As I was driving to work this morning I thought of perhaps one of the best (i.e. worst) examples of unconstitutional actions by our federal government;
Brief 6: Shortly after the new year began in 2012 President Obama signed the National Defense Authorization Act. Tucked into the bill is a provision that many believe greatly expands the ability of the federal government take you into custody and hold you indefinitely;
Obama’s Justice Department is hot on another “criminal” as they have gone after Sheriff Joe Arpaio from Maricopa County in Arizona. In an AP (Adulterated Press) story the federal government has “found that Arpaio’s office committed a wide range of civil rights violations against Latinos, including unjust immigration patrols and jail policies” and one official “called it the most egregious case he has seen or reviewed in professional literature.” Big Brother (Eric Holder) has given Arpaio until January 4, 2012 to decide if he wants to work out an agreement with Obama/Holder.
Nearly three years ago I identified Daniel Hannan as a True American Hero…he was the forth to achieve this designation. Mr. Hannan is a staunch defender of American ideals and often offers clear and concise arguements supporting capitalism and free markets and conservatism. This is more unique in that he hails from Great Britain.
This is an easy post for me as most of it will be using Daniel Hannan’s own words and a link to an article written by him that you will be inticed to read. The article is a message to “Occupy” folks and an attempt to point them in the right direction to vent their displeasure. Hannan offers ten points of which I’ll only provide a brief tease;
This will be the last installment of this series which morphed from the Pittsburgh Pirates’ arbitration results for pitcher Ross Ohlendorf, hence its inclusion in the Money Speaks category. Ohlendorf was the beneficiary of a significant salary increase through arbitration despite being oft injured and possessing a woeful pitching record in 2010. Arbiters determined and the Pirates accepted and paid Mr. Ohlendorf over $2 million dollars for his services in 2011. As the Pirates head home for their last home stand of the season this sticky note was attached to my morning paper.
The headline says it all…
The $2 million dollar pitcher had to return to the line up sooner than expected due a colleague’s injury. The Pirates didn’t do Ross Ohlendorf any favors by starting him against one of the better teams in the National League and the team the Pirates historically have struggle against.
“Making his first start for the Pirates since early April, Ohlendorf allowed 14 baserunners in five innings. The Brewers roughed him up in the second and cruised to an 11-4 victory. Ohlendorf (0-1) gave up seven runs, 11 hits and two walks, with four strikeouts.”
About two years ago I wrote a post about what “poor” really means in America and what amenities many of those below the poverty line have. I don’t want to delve back into that because you can read the original post at this link. I was somewhat perplexed by the fact that the poverty line in the United States seems rather static in that we always have a certain percentage of folks below the line and I believe that there is political incentives to always have the poor. The poor seem to be a handy voting block for whoever will promise them the most entitlements. I generally stopped there in my deep thoughts, but there is more.
“When we take a position that isn’t willing to embrace evolution, when we take a position that basically runs counter to what 98 of 100 climate scientists have said, what the National Academy of Science has said about what is causing climate change and man’s contribution to it, I think we find ourselves on the wrong side of science, and, therefore, in a losing position,”
“we actually were willing to shun science and become a party that was antithetical to science. I’m not sure that’s good for our future and it’s not a winning formula,”
This is the second year in a row that my wife convinced me to go somewhere that I really didn’t want to go and it again involved the group Train. This time instead of the opening act for John Mayer, Train played after a Pittsburgh Pirate home game against the San Diego Padres. The Pirates had been fairly hot and recently even had first place in the division. I have never really been a big baseball fan, but I do enjoy going to the ballpark. I should say used to as it’s been a while since I’ve enjoyed a game. It may stem, at least partially, from the fact that I had a brief stint as one of poor souls who cleaned up after ball games. I was in high school and I think I lasted two or three home stands. If I close my eyes I can still conjure up the odor of stale beer, peanut shells, and damp popcorn. Brrrrrrrr.
The Pirates did the unthinkable in July and actually sat atop of the National League Central Division…for about a day. There was actually a buzz in Pittsburgh with our baseball team doing good things this late in the season. They promptly went on a 10 game losing streak. I had the pleasure of attended when they got blown out by the lowly San Diego Padres 13-2. Not a great game to watch, but it was really hot and humid too. The organization did, however, provide some entertainment as the group Train played a set and we were treated to Zambelli fireworks.
In the tradition of John Galt, Steve Wynn has been an outspoken business leader and a refreshing contrast to other business people who are snuggling in to the federal government to gain special favors (i.e. GE’s Immelt). I named Mr. Wynn a True American Hero nearly a year ago and have not been disappointed in his pro-capitalist stance. Steve Wynn unloaded on the boy-president during a recent company conference call. Here are some of his thoughts,
“what I consider to be a total lack of leadership from the President and nothing’s going to get fixed until the President himself steps up.”
