Trying to Snuff the Light

It's not about religion as much as it is about power.  The Taliban doesn't want charity to reach the needy villagers of remote parts of Afghanistan because it would hurt their grip of power over them.

Charity: 6 Americans on medical team among 10 killed by militants in remote Afghanistan

They fear Christianity.  Light shining in darkness reveals the evil that lurks therein.

Shifting Power Through Regulatory Guidance

Sometimes, what sounds good in theory is bad in practice.  When it comes to decisions about the environment, permitting industry and other things of that nature, science should be the primary determining factor -- not the "feelings" of the community.  People carry a tremendous amount of "baggage" throughout their lives.  Some of it is based in myth and some is based on experience.

The EPA has just released new Guidance on the issue of "Environmental Justice."  It is the idea that everyone should have a say in any decision-making process that could affect the environment as well as any laws related to it.  In theory, it sounds like true democracy.  In practice, it drives out science and opens the door to popular whims that are often filled with ignorance.

The current Administration is using the guise of helping the "little people" -- those who are underrepresented or somehow repressed -- to effect their idea of "change."  It is really just a way of concentrating power.  The so-called social progressives are more nearly communist in practice.  They want power in the hands of a few who act in a manner that is designed to prevent power from migrating to other groups.  In other words, the liberal elite wish to take power away from industry and wealth.

The real problem is that power in the U.S. has traditionally been balanced by a strong middle class.  The middle class, in many ways, was the source of strength for Big Business and wealth.  They kept the money circulating.  The current political climate is one in which the middle class is being destroyed in order to shift the voting power to the poor.  The result will be a spiraling downward of our economy until it is either destroyed from the outside, or there is internal revolution.  (This would be a good place to insert some quotes from Aristotle's treatise on Politics but, I'm too lazy to look them up.)

EPA Releases Rulemaking Guidance on Environmental Justice

Below is the EPA's definition of Environmental Justice. (There is a link to it in the above linked article.)

"Environmental Justice is the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies. EPA has this goal for all communities and persons across this Nation. It will be achieved when everyone enjoys the same degree of protection from environmental and health hazards and equal access to the decision-making process to have a healthy environment in which to live, learn, and work."

On This 4th of July

On July 4, 1776, we declared our independence from Great Britain. We claimed the right to self-governance with representation of the people's will in determination of the laws of our land. We claimed the right to reject an oppressive government and replace it with one that was both responsive to and responsible to the people of this land.

That oppression arose from our dependency on Great Britain. The original colonists needed the support of the mother country for survival. In return, the king required taxes. Those taxes paid for wars that caused a mounting debt. The response of the king was to increase taxes to finance his aggressive policies that sought to consolidate his power.

The people sought relief from the burden but were ignored. They sought representation of their views but were rejected. Over time, their dependency allowed the king to increase taxes to the point they could no longer be borne by the people and they rebelled.

Through the blood of committed individuals that Independence was accomplished over the course of 40+ years when we finally severed the control of Great Britain in the War of 1812. Yet, it didn't end there. We remained a nation seeking to find its way. We continued to seek a balance of power in how we were governed which culminated in a Civil War that consolidated power in the federal government. It was a result that led to better relations between the various races which comprise our people, but eroded the power of the people by consolidating it in the hands of the federal government.

We have survived global wars in which the United States came to the aid of nations whose values resembled our own. We have gone wherever necessary to combat the tendency of man to consolidate power through aggression. Yet we have allowed special interests to consolidate power within our own borders.

We have struggled with our own identity. We are a nation of many varied yet closely held beliefs. We have faced many issues that arise from the human frailties of self-interest and fear. We have made great strides in creating an environment of equality of opportunity for all. Yet we have allowed those same frailties of self-interest and fear to be used against us by the very politicians we elected to serve us.

We continue to struggle. Today we face some of the greatest challenges that we have ever faced as a nation. Many of those challenges are the result of the quest for power of individuals and groups who have only their self-interest at heart. They seek power for gain and not in service for the good of the nation and its people. They bully and intimidate through the power of the purse.

That such individuals and groups hold the reins of power is the fault of the people. Enough of us have allowed ourselves to be subjugated to the carefully orchestrated largess of the state and federal powers that our Independence has been lost. That subjugation has resulted in efforts to further consolidate power through expanding government services in ways that create further dependency. We see today an aggressive expansion and consolidation of power through the use of regulation and welfare (although not always by that name). We have become a nation controlled by dependency. Therein lies our downfall.

Our dependency on the government has created a situation of mounting debt that must be repaid. It is the tendency in such times to use taxation to repay the debt. The burden of government has become oppressive. We are facing a crisis in our nation that in many ways resembles the conditions prior to the War for Independence. It is time once again for our government to become both responsive to and responsible to the people.

(also posted at Panhandle Poetry and Other Thoughts)

Politcal Cornpone

Corn has always been a part of politics. It is something that the voting public has come to expect. It is also about the gentlest description used for what sometimes comes out of the mouths of those running for public office.

This year it has taken on a new meaning. The powerful lobbies behind the ethanol industry are heavily involved in attempts to influence the race for the Presidency. That seems interesting to me considering the fact that many ethanol plants are only marginally profitable and others have sold recently due to lack of profitability. Still others have delayed plans to build more plants or to expand existing capacity due to lack of profitability.

So, who is behind the lobby groups? Could it be the large agricultural interests that are reaping the benefits from $8 corn?

I am happy to see farmers realizing the benefits of high corn prices. I'm much less excited about the impact that those same high corn prices are having on other things such as food prices and livestock feed. I'm irritated that we are supporting those prices with tariffs against importing less expensive sugarcane-based ethanol produced in Brazil. I am angry that we are propping up the domestic ethanol industry which is damaging the livestock industry, raising fuel prices and negatively impacting food prices with a $0.54/gallon subsidy. This is not energy security. This is tax-and-spend politics in a different form.

Wind and Solar to Power Conventions

In a way, I find it humorous that the power company that will supply electricity to both the Republican National Convention and the Democratic National Convention is touting the fact that the electrical requirements of both conventions will be provided by wind and solar energy. I thought that was historically the case -- even without the involvement of a power company. You would think that there would be sufficient "hot air" in the speeches and enough "sunshine blown-up-the-skirts" of attendees that external power sources would be unnecessary! I would rather see the air let out of some inflated egos and a little sunshine on the backroom shenanigans.

A Devilish Dance

Hints and misdirection followed by thrust, counter-thrust and parry. All are part of the political power dance that characterizes the potential of an Obama-Clinton ticket. I suppose that I'm much too direct to ever play such political games. But then again, why would I want to? Did someone say "sell your soul?"

A Civil Race for the Presidency?

Civility in a modern political race? What a novel idea. No media spin? Also novel. Senator John McCain is proposing just such a thing to Barack Obama. The response was an immediate entry into a struggle for control over the process.

"What a welcome change it would be were presidential candidates in our time to treat each other and the people they seek to lead with respect and courtesy as they discussed the great issues of the day, without the empty soundbites and media-filtered exchanges that dominate our elections," he wrote.

Agendas within agendas and manipulation within manipulations. That is what it has come to. All of us want to paint ourselves in the best light possible to those with whom we come in contact. At the level of politics in a Presidential race, with the power and prestige that is at stake, the temptation to fall to low standards is great. I pray that this race can be elevated to something higher. It would be wonderful to see a true debate of the merits of the various positions on the issues of our day -- not a propaganda-fest crafted by the power of money flowing from specific interest groups. It is John McCain's opportunity to shine if he can rise above the kind of politics that characterized the Democratic primary race.

Power Politics

Wow! Talking about blatant.

“To me, there’s one moral issue, and that’s winning the election.” -- Charles Schumer (D-NY).

No wonder our country is facing such a mess.

Pelosi Power Consolidation

The level of dissatisfaction among the voting public is providing vision of opportunity for the opportunistic. Nancy Pelosi, although a little rough out of the starting gate, has worked hard to consolidate her power. She now wields it in a manner not seen for many years. It could be that she is just power hungry and revels in it. It could be that she has something else in mind in about 4 years.

The Memoir of a Former Press Secretary

In an opportunistic culture built around the desire for wealth and power, how are we to ever know the truth of our history? The political environment is especially vulnerable to this attitude because it is filled with practitioners of the art of deception whose sole purpose is the advancement of their personal agenda. Perhaps former White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan tells the truth in his new book, perhaps he doesn't. Sadly, we'll never know. I suspect his primary goal is to cash in on his years in service to George W. Bush. Check out the commentary on FoxNews and on Politico.com.