Ahhhhhhh... so nice to know that I don't have to worry about voting third-party in the fall.
As long as McCain slips a bit back into his "Maverick" ways and Obama sticks to his "New Washington" ideology, I'm content with either. So, a third-party vote won't be "wasted."
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Posted in the section Government on Sun, Jun 08, 2008 at
1:58 PM
So - did you get your "Stimulus" Check yet?
What are you gonna do with it?
We're getting $1800.
We still owe $1750 for the 2006 tax error (I failed to pay the "other" tax we owed). The $1750 is sitting on a credit card with 0% interest until June. As of June 1st, the interest rate will likely shoot up to about 36%.
So...
We might go out to eat with the remaining $50.
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Posted in the section Government on Fri, May 23, 2008 at
4:49 PM
Download, save, burn, and share
this radio broadcast before it's removed as being "Un-American" and "subversive."
You have a week to snag it for free.
P.S. - Brad; intended or not, the "spell check" suggestion for "Un-American" in Tangelo amused me.
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Posted in the section Government on Sun, Mar 30, 2008 at
5:03 PM
OK, all of you Ron Paul supporters...
Here's the new plan.
Get everyone you can ot vote for Ron in all of the remaining states. We need to win
all of them.
I know that he can't "clinch" it anymore, but there's a REALLY good chance that McCain will keel over. Heck. The guy
IS 72 years old.
So - Ron just needs more votes than the last guy who already dropped out; or at least a plurality.
Wait.
Come back.
Stop laughing.
I'm not kidding guys!
No, really. Look at the numbers. If McCain dies, a plurality is still possible for Ron Paul. Heck. At this point, if McCain dies without "giving" his delegates away, Paul could snatch more than the other guys combined.
Guys...?...
C'mon. Give it a try. What's the worst that could happen? You could "waste your vote" and vote for the current leader or you could prepare our Country for REAL change.
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Posted in the section Government on Mon, Mar 10, 2008 at
6:29 PM
The U.S. Government needs your help. No; they don't need you to enlist. They just need an opinion.
It turns out that the insurgency in Iraq isn't blowing us up because they "hate freedom." No. They hate Hummers.
They hate Hummers just as much as most Americans do. Just like any average American, they want to pull the driver out and beat him with a gas can, if only for the irony.
So, the U.S. military would like to know what vehicles we should use in Iraq. What is the LEAST despised; if not most loved automobile in the world today?
We need you help to save the troops. We can't bring them home, but we can put them in friendlier
death-traps vehicles.
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Posted in the section Government on Tue, Feb 26, 2008 at
5:53 PM
So, I hear that Hillary Clinton wants an "Uniquely American" solution to nationalized/public health-care.
"Uniquely American"
Would that be a solution in which:
Those who have none will finally get some.
Those who have some will get a little less.
and
Those who have much will get a little more?
That sounds pretty much "Uniquely American" to me.
Am I wrong?
Wait, no. That does sound like another country I once read about.
So, she must think that she means something better than that.
Problem is that ALL of the candidates think they mean something better than what they will be able to do.
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Posted in the section Government on Mon, Feb 18, 2008 at
6:13 PM
Did you know that when a county reassess your home at a higher value, it would seem it is your responsibility to ask around to find out how much more the county, city, and school wants from you in real estate taxes?
No?
Neither did we.
"There is no law that says the county, school, or city needs to send out a new tax bill."
Oh. And what happens next?
After a full year of nothing, you'll get a bill for the "past due" taxes, with a threat of county sale (if not paid in a year). The bill will include about $55 in "fees."
To summarize: we need to pay Lebanon City, County, and Schools $155 total for not paying (now overdue) taxes for which we were never billed.
Neat.
I need to get a government job so I can charge people $155 for a year of doing nothing.
Wait - how much does the President make, again?
I'm tossing my hat in for 2012 (again)...
UPDATE:
Maybe I'll start smaller than President.
State Legislators do well with
Real Estate taxes...I think Fumo might be paying less than me...
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Posted in the section Government on Mon, Feb 04, 2008 at
6:29 PM
I've heard you're hoping to "stimulate the economy" by giving us all some money.
That's nice and all, but I have a better suggestion.
Please, declare the year 2007 to be a "Year of Jubilee."
This would mean the following:
All debts accrued in 2007, outside of car loans and home mortgages, would be completely forgiven by all creditors.
The Federal Government would not directly pay off the debts, but would include legislation that would allow the creditors to deduct the missed payments from their 2008 taxes.
If this won't "fly," try suggestion that creditors send us all a statement of how much interest we paid on any debt in 2007 and let us, in the least, deduct that from our 2007 tax returns.
Either way, this would allow for we Americans to do our duty and get busy racking up more debt in the 2008 year.
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Posted in the section Government on Sun, Jan 20, 2008 at
2:11 PM
Next time you hear about who "won" in a certain state, keep in mind the following:
Few to no media outlets mentioned Wyoming's Caucus results (the Saturday after Iowa's).
Most states allow nominating delegates to the respective conventions based on specific numerical formulas. So "winners" don't always get ALL of the delegates from that state.
Delegates finalize the nominations at the conventions.
I point this all out because even NPR has glossed over these important facts. Telling us "who won" a certain state only creates the myth that that candidate is doing well (and maybe has "momentum").
Do some searching and you'll likely discover that the current leaders are:
Democrats: Obama
Republicans: Romney
In truth, in New Hampshire, Clinton and Obama earned EQUAL reps!
Shut up, media, and let us vote.
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Posted in the section Government on Sat, Jan 12, 2008 at
3:10 PM
Candidate Huckabee has been expressing his frustrations with so much media attention on his faith and not the amount of experience he has as a Governor.
Sorry, Huck. Bush ruined this for every Republican candidate for the next 3 - 4 upcoming elections. To win the nomination, you (supposedly) must appeal to the "Religious Right." Regrettably, Bush managed to do this. Now anyone who has any sort of support from the Christian community is viewed as potentially as overly idyllic as Mr. Bush...
Idealism becomes fanaticism too quickly.
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Posted in the section Government on Fri, Dec 14, 2007 at
8:35 PM
So - the IRS just sent us some paperwork saying that we owe a bit more for 2006; in fact we owe just about what we had received as a refund.
So - I'll be spending the remainder of my Thanksgiving break trying to figure out if I missed an item in my 2006 tax return of if we do, in fact, owe $2350.
If we do owe that amount... hmmm, I think I can scrape together ummmm... let's see... does the Federal Government take some other sort of compensation? Perhaps they'll just let me not use some government service, like Social Security. Could they simply take out all of my Social Security contributions and apply it to my owed tax?
I hear that's really the best way to balance a budget.
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Posted in the section Government on Sun, Nov 25, 2007 at
12:34 AM
President Bush announced his next step, today, in combating Global Warming and overall Climate Change.
From the Rose Garden, he quipped,
Quote:
It struck me, just yesterday, that I have way too many calendars. Then I realized I also had WAY more note-pads than I would ever use. Heck, I've been using note-pads just to make extra party hats for when world leaders come a-callin'. Now, here's the thing. I was informed that didn't buy ANY of these calendars or pads. They were all 'free gifts' from places where we order office supplies.
My proposal is simple. I'm calling on Congress to legislate some laws that ban giving this crap away. I've got to imagine that just not having twelve calendars and eighteen notepads sitting on each Americans' desk has got to save at least a forest somewhere.
Immediately, protests were flying in to news sources from grocery stores, banks, and chiropractors. All raised the same concern, asking how they were to get rid of the pallets of such free items already in their stock-rooms.
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Posted in the section Government on Sat, Nov 24, 2007 at
2:53 PM
Democrat leaders in Congress announced today that all of President Bush's recent "veto" signatures will be easily overturned, but not by a Congressional vote. It turns out that President Bush's penchant for mispronunciations and incorrect grammar have spilled over to his writing.
To properly "veto" a proposed bill:
http://www.answers.com/presidential+veto?cat=biz-fin&gwp=13
The President formally vetoes a bill by writing ‘veto’ across it and returning it to Congress with a statement outlining his objections.
Mr. Bush, with his command of the Spanish Language, assumed that the correct spelling of "veto" would be "VITO." The original "veto" is a Latin word meaning "I forbid." "VITO" is a Latin root suffix and/or affix for "LIFE." The "VITO" that Bush has been scrawling across the proposed bills have resulted in Bush, in essence, screaming: "I give this bill LIFE... LIVE!" Had he not also added his signature to each bill, with the statement: "I give this bill all of my VETO power," there might have been less confusion.
The most controversial "VITO" Bush issued regards stem cell research. The Supreme court is expected to take up the debate as to whether Bush intended to give life to the bill or to the stem cells. This series of events also promises to give Dan Quayle yet another 15 minutes in the sun.
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Posted in the section Government on Sat, Nov 24, 2007 at
2:48 PM
Republicans are at a loss for how to choose the next presidential candidate.
I present, now, my solutions.
Option 1:
Realizing that (according to most polls) even their best political candidate can not beat either Obama or Clinton, decide it is time to draft America's favorite TV or Movie President. The Republican party will put all of their money behind the Character, as portrayed by the appropriate actor. The actor will be given scripts, once elected, to be written by Party Officials, in conjunction/collaboration with the Script writers from the appropriate show/movie. The GOP will select the candidate based on responses from an internet andtext-message poll.
Make sure to include Michael Douglas, Alan Alda, and Martin Sheen.
Granted, this only works when/if the writers' strike ends.
Option 2:
Some UPN TV show writes a role for Ron Paul, hoping to get him "electable," like that "Law and Order guy..."
Again, end the strike first.
Option 3:
Survivor-styled show to determine final candidates.
AHHHhhh - now everyone wins.
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Posted in the section Government on Sat, Nov 24, 2007 at
2:34 PM
Susan (my wife) may have just figured out the "why" in "Why is Congress NOW considering a 'resolution' against Turkey's past crimes?"
The NOW is important.
Ask yourself this:
Q: "How do you stop a President from waging war without getting his permission?"
A: "Ruin the U.S. reputation with Nations providing the most strategic staging points and airspace."
If Congress can't stop the war, perhaps they can get another Nation to stop us.
So - Democrats, I say WOW.... NICE strategic/diplomatic maneuvering. Better yet if you can keep AM Radio nutcases more focused on lapel pins and poor on-air banter.
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Posted in the section Government on Mon, Oct 15, 2007 at
7:18 PM
I had a thought and was wondering if y'all could clarify it for me.
"Democracy's best results can only be mediocrity."
That was the thought.
The reasoning:
Democracy relies on the idealism of the majority. The majority of people do not strive for extreme ideals. Therefore, the Democratic majority strive to bring about mediocrity.
Am I wrong?
If I'm right, where have you seen this to be most true?
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Posted in the section Government on Sun, Sep 02, 2007 at
2:20 PM
Yes, I will plan to vote for Paul come the PA Republican Primary...
If he's still in.
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Posted in the section Government on Mon, Aug 20, 2007 at
4:05 PM
The Internet community nearly wet its pants waiting and dreaming that
this was the moment a perfect presidential candidacy pairing would be announced...
...it needed more cowbell....
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Posted in the section Government on Wed, Jul 18, 2007 at
8:08 AM
Lisa Simpson for President.
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Posted in the section Government on Tue, Jul 10, 2007 at
7:50 PM
Could
this work for getting money out of campaigns?
Full idea here.
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Posted in the section Government on Sat, Jun 30, 2007 at
11:11 AM
Should I be
proud, or scared I may have hit to close to the mark?
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Posted in the section Government on Mon, Jun 11, 2007 at
8:02 AM
Remember Rick Santorum?
What's he doing these days?
I'm betting he's lying in wait for a future presidential bid. He's waiting for future historians to prove that G W Bush was, in fact, a
fantastic president and actually right about
everything.
Then he can claim to have been the ONLY Senator who backed Bush every step of the way. He'll win in a landslide.
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Posted in the section Government on Thu, May 24, 2007 at
9:57 PM
I'd love to hear a news story about the folks in charge of PHYSICALLY paying our U.S. government's bills.
Who "balances the checkbook?"
Who signs the checks of the president, congresspersons, and senators?
Who keeps loaning us the money to pay the bills?
To whom are all of the receipts sent? Where are they kept? How far back to does the government need to keep its financial records?
Is anyone else wondering this?
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Posted in the section Government on Sat, May 19, 2007 at
4:51 PM
Homeland See-Screwity has done a helluva job catching all of
America's "Dumberest Tearists."
I'm sure there's some much craftier terrorists actually plotting something quite awful.
Until then, I'll expect that Homeland See-Screwity will be putting notice to all government installations that no more pizza shall be delivered to any government facility, 'cause (of course) that's how ALL of the "tearists" figure out their game-plans. They become pizza delivery bombers.
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Posted in the section Government on Tue, May 08, 2007 at
7:05 PM
FEMA will not be able to win the war against tornadoes.
More specifically, FEMA will not win in the upcoming media shout-out.
My bet:
If FEMA provides substantial and effective aid in Kansas, they'll be accused of only helping "whites" and ignoring the plight of the African Americans in New Orleans.
If FEMA is "too slow" in Kansas, well then they're still "ineffective."
Poor governmental assistance program. There's no hope for a good showing.
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Posted in the section Government on Mon, May 07, 2007 at
4:32 PM
A compromise was reached between Democrats and Bush regarding the "troop funding;"
Speaker Pelosi said:
It was really quite simple. We switched the goals and expectations of the P.A.T.R.I.O.T. Act and the War of Terror with the goals and expectations for 'No Child Left Behind.'
We explained to Mr. Bush that whatever was good for the kids would be good for the troops.
Consequentially, children will go to school indefinitely and the troops will lose their funding and be out of Iraq by January 2008.
The troops, of course, will have many oportunities to use "vouchers" to start wars with alternative nations.
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Posted in the section Government on Thu, May 03, 2007 at
6:10 PM
You can't have my birthday, Mr. President.
"Loyalty Day," my butt.
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Posted in the section Government on Tue, May 01, 2007 at
2:03 PM
I'm thinking that parents would do a better job, than the government, of keeping schools up to par. So - perhaps going back to all schools being private institutions is the way to go.
Or...
Perhaps, we could get parents to be more involved and demand more from their kids and the schools. Offer tax breaks for better grades and tax penalties for lower scores.
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Posted in the section Government on Sun, Feb 25, 2007 at
6:57 AM
I feel this artist's pain...No one "wins" in war.
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Posted in the section Government on Tue, Dec 05, 2006 at
6:23 PM
I had mentioned to Susan, about 4 years ago, that if I was a terrorist I would not be planning to use a plane or commit any other sort of large-scale destruction plan in the near future.
I has said that it would be wiser to do some really nasty hacking and ruin the U.S. economy (perhaps by wiping out all computer records of debt); a sort of terrorist-initiated "year of Jubilee."
Well...
Lookee what's been said now...
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Posted in the section Government on Thu, Nov 30, 2006 at
8:19 PM
I have not yet turned on a radio or checked any news sites.
But, after my voting experience yesterday, I can predict a few things...
1 - Democrats did well, in most of the country.
2 - Republicans will be dragging many elections through the courts.
3 - Many races still can't be decided by this hour this morning, as they'll still have a pile of paper ballots to count.
Now to check the news, etc. How'd I do?
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Posted in the section Government on Wed, Nov 08, 2006 at
6:02 AM
Not happy with your choices for the next election?
Try a write in of "None of the Above."
I'd love to see "
NOTA" win in our PA gubernatorial election.
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Posted in the section Government on Sun, Oct 15, 2006 at
11:49 AM
I heard
this commentary on my way to work this morning and was a bit unsure as to my final opinion on the matter.
Why don't y'all help clarify me.
I've always preferred the government taking less of our money and simply doing less. In the end, most Governments tend to create so much "red tape" and regulations that they seem to accomplish less than private entities might when it comes to helping society.
I also feel that the more "charity" work the government does, the less the body of Christ's church (or anyone else) feels they need to do to help those around them.
The excuse being "I pay my taxes..." Thank you Mr. Scrooge.
I'm also not fond of the folks in Washington DC attempting to figure out what would be best for the general public. So few of them are a part of the
general public and a great majority of them are more focused on doing what it takes to get reelected than what it takes to build a great and Loving society.
I also tend to feel that a tax system that generates a huge pot of money could lead to a more Communistic society. I'm all for Pure Communism, with everyone putting all of their wealth/assets into one basket and then everyone taking only what they need. But, I'm not all for a bunch of Rich Men in Washington DC determining what each one of us needs.
I realize that Pure Communism can't work unless all people act selflessly, and therefore Pure Communism could only work in a society with a Strict (even Religious) ethics code.
So, I suppose, I'd rather have the rich folks who made the money spend it to help those in need than to have the rich folks in Washington DC attempt to determine how to best meet the needs of their constituents.
I realize this means that the people with the money might not spend it on causes that I think are all that great, but I'd expect more would get done.
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Posted in the section Government on Wed, Sep 27, 2006 at
6:41 PM
The U.S. Government is not entirely evil. It is not the worst Government on the planet. There are many Governments which are obviously cruel and inhumane.
The U.S. Government, simply, is not perfect.
It is assumed to be the most powerful government in the world.
This power is what concerns me.
When you're the biggest, who's going to stop you from
becoming evil?
Our Founding Fathers did their best to put into place a great many "checks and balances" to avoid screwing ourselves up.
I'm concerned that Bush wants to circumnavigate a few of them, in the name of justice.
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Posted in the section Government on Mon, Sep 25, 2006 at
9:12 PM
Written after President Bush's initial declaration of "War on Terror."To Mr. George W. Bush
I write to warn you of a prophetic bit of wisdom found in scripture. Proverbs 16:18 & 19 states “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. Better to be lowly in spirit and among the oppressed than to share plunder with the proud.”
Before you continue to seek the counsel of men and before you continue to encourage our nation to be proud; please seek God’s wisdom. Before you make political decisions; please seek to be a Godly leader.
A Godly leader seeks God first. A Godly leader seeks God’s perspective. On our current path, our nation is not “under God,” but is “under pride.” Our responses and future plans are built on the same pride that initially encourage terrorist attacks. In our own wisdom, we automatically assume that retaliation is best, for it shows strength. Retaliation shows more than strength. Retaliation shows that we our proud of our values. Retaliation proclaims that these values are worth the price of killing others.
For what values are we willing to kill? Our nation is expressing pride in money. Our nation is expressing pride in military strength. Our nation is expressing pride in “human perseverance.” Our nation is expressing pride in “freedom.”
“Freedom” and “human perseverance” sound like worthwhile ideals of which to be proud. Are they real, though?
Human perseverance exists anywhere in the world. We did nothing, as a nation, to create or develop it. Human perseverance is the closest humans get to being animals. Granted, we have higher-order thinking skills, which allow us to see more than immediate danger. Granted, we will strive to not only help ourselves, but help others. Why, though, do we help others? We are too often seeking to preserve “pride in American ideals.” We are too often seeking to quickly re-build what we had so that we can disregard any lesson that might have been learned.
Our freedom has enslaved us to money. We are so greatly enslaved to money that one of our first concerns has been “when will the markets re-open?” Our freedom has enslaved us to secular humanism and our own wisdom, ignoring the wisdom of God. Our freedom has enslaved us to power, so much that we feel weak if we do not display any. Our freedom has enslaved us to opinion and emotion, so that we want to act in a way that will seem appropriate, swift, and just to the entire world. Our freedom has enslaved us to our pride.
Our pride has brought us, now, to a point when we must either act in pride or return to God. I can not say what God would have us do, but I know we have not sought Him yet. We have appealed to Him to build us back up. Why would God seek to rebuild that which has sought to tear Him down?
I do not wish to seem unempathetic. There are many dead who ought not to be. There are many grieving who need comfort. We can not bring back the dead. God can comfort and console. We must, though, not allow these deaths to take us further from God. We must not allow ourselves to turn “American Pride” into our God.
Our “American Pride” tells us to lash out at the evildoers. I have heard my President claim that we will wipe out terrorism. That seems like a wonderful goal, but do we truly mean that? Do we truly want to wipe out all of the terrorism in Ireland, Africa, China, and Japan as well as the Middle East? Or do we only want to wipe out terrorism that destroys our pride? Once we’ve finished killing, will the world view the U.S.A. as a wise nation, or a prideful bully?
I beg you, pray for God’s guidance and intervention. Pray, also, that God will guide your prayers. Pray before we leap. Pray before we have fully turned from God.
Thank you for your time in reading this. I do not consider myself to be a prophet, but I do believe God grants me wisdom, from His perspective, from time to time.
William C. Fenstermaker, Jr.
William C. Fenstermaker, Jr.
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Posted in the section Government on Sun, Sep 24, 2006 at
9:12 PM
Mr. Bush and pundits who like him (like Bill O'Reilly) have insisted that the U.S. needs to be able to torture terrorists in order to gain information that could save the lives of millions.
Mr. O'Reilly keeps asking anyone who debates this point, "You wouldn't torture one terrorist to save the lives of millions of Americans?"
The problem with the question stems from an assumption. The assumption is that the folks we're detaining are actually terrorists.
Mr. O'Reilly; "How would you feel if you discovered that the guy you've been torturing for 3 months isn't a terrorist, but just some dentist who happens to look a lot like (or have the same name as) a known terrorist?"
Mr. O'Reilly's question also makes a second assumption. He assumes that bad people should be allowed to be treated inhumanely.
The problem with this logic is that it goes against one of the basic principles we learned in Kindergarten;
"he started it" is never a good excuse.This logic also only goes to fuel further hatred for the U.S., as we travel further down the road of pretentious righteousness
"It's not bad when we do it."
Of course, this is the same reason why I don't care who has "WMD's" or Nuke-E-Lar weapons.
Somebody needs to keep the U.S. in check, 'cause we stopped about 40 years ago.
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Posted in the section Government on Fri, Sep 22, 2006 at
1:26 PM
Everyone seems to have come up with a reason for why folks like Osama bin Laden and Al-Keida (however it's spelled) hate the U.S.A. Lots of folks are fairly certain they know exactly why we were attacked on September 11th.
Can someone point me to why, in Osama's own words, they did?
I've always assumed it was because the U.S. (Government and many citizens) is arrogant, puffed-up, and feels its need to bully the rest of the world into being Democratic. Maybe I'm wrong though. Maybe I only thought I read that somewhere. Maybe Osama really does "hate Freedom and Liberty," like Bush keeps saying.
If that's the case though, why didn't he crash planes into those High Schools in Bethlehem, PA...?
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Posted in the section Government on Tue, Sep 12, 2006 at
8:18 PM
The U.S can't win a war on terrorism.
You can't wipe out pride.
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Posted in the section Government on Sun, Sep 10, 2006 at
9:30 AM
I think so.
They've provoked our government to become less democratic. Is this the government you voted for?
They made our leaders look foolish. Or did our leaders do that?
Your turn.
How else have the Terrorists won?
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Posted in the section Government on Sun, Sep 10, 2006 at
9:24 AM
I am growing concerned about Bush's vow to wipe out "tear-ists."
What does he have against those sweet religious folk who seek enlightenment and peace via ripping up pieces of paper.
Some "tear-ist" philosophy has been regularly used in therapy sessions to calm violent criminals.
Write to Mr. Bush and ask him to leave the "tear-ists" alone.
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Posted in the section Government on Sun, Sep 10, 2006 at
9:21 AM