#90 Ninety-Nine Red Ballons Go By

Occupy Wall Street; the antithesis of the Tea Party.  They claim that they are against Wall Street because 99% of the people are being controlled by 1% of the population.  They claim this 1% include the big business CEO's, head of corporations, escape artists of the tax codes, hypocritical bourgeoisie extremists, and what Obama says are people who make $250,000 or more.  And of course this 1% is backed by the GOP and every conservative.  As with any political pundancy these are exaggerated numbers.

First of all the number of millionaires in this country is more than any other country.  But the percent is not 1%.  It is not 2%.  It is 5% of Americans are millionaires.  If we claimed that $250,000 is the cut-off for these problems we would have to raise the percent to a walloping 15%.

Secondly, who are these people that make over $250,000?  Sure, CEO's and people that own their own business, i.e., the entrepreneur.  But others that are included in this mess are professional sports figures, models, lucky lottery winners, authors, and the biggest number...Hollywood.  Yes, Michael Moore, you fat slothful, gluttonous piece of crap that uses the same capitalistic ways you argue against to make a living, you are one of the top 1%.  Notice though that politicians are not in that group.  But again this is misleading.  One reason why $250,000 was chosen as the cut off is because that is the highest amount that government employees (hmmm...Congress and the President) could make.  But that is just their income.  Most politicians are millionaires.  Most come from wealthy families, because that is how they could afford to run for office in the first place.

Thirdly, where are these people?  Oddly enough the most of the top ten places where millionaires live are in the area located around DC and Democratically controlled states.  http://finance.yahoo.com/real-estate/article/113718/states-most-millionaires-cnbc.  The only exception being Alaska.  The state where most businesses were started by individuals willing to go the extra mile and work for a living.  By shear numbers it doesn't look like the GOP or especially conservatives are the ones who keep backing this 1% up.

This current administration is demonizing and criminalizing those who built this country; small business owners and corporations, both who supply jobs for the people.  The four factors of production are capital, land, labor, and entrepreneurship.  These four things supply jobs for everyone else.  Yes, there are those who will get rich off of others, but it is only because we are stupid enough to keep buying their junk, watching their games, seeing their movies, and voting for them.  We are the problem.  Why don't we occupy Home Street?

The Occupy groups are just, should we say, terrorists groups.  Well, they were allowed to say it about the Tea Party (which again, is not the savior of anything by any means).

#89 That's What Friends Are For

Although some would argue, the United States is and has always been since its inception, the symbol of democracy.  Ninety-nine percent of all Western Hemisphere nations modeled their governments in one way or another after the American experiment.  The new presidential type of government had never really been tried before.  This is why Jefferson is quoted as saying:  I have no fear that the result of our experiment will be that men may be trusted to govern themselves without a master.  But once this experiment proved to be working, others followed suit.  Even today new nations who are going through revolution and finding freedoms for the first time are modeling their new governments after the American ideal (no longer an experiment).  Yes, it is true that we are heavily influencing some places into a more democratic way of life, which ironically is the opposite of what democracy is, but isn't better to help influence than to allow some places to fall back into dictatorships and chaos?  The problem is it seems like we are the only ones who really stick up for some places.  We are the policemen of the world.  Unfair, dangerous, costly (and can't leave out Obama's--arrogant) at times, it's still better in the long run that people experience what freedom is.  But we need help from allies.  Here are the results from last month's poll:  Who is our closest ally?

• United Kingdom  (91%)
• Canada (39%)
• Israel (26%)
• Japan  (17%)
• Australia (13%)
• Some other European country (4%)
• Russia, India, China (0%)
• Other North American country, Other South American country, Some African country, Some other Asian/Middle Eastern country  (0%)

Definitely the United Kingdom should be at the top of this list.  Ever since 1870 ties between these two nations have been the closest any two nations could ever be and still remain separate.  Even though we remained neutral in both world wars at first, we were supplying the British with weapons, money, and manpower throughout their struggles.  And in return when we needed them in the Cold War, the Gulf Wars (including the Libyan fiasco in 1984-85), and the War on Terrorism, they were there to lend support.  Long live the Queen.

Canada, our closest ally in location, is not so supportive as the UK.   They are more of a silent partner.  They have supported us in many of our encounters but really do not get involved physically.  What's the problem, eh?

Japan, a country that vowed not to have military action after WWII, has been one of best friends internationally.  Yet, they have a huge reason not to.  When we dropped the second atomic weapon on them three days after we killed over 200,000 people, it wasn't to end the war.  It was to prove a point to the Stalin that communism is the next enemy of democracy.  The second bomb was not necessary to drop.  Yet, Japan remains a close ally.  And when the War on Terrorism was officially started Japan jumped right in.  Arigoto.

Australia, the farthest from the world and all the wars that the human race has endured, the ones with the least amount of worries when the world shows it still hates each other, still got involved and has been supportive of the US ever since it became a Parliamentary Democracy free from the bounds of a monarch.  No worries, Mate.

Russia, India, and China apparently are still on the low end of the totem poll.  China is easy to see why.  They threw off democracy in 1949, even though we saved them from the Japanese in WWII.  They got involved with Korea and Vietnam when the UN said these places should be dealt with to save freedom.  And now they are taking all the world's money (due to our own stupidity).  Russia, when it turned democratic, after years of being controlled by "Socialists", should have been reached out to and helped but we didn't, thereby creating a hostile ally.  If the US and Russia teamed up to stand up against dictatorial rule, not many dictators would be able to retain their control.  When Russia was hurting for food and needed extra help, we turned our backs on them and allowed China to be our most favored nation.  But Nyet. India should now be moving up on the list.  Since the lying Pakistani government reared its true intention, India should be revered as a very important ally in securing the area and should be helped as much as possible, minus all the computer technicians from Microsoft that is.

Mexico and other American nations should be sought after as close allies, after all we can walk there.  But I guess too many Americans are still upset with immigration and their own biases.

France, Germany and the rest of Europe?  From 1945-2001, we took care of their lands.  We placed preventive weapons on their soil.  We gave them financial aid to get their feet back on the ground.  We sent men and women to Vietnam to save French butt.  But when we needed them in the last 20 years they turned away.  .  There should be a stronger tie between the US and Europe.  But unlike President Obama, there should be no apologies for the US being "arrogant".  Without US aid and help, how would the two world wars Europe started have changed the way the world is?  Europeans are good people but the friendship is not as strong as it should be.  All except Spain and Italy.  Viva Italia y Espagne

But perhaps the best ally we have and need is poor little Isra'el.  All alone in a world that hates them.  The only democracy in a region filled with Absolute Monarchs, Theocratic maniacs, and extreme radical religious murderers, dating back to the 600's AD.  They are in a very vital region, one that could explode at any given moment.  A region that could throw havoc into the world at any given time by raising the price of oil.  And they are the doorstep into the region.  Shalom eretz Isra'el. Sh'ma.

#88 Me Thinks Thou Protests...

The First Amendment to the Constitution not only gives us the freedoms of speech, religion and the press, which most people know and understand for the most part, it also gives us freedom to petition the government and to assemble.  But with these freedoms come responsibility.  With speech you can not slander and/or libel against people, talk show hosts not included apparently.  With religion you can not perform human sacrifices.  With press you can not accuse without rational reason, cable news shows hosts again not included.  Now, with the freedom of petition our limitations are that some people are not allowed to be associated with others due to conflict of interests, but that apparently doesn't include lobbyists.  And with freedom of assembly, the limitation is that is has to be done peacefully.  Inciting a riot can actually be considered treasonous since it may be "levying war" against the state.

Most protests are of course exercising in the freedom of assembly, some are boycotts which are not.  Most protests have a real reason and/or are started by real movements and rational causes.  The Americans boycotting the British, writing letters of bitter disagreement, and of course having a "tea party" are prime examples of how protests should go.  Unfortunately, our friends of the British crown did not get the message and therefore we had to fight.  Mosts protesters are people who want drastic change.  The word to describe these people are radicals and reactionaries.  These kinds of protesters are good for the cause.  They get people to think.  Progressives on both sides of the spectrum are good.  They usually have rational reasons and many can be considered heroes.  The protesters who are not rational or who have no real reason to protest are not heroes but can be described as nuts.

The so-called Tea Party, which by the way is NOT the poster child for conservative values, is an outgrowth of the GOP that is the epitome of the anti-Obama crowd.  What started out as a protest against big government in the form of high taxes and dictatorial tendencies by the Democratically controlled Congress at the time has now turned into a disgrace against the middle class by doing the same thing they were protesting against.  On the other side, these Occupiers (The 99% Club, which are not the poster child for the DEMs) are the epitome of anti-big business and any conservative values.  Both have real reasons to protest.  Both are starting to do irrational things.  The only difference is the Tea Party used peaceful demonstrations and the power of the vote to get things done.  The Occupy Party is using violence.  This is mainly due to the fact that Tea Partiers know what their cause is.  Occupiers do not.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2016683433_occupy04.html

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/emotional-interview-alleged-occupy-baltimore-rape-victim-says-activists-refused-to-help/

Whether Tea Party or Occupy (insert city) are the ones protesting, the same result usually happens; chaos. And if chaos is what happens then we have to ask, is it worth it? And in keeping with the original meaning of the title of this Paper, most protests are not about what they should be about.  Both sides are a disgrace to the American people.

By the way, it's all Clinton's fault.