I don't know anyone that voted for Hillary Clinton today

It is the 8^th of November 2016 and I don’t know anyone who voted for Hillary Clinton.  I suspect that I won’t find anyone if I look the rest of the day or the week or the month or the year.

What?

I don’t know anyone who voted for Obama in 2008 or 2012.  Seriously, I don’t know a single person who voted for him.  When I think back on it, I don’t know anyone that voted for Bill Clinton in 1992 or 1996 either.  I know some people who voted for him for governor, but not for president.

Put aside your partisan politics for a moment and consider this.  Most people in the United States do not remember who they voted for in the last Presidential Election.  I don't remember and I suspect that you don't either.  So you think I'm nuts do you?  Well that may be true, but I'm certain of my facts.

I also have it on good authority that fewer than 600 people voted for Bill Clinton in 1992, and even with his mandate in 1996, there were fewer than 538 that voted for him that year.  I'm not getting these figures from some straw poll I conducted in downtown Burns Flat, America--though that is both the cultural and political center of this great republic (OK, that last part is only opinion, but the rest of this article is fact).  Being the only Republican from a family of Democrats, I often am not taken seriously when I tell them that I have never met anyone that voted for Clinton.  Still don't believe me?  So you want answers?  You want the truth?  You can't handle the truth.  In 1992, only 370 people voted for Clinton.  In 1996, only 379 people voted for him, but sure enough that's him in the oval office. 

 Want to know more?  The real election for president didn't occur until December in 1992 and in 1996.  We have narrowed it down to 538 people that could have voted for Clinton in 1996--and you thought we conducted elections by secret ballot.  Actually, the people that elected our current president even signed their names to their ballot and your government knows who they are.    You say that 538 number sounds familiar, but you can't quite place it.  It's got nothing to do with the grassy knoll or the number of times that your Microsoft operated computer shuts down each day due to an illegal operation.  That's right it's the total number of Senators and Representatives in the United States Congress, but they don't elect the president.  In fact, they are not even permitted to vote for the president.   So is this coincidence or conspiracy? 

 Actually, it's neither.  It's Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution of the United States of America that provides for the election of a United States President.  "Each State shall appoint, in such Manner as the Legislature thereof may direct, a Number of Electors, equal to the whole Number of Senators and Representatives to which the State may be entitled in the Congress: but no Senator or Representative, or Person holding an Office of Trust or Profit under the United States, shall be appointed an Elector."  Yes our president is elected by people we call electors.  When you vote in a presidential election, you are voting for electors.  We call this group of people the Electoral College.  This is a special year in our country's constitutional process.  We get to experience both a census and a presidential election.  By mid September, when your television is inundated with political commercials and commentaries, you'll probably say "enough with the experience."  But with Independence Day still on our minds, this might just be a good time to find a copy of our Constitution and refresh our memories on how we elect a president.

 I'll close with a special warning to my Republican brethren.  The fox is in the henhouse.  Guess who is in charge of counting the votes for the 2000 Presidential Election?  You guessed it--Al Gore.  That Buddhist Temple stuff is small potatoes compared to this.  Speaking of potatoes, wasn't it Dan Quale that was in charge of counting the votes for president in 1992?  I knew we should have followed up after that spelling thing…

This was a piece first published in conjunction with the 2000 election.  I occasionally resurrect it  with a new hook during subsequent elections.  

Democratic Party says that Black Lives Don't Matter!!!

What?  How can I say that?

I don’t like to venture too much into election politics.  It can distract from my calling in life.  I do my research and do vote my conscious and respect others who do the same.  That is the intended nature of life in this republic; however, I have been too quiet on one subject for too long.

What?

Black Lives Matter, that’s what.

I do believe that black lives matter.  All human life is sacred and if the black community needs some special attention at this point in history, I’m fine with that.  We have a long way to go to true reconciliation in this nation.  This movement won’t get us there on its own but it has its purpose.  I am not sure I agree with all of the precepts on the official website, but I affirm that the life of a person who is black does matter.

What bothers me is that the Democratic Party has embraced this movement and they don’t believe in it.  That’s right, you read it correctly, the Democratic Party does not really believe that black lives matter.

How can I say that?

I can say that because that same party does not believe that the unborn life matters.  When the heart stops beating for a long enough time, the person is pronounced dead; however, when the heart begins to beat for a sustained time, we don’t declare that life has begun with the same definitiveness. 

Yes, this is about the Democratic Party embracing abortion.  Some will stop reading here and say this is just another ultra conservative rant on abortion.  It is not.

This is a challenge to look at our political leadership when it comes to the value and sanctity of life.  The unborn child that is growing in the womb of a mother to be is the responsibility of the mother.  The language of a woman’s right to choose disregards the fact that a life is involved.

I don’t want any more laws or regulations regarding abortion.  I am not on a crusade to overturn Roe v. Wade.  I would like to reframe the question that is never addressed in the Democratic Party—the rights of the unborn child.

If black lives matter then the life of the unborn black child matters as well.  Of course it follows that race is irrelevant to the life at stake in the womb.

So if I don’t want more laws or a Supreme Court decision overturned, what do I want?

I would like to see the Democratic Party address the issue of abortion as the woman’s responsibility to choose instead of her right to choose.

What’s the difference?

Right to choose says this is just another birth control measure.  Take the pill, use a diaphragm, abstain, use condoms, or kill the kid a couple weeks or months after conception do not all belong in the same multiple choice question.

Responsibility to choose puts the decision in the same arena as police officers and soldiers.  When do you take a life?

Never as a matter of convenience or just because you can should be at the top of the list or reasons that should never have validity.  Are there other times when taking a life might be the best option for the mother?  Perhaps.  For those who value life, you would hope not, but you cannot legislate all factors in all situations.

The professional police office does not start his day thinking that things would be easier for him if he killed someone today; yet, in the course of that day and its many circumstances, he may have to make life and death decisions. Many of those decisions must be made in a few seconds or in less than a single second.

These come with consequences either way.  If you take a life, then you must live with that.  If you don’t and others are killed or injured, you live with that as well.

In cases of the unborn, these decisions need not be made in an instant.  They should never be made in an instant!

Life—all human life—must be considered sacred.  There is nothing in Roe v. Wade that should have led anyone to the phrase a woman’s right to choose, at least in the overarching context it is now used.  The expectant mother has responsibility.  Others do as well, but she is the single most responsible person for the life of her unborn child.

I am not asking the Democratic Party to stop endorsing Black Lives Matter.  I challenge them to rethink and rephrase their position on the life in the womb.  It matters!

Life in the womb matters!

In fairness to my liberal friends and family, I must pick on my more conservative brethren.  That’s not exactly true.  I pick on them in fairness to the life in the womb.

If we want those who lean left to value life more, then we who are entrenched on the right need to make provisions for those who have become pregnant and do not desire to raise a child to give up the child to a caring family if she will carry the child to delivery in a healthy and safe manner. 

Yes, we need programs and funding, and red tape slashed to oblivion to get an unwanted child into the hands of a loving family.  Instead of funding abortion clinics, let’s fund life clinics that help women who are pregnant and do not want the child to have a place for care, treatment, and delivery that preserves the life of the child.

Abortion should not be considered as just another means of contraception.  Once the embryo inside of a woman has a heartbeat, she needs to regard the life as her responsibility not her choice.

Do black lives matter?  Of course they do!  Life matters and that includes the unborn life.

We don’t need more laws or regulations or government interference.  We need to get back to a solid moral foundation in our nation.  Life is sacred. 

I challenge the Democratic Party specifically and all Americans in general to value the sanctity of life.  Discard the phrase a woman’s right to choose.  It sounds empowering but it is debilitating.  It degrades us all.  It frames our thinking in such a way that specific lives don’t matter.

It is not the police officer’s right to choose whom he shoots.  It is his responsibility to use deadly force only when absolutely necessary.  Preserving life or taking a life whether made in a fraction of a second or over the course of several days should never be considered anyone’s right.

This is a challenge to all to rethink the sanctity of life in our post-modern society.  I say that all human life is sacred, including the unborn child that has a heartbeat.

Will you value all life?

As people make their lists of what lives matter—black, white, police, gay, straight, or other category that divides us—let’s not leave out the life in the womb.  Regardless of whether we are born into privilege or poverty, our lives matter.  We have had enough division.  It is time to unite behind the sanctity of human life.

Let us value all human life from the first heartbeat to the last!

Let’s just do our jobs!

It seems that everyone complains that the courts legislate from the bench but have you noticed how many hearings Congress holds these days.  They don’t enact any fruitful legislation but they seem to hold more hearings than the courts.

Here’s a novel idea.  Let everyone do his own job.  Legislators need to legislate and courts need to be the ones holding hearings.

It is not about what you want to do to get the spotlight or to have your own personal way in everything.  You were elected or appointed to do a specific job.  Don’t get caught up in the peripheral duties while missing the main purpose.

Do your jobs!

Norman Oklahoma Bookstore to host Tom Spence book signing

Thirty days has September, April—oh wait—April 30^th is the big book signing event in Norman, Oklahoma.  That’s right, on the very last day of this month, western Oklahoma author Tom Spence, will be selling and signing his books at Hastings Book Music & Video in  Norman, Oklahoma on Saturday, 30 April 2016 from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m.  Hastings is located at 2300 West Main Street in Norman, Oklahoma.  

Tom will have a variety of books published by Tate Publishing.  Two of the most hard-hitting books, especially for those in western Oklahoma, are Throw Away Kids and PoMo Poverty.  In these companion selections, Tom goes beyond identifying society’s problems; he brings us to solutions that don’t wait on the government to fix or ignore the problems.

Tom is an ordained minister in the Cumberland Presbyterian Church and the pastor of the congregation in Burns Flat, Oklahoma. 

As a pastor, he returned this past summer from his second trip to Africa to train pastors and church leaders in Kenya and Uganda.  He has served as moderator of the Red River Presbytery but perhaps is best known as the guy who gives out wristbands that read:  GOD LOVES YOU – LOVE ONE ANOTHER.

He is a retired U.S. Marine Corps officer that served in all four Marine Divisions, including a tour training reservists.  He has served in Iraq and Kuwait, Japan, Korea, the Philippines, aboard Marine bases on the east and west coasts of the United States, and has a substantial amount of service afloat.  His final tour was as a program manager in charge of maintenance and modifications of Marine Corps ground training systems and simulators around the globe.

Tom served as both student and instructor at the Marine Corps Base, Quantico, Virginia—the Crossroads of the Corps, and proudly boasts that he successfully avoided a tour in the Pentagon for his entire career.  Tom wrote two books specifically about the Marine Corps.  The first was a first person collection of observations and anecdotes titled Sea Stories.  The other was Christianity for Marines.

Tom will also have with him, two unique books with fast moving dialogue where two men—The Conversation—and two women—Going Up—drop their defense mechanisms and actually talk about important things.

Please join Tom on Saturday 30 April 2016, buy a few books, and get a cup of coffee or something to eat at this one stop for everything store

Check out this review  and interview conducted by Serious Reading for Tom’s novel set against an end times background—Even the Elect.

Book Signing by Tom Spence

Hastings

 2300 West Main, Norman Oklahoma

30 April 2016

1:00 – 3:00 p.m.

It's time to send Trump to Republican Boot Camp

Who’d a thunk it?  Trump could win the nomination.  Right now he can’t win the election, not because Hillary or Bernie has anything more to offer, but because it is really hard for the mainstream Republican Party to get behind Trump.  Clearly half of the party wants someone else.

All of the candidates have pledged to support whomever wins the party’s nomination but there is support and there is lukewarm support.  Right now it is very hard for half of the party to get behind Trump but he may be the party’s nominee.

What are the viable options?

The open convention will eventually produce a nominee.  That does not mean that the party will get behind that nominee.  The nominee needs the enthusiastic support of the party.

So what is the party to do?

It is time to listen to the Americans that are coming to the Republican Party and to think out of the box.  It is time to consolidate, coordinate, and indoctrinate.  Republicans must get the party behind the new Donald Trump.

Who?  What?

It is time to send Mr. Trump to Republican boot camp.  He has the best chance of winning the party’s nomination but isn’t really a Republican.  He has brought some new issues and new people into the party but he has also alienated part of the party and the country.

Republican boot camp refines the best that Trump has and discards the worst of the man’s traits.

Boldness—by all means that needs to be refined and pumped up.

Arrogance—confidence is one thing, hubris and arrogance are not traits that anyone wants in a president.

Deal Maker—for all of his faults, Mr. Trump will not want to face four years of gridlock with congress and surely will be constitutionally checked if he tries to circumvent the lawmakers by those detested executive orders.  Encourage him to bring on everything he has as a deal maker.

Put downs—these need to go, especially for various ethnic groups and the disabled, and yes—even the media.  If you can’t handle the heat from the debate moderator, you sure won’t fare well with Putin.  Personal, ethnic, and other demeaning quips have to go.

Immigration—let him build the wall if he has to, but he needs to be more inclusive on the real solution.  Not every Republican wants every illegal immigrant run out of the country.  Not every Democrat wants an easy amnesty package.  The immigration solution for our nation of immigrants lies somewhere in between for the immediate fix; then there must be a workable and enforceable policy for going forward.

Commander in Chief—none of the candidates have ever been a commanding officer or even had military service.    The nation has real enemies.  Big talk for campaign sound bites doesn’t kill the enemy.  Colorful metaphors do not send terrorists running for cover.  Cavalier comments do not inspire victory.  The nominee, and in this model Trump is presumed as that person, needs to get better military counsel.  Trump need to be under the tutelage of General James Mattis for a week.  The retired general may summon as many assistants as he deems necessary, but the campaign stops for a week in April just to get this most crucial part right.  This is a time without speeches or interviews.  This is training. 

Taxes—the other candidates put more effort into this.  Let them synergize a little and come up with the best of everything.

Debt—the other candidates put more effort into this.  Synergize!

Obamacare—it is easy to bash it but before it is just wiped off the face of the earth, there had better be something on the table that is more than what it replaced.  People wanted it because what came before was not effective for most people.  Some of these people were fooled into thinking it was going to be something for nothing but enough were discontent with the state of health care in our nation to elect representatives that enacted this law.  Republicans need to be the party that addresses this issue with eyes wide open.  The founding fathers had wisdom and vision beyond anything the world has known before, but health care was not even the vaguest of concepts when they drafted what many in this party hold a sacred documents.  Conservative principles with creative and resourceful legislation that honors individual and state rights can still address this issue.  The party is running out of time to bash Obama and Obamacare.  Once they are gone the question becomes, what do you have that works?  A new administration will soon need to address the healthcare needs of the nation.  The Democrats would say that healthcare is a right.  Just saying, no, it’s not is not a solution.  This is a big one and the individual bickering and vitriol among the candidates needs to stop and post-Obamacare solutions for the nation need to be ready to go.

Christian base—it doesn’t matter if the Pope thinks Trump is a Christian or not, but it would go a long ways towards assuring this very viable part of the party if he was more conversant about this faith.  He needs to understand that being a tough guy before your enemies is one thing but the command that Jesus gave to those who follow him was to love one another.  That one needs to be evidenced more.  Many think that makes Christians wimps.  Not the case.  We are the ones who speak the truth in love to each other so we can grow in grace.  We need to teach our presumptive candidate how to do this.  If necessary, I will spend two days with him.

Efficacy—if Trump wins the presidency and the Democrats control the legislature, we should not expect much to improve.  The matter of the Republican nominee needs to be settled on 16 March 2016.  Unless there is a major turning of the tide from the current trend, everyone needs to get behind Mr. Trump and Mr. Trump needs to undergo a makeover.  He needs to keep those things that are bringing in new Republicans and get rid of those things that alienate and denigrate American.  That is not who the Republican Party is.  The efficacy—the ability to effect desired change—comes only with a Republican majority in both houses.  The party needs to get beyond executive bickering and bolster bids for the legislature.

There are surely other areas but this needs to be 15 days in April so that by May every Republican is looking forward to a November victory and has a candidate that they can support.  Paradigms shift. Who adjusts first and most effectively?

Establishment Republicans need to open their eyes to the discontentment in doing the same thing over and over.  That dog don’t hunt.  Get the message.  That’s why you can’t rack up enough votes to win.  Most didn’t see Trump coming.  Then didn’t believe he would last this long.  Now he is a reality and likely the Republican nominee.

The traditional model is that you become a Republican before you become a Republican candidate.  That model is no longer in play.  Trump will very likely be the party’s nominee.

The question is, will he be a Republican candidate with a bit of the wildcard in him or a wild card with just enough Republican seasoning to get on the ticket?

Republicans can fight for the nomination to the bitter end and get the latter, or rally and organize as Republicans have traditionally done for decades and get behind the former.

It is time to get behind Donald Trump, hold a 15 day Republican boot camp in April, and win the election.

Let’s not discuss the four year alternative.

In the shuffling madness...

I’m seeing and hearing all of the political rancor reach all time highs, perhaps it’s an all time low, and I am thinking that it should all be accompanied by Jethro Tull’s Locomotive Breath.

In the shuffling madness of the locomotive breath…

Between offering everything for free (paid for by 12 rich people and the Department of Defense) and Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire, I wonder if we can sink any lower.

I say elect them all.  Send them all to Washington D.C. and then build a wall around them and cut off all communication to the outside world.

America is obviously divided as to which direction we need to go.  That comes with attempting this thing call self-government, but somewhere along the way we have lost the ability to communicate in a civil manner.

In exchange for what we have lost, we have gained the knack of appealing to the lowest common denominator.  People cheer for kicking people out and keeping them out, getting something for nothing, or just blowing somebody to bits.  The rodomontade of Trump, the evasiveness of Clinton, the spitting contests of the also ran republicans, and the mindless following of the Bern has left us at a loss for this election year.

By the time we get down to just two, we will wonder--are there no more men or women of courage and character left in this nation?

Has our process become so ineffective that acrimony must prevail?

I say no!  I say that courage and character can win in our electoral process.  I am looking for the first candidate to confess his or her sins and commit to a campaign commensurate with the presidency that is promised if victorious.

Does anyone in the field have the backbone for this?  Now is the time to step forward.

It is time to form the next administration...

I am not sure who our next president will be.  I can’t say that I am thrilled about any of the leading contenders.  That doesn’t mean that we can’t start getting the new government organized sans whoever emerges as victor.

What?

Hear me out on this…

President—Usually by now I have a fair picture of whom I will likely support.  This year is surely an exception.  George H.W. Bush is only 91, gets around on a scooter, but is eligible for another term.  I wonder if he would give it a go one more time.  He was also the last commander in chief with any active duty military experience.

I am not sure who will get the chief executive position, but we could start forming up the teams for taking care of business at the end of this election mess.  Here is what I propose.  If you throw your hat in the ring for president, you also accept these terms and conditions:  I will serve in any capacity that my country needs for the next 4-6 years.  If you can’t handle that, your basic enlistment oath or oath of office as a military officer will surely scare you out of commanding men and women who commit to so much more.

None of the top contenders have any military experience.  It is not a requirement but it sure does help.  When I hear Cruz talk about carpet bombing or Trump try to act like he has any military acumen every bone in my body aches.  Clinton is probably the most disrespectful and patronizing of all the candidates when it comes to the military.  Sanders thinks we can balance the budget by cutting the Department of Defense.  I would really like to see him live as a soldier or Marine for one year, improvising when the materials you need are not provided, and believing that you can do anything with nothing because you have done so much with so little for so long.  These folks—as well as some others—probably don’t have much going for them as far as being commander in chief, but they might offer something of value to the country in another capacity.

We have some standing positions and some positions associated with special tasks that need to be accomplished quickly.  I don’t like the term Czar so I will use quarterback instead.  It’s more American.

VP – General Jim Mattis.  Just because.  We want him a heartbeat away from being president.  Our enemies do not.  Let’s run him for VP on both tickets.  Every asset that we have will be engaged.  This man will do great things in that environment.

Chairman, Joint Chiefs – General Joe Dunford keeps his job through the first term of the new president.

National Security Team – Dr. Ben Carson.  We need some out of the box thinking in this area.  I don’t think he has the gonads to stand toe-to-toe with Putin and tell him “that dog don’t hunt,” but he can give our next president more viable options in dealing with legitimate world leaders as well as the thugs masquerading as one.

Budget Quarterback—Colin Powell.  He doesn’t cut his own party any slack when they are full of it and won’t let the Democrats spend us into oblivion.  Here’s how this will work.  For every $700 million worth of budget cuts, you may add $1 of tax somewhere.  Put it all on the table until there is a plan to get rid of the deficit and do the things that are truly important.  National defense is exempt from cuts for the first four years.  Once we have knocked the terrorists down to size, then even this can go on the table.  Position is terminated after 6 years.

 Budget Running Backs—Rand Paul and Bernie Sanders.  Let’s hear both extremes and everything in between, but there is no gridlock.    Position terminated after 2 years.

Chief Trade Negotiator—Donald Trump.  OK, he said he was good at this.  Let him prove it.  Press release and press conferencing authority withheld.

Representatives and 1/3 of the Senators—elect anyone but the incumbent.  You had your chance and chose gridlock and acrimony.  Go home.  We need to do this for the next 12 years.  Let’s get into true representative government and out of the professional politician business.  If you are elected, you know that you have 2 or 6 years respectively to serve your country before some fresh blood and fresh thinking shows up to take the torch.

Health Care Quarterback—Joe Biden.  With two Governor appointed representatives from each state and territory and 50 at large experts selected from a group of volunteers by the Quarterback, these people will put together healthcare  legislation that replaces all previous legislation and sits well with at least 75% of Americans.  This needs to begin in May 2016 so it can be enacted in May 2017.

National Goals

·         ISIS defeated in 2 Years.  Every other terrorist threat by the 3^rd year.

·         Develop a Health Care System that is good for American and can be afforded by any American willing to work.  Time limit:  3 months.  That’s right, we have debated this for too long.  Let’s find what is right for these United States of America.  This team can begin before the election.

·         Budget balanced in 6 months to include a 5 year debt free plan.  Budget quarterback to stay in place for 6 years to deal with audibles that must be called from time to time.

·         We will take care of our veterans with special attention to those who served in harm’s way.

Lead, follow, or get out of the way.  We have had more than enough grandstanding to last multiple lifetimes.  You are either getting us to the solutions that we need or you can get out of the way and watch others do what you said couldn’t be done.

Is there more to be done than this short list?  Yes, but this is our focus from 1 February 2017 until America is right side up again.

Remember, if you threw your hat in the ring to be the chief executive then you should be willing to take any assignment that your country deems necessary.   If you served in the military, you might just get called up one more time.  If you have skills that can get us out of this mess that is 21^st century America, then you should be compelled as a patriot to take on whatever is needed.

It’s time to American Up!  Let’s get organized now and start doing the things that we need to do.