A House Divided

 

A nation overcome by partisanship will destroy itself.

It has come to this. While we should be uniting as a people against a common enemy, we demonize and fight each other, allowing our foe to take advantage. Leftist media spews propaganda and lies, yet people accept these deceptions as truth, supporting narratives counter to their own self-interests. This nation is crumbling from within as we point our accusatory fingers at one another, ignoring the danger that threatens the very existence of this Constitutional Republic. As we quarrel amongst ourselves, evil laughs while it thrives in our midst. Good citizens, it is time to unite and stand up to the evil that has become so pervasive in our society. We have much more in common with each other despite the differences that have been emphasized by the media and the left.

This evil is obscured by the amenable provisos of acceptance and tolerance. Unfortunately, these terms are abused to validate behavior that is not only wrong but legitimizes that which is abhorrent. Failure to comply with this evil and you are called out as “phobic.” Evil is also concealed within DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion), CRT (critical race theory), and ESG (environmental, social, and governance). These federally supported and mandated programs emphasize our differences, rewards are made based on race and, just as the leftist icon Saul Alinsky promoted, foments distrust and anger toward those identified as “oppressors,” or more practically, anyone in opposition to leftist ideology. It is long past due that mainstream America push back against this insanity, brought to you by the anti-American left and their allies in the democrat party. Yet, there are those too obtuse to see through the lies spewed by the leftist mainstream media, overwhelmed by a contrived hatred of traditional America.

Death and taxes are a certainty in this world. You can also take it to the bank that the left will consistently accuse their opposition of the very tactics they themselves employ. The democrat party has incorporated Alinsky’s Rules for Radicals as their tactical playbook. If mainstream democrats were aware that the political party that they support advocated against their constituency, they would not continue to cast their votes for them. Unfortunately, many have been persuaded by the cacophony of lies emanating from the leftist dominated mainstream media. We are engaged in a battle for the soul of America. This nation’s laws and freedoms are being used by the enemy to erode, and ultimately destroy the tenets of a civil society and we are the only ones who have the power to stop it.

The framers of the Constitution concluded that for a Constitutional Republic to endure, it was necessary that the citizens be informed, moral, and faithful. “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” John Adams. Political infighting coupled with the vilification of opposing viewpoints will lead to the destruction of this nation. No foreign army needs to invade if we destroy ourselves. “If our nation is ever taken over, it will be taken over from within.” James Madison.

It is imperative that, we the people, are an informed electorate. It matters who we elect to represent our interests at the local, State and Federal level. Too many of our elected representatives shirk their responsibility as public servants. Too many of our elected representatives harbor an agenda that conflicts with the will of the people. Too many of our elected representatives have enriched themselves and their families at the expense of the taxpayer. “But Jesus called them aside and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their superiors exercise authority over them. It shall not be this way among you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.” Matthew 20:25-28. During His ministry Jesus turned the world upside down with His teaching, healing, forgiveness, and servant leadership. We cannot expect our government to meet the expectations that Jesus delivered, but our elected leaders should strive to serve their constituents, first and foremost.

As we slip into the abyss, we need public servants to lift us up, not kick us down. We need public servants that value the sanctity of life, not diminish it. We need public servants that stand up to protect our children, not advocate to mutilate them. We need public servants that are principled, not morally corrupt. We need public servants that uphold the rule of law, not use it to further their party’s political ambitions. We need public servants that serve God, not the woke mob. Those who fail their constituents should be voted out of office.

As Americans, we are in this together. There is strength in numbers and your vote holds power. Don’t just blindly vote. Inform yourself. Know the issues and where each candidate stands and vote accordingly. This is your country. Don’t stand by idly and allow a few to ruin it.

“The most dangerous man to any government is the man who is able to think things out for himself.”

H. L. Mencken

 

Useful

 

Virtue signaling the end of freedom

As parents, we learn that if we reward our child’s bad behavior, that bad behavior will accelerate until it gets completely out of control. Rules must be set and boundaries must be drawn and adhered to, by both the parent and child. Acquiescing to a child’s disobedient actions will not teach them self-control and they will not learn respect for themselves or others. Without guidance our children will struggle to become productive members of society as adults. Black Lives Matter and their ilk have meltdowns throughout the country, burning, rioting and looting. Some of our elected leaders and mainstream media legitimize the actions by declaring them as mostly peaceful. What happens when virtue signaling replaces reason? The Biden administration, disregarding the rule of law, decides to placate them, comply to their inane demands, create methods to incorporate their “values” into society and create a monster likely to destroy everything that makes this nation great.

Becoming “Woke” is far more important than properly training our military to be a cohesive fighting force. Diversity, inclusion and equity take the front seats in order to properly instill the message that all are no longer equals. Some of us need to be ashamed about events that they never participated, wrongs that they never committed and perceived privilege that never benefited them. If one’s skin is the wrong color, you are to be ashamed of yourself and not to be trusted. We are not becoming a colorless society. We are falling back into the trap of discrimination based upon the color of one’s skin. No matter who is targeted, discrimination for any reason and bias based upon the color of one’s skin is immoral and inappropriate. I thought our first black President was going to end racial bias. Not so much.

White privilege, the rallying cry from the left undercuts the very tenets of our Constitution and the rights conferred by it. Blaming others for one’s shortcomings is despicable and wrong-headed. Discriminating against a person, solely by the basis of skin color does nothing to unite us. We are all homo sapiens, members of the human race. Why are we falling for the same lies that led to discrimination of persons of color? Why would we want to repeat the same mistakes that divided our country by race in the mid 1900’s. Why would anyone feel better if others were punished for the sins of their fathers? Revenge, retribution or reprisal do not exact justice. They are merely hateful enterprises that leaves one feeling even more empty and angry. These negative emotions do nothing to help to heal those wounds. They only allow hate to fester and grow.

The freedom to pursue your dreams and happiness is the basis of the American way of life. Opportunity abounds for all those who endeavor to seek those opportunities. Anyone. Yes, anyone can be the next best thing if one applies oneself. At one time our education system was the envy of the world, but we have faltered, lagging behind in most of the STEM disciplines. Why is that? We have incorporated leftist ideologies into curriculum, neglecting those subjects. Critical race theory is more important than history as it occurred. Much of our teaching in public schools decries Capitalism and elevates socialism, with any negative aspects of socialism omitted. We have incorporated transgenderism into curriculum, encouraging experimentation with choosing preferred gender and pronouns. Alternate lifestyles are promoted to young impressionable children. The lens of race eclipses reason and is used as a cudgel to accuse and defame, based solely upon skin color. Work ethic is panned as racist. Grades are panned as racist. The nuclear family is panned as racist.

Leftist ideology does not seek to co-exist with our current societal norms. Leftist ideology seeks to fundamentally transform this nation into a socialist nightmare. Think this could not happen in this bastion of freedom. Think again. It is happening in plain sight. We have been too complacent to realize it. The leaders of the democrat party are in bed with those who seek to destroy us in order to maintain their power. The media parrots their talking points and omits “misinformation” or anything conservative. What they fail to realize, is that they are never going to be accepted by those who are currently succeeding in dragging this nation into the abyss. They will be cast aside like willing pawns unaware of the trap they are falling into. If we continue in our slumber, it will happen. Some of us are finally awakening and challenging this impending evil that is choking our freedom, but not enough. The time to stand back and let others get involved is over. If we fail to take back our country from this leftist storm, we simply don’t deserve it. Will you allow your freedoms to end and our nation to be left on the scrap heap of history? It’s your choice. Rise up and stem the tide or sit back and say goodbye to America.

Just Fix It!

In 2018 Tony Evers ran a successful campaign for Wisconsin Governor and defeated incumbent Governor Scott Walker. One of his slogans was “Just fix it”, referring to fixing the roads. Having just completed a contentious election with far too many charging that the election was stolen, it’s time we work to fix our election process to bring back trust and to restore faith that all elections are conducted openly and honestly.

Each and every article about the 2020 election I read from the mainstream media contains one or more of the following disclaimers, meritless claims of voter fraud, baseless accusations of voting irregularities or the declining trust in our elections driven by Trump’s unfounded claims of voter fraud. We need to accept the results of this election and just move on. Alrighty then! Let’s move on and fix some our voting vulnerabilities. The following are some common sense suggestions that could help reclaim our faith in our election system.

·         Millions of ballots are preprinted before each election, usually comprising the number of registered voters plus an additional 5-10% for any newly registered voters.

·         This leads to millions of ballots printed that are expected to go unused and must be destroyed.

In order for ballot fraud to occur the following elements must be present:

·         Desire of an individual or individuals to commit the fraud.

·         Ability of the individual(s) to commit the fraud.

·         Opportunity for the individual(s) to commit the fraud.

The only factor that we can actually affect is to reduce or limit the opportunity for fraud to occur. Unfortunately, blank ballots at polling places offer the opportunity for unscrupulous actors to engage in fraud. The following are suggestions that may reduce the opportunity for fraud to occur in our voting system.

·         All citizens eligible to vote should have a driver’s license or an identification card provided by each state.

·         These official documents are embossed with a picture of the cardholder and a barcode on the reverse of the DL/ID.

·         The photo and barcode are unique to each individual issued the DL/ID.

·         For further security, each DL/ID should have an imbedded chip, similar to the chips imbedded in credit cards.

During early in person voting and on election day, the voter must present their ID to the poll worker. The poll worker confirms and documents that the voter is on the voter roll and will cast a ballot in that name. With the information contained in the barcode and imbedded in the chip, the DL/ID would then be scanned at the site, and a unique ballot would be printed for each voter at the polling place. Printing a ballot should take 15 seconds or less. One voter, one ballot. No extra pre-printed ballots are necessary. No leftover ballots laying around the polling location. This would also eliminate confusion during Spring Elections that have various school districts, county races and other local races. This technology already exists. Each ballot printed would have a barcode unique to each individual that votes. Any ballots, found to be cast by an person ineligible to vote, could be readily identified, removed and deleted from the vote totals. This would also eliminate the additional ballots that could be fraudulently completed and scanned, what is commonly referred to as “ballot stuffing’’. As an example, unscrupulous individuals at polling locations could access the voter roll, enter the names of persons who had not voted, complete the unused ballots in that person’s name and then scan each ballot as if it were cast by that person on the voter roll.

In addition, voting should be consolidated to the Counties, eliminating the inequities in early in person voting and reducing the cost of the new technology. It would be fiscally impossible for each municipality to fund new equipment, maintain that equipment and to have early in person voting consistent with the larger municipalities. To enable voters outside of County seats, a number of satellite voting locations, run by each County, would need to be set up.

Mail in voting should be limited to:

·         Members of our armed forces overseas or stationed outside of their voting district.

·         Indefinitely confined individuals, confirmed only with a physician’s note and necessary to presented at each election, unless that individual is deemed permanently confined.

·         Those traveling abroad during early in-person voting and on election day.

·         Each mail in ballot must be properly completed with a witness signature and the witnesses’ current address.

·         Clerks “curing” improperly completed ballots is to be expressly prohibited.

Mail in voting, although each ballot is barcoded, allows for unscrupulous persons to complete ballots sent to them in error, fraudulently requested or stolen from common areas where mail is delivered. Increased mail in voting increases the opportunity for fraud, since there is no way to be absolutely certain those ballots were cast legally. In addition, the voter roll must be up to date and anyone who is no longer living at their registered address, has an invalid address (PO Box, no such address, etc.) or deceased must be removed from the rolls. With same day registration, it is unacceptable to have a voter roll that is out of date.

Our vote, that enables us to choose who represents us in our government, is one of our most sacred rights. This is not the time to stand pat and forgo utilizing the necessary solutions that have half of the population questioning the results. Without faith in our elections, we cease to have a Constitutional Republic. Granted, the technology upgrades will be costly, but we must have elections that our citizen’s respect and trust. Unfortunately, far too many continue to question the validity or have lost that trust in our election process. That is unacceptable. We must remedy this or we all fall.

“Voting is the most precious right of every citizen, and we have a moral obligation to ensure the integrity of our voting process.” – Hillary Clinton