Beck’s believes, and I agree, that the Republicans under Bush spent money as fast as the Democrats did in the past.  Now, under Obama, the liberals are setting new records with deficit spending.  I will not vote for the lesser of two evils or, in the case of spending, for the politician that bankrupts the country at a slower pace.  The party the gets my support will need to balance the budget.

          There are two ways to balance the budget, raise taxes or lower spending.  Both Republicans and Democrats have a habit of trying to solve all the ills in the world with my money.  The proper role of government is to provide the services and functions that cannot be performed by private individuals or business.  These functions are mainly, national defense, police and courts.  Imagine for a moment the taxes that would not be needed if government returned to something even close to its original functions.  Here the Republicans have a better record than the Democrats, who love to raise taxes, but the party that gets my support must also stop, and reverse, the growth of government. 

          The Hollywood and Northeastern liberals who now control the Democrat party have been pushing social reforms for several generations.  Urban African-Americans have grown up dependent upon government handouts and these programs have destroyed what once were strong family-orientated communities.  Now the same liberals that gave us abortion on demand and no-fault divorce want to redefine marriage and allow gays in the military.  The party that I join must support traditional American values.

          Ronald Reagan once said, “"I didn't leave the Democratic Party. The party left me."  That is how I feel about the Republican Party.  Today I consider myself a member of the Constitution Party, not because I want to be a member of a minor party, but because I am been deserted by the party I long supported.  Grand Old Party, come back home.   



          Even though I had heard of Tim Tebow I’m not much of a football fan.  I knew he was a Christian and an outstanding player, but not much more.  A quick Internet search revealed that about 23 years ago Tim’s mother, Pam, was pregnant with her fifth child when she went on a mission trip to the Philippines.  While there, she contracted amoebic dysentery.  The doctors were afraid that the medicines used to treat her might have harmed the unborn child and advised that she have an abortion.  She refused.

            The child Pam Tebow declined to destroy has grown into the young man we know as Tim, the first sophomore in history to win a Heisman trophy and the first college quarterback to both rush and pass for 20 touchdowns in a season.

Tim Tebow’s story is a powerful pro-life message.  Focus on the Family is right to proclaim his story to all, but, in my humble opinion, the commercial did not work.  I’ve talked with perhaps a dozen people who watched the ad that day and the response is the same.  If they knew the story of Tim Tebow and his birth before they viewed the commercial they liked the positive message.  If they were unfamiliar with his background, they found it confusing.

            Day after day, Focus on the Family does their work efficiently and effectively with little outside notice.  This commercial did get the ministry noticed, but it cost over two million dollars to air. If the average person watching the commercial doesn’t know the back-story the impact of the message is lost.  Tim Tebow is living proof of both the humanity of the unborn child and the potential cost of abortion to humanity.  We should proclaim that message clearly and from the mountaintops.

          Sprinkled into the drama are comments from experts.  As the family makes decisions, some right and others very wrong, these authorities provide context and background.

Included among them are Kathy Harrison, a blogger and author of Just in Case,  Kevin Reeve from onPoint Tactical, Michael Bane of DownRange TV, and Dr. Joseph Tainter author of  The Collapse of Complex Societies.  I have not read Dr. Tainter’s book, but the others were familiar resources to me.

          Years ago, I lived in Los Angles and I wondered, as the program unfolded, would I have made better decisions back then?  Fortunately, even as a young man I realized that the veneer of civilization was very thin.  I got out of the city and this program made me glad, once again, that I did.  The family in the program waited too long to leave.  When they finally did flee, they were ill prepared to travel across a looted and gang infested land. 

            One thing I did not like about the program is that Christian faith during the emergency is depicted as fanatical and racist. 

            If you have contemplated TEOTWAWKI you probably have already begun making preparations and are certainly prepared than the family described in the program.  However, if you wondering what all of this is about I strongly recommend you go to the History Channel, find out when the program will be aired next or buy the DVD. 

            Apparently abortion supporters, such as NARAL and Planned Parenthood, have schemed with liberal legislators to limit or prohibit much of the information provided by Pro-Life pregnancy centers while at the same time specifically exempting abortion providers, or as the bill euphemistically calls them, “Comprehensive Birth Control Services” providers.  According to LifeNews.com, State Senator Joe Zarelli, a Republican, opposes the legislation saying that it goes against the free speech rights of pregnancy resource centers.  I agree. 

            Despite this legislation, I am encouraged.  If we were not winning the debate, the abortion supports would ignore us.  Still this inane legislation has a fairly long list of sponsors in both the House and Senate, which shows that only goes to show that we do not need a full-time legislature and, if fact, our representatives spend too much time in session.  I urge you to contact your elected officials and persuade them to solve the real problems of the state.

Scott Brown

           That was the first observation I made as I mulled the victory of Republican Scott Brown in the bluest of blue states.  While the Democrats are still gnashing their teeth and the Republicans still patting themselves on the back, what other things could we learn from this clearly momentous election?   

           Clearly, Martha Coakley felt entitled to the “Kennedy seat.”  After winning the Democratic primary, she apparently believed the race was over and went on vacation—for weeks.  Brown started off behind, but never went on vacation and like the tortoise and the hare, he kept moving forward and won the race. 

           Twice in the last six years, the Democrats of Massachusetts changed the rules of Senate succession to forestall the possibility that a Republican might capture the “Kennedy seat.”  In 2004, believing that John Kerry might be elected President (silly Democrats); they changed the state constitution to prevent then-governor Mitt Romney from appointing a replacement.  Just last year they changed the rule back to allow Governor Deval Patrick to appoint an interim appointee. The irony is, if the Democrats had left things alone they might have held the seat.

           The Republicans damaged their brand when, during much of the Bush Administration, they grew government to monstrous proportions and spent money like Democrats.  Can the GOP reclaim their limited government heritage? That remains to be seen.   

           Meehan served as Senator Maria Cantwell’s aide in 2006.  He is now a senior vice president at Virilion, a Washington D.C. consulting firm.  According to the Virilion website, Meehan managed Cantwell’s Senate office and served as the chief strategist of her 2006 landslide re-election campaign. 

           In a statement to Fox News Meehan stated that a number of reporters were chasing Martha Coakley and that “in the confusion the reporter fell over the fence.”  When told that the incident had been caught on video he said, “It wasn't my intention to knock him on the ground.”

           According to Fox News, Coakley blamed GOP “stalkers” for the incident outside the fundraiser and told the Boston Herald she was not “privy” to what happened despite the fact that photos shown on FoxNews.com and the WeeklyStandard.com clearly show her watching the events.  Apparently, Michael Meehan believes in bare-knuckle politics.     

Rush Limbaugh at CPAC in 2009

          Like Rush Limbaugh, I’m a conservative.  That is our bias and we're up front about it.  The AP pretends to be an unbiased recorder of events.  They are not. 

          On that day as I stared down at the somewhat crumbed article I could not help but think that while it may be a new year, some things, like the AP, never change.   

          Digging into the box of stuff where I file interesting newspaper articles, magazines and letters, I came across this quote from Dr. William Gray, a well-known hurricane forecaster and Emeritus Professor of Atmospheric Science at Colorado State University (CSU). 

          I unfolded the paper and continued to read the December 2009 statement. “These warming scenarios have been orchestrated by a combination of environmentalists, vested interest scientists wanting larger federal grants and publicity, the media which profits from doomsday scenario reporting, governmental bureaucrats who want more power over our lives, and socialists who want to level-out global living standards.”

          In an earlier statement Dr. Gray did not totally discount manmade warming but stated, “…humans might have caused a very slight amount of this warming. Very slight. But this warming trend is not going to keep on going. My belief is that three, four years from now, the globe will start to cool again, as it did from the middle '40s to the middle '70s.”

          Consequently I have made two resolutions; first to be even more skeptical of global warming claims and secondly to dig into my box of stuff more often.

            Even though this is a New York City program, not the Seattle nonsense I usually deal with, the principle remains the same.  It does not matter whether it is a needle exchange program or this Heroin for Dummies guide, all such efforts are a misuse of taxpayer funds.  It takes money from those who earned it and gives it to those who did not so they may continue an illegal and destructive lifestyle.  If the liberals really want to do these things, let them use their own money.

          Immediately after filing that silly bill, they filed SJR 8219, an proposed amendment to the state constitution that would allow an income tax and Senate Bill 6250 that would institute the tax.  

          So, what do Senators Franklin and McDermott want for Washington State?  Apparently feel good, but meaningless edicts such as the “Kids at-Hope” bill and higher taxes to fund those meaningless laws.  That may be what they want, but I want a legislature that enacts real budget cuts and passes only meaningful legislation.