Peg Board: General Powell on Bill O'Reilly

Last night (1/30) on the Bill  O'Reilly Show, General Colin Powell took exception to John Sununu saying that President Obama was “lazy”. Gen. Powell said that the comment was “racist”. Well, Gen. Powell it is NOT a racist comment if it is true. In this case it is.

Prez. Obama's entire first term was ,marked by having others do work that should have come from the White House as a matter of leadership if nothing else. Most notable of these were Obama Care which he left to the Democrats in Congress; the national budget; and immigration. Most recently he said that he was going to produce a plan to deal with immigration. Instead, he gave a speech in Las Vegas but, typically, produced no written, comprehensive plan to address the problem.

This has NOTHING to do with his race. By any standard the man is just plain lazy. I doubt that General Powell would keep him on staff for very long.

Benghazi and Hillary's testimony

And the left, as demonstrated below, is busy spinning this story as far away from the real point as possible. The first point is that Hillary knew the reason for the attack and lied about it not only to the press but, shamefully, to the parents of the murdered.

The second point is that why it happened is crucial. Did the administration know (should have known) that something was likely to happen and refuse to protectively respond or was it a spontaneous even that could not be predicted?

And yes, we should track down the doers and their associates.

There is no indication that Hillary cares anything about Benghazi, the victims, or the survivors. Apparently all she cares about is avoiding responsibility. She will not allow the survivors to be questioned by the press or apparently make them available to the congress or other investigators. What is she and/or the administration hiding?

What is amazing to me is the incredible sloppiness/laziness of this administration. Eric Holder, DOJ, admitted that he did not read memos sent to him. Hillary admitted that she did not read memos sent to her. OK, they are both busy people, why did they not assign someone to read incoming memos? One would think that these two geniuses would have done that – if they cared. 

SPINNING V. LYING

Sometimes it's spinning, but often it's just plain lying. The most recent example has to do with the District Court's overturning of Prez Obama’s so called recess appointments to the NLRB, NOT because they were recess appointments during a recess of the Senate, but because THEY WERE NOT. Obama and his henchmen claim that every President has done this. That is a flat out lie and they know it. NO President has attempted to make a “recess appointment” while the Senate was still in session. The real issue is IF the Senate was is session or not.

What is bothersome about this is that the lying, and twisting, and spinning is so juvenile, so unnecessary. Having a disagreement with the Congress that has to be set straight by the courts is no big deal. What an administration filled with adults would have done would be to take the disagreement to the courts as soon as they could and ask for clarification on an expedited basis. But not these guys, oh no. Like a bunch of juveniles they go about their business pretending that everything is correct even though they have bee warned by the Senate that they are out of line.
Now because Prez Obama and his henchmen were so self-centered, so headstrong, we are in a position where at least 3 appointments to the Board have been overturned and perhaps as many as 218 rulings will be invalidated. All of this confusion, wasted time, and wasted money just because the President set himself above the law.
Grow up Mr. President. Submit yourself to the law and the custom of the land.

Debt 

I really do not object if the congress extends and raises the debt ceiling for another 90 days as long as at the end of that time they deliver a solution. The real trouble is, I do not think that they will or can. We will see.

I am not a fiscal guy, but basics that I think should be in any agreement are:

• Always pay the interest and do not borrow money to do it;
• Full fill the Constitutional requirement – principally defense of the Nation. Do not borrow money to do it;
• Meet current obligations starting with money owed to US citizens (money borrowed from Social Security (+ interest), etc.);
• With the exception of Defense (suggest return to Depart of War) and Social Security which is self funded, all programs should be funded at last 2 years levels (even though there was no approved budget). This includes all branches of government;
• Any new programs requiring funding MUST include statement of need, specify where the funds are coming from (i.e. new taxes, transfer from another program and which program for how long).

Suggested changes to current programs, any savings to be applied only to the principle of the debt. Yearly increases to be limited to the percentage increase in annual tax collection not to exceed the cost of living.

EPA

Remove Rule making and rule enforcement authority/responsibility. It may investigate, make recommendations, and publish its findings. Action is the responsibility of the State or Community. Resulting unnecessary personal to be transferred to other programs.

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Remove Rule making and rule enforcement authority/responsibility. It may investigate, make recommendations, and publish its findings. Action is the responsibility of the State or Community. Resulting unnecessary personal to be transferred to other programs. States and school districts that have used federal money must publish in a prominent location the results of any relevant DOE report.

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

All gasoline taxes must only go to the maintenance of currently constructed federal highways. No new federal highway construction (status of highways currently under construction to be negotiated with states and communities [nothing to cross state lines]).

DEPARTMENT OF STATE

Suggest that it be renamed, Department of Peace. Foreign Aid limited to food and medical, NO arms and NO financial aid (cash or in kind). Diplomatic responsibilities to continue.

NSA, CIA, FBI, HOMELAND SECURITY

May increase by the same percentage as the increase in tax collection over the past two years.

WE HAVE A NATIONAL BUDGET

We have a national budget that has been approved by both the Senate and the House. The house should fund this budget immediately. It may be that this budget is more than three years old, however it is the most recently approved budget that we have. The House policy should be that the budget of the United States that it will fund is the last one that was approved by both the Senate and the House. 

Control guns or reduce gun violence?

01/18/13 Peg Board

The first rule of “Get 'ER Done” is to to define what “ 'ER ” is. What are you to accomplish? And what will it look like if you are successful? In other words, how will you know if/when you are successful? Oddly enough, politicians often tell folks exactly what they are trying to achieve even when they are trying to cover it up. For example, an important topic right now is the murder of multiple children in a school setting. But this is not what our politicians SAY that they are trying to control. What they are trying to control is the ownership of guns by private citizens. They imply that such control will reduce the risk to school children even though NONE of the current commendations will have that effect. What is truly shameful is that the overwhelming evidence (scientific studies and testimony before Congress) has resided in Congressional archives for decades. In other words, the tools for reducing violence against children both exists and is/has been available to and ignored by the federal congress. Every sitting Representative or Senator who has held the seat for more than two years is as responsible (through inaction) for the violence and death as the doers are.

I know that sounds harsh, but the ER we are trying to get done is reducing gun (any) violence against children, especially in schools (groups). As trite as it sounds, the research clearly shows that the problem is not guns (bats, hammers, etc.) but the people who handle them and their attitudes about hurting others. The conclusion is that the entertainment industry (movies, video games, etc) under common circumstances produces an effect which desensitizes the participants to human pain and discomfort. Rather than address the issue our “Representatives” would rather sink their snouts deep into the entertainment industry's money trough. There may be other explanations but it seems to me that these people are either crooked, or incompetent. In any event they are certainly NOT doing what they were elected to do.

ion

Remember the “ 'ER ” in GET 'ER DONE is the reducing of gun (any) violence against children, especially in schools (groups). So what do the folks that you and I chose to represent us recommend?

VAPOR LEGISLATION

Universal background check: So what is this supposed to do? There are already millions of unregistered guns available. Any one who wants to create mayhem can pick up the guns and other means through irregular outlets any time they put their mind to it. This is vapor legislation. When you really look at it, there is nothing of substance there.

A person who is mentally unstable should not have access to guns. But what does “Mentally Unstable” in this context mean? How crazy do you have to be before you start losing your constitutional rights? Do our “Representatives” address this? No. Lazy Cowards. Have our “Representatives” created a national register of people who have been adjudicated mentally incompetent? NO. Lazy Cowards.

Reduced capacity ammunition clips for semi-automatic weapons. What is this supposed to accomplish? Properly prepared and practiced almost anyone can change a clip of ammunition in less than 1 second. It would take the average person more than a second to realize that the clip is being replaced. And in a so called gun free zone, if the only armed person is the doer, what can be done in a second any way?

This is all non-sense. A political circus to entertain the masses (that's us). Nothing happens, children and others keep getting hurt and killed, but we keep re-electing the same lazy, cowardly, and greedy politicians. Doom on us. Our “Representatives” think so little of us that now some are proposing a re-institution of the “assault gun ban”. Previously this legislation failed so badly for ten years it was finally abandoned. Now they want to fool us again with the same failed legislation. How foolish are we really?

WHAT WILL WORK?

Right Now:

Remember the goal is the reducing of gun (any) violence against children, especially in schools (groups).

I've spent years working in public school systems. Every school district has many non-productive administrative or non-teaching positions. Many of these could be re-purposed to trained armed security personnel at no additional cost to the tax payers. Mr. La-Pierre is correct, the best defense against a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun. We are not talking about Uniformed and helmeted Security Personnel with full utility belts in every classroom. One or two plainclothes SP, armed, trained, and with proper communications, roaming randomly in each building should Get 'er done. This level of security can be in place by the opening of school in the Fall of 2013 (that's right, THIS YEAR). NOTE: SECURING YOUR CHILD'S SCHOOL DOES NOT TAKE FEDERAL LEGISLATION OR MONEY. YOU CAN DO IT LOCALLY. SECURING THE SAFETY OF YOUR CHILD'S SCHOOL PROBABLY DOES NOT TAKE ANY STATE LEGISLATION OR MONEY, YOU CAN DO IT LOCALLY. My suggestion, stop whining, form community action groups, and Get 'er Done.

Medium Term:

Federal – revision of the entertainment industry's rating system. This is going to take some work and needs to be consistent nationally. We know that desensitizing children and adults to the suffering of others creates an environment supportive of interpersonal violence. Therefore any form of activity (entertainment or otherwise) which does so should be strictly limited to adult participation. The greedy moguls who care nothing for our children or our country will argue that this is a First Amendment issue, but it is not. There is nothing in the Constitution that requires that children be allowed to be taught/encouraged to be vicious killers than that they should be taught/encouraged to be bloody insurrectionists.

We should explore the possibility of making parents who expose their children to adult rated materials and who commit crimes related to those materials civilly responsible for damages. If the crime results in permanent physical or mental damage or death the parent (s) may be charged as accessories.

Long Term:

National - The goal is the reduction of gun (any) violence against children, especially in schools (groups).

To replace a negative and make it permanent requires a positive replacement. We need a national alliance to promote personal integrity, loyalty to family and community, respect for self and others, personal responsibility for one's behaviors, courage in committing to a code of ethics, and emphasis on nonviolent solutions and outcomes. And an understanding of the impact of violence on both participants. Although such an alliance does not require Federal funding, a National Commission that is very supportive of the allliance would be very helpful.

Please support Sen. Lindsey Graham and his effort to block the appointment of THE DIRECTOR OF THE CIA.. Please write to him and let him know of your support and write your own Senators and make it clear that until the events at Benghazi, including the murder of Ambassador Stevens, have been thoroughly explained there will be no new Director of the CIA.

In addition, let's take it to the wall. Let us encourage Senator Graham and all the Senators, Republican or Democrat, and especially the ones that represent us to block any appointments at the Ambassadorial, Secretarial, or Director level, including the Secretary of State, the Treasurer and the ATF. There has not been an adequate explanation the of the Benghazi events. This failure on the part of the US Government is a slap in the face to the professionals who represent us in our nation to the rest of the world. Regardless of which party you support or which party represents you in Congress it should be made to understand that, Republican or Democrat, on this single issue stands your vote in the next election.