Gun Control

I want to share this letter to the editor written by Walter “Digger” of New Shady Grove (Newspaper and state not mentioned)

To The Editor:

Today I swung my front door wide open and placed my Remington 870 right in the doorway. I gave it four sells and left it alone and went about my business

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While I was gone, the mail gal delivered my mail, the trash man pick up the trash, a girl walked her dog down the street, and quite a few of my neighbors drove past.

Well, after about an hour, I checked on the gun. It was still sitting there on there, right where I had left it. It hadn’t killed anyone, even with the numerous opportunities it had been presented to do so. In fact, it hadn’t even loaded itself.

Well you can imagine my surprise, with all the media hype about how dangerous guns are and how they kill people. Either the media is wrong, and it is the misuse of guns by criminals, or I have one of the laziest shotguns ever made. I must hurry off now and check on my spoons. I hear they are making people fat.

Walter “Digger” New Shady Grove.

The High Cost of Representation

Every time I hear politicians talk about reducing government spending, the next word I hear is “entitlements”, Social Security and Medicare. Social Security is the only retirement many of our nation’s lower income citizens have and since people are living longer and healthier lives, politicians think that changing the age of eligibility to 70 is the right way to solve the problem. Raising the retirement age to 70 will cause many to have less than cat food to eat. The fact that people are living longer and healthier doesn‘t mean they will be able to keep a job or find another job if replaced by a younger person. There may be a few who have jobs past age 65 but I doubt if many of them are in the lower income bracket. This sounds more like a “from the bottom up” effort in finding places to cut back government spending.

I have been thinking more about a “from the top down” spending cut. We pay our congressmen and senators $174,000 each per year. The majority and minority leaders $193,400 and the speaker of the house, $223,500. That is just their salaries. They also have an allowance. In 2008, the most recent year I could find, they received allowances ranging from $1,299,292 to $1,637,766 for office space, secretaries and aides, and mail. Consider that we have 100 senators and 435 congressmen plus their expense accounts, we’re looking at roughly another $500 million. Then there’s those travel allowances. The congressional travel budget is somehow combined into a larger budget involving State Department and Military travel and is never made public. When a representative travels, he can pocket as much as $3,000 per trip in per diem for food and lodging due to an accounting system that doesn’t require itemization nor demand return of unused cash. That would allow a lawmaker to pocket quite a hefty sum of left-over cash. Is it any wonder that most of our elected leaders are millionaires.

But all this generosity did not start with this year's crop. Benefits payments for some 400 retired members of Congress, who receive an average benefit of $45,000 a year, cost taxpayers about $20 million annually, says the National Tax Payers Foundation. Future costs depend on the turnover rate: The more who leave before they reach the five-year vesting threshold, the lower the annual payouts are required. Over time, congressional pensions are expected to accumulate more modestly as fewer members stay on beyond six to 12 years, according to the NTUF.

My Flag

By Ray Rogers

This is my flag, I mean that in the sense that not only is this my flag it is the flag of the greatest country that ever was or ever will be and I'm proud to call it my flag.

Everyone should memorize the preamble to the Constitution.

We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

It has been the greatest experiment of all time: a nation where the people govern themselves. Not only was it a success we became the richest nation on the planet with the most powerful military in the world. Where people would come from all over the world to achieve for themselves the American dream. Some countries loved us, others feared and hated us. We were a proud people, we were free.

For years I can remember saying the pledge of allegiance to this flag, not knowing the full extent of why. As I grew older and became more educated I understood more of why I was pledging allegiance to our flag.

This flag represents strength, honor, courage, purity, innocence, perseverance, vigilance, and justice.

To me it's a symbol of freedom and sacrifice. The sacrifice that our forefathers (patriots) made for us.

A patriot is a person who has committed their self to realizing a vision for their country, no mater what it cost them. They would give everything they had for freedom and liberty.

Great patriots like Patrick Henry who said at the end of a very powerful speech "give me liberty or give me death."

Throughout the history of our country there were times when father, son, and brothers fought together side by side for the same cause (freedom). Sometimes seeing one another fall and would still counted all as righteous.

If it weren't for our patriots fighting for freedom around the world tyrants would be able to take a foothold and take over the weapons and forces of our allies and use them against us. This is why we have troops stationed at strategic locations around the globe.

So next time someone refers to our military as war mongers think about the price that was paid by these brave men and women that made it possible for them to have the freedom to speak their mind.

Our flag has changed 26 times throughout our history. Starting out with 13 white 5 pointed stars in a circle on a blue background, with 13 stripes, 7 red and 6 white. Also known as the Betsy Ross flag. Still having the original stripes we now have 50 five pointed stars to represent our 50 states.

These flags have flown over the battlefields of our victories and our defeats. They have flown proudly over our schools, court houses, capitols, fire departments, police departments, and other public buildings. They have draped over the coffins of our fallen soldiers, our presidents, and other of our public servants. For some reason even though I was only 3 years old I can still remember seeing pictures on TV of our flag covering the coffin of President John F Kennedy.

Our flag has been stomped on, spit on, and burned by people who hate us and hold our nation in contempt, all the while being adored by other people because this flag gives them hope.

Here lately I've seen people change our flag to their own version to suit themselves. As for me, I'll stick with a winner. 'Old Glory'. The flag that my great grand father, grand father, and father served in the military under.

I don't understand how anyone that was born in this country could hate it. Do you really believe that you would be better off in another country? We have such a great history. I'm proud of our history, our heritage, and our flag. God bless America once again.

Hate Crime

By Ray Rogers

I’ve heard the term hate crime for years even as far back as the 1990’s. First of all I’m a middle aged white male. I hold all life to be precious regardless of the color of someone’s skin or their sexual preference. I don’t agree with everything that other people say or do, but I believe that we will all stand in judgment for ourselves alone. No one else’s behavior or action is going to give anyone an excuse for what we do in our own lives.

I noticed that when George Zimmerman shot and killed Trayvon Martin certain people in the main stream of the media immediately started calling it a “hate crime.” Now I’m not going to get involved in the whole debate whether or not it was self-defense or murder. I just want to talk about the term “hate Crime.” It is my understanding that the hate crime bill was introduced to protect certain ethnic groups.

What I’m wondering is how calling something a “hate crime” is helping anyone. I thought that all innocent people are supposed to be protected by the law no matter what color, religion, or sexual preference they may happen to be. Doesn’t the statue of lady justice have a blindfold on? Why are we trivializing one crime and holding other crimes to be more serious because some form of racism is involved.

How many people were severely beaten, stabbed, or shot, or dragged to death by someone who loved and cared for them? It would seem to me that all crimes of this nature are “hate crimes.” What difference does it make to the victim or the victim’s family if the crime was motivated by this type of hate or the other? Would you refer to the attack on the twin towers a hate crime or a war crime? I’m almost certain that people of the protected classes were in this building.

I think that when we are allowing some crimes to be labeled with the term “hate crime” which is usually done when the news media decides that a particular crime was motivated by racism I think the only thing that is being accomplished is stirring up more hate.

Don’t get me wrong. I know that racism is alive and well, but remember racism comes from all directions. It’s not just white people who can be a racist. I refuse to associate with people who are racist. I learned from that bible that all of men are created in God’s image. So according to God’s word if we choose to hate someone we are the same as a murderer. 

God’s first commandment is for us to love him with all of our heart mind and strength and our neighbor as our selves. Jesus went a little further by saying love one another as I have loved you. Now think about that for a few minutes. He died for us and called us his friends.

WARNING: Don't Tell Your Doctor Anything He Doesn't Need To Know

I had a doctors appointment today, I will not say what doctor and what his specialty was because you can’t have any secrets anymore under this administration. I was somewhat taken aback when the nurse came in with her computer and discussed with me why I was there and what procedure they wanted me to undergo. I don’t know what possessed her to tell me what I had told a different doctor a couple of weeks before when I had a routine checkup and blood and lab work done as a part of my normal semi-annual health care program. But to my dismay, she read things to me that I had told one of my other doctors. 

I could not believe these things were now in my personal medical records for anyone in the medical field and probably DOJ, IRS or NSA to read. Dumb me, thought any discussions with my medical doctor were confidential, not to be released without my permission to anyone. I was informed by the nurse that was no longer the case. The way things were set up now all doctors computers were interfaced with a main-frame system so that each doctor could call up your name, age and SSN and read what you had talked with any other doctor about.

Apparently, under the Obama administration and the possibility of Obama Care becoming factual you really didn't have any secrets from one doctor to another. So from now own I will not talk to any of my medical practitioners about anything except what they are doing to me for whatever ailment I went to them for.

 At my age if have had the same doctors for many years and we often exchange jokes and talk about things that I sometimes I might consider are not necessarily a part of my medical problem. I have one doctor who likes to tell jokes while he is examining me and we often exchange the most recent funny stories we have heard. Quite often we might even discuss personal things around my life style. I thought patient confidentiality was a sacred trust. 

From now on, I plan on not going to a doctor unless it is a dire necessity. I absolutely do not like any kind of public knowledge of what I say to my doctor in passing being recorded on his damn computer, which is main-framed into the rest of the medical network, for the rest of the medical world and others to see at their will. This country is going to hell in a hand basket with this administration’s spying on everyone and I guess, since I’m 76 years old and on Medicare, they would like very much to euthanize me to keep me from going to the doctor and costing them money. My personal doctors require me to visit them every six months and the one I went to today I am supposed to see him once a year. I would like to never go to him again, nor the one before him that put that personal information in his computer. But it is there now and there is no way to get it removed.

We The People

George Washington's Inaugural Address

George Washington's inaugural address in 1784

At his first inauguration, George Washington took the oath of office for the presidency on April 30, 1789. He was standing on the balcony of Federal Hall in New York City with his hand on an open Bible.

"Such being the impressions under which I have, in obedience to the public summons, repaired to the present station, it would be peculiarly improper to omit, in this first official act, my fervent supplications to that Almighty Being who rules over the universe, who presides in the councils of nations and whose providential aide can supply every human defect, that His benediction may consecrate to the liberties and happiness of the people of the United States a Government instituted by themselves for these essential purposes; and may enable every instrument employed in its administration to execute with success, the functions allotted to his charge.

In tendering this homage to the Great Author of every public and private good, I assure myself that it expresses your sentiments not less than my own; nor those of my fellow-citizens at large, less than either. No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the Invisible Hand which conducts the affairs of men more than the people of the United States.

Every step by which they have advanced to the character of an independent nation seems to have been distinguished by some token of providential agency; and in the important revolution just accomplished in the system of their United government, the tranquil deliberations and voluntary consent of so many distinct communities, from which the event has resulted can not be compared with the means by which most governments have been established, without some return of pious gratitude, along with an humble anticipation of the future blessings which them past seem to presage.

These reflections, arising out of the present crisis, have forced themselves too strongly on my mind to be suppressed. You will join with me I trust in thinking, that there are none under the influence of which the proceedings of a new and free Government can more auspiciously commence.

We ought to be no less persuaded that the propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which Heaven itself has ordained; and since the preservation of sacred fire of liberty and the destiny of the republican model of government are justly considered as deeply, perhaps finally, staked of the experiment...

I shall take my present leave; but not without resorting once more to the Benign Parent of the Human Race, in humble supplication that, since He has been pleased to favor the American people with opportunities for deliberating in perfect tranquility, and dispositions for deciding with unparalleled unanimity on a form of government for the security of their union and the advancement of their happiness, so His divine blessings may be equally conspicuous in the enlarged views, the temperate consultations and the wise measures on which the success of this Government must depend."