Is this the beginning of the end?

Some time ago, I posted about Oregon Senate Bill 719 and it’s repercussions. You see, this bill allows for the confiscation of ALL FIREARMS from anyone deemed “a threat” to themselves and/or others. That, however, isn’t the issue. If someone is a known psychotic, or otherwise mentally unstable, not only do I not want them to be armed, I want them in a mental institution, as they do represent a danger to themselves and others. The issue here, however, is that anyone can lodge a complaint that someone is a “danger to themselves and others” and the court then must act. Today, there are many who have already tried to have people arrested or worse for simple comments about policy or politics in other ways. These, however, were not comments that threatened anyone at all, but simply disagreed with someone’s desire to oust this politician or that, or do away with some law, or the like. We have the masked cowards, or antifa, demanding that we bow to their will or they will attack, while those who support these masked cowards demand we not even speak about our right to defend ourselves from them, and therefore, you simply saying as there is a threat of violence from antifa due to you not agreeing with and bowing to them, you will exercise your Second Amendment rights, that person could then say you are a threat to others because you want to defend yourself.

This is where it comes to such an out of focus point that it’s silly, you see, there is no court hearing, no police showing up to let you know you’ve been charged/accused, they just let one person decide if you are a threat, then you have 24 hours to turn over ALL of your firearms, or you’re a criminal. Oh sure, you can appeal, and IF the complaint is found to be simply someone who hates guns and wanted you forced to give yours up, they’re punished, but that’s more subjective than their complaint. They just say they “honestly felt threatened” and there is no way to legally prove anything else. Yes, you are supposed to get your weapons back, but again, that person keeps filing that they “honestly feel threatened” and you are forcibly disarmed, for good.

Moving on from there, there are lawmakers in Oregon fighting to repeal this bill, for one of several possible reasons I’m sure. First, we have the Second Amendment, which of course liberals argue was written because we didn’t have an army, and now that we do, only the army should be armed. This could not be further from the truth, as the official government in control of the American Colonies did have an army, and that army was called on to disarm and take control of the colonies. The Second Amendment was put in place because the Founders know there could come a day when this new government they were forming would decide the people were little more than subjects to be controlled, and move to tyranny, so the right of The People to be armed and able to fight for their right to freedom is protected (not granted, but only protected) by the Constitution. Of course, this brings up the next argument that it only applies to muskets, but again, this is not true. Not only did the Founders use the word “arms,” they did it deliberately, as they knew that those fighting the new tyranny would need access to the same weapons being used against them, and look up the Puckle Gun if you don’t believe it, as muskets were far less advanced, and the Puckle Gun is far older than the Constitution.

My next move on this would be the Fourth Amendment, which without quoting it, protects all U.S. Citizens from Unreasonable Search and Seizure. This is a major point in this argument, as the only thing needed for police to bang on your door and demand all weapons, which we know will include a “we need to make sure, so we’re going to search your home” moment, is one person complaining that they “honestly feel you are a threat to yourself and others,” which is totally unreasonable as there is no burden of proof put on anyone but the person now forced to prove a negative, which is not possible. Under the Fourth Amendment, police must not only show a warrant or probable cause, they must show it to both the person being searched and the court. Yes, they can say they saw you threatening to shoot someone, so they burst in to stop that, then searched the area to ensure all was safe, etc, which is probable cause, but if my neighbor or a relative says they “feel” I’m a threat to myself or others, and they aren’t required to show concrete proof, the police then have no probable cause or other reason to search the home. And no, your refusal to allow a warrantless or baseless search of your home is not reason enough to them search the home. Technically as well, the Seventh Amendment comes in, as you have a right to a jury trial, as the value at stake (even one firearm) is over twenty dollars, but that’s an argument for another time.

The last Constitutional argument I can make against this law invokes the Sixth Amendment and the Tenth Amendment, as both are completely ignored by this law. The Sixth Amendment states that you have the right to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation against you, and to be confronted with witnesses against you. You also have the right to obtain witnesses in your favor, and right to counsel. All of these are ignored, as you aren’t informed of the complaint or the hearing until after the fact, and then simply told you must surrender all weapons. Yes, you can appeal, but that will not be happening within 24 hours, so you are disarmed and then told you must prove you are not a threat. This, again, is forcing you to prove a negative, which is impossible. But, beyond that, it is never the defendant that must prove their innocence (although many do end up doing that) it’s the State that must prove guilt, “beyond the shadow of a reasonable doubt.” This law flips the burden of proof, and does it after imposing the penalty. In a normal criminal complaint, the State must prove their assertions before sentence is carried out, but under SB 719, there is only one sentence, being totally disarmed, which is carried out before you have the chance to even face your accuser. To be Constitutional, the State must allow you to be notified of the complaint, to face your accuser, and then to counter their attempts to prove you are a danger, forcing the onus of proof onto the State, but they ignore all that in the name of “if one person feels unsafe, we must act” which tramples not only the Second, but also the Tenth Amendments. You see, the Tenth Amendment is the best in my opinion, as it specifically states that all powers not specifically delegated to The State (federal government) are reserved for The People (individual states,) and in this case, the Second Amendment specifically states that “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” No mention of what types of “arms,” or that one person not liking guns and thus “feeling unsafe” allows you to disarm me, just that as The People have a right to be free from tyranny, they shall always have the right to keep and bear Arms.

So, Oregon, in this move, has taken the first step toward tyranny, and it will be telling to see where they go from here. Will politicians “feel unsafe” that those who didn’t vote for them are possibly armed and demand their constituents be disarmed? Will the Governor decide that people not liking her new law “threatens her” and file complaints against all citizens of the state? This is the penultimate “slippery slope” as it allows for anyone to “feel threatened” and remove all responsibility for proof from the government and place it all on the citizen after sentence is carried out. As for myself, I’m glad to live in Texas, where our Governor wouldn’t support, let alone sign this, and would if over ruled, take it to the State Supreme Court to have it nullified, but I also call on all Oregonians to abandon ship now. Liberal run cities and states are raising minimum wage, which will mean higher taxes to pay it, they’re working to disarm you, I won’t be surprised if and when there is either a tax to move out of state, or a ban on all people moving out of state to “ensure the burden of tax income is met.”

We aren’t far from a state of governance where states will demand other states be taxed higher than them to offset their spending, California has already been shown to spend billions on illegal immigrants and they also disarm their citizens as much as they can (while exempting themselves from all of those laws,) so how long until they demand Texas “pay our fair share?” Or how long until they demand we obey their laws? We’ve already had states that “legalized” gay marriage demand all other states honor, but they refuse to honor laws from states that allow citizens to carry their weapons, or certain weapons. We are approaching the beginnings of what can cause civil war. California demands we honor their laws, that we pay for criminals to stay free, and Oregon demands that no one complain when disarmed on a complaint by someone you aren’t allowed to face, how long until someone sues CA or OR over these situations and those states decide they “have a right” to do as they please?

I know it’s not a pretty picture, but unless we demand logic and respect for all, as the laws on the books state must be done, we will see it get worse. From liberals rioting and destroying public universities over a speaker, then demanding they be allowed to riot over anything, to states demanding you disarm because someone “feels threatened” without telling you who or why, it’s only a matter of time before you even speaking out against un-Constitutional acts warrants life in prison. Remember, first they came for the Communists, and I said nothing. Next they came for the nationalists, and I did nothing. Then they came for me, and no one was left to do anything. We must stand together for the actual rights all of us enjoy, and quash the notions that this group or that has “rights” that only they enjoy, or this country will fall.

The 1st Amendment for liberals (dummies)

It seems that we have an entire segment of the U.S. adult population who needs to go back to High School Government class, as they keep suing everyone and anyone but the U.S. Government for “violating the First Amendment.” Well, once again, I’m going to try to explain this in as succinct a way as I can so you might understand the point of the First Amendment is not to protect you from witnessing others exercising their faith, but to protect all Americans from the Government ruling that you can’t do that at all.

The full text reads as follow.

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people to peaceably assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Looking only at the first two clauses, Congress is prohibited from passing any law which elevates one faith over others, and also prohibited from passing any law that restricts the right of every American to openly practice their faith. This does not mean that a school teacher cannot choose to join already praying students, or that a school must tell a Bible study they can’t meet on school grounds, it means two very concrete things. First, CONGRESS cannot pass a law that respects one faith over others, and second, that CONGRESS cannot pass a law that restricts the rights of all Americans to exercise their faith. Period!

While Congress is now busy arguing over which party gets to lie about Trump next time, however, we have high prices attorneys threatening small town schools where a Coach decided to join his students in prayer, not force them to, not even suggest it, he wants to join them! They pray before a game, and he wants to as well! This must stop, and sadly, at this point, litigation may be the only way. We need to counter all attempts to silence Christians with counter-suits using the same Amendment they are to attack us. They claim that praying is respecting an establishment of religion, we need to counter with two simple questions. First, which LAW did CONGRESS pass requiring that prayer be spoken? Second, are you trying to prohibit the free exercise thereof?

These cowards are well aware that they are wrong, and are censoring and silencing those they don’t agree with, but they’ve had free reign for decades, and two Presidencies where the White House was behind them. They ignore Muslims blocking traffic and the streets of NYC to pray, forcing New Yorkers to watch and hear Muslim prayers. They ignore companies and schools being forced to stop everything to allow Muslim prayer, or teachers forced to lead classes in those same prayers, all in the name of diversity.

We, at least those of us who have studied the book of Revelation, know that these are signs of the end of days, and while we can’t stop that, we are to never stop working to further His kingdom. We don’t know if the end of days is days, weeks, months, years or even centuries away, but we know it’s coming. Now more than ever we should be fighting for our God given human freedom to worship who and as we choose, if for nothing more than our call to spread the Gospel to the world.

Will you be cowed and silent, or will you brave the lions’ den? How do you wish to be able to answer what you’ve done for His Kingdom when you finally meet him? I know my answer, to all the above questions, and to what I will do when told I must hide my faith. I would rather die for Christ than dishonor all He has done for me, what about you?

Smokey

Is it really still morning in America?

For many years, we’ve heard the loud protests from “gun control” advocates that they aren’t pushing for confiscation and forcibly disarming the American public, but Oregon’s Governor just signed bill which allows the confiscation of weapons from those “deemed to be an imminent threat to themselves or others. Here’s the problem, who decides that simply owning a weapon isn’t an “imminent threat?” Say you’re an outspoken critic of this Governor, and she just decides that since you constantly post about her in “less than complimentary terms,” that she “feels threatened” by you, so now you’re disarmed. What about people who are very public figures? Dana Loesch has had to move, again, because of threats to her and her family, because she is a very outspoken supporter of the Second Amendment and the NRA. She’s quick to let you know how she feels, but has never been a friend to the liberals crying over every death after someone who has a weapon on them, illegally, is killed. Say this law was federal, what’s to stop some liberal judge from declaring that anyone who supports the NRA is an “imminent threat” to themselves or those around them? This is the slippery slope that conservatives have talked about every time “common sense gun control” is brought up.

Another example of the idiocy we’re expected to ignore from our elected officials, this bill that supposedly would ban bump stocks/automatic weapons, but if you read it, it bans EVERYTHING that can “increase the rate of fire” of a semi-automatic weapon. Now, I made more than my fair share of jokes and comments about Shannon Watts saying that no rifle should fire 10 rounds a minute (yes, 1 every six seconds, which I can beat with a bolt action rifle where I have to load every shell,) but this bill is just moronic and why is very simple. Every human is born with a “rate increaser,” it’s your finger! The faster you pull the trigger, or if you don’t seat the rifle against your shoulder tightly enough, it will bump fire without a bump stock. Here’s the idiocy about this though, faster fire is actually far less accurate than slower fire. Notice in the movies though, the weapon doesn’t move much when the “machine gun” fires. This is false, the barrel is going to rise and move, so you’re not going to be able to just “mow down” your target. I’ve fired in competition for a few years, and I tend to use every second I’m given, ensuring my accuracy is the best it can be. But, as always, the “scary thing” is so evil it must be possessed by Beelzebub himself, so must be taken by force from all who have it.

With the Oregon law, and the low chance that any judge on the bench now other than those now being appointed by President Trump, would side with the Constitution, we must act and act fast. We have the 2018 mid-term elections in just over a year, and the primaries in half that time. Read your Constitution, and only vote for those who will honor their oath of office and stand up to bullies like Oregon who would declare anyone an “imminent threat” and disarm the with no hearing or charges. That’s a violation of not only the 2nd, but also the 4th Amendment, as it’s definitely unreasonable search and seizure. Stand up to idiots who would say they want to ban “machine guns” but then say that ANYTHING that can increase the rate of fire is illegal, as they know perfectly well that simply being semi-automatic means the simple trigger can do that, as they are working to disarm all Americans.

Make no mistake, they know that if they ever disarm the citizenry, the criminals will still be armed, and they want that, as they want a police state. They want total control over ALL ASPECTS of your daily life. First they’ll disarm and declare Martial Law “to protect us.” Next certain cars aren’t “environmentally sound” so they’re taken, then certain speech is “hateful” so banned. I’ve studied End Times Prophecy for over 25 years, and this is the world that will come to pass when Satan installs his puppet, and then rules. Which side are you on? Do you stand up for your own rights, or will you bow when told you have no rights?

Open letter to Congress

In the last several months, the U.S. has seen a segment of the population rioting and assaulting people over election results. There are sitting Representatives and Senators who have openly called for an election to be voided and a candidate simply be given the Oval Office. Anyone defending the Electoral College is called a sexist or racist, and accused of trying to impose fascism, while those very people use the ultimate in fascist tactics to silence all dissent.

As a history major who has studied the Revolutionary War and the Second World War in detail, I can tell you that the “anti-fascists” are the only fascists in the United States. Fascism is the brutal subjugation of all who don’t follow the ruling party. The “antifa” are using actual logos from the Nazi party of World War II, while demanding that we accept their saying that they are fighting fascism. The videos of violence over speakers merely being invited, hearing about college professors swinging a bicycle lock at someone’s head, tell me that the very people claiming to be anti-fascism are dedicated to the violent suppression of all dissent and subjugation of a country.

Now, we hear of their calls for monuments to be defaced and destroyed on a national holiday, and worse, plans to openly kill all they can who are not on their side, and I cannot be silent any longer. I live in the State of Texas, where we’ve seen antifa fail in their attempts to assault those who disagree, is something to me, but we know they are massing their numbers, and are funded by a billionaire who has openly said his goal is the destruction of the United States, while the Democratic Party protects him from any action by the government.

2016 showed that a vast majority of the country voted for the now sitting President, while enclaves of liberals voted for the other, resulting in what they claim is an invalid election, based on very few cities going blue, while the rest of the country went red. They scream about being silenced while wanting a majority of U.S. states silenced. We saw a mild version of this in 2000, when President Bush won over Al Gore, although by September of 2001, the country had united after the 9/11 attacks. Now, we are seeing more attacks happen, yet the media and Hollywood are openly claiming that the attacks are deserved for the country electing President Trump.

The next move is very dangerous, as if the left openly starts attacking and killing, we will see martial law declared and people will be killed, resulting in the media denouncing the people protecting the majority from the minority, and defending those calling for the murder of those who don’t completely give up all rights. In the wake of the Las Vegas shooting, once again, liberal officials are calling for “common sense gun control” while ignoring that the weapons used were illegal, or in some cases, not regulated due to the Obama Administration and Clinton Dept. of State deciding to not regulate bump stocks. Nancy Sinatra has openly called for the members of the NRA to be shot, while the NRA is calling for bump stocks to be regulated, which would mean it’s much harder to get them.

The answer, while simple to say, is not easy to implement. Governors need to tell their Sheriffs and Police Chiefs to not tolerate violence as we’ve seen from the cowards in masks. They must demand the laws of the land be enforced, not sign a bill stating their entire state will flout U.S. immigration law, thus harboring all who say they’re undocumented, allowing crime to become the norm. When, not if, these criminals show up to murder all who didn’t vote as the cowards want, they must be met with people unwilling to allow murder, and state officials must back those who act to defend themselves and others. We have seen examples of people who shoot intruders inside their home, being charged with murder, and the media screaming about an “innocent child killed by racists” while ignoring that the “child” was trying to harm another.

Sadly, I don’t see this happening in the states where it’s needed most. As an example, California has shown their unwillingness to stop violent attacks on those who simply do not share beliefs with criminals, while in states like Texas, the criminals are stopped in their tracks, only to have the person who didn’t take being attacked being attacked by the media and lawyers. Common Sense must return, and that means that the Constitution is respected and upheld, the other laws on the books must be enforced. Those who enter the country illegally must be returned to their country, those who rape/assault/murder must be removed from society, and those who demand laws be ignored or Constitutional rights be removed, must be told a firm no!

I hold hope for the country, but that hope is dwindling as our elected officials allow an unconstitutional “investigation” which has yielded nothing, yet it continues. We see elected officials openly calling for the President to denounce this group or that, while ignoring the violence from their own constituency. I implore our Congress to return to their actual job, representing the country honestly. We are a year from the 2018 mid-term election, and we are seeing calls for many to be replaced. Will we see that, or will we see those in office actually do what we need them to do? Only time will tell.

Boycotting Hollywood, and more

Over the past months we’ve seen celebrities like Jennifer Lawrence and Olivia Wilde telling people to not see their movies if they voted for President Trump, and just recently, Stephen Colbert told Trump supporters to not watch the Emmy’s, happily alienating over half the country. Naturally, the response from liberal Americans is joyful agreement, happily yelling at conservatives that they want us gone. What isn’t making headlines much at all, save for social media, is that Hollywood is seeing the lowest numbers for a summer season, and ratings for TV are down as well. When the ratings for tomorrow’s Emmy Awards are known, expect hype from the media about a “wonderful show” and “deserving winners” while ignoring the record low ratings for a show that normally garners high attention each year.

I won’t hide that I’ve replied to and retweeted the tweets from the official twitter of the new movie Mother that Lawrence has told me I’m not to see it, that she doesn’t want me as a fan, and I’ll do the same for any other actor that says I’m not to see their movies. Some have said they’ll still see some movies as their kids love going, and they enjoy the entertainment, but not me. I’m happy at home with my very few TV shows where actors haven’t gotten political, or DVD’s or a good book. I can happily listen to the radio and read, or work outside on my land, and watch as Hollywood implodes. What’s going to be interesting, is when Lawrence or Wilde are asked about the low box office numbers for their movies, will they admit they did it, or will they attack the people who didn’t spend our money on them after their demand we avoid them, as having “tried to silence them for speaking their mind?”

This is the problem in society today, from celebrities demanding we not see their movies who will later cry that we’re censoring them by driving their movie earnings down, to the antifa cowards who will scream about being “anti-fascist” while using brutal attacks to silence all dissent, to Senators and other liberal officials screaming about “white supremacists” while ignoring the violence from their own supporters. While it’s bad now, I can tell you it will get worse. So far, the cowards in masks have only “protested” in cities and states where a Democrat is in charge, so that they have support and know that the police will only arrest those they are attacking, but it will expand. I’ve said before, they avoid states like Texas, because Sheriffs here have been vocal in reminding those who want to rob or attack others that in Texas, we have the right to defend ourselves with the level of force we deem appropriate. If you have a knife and are threatening to kill me, or a 2×4, or a crow bar, I have the right, if I truly fear for my life, to use a firearm, either simply as a show of force, or to actually use it. This will happen, and when the first one is killed by someone they’re trying to assault with deadly force, the media, the Democrats in power, and those who were rioting and assaulting people along with the one who tried to attack and failed, will decry the “brutal murder” of a “peaceful protester” who was “just upset with fascists in power.”

We need to do a few things, the first is what I started with, boycott movies and TV where those who are decrying our way of life, our beliefs, as evil, and prove to them that we who spend money on their “art” are tired of being insulted and reviled. But beyond that, we need to support TV and movies done by those who either just do their work, or who support our way of life and our beliefs. Faith Films puts out movies like God’s Not Dead, actors like Kevin Sorbo and Melissa Joan Hart are working to not only entertain us, but also give a voice to conservatives who simply believe in the rule of law and the U.S. Constitution.

Only 30 years ago, we had amazing TV with people who just hosted shows, or movies with actors who just entertained. They didn’t get political until they retired, as we now see with Eastwood or Woolery. They don’t alienate their fans, they just entertain. Reality TV was just that, often boring, but real. Today we have “reality” TV that’s either just an athletic competition like American Ninja Warrior, or Big Brother where the liberal bent is so obvious it turns the stomach of conservatives watching.

So, if you’re like me, no matter your political leaning, you see the problem with actors who alienate half the country, and recognize that we need to drive them out, and make way for those who will just do the job, and entertain.

An open letter to the American left

For almost a year, half of the country has been berated, insulted, and more, simply because they voted for the candidate they wanted to, rather than who those on the left demanded be elected. Hillary has been making the circuit bemoaning that it was “her turn,” questioning “what happened,” and in general, blaming everyone but herself for her failed White House run. Celebrities and business owners have berated and ostracized conservatives, and demanded that they get their way even though they lost the election.

This, sadly, has led to cowards in masks assaulting others based on beliefs, and nothing else. A UC Berkeley assaulted a student by striking him in the head with a bike lock, which could have killed him, because he wanted to have a speaker the mob didn’t like visit the campus. More recently, violence erupted in Charlottesville over a statue of a Civil War figure the liberals wanted torn down. They didn’t do the right thing, petition the city and let the people decide, they simply showed up and demanded to get their way, and when they weren’t given everything they demanded, they began assaulting those who were there to prevent their destruction of public property. After that, the President denounced everyone who resorted to violence, and instantly, the media and DNC began accusing him of supporting the “nazis” or “white supremacists” because he wouldn’t name them only. So, he named them, and the antifa group, so they said it wasn’t enough, and said he really didn’t mean it. Now? Now, the Democrats in office are denouncing antifa, or “all sides” and ignoring that they screamed at Trump for doing exactly what they are now doing.

So, now that the media and DNC are coming in line with the rest of the country, denouncing the violence coming from those they emboldened, we’re seeing a shift. Marcus Lemonis, who is on TV rather often telling people how to save their business, told those who voted for Trump not to shop at his chain of stores, which led to the loss of an almost $200,000 sale of an RV. Stephen King announced he was banning President Trump from seeing IT, his newest movie, which led to a response on Twitter from conservatives that they wouldn’t see it either. Jennifer Lawrence has also told all Trump supporters she “doesn’t want” them as fans, and told them not to see her movies.

While Lemonis’ remarks have seen people calling for a boycott of Camping World, and for people to shop at Academy, Cabela’s, or Bass Pro, Hollywood has seen their lowest summer season in a very long time, and now the NFL is seeing record low numbers for ticket sales and viewers, after Colin Kaepernick refused to stand for the national anthem, then blamed racism for his inability to demand a starting position while analysts maintain he’s not good enough, regardless of his “protest.”

There’s only one way this can go, Hollywood, the NFL, and businesses like Camping World, where those running things tell people they’re racist for not accepting that a millionaire should be able to disrespect the flag, or that they’re not wanted based on their vote, will see their income dive to all time lows. After that, I can all but guarantee that Lemonis will be decrying the “little people” who work for him losing jobs, Lawrence will bemoan that conservatives are “punishing her” for speaking her mind, and the NFL will see idiots like Kaepernick continue to tell the world they’re racist for not supporting him in his demands that we do all he wants while he insults us. Sadly, this needs to happen, for one simple reason, so we can throw their words back at them. When Lemonis cries about layoffs, we show him his demand that people not spend money with him, when Lawrence can’t get a role, we show her where she told people not to see her movies, and when the NFL starts having to go PPV or another route due to people not spending money with them, we show them where they refused to tell the millionaires playing a game to entertain those paying to watch that insulting those people isn’t right.

All of this is going to be a required action, just as arresting and jailing the antifa cowards, and anyone else that resorts to violence to silence opposition, we need to make sure that we show those we pay that when they tell us we’re evil for not obeying their orders, we won’t spend our money to support them. Hollywood said they’d go on strike, maybe we should let them, there are thousands of young and struggling actors who would LOVE to get a role that Lawrence has, or that Streep got, and they’d work for a fraction of what the established celebs work for. They’d also see that they need to just act, and not rant about their fans not obeying them.

To be very clear, I am a conservative, politically and fiscally, and while I do speak my mind, I do not, and never will, insult someone for believing differently. I’ll happily debate all day long, and I’ll keep it civil, until you don’t, then I walk away. I don’t care if the people in a movie or show I’m watching are liberal, conservative, or other, I just won’t support them with my money when they insult and demean me, simply because I’m not marching lock step with their beliefs. I honestly don’t know where Chris Pratt stands politically, or for that matter, most of the Guardians of the Galaxy cast, and I don’t care. They aren’t on TV and social media insulting people for politics, they just make movies and entertain people, and do it well.

I do know where other stand, Lemonis won’t see a dime from me, Lawrence/King will see me not spend a cent on their movies (or books in King’s situation,) I’ll continue calling out those like Chris Evans, who plays Captain America, yet rants about politics as if he can force people to change, completely opposite the character so many (like me) grew up loving, and reading. Eastwood, Sorbo, Hart, will see me spend money on their projects, not because I agree with them politically, but because they’ve spoken about their beliefs, but not attacked or insulted those who don’t believe the same.

So, in a nutshell, liberal America, keep ordering me around, and keep watching as I do what you don’t want me to, as I spend my money where I want, and that won’t be on your stuff, and when that results in you losing income, don’t blame me, but remember it’s what you said for me to do. Simply put, be careful what you wish for, because in this case, you will get it, in spades.

“Do as I order you to or I’ll say you’re an evil bigot who supports killing puppies!”

The violence in Charlottesville over this last weekend is just the latest example of a society populated by people who refuse to recognize that something happened they cannot control. It started in Ferguson during the riots after a Grand Jury ruled that the officer had acted in defense of his life, and that the thug Brown was not murdered by an evil racist. I’ve had several people tell me that I’m wrong in condemning everyone involved, just as they say the President is, because I won’t call out only the KKK and neo-nazis, ignoring and not naming antifa. When I point out that there were three groups involved, and calling out only two excuses the third, I get “but they’re nazis” as if that means I’m to excuse those who were just as fascistly violent. The antifa, or anti-fascists, for example have begun using a logo that is literally a 180 degree rotation and translation of an actual National Socialist logo from Nazi Germany. They violently suppress anything they don’t like, from speech to assembly, and they will all but kill to get their way. Those are the exact actions of the National Socialist party in the run up to WWII. Consolidate power, intimidate those against you into following you or at least being silent, suppress all dissent by any means necessary, and all of that leads to Buchenwald, Auschwitz, and murdering millions.

The next argument is that the neo-nazis and KKK were heavily armed when they showed up in Charlottesville to protest the removal of a statue, as if that’s to say they came ready to kill anyone who disagreed, but the only death was due to an idiot in a car. Another point of view would be that looking at antifa’s history, where a professor at a state college swung a bike lock at a student’s head, simply because the student wanted a speaker the professor doesn’t like, to come speak, I’d say they showed up ready to intimidate the other side, legally by the way as no weapons were taken, into staying non-violent. Scream and yell all you want, you throw a rock at me, swing a chain at me, and I’m ready to defend my life. The “but they’re nazis” as an excuse for violence is so far gone, I can’t even begin to understand how anyone can claim to be for tolerance, chant “Love trumps hate,” and then jump to violence over differing thought. I know they’re going to instantly say that Hitler would be shot on sight if he were here today, but that’s not the way our country works. You cannot use a WWII situation to justify violence in our streets over a disagreement. My Great Uncle drove a tank into France, starting at Normandy on D-Day, drove into Paris at the end to liberate an oppressed country, all after war had been declared, and it was military vs military. He would not only be the one standing against removal of a historical marker, but also stopping violence from either side, likely by giving that “I’m very disappointed in all of you” look he mastered early in life.

If it’s as simple as “they’re part of _____” why can’t I punch BLM supporters, since BLM has never officially and totally denounced those using the name BLM to call for murdering police? Why can’t I punch antifa on sight as they’ve said they want me beaten to a pulp for voting for Trump? The answer is very simple, you do not get to punch people simply because of what they say/believe/stand for, you only resort to violence to stop violence (PHYSICAL VIOLENCE) directed at you or someone else. My saying I believe Hillary should go to jail for life and be in the cell next to Obama is NOT VIOLENCE DIRECTED AT YOU, it’s a statement. We have heard for years that “hate speech” must be stopped, but that’s not something that can or should be done. The Supreme Court has ruled that there is no such thing as “hate speech,” which puts us back on the path of “you are free to speak your mind, but if you yell fire in a crowded room, and a panic/riot ensues, you’re responsible for the consequences of what you said.” My saying I believe antifa are a bunch of bigots, racists, sexists, and using tactics pioneered by the actual Nazi Party of Germany of the 30’s and 40’s, that is not “hate speech” that is my interpretation of their actions. If I invite Ann Coulter to campus having worked with a large group of fellow students to decide we want her to speak, and you then swing a bike lock at my head, that is assault with a deadly weapon. My speech is protected, your attempt to murder me is not.

People have asked me why I feel the need to be armed at all times, and it’s very simple. We now live in a world where my saying I’m a Christian sets of screams of rage that I would “dare” to believe in such hate, my stating that muslim terror groups have killed far more people than any other religious zealot group has sets of screams of islamaphobia, and my admitting I voted for Trump and would attend a speech by Milo or Coulter sets off, apparently, attempts to kill me to prevent me speaking my mind, while my attackers scream that they support free speech. I can guarantee that when they come to Texas and try this BS, and when a large number of my fellow Texans stop them, they will scream they were beaten bloody over protecting racist history. They will demand that everyone who stopped them destroying public property be arrested because they blocked them from breaking the law.

This is going to get worse, we will see people going to jail for things that the Obama administration ignored, and we will see the Trump administration accused of racism or sexism, for simply enforcing the law, and sadly, it’s what we need. 25-30 years ago, this wouldn’t have happened, as the Governor would’ve told the Mayor you have 1 hour, then I send in the National Guard, and it would have ended. Sadly, we now live in a world where people sue for everything, and we have “Judges” who will side against Police simply because they hate the current administration. I honestly wouldn’t have been surprised if the idiot who fired on the GOP softball practice had sued for discrimination and won from a liberal judge, simply because he would then claim that he was “forced into it because of how racist and sexist anyone with an R behind their name is.” At this point, I’m very thankful to live in TX and have lawyers ready to defend me, as I know it will come to a day where I’m threatened with death over simply believing as I do, and I will act to defend myself. If not that, we’ll have what’s happening in Europe happen, where “refugees” set up “muslim only” areas and attack those who dare try to actaully move about the country, and that won’t fly in the American south, and whoever is the first one told “you die for coming here,” who doesn’t accept it and acts to defend themselves will be accused of “going hunting” because the media and the American left are so bent on “we must be tolerant” they’ve now moved to “tolerant” meaning give in on everything, except when it comes to conservatives of course.

The long and short of this is very simple, and I’ve used this analogy before and it still fits. If I’m a teacher and I have three students fighting, two together against the third. I do not need to call out the team of two by their names, and ignore the lone student, that is excusing that third student. I do not need to name all three, as saying “all of you are in detention and I will be calling your parents” means just that ALL THREE ARE IN TROUBLE! For Trump to not specifically name only two of the three groups guilty of violence in Charlottesville is NOT siding with any group, and never will be. To call out only two of the three groups is to excuse the third, and the “but they’re all nazis or skinheads” is to say “I’m allowed to beat people up for believing different than me.” If you see a skinhead attacking someone, by all means, intervene and do all you must to protect that person, but YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO ASSAULT SOMEONE BECAUSE OF WHAT THEY BELIEVE ALONE! Thought crime is Orwellian and a dangerous path. 1984 and Equilibrium are cautionary tales of allowing a government to have too much power, if we allow the “thought crimes” issue to become reality, how long before the government decides that suggesting that the First Amendment means you have free speech doesn’t mean that, and we see people killed over simple speech? How long before suggesting that wearing a shirt with a logo that “offends” someone is cause for death? How long before we’re drugged to remove all emotion and desire to resist control?

When they come for you, you will either go quietly, go screaming, or go down in a hail of bullets from government agents told to control you or kill you. Which will you choose, freedom, slavery or death? I know my choice, do you know yours, and will you stand up and refuse to give up your rights?

What happened in Charlottesville and what’s still happening?

We’ve heard the mantra from the left for years, that they want peace, love and tolerance. But, they are the most intolerant of all, as they will happily scream at you that you’re a hateful bigot for suggesting something isn’t right. From homosexuality, to politics, to immigration, they will make sure you’re told, repeatedly and at high volume, that you’re wrong, they’re right, and if you don’t agree, they will claim you just shot them.

Looking back at Charlottesville this last weekend, this is the same as we’ve seen in other places, just a different reason set things off. This time it was the left demanding all vestiges of the past, in this case Civil War memorials, that they don’t like be destroyed. To them, a state memorializing dead soldiers is the same as bringing back slavery. I’m very proud to be a Southerner, proud of my Texan roots, while also knowing Texas was a slave state. That does not mean I believe slavery was in any way not repugnant, it does not mean I want it back, it means I love my home, period. The monuments, however, are not there to glorify a horrible time in our history, they’re there to remind us of that time, so we never repeat it. Americans fought against, and killed, their fellow Americans, over something no sane person should ever defend, and all because of pride. We must remember that, we must teach our children that, so that when someone even considers suggesting a return to those ways, it’s shot down before it even leaves their lips.

But that’s the problem, the left doesn’t want to teach true history, just as they don’t want actual tolerance or diversity. You see, if they taught real history, they’d have to admit that the Democratic Party stood against abolition, that the NRA was instrumental in protecting the rights of the newly freed slaves to own firearms, that it was the Republican party that fought to give women and freed slaves the right to vote. True diversity would mean that they would have to allow those who disagree to speak and be heard. They wouldn’t be able to stop speech that offends them. They would have to stop insulting and accusing those who speak out against their pet projects of “crimes.” All of these things are what conservatives actually stand for, and what liberals stand against, because true tolerance and diversity means they can’t control the world around them, which is their true goal. As long as they control academia, they control the direction students go at graduation.

A mere 25 years ago this month, I was entering High School, and while there were bullies and cliques, it was a far cry from what we have today. Yes, I had bullies try to intimidate me, but they were all doing that because of their brutish size, not politics, and were easy to shut down. Even at 16, I was already very conservative, having grown up under Reagan’s administration, yet, when I met someone who was liberal, we didn’t hate each other. The most outwardly “flaming” homosexual I’ve ever met was only a year ahead of me and was one of the nicest and kindest people I’ve ever met. He knew my beliefs, and we still sat to lunch together, helped each other with assignments and so on. Every Thursday I was dressed either in Air Force blues or fatigues, and other than a few people sniggering at the “wannabe soldiers” all over campus, no one cared.

None of that would be possible today, because of the people who are responsible for what happened in Charlottesville. The very people screaming for tolerance demand you do as they do, and if you don’t, you’re attacked. Charlottesville’s Mayor and Virginia’s Governor are both Democrats, and one or both of them ordered the Police to stand down, just as Berkeley’s Mayor did when the riots over Milo being invited to speak happened. Regardless of who gave the order, the Mayor or Governor should have said NO to that, told the Police to stand their ground, then the Governor should have called in the National Guard to aid the Police. Who gave that order is only relevant as far as who is arrested for putting lives at risk.

Conservatives can joke that we love diversity, then say we have multiple weapons, or like different cuts of beef, but when it comes down to it, Conservatives are the only group actually working toward diversity, by fighting for everyone to actually be treated the same. So, the question is fairly simple, how much worse will it get before we finally act to stop the madness? Personally, I pray something happens very soon, as if it gets much worse, we’ll see martial law start happening, and no one wants that, no matter who’s in office.

Just another rant

We’ve seen countless versions of the TV spot for cell providers for years, from “Can you hear me now” to today’s we’re better than the other guys, they’re all crap version. Well, I actually worked for one of the largest cellular providers in the U.S. in the very early 2000’s, and I can tell you that even back then, there were very few areas where you couldn’t get a signal because your provider didn’t have a tower near by. Yes, in the very early days of cellular phones, you had to use your provider’s towers, or incur roaming fees, which we all hated as much as we still hate overage charges.

Today, despite the truth actually being that the individual networks being very close in size, speed, reliability, my phone works even where my provider has no towers for miles, because all providers agreed to let anyone use their towers, purely to satisfy customers and eliminate roaming fees. So, today it’s all about pricing and what the plan you choose includes. My parents, nephew, and I all share a plan that allows us to have separate bills, but due to our plan, we have a very low monthly base fee, and all have unlimited talk and text. We also can choose unlimited data or just a smaller upgrade, for those who haven’t figured it out, yes, I am with Sprint on the Framily plan. My base cost each month is $45, and I’m unlimited talk, text, and data, and I’ve had very little problem steaming on Facebook or Twitter, posting to any site, browsing or watching YouTube videos, save at my home, which is out “in the sticks” where no one has too strong a signal for data. Boost is an old Nextel market, Virgin is on T-Mobile if I remember right, and so it goes with every “discount provider.”

Why am I ranting about cell phone commercials? We’ve known for years that ads are geared toward getting your money, and they’ll insult the other guy all they can to get that. My primary complaint about this is that the attitude has become so pervasive, that is now infecting real life. So many people have heard and bought into the “I’m better than your guy, so switch to me” story, that they’ve begun using it. Professors are so convinced of their own superiority, they now belittle students who disagree with them in class, rather than invite actual debate. Students are so convinced that they are the end all be all of the campus that they block access to speakers they don’t like, and in some cases, assault those who want the speaker to come to campus. Campus administrations are so afraid of a lawsuit, they don’t act to prevent this from happening, and thus, we have students actively belittled and attacked, simply for not being the same. Thus far, we’ve seen UC Berkeley students attacked and almost killed over inviting Milo Yiannopoulos or Anne Coulter, while so far, only Claremont has punished anyone over blocking a door so an invited speaker can get to their venue.

This attitude of infallibility is what must change. Professors who mock and kick students out because they mention that forensic science can tell the age, sex, or race of a person by their skeleton, or take part in assaulting those who invited a conservative speaker should be at the very least fired, if not arrested. The reason this isn’t happening is simple, the people in power are those most guilty of this attitude. Those who want to see this change must do something that won’t be easy, but it’s now the only way to get anything to happen. What is this difficult thing? We have to hit the people demanding we do what they tell us to, without any complaint, in the wallet. When celebrities go on a rant about how evil and stupid we are for not voting as they order, or for speaking out against something they support, then we need to stop spending money on their work. Sadly, this isn’t easy. Case in point, I’ve commented on several threads where a celebrity has insulted me directly, and in one case, they are the main role in a movie series I’ve loved for years. Personally, just not going won’t affect them, even if all my family and friends join, because honestly, there aren’t that many I can directly influence. But, by letting the studio putting these movies out know that I, as a consumer, will no longer pay for a ticket or DVD rental, nor purchase any merchandise, and urging others to do the same, the studio will see that their “star” is alienating the very people they want to reach. It worked with Last Man Standing, as when ABC cancelled, even with Tim Allen not attacking or complaining, another network snapped the show up, because they saw that people want to watch it. That will hurt ABC, simply because the time slot for Last Man Standing will be prime-time, and thus, a good number of people will be watching it instead of ABC. Ratings are the end all, be all, for networks. I’ll admit, TV shows are the hardest to impact, as there aren’t any show specific advertisers for fiction series, other than perhaps product placement, but it can be done.

Simply put, make your voice heard, let the network know you won’t watch a show any more because of a star mouthing of and calling you an idiot for voting as you want to, or for not believing them without question. Let the studio know you won’t spend money on a movie or it’s merchandise because a star believes you’re a moron for not thinking exactly like them. We saw a push years back to be an individual, to stand out and not conform, but today the non-conformists are all the same, demanding you “break the mold” and conform to theirs. It won’t be easy, as you’ll be left with books written by very few people, very little music that isn’t over 100 years old, but you’ll have claimed a principle and stood by it, which is very rare. There are conservative and liberal stars in Hollywood, so if you leave one fandom, there are others you can try, just as there are alternatives for movies. I personally would rather have only one or two movies every 2 to 3 years, and have them be wholesome, such as God’s Not Dead or Risen, than a movie every month where the star thinks I’m nothing more than a piggy bank they can demand money from. It’s your choice, as always, but if you choose to tell Hollywood you won’t give them your money any more, maybe they’ll get the hint and either tell the stars to shut up and not insult the people who they want to spend money for tickets, or they’ll get new stars.

On Bullies and Liberals, often the same thing

The last 8 months have been some of the most tense and violent that I’ve seen in a long time, likely ever. I remember 2000, when Gore ranted about the popular vote, dangling chads, and that the world would end because the country didn’t hand him the White House. 2001 when Bush began talking about responding to the attacks of 9/11, and so many other times, but it’s never been to the point of people destroying property on Inauguration Day, or college students and employees assaulting those who invite a speaker they don’t like to campus, and we’re there now. We’ve gone from the world of 2008 and 2012, where we were told “we won, you lost, get over it,” or “when they go low, we go high.” We’ve lived through hearing we could keep our plan, once the law passed so we can find out what’s in it, and now the country is tearing it’s self apart over an election, notably, the election of a Republican over a criminal, although the left will tell you, repeatedly at high volume, that Trump is the criminal, and Hillary is the reincarnation of the Virgin Mary, trust me there.

To understand the mindset, I actually need to go back over 20 years and show the earliest example of what I’m seeing now. I was in high school, and during my first month on campus, I had a bully lock in on me. As a sophomore (3 year High School,) I was 5 foot tall and a bit overweight. Before a month was out, as I was walking toward the door, this guy walks buy and punches me directly in the chest. He always had his gaggle of “friends” with him, so after a bit, I started to move around with my friends. He naturally didn’t like even odds, and called me out, and I got tired of it. In the cafeteria, I asked him how I was the coward when he only approached me when I was alone and he wasn’t, only when he could sucker punch me and walk away, and only when there wouldn’t be a staff witness. He tried to say it wasn’t true, so I simply said “If you’re not a coward, meet me, today, across the street, alone!” He never did, lied about it, and got madder and madder when no one believed him. A year after graduation (I’m now 6ft1 and 220+) he spotted me going to my car. I saw him coming up from behind me in the window reflection, so caught the punch, put him in a submission hold and called 911. He actually filed suit and complained the video of him trying to hit me from behind and my obvious defense was proof I attacked him.

This is the mindset today. Groups like “Moms Demand Action” tweet about how this group or that state are “making guns more accessible and putting women at risk” while ignoring the fact that domestic abusers, felons, etc., are barred from owning a firearm, period. When called out on this, they just block you, then tweet about you as if they’re the victim, and the media eats it up. Some of them, however, are powerful enough to do more than tweet. We’ve seen the multiple “mysterious” deaths of those investigating or otherwise in a position to oppose Hillary Clinton. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was in good health, not old, but still died “mysteriously,” and the Obama White House stepped in to ensure no autopsy. Seth Rich was shot in the back during a “robbery” where nothing was taken, survived and was in good condition at the hospital, according to doctors, until DCPD took custody of him.

Those who don’t have power just act as if they do. From blocking highways then suing anyone who actually manages to get past them, to swinging bike locks from behind a mask, the world is no longer a place where you can express your opinion without fear of someone being so “offended” they now feel they must attack you. When the uproar over Wonder Woman “fat shaming” women by being in great shape happened, I asked one person how else an Amazon Demi-Goddess should look, only to be told they were going to “find me and remove my ability to attack people.” I reported them to the social media site, and my local PD, and never heard more from them. But that’s the point, I presented a simple question, and rather than an answer, was told I should be killed! Another suggested that DC is racist because Wonder Woman looked too American. I pointed out that Gal Gadot is Israeli, Wonder Woman is from Themiscyra, which is normally in the Aegean Sea, meaning near Greece, so she’d be very tan and look pretty much like Gadot does all the time. The idiot told me I was just lying, so I sent him about 40 links to pictures from comic books and DC animated movies, after which I was blocked.

Finally, look at how they act when “offended,” it’s the simple bully mindset. If you look at any movie where a main character is in middle or high school, you’ll see it on screen. For this one, look at X-Men Apocalypse, where Cyclops is first feeling his powers come into being. He’s accused of winking at the bully’s girl, only for the bully to follow him to the bathroom, state he’s going to physically assault him, then beat on the door as if he has a right to go in and grab the other person. This is the same mindset of liberals today. They block or report anyone who disagrees with them, but if you tweet something they don’t like, they blow up the thread and then go nuclear when you don’t reply to every one of their comments, accuse you of “ignoring them to censor the issue,” and anything else they can use to make it look like you’re in the wrong and they’re in the right. Naturally, right now the Hillary issue or handgun questions are the hot button items. One tweeted a link out where they “make the case for Hillary to be President after Trump is removed, not Pence.” Many have commented about how every one of their 14 points are wrong, only to be told off, or ignored. Shannon Watts and Moms Demand will tweet out story after story showing how guns are the problem, not the criminals who already don’t follow laws, then either block or accuse those who point out the criminals don’t follow laws of sexism, racism, hating children, or some other BS, then block them.

The point here is a simple one, we’ve gone past the point of no return, but that’s not a hard point in space. The left is determined to no longer just make their point, but to silence by any means at their disposal, any who don’t follow them. I’m not saying we resort to their tactics, as I, unlike them, only use violence in self-defense or defense of others, but some of their rules need to be ours too. When they shout you down and won’t let you talk, hold up a sign “He/She is refusing to let me speak because he/she knows I have a point.” Make it clear you are being censored. When they make a grab for your sign, don’t let them have it, then when they try to grab you, defend yourself. As for the colleges and businesses who are trying to deny free speech to conservatives, don’t give them one red cent of your money. If you went to one of those schools, stop all donations, making it clear why you’re doing that. Boycott any business that panders to the left, and make it clear why you’re doing it. I told Denny’s over 3 years ago I was done when two on duty Police Officers were told to disarm or leave, I told Starbucks I was done when they came out in support of groups trying to end the nation of Israel, and I told Target I was done last year during the bathroom issue. I’ve stuck to these as well, and it’s not always easy, well in all but a single day, as I did buy my NES Classic at Target last year, but haven’t been back since, and won’t go back again. In the case of Denny’s, there are several items that are only available there that I love, Starbucks is great for studying, and Target has good quality items at good prices, but as long as they support groups adamantly against what I believe, I don’t spend a dime there. Until enough people do this (such as with Target and their needing to cancel expansion plans) it won’t be much good, but if enough people decide that disrespecting Police, or endangering children, or supporting terror, means a company doesn’t want our money, we will see change, either the company changes, or goes under, meaning that either they accept that customers are tired of being told we’re bigots while we spend our money there, or they’ll just be gone.

Along with this though, is the mental toughness to stick it out and stay standing for what you believe in. When you call out a bully, they will immediately start whining about you attacking them. Screenshot every tweet you use to call out bullies and throw their words back in their face. Senator Pelosi was recently on TV saying that everyone must read the GOP replacement for Obamacare, only for a lot of people to tweet or post on Facebook, with a link to her now famous “We have to pass it to find out what’s in it” line from years ago. When you make it known why you won’t patronize a business, people will call you bigoted for standing against their choice, so you make it clear you don’t deny them choice, but you can choose too. We must do both, stand against the tide of “do what I say, you’re still a bigot, but you must obey to survive” and make it clear why we’re not marching to our doom, lockstep with the safe space needing snowflakes. You will be attacked, you will be accused of everything under the sun, just keep standing. Don’t delete your posts and screenshot theirs, so you can show their words then ask them to do the same. Embrace the Covfefe line of thought, if you screw up a tweet, wear it like a crown to just cause them to wonder, if you are attacked, demand they explain themselves and cite sources. They’ll do the rest and prove themselves the bigots, meaning then you just need to wake up anyone around to the truth.

Only voting DNC shows you’re highly educated

I shouldn’t be surprised any more by how low the left will sink, just to further their cause of oppressing the people who earn the most money, to take that money and give it to those who do nothing at all, but they still manage to say things that just beg the question “were you actually thinking when you said that?” The most recent is a tweet showing the “best and worst educated states, and who they voted for.”

With just a glance at the states that went red (9 of the 10 “worst” educated states) they show states that are not centered on high tech jobs or the like. When you think of “the south” you should think of ranches, construction, and other trades as dominating the economy. It doesn’t take a college degree to work for someone who runs a cattle ranch, or work on an assembly line at Bell Hellicopter. Yes, it requires a great deal of knowledge, normally meaning a degree, to know all of the ins and outs of running a cattle ranch, or growing crops, or designing/building the V-22 or other aircraft, but those with said degree can supervise those without a degree, and do very well. Add to this, those without college who work to build aircraft, or work the ranch or harvest corn can earn GREAT salaries doing that. I know people who work in those industries, with no college at all, or a degree that is useless in that industry, who love their work and do well, but to the left, who you vote for is the only indicator of intelligence, and they have no problem telling you that you’re ignorant or stupid for not voting for who they want you to. This, sadly, isn’t new nor is it anything they’ll even consider arguments against. To give one argument for “intelligence vs education” I’ll tell my own story.

From Kindergarten on, all my parents said was they wanted me to try harder. My teachers would remark that I was a bright and engaging student, but rarely showed the motivation to truly apply myself. By fourth grade, I was diagnosed with ADD/ADHD, but the only thing given for that was Ritalin, which turned me into “a zombie” according to stories still told today. So, my parents asked my Doctor to pull me off of that, then my school put me into their Challenge class, where the teacher didn’t use traditional methods, and my grades improved for a time. By high school, I was a solid B student in all but a few classes, and for those I was a high C student, without much effort at all. Had I put in the effort asked of me, I’d likely have graduated in the top 10% or even top 5% of my class, but I was happy with my grades and not working at all.

My parents wanted me to go to college, as my sister had, so I registered for 12 hours at the local community college, bought the books, and only attended classes for the first few days, then quit going and just worked as many hours as I could, so I’d have more money. As I never dropped the classes, I ended with a true 0.0 GPA (zero grade points earned divided by 12 attempted credits) rather than the non-existent GPA all students start with. In 2001 I tried to go back, but my schedule didn’t work out, although I actually did drop the classes then. In 2004, I was in a good job with a local Retail Electric Provider, until early October, when I was laid off due to reduction in force. The stars aligned for me though, and after a weekend in Tyler walking and campaigning for Louie Gohmert, and helping him unseat a Democrat incumbent, I moved back in with my parents, and at their urging, re-enrolled at Community College in Spring ’05, driving pizza and mowing lawns.

Here’s the difference, I wanted to be there, I wanted to work and learn, and I did, earning mid to high A’s in virtually every class (math is still not a good subject for me.) Working almost full time meant I didn’t take heavy loads, so 5 semesters later, I transferred to a four year University, then later to a different one due to a move, and in December 2010, I graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in History and a certification to teach Secondary Social Studies. My GPA started in 2005 as a true 0.0, and in December 2010, was 3.7, a feat which my advisors all told me was very rare, especially as that 0.0 was from a 12 hour semester.

What does this say about my intelligence? Not much, I know many people who are very intelligent, and have only a High School degree, and many with degrees who are very unintelligent. What does it say otherwise? That I had a drive to learn, to grow, and to work for what I wanted. Yes, I am highly educated, and yes, I’m proud of that, but that has zero bearing on my politics, as I didn’t vote for Clinton or Obama. I knew the Constitution in 1995 when I graduated high school, and I listened to the candidates in 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012 and 2016, and what I heard from the DNC candidate was a desire to raise taxes, to tell people “you can’t say that, it hurts feelings,” or “you didn’t build that,” or more plainly, an arrogance that led me to not vote for them, that’s it.

My Parents are both highly educated, and aside from that they would have voted for JFK, had they not been 10 at the time, they voted for Republicans more than Democrats too, it’s not about Education, or Intelligence, it’s about listening to the candidate and deciding which one more aligns with your beliefs about how to run the country. But, that’s never been what the left wants, they want to order everyone around, take money from those who work so it can be “redistributed” as only they see fit, and to order the world to never criticize anyone but Christians who call for morals and values to be brought back into daily life.

So, where do you fall? Do you believe that voting DNC is any type of indication of intelligence, or do you believe that intelligence doesn’t require a degree, but a degree requires intelligence, and neither are any indicator of how a person will vote?

If you don’t like the evidence, ignore it and push forward

As many of us expected, Comey testified yesterday, confirming that not only did he tell President Trump he was not under investigation, that he was not ordered to drop the Flynn investigation, and that he leaked information to the press, he also confirmed that he purposely did not tell the public that the President was not under investigation. The media, of course, still has plenty of anonymously sourced information and will continue screaming about Russia, ignoring what they don’t like. Sadly, this is an extremely pervasive attitude and has been for a long time.

While Kathy Griffin screams and cries that she’s being bullied and it’s only because she’s a liberal, the media ignores that a man who wore an Obama mask at a state fair rodeo in Missouri in 2012 truly was bullied, as he lost his job, was banned for life from that state fair, and has been dragged in by the Secret Service for anything and everything, but that doesn’t fit the narrative that the GOP is the evil group, as it was a DNC President and far more innocent than Griffin’s “joke.” Before that, we had people screaming that vaccines cause autism, despite the only study that supports that being debunked and thousands of studies showing they don’t, and naturally, the screaming that the NRA wants to take us back to the wild west and the crocodile tears by paid shills at ever candlelight vigil after a shooting.

I’ve responded to several tweets lying about the NRA, as have many others, and the response is always the same. Accuse the person actually daring to defend the NRA of being a paid spokesperson, of lying, of being ignorant, lather, rinse, repeat. I got tired of that long ago, so I tried a new tactic, starting my replies to lies about the NRA, Trump, or anything really, with three simple words “CITE! YOUR! SOURCES!” – Naturally, none of the people lying about anything will, but it’s having an interesting effect. Several people have responded to me, asking if I can cite my sources, which I can. The NRA is not, for example, trying to remove all restrictions on firearm purchase, thus allowing felons and other violent offenders to once again legally purchase a weapon, in fact their stance against those who have proven to be the kind of person who would kill without hesitation is rather clear, they are a prohibited possessor. I have had someone ask, years ago, why the NRA says they want to enforce the Second Amendment, if they also support not allowing prohibited possessors to purchase weapons, and it’s pretty simple. The Second Amendment states “the right of The People,” notice the capitalization, meaning The People as in American Citizens, not an individual. Even before the Revolutionary War, there were criminals, and thus, people who had a right taken away as punishment. You steal, you lose your right to walk about freely for a time. You murder, you lose that right for a long time, along with others. That isn’t a violation of the Second Amendment, that is punishment for a crime, and not something the NRA wants. As with yesterday’s hearing, the facts of the case came out, and the media and the left went insane about everything. Comey admitted, under oath, that he was not investigating Trump, and told Trump that, but of course, that means he’s either lying, or lied to the President, or both. He said that the whole Russia situation was at least mostly false, but we still have the New York Times crying about it.

At this point, I doubt anything will convince anyone that Trump did not collude with Russia to win, that Hillary has committed many crimes, or even that Trump is actually human and just different from them. So, how do we proceed? It’s simple, don’t let up! Keep demanding proof, and picking anything provided apart, for all claims of racism, sexism, bigotry, crimes, and so on. If someone tweets about a racist incident where it seems fishy, pick the story apart! We’ve seen people forced to recant, and admit that no one so much as said boo to them, we’ve seen it proven that a black man painted a church with pro-Trump graffiti just to make the President look bad. This must continue! When you see a tweet about Russia, demand proof, and don’t accept any form of “It’s in the paper, just read it,” demand the actual source material, and ignore any “Sources Say” story. You’ll be attacked for “ignoring the evidence” and when you are, ask why they ignore that a massive number of hate crimes just after November were fake, why they ignore what Comey said, and watch their brain grind to a halt. We’ve had 8 years of “turn the other cheek” or “we need to be tolerant,” and it’s time to stop. Use their tactics against them, they scream that every form of proof that doesn’t vindicate them is a lie, do the same to these anonymous sources stories. When you get sent a source that is wrong, pick it apart and destroy it. When you get told to provide sources, provide only those that are true and honest, those are the only ones that count anyway, right?

Maybe, just maybe, four years of low taxes, low unemployment, increased security, and lies being shown in the light of day to be lies, well, I may be dreaming, but maybe all of those will help not only re-elect President Trump, but drive a nail into the heart of the “I’M SPECIAL, YOU HAVE TO LET ME HAVE MY WAY, GIVE ME FREE STUFF, GIVE ME MONEY, DON’T ARGUE OR YOU’RE RACIST” BS we’ve had crammed down our throats for too long.

An open letter to Kathy Griffin and Lisa Bloom

Ladies,

For a moment, think about the children in your lives, and how they would react to seeing a celebrity, staring into the camera with a serious expression, only to slowly raise, what appears to be, the severed head of their father, or mother, or aunt, or uncle. This, to the letter, is what Barron Trump saw when Ms. Griffin did exactly that earlier this week. Leaving aside that it’s a crime to threaten someone’s life, and in the case of a U.S. President, that crime is investigated by the Secret Service, you traumatized a child, and now you’re the victim? You didn’t mock or criticize the President, Kathy, you actively worked to depict a scene that no one should plan for anyone.

Five years ago, however, someone did poke a little fun at the President, and CNN was instrumental in not only that person losing his job, but far more. You see, the Missouri State Fair and Rodeo has a running gag they like to use, where one of their clowns wears a mask to look like a President, normally a former President, but the only mask they could find was an Obama mask. Naturally, someone was “sickened” by this, so they posted their outrage, and five years later, there is a man who McDonalds refused to hire because of the controversy. Ms. Bloom, will you be taking his case on? It would have to be Pro Bono of course, but he’s being bullied by an entire state, just for mocking the President. Will you demand CNN work to get him restored to his former life, and pay his salary until then? After all, he’s been bullied by one of the largest news organizations on the planet for mocking the President.

At this point, I’m sure there’s at least one person gearing up for a caps lock ridden tirade about how I just don’t understand comedy, and how the rodeo clown was so much worse than the mock beheading, well, educate me. Tell me how a rodeo clown wearing a mask and taunting a bull, and this is a highly skilled man at avoiding said animal, meaning all that happened was a man in an obvious mask running around for a while, is worse than someone staring coldly into a camera while slowing raising the apparent bloody and severed head of someone? I don’t remember anything about the Obama girls screaming when they saw the skit, although it’s doubtful two girls from Illinois, who live in DC at the time, would even know the MO state fair was happening, while Barrow Trump lives in either NY or DC, very news oriented towns, and this was on a major TV channel, viewed nationally!

Now, I will admit I hold little hope that a woman who feels mock decapitation is not only acceptable, but also a form of humor, or an attorney who takes that person as a client and then accuses the people who are having to comfort an eleven year old child who saw that of being bullies, but I can hope that at least some part of you will realize that you were completely in the wrong, Kathy, you need to apologize for real, not just to slow the Twitter storm aimed at you, and you Ms Bloom should be encouraging both of those actions. I guess time will tell as to how well the plan of defending someone who mocks the death of a parent, and that parent’s child sees it, and calling that family bullies goes, won’t we?

When 140 characters isn’t enough

So, I got into a twitter back and forth about the EPA earlier. To be clear, I am not supporting the destruction of the EPA, then doing nothing, rather, destroy what’s in place and build what we truly need. I cite one example, Alaska, for this premise. You see, it’s not just cold, but cold to the point of freezing to death in a matter of hours, in the winter there. What this means is that liquid or gas fuels freeze and become useless at those temperatures, leaving you with solid fuels. Coal is incredibly expensive for homes, as you’d use bags of the stuff in a night, so most people there burn wood, seeing as, you know, you just cut down trees, which Alaska has several of. Well, the EPA decided burning wood was ruining the air, and told Alaska residents to stop. Naturally, these folks chose staying alive over dying, and next the EPA fined them. Yes, the EPA fined Alaskan citizens for daring to choose to not die of hypothermia.

Well, this brings up the point of my conversation, the Paris Agreement and Kyoto Accords. Both of these target the US harshly, and in some cases, only. Tokyo and Bejing for example, have such bad air, that people have to wear a mask to go outside, but the U.S. was targeted with harsher restrictions. If you look at this list you’ll see another amazing thing, the U.S. isn’t on the list! When Macedonia makes the list but the U.S. doesn’t, that tells me we aren’t the horrible monster polluter the world is screaming that we are. Yes, pollution is bad, and yes, it should be addressed, but in a way that doesn’t look at a country’s GDP and target them over worse polluters, not in a way that tells people they fuel they have is bad and they’ll be fined, but ignores that fuel is the only option other than death.

We’ve been told for eight years that the U.S. is the most horrible country ever, that we’re racists for not blindly praising Obama, that we’re sexists for not praising the bitter diatribes of “feminists” calling for men to be killed, or we’re “homophobic” for suggesting that at a basic, biological level, homosexuality isn’t normal, simply because two men or two women cannot, on their own, create a child. I hold a degree in history, have heavily studied political science, and am certified to teach high school Social Studies (Government, Economics, History, Geography, etc) so I feel I know a thing or two about politics and such. In this instance, I argue that a government office, charged with protecting the environment, for the good of the people in the country that pays them, to tell citizens that they will be fined for using the only fuel that works, so they you know, don’t die over night, should be demolished and replaced. Much like the joke in Day After Tomorrow, when loading up books to burn to stay warm “Hey guys, there’s a whole section on tax law we can burn,” indicating a disdain for the IRS, any government agency that does not put the lives of U.S. citizens at the forefront of their thoughts when acting, should not be in place.

Yes, I want clean air and water, as I enjoy living and not having to stay inside, but I also want a government to be responsible and intelligent in how this is achieved. De Blasio saying that he’ll do all he can to ensure NYC stays compliant with the Paris Agreements is a political play, his way of saying “While Trump destroys the environment, I’m amazing and wonderful since I’m doing what he isn’t.” This is the crux of the matter, growing up and actually thinking, rather than just playing it up for the media. The Mayor of NYC should care more than my small town TX mayor about pollution, because it’s worse there, but if the Paris Agreement is the perfect fix, why is it that the list above isn’t the order in which countries are told to act? If the Kyoto Accords were so amazing, why did it focus so much on how much money the U.S. would end up paying out? It all comes back to attitudes and egos, no politician so far, who has presented any solution for air/water quality has done so for any reason other than to look good on the world stage. Now, with Trump in office, the world has decided his policy of America First is evil, because he’s actually putting America first, and not their countries. He’s calling on them to do the same thing though, to pay their NATO agreed amounts, which will help defend them, and to make their own countries better, he’s just not going to continue the policy of apologizing for America. His move on the EPA is the first step, but trust me, he’s not going to remove the EPA, then just say “Good luck staying alive now America,” there will be something that comes after, he’s just not saying what it will be, which is driving the media mad, because they can’t complain endlessly about his plans, but hey, lets keep focusing on non-existent collusion with Russia (there is absolutely no evidence of anything,) let’s ignore the DNC very likely having a man killed, and lets harp on minor things, rather than doing what Obama’s spokespeople said for 8 years “the election is over, it’s time we come together and work together for a better future.”

Shifting the blame

A running theme in movies for decades has been where the villain will tell the hero that all of the people who’ve died are because of the hero. Yes, they pull the trigger, throw them off a building, run over them, or otherwise commit the murder, but they almost always tell the hero that the death is actually the hero’s fault. Sadly, this plot line has moved into real life. We’ve seen thugs attack police, and after the police office defends their life, it’s the PD’s fault or the Jury’s fault that the town is destroyed by riots. Students at UC Berkeley have rioted more than once, over invitations to a speaker and when anyone asks them, we’re told that they are “just protesting hate speech.” At one point, someone was struck in the head with a bike lock, which could have killed that person, but these people maintain that it’s because a conservative group invited a speaker, so if that person had died, they’d lay all the blame on students who invited someone to campus, not the person who swung the lock, and this is what must change.

Sadly, with how pervasive the attitude of “it’s all your fault, I’m innocent in everything” is, this is a change that will take decades, but it is possible, if we’re willing to work for it, and can live with the whining. We start with the children, recently a group of middle school students refused to be in a photo with Paul Ryan. On the surface, this seems like nothing at all, as the photo was not required, but simply because Ryan doesn’t blindly support Obamacare and isn’t fighting to expand it, they call him evil, say they hate him, and worse. This leads to what we saw with VP Pence giving the commencement speech where a group of college students walked out of Commencement when he took the podium. While I wouldn’t advocate expulsion for the middle school students, I would hand out detentions or suspensions for anyone who did more than simply say “no thanks, no photo,” for the disrespect. For those who walked out on the sitting Vice President, no degree until you issue a public and sincere apology, meaning a video either tweeted, posted to Facebook or another public site. For eight years, conservatives were told “we won, get over it,” or from Valerie Jarret “it’s our turn now” and that Republicans had to go to “the back of the bus.” If anyone had even objected to Biden speaking at a college graduation (not walked out, just said they didn’t want to hear him,) or a DNC Senator came to a middle school and someone refused a photo, there would be screaming about “stop forcing your politics on others” but not now, and that’s what has to stop.

Parents will tell you it’s Ryan’s fault, the disrespectful students will say it’s Pence’s fault, and so on, just as the evil mastermind tells the hero that the deaths are on his hands because he didn’t give in, or wasn’t fast enough. Rather than just “not my fault” any more, the left actively blames the right for all of their actions. UCB students riot, it’s the conservative students’ fault for inviting such hateful people! People destroy a city rioting because a police officer wasn’t put in jail after defending his life? It’s because America is a horrible racist country! Only when we force responsible behavior from a young age, only when we hold people accountable for their own actions, and when we don’t give in when they cry about it not being fair that we expect them to be responsible for their actions, will we even stand a chance of turning this around. Yes, states like NY or CA will be last, and we’ll see them crying and hear the wailing about the “oppressive state of America,” where people who do bad things are punished for those bad things, but we’ll also have to listen to them crying about how their votes are suppressed by the rest of the country, because by that point, only NY and CA will likely be electing Democrats, which of course means that the GOP President is #nottheirpresident since the other 48 states “stole the election.” Although, we could also hope for a giant meteor to hit before then, and just make it so we don’t worry about anything any more, right?