Ambivalence (or something crazy like that)

A few days ago, people on TV were advocating a ban on cursing in California. Now I'm not a fan of vulgarity, but I do believe in free speech within reason.

Still without knowing the details of this proposed ban and not living in California (anymore), I will not offer an opinion on the pros and cons of making such a law, but I do have a question.

In a state that allows weinie waggers to run loose with impunity in public parks , why would a few curses bother anyone?

OofDah!

Ambivalence

Remember when people were militantly anti-smoking? Well, I guess some still are but the majority of people are now satisfied, having won in most public establishments. Rights for the non-smokers; non-rights for smokers.

No, I don't smoke.

But the point is, now people are advocating legalizing marijuana - and it seems some are the same people who were and are militantly anti-smoking. What the heck do they plan to do with their doobie? Certainly they can't be contemplating SMOKING the stuff, can they?

OofDah!

Control the Populace

It takes a long time to do the necessary administrative steps that have to be taken to put the legislation together to control the people - Rep John Dingell (D MI)

Student Loans

Why is the government grabbing education loans, bypassing the banks and causing jobs to be lost? Didn't they say they wanted to create jobs?

If it is worth jeopardizing jobs, putting education loans in the hands of government must be really important. Why? What will be the results of this move?

First, of course, students will have one source and one source only for school funds. No second choice, no shopping around - one place only. A number of questions come to mind. Are your parents in good standing with the government? Are you in a proper demographic group? Will you be required to take certain political courses because you're using government loans? Does the government think the course you've plotted for your life is in their best interests? Will they care about your best interests? Do they deem you deserving of college or will you be routed to a different life plan, like it or not?

How about payback time? More questions. At payback time will your political stance be disregarded? Will some get a better deal than others depending upon party affiliation? Will they let you to pay it off and get out from under the weight of government or will they be a monkey on your back forever? Will they control your life since they invested in it, like they moved in to control wages and policies of businesses in which they invested?

Are they planning to take over individuals as well as banks and industry?

OofDah!

Big Government

I'm reading Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith, a book I would recommend, by the way. I'd like to share a short excerpt from early in the book:

While it was easy to comfort yourself that you would never steal or rape or murder, no one could ever be sure they weren't guilty of anti-Soviet agitation, counterrevolutionary activity, and espionage, since no one, including Leo, could ever be sure exactly what these crimes were.

Importantly, Leo is not just a common guy but is an enforcer, and even he couldn't be sure of guilt because the crimes were only loosely defined, likely by design. So how could he enforce the law? Easy, just arrest or kill the suspect on the grounds that if you were a suspect you were guilty. Unfortunately, becoming a suspect was as simple as a cranky neighbor casting aspersions and even minor officials were not immune to accusations.

Since big government and government control are hotly debated issues in today's political clime, the foregoing excerpt is relevant to us. The scenario described in Child 44 is a result of out-of-control big government. This is what people fear in our government.

If government controls all, it becomes out-of-control. When they are in control, they may expect you to do things you don't wish to do. You may live in fear of your neighbor as well as your government.

"Oh," you say, "I trust our goverment to take away my concerns and make my decisions for me. They'll make everything even and fair - level the playing field. I want to grant them control."

Ah, so perhaps you trust the present administration. Fine. This administration is not forever. Who or what comes next? They will inherit control over you. You have party affiliations? Maybe the next administration will decide to interpret the control laws in a different way. Maybe they'll decide that former party affiliations are punishable by death. Who's to question it? After all, you've granted the government total control over you. And as Lord Acton, historian and moralist, said in 1887, "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely."

Make government a servant of the people, or people will be slaves of the government.

OofDah!

A Good Man

Last night I saw Harry Reid call Ben (Cornhusker) Nelson "a good man" and I thought: Now, that's like Al Capone calling Scarface Al a good man.

And here's another zinger. Old Harry actually said he negotiated that shameful deal behind closed doors so all the states could get such a deal! Yeah, right!

Spin, ya think?

How do these people look straight into a camera and lie like that without blinking an eye? How can we trust any of them? How do they sleep at night? How do WE sleep at night with them at the helm of our country?

OofDah!

Expressions and tantrums

Freedom of speech has been taken for granted in this country for all of my very, very long life. For all those many years, basically the only thing reining in our speech has been our personal morality and integrity. If everyone's morality and integrity was decently intact and utilized to govern a mature individual's speech, there should be no reason to further curb anyone's speech.

However, since morality and integrity, not to mention maturity, have been abdicated in these anything-goes, no-respect times, some restrictions must apply.

As much as I value free speech and all our liberties, I cannot argue against restrictions in certain cases, such as requiring respect at an individual's funeral. Do you want the funeral of your loved one disrupted with cursing, nasty signs, chants, and other disrespectful acts? I simply do not understand people who cannot respect the mourners at a burial.

Ya got something to say? Fine. Choose a better venue.

Actually, I do not look at this as curbing free speech; it's more a case of reining in out-of-control idiots - people who have attained not even a modicum of maturity.

A case in point: I watched a clip of an immature pink-hatted adult child disrupt a book signing recently. I'm not sure what her point was. I doubt it was to promote Dick Morris' latest book, but that's what she accomplished, in my case at least.

Yes, she promoted his work.

Although I was aware of the publication of the book, I had no plan to read it. Now, however, I plan to buy to it protest the "pink child's" behavior, and I plan to read it because I want to know what in the book is so objectionable to the tantrum-throwing juvenile.

Don't you wonder what he wrote could be important enough to warrant such an embarrassing display of childish behavior?

OOfDah! It must be pretty interesting! So go out an purchase it.

Tell them the pink-hatted child sent you.

Venlig hilsen!