DEMOCRATS SHOULD KEEP FOLLOWING OBAMA'S LEAD

OBAMA'S LEADERSHIP HAS BEEN A LOSER FOR THE DEMOCRATS

OBAMA AND THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY

WILL 2016 BE ANY DIFFERENT?

Obama likes to expound on how many successes he has had in his presidency. His biggest achievement (at least in his mind) is the Affordable Care Act, which was passed without a single Republican vote. This of course was the Republicans' fault as they were not cooperative with the President. This bill was passed with every partisan tactic that could be mustered, including open bribery. Then he laments that the country is so divided, and of course it is the opposition's fault for not cooperating with the President. Any legislation that affects the whole population in a dramatic way for years to come should always be a long deliberate process with input from all. This was not the case and was the start of the divisions in the Congress. This President has a lot of nerve to talk about others who are divisive. He has intentionally fostered a climate of division in every aspect of American life. I would like to know one area in which America is more united during his term.

As for his results for the Democrat party as a whole - it is a dismal failure by every measure. He has moved his party so far to left that they will soon be off the map. Let's look at some of Obamas results that can be measured and are not some ephemeral dream.

United States Governors 2008       29 Dems  21 Rep.

                                        2015       18 Dems  31 Rep.

                 

Democratic Loss  - 11 Governors

                   ---------------------------------

U.S. Senate                     2008        58 Dems  41 Rep.

                                        2015        44 Dems  54 Rep.

                

Democratic Loss   -14 Senators

                     ---------------------------------

U.S House                      2008          257 Dems.  178 Rep.

                                       2015          188 Dems.   247 Rep.

Democratic Loss   - 69 U.S house seats.

                     ----------------------------------

State Legislative control     2008      27 Dems     14 Rep. 8 split

                                            2015      19 Dems.    27 Rep.  3 split

Democratic loss      -8

Republican gain     +13

                      ---------------------------------

I guess this can be blamed on the stupid voters, or as he stated after 2014 "that it tells us about those that did not vote"... meaning that the Senators and House members that lost didn't run on his agenda.

That brings us to 2016, and we see the Democrat candidates for President moving farther to the left than ever. Many marvel at Hillary Clinton's recent drop in the polls. Does anyone wonder if it is connected to her endorsing the idea of giving drivers licenses to illegal aliens and proposing that gun manufactures and dealers should be financially liable for crimes committed with guns? If this is acceptable, then car manufactures should be liable for drunk driving accidents. I am sure her liability lawyer supporters applaud this. Her talk at the "Black and Brown Forum" (which I thought was the logo of some Iowa college, but learned it was for Black and Brown Americans) was hidden so that mainstream America was unable to actually watch it.  At this forum the other night she went as far as to claim that white terrorism is as much a problem as Islamic terrorism.

Obama has put out the word that any state or federal candidate that does not endorse and campaign on his agenda will lose his and the party's support. Thank you, Mr. President. I hope you make this statement loud and often. We will see how this works out.  

        



LEHIGH COUNTY'S HEROIN EPIDEMIC'S LONG TERM CONSEQUENSES

 DRUG USE DECRIMINALIZATION & CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM

LEHIGH  VALLEY  HEROIN  EPIDEMIC

 

Two trends that have been prominent nationwide are "drug use decriminalization" and

"criminal justice reform." While we all must admit the so-called "War on Drugs" has been an abysmal failure, I am not sure that the new approaches are the answer to a very serious problem. The government has been able to place itself as the arbitrator of morality and what is acceptable in society; morality has mostly been decided by activist special interest groups.  While the idea that not prosecuting peoples' behavior in the privacy of their home is pretty much an American tradition, we need to be careful that decriminalization does not become an imprimatur by society that drug use is a good and acceptable lifestyle. How can common drug use be decriminalized, and also not lead to an increase in drug demand?  I remember the public service messages that we used to have against drug use - I don't see them anymore. Possibly much more effort at drug education needs to be encouraged by schools and parents; maybe we need a nationwide effort similar to Mothers Against Drunk driving.

The President's and others efforts for criminal justice reform mostly affects drug traffickers. While the image of people being locked away for years for smoking marijuana has been fostered, it is far from the truth. There are mandatory sentences on the books for possession of certain amounts of drugs. These classes vary, but they are large amounts that indicate drug trafficking. These people are being labeled, "non-violent felony drug convictions". While there may be cases that should be reviewed, a blanket amnesty is a real bad move. This again will very likely increase the demand for drug use.

Having talked to some in the criminal justice system, the instance of heroin use and addiction has reached epidemic numbers here in Northern Lehigh County. Most of these addicts start by taking common prescription painkillers, then find that heroin is more readily available and less costly. Many of these addicts are starting out in the middle school years. Parents need to be aware and pay attention to any medications they have in the home. The treatment of heroin addiction generally has very poor results; good results are the exception. The heroin available today is very high quality and there have been over 3000 deaths in Pennsylvania in the last 5 years. There is also a large increase in hepatitis C connected to this use as it is often a social event. The other byproduct is an increase in burglary, retail theft, and prostitution to support their drug habit.  While the price of heroin has dropped today so much that it's similar to the cost of beer, this may be a marketing strategy by the drug cartels. When they feel the market has expanded enough, they raise the price. This could result in an explosion of theft and other crimes .

This heroin use epidemic will become a long term problem, it will result in many destroyed lives and the lives of their offspring. It affects all members of their families and has many negative consequences for the community. It is not like the drug use of the past, this is a suicidal habit that the majority of users will never overcome.

Middle East Crisis Part 4

HOW DID WE GET HERE

MIDDLE EAST CRISIS part 4

Israel

Any discussion about the Middle East would not be complete without a discussion of Israel. My goal in these short topics is to give an overview so we can all get a sense of the political and cultural complexities of this ancient area. My hope is to convey important and relevant facts without getting into overlong treatise on these subjects. There is no end to how much could be written about the Middle East.

Abraham and Sarah were both from Ur which was in modern day southern Iraq. Sarah was barren and allowed Abraham to have children through her Egyptian maid Hagar. Hagar gave birth to Ishmael. Later Sarah bore a son Isaac and according to the Scriptures there was constant contention between Sarah and Hagar. Finally Sarah convinced Abraham to put out Hagar and Ishmael. According to Scripture, Ishmael was to become the father of many tribes and many descendants. This is the tradition that is accepted by the Arab tribes... that they are all descended from Abraham. This is a piece of the long standing enmity between Jews and other Middle East populations.

Now we all know the story of Egypt and the exodus, and eventually the nation of Israel.  The nation had disputes and eventually split into two parts, the northern 10 tribes remained Israel while the southern tribes of Judah and Benjamin became known as Judah. The northern nation was conquered by the Babylonians and most of the population was taken captive and lost their identity. The southern nation of Judah lasted some additional years until it also was conquered and most of the population taken off to Babylon, which is present day Iraq. The word "Jew" was short for the tribe of Judah, which was able to keep its identity and had populations around the world. Eventually Assyria was conquered by Persia, which is present day Iran, and some of the remaining Jews were allowed to return to Jerusalem  and rebuild a temple. The whole Middle East was conquered by the Greek, Alexander the Great, then later the area was controlled by Rome. Many small tribes and groups were killed, dispersed or incorporated into other groups. With the advent of Mohammed around 700 AD, there was a succession of Caliphs -  some ruled small areas, some ruled much larger areas of the Middle East.  Persia, which is present day Iran, Syria, Lebanon, and Egypt, was able to keep its boundaries, which while not exact, are still somewhat what they were in ancient times. It is interesting that if you read about the interactions of these countries in the Middle East they all had a sort of personality that has endured. There was a period of Crusader rule in Judea in the Middle Ages. The last Caliphate was the Ottoman Empire ruled by Turkey. It was dissolved after WW1 and the whole area became part of the British Mandate established by the League of Nations.

The first Zionist convention was held in Zurich in 1897. Its premise was to establish a homeland for Jews somewhere in the Judea or Palestine area.  There were many periods of anti-Semitism in Europe off and on for centuries.  This was partly due to the Jewish people keeping their identity as a separate people within other cultures. Interestingly, the Scriptures say that due to their stubborn and rebellious relationship with God they would be wanderers in foreign lands; it has certainly been the case. The climax of this anti-Semitism was Nazi Germany's persecution of the Jews in an unprecedented way. While the Jewish population in the Palestine area was increasing for some time, it increased significantly during and after WWII. On March 17, 1948 the Jews of the area declared independence and the creation of the state of Israel. It was recognized by the British and the United Nations. It was immediately attacked by its neighbors, Syria, Egypt, Lebanon, and Jordan. Israel was able to prevail in the 1948 war. There were wars in 1967 and 1973, and Israel was again able to prevail; finally a peace was signed with Egypt in 1978. Without Egypt, the chances of defeating Israel in war was very unlikely. There was also a peaceful co-existence with Jordon. The aftermath of the last 2 wars resulted in a large numbers of refugees and Israel held certain territory like Gaza and the Golan Heights which created a security buffer zone for the state, that is less than the size of New Jersey. This has resulted in 40 + years of disputes. Whether things might have been different without the wars and a co-existence could have been created it is all speculation now. This is the situation that the world has no easy way of resolving. 

There have been continuous threats of annihilation by Iran, Iraq under Saddam, and most terrorist entities, with no resolution in sight. While Israel is not the only problem in the Middle East, it is certainly a major part of the ongoing crisis. At present, Israel has a reasonably sound and peaceful relationship with Egypt and Jordon. Lebanon is mostly controlled by Hezbollah which is a ally of Iran and has perpetrated terrorist acts against Israel. Syria has been an adversary to Israel, but now is fighting for its own existence. The Palestinian entity has refused to acknowledge Israel's right to exist, wants a separate territory as its own, and also wants the right to emigrate into Israel. Israel would cease to exist as a safe haven for Jews, if it allowed unlimited immigration into the country. This is the situation that the world has no easy way of resolving. There again is an interesting Scripture, that states that "Israel would become a weight too heavy for the nations to lift".

PART 5 TO FOLLOW



Br'er Gunny Rabbit and Br'er Barak Fox.

OBAMAS NEW GUN PROPOSALS

BR'ER GUNNY RABBIT AND  BR'ER BARAK  FOX

BETTER KNOW THE POLITICS OF YOUR DOCTOR

President Obama, with much drama and fanfare, unveiled his new proposals for controlling guns. At the same time he is proposing in other forums the releasing of many felons from jail.

  

His first proposal is that all sellers of firearms no matter how few guns they may sell, must be licensed as a dealers of firearms. YAH-HOO, this is welcome news to thousands of gun enthusiasts for over 20 years. When the gun control act of 1968 was passed, one of the sweeteners for the gun enthusiasts was that a license to sell would be available to anyone who was checked out by ATF.  Then in the hoop-la about guns in the 1990's, the Clinton administration decided it was prudent to limit the amount of gun dealers in the country.  So ATF added restrictions requiring commercial locations, zoning, and security which cut the number of dealers by 150,000 - nearly half of the number that existed before the legislation.  Before this, thousands of older retired people had part-time businesses buying and selling guns at gun shows, etc. - to many it was as much a social event as a business. This was all before the Internet. There have been attempts by many to get a license to sell and buy online, but these attempts have been rejected by ATF. As it now stands, if you sell a firearm to someone in another state it must be shipped to a licensed firearms dealer in the state of the buyer; he or she must then undergo a background check before taking possession of the weapon. This can add an additional cost of $20.00 to $50.00, which is determined by the dealer. I predict that ATF will be deluged with applications for a license - which will allow anyone to have guns shipped by other dealers directly to them. Since they are licensed dealers, they will also be able to purchase guns at shows and dealers without a background check. I doubt that Obama and his administration, unless he has some other hidden agenda, is serious about this. He will need to hire more people to issue licenses than to do background checks. Background checks will plummet, as they will no longer be necessary for many people. Br'er gunny rabbit has been thrown by Br'er Barak fox into a wonderful briar patch.

As for doctors, psychiatrists, and other  medical people being able to put people on the no-buy list, this is very dangerous. Any attempt to limit peoples' constitutional rights without due process is the worst form of dictatorial overreach. This is especially problematic now that medical records are available to government official by provisions of the Affordable Care Act.  It is not a far stretch to believe that government officials can search medical records for anyone who has been treated for depression or anxiety or any other emotional problem as many people seek help with problems of divorce, death in a family, etc. Social Security and  the Veterans administration are already doing some of this...Big Brother is here now.

So now, to be prudent, we will need to never divulge any personal information to doctors or other health care workers and we may have to seek out doctors whose political affiliations and view points we are able to verify. Does anyone doubt that there exists some far left activist medical personnel, who may think the best plan would be to put everyone on this list?

How many people will now be reluctant to seek help with any emotional problems they may be experiencing?  Also if this is tolerated, what other rights can be restricted without due process?  This administration needs to place its aim on the real causes of gun violence...CRIMINALS.

see also: GUN CONTROL  VS  CRIMINAL CONTROL from Oct. 28




Northwestern Lehigh Teachers Union Hypocrisy

NORTHWESTERN LEHIGH TEACHERS UNION HAS SHORT MEMORY

"If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything.” Mark Twain

  

It has come to our attention that the teachers union has posted a graph showing the fund balance accumulated over the last 6 years. This is interesting in that the union members endorsed candidates for school director and circulated campaign literature during the primary that stated the then current board had run budget deficits for the last 3 years. Teachers union members also espoused those untruths to the community. We now see that these untruthful methods were all about electing school directors that will pad the pockets of the union members. Below is a copy of their post on the union Facebook page.

 I have never heard anyone compare lifetime career compensation. Other than professional athletes whose careers are often short due to injuries, does anyone in the private sector attempt to talk about lifetime career compensation?

As for their wages declining over the past 6 years, they have received raises between 2.9% and 3% every year.  This is comparable with most other school districts. Their wages increased 28.7% from 2008 to 2015.  The total taxpayer wage increases in NW Lehigh were 17.6% over that period. These are real factual numbers calculated from the union contract and from the earned income revenue of the district. Comparing wages with more affluent school districts without taking into account the increase or decrease in the wages of the taxpayers is irrelevant and unacceptable.

If the fact that the school board (with cooperation of the administration) has increased the fund balance by responsible use of taxpayer dollars is going to be a problem for the union, then the fund balance should be returned to the taxpayers. These balances have been set aside for downturns in the economy and emergencies. We have heard complaints from some that the several million dollars spent from the fund balance to replace the 50-year old heating system should have been borrowed to keep money on hand to fund the teacher's out-of-control pension fund. These monies in the fund balance are the property of the taxpayers, not the union.

The union was offered pay increases, 3.4% each year for 3 years, which is approximately 30% above what has been granted to other school districts in recent years. The only reason that there is no contract after 171 days is because the union believes it will get a better deal from the new board it helped to elect.

Below is a copy of the campaign literature of the school teachers union endorsed candidates.

This is the flyer that was distributed by the above candidates and the teachers union. As you can see,  they stated that there was a deficit for every year, and that by the end of their term there would be a total deficit of $5,200,000.  This flyer, as stated at the bottom right, was paid for by the candidates listed on the flyer. One might excuse the new candidates due to the fact that they had never attended a school board meeting and may not have been aware of the facts. But I must assume that the leader of this slate, Willard Dellicker, the sitting president of the school board, must have known the facts concerning the fund balances.  Mr. Dellicker has been a member of the school board for decades; I don't know how this could have happened. I hope Mr. Dellicker can explain to the residents of the district, that he represents on the school board, how this erroneous information was endorsed by him.   I don't recall any attempts to correct this during the election or after. This flyer was distributed by members of the union to their neighbors and members of the community who trusted their knowledge of the finances of the school. These facts could have been checked at any time by just asking the superintendent or the business manager, but I assume they did not. How are they going to repair their credibility with their neighbors and members of the community?

Now we see that they found that there is actually a fund balance increase of some $11,000,000, in the last 4 years.  I wonder were they obtained this truthful information. It is ironic that they now believe there is an increase in the fund balance and they should have a share of it.





Governor Wolf Losing Crisis War

GOVERNOR  WOLF  LOSING  CRISIS  WAR

IS HE WILLING TO FIGHT TO LAST MAN?

Governor Wolf  has finally relented and released the school hostages. He has now allowed funds to be released for schools and some other services. Interestingly, he and his staff have been paid on schedule through this whole ordeal. This could have happened many months ago, as the legislature proposed many fixes to not put stress on schools and other important funding.

The Governor has in effect lost this battle. It was doomed from the beginning, when he believed that he could put political pressure on his adversaries by creating a fiscal crisis. The economic realities are changing and taxpayers are fed up with tax increases everywhere. Politicians of all stripes must adapt by adopting methods of fiscal responsibility to make due with what is currently available. Harrisburg is long overdue for reform. The tendency to start the budget process by deciding how much they would like to spend is the reverse of good management. How about starting out by determining how much money they can expect to receive and then managing accordingly. I am sorry to say, that there is really very little proper management in government. If they don't have enough money, they just raise taxes...which takes more money out the private sector, so there is less to spend and invest in the economy and then they wonder why we have a stagnant economy at all levels.

How about the Governor and the legislature working together to start an economic revolution in government.  They should spend the next year looking at every program and expenditure and scrapping and eliminating inefficient and wasteful endeavors. Does anyone contend that there is no room for things to be eliminated or re-evaluated?  I would expect that they could find several billion dollars in savings. Then look to the future of the state by making it one of the best states in the nation in which to do business and create wealth. This idea of eating the seed corn, which is the norm, will only lead to a stagnant, declining economy.

Pennsylvania is the 10th highest state in taxes - this is not something to be proud of.  It also is the 11th highest in education spending. More spending is not always an indication of success. The pension system is a real crisis that should be a priority for attention. The real solution is to take the money in the fund and distribute to all in the system, which they can roll over into a 401K-like program. The government bodies and the government employees can then contribute a defined amount to their own pension.  I can hear the wailing and gnashing of teeth now, but the pension is now only earning half of what is needed to make it viable. In the next major downturn, which could very well be on the horizon, many states will be in default and the pensions will not get paid.  It is not possible to tax our way out of this crisis.

While I have not seen Governor Wolf's actual future plan for the budget, it seems he is going to attempt to hold some more items hostage. This plan is over, his troops are in retreat, he has grossly miscalculated the situation. His recriminations to the legislature last week did not help; he needs to make a decision to move on or he will end up politically like Custer.

Middle east Crisis part 3 iraq

HOW DID WE GET HERE?

MIDDLE EAST CHAOS part 3

IRAQ

 

Iraq, the home of the garden of Eden, Ur, the birthplace of Abraham, Sumaria, Babylon, Assyria, the birthplace of civilization itself. With Bagdad as its capital, it used to remind us of Aladdin, Arabian Nights, caravans, magic carpets, genie's, bazaars and all the images from movies and tales of the past.  A place that I always dreamt of visiting, but never will. Today it brings forth vastly different images.

 

Modern Iraq was ruled by the Ottoman empire until its dissolution in 1917, at the end of WW1. Under the French/British plan to divide the middle east it became part of the British Mandate. On November 1, 1920 the region became a British Mandate under the League of Nations and was called the "State of Iraq". Britain brought in a (Sunni) Hashemite king from what is now Saudi-Arabia to rule, sparking widespread discontent and rebellion.

 

In 1932, Iraq gained partial independence from Britain, although the British-appointed King Faisal ruled, the British military had special rights in Iraq. The Hashemite's ruled until 1958, when King Faisal 11 was assassinated in a coup by Brigadier General Abd al-Karim Qasim. Qasim ruled for 5 years before being overthrown in 1963 by colonel Abdul Salam Arif.  His brother took power after his death and lasted until 1968 when he was overthrown by the Ba'ath Party. The Ba'athist government was ruled by Ahmed Hasan Al-Bakir , but was slowly eclipsed by Saddam Hussein.

Iraq is a majority Shia population mostly in the south and east, Sunni in the north and west and Kurd in the north. There have been disputes with the Kurds off and on for years. Iraq was supported by the United States as part of the Cold -War diplomacy. They were on opposite sides in the Israeli-Arab conflicts of 1948, 1967, 1973. There were attempts to unify Iraq and Syria by the mutually ruled Ba'athist party. This idea was rejected by Saddam Hussein.

 

Saddam Hussein formally seized power as president in 1979. Saddam Hussein was a secularist, but the Ba'athist party was Sunni, the majority of the country was Shi'ite. Saddam Hussein initiated reforms, including universal compulsory education including university, free national medical care and farm subsidies. He also was brutal to all that opposed him and executed many. The Ayatollah Khomeini, the new leader of the Iranian Revolution hoped he could incite Iraq's Shi'ite population to rise up in a Islamic revolution. Saddam Hussein then launched an invasion of Iran in 1980, hoping to topple the Iranian Government. He was supported by Saudi-Arabia, the gulf states, Russia and the United States. The eight year war ended in a standstill costing a million casualties.  The war finally ended in 1989 with a peace plan brokered by the UN and the western powers.

There was an ongoing dispute with Kuwait over portions of  Iraq ceded to Kuwait by the British. This dispute reached a crisis in 1990. There is some debate as to the signals sent by the U.S. in this matter. The U.S. and Iraq had reasonable diplomatic relations at this time. The official line was that the U.S. made it clear, not to invade Kuwait. The ambassador was April Glaspie who had several conversations with Iraq before this invasion took place. You can judge for yourself , as the transcripts of the hearings on this matter are available here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_Glaspie  .  Iraq invaded Kuwait in August 1990, The UN, led by the U.S., launched operation desert storm in February 1991. Saudi-Arabia was used as the staging area for this war.  The Iraqi army was destroyed with approximately 30,000 dead.  While Saddam Hussein was left in power he was under UN Sanctions and compelled to allow inspections of certain sites.

 

After the war, U.S. troops remained in Saudi-Arabia and this was a contentious issue with many Saudi's including Osama Bin Laudin. Bin Laudin made it known that the stationing of foreign troops in the home of Mecca and Medina was an affront to Islam.  Although he and his associates were exiled out of Saudi-Arabia, they were able to engineer the attacks on the world trade center and pentagon on September 11, 2001. This brought about an invasion of Afghanistan , destruction of Bin Laudin's bases in Afghanistan , and the overthrow of the Taliban government and a beginning of the war on terror.

 

The U.S. under the second Bush administration was increasingly inclined to remove Saddam Hussein from office. He was linked to an attempted assassination of his father, George Bush Sr., he was paying $25,000 to the families of Palestinian suicide bombers in Israel. There began a concerted effort to gain international support for the removal of Saddam Hussein. Eventually claiming that the dictator had weapons of mass destruction that would end up in the hands of al-Qaeda.  On March 20, 2003 the invasion of Iraq began, it did not take long to overcome the Iraqi army. the Iraqi's in general were happy to be rid of Saddam Hussein, but not happy about the occupation. While there was not a clear stated policy,  the plan was to bring a democratic government to the center of the middle east. While the intentions may have been well meaning, it was a very difficult endeavor. The new Government, was majority Shia, the former army was mostly ruled by Sunni Officer corps. Most of these members lost their positions,. and some became affiliated with al-Qaeda and eventually ISIS.

 

President Obama campaigned on ending the U.S. involvement in Iraq. The Obama/ Clinton premature withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq and a government that was not inclusive of the Sunni minority left a void of power that was soon filled by ISIS. When confronted by Sunni fighters the Iraqi government forces often refused to fight for a government for whom they had a weak allegiance. The question remains how long would the U.S. commitment need to be to insure a lasting democratic government in Iraq?

 

PART 4 TO FOLLOW