The Green Movement,

Draining Your Wallet of It!

Most people, especially those at the youngest end of the voting spectrum, have no clue what constitutes a recession. The economic darkness and doom that the Presidential campaigns say that we are operating in is still laughable, but their scare tactics have affected many. Manipulative liberal spin-masters Hilary Clinton and Barack Obama divvy up the undiscerning sheep and feed them such mistruths to feather their own political caps. The media eggs it on. Ever eager to portray America in a negative light, politicians and the Fourth Estate highlight a list of the country’s alleged ills and typically blame it on the present administration. There is no criticism for Congress which in fact bears a much greater guilt for the economic slow-down. The economy becomes sluggish every election cycle too, as people brace for possible change. This election will surely bring alterations one way or another.

The thrust of the current economic fear mongering from the left, regarding our current ills, comes from high energy prices. The responsibility for it belongs, at least in part, with the Democrat championed environmental movement. The ecological hoops that energy companies must hurdle are costly. The green movement and its substantive expenses are passed on to you and me. We see it at the pump, or when turning the thermostat in either direction. Soon you won’t be able to turn on a light bulb in your house without paying the extra five bucks to become “energy efficient.” That may be a good idea, but it must be coupled with removing the shackles off of those sectors of society charged with bringing us energy, cost efficiently. Unfortunately, the removal of restrictions is not likely when one views the potential Presidential candidates. Given the political disadvantage that the Republicans hold this election, it is likely that more regulation will be forced down the throats of Americans, who will also be charged the exorbitant bill.

If you thought $4 per gallon of gas was tough to take, wait until the industry becomes even more regulated. $5 - $10 per gallon at the pump could be in sight if tree-huggers continue to put conservation ahead of national security in their granola at all cost point of view. Certainly America can breathe clean air and drink clean water because of environmentalists. Soon however, we won’t be able to get either because the price of energy to bring them too us will become prohibitive, or our economy will implode. It is after all driven by the very energy that environmentalists continue to stifle. The cycle is on a path to collapse. If you hamstring your economy then you add to the downward spiral.

Just to make it clear the U.S. economy is not in recession and hasn’t been for quite a long time. The current energy price bubble like the stock market, housing and internet bubbles will eventually burst. The distinct definition for recession has not been met. As a matter of fact the economy grew in the first quarter of 2008. The word “grew” should give skeptics a clue. The economy is weak, but still moving positively despite what the media feeds the public. The young in this society became so use to 5% growth and 20% annual housing appreciation that they don't yet realize that we were living in an anomalous times part of a real estate bubble most of their young-adult lives. 2% growth is not what we're use to lately, but it is merely a slower ride, not a car in reverse!

Once again election time is near and a change is in the air as it always is as the American pulse is taken in the only poll that ever really matters, an election. I suspect that the miracle comeback will occur in the economy next spring (especially if a Democrat wins the Presidency). Either way we are likely to pay more for everything, as we always do. The only question is which party do you want inside of your pocket forcing you to pay more? At lease with less smog we’ll be able to see clearly who is screwing the electorate. Betcha it’ll be environmentalists masquerading as politicians!

Heidi, and the Heave-Ho

While inevitability might seem assured, there is one thing human beings are known for; fallibility. We don’t see into the future very well. In January 2007 Rudy Giuliani was the front runner in Republican circles deemed unbeatable. By June 2007 John McCain was left all but for dead in his Presidential aspirations. Senator Clinton was another “shoe-in” regarding the latest round of Presidential politics. If you listened to the hype, spin, and self serving media agendas, none of their names would be on our lips today. McCain would not be the republican Nominee. Giuliani wouldn’t look like such a bust, and Mrs. Clinton would have walked away with the Democrat nomination. Had her party been as wise as the founding fathers they would have used a winner take all strategy in primaries.

The Democrats have it exactly backward. Proportional distribution of votes would be proper if it the republic ever held a national election. The primaries and the General Election are comprised of 50 individual state races not a national one. The whole purpose of the Electoral College is to avoid the Democrat primary catastrophe which the media celebrates today.

And now to top off the pundantry/soothsayer’s inaccurate record, they are harping on the inability for Mrs. Clinton to win because the math doesn’t add up. They have already decided it’s over, she’s lost and they want to give her the “heave-ho, out the door. In normal mathematics classes and contests, the winner must meet the specified goal before being declared the winner. In this case the specified majority number of delegates has not been garnered by either democratic candidate. For that matter the Democrats can’t even agree on total numbers of delegates to capture. Instead they’ve chosen to disenfranchise voters in two large states Florida and Michigan. No delegates for you! The total delegate count is in doubt as Mrs. Clinton is likely to make the case late this month if those two state’s delegations are not seated at the democrat national convention. Regardless of that, even taking the DNC and media bandied number of 2025 delegates needed to win, someone ought to tell the prophesiers that the magic number hasn’t been reached yet by either candidate.

Sports fans would do well to remind the Democrats of The New York Jets - Heidi game of the 1970’s. With barely time left, the network switched off a game which the Jets were too far behind to rally from. The viewers got to watch the children’s flick Heidi instead. Unfortunately fans missed one of the most exciting comeback in sports history.

The Democrat establishment is trying to switch the channel to the Wonderful World of Heidi instead of letting us watch the rest of the game. With such an illustrious record as they have demonstrated in prognostication over the last 15 months, I think political sportsman would like to wait until the gun sounds before flipping the channel. When one candidate reaches the majority of delegates required and it is certifies then the race will be over. That is the point of a political convention by the way. Rushing it now is another backward trend in Democrat. The wishful thinking crowd might better serve us in another industry Perhaps they could administer lotteries, and we could get our prize money before the numbers are drawn.

Wheels on the Bus

“Wheels on the Bus go round and round” so the kindergarten children’s tune goes. A pleasant little ditty it is, until one finds themselves part of a political campaign in America. Those big wheels have been pounding over folks this election season. “Wheels on the bus go thump, thump, thump.” Ask Reverend Jeremiah Wright of Chicago’s Trinity United Church of Christ. Wright is the latest political hit-and-run victim whom the Barrack Obama campaign tossed under the spinning wheels when the campaign association heat got too blistering. The list of victims is long, varied and includes such notables as Geraldine Ferraro, Rev Louis Farrakhan and even President Bill Clinton who was cast aside by Al Gore in 2000 because of Clinton’s Oval office Shenanigans. Such actions bemoan long engrained behavior traits. Robert Fulghum may be right as his book title suggests that “Everything I really need to know I learned in Kindergarten.”

The practice of casting off close confidants to distance oneself from unsavory press coverage is nothing new. It looks even worse when the smear is directed against the candidate themselves. The practice is part of our corrupted culture and bankrupted moral values. Even the guy in the 2008 presidential primary that talks so well is tainted by the knee-jerk desire to have power even if it means sacrificing moral authority. Experience suggests that it is this sort of cat and mouse game that the devious will resort to when they cannot win the race based upon issues. Robert Fulghum may be right as his book title suggests that “Everything I really need to know I learned in Kindergarten.

Since the world was riled up by Farrakhan, Feraro and Wright perhaps our little town can learn the lesson and reject such transparent shams the next time someone attempts one in a council race.

In the year when campaigns seek to rally around “candidate positions” but fall way short, it has to be asked; can local government hope to fair better? The snooty elites around town might realize that what’s good for the masses is good for them also. Then again that is apparently not the lesson anyone learned in Kindergarten.