John Boehner dragging GOP down with sore loser lawsuit

John Boehner’s pointing the finger again.  Continues to play the blame game. 

   (photo credit:  Win McNamee/Getty Images)

   

Kim Jong-un (Supreme leader of North Korea), Boko Haram (violent militant group in Nigeria) and their ilk cause people around the world to shudder at their atrocities.  Fortunately, the United States has long been spared having to deal with such reckless abandonment in their leadership.  But out of the shadows has stepped a rarely glimpsed terror.  Starring as the living personification of hatred is House speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio.

According to the Christian Science Monitor, Boehner’s controversial plans to sue President Barack Obama won the vote in the House Wednesday, 225 to 201.  As expected, no Democrats voted in favor of the lawsuit but, surprisingly, the crazed manhunt proposed by Boehner was also shunned by some of his own fellow Republican legislators.   (Continue reading full story here.)

Time To Do Right By Our Military

Photo credit:  Courtesy of Defense One

America, to me and the majority of its citizens, will always be the "land of the free and the home of the brave". A place that is home and stirs the embers of our hearts. Oh of course like any other country we have had and continue to have our ups and downs. Like any family we squabble with our brothers and sisters. I have been angry with, happy for, and sometimes nonchalant about the everyday goings on of this great country. But rarely have I literally hung my head in shame, that is until yesterday.

The details are in this article courtesy of Defense One Newsletter. The first line "Call it a promise placed on hold." immediately gripped my heart with a what now feeling. The government is already partial shutdown while our two Houses of Congress play tug of war with our livelihoods. All manner of thoughts having to do with the economy, politics, and even scandals ran through my mind. But never in my wildest dreams, or in this case nightmares, did I ever think I would read something as dastardly as this.

I am a product of, and pretty familiar with military life. My father proudly retired from the Army and served two tours in Vietnam. My sister and brother are both Army veterans. And I have many family members and friends in all branches of the military. So from time to time I would hear complaints of some benefit or other that the person who was serving was promised when they enlisted, that over time changed, even though the person serving had completely fulfilled their part of the bargain. Usually it was something like a certain medical procedure, or dental procedure that was no longer covered.

Just as recently as earlier this week I shared a conversation with a retired veteran who is now paying for parts of Tricare that were promised free when she enlisted. I want to go on record as saying that these veterans can't go back and renegotiate their actions on the field, so neither should their care now be renegotiated after the fact. If financial challenges require cutting back benefits, let those who served under past promises be grandfathered in and new recruits be signed up fully aware of what the terms are now.

As bad as these changes were, I never felt the disgrace slapped harder in the face of our military as when I read the story of these soldiers who gave their lives in service for this country. The soldiers who defend our freedom to even stupidly shut down the government with our partisan shenanigans; these same soldiers' families were told that our country's solemn word to care for their families would still hold, but would be delayed. Congress their blood is on your hands for every tear their spouses and children shed. And it will be on ours if we continue to elect such callous, stiff-necked representatives the next time we go to the polling booths.

Any Congressman or woman who is still okay with the shutdown and benefits being "delayed", please put youself in these soldiers' shoes as they flew out of our homeland at peace because the government had their backs and their families would be taken care of. They did not hesitate. When they stepped onto the battlefield and into the line of fire for America, they did not falter, nor did they "delay". In all good conscience, how can you "delay" their due and sleep well at night?

To the military that are in harm's way daily, and the families of those that have paid the ultimate sacrifice, we honor you; our condolences and prayers are with you. We thank you for your services and our hearts are grateful. I hope you don't even get to see stories like the one above. Just know that we support you and your services. And we will call, write, text, tweet and do everything we can to get Congress to no longer "delay" a key mission and that is "fulfilling President Lincoln's promise 'To care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan' by serving and honoring the men and women who are America’s veterans". And may God Bless and guide America.

Are They Laughing At America?

United States Congress

A House Divided Against Itself Cannot Stand

Photo Courtesy of:  LibertyNEWS.com

One second after midnight, October 1, 2013 will be remembered as a dark (pun intended) time in American history.  The last time the United States shut down the federal government was in 1995 and it lasted 22 days, according to political website Policymic.  You can refresh yourself on all of the gory details here and see how things were eventually resolved.  And there is good reason to relive that era of our political befuddlement because as philosopher George Santayana so eloquently put it “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”; alas, and so it appears we have.  At least we have begun to repeat it with the shutdown of what have been deemed the non-essential services of our federal government.  Although I am positive the missing work pay is considered very essential to the affected families.

So after 18 years for congress to ponder, rethink, and improve their professional communications and interactions, guess what?  We have allowed the government to again shut down, largely over arguments about Obamacare.  I say we because we the people elect the good congressmen and women who believe in a government “for the people”, but we are also responsible for electing the people who say my way or the highway and fiddle while Rome is burning.  If we learn nothing else from this fiasco, let us think long are hard as we enter the voting booths in the future.  Let us remember who really represented their constituents’ best interests versus who had tunnel vision for their own agendas regardless of how many innocent everyday workers became collateral damage.

One thing we must remember is that any nation considered as great and powerful a leader as the United States is always under the microscope of the world.  I shudder to think that Syria and their friends might be laughing at us this morning.  After all, a few weeks back we all but hog-tied and forced them to negotiate on a world stage or else.  Yet our own House and Senate of Congress could not or would not negotiate with each other in our own backyard, over business pertaining to us right here in this country.  Let us do better ladies and gentleman of the Congress.  Our neighbors are watching.  And may God Bless America.

Senators' Hard Hearts: An American Farce

 Photo Credit:  Doug Mills/The New York Times

Shame, Shame, Shame on the Senate of the United States of America.  Against the hard brick wall of partisan blocking, President Obama brought out the big "guns" (so to speak) of almost the only thing sure to turn hearts of stone into human hearts:  the eyes of those who had  lost loved ones in the Newtown Massacre.  And believe it or not, the Senate didn't blink.  They stood their ground against all reason.  Read, and please remember come election time, how your Senator voted. Did he/she vote in a way that really represents what you believe in?

The Senate trampled through the salty puddles of tears from the combined families with weak excuses like:

Reflections on July 4th and the Confederate Flag

July 4th stands for freedom and independence.  Upon reflection, those who favor the Confederate flag flying on the State Capitol grounds of Columbia, South Carolina, do have this right.  But why in the name of compassion and empathy would they want to?

The Confederate Flag is a banner that yet waves over the State Capitol grounds of Columbia, South Carolina.  It has been waving since 1962. It is time that the proud citizens of Columbia, South Carolina, take down the Confederate Flag.  Columbia’s city slogan is “Famously Hot”.  South Carolinians should be hot about this embarrassment hanging over our city.

Many people in favor of keeping this flag flying argue that it is a part of history, and as such, should not be forgotten, or removed.  This, however, is a part of history that is nothing to be proud of. Many of the Confederate Soldiers fought for the cause of the Confederate states to have the right to continue owning their slaves.  No one living in 2011 was responsible for this. But to many minorities, this is a painful reminder of being thought of as property, rather than human beings with the same God-given right to freedom as any other citizen of this great country.  So painful in fact, that in a state that is trying desperately to boost its tourism income, this flag has actually become a burden.  Several religious, political, and even athletic groups, whose events could have brought hundreds of thousands of dollars into the state, have cancelled and moved their events and conventions to other states in a boycott of the Confederate flag.

In 2000, the Confederate Flag was moved from the state house to fly in front of a monument to fallen Confederate Soldiers on the State Capitol grounds.  This was a good first step, but clearly not enough.  The October 28, 1999 edition of The Economist stated that “So far, the NAACP estimates that South Carolina has lost at least $43m that would have come in from visitors: more than 40 organizations have cancelled events in the state, and at least 70 families have moved reunions to other places.”

An article by Sam Eaton published on July 31, 2009 on the news website WLTX.com stated that the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) “voted to move its 2010 convention from South Carolina after the NAACP reminded them of the organization’s tourism boycott of the state over the Confederate flag.”  According to this article, the Christian Church has about 700,000 members. This is a profound loss of tourism dollars to the local hotel and restaurant industry if even a quarter of the members had attended a convention held in South Carolina.

South Carolina also continues to lose out on much needed athletic tourism dollars.  A  July 9, 2009 article by Gene Wojciechowski on ESPN.com emphasized the long-term detrimental effect the Confederate flag is having on South Carolina’s economy.  He states “The Atlantic Coast Conference has had enough of that flag: Earlier this week it pulled the 2011, 2012 and 2013 ACC baseball tournaments out of Spurrier’s  (referring to University of South Carolina’s winning head football coach Steve Spurrier) state and relocated them to neighboring North Carolina. Myrtle Beach’s loss becomes Durham’s and Greensboro’s economic and tourism gain.  Meanwhile, the NCAA won’t touch the state of South Carolina with a vaulter’s pole. Same goes for Spurrier’s home conference, the SEC. And all because of a Confederate battle flag that first flew atop the state Capitol dome in 1962 and still flies prominently, defiantly and wrongly at a Confederate soldier’s monument on the Capitol grounds in Columbia.”

Where do things stand on the Confederate flag in 2011?  An Associated Press article by Seanna Adcox in the HeraldOnline on January 17, 2011, shows that the Confederate flag is still a hot issue.  This article highlighted the views and opinions of people who attended the January 17, 2011 rally in Columbia, South Carolina celebrating the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. National Holiday.  According to the article, “Georgia’s NAACP president, Edward Dubose, said the NAACP is renewing its commitment to “not spend one dime in South Carolina until that Confederate flag comes down.” He said he and his wife led by example on the drive, by stopping in Augusta, Ga., to order food, then waiting until they arrived in Columbia to eat it.” 

From another attendee, “This is more in-your-face. That’s just heartbreaking,” said Markita Primm, 37, who, along with her 14- and 11-year-old children, boarded one of two buses that traveled overnight from Detroit to attend.  Primm, who’s on dialysis and in a wheelchair because of a leg amputation, said she wanted to protest the flag in person. “This flag flying is not right,” she said.  Primm came with 120 people on a trip organized by Detroit talk radio personality Mildred Gaddis, who pledged to keep coming every year with more people until the flag is down.”

The Confederate flag should be completely removed from the grounds of the South Carolina State Capitol.  This building and its grounds and its employees represent all of the citizens of South Carolina.  To those who somehow have fond sentimental thoughts over what this flag represents, they can hang replicas of the flag in their own living rooms or front yards. This flag can also be hung in a South Carolina museum to preserve its historical value.  This is an example of a historical period that many South Carolinians are not proud of.  Events represented by the Confederate flag happened so long ago, that an apology, though necessary, cannot erase the tragedy.

The best solution is to remember history, so as not to repeat it.  Remember it yes, but not arrogantly wave around the symbol of that tragedy.  South Carolinians must now contact their local Representatives and Senators.   In the spirit of the rebels…..the Confederate Flag must come down.