to choose your religion, or have none at all. Freedom to say a prayer in a public place. Freedom to express negative opinions (though not free from consequence of those opinions). Freedom to eat too much food. Freedom to start a business. Freedom to hide your money under a mattress. Freedom to be a failure. Freedom to work hard and succeed.

The freedom to choose is what we are losing in this country. The government is slowly taking that freedom away from us. Too many people in this country care about what other people choose to do. I'm a Christian and I don't support abortions, but I realize that it's not my place to make that choice for another person. I've never smoked weed or cigarettes, but it's not my place to make that choice for another person. I don't think our government has the right to re-define marriage as defined by the Christian faith, but two gay people getting married doesn't affect me, so I couldn't care less.

This is the attitude our country needs to adopt. I think it's time we agree to disagree on most topics.  So lets just get out of other peoples' business, and live our lives how we CHOOSE.

Everyone Has an Agenda

Everyone has an agenda these days.  It's pretty disgusting.  And the worst part is that most of the entertainment industry is Democrat, so the country is not receiving an equal amount of agenda-driven media.

When I arrived home from work today, my wife was finishing an episode of Catfish on MTV.  As I began to play with my 8 month old son, the show "Faking It" began on MTV.  Only halfway listening to it in the background, I could already tell how agenda-driven this show is.  I mentioned to my wife that I guaranteed this show was not only going to be pro-gay, but it was also going to be anti-Republican.  In the very next scene, the main character (who is faking being a lesbian) says she doesn't want her "Republican mother to find out."  Needless to say, the mother was speechless and devastated that her daughter was a lesbian.

I'm a huge fan of scary movies.  Last year, my wife and I went to see "The Purge" in theaters on opening night.  As blatantly as possible, The Purge portrayed the right wing (more specifically the Tea Party, NRA, and Sarah Palin) as gun-loving, poor-hating murderers.  It didn't even attempt to hide it's agenda-driven message. 

On the flip side, Hollywood is presented with a "based on a true story" horror movie called "Gosnell".  This man was literally convicted of murdering seven children and one adult.  He is a modern day serial killer that would make a great Hollywood horror flick.  So what's the catch?  Gosnell was an abortion doctor.  Not only was this movie not picked up in Hollywood, but the media actively tried to cover up and block funding for a movie that doesn't support their agenda.  The movie ended up successfully raising 2.1 million dollars via the crowd-funding site, Indie Go-Go.

So what is the difference in the left-dominated media of today, and the propaganda of the Nazi Germany era?  Obviously left-dominated media isn't trying to create a superior race, but they are trying to keep the oppositions ideas from spreading.  They are trying to spread their ideas by making sure their message is louder and more frequent than anyone else's.  

The point of this article is to make people realize that agenda-free media is hard to find.  Not enough people in our country are given the opportunity to decide for themselves what they think is right and wrong.  If you're told to think a certain way enough times, eventually it sinks in.  In an ideal society, everyone would decide for themselves what they believe in, and the best, most popular ideas would succeed.  Unfortunately, too often the loudest ideas are what drive America.

Miss USA and Self Defense

It’s come to my attention that there has been quite a negative response to Miss USA.  Apparently, suggesting that women learn “self-defense” as a way to protect against rape is a bad thing.  This is a common problem with our society today.  Instead of taking someone’s words at face value, people like to imply words and meanings that just aren't there.  Let’s look at some examples.

Pretend a Republican says: “Welfare programs need to be scaled back in this country.  Too many people are fully dependent on the system, and aren't motivated to find a job.”  That does not imply that the Republican thinks all poor people are lazy.  That does not imply that the Republican thinks that poor people don’t need help getting off their feet.  But those are always the conclusions that Democrats jump to when this very common argument is made. 

Now pretend a Democrat says: “We need to scale back government spending on national defense.”  This does not imply that Democrats are weak leaders.  This does not imply that Democrats don’t support our troops.   But again, this is the immediate response we've heard countless times from Republicans against this point.

So back to our “self-defense” comment by Miss USA – she is not saying that it’s okay that rapists rape.  She’s not saying that the problem is that women are weak.  She is simply giving one option that can help stop rape from occurring.  Other options could be to have more police patrols at night, add better street lights down dark alleyways, and increase punishments for convicted rapists.  Why would we not utilize as many strategies as possible to prevent such a horrible act?  The outrage over her comments is completely illogical – and it doesn't surprise me at all. 

Logic Solves Problems

There are so many problems in this country.  How many times have you heard that?  From racism to government spending, we are constantly arguing about how who to blame for these problems and nothing is ever actually solved.

The purpose of this blog is to explain exactly why things are the way they are.  I'm not going to sugar coat anything.  I don't have an agenda.  I do not affiliate myself with any political party.  I take each situation presented to me, and I use simple logic to come to the best, most efficient resolution.  Because that's what normal people do -- they use logic to solve problems.  Yet somehow, the richest, most capable country in the world is unable to solve it's own problems.  How illogical is that?