My View

Random ruminations from your resident curmudgeon...


Remember Major Nidal Hasan, the Ft. Hood Army officer turned terrorist, who shot up the base 15 months ago? Do you recall how his trial turned out? You don't? You shouldn't feel badly, because that trial hasn't happened yet. The fact that Hasan was caught on camera and numerous eye witness accounts of the attack are on file, the trial has not started. Why is that, you ask? Hasan's lawyer, John Galligan, has requested another delay in the start of the trial until later this month. According to Galligan, it is because the White House, through the Justice Department will not disclose the evidence they have so that the defense can make proper preparations for the trial. The disclosure of evidence is a normal pre-trial procedure, so to delay releasing evidence to the defense attorney is to, in effect, delay Hasan from facing justice. This action defies rational thought, and the willful delay in bringing justice to a terrorist by this administration is despicable. In effect, the Obama administration is practicing a de facto Sharia law, which does not allow any insult to Islam. Bring this murderer, this terrorist, into the justice system and let it be meted out fairly and swiftly. To do anything less desecrates the loss of life of the soldiers killed at Ft. Hood.


Marriage means commitment. So does insanity. Coincidence?


There is no secret that the wealth that all Americans hold is an obsession of the left. Well, that is, except for their own, but that's another story. We can hear the shrill mantra of the Democrats and those on the far Left saying "the rich must pay their fair share" and you know that is code for "we want to tax the hell out them". Unfortunately for all of the productively employed people in the United States, we are all becoming "the rich" and our taxes are destined to go up. Substantially. I want to do a little exercise here to get you ready for the next time Pelosi or some liberal wag screeches the tax the rich meme. According to the IRS, in 2004 (the last year for which this data was compiled) there were 2.7 million adults in the U.S. with a net worth of more than $1.5 million- a total in that group of $10.2 trillion in assets. Let's say the government decided that no one could have a net worth over the aforementioned $1.5 million, and confiscated all the wealth above that level. That would give the government a one time windfall of $6.1 trillion to be applied against our exiting debt of $14.5 trillion. You can see that taxing the rich is not going to pay off the deficit, even if the government takes everything they have. And you and I both know that the rich will not sit by and let the government just take their assets. They create intricate and legal schemes to keep their assets away from the tax man. So, in this debate, why don't we think about this? The Democrats, rather than take a position that wealth should be confiscated and redistributed, should work to create an environment where there are way more than $2.7 million people with a net worth higher than $1.5 million dollars. Create that type of environment, tax that growing number of "rich" fairly, and see what happens in the economy.


"Antique"- an old Latin word that means "second hand".


Here is the truth about the current tax situation in our country right now: the top 1% of earners pay 40% of all the taxes collected at the federal level. The bottom 50% of earners in this country pay less than 3%. Stunningly, 47% of Americans pay no tax at all. Let me say that again: 47% of Americans pay no taxes at all. This is according to the Heritage Foundation. Good people, when you get nearly 50% of Americans not paying any taxes, this country is in peril, because once that number reaches 50.1%, we are on the road to unabated taxes, spending, and redistribution of wealth. Now you see why the fight to cut spending and restructure social programs to make them financially viable is so vicious. Now you see why the rhetoric coming from the Left is so vitriolic. Those Americans that pay little or no tax are their base, and the thought of raising taxes on their supporters is anathema to the Democrats in Washington. This is the backstory to the gridlock and the inability to craft viable solutions to what is becoming a financial crisis of gargantuan proportions. As you file your tax return on Monday, think about those numbers that I just mentioned. Realize that 53% of the wage earners are footing the bill for all the operations of the federal government, and especially recall this fact when you hear a politician lie about making the "rich" pay their fair share.


If there is a camp for kids with ADHD to help them learn to pay attention, would it be called a "concentration" camp?


And that, my friends, is my view.