Just some stuff

I am coming to believe that I suffer from the Cassandra Syndrome. You ask what is the Cassandra Syndrome? Wikpedia defines it as follows:

The Cassandra Syndrome is a term applied to predictions of doom about the future that are not believed, but upon later reflection turn out to be correct. This denotes a psychological tendency among people to disbelieve inescapably bad news, often through denial. The person making the prediction is caught in the dilemma of knowing what is going to happen but not being able to resolve the problem without the cooperation of others.

That defininition fits the way I feel. I feel as though I see the future of this country in ten, twenty, thirty years and it isn't pretty because fat, lazy, apathetic Americans let our country get taken away from us by corporate greed, illegal immigration and corrupt politicians. I walk down the street and, instead of the kid who saw dead people in the Sixth Sense, I see ignorant and apathetic Americans. I want to slap every one of them and wake them up.

Ignorance can be cured by educating people. Apathy on the other hand is terminal.

With that being said, let me tell you three stories that all happened to me within the past week.

1) Just today I took my neighbor to a lumber yard to buy some 4 x 12 lumber because he did not have a truck to haul them in. We got to the lumber yard and he told the young cashier that he wanted four 4 x 12's 52 inches long. She first off asked 'How long is that?' I immediately told her four foot four inches. She looked at me like 'how did he figure that out so fast.' Then she asked how many inches total that would be. I said 208 inches. I got the same look again. Then she asked me, not my neighbor, whether a 10, 12,16 or 20 foot length would give us enough. I told her right off we needed 20 feet. She could not perform simple math tasks in her head. Is that the kind of education our youth are getting these days? Boy are we in for it if that is the case.
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2)The other night I was shopping and there was a Mexican couple in front of us. They had two shopping carts full of groceries. They seperated the two carts on the belt by one of those dividers and when the first section was done the husband pulled out a stack of bills from his front pocket almost 3/4 of an inch thick. They were all 100 dollar bills. Wow, I thought, this guy is raking in some cash. Then when it came time to pay for their second part they pulled out WIC coupons for low income families. The guy was carrying around more cash than I make in a month and he can qualify for low income foods? Plus he couldn't even understand the cashier when she spoke to him. His wife had to translate it into spanish so he could understand.

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3)There is an East Indian guy who has been working with me for about a month or two now. He seems kinda slow in the head but I have to try and train him. Yesterday in two hours he spilled enough fruit, (we were running diced dates) off the belt to fill two baskets. It takes 2-1/2 twenty five pound boxes to fill one red basket of wasted fruit. So that was 100 lbs already he spilled. So after lunch I took him aside and showed him how to do it properly explaining that he needed to keep an eye on the fruit coming off the belt. He had a big stupid looking grin on his face and was shaking his head up and down to the affirmative the whole time. So I let him try it again. We opened another pallet of dates and in the half hour it took us to dump it he had again filled up two more and he was grinning that stupid grin the whole time. I again asked him if he understood what I had showed him. He said yes. So I asked him why the red baskets were full again. He said the fruit just wouldn't hit the basket. I felt like slapping that stupid grin off his face.

I asked someone later why they don't get rid of people like him who can't do their job. I was told it was a twofold problem. First they said it was hard to get rid of anyone due to the union. Then, and this is the part that gets me mad, they told me that since he was East Indian we were expected to make exceptions for them.

Every job opening in that plant has the requirement that you be able to follow verbal and written instructions in English. Why then are we expected to tolerate a lack of ability to do just that. I was told it is because they are different and aren't expected to be fluent in English.

Rubbish! If you want to get by in this country how can you do so if you can't speak the language? My wife is Filipina and she speaks 3 Philippine dialects and English. So don't tell me people can't learn. If these people want to stay in this country I suggest they learn English or go back home. Our country got by fine without them before and if they leave it won't hurt us at all.

That is it, done ranting....for awhile anyway.

Dear Mr. Ambassador

I was reading an article in the newspaper the other day and I saw a statement made by Mexican Ambassador Carlos de Icaza. He stated that, "Fences and walls between the United States and Mexico are not a good idea." He went on to say, "We're neighbors, we're partners and we can do better."

That got me to thinking about a couple of things. First off, how are we partners? I do not think that anything your country does benefits the American people and isn't that how a partnership works? Both sides help each other? Well I see a lot of your illegal entrants to this country benefiting from the services and jobs they get here. How are you helping us in return Mr. Ambassador?

Secondly he states that fences and walls are not a good idea. Well you tell me a better idea! How would you propose to stop the invasion by citizens of your country? You don't seem to be doing much to stop it. In fact from what I have heard and read you are encouraging them to come to America. So until you can do something that will stop your citizens from entering our country illegally we will build our fences. If I had my way I would put down a mine field for them to cross.

Let me explain something to you. I own a home here in America. I worked and saved to pay it off. It belongs to me, not the bank and not to anyone else. I also worked many years planting flowers and shrubs to make our yard look nice. We used to have peoples kids ride their bikes across our yard and tear up the grass. We had people come into our yard and steal roses from our bushes. We even had people come into our yard and steal potted plants. So what did we do? We put up a fence. We installed an alarm system and we put up video surveillance cameras. We did all this because this is our house and we worked hard to pay for it and make it nice. We don't want anyone coming into our yard and destroying our work or taking flowers from the fruits of our labors.

The same analogy can be applied to America and illegal immigration by citizens of your country. Americans worked to make this country what it is today. People came to this country and became AMERICANS! They learned the language, flew the American flag, worked and paid taxes to make our country what it is. They don't want people coming into their country and taking advantage of all the work they did to make this country great. So if neighbors, YOU, THE MEXICAN PEOPLE, cannot respect our property lines we will build a fence to keep you out.

It is not the fault of the American people your country is corrupt and has no economy. Mexico has all kinds of resources that could be used to build its economy, but the system is corrupt, and crime runs rampant. Until you get your act together your system will remain poor and you will look to others for help.

Well, America is not a welfare state for all the other poor countries of the world. I didn't work my butt off to pay for your citizens to come here and get free education and medical benefits. We should not be required to print our government forms in Spanish so criminals from your country can read them. We should not be required to learn your language so we can communicate with your refugees. We should not have closed caption television shows in Spanish because your people CANNOT understand English. We do not offer these services to any other foreigners, so your immigrants can conform or get the hell out!

So, Mr. Ambassador, we are going to build our fence. If you don't like it, fix your own yard so people will stay on your side of the border. The American people don't want your poor if they do not wish to abide by our laws and contribute to the system they so willingly take advantage of.

Open letter to politicians

An Open Letter To All Politicians

Elections are coming up soon and some of you may be up for re-election. You are bidding for my vote, as well as the votes of many others. Here is what I would like to see from anyone seeking my vote. These are the things I would like you to do if you want my vote.

1. Do not raise my taxes. In fact lower them and live within your budget. If we as citizens are expected to, you should also.

2. Denounce the United Nations and call for our immediate withdrawal from that un-American institution. Then call for their removal from U.S. soil.

3. Do away with the Patriot Act and all other violations of our liberties it authorizes. James Madison made the following quotes and they apply to the abridgement upon our liberties going on now in the guise of national security.

If Tyranny and Oppression come to this land, it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy.
It is a universal truth that the loss of liberty at home is to be charged to the provisions against danger, real or pretended, from abroad.

4. Secure our borders from any further illegal immigration. If you have to post an armed U.S. soldier, with orders to shoot, every ten feet, so be it. Then deport all illegal immigrants in this country.

5. Replace the funds for social security back into the trust in which they were originally intended. Stop taxing social security benefits. Pay back all those funds squandered that were intended for social security. Stop paying social security benefits to anyone who has not worked in this country and contributed to the fund for less than 5 years. Franklin Roosevelt established social security as follows, return it to it's original design.

-- That participation in the Program would be completely voluntary,
-- That the participants would only have to pay 1% of the first $1,400 of their annual incomes into the Program,
-- That the money the participants elected to put into the Program would be deductible from their income for tax purposes each year,
-- That the money the participants put into the independent "Trust Fund" rather than into the General operating fund, and therefore, would only be used to fund the Social Security Retirement Program, and no other Government program, and,
-- That the annuity payments to the retirees would never be taxed as income.

6. Do not accept any campaign contributions from corporations or other special interest groups. Your constituents are your employers not big business or special interest groups.

7. Do not run a negative campaign. Tell us what your goal is for the country; how you plan to make things better, how you plan to pay for these plans without raising taxes and not how bad your opponent will make things. I want to know your plans, not your opponents weaknesses and faults.

8. Live by your oath to uphold the Constitution. Learn what is says you can, and most importantly cannot do. You have no business running education and numerous other areas that are states rights. Leave Roe v. Wade, medical marijuana, abortion, and a myriad of other issues to the states. No where in the Constitution does it grant you authority over those issues.

9. Tell us the truth. We can handle it. Do not lie to cover your jobs, or protect someone who may finance your next bid for office.

10. Finally, do not make political office a career goal. If you are elected, do your job and after a couple terms go out and find a real job outside the government. No aides, lobbyists, or government contractors. Go live in the real world that your pitiful laws help to create.

Promises

This morning at work I had an short chat with my supervisor. I work at a fruit packaging plant and we were running a new brand of dates that came from Pakistan. We were blending, (mixing together), two different brands, and for two days we needed a total of 30,000 lbs of fruit. Yesterday we only got 12,000 lbs and my supervisor was worried that we would not get our 30,000 lbs. I told him not to worry about it. I have been working there long enough and know all the people on the different crews. I told him we would get his numbers. At the end of the day we got 27,000 lbs of dates, 9000 more than he needed. He was surprised and a bit impressed. I am not telling this story to brag, I am telling it because of what I told him next. I told him that I do not make promises I do not intend to keep. I told him barring a natural disaster or emergency, if I make a promise you can count on me to keep it.
That is the subject of this article, keeping promises. My father used to pound into my head favorite sayings of his. One of them was 'A mans worth can be measured by his ability to keep his promise'. I grew up hating those sayings, but now that I am older I value them. They are an ethical guide by which I try to live. I keep my promises. To me, a promise is almost a sacred oath. I can remember when a promise and a handshake were considered as binding as any written contract. That is how important a mans word was. Call me old fashioned, but I still feel that way.
After I grew up, I spent 13 years service in the U.S. Air Force. I enlisted and then re-enlisted two more times before deciding to separate. When I originally enlisted, and both times I re-enlisted I had to take an oath of enlistment. The oath went as follows,

I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the president of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the uniform code of military justice. So help me God.

Notice that it says, "I will support and defend the Constitution". I may have complained sometimes about the work and the long deployments, but I always took my duty and my service to my country seriously. It was an honor and a privilege that I took seriously.
Our elected officials also take an oath of office. The oath of office of Senators goes as follows,

"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter: So help me God."

Both the Senate and the Congressional oaths of office state that they will "support and defend the Constitution of the United States". Sometimes I wonder if they have even read the Constitution? It looks more and more as if they have no regard for what it says their duties are. Daily they violate their oath of office by taking upon themselves powers that are not specifically given to them by the Constitution.
Section 8 of Article 1 states the powers authorized to Congress. Here are some examples, but I suggest you get out a copy of the Constitution and read Article 1 for yourselves.

"To establish a uniform rule of naturalization...".

Naturalization does not include illegal immigration, which is a crime. Yet Congress tolerates it and is trying to grant amnesty for those who enter this country illegally. A clear violation of their oath.

"To coin money, regulate the value thereof, and of foreign coin, and fix the standard of weights and measures;"

So where does the Federal Reserve Bank fit in? Take a bill out of your wallet and look at it. Where does it say One U.S. dollar? It doesn't, it says Federal Reserve Note. The Fed controls our money, not Congress. Another violation of their oath.

"To provide for calling forth the militia to execute the laws of the union, suppress insurrections and repel invasions"

If Congress can call forth the militia why hasn't a militia been called forth to suppress the invasion by illegal immigrants? Another violation of their oaths.

I could go on but I suggest you read Article 1 for yourself. See what powers the Constitution grants to Congress and which ones are not specifically mentioned. You may be surprised to see that many of the powers taken for granted by the Congress should be left to the states as guaranteed by the tenth amendment,

Amendment X
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.

So now you can see that the Congress has overstepped their authority and are making laws, taxing you for things they have no authority to tax you for, and disregarding the safety and security of our borders. Any one of these issues are a violation of their oath of office. They should all be removed from office as quickly as possible and replaced by someone who takes their oath, their sacred promise to support and defend the Constitution seriously. November would a good time to start.

The FED, band of pillagers and theives

I used to invest in the stock market, particularly mutual funds. I wanted to have some other means of income other than social security, (if that will even be around). During this time I paid attention to the financial news and was always curious as to the power wielded by Alan Greenspan, Chairman of the FED. I never could understand how one man could say something that would send our stock market into a panic or state of elation.
Well I have just finished reading this
The FED
Anyone who invests in the market, has a wallet with U.S currency in it, or wants to know about the FED should read this. It will frighten you and piss you off. You will find out what a bunch of crooks the FED is and how they have raping this country. The bad thing is that your elected officials have allowed it to continue.