Epitaph for Western Civilization ?

Tolerance and apathy 

are the last virtues 

of a dying society.

. . . Aristotle

 

Crass but Accurate Assessment of the USA's Current Leaders

To put it bluntly (as well as with crass honesty) the guy Americans have got in the oval office is a lying sack of shit.

The same could be said of Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid but they can justifiably claim diminished capacity.

And the senator who ruled out impeaching the prez by saying “I’ve met Joe Biden” hit the nail on the head.  The VP is just a nut case.

As for Eric Holder, he plainly and simply is a felon who to date repeatedly has escaped being indicted through political pull . . . and he has transformed the Department of Justice into a criminal enterprise.

Other than the foregoing, everything in the good old USA is going just swimmingly.

Thoughts About the Rioters

The perpetually aggrieved currently have their knickers in a collective bunch again.  This time over the decision of a Missouri grand jury to follow the law instead of sacrificing a police officer to mob rule . . . and they of course are exhibiting their displeasure by rioting and looting.

The officer whose head they (and our faux president and his felonious attorney general) have been demanding put down a guy that the media persists in describing as "an unarmed black teenager."  Nowhere do they mention the young thug's criminal history and proclivities, that he clearly was attacking the officer, or that the punk was a huge, hulking, and aggressive menace. 

We once were wise enough to deal with and end riots quickly with effective force.

Now, according to our faux president and his official enforcer, we are supposed to exercise restraint.  Never mind that going easy on mobs prolongs riots and encourages and results in more of them — more deaths, more injuries, and more property losses  (especially at this time of year when the rioters go out carrying their holiday looting lists).

I, for one, would go back to the old practice and shoot rioters down in the streets like the mad dogs they are.  Alternatively, we could just encircle and confine them in and to their own turf,  letting them kill and maim each other and burn and destroy everything in sight in their limited home areas.  And I wouldn’t lift a finger or expend a cent on any restorative efforts.

Well Worth Revisiting

My Vote (and Election Endorsement)

For every office on the ballot, I'm writing in and voting for John Galt.

Something to Ask Before Voting

Don't Worry, Be Happy, the Government Has Got Your Back

Over-theTop Political Correctness

The chancellor of the University of California in Berkeley (purportedly one of America's preeminent institutions of higher learning) recently proclaimed support of free speech . . . provided, he added, that it didn't offend or disturb anyone.

Lest you think the politically correct statist proviso, which underlies and is used as to justify speech codes and other forms of censorship, is over-the-top, take a look here at what is getting consideration at the Federal Communications Commission.

Explaining Myself

A Simple Truth

Noteworthy Truth

Political language is designed 

to make lies sound truthful.

. . . George Orwell

Guideline Worth Observing

Statists' Exit Blocking Impulse

With  productive citizens and businesses leaving America in record numbers, the authoritarian currently running the U.S. -- those whose actions have motivated the departures  -- now are looking frantically for ways block the exits.

They are pursuing the enactment of legal barriers to make it financially impractical for business enterprises to relocate their headquarters and domiciles outside the country.  Many such barriers already are in place for individuals.

Blocking the exits to confine inhabitants apparently is easier and preferable to restoring the environment and culture in which emigrants and potential emigrants used to, and again could live and thrive happily and comfortably.

The exit blocking impulse appears to come naturally to statists like those who not long ago erected and maintained the Berlin Wall. 

Underlying the impulse is a mindset . . . the mindset of slavers and slaveholders . . . in which inhabitants are not free citizens entitled to live where and how they wish but resources (a.k.a. slaves) to be exploited.

Fair's Fair on Racial Investigations

The U.S. Department of JustUs, under and at the direction of the hustling race-card playing A.G. Eric Holder, is embarking on an investigation of the racial policies and practices of the Ferguson, Missouri, police department.

Fair enough . . . although it appears that the results of the 'investigation" have been predetermined by the dishonorable Mr. Holder.

But if for no other reason than to present a comprehensive appearance of even-handed fairness, we also ought to have a simultaneous investigation of the racial polices and practices of Mr. Holder's department . . . and have it done by a competent and truly independent counsel.

Elegance and Beauty

Visit:

Here

and if possible go to full screen.

Peacetime Defined

Peacetime:  One of those brief periods in history when everyone stops shooting to rest up and reload.

Miracle Worker Exposed by Reality

. . . and this predated ISIS and Putin's post reset aggressions against Ukraine.

For a further dose of reality, view and think about the following post.

Fantasies and Illusions of a Peaceful World

The following is from John S. Farnam, a veteran combat officer who is one of America's foremost defensive shooting and personal security instructors, s longtime law enforcement officer, and frequently an expert court witness on use of force issues:

War, from now on!

"Don't worry, be happy..." 
                       . . . From the song of the same title, 
                     recorded by Bobby McFerrin in 1988

Enough contemporary fantasy!  Now let's listen to James Madison:

"'Universal peace.'  It is to be feared!  It is in the catalogue  of events which will never exist, except in the imaginations of visionary philosophers, or the breasts of benevolent enthusiasts."

Today, we call naive visionary philosophers and benevolent enthusiasts "liberals"

I wonder how much support he would have garnered, if FDR had referred to Imperial Japan of 1941 as "radical Japanese extremists," and, in the wake of their sneak-attack on Pearl Harbor, weakly, hesitatingly indicated that his only  real goal was to trim back Imperial Japan to a "manageable problem!"

Even sleazy leftist, David Cameron in the UK, has the courage to call for the absolute destruction of ISIS.  No "management" for him!

Three-hundred more American "advisors" are now being feebly re-sent to Iraq, after being prematurely withdrawn.  All this, despite repeated
dishonest promises of "no boots on the ground."  I'm sure they're all  wearing wingtips!

Over here, BHO, surrounded by a gaggle of aging frat-boys, none of whom have ever had a real job, and who have no concept of military operations,
appears confused, disinterested, and wants only for the American public to ignore the disintegrating foreign situation, so they can concentrate on his liberal domestic agenda, which, of course, has failed at every turn.  But,
for overconfident liberals, unwavering loyalty to leftist dogma is always more important than actual outcomes.

Nonetheless,  we're continuously assured that soon we'll all be living  in a liberal paradise, where no one ever does any work and only Democrats get
elected.  Unfortunately, few of us will be living at all, and the New Dark Age will be anything but a "paradise."

Still, such drivel is music to the naive ears of the forty percent of our  "work force" that does no work, that is permanently, willfully unemployed,
indeed unemployable, and has been for generations.  Eking out a living on an endless buffet of government handouts designed to keep them perpetually unproductive, their sole function in life is to vote for Democrats.

That is the liberal "legacy" we've inherited.

"Nothing is so permanent as a 'temporary' government program."                                                . . . Milton Friedman

Meanwhile, the rest of the civilized world is disintegrating at a frightening pace.  Pitiable islands of Western Civilization are being  snuffed-out one by one.  We, and what is left of the rest of Western  Civilization, will shortly be presented with the unsavory "choice" of living  under Putin's Communists, or ISIS' Islamic "purity."  Curiously, neither  entity (nor BHO himself) likes our Second Amendment, not yet completely  destroyed by liberals (through no fault of their own).  I'm sure that comes  as a big surprise!

In this world, civilizations come and go.  Ours is teetering!

"You may leave here for four days in space.  But, when you return,  it's the same old place!"                                . . . From "Eve of Destruction," protest 
                         song, written in 1965 by PF Sloan.
                        (Most famous rendition was  Barry 
                             McGuire's, from the same year.)

Reflecting the Quality of the Electorate

A Problem With the Donkey

A preacher wanted to raise money for his church and on being told that there was a fortune in horse racing, decided to purchase a horse and enter it in the races. However, at the local auction, the going price for horses was so high that he ended up buying a donkey instead. He figured that since he had it, he might as well go ahead and enter it in the races. To his surprise, the donkey came in third!

  

The next day the local paper carried this headline: PREACHER’S ASS SHOWS.

The preacher was so pleased with the donkey that he entered it in the race again, and this time it won. The paper read: PREACHER’S ASS OUT IN FRONT.

The Bishop was so upset with this kind of publicity that he ordered the preacher not to enter the donkey in another race. The paper headline read: BISHOP SCRATCHES PREACHER’S ASS.

This was too much for the Bishop, so he ordered the preacher to get rid of the donkey. The preacher decided to give it to a nun in a nearby convent. The paper headline the next day read: NUN HAS BEST ASS IN TOWN.

The Bishop fainted in shock. When he came to he informed the nun that she would have to get rid of the donkey, so she sold it to a farmer for $10.00.

The next day the headline read: NUN SELLS ASS FOR $10.00.

This was too much for the Bishop, so he ordered the nun to buy back the donkey, lead it to the plains, and let it go.

Next day, the headline in the paper read: NUN ANNOUNCES HER ASS IS WILD AND FREE.

The Bishop was buried the next day.

Spot the Differences

President George W. Bush's speech after the capture of Saddam Hussein:

"The success of yesterday's mission is a tribute to our men and women now serving in Iraq. The operation was based on the superb work of intelligence analysts who found the dictator's footprints in a vast country. The operation was carried out with skill and precision by a brave fighting force. Our servicemen and women and our coalition allies have faced many dangers in the hunt for members of the fallen regime, and in their effort to bring hope and freedom to the Iraqi people. Their work continues, and so do the risks. Today, on behalf of the nation, I thank the members of our Armed Forces and I congratulate them!"

Barrack Hussein Obama's speech after the killing of Osama bin Laden:

"And so shortly after taking office,  I  directed Leon Panetta, the Director of the CIA, to make the killing or capture of bin Laden the top priority of our war against al Qaeda, even as we continued our broader efforts to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat his network.  Then, last August, I was briefed on a possible lead to bin Laden. It was far from certain, and it took many months to run this thread to ground.  I met repeatedly with my national security team as we developed more information about the possibility that we had located bin Laden hiding within a compound deep inside of Pakistan. And finally, last week, I determined that we had enough intelligence to take action, and I authorized an operation to get Osama bin Laden and bring him to justice. Today, at my direction, the United States launched a targeted operation against that compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan."

Cogent Commentary

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Myron Magnet
 
Constitution Party

 
It’s past time for Republicans to take action against President Obama’s lawlessness.
 
31 July 2014 

What’s wrong with Republicans? Here is a Democratic president who has declared, and demonstrated, that he will not be bound by the Constitution but will do whatever he can do—both within and beyond his constitutional powers—to cram his agenda down the nation’s throat. But since Republicans control one house of Congress, and that one chamber controls the purse, why is the GOP as paralyzed as a deer in the headlights to arrest such a power grab? And why has the Speaker of the House made himself so negligible a figure on the national stage, most recently by addressing the Obama-created border crisis with an immigration bill as feeble and irrelevant as it is unpopular, when he and his majority have such power at their command to counter a president who has passed beyond the bounds the Founders set for the national executive?

No doubt, the president is impeachable. Of course he hasn’t committed high crimes, in the sense of beheading citizens after star-chamber trials—though if it be true that he knew of and approved the IRS’s mistreatment of conservative nonprofit groups, that would certainly be a high crime, no less than President Nixon’s Watergate cover-up was such a crime, as the tapes he lacked the sang-froid to destroy showed. But the Constitution specifically envisioned impeachment for such unconstitutional misdemeanors as a president’s not carrying out his oath to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution and to take care that the laws be faithfully executed—the president’s main constitutional duty. So government by edict, like that exercised by Charles I or Lenin—as when President Obama simply decrees rolling changes in his half-digested health-care law, or when he opens the border to “children” in contravention of our immigration laws—is prima facie impeachable conduct. 

But politics, it’s worth emphasizing these days, is the art of the possible; and impeachment is politically unrealistic. Even if Republicans win a famous victory in the upcoming senatorial elections, they will come nowhere near having the two-thirds Senate vote needed to convict. So impeachment would be mere political theater, which the Democrats seem to think would greatly help their fundraising and voter-turnout prospects—it would show “progressivism” under attack, by extremists and racists, as Attorney General Eric Holder likes to charge with equal measures of obtuseness and malice. And Democrats are right in this electoral calculation, because Republicans have no Sam Ervin—no one as eloquent and learned in the law and in history to make the case, as Democrat Ervin came breathtakingly close to doing in the Watergate hearings, that the president had crossed the line into tyranny.

For now, Republicans should use the power of the purse as effectively as they can, and should try their damnedest to explain why they’re doing what they’re doing. They have made a good start by cutting the IRS’s enforcement budget by 25 percent. They should go further: cut the agency’s total budget by 50 percent, until the IRS produces the evidence that the House has subpoenaed, and and which the IRS at first claimed had accidentally been destroyed. Let IRS staff be fired or salaries slashed, until someone feels the pain enough to admit what happened. 

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has crammed through Senate confirmation a Joe McCarthyesque new administrator for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission? Then defund FERC entirely—and take to the talk shows to lay out the reasons why shaking down citizens for offenses neither they nor anyone else knew existed is unacceptable. President Obama has made illegal appointments to the National Labor Relations Board, which renders null and void all regulations and rulings that the board has made since then? Defund the NLRB, 100 percent. The president has unilaterally repealed our immigration laws? Let the House reaffirm them, and pass a resolution censuring the president for his lawlessness. And let Republican congressmen explain again and again that the Constitution didn’t create a king, and that the ancestors of today’s Democrats, with Thomas Jefferson at their head, were vigilant—indeed, verging on paranoid—in guarding against such a possibility. Nor did the Constitution give America a queen: so Mrs. Obama’s endless vacations, triumphal progresses of a lavishness that Marie Antoinette would have envied, should be condemned as outside the American tradition, even were it not a time when a whole generation is suffering the economic consequences of the administration’s no-growth policies.

An opposition party can only do so much when it controls but one house of Congress, but the Founders’ system of checks and balances not only licenses but positively enjoins it to do whatever it can to rein in lawlessness in the other branches. Let the House do its duty, not by rushing to the Supreme Court as if it were the school principal, but by defunding whatever unconstitutional measures it can. An important part of that duty is to explain, with as much wisdom and eloquence as it can muster on every Sunday talk show, why the Constitution demands such actions—and what kind of republic the Constitution’s Framers envisioned.

Myron Magnet, City Journal’s editor-at-large and a recipient of the National Humanities Medal, is the author of The Founders at Home, recently published by Norton.

Perceptive Observation From Abroad

Restroom Editorial Comment

Someone put this sticker on the hand dryer unit at a Jacksonville , Florida, Cracker Barrel restaurant:

Our Governing Geniuses Are Bankrolling Terrorism

America for all intents and purposes has abandoned its claimed policy of not negotiating with terrorists.

Or perhaps we just finance the thugs without talking to them.

In any event, Hamas, which the U.S. officially identifies as a terrorist organization, governs Gaza, which is getting $47 million taxpayer dollars from the Obama Administration.  

The money, of course, supposedly is to be used for "humanitarian purposes."  However, money is fungible, which means that our money will be used to provide food, shelter, and medical care for the residents of Gaza, thus freeing up other funds that the terrorist government otherwise would -- to some extent -- have to use for those purposes.  And the freed up funds can, are, and always will be used to finance and provide arms and ammunition and other lethal tools for the terrorist trade -- activities that are the raison d'etre of Hamas, which is committed to extinguishing the State of Israel and killing its people.

On top of that, our 'leaders' now appear to begging the bloodthirsty gang to take more of our money in exchange for stopping -- for a smidgen of time -- their rocket attacks on Israel.  Here is the capsule summary  report from today's edition of The Wall Street Journal: 

The U.S. and its allies are working on a Gaza truce plan to assure Hamas its economic demands will be met if it stops rocket strikes on Israel. 

Terrorism is a great business.  You take money from people who supposedly won't negotiate with you and attack your neighbor . . . and then the same people who lavish their citizens' money on you beg you to take more to stop the attacks. . . even if only for a little while.

Who says there is no such thing as perpetual motion?