Opinions from the Hip

Hello Government Motors!

When was the last time you could say that you owned a car company?  Well, it looks like we’ll be able to say it on Monday.  Yes, you guessed it, the US taxpayer is going to likely own 70% of General Motors.  This is just completely insane.  This company should have been allowed to go into bankruptcy months ago and could have been restructured and sold off like any other company.  But no, we are going to fund this dinosaur of a company and be paying on it for a very long time.  We will (the taxpayer) not be recouping this so called investment.

So who benefits? Not the bondholders, but the UAW.  I believe that saving GM, was saving votes from Obama’s constituency.  The government is breaking a fundamental contract.  The contract between bondholder and company.  Why would any investor want to invest in a company if the government can come in and break this fundamental contract that makes it possible for companies to raise capital in the free market.

This is getting so ridiculous, our country is headed for bankruptcy with these types of policies.

Merry Holiday, Everyone!

Here we go again. Someone was offended by the word Christmas, so the Patchogue, New York “Christmas Boat Parade” folks are gonna run with “Holiday Boat Parade” instead. Finally, all the atheists, agnostics, Muslims, Hindus and Raelians who come out to witness this spectacular fireworks show, can enjoy the night without the fear of accidently hearing about the birth of Jesus Christ. That would really put a damper on the evening. Let the celebration of…um, well, the Winter Solstice begin!

I say, let ‘em.

Santa, Frosty and all those other fantasy characters have nothing to do with the real meaning of Christmas anyway. Let the secular world strip the word Christmas from all their events and advertising. As Christians, we will be more than happy to take charge of Christmas, and free the word from it’s commercialism and consumerism baggage.

From the Associated Press:

A famed fireworks company is pulling out of a holiday boat parade because “Christmas” was dropped from the event’s name.

Fireworks by Grucci won’t lend its sparkle to Patchogue’s Nov. 23 parade - decorated yachts on the Patchogue River - because the organizers have renamed it the Patchogue Holiday Boat Parade. It was the Patchogue Christmas Boat Parade last year, when the Grucci company donated $5,000 worth of fireworks.

The company’s vice president, Philip Butler, who has criticized the secularization of Christmas in the past, said parade organizers were “using all the themes of Christmas and plagiarizing all those themes.”

Organizers in the Long Island town said the parade has had several names over its roughly 15-year existence. The name was changed again this year after complaints that the use of “Christmas” seemed to make the parade less inclusive.

“When I think about fireworks, I don’t think about Christmas anyway,” Mayor Paul Pontieri said. “I think about the Fourth of July.”

The venerable Grucci company is famous for providing spectacular fireworks displays at major national celebrations. It is based in Brookhaven, not far from Patchogue.

Ronald Reagan Quotes

As we head into what may be a scary four years of government without checks and balances, and socialism begins to raise it’s ugly head, here’s some timeless lines from Ronald Reagan:

“We don’t have a trillion-dollar debt because we haven’t taxed enough; we have a trillion-dollar debt because we spend too much”

“Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction”

“Man is not free unless government is limited.”

“Recession is when a neighbor loses his job. Depression is when you lose yours.”

“Republicans believe every day is the Fourth of July, but the democrats believe every day is April 15.”

“The most terrifying words in the English language are: I’m from the government and I’m here to help. “

“We must reject the idea that every time a law’s broken, society is guilty rather than the lawbreaker. It is time to restore the American precept that each individual is accountable for his actions. “

“Welfare’s purpose should be to eliminate, as far as possible, the need for its own existence. “

Born in the U.S.S.A.

Unless things turn around very quickly, I predict we will see in the near future the death of our most coveted brandname, the USA.

I also predict that one of Obama’s plans is to rename our nation the USSA, which will stand for the United Socialist States of America. He will then trademark it in an attempt to build government capital. The letters “US” also becoming inaccurate and obsolete in the process.

I believe this plan will work as millions of people will want to proudly wear this new logo in honor of The Dearly Beloved Leader and the “Change” he has brought upon the land. From hats, shirts and water bottles to maps, flags and bumper stickers, get ready to be sickened by USSA merchandising.

Songs will be rewritten by his faithful followers too. Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the USSA” and John Mellencamp’s “R.O.C.K. in the U.S.S.A.” will get remixed.

My only hope is that anything with the USA logo will become a collectible, something to remind us of the good old days. I can then make extra cash selling vintage USA apparel, and rummaging through garage sales to find old USA-branded treasures to put on eBay.

That is, of course, they’re not banned or confiscated.

Good Little Girls

Obama appeared on the Ellen DeGeneres show yesterday to laugh it up a little. He’s acting very comfortable now, as his lead over McCain has stabilized heading into the final stretch.

He danced and laughed a little and talked about his wife, kids, and Halloween. He told Ellen that his daughters are opting for scary Halloween costumes this year. Sasha, the younger daughter, is planning to be a “corpse bride” and Malia will be an “evil fairy.”

Everyday Joe? A very wise Joe

He may be Joe the plumber, but Joe Wurzelbacher has some wise words you can take to the polls.

I think this guy brings up a very good point.  Forget about the tax plan, who it will or will not tax.  I suggest we look at Barak Obama’s ideology.  It is one of wealth redistribution and unfair taxation.  Everyone should pay their fair share of taxes for the services our government provides, but I do agree that we should offer tax credits to those individuals and families that are under certain income levels.  Like Joe said, I don’t want the government to determine how much is to much to make, that’s just down right unfair.  A flat tax or consumption based tax would be fair to everyone.

Who’s to blame for this financial mess?

Everyone is to blame!  It’s called personal accountability at all levels.  When we stop pointing fingers and living honestly and truthfully with one another maybe things can change.  Unfortunately, bad things happen and bad people exist in this world.

Markets have crashed, now the Economy

Well folks, it’s time to hold on to your cash and batten down the hatches.  The stock market continues to fall and remain volatile, the economy is beginning to unravel, and everyone is wondering how big the iceberg we hit really is.  The economy is on everyone’s mind and people are wondering whether or not their jobs are secure.

We should expect unemployment to continue to rise.  Experts are saying that we can see peaks of 8%, but my guess is that we are likely to see 10%.  Why may you ask will we be in so much trouble?  Simple, the wealth and consumption that took place over the past 4 to 5 years has been based on rising asset values and not because Americans were producing tangible goods.  We have manufactured growth based on borrowing and that in it self is unsustainable.  We had a major bubble in housing that was the catalyst for growth without anything of real substance.

Sorry to say, but the party is over and we will be suffering one painful hangover for many years to come.  We haven’t seen the worst yet, but then again it all depends on where you sit.  If you have money in the bank, a roof over your head, and you are not threatened by job loss, you may be feeling ok and will weather the storm easily and take advantage of the times.  However, if you are on the other side of things it’s going to feel like the Depression.

I’m not a cynic or a doomsdayer, it’s the truth.  We are facing unprecedented times, but my greatest fear is that this recovery will be slow and very painful for many Americans, and that the government policies that come out of this will do so much damage to our country in the long term, that the U.S. will fall from it’s place in the world and will not be that shinning place on a hill that so many of us want it to be.

Religulous?

There’s a new film out this week by the outspoken, atheist, ultra-liberal host of HBO’s The Bill Maher Show. It’s called Religulous. I have not seen the film yet.

I do occasionally catch his rant-filled show because, I confess, he can be very funny. His “New Rules” may be the funniest 5 minutes on cable. However, his audience and guests are almost always of the same mindset and in agreement on all the political discussion topics. My favorite moments are when an outnumbered conservative or Christian guest sits at the table. They are usually articulate, intellectual, informed and interesting, to the annoyance of the others.

One great moment was when rapper Will.I.Am was on the show. Will is of course a wealthy, left-wing Hollywood liberal, wearing a hat too small for his head, and jumping in on the discussion when he thought he had something deep to say. Bill started into his usual religious intolerance comments, sounding like Obama during his “clinging to guns and religion” speech. Will jumped in with a “wait a minute, my Momma goes to church every Sunday and she made me who I am. I would not be here if it wasn’t for God”. Bill wrote him off as just being lucky.

So now this former stand-up comedian makes a movie called “Religulous”. He travels the world to mock religious leaders and regular people of faith - Catholics and Jews, Protestants and Muslims, Raelians and Mormons. Just reading some of the reviews helps me know exactly what this film is about and whether I should save my money.

Some quotes from those who enjoyed the movie:
“…an interesting and funny film by a man full of doubt. Had he been a bit more open-minded, he might see belief and doubt are partners, not opposites.”

“A film that’s hardly profound–one that’s unlikely to alter your views on religion, whatever choir you’re in.”

And from those who disliked it:
“It’s meant to “prove” that religious belief and intelligence are mutually exclusive. If you believe that, this movie is for you. For everyone else, it’s a trifling and shoddy tirade.”

“Religulous doesn’t really go anywhere. It’s ultimately a celebration of the old-time religion we call entertainment.”

So, after building a career on Atheism, this is the best he could come up with? He either went into this project half-heartedly, which would discount his entire career, or he really just doesn’t get it, and even he doesn’t believe his own disbelief.

The final scene I hear is a long-winded monologue about the dangers and absurdity of religion. Why would anyone pay to hear someone’s opinion for entertainment purposes? Especially one that his fans have all heard before. If you’re a believer and you go to this film, just remember, he doesn’t care if you denounce your faith. He is looking at box office receipts.

Aside from a few movie critics who get paid to watch this, his audience will most likely consist of his own choir.

29 + 22 = 25

I live only 30 minutes from the scene of the most deadly Metrolink train accident ever. I know the area well as I grew up there. My friend who lived just a couple hundred yards away, heard the impact and raced through a field to see what had occurred. A Metrolink passenger train went head-on with a Union Pacific freight train at full speed. The sudden stop caused the first passenger car to envelop the engine, which then burst into flames.

29 text messages in 22 minutes apparently resulted in the death of 25 commuters, and injuring 134 others.

My friend who arrived on the crash scene, raced home to retrieve his camera after the fire and rescue teams arrived. He knew he was witnessing a major event as he started shooting the firemen climbing up onto the wreckage. The injured were being attended to everywhere, but his focus was on the dozen or more firemen working away on the main wreckage.

He captured firemen peeling back layers of metal and pulling out chunks of debris, including a still smoldering laptop. Then the massive crane that had been erected, lowered it’s hook into the hole of the train, and emerged with the sheet-draped remains of a passenger. The only thing visible being the brown women’s shoes, recognizable only by the family if they were ever to see this image.

After a few more hours of shooting, my friend went home, and downloaded his images. By the next morning he had posted several of these images on Facebook, labeling this one shot one of the saddest moments of his life.

My kids, 10 and 13, introduced me to texting about a year ago. They simply just started sending me quick messages asking when I’ll be home for dinner, or to let me know their plans for the next few hours. I also get the occasional “Hi Daddy” in the form of a vibrating message in my pocket. My kids are always in touch with their far away cousins who they see once a year. They stay in real-time, constant contact with their best friends seven days a week. To them, it’s just what people do. And to them it’s better than email or actually talking on the phone.

The beauty of this technology hit me one day when I asked my oldest a fatherly question regarding her night out with her best friend - or BFF. “Call your friend and ask if her mom will be staying to watch the movie.” Without blinking, she touched the buttons on her iPhone and within seconds, she responded with a “Yes”. How “1990’s” of me to think she would actually stand up, walk to the phone, dial a phone number and wait…just to ask a question.

So what was the conductor talking about in a 29 message, 22 minute text exchange? Were his kids asking when he’ll be home? Apparently he was just talking with a friend. But it doesn’t matter. After all, he was just a big kid doing something that is now second nature. And what little boy didn’t want to be a train conductor when they grew up?

Robert Sanchez, the conductor, has been called a likable, happy guy. Technology is at fault here, luring each of us daily with it’s latest innovations designed to make our life easier.

My heart and prayers goes out to the family of Mr. Sanchez.