Musk, Money for Nothing, and Apologies to Mark Knopfler

 This backlash from the Trump/Musk housecleaning is nothing new. In fact, the very fact that the attitude of entitlement among many government employees has been around for a while is why it is so necessary.

Yes, the process has begun with a broadsword. A scalpel would be totally ineffective at this point. Later, the fine carving can begin, but I get this approach and find it fundamentally sound and familiar to anyone who took over a command or a business or an organization that was floundering.

Significant changes must come early. You don’t ease into this sort of thing. This attitude has been around for a while and removing it takes bold action.

My last tour as a Marine officer was in the Naval Air Warfare Center-Training Systems Division in Orlando, Florida. I was in charge of the Marine Corps Ground Training Systems and Simulators. I was about to compete a major contract for our West Coast bases and units and needed a cost estimate on some “non-technical stuff.”

At about the same time, a project manager didn’t have enough funding to pay a couple of civil service employees. This was a Competency Aligned Organization (CAO), and it seemed nobody had any funding for these two people, at least until the next fiscal year's funds kicked in.

I had some funding and a need for a cost estimate. I briefed the two employees in detail. They acknowledged that they understood and would have the job finish in less than two weeks, which was what I had budgeted out of my program funds for a cost estimate.

I was beginning the process for a major recompete of contracts in the Pacific (Japan and Hawaii) and traveled there for the next week. Internet service in Okinawa was not too good back in those days, so when I changed planes in Osaka, I went into the United lounge and logged in to my email. I asked how the estimate was coming.

When I touched down in Hawaii for an overnight, I went to my email as soon as possible, expecting at least an update, if not the complete estimate. C’mon, this wasn’t rocket science; it was just a dozen hours of work that I expected these two could knock out in a couple of weeks. Even in those days, the bar was set very low for general performance.

Their reply was in my inbox. It said, we decided not to do it.

They didn’t decide not to get paid, just not to do the work. When I touched down in Orlando, I went straight to the office and completed the estimate myself. It took 9 hours.

The next day, I expressed to their supervisory chain my disdain for the contemptuous attitude these two had towards their jobs and their country. They may not have cared what they did or didn’t do for someone else, but these were Marine Corps funds, and I guarded them fiercely.

I needed a cost estimate and paid for one, but these two knuckleheads showed no sense of duty, work ethic, or obligation whatsoever. None!

So, I went to Human Resources upon their request. The two employees had complained that I was being unfair. I wasn’t sure which part wasn’t fair—paying their salary or expecting them to work when they came to work. I went to HR.

I explained the situation and the HR manager, said, “We’ve had trouble with military before.”

 I am not often surprised, but this was out of left field. Two civil service employees agreed to work on a 15-hour project and get paid for two weeks (80 hours). They took the pay but didn’t do the work, and the human resources folks said this was not something I should be upset about. In fact, I was the source of the problem, expecting them to do any work at all.

Finally, I met with the Executive Director (ED), who is sort of the civil service supervisor of those employees at that facility. There was a crowd in the executive conference room. The ED said that he didn’t understand why I was upset.

I told him that I paid for and expected a cost estimate, and they refused to do the work.

The executive director said that he still didn’t see the problem, but he would have them do the cost estimate.

I told him that I had already done it.

He was shocked. I just got back.

I told him that I had just returned from the airport after being overseas for over a week and knocked it out overnight. I then made a quick trip home to throw on a shave and a clean uniform and return to work.

The ED thought he was off the hook and said, I guess there’s nothing to be done. He was ready to leave.

I said, except to refund the money I sent to have the estimate done.

While this was a terrible experience due to the deeply seeded attitude of entitlement among government workers, seeing the looks on the faces of the civil service folks was almost worth it.

The pucker factor in the room among the government workers was through the ceiling.

Return the Money?

Hoping to save face, the ED noted that there was not enough time left for me to use the money in the fiscal year and it would just be lost if it was returned.  You could sense that he had finally made a point that he could defend as there were only a couple of days left in the fiscal year.

I said, "Yes, I can." Everything is in place; we are just waiting for the return of the funds. That should take 15 minutes at most.

If you know me, you might know that I can sometimes be a tiny bit ornery. So, I said “Thank You for opening my eyes.”

The ED was a bit perplexed, so I continued. If I can do two all-nighters a year, I could cut funding for a whole employee. That was about $85-100K each, including the overhead. By the way, the overhead paid the salaries of the senior civil service employees in the conference room.

If I worked four all-nighters, no, a week of all-nighters every fiscal year, I could save half a million dollars in civil service employee costs. I stood up, said, "I’m on it," and left the room.

That last part was just for fun. I had no time for civil service reform. I had Marine Corps training systems essential to training in our modern age and that’s where my mission and focus remained.

I hope this short reminiscence opened some eyes. It did for me. The entitlement mentality has had 25 years to grow and dig in from an already well-defended position. Only the broadsword can begin the process. Scalpels come later.

There will be casualties along the way. This isn’t Kindergarten where you can sit out for a while if you have a boo-boo.

This is simple, the pain of cleaning house will be less than the pain of doing nothing differently, and surrendering to this money for nothing and your chicks for free soundtrack playing in government offices.

***

While working with the civil service people associated with Marine Corps Programs, I met and worked with some top-notch people. I still write the occasional job or promotion recommendation for some, though we are all getting to the point where it’s time just for golf and grandkids.

So, how do you reward those who defy the government employee model and give it their all?

I got them bonuses. You can give a civil service employee a financial bonus. You have to plan for it, justify it, and budget it, and I did. It is that simple.

Reward the best, coach and counsel those trying to do their best, and give the entitled the boot.

It’s going to look mean at first, but it is necessary. The infection has festered too long. We get it now or lose the patient—liberty.

President Trump, press on.

Mr. Musk, stay the course.

Government Employees, work or go away.

This isn’t rocket science.

 

America's Thermopylae

 

I think that a red wave in America is essential to our way of life, but not the answer.  It’s a hold at all costs until reinforcements arrive.  If we lose, then we have failed those in the womb who cannot defend themselves.

If we lose, we will either surrender our right to overthrow a tyrannical government or see the beginning of civil war when the Constitution is set aside.

If we lose, there will be lawlessness on a scale never seen before in this country.

If we lose, there will be no reasoned approach to immigration.  Over 3 years ago, the president proposed a very centrist—perhaps even left-leaning—solution to immigration.  It had more efficacy than anything proposed in my lifetime, but was rejected outright because of hatred of our president.

If we lose, the fear generated by the present pandemic will be continued to accomplish greater government control.  Will we be a living being created in the image of God or only a carrier of the contagion of the year?  Again, we will surrender our liberties without a whimper or see civil war attempting to reclaim what was paid for in blood time and time again for almost two and a half centuries.

If we lose, the taxes that provoked the Boston Tea Party will seem reasonable compared to what is to come.  We may still keep the title of Republic, but we will be taxed into socialism, and what little discretionary income you have will not be worth much.

If we lose, expect much of those taxes to be sent to those who hate America.  Appeasement is just the first sign of surrender.

If we lose, expect your freedom of religion to be revoked.  You will be assigned your religion.  For those Christians who truly seek God and his kingdom and his righteousness, you will truly know what it is to be a stranger in this world.

If we lose, expect history to be redacted at even a greater pace than we are now witnessing.  We will have nothing historical upon which to base our decisions.  We will have only what the Ministry of Truth sees fit to give us.

If we lose, expect that not only will some big-ticket items in our Constitution be ignored, but also the more subtle ones such as the prohibition on states and the federal government against bills of attainder and ex post facto laws.  If the government doesn’t like you, it can declare that you or your actions present or past are illegal and take everything from you, including your life.

If we lose, the lives of black people, brown people, or white people won’t matter.  The only lives that matter will be those in power and they will become royalty.  The promises made to people of color will fade quickly as they always have when the left promises to fix anything of value.  Sure, there will be a token act or speech or extra federal holiday, but the needs of people of color will be discarded quicker than a dirty diaper.

BLM and Antifa will continue to some extent.  They are terrorist organizations desiring to destroy this nation and our family values.  They will lose many of their allies on the left as they have served their purpose and are disposable.

I could go on.  There is much at stake here.  Normally, the election cycle that we have experienced every four years for our lifetimes, takes us a little left or a little right or leaves us gridlocked in the middle.  This time, it is about the life or death of our Republic.

It is about the liberty and legacy that we leave our children’s children.

I know that many have stopped reading long before this point.  We have lost the art of civil discourse.  I am sure that hateful remarks already abound.  I will leave them unanswered. We have surrendered the sound mind that God gave us for the simplistic meme that gratifies our emotions.

But for those who have made it this far, consider my opening statements.

I think that a red wave in America is essential to our way of life, but not the answer.  It’s a hold at all costs until reinforcements arrive. 

A red wave is essential but not the answer.  We must hold until reinforcement arrive. 

Well, just who are those reinforcements?

It’s not the Marines.  It’s not the cavalry.  It’s not even the militiamen.  It is the nation that repents of its godless ways at the individual and family level and returns to God.  Evil is assembling for a final assault, one that the forces of this world will not hold off for long.  Only revival will bring about the righteousness that God desires.

In that regard, we are the 300 at Thermopylae.  We must hold off for as long as we can for the reinforcements we need do not presently exist.   Only a nation that seeks God at the grassroots level can form such an army that comes to rescue this nation which though never perfect sought to become more perfect with each generation.

The only hope for this nation lies in the hearts of its citizens.  This election is the Thermopylae of American hope.  Without Thermopylae, there could have never been a Marathon.

The remnant that remains must help lead those who have abandoned the church because it hurt their feelings by sticking to the word of God to come home. 

The church which the gates of hell will not overcome must take words of life to the lost. 

Yeah, ok, but I can’t stand Trump.

This is less about a man who is often crude (though for some that is all that it is about) but who seeks the best for America or a gentle-looking grandfather figure who has trouble forming sentences but will do what he is told.  It’s about taking enough seats in our legislature to stop the insanity of trying to unseat a president who was properly elected and not owned by any party or lobby.

President Trump has disrupted the slow surrender to becoming a godless nation.  He has put everything on the table.  Many hate him for it because it was so easy for us to turn a blind eye to a little corruption here and there, and more here and there, and on and on.  It was easier to be lulled into mindless submission than face the truth about the course on which we had been on for decades.

Like him or hate him, he has forced us to put the essence of who we are on the table, and at the heart of the November election. 

Much of it is politics as usual, but much more is good versus evil.  A red wave in November is not victory.  It is a chance for victory.  It gives us a chance to stop much of the godlessness being woven into the fabric of our modern society by the twin gods of apathy and ambivalence, while the faithful few lead many to the Lord. 

Victory will only come in the Lordship of Jesus.  We must set aside our gods of emotion, pity, shame, hatred, insistence on our own way, and cowardice.

Yes, if you are deserting the church now, you worship the god of cowardice. You magnify the specks in the eyes of believers and ignore the lumber yard in your own eyes.  Those who comprise the church all far short of the glory of God but we do not desert God when things get tough or the meme of the day sounds much better than love one another, which requires action on our part.

Liking and sharing a meme gives our minds time off and has a narcotizing function on us so that we think we have accomplished something.  Occasionally, the meme is on the mark and a stopped analog watch is right twice a day.  Most of the time, the emotional like and share without considering what is proffered only serves the Father of Lies. 

We must keep our eyes fixed on Jesus and live out our faith. We turn to each other with an iron sharpens iron attitude seeking God’s will not emotional satisfaction.  That does not mean that you will not find peace in this process.

OK, let’s get back to November.  You may not like Trump, but you may need to tolerate him and his rough edges for 4 more years.  You may not like most Republicans, but you should pray they have control of both houses of the legislature for the next 4 years.

This is not a victory for the Republican party.  This is a chance for victory for American. 

Should we hold at Thermopylae long enough for revival in this nation, I see a revitalized Democratic Party in 4 years—one that is reconstituted as the party of the people.

Should we hold at Thermopylae long enough, I see a revitalized Republican party in 6 years—one that promotes smaller government and fiscal responsibility.

Should we not hold at Thermopylae, neither party will exist in 4 years.  We will either give in to the government knows best for everything in our lives or be in the middle of a civil war.  We will never have our Marathon.

Christians will be meeting in secret but still taking the good news to our neighbors for the world will have claimed them as their own and our mission and commission is unchanged.  In some ways the destruction of America may bring some to Christ, but it’s not the world we will want to live in.

So, is this a political article or a religious article?  The answer is it is an article about your grandchildren.  Will they live in an America that celebrates them worshiping God or tells them which god to worship and how?

We cannot legislate ourselves into becoming a Christian nation.  It doesn’t work that way, but through revival and courage among believers we could become a nation of Christians. 

That would be a victory.  That would be victory in Jesus.  That would be the best inheritance we could give our children’s children.

But first, we must hold long enough at Thermopylae. 

 

The Post Script…

I provided many links to many sources in this article, but not to those about Thermopylae, the 300, or Marathon.  I didn’t even use the word Nike!

For those who continued to the end, it’s likely that I didn’t need to include them.  For those who quit early, they likely would consider them irrelevant as they never came across them in the course of their education.  Imagine having $100,000 in student debt loans and not knowing the story of Thermopylae that most learned before graduating high school.

We don’t have to look nearly 2500 years into the past for our model.  One hundred years ago will suffice.  Consider the report of First Lieutenant Clifton B. Cates to his commanding officer in WWI France.

"I am in an old abandoned French trench bordering on the road leading out of your P.C. and 350 yards from an old mill. I have only two men out of my company. We need support, but it is almost suicide to try and get it here as we are swept by machine-gun fire and a constant barrage is on us. I have no one on my left and only a few on my right. I WILL HOLD.”

He couldn’t advance but he would hold.  That has to be our mindset in November.  We must have a red wave.  It’s not victory, but gives us a chance for real victory.

I will hold!

Liberals eclipsed by shortage of reasons to blame President Trump for Monday's pending eclipse

Liberals worldwide are frantically scrambling, apparently caught off guard and surely without any prepared media barrage, on how to blame the pending eclipse of the sun on Donald Trump.  With just over 12 hours until this historic event, some have opted to a response only strategy, hoping that President Trumps tweets something on the order of what an absolutely fabulous event the eclipse turned out to be and how privileged those alive today are to have witnessed it.

Such a tweet would give those with no productive purpose in life a chance to cast dispersion upon the nation’s commander-in-chief for slighting other such celestial events such as Mars at perihelion and the occasional meteor shower.

As always, the Democratic National Committee has commenced a saturation email campaign declaring that to let Trump get away with the eclipse would be a nation tragedy.  As with other events where the committee found itself at odds with the President, their strategy is a request for money from all email recipients before other such eclipses overtake this nation.  

If only for a moment...

For a brief moment last night, the mainstream media became the press again.  They just reported the news as the United States launched missiles against a Syrian Air Base.  I am certain that they have returned to the current model of 1% news and 99% ever-so-slanted commentary, but it was refreshing to see reporters reporting again and the press being the press, if only for a moment.

Darkness has come to America and we have embraced it.

Darkness has come to America and we have embraced it.  It is not Donald Trump.  It is not the protests that seem to pop up everywhere in response to everything.  It is not the media trying to fill a 24 hour a day news broadcast by manufacturing news out of nuance.

It is the people of this nation that have invited darkness into their lives.

We have stopped conversing with each other.  Now we only target those that disagree with us and demonize them.  We no longer discuss the issues.  There are surely conversations to be had on defense and immigration and education and so many other issues; but nobody cares to engage the issues.  We muster a minority of the facts then just take cheap shots at those whose thoughts differ from our own. 

We fear discussion.  We have lost the ability to listen to each other.  We respect neither the high offices of our officials nor our peers who elected them nor those who hoped that others might prevail.

We have become a small-minded people.  That does not mean we lack intelligence.  We lack the wisdom to use our intelligence to advance our nation and our culture and the common good to a better place.  We have chosen extreme divisiveness over the divine application of our diversity.

In the process, we have placed our liberty at risk.  Self-government is work, not complaining and demonizing those who disagree, but finding ways to do things that work for the common good. 

The pendulum of politics swings left and right.  The wise see this and know that balance is not something that exists at any given time, but over time.  The foolish can see only the moment before them and rail against any and everything that they don’t like.

In this distrust of a system of government that has not only prevailed for over two centuries but done so continuing the blessings of liberty, we set the stage for self-destruction.  In this ubiquitous demonizing of individuals who hold different perspectives of how to continue this Grand Experiment, we accelerate the demise of our democratic republic.

I for one am not ready to discard what our founders embraced so dearly and until this current century, we as Americans preserved as part of our patriotic duty.  The time to set aside acrimony and vitriol is now.  Bitterness and hatred towards our elected officials must end.  The civil and patriotic way to object is the ballot box and we must honor the result of our peaceful transition of power or know that we are destined to lose it altogether. 

For decades, we were light unto the world.  Now we embrace darkness.  Give those elected a chance to do what they said they would do even if their approaches are different.  Stop demonizing each other because we disagree.  Civil discourse must prevail among the millions of Americans who are blessed to live in the liberty that we know.

So many around the world look to us as the example of how to live in a free society.  We as the people of this great nation are setting a terrible example for those in the rest of the world that only dream of liberty.  We must once again be a light to this world.

Let us set aside our selfishness, our self-pity, and our childish behavior and model civil discourse.  Let us respect each other again though we may differ in almost every thought or philosophy.  Let’s be the American people that we want our grandchildren to model their lives after.

Let us live lives of light and not darkness!

240 Years of Experience, Not a single year of wisdom

We have 240 years of experience and not even 1 year of wisdom.  We should be celebrating that our Grand Experiment that we call the United States of America has once again survived.  Power will transition by the vote and civility not by bullets and bayonets; yet so many seek divisiveness even after the election.

Elections and campaigns are tough, demanding much from the candidates and the electorate.  Sometimes the dialogue dies and only demonizing exchanges of vitriol and acrimony remain in the final days before votes are cast.  But in decades past, Americans set aside their pettiness and supported whomever was elected, charging them to do what is best for this great nation.  Our differences could take a back seat to our patriotism and we could give those elected to office a chance to do right by the longstanding process that elected them.

The election just accomplished is not far off from the one on the horizon.  Wisdom beckons us to give those elected a chance to do right by the people and the Constitution and by almighty God.  Can we not open our eyes and see that many have won and lost in the past, to include many contests noted by nobility and others by mud wrestling, but a victor emerged and the country transitioned power.

I have embraced some elected officials, tolerated others, and was just outright unhappy over some elections that didn’t come out according to my view of the best for American; but my loyalty to this great nation demanded that I give those elected a chance to do the best that they could.

That meant praying for them instead of demeaning them.  That meant corresponding with them instead of taking public potshots at them.  That meant exercising wisdom over vitriol and patriotism over selfishness.  I plan to stay that course.  I ask that you join me.

A tide in the affairs of men

In Act IV, Scene 3 of William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, there is a dialogue between Brutus and Cassius about whether to attack or defend.  The safe course is to defend and cause the enemy to expend his forces in greater number than the defender.

But the only chance of victory is to advance when everything is in place.  The only chance of achieving great things is not to hesitate when the time is right.  This did not work out for either of the two men conversing in the play or on the actual plains near Philippi.

Octavian, better known in the Christian world as Caesar Augustus, would be the ultimate winner of the 4 men contending to succeed Julius Caesar as Emperor of Rome.  But consider now the words of Brutus as penned by Shakespeare before the battle near Philippi.

Under your pardon. You must note beside,

That we have tried the utmost of our friends,

Our legions are brim-full, our cause is ripe.

The enemy increaseth every day.

We, at the height, are ready to decline.

There is a tide in the affairs of men,

Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;

Omitted, all the voyage of their life

Is bound in shallows and in miseries.

On such a full sea are we now afloat,

And we must take the current when it serves

Or lose our ventures.

The cause failed.  Antony and Octavian defeated Brutus and Cassius, then Octavian subsequently defeated Antony.  Causes fail, battles are lost, men die.

But how many have died never trying?  How many people go to their graves having never given a great cause a chance.

Today, we are on the verge of taking a chance.  We have a new president elect.  We have the current establishment pledged to a professional transition.  We have the best opportunity that this nation has had in many decades to bring back what I can only characterize as the pioneer spirit.

We as a nation once had a hardiness to us.  We expected struggles in our lives.  We sought to overcome them.  We moved west to conquer the wilderness.

Now so many seek to see what they can get for nothing.  They pour out vitriol online.  They demonize those who oppose them, which we understand somewhat in the middle of the fight; but now that this round is over, it is time to heal, support the victor for a time, and accomplish what can be done in a political system not designed for efficiency but to make difficult the accumulation of power in a single man or group.

But there is a tide in the affairs of men when things must be accomplished for inaction surrenders to mediocrity.

There is a tide in the affairs of men and high tide is almost here.  Our elected officials who have done little but demean the offices to which they were elected to serve the people, must set aside pettiness and do the work of a statesman.  They must serve those who sent them to represent us all.  They must reject personal interest and embrace the attitude of a servant.

There is a tide in the affairs of men.  Get the protests and bickering out of your system now.  Embrace that change has come.  Consider that most democracies do not survive beyond 200 years.  Understand that the republican nature of our democratic desires keeps us afloat beyond the historical model.  But know that our liberty and our hope diminish in continued acrimony. 

There is a tide in the affairs of men.  It is time to move beyond our state of divisiveness to a time of unity and action. 

To all who have been elected to serve, now is the time to truly serve your nation.  Put aside selfish differences and do what is best for America.  Your children’s children have placed their futures in your hands.

Be faithful to God and this fantastic idea that we know as America.  Do not hesitate to do the right things for this is the right time.

I don't know anyone who voted for Donald Trump today

It is the 8^th of November 2016 and I don’t know anyone who voted for Donald Trump.  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.

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 during subsequent elections.  

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.  

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.

Whomever--Mattis--That's the Ticket!

Here is the deal on the 2016 Presidential Election.  It really is this simple.

The candidate that can get General Jim Mattis to sign on as his running mate wins and will be safe from terrorist attack.  Every terrorist would know with certainty that they are just a heartbeat away from annihilation.

My contemplation as to how to vote is complete.  I am voting for Whomever-Mattis.  That’s the ticket.

Semper Fidelis!

Narcissist in Chief?

Donald Trump did not attend what was the 7^th Republican televised debate.  He made sure that would be the news of the day and that everyone would be talking about him.  He held an event for veterans.  Good for him.  The problem is that Mr. Trump always does what is good for him. 

This time veterans were there to be manipulated for his glory.  He is trying to do the same with Christians but the reality is that it is all about him all the time.  Washington has enough narcissists already.  We surely don’t need a narcissist in chief.

Yes, Trump has donated to veterans causes before but to use his own words as he addressed his previous social and business relationship with Hillary Clinton, he expected something in return.

I am not thrilled about any of the candidates from either party.  Each has their strength and weaknesses but Trump is consistent in everything being all about him.  I expect to see his concern for veterans and Christians or whatever group he is courting on a given day to fade away as soon as it doesn’t satisfy his grandiose view of himself.

239 years of liberty: 1 year of maturity

As I consider the most recent birthday celebration for the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave, otherwise known as the 4^th of July or Independence Day, the following thoughts come to the forefront of my mind.

We have enjoyed 239 years of liberty but can’t seem to muster 1 year’s worth of maturity.

Grow up America!  It is time to deal with real issues and put our liberty to good use instead of the insane squabbles that seem to be centermost in our culture today.

Let’s grow up America and start tackling the real issues of our nation and the world.