An anecdote

I have been negligent to write over the past two weeks, thank the Lord I finally have returned to work in my field of expertise, commercial construction plumbing. I just want to offer an anecdotal suggestion that speaks to the debt ceiling debate in Washington.

Three years a go I finished up at a pharmaceutical job in Frederick Md. A great job that I was able to ride from the underground to start up; when it ended all the talk was that a huge job at Ft. Dietrich was about to start and that with a little luck we could jump right from one to the other. Three years later that job is finally under way with some seriousness but is still subject to delays and controversies. Ft Dietrich is where the army does much of its research into a lot of ugly stuff (a Ft Dietrich scientist was suspected in the anthrax mailings following 9/11) and naturally has a somewhat uneasy relation with the residents of Frederick. Still it is a vital facility and defense is a constitutional role of government so of course it takes forever to do any thing.

With Ft Dietrich on hold I tried to get on to a supermarket job but that fell through in a permit dispute, so then came a high school, one of the largest in the state of West Virginia and a local job to boot, but again delay delay delay. Again most would agree that education is a legitimate function of government and this high school is needed but trying to get it built is problematic even if the state has the money.

So for nearly three years I’ve gotten by on small jobs and side work. I prayerfully refused to continue on Federal extended unemployment as I would have been hypocritical to oppose extending those benefits for God knows how long and then to jump on them when I needed them. One of those small jobs was at the NCTC, (national conservation training center) which sits on the old Hendricks Farm about 2 miles from where I grew up. There many thousands of your tax dollars went to replace c-fold paper towel dispensers with environmentally friendly rolled ones and install water conserving faucets and flush meters on toilets and urinals. Thank goodness the government isn’t broke or anything. When you hear of green jobs created remember 4 guys working for 6 weeks is as good as it gets. Meanwhile in the Robert C Byrd auditorium of the same facility severe water damage from a burst pipe goes unfixed as it has no funding.

Finally though Macy’s decided to build a distribution center in our area, they acquired the property, cleared the property and now we are working 6 10 hour days just to get done ahead of the iron workers. My helper and I laid 600 ft of 8 inch pipe in 2 days and boy did if feel great! I come home tired hot and dirty not to mention a little scraped up and I love it! When this job is done, Macy’s will employ over a thousand people full time and another 500 or so seasonally. Not 4 people for 6 weeks like the stimulus, and it will add to the economy not suck treasure out of it.

What has this to do with the debt ceiling? Simply this: the roll and scope of government is too big and is wrought with economic killing inefficiencies in the end the talk of 1.2 trillion in cuts is cosmetic as in DC a cut is really just a slow down in the rate of growth. I don’t believe we can settle for any thing that doesn’t change the system of spending fundamentally. Government spending can’t grow at 9% a year forever; government has to be placed in the background of life not the fore front. Right now if the debt ceiling is not raised, would it be so bad? If government could only do its fundamental needs but had to lay off some EPA officials who are trying to devastate the coal industry in WV what would the harm be? I am willing to support any plan that requires a balanced budget and willing to reject any plan that does not and I will urge m representatives to do the same. We conservatives are on the cusp of victory but we can’t put our trust in Boehner’s and McConnell’s chamberlinesque negotiating skills, its up to us the American people the conservatives, the tea party patriots to save our country and its future and we will not be deterred.   Let us all pray for our country, that it can hold out for one more election, than we will have our turn to finish what we started last November.

Until next time keep on the firing line.

An anecdote

I have been negligent to write over the past two weeks, thank the Lord I finally have returned to work in my field of expertise, commercial construction plumbing. I just want to offer an anecdotal suggestion that speaks to the debt ceiling debate in Washington.

Three years a go I finished up at a pharmaceutical job in Frederick Md. A great job that I was able to ride from the underground to start up; when it ended all the talk was that a huge job at Ft. Dietrich was about to start and that with a little luck we could jump right from one to the other. Three years later that job is finally under way with some seriousness but is still subject to delays and controversies. Ft Dietrich is where the army does much of its research into a lot of ugly stuff (a Ft Dietrich scientist was suspected in the anthrax mailings following 9/11) and naturally has a somewhat uneasy relation with the residents of Frederick. Still it is a vital facility and defense is a constitutional role of government so of course it takes forever to do any thing.

With Ft Dietrich on hold I tried to get on to a supermarket job but that fell through in a permit dispute, so then came a high school, one of the largest in the state of West Virginia and a local job to boot, but again delay delay delay. Again most would agree that education is a legitimate function of government and this high school is needed but trying to get it built is problematic even if the state has the money.

So for nearly three years I’ve gotten by on small jobs and side work. I prayerfully refused to continue on Federal extended unemployment as I would have been hypocritical to oppose extending those benefits for God knows how long and then to jump on them when I needed them. One of those small jobs was at the NCTC, (national conservation training center) which sits on the old Hendricks Farm about 2 miles from where I grew up. There many thousands of your tax dollars went to replace c-fold paper towel dispensers with environmentally friendly rolled ones and install water conserving faucets and flush meters on toilets and urinals. Thank goodness the government isn’t broke or anything. When you hear of green jobs created remember 4 guys working for 6 weeks is as good as it gets. Meanwhile in the Robert C Byrd auditorium of the same facility severe water damage from a burst pipe goes unfixed as it has no funding.

Finally though Macy’s decided to build a distribution center in our area, they acquired the property, cleared the property and now we are working 6 10 hour days just to get done ahead of the iron workers. My helper and I laid 600 ft of 8 inch pipe in 2 days and boy did if feel great! I come home tired hot and dirty not to mention a little scraped up and I love it! When this job is done, Macy’s will employ over a thousand people full time and another 500 or so seasonally. Not 4 people for 6 weeks like the stimulus, and it will add to the economy not suck treasure out of it.

What has this to do with the debt ceiling? Simply this: the roll and scope of government is too big and is wrought with economic killing inefficiencies in the end the talk of 1.2 trillion in cuts is cosmetic as in DC a cut is really just a slow down in the rate of growth. I don’t believe we can settle for any thing that doesn’t change the system of spending fundamentally. Government spending can’t grow at 9% a year forever; government has to be placed in the background of life not the fore front. Right now if the debt ceiling is not raised, would it be so bad? If government could only do its fundamental needs but had to lay off some EPA officials who are trying to devastate the coal industry in WV what would the harm be? I am willing to support any plan that requires a balanced budget and willing to reject any plan that does not and I will urge m representatives to do the same. We conservatives are on the cusp of victory but we can’t put our trust in Boehner’s and McConnell’s chamberlinesque negotiating skills, its up to us the American people the conservatives, the tea party patriots to save our country and its future and we will not be deterred.   Let us all pray for our country, that it can hold out for one more election, than we will have our turn to finish what we started last November.

Until next time keep on the firing line.

CUT CAP AND BALANCE

I pledge to urge my Senators and Member of the House of Representatives to oppose any debt limit increase unless all three of the following conditions have been met:

1.                     Cut - Substantial cuts in spending that will reduce the deficit next year and thereafter.

2.                     Cap - Enforceable spending caps that will put federal spending on a path to a balanced budget.

3.                     Balance - Congressional passage of a Balanced Budget Amendment to the U.S. Constitution -- but only if it includes both a spending limitation and a super-majority for raising taxes, in addition to balancing revenues and expenses.

Two weeks ago I shared a copy of a letter to the honorable Shelley Moore Capito urging the support of a balanced budget amendment. I feel I should do due diligence and go into more detail about the plan I support. A number of conservative pro-growth and pro fiscal sanity groups have combined to author the above pledge. Let me tell you why I support it and why my unsolicited advice to you is to do the same.

CUT- buzz words in DC right now are balanced approach and shared sacrifice. We can’t just cut spending we must raise revenue as well. What they really mean is that the libs want tax increases now in exchange for phantom cuts later. D… those corporate jet owners anyway! When the real truth is told however, tax cuts and not tax increases spur economic activity and lead to increased gross revenue. A smaller percent paid by a broader base and it has worked every time it was tried.  The dirty little secret, the President knows this, in his debate with Hillary April of ’08 he said that capitol gains tax rates should be raised “for the purpose of fairness” despite the fact that such increases have always resulted in less revenue.  The truth is you can take every dime of all the wealthiest people in the country including those D…. corporate jets and those accursed yachts and fund the government for…. A COUPLE OF MONTHS! Then you couldn’t do it again, just as when you tax a business out of existence they suddenly produce $0.00 in tax revenue. We call this killing the goose that laid the golden eggs. Cutting spending NOW not promising to do it later is not the best way to lower the deficit it is the only way.

CAP- the only way to keep the politicians hands out of the public fund cookie jar is to padlock the darned thing. Discretionary, defense and entitlement spending must have a ceiling just as the debt does. I like the idea of a specific percent of gross domestic product, say 18% or so, with an allowance for war and defense emergencies. Politicians will spend every dime they can as long as they can rather we have it or not if it helps reelection. Why not? Its not their money why not spend it with abandon? They will unless we the people don’t let them any more.

BALANCE- the constitutional amendment is the only thing that will prevent this cycle from repeating. Can't spend more than you make, can’t raise taxes willy-nilly and a limit on what percent of the nations wealth can be flushed down the bureaucratic toilet in DC! Amending the constitution is difficult and should only be undertaken in extreme situations, but this counts as that. Incumbent can buy reelection by spending the wealth of a generation yet born. I suspect that wasn't in the founders plan, and should be eliminated from ours.

If you agree with me, go to http://cutcapbalancepledge.com/pledge.php and join me in signing the pledge.

Until next time, keep on the firing line.

America’s birth certificate

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

One sentence of the Declaration of Independence, adopted by the Continental congress on July 4, 1776, perhaps the most famous line, but it only begins to tell of the marvelous work that is the birth certificate of our great nation. While others can give a far more scholarly view, I simply wish to tell you exactly what these words say to me.

We hold these truths to be self-evident,  

Certain things are true just because they are. This is called by some natural law or moral absolutes by others. In some of the early states no law exists to make murder a crime, only to prescribe the penalty. It was superfluous to make a law against what God had so clearly set his stamp against. Moral absolutes in a Christian nation are Biblically based but natural law, the ideas of right and wrong precede even the books of Moses; they were hardwired into the human soul at the moment Adam arose from the sand, a part of the breath which God breathed in his nostrils.  (Romans 1)

that all men are created equal,

This too is a Biblical concept. Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: 35But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him. (Acts 10: 33,34)   this was a monumental application of truth. To this time the will of God, or so it was supposed, resided in the hands of kings and noblemen and the concept of divine right was widely accepted; now these revolutionaries had decided to revisit the fundamental relationship between, government and Providence. One law equal for all. Sadly it would be some time before all Americans in all states were free, but with these words defining our very existence it was destined to be so.

that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights,

Inalienable rights granted by God. Even in the Magna Cartra, as historic and bold as it was, the rights granted were granted by the “dread sovereign King John”  the continental congress proclaimed God and not the king as the source of all rights, this was as revolutionary theologically as it was politically.

that among these are

These rights listed are not the sum total of all rights. This foreshadows a government where only the specific enumerated powers fall to the purview of government.

Life

It is the most basic of all rights. Only in certain very limited cases has one man the right to take the life of another. Yet in our society the life of the unborn can be taken on a whim, yet in the health care law rationing will take the inalienable right to life out of the hand of God and put it in the hands of bureaucrats. It is no surprise that those who deny God, and deny moral absolutes and natural law would also deny the sacredness of life. If we do not restore our respect for life, our society will collapse and the same God who so richly blessed our founding will leave us to the wailing and gnashing of teethe that is the fate of all nations who abandon the just principles of their founding.   

    

Liberty

  Liberty is defined as- freedom from control, interference, obligation, restriction,hampering conditions, etc.; power or right of doing, thinking,speaking, etc., according to choice.

That we and not the king or the president, or the first lady’s commission on nutrition can dictate our personal choices better than we can. The concept that we may pursue our lives according to our will and our conscience seems distant at times when our government wishes to dictate for us our toilets, our light bulbs,  rather we have to purchase health insurance or not. Still we have the power of the vote so if liberty is lost it was not stolen it was ceded. If we act now, I believe it still can be restored.

and the pursuit of Happiness

From these five words spring the American dream, that we can improve our lot and build a better future for each generation. From these five words has arisen the freest most prosperous society in the history of the world, and these five words imply the unbreakable link between the attainment of happiness and a free market system that affords those opportunities for rich and poor alike.

My friend from one sentence we gleaned so much, my advice to you between cookout and fireworks, take time to read the whole document, read it aloud, discuss it, grasp its meaning!

  

Until next time, happy Independence Day!

a copy of a letter I sent to Shelley Moore Capito

To the Honorable Shelley Moore Capito,

            I would like to thank you for your support of the Ryan budget plan. A few days ago  you were in Martinsburg and I felt you articulated well a rebuttal of the erroneous charges that republicans are attempting to “ruin Medicare” when it is Obamacare that actually cuts Medicare and institutes the ground work for rationing and cost benefit health care decisions made outside of the doctor-patient-family context. My concern is that, we are being led to believe at least, that the majority of senior citizens believe that it is more important to make sure they get theirs even if it means bankrupting future generations. I am not sure if I believe this but if so we have a serious cultural issue to contend with. Further, when I contacted your office to express my opposition to the “Boehner budget blunder” because I felt it did little to make a substantial change your response implied that you were receiving calls afraid of too much cutting in spending! If this is the case I have long overestimated the people of West Virginia. I had hoped that the days of Senator Byrd and the pork project as the WV gold standard for political achievement were forever behind us. If West Virginians, and Americans for that matter, are not willing to forsake the failed policies of the left and return to good old American self reliance, it really may be too late!    

I do not believe this to be the case. In Greece and London we see thousands riot to oppose any cuts in the entitlement system, but in America we see the Tea Party step forward to demand that government do less not more, that punitive taxation and crushing regulation are the factors crippling our economy and that  less government is the answer not more. Still as long as politicians can spend limitlessly and secure reelection by “bringing home the bacon” the real motivation to cut spending dramatically will be lacking.

This is why I wish to encourage you to support a balanced budget amendment to the US constitution. As a rule I am very hesitant to support any such changes to our founding document, as I feel that tinkering with our basic governmental structure should be done advisedly and cautiously. However I cannot conceive that the founders ever imagined a day when our nation would spend so extravagantly beyond its means to be so intrusive into the lives of the average citizen. To quote Rep Tom Perriello  (D-VA)   "The only way to get Congress to balance the budget is to give them no choice. The only way to keep them out of the cookie jar is to give them no choice. Which is why, whether its balanced budget acts or pay as you go legislation or any of that -- it's the only thing. IF YOU DON'T TIE OUR HANDS, WE'LL KEEP STEALING."  The truth is that Pay-go and all other promises are meaningless as they are ignored by so many of our representatives.

As a supporter of the Ryan plan I know that you are in favor of real change so I ask you to please consider lending your support to this amendment.

Sincerely,

John W Tabler

manhood for father's day

Some time ago a friend asked me to write a few thoughts on manhood for her son's 16th birthday. Afterwords I realized that I couldn't write any thing better so I re-titled it for my son. I think its worth your time, happy Father's day

.Dear Larue

A few thoughts on manhood

The boy does as he wishes

                   The man does as he should

The boy needs protecting

                   The man protects

The boy has others to provide for his needs

                   The man provides for the needs of others

The boy cries and needs held

                   The man holds back his tears and holds the boy

The boy would help his mother

                   The man would die for her

The boy may battle a bully

                   The man must fight the world for the sake of his family

The boy asks “Can it be done?”

                   The man says “I will do it because it must be done”

The man must bear his own grief, his own sorrow, his own disillusionments, and still be strong enough to carry his family through the trial as well

The man will seek the help of others, but will never hand over his responsibilities to anyone else

The man will seek advice but will never shirk making a decision

The man will accept the consequences of his action

The man must be his wife’s prince and his children’s hero

The man strives to keep chivalry alive in a world that mocks him for it

The man must be faithful to his wife with his eyes, mind, and heart

The man’s family seldom appreciates him, his church criticizes him, his culture mocks him, yet he strives with his last breath to make these institutions work

There could be no full time mom’s if not for men with full time jobs

Being an adult does not make a boy into a man, it is a decision and a lifestyle of responsibility

The man realizes he cannot be all he needs to be so he calls on God to be his help

In the classic western “Magnificent Seven” gunfighter Renaldo Riley tells some village children, “You think I am brave because I carry a gun? Your fathers are much braver because they carry responsibility, for you and your mothers. And this responsibility is like a giant rock, it weights them down and crushes them, and there is nobody that says they have to do this, they do it because they want to and they love you. I have never had this kind of courage.”

But a real man does.

- How to handle hate

            There are certain absolutes in American news media. If a group of conservatives devised a plan by which minorities could better themselves though entrepreneurial endeavors and move beyond public housing.  The New York Times headline would read, “Republicans try to take away black people’s homes”. I do not recall all the details of the story but as a youth I picked up on this bias when I heard this quote in a story about the Middle East “Israeli soldiers today violated a cease fire agreement when they returned fire against Palestinian gunman”. Those danged Jews, defending themselves like that!

This still goes on, CNN recently referred to Sarah Palin speaking to a tea party gathering “of at least dozens” in Searchlight Nev. The crowd was 8-10 thousand. Sen. Harry Reid could only muster a hundred in the same town, his home town. Truthfully this type of bias is so obvious and so over the top it could be considered great comic material, but recent fraudulent attacks on tea party patriots and other outspoken conservatives is no laughing matter.

            There is a danger. Hate crimes laws can easily be twisted to hinder free speech. Our tolerant open minded friends north of the border at the University of Western Ontario were transformed into a mob from a Frankenstein movie at the fear Ann Coulter might utter an opinion they disagreed with. Political correctness in its finished form is tyranny. The President and his supporters in congress and the press are every bit as determined to smear and degrade any political opposition as they are to raise the debt and defile the constitution. The ‘bridge too far’ in their strategy is the accusations of racism and violence against the tea party protests. When speaker Pelosi  and the Democrats walked through the crowd with the Medicare gavel intentionally provoking angry Americans whose liberty they were stealing on that dark Sunday Healthcare was passed, they intended to provoke someone to yell something inappropriate. While they claim to have heard the n word and the f word video and audio evidence is as hard to find as a fact in an Al Gore movie. Facts mean nothing to liberals.

            What shall we do? First, remember this is a blatant shameless attempt to silence you, do not let it. Shout louder, proclaim liberty, and take inspiration from Paul Revere, “bankruptcy is coming, healthcare rationing is coming, and restrictions on free speech are coming”. Our founders were not deterred by threat of the rope; neither shall we be silenced regardless of the danger.

            Next, disagree factually. When the liberals accuse us of racism in opposing Pres. Obama be ready with facts, when you counter “you racist idiot you,” by quoting article 9 of the constitution and applying it properly the debate is yours. Those facts so despised by the left are our best friends. Attempts to vilify and even criminalize opposition will fail, when confronted with the truth. Read the bills, know the constitution, and familiarize yourself with representative’s voting records and candidate’s positions on issues. Consider joining an organization like the Heritage Foundation, and reading some of the fine books about conservativism. Any chance you have to read and quote Reagan, take it.

                                               

            Finally, disagree respectfully, accept that nasty false accusations are coming, and make certain that whatever they accuse us of is a lie. Barrack Obama has said “if they bring a knife we bring a gun.” The left’s dagger is intimidation, our revolver is our resolve. I realize that every example of bad conduct in the country will be blamed on Palin, Limbaugh or the tea party’s angry rhetoric. Yet when it comes to bad behavior we are amateurs compared to the left, and it will stay that way, I’m certain. The difference is thanks to the internet and talk radio they no longer can hide their reprehensible conduct behind a complacent and compliant press.

            As far as anger goes, I am angry. I struggle to find words to state my emotions that are not profane. This is not the “go outside and throw things” anger that will simply fade away. It is a righteous anger that manifests itself in a determination to force the liberals to get their d---- hands of my country and stop threatening my children’s future.

It is the same anger I feel when I see a picture of the New York City skyline taken in 1999. No one would have guessed when they awoke September 11, 2001 that the World Trade Center would be gone when they went to bed; just like few Americans thought when they elected Barrack Obama that our constitution would lie in smoldering ruins one year later. Did I really just compare the Democrats to Al-Qaeda? (Pres Obama’s good friend Bill Ayers did try to destroy the Pentagon, just like a few of the late Osama bin Laden’s pals did. Besides, the liberals and the terrorists have one very important thing in common, they dislike this country and intend to make it something very different from what the framers intended.

            We intend to stop them.

 Until next time, keep on the firing line.