My idea of a stimulus package

Give every legal American citizen 1 million dollars.  That includes children.  I would exclude anyone making 1 million dollars or more.

What does this accomplish?  Redistribution of wealth?  In a way, yes.  We have paid taxes for years and our parents have paid taxes for years and look at how it has been spent.  In my opinion it would be more like a refund than redistributing wealth.

The benefits.  We would be able to pay off bills, homes, cars, etc., or invest.  That would help the banks with a flood of money. Banks improved.

 Mortgages would be either paid off or reduced drastically.  People who have lost their homes would be able to buy a new home.  Housing market improved.

With the influx of money, more people would be spending and jobs would need to be filled in order to fill the products and needs of those who received the money,  Job problem solved.

People may even want to start their own business.  Capitalism restored.

Why children?  Money could be put up for their college or whatever they need when they reach the age of adulthood.  College tuition paid.

Now with all this, there would be no need for food stamps and welfare.  This would cause these programs to either be eliminated or "tweaked" for those who really need it.  This would also allow Social Security to be fixed.  No one who received this payout would be eligible for any government help for a minimum of 10 years.

Now this would be a one time deal.  All welfare, food stamps, and yes even Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid would stop for a period of at least 10 years.  Why would you need any of these programs if you had 1 million dollars in your hands?  So, you would have to be responsible or deal with the consequences of no government help.

This would be tax free.  How do we pay for it?  All the politicians would contribute.

Did you know?

Which is better, big government or smaller government?  That is a question many have asked.  I have stated before that the bigger the government is, the harder it is for us to know what is going on with our government and our money.  As citizens, the bigger the government is, the more they can pass through with new laws or spending projects. I admit that I am a small government person.  Here is why.  Did you know:

HUD has given $730,000 to ACORN

President Obama has given ACORN $729,849 so far this year and billions more in federal cash may be in the pipeline.
The president’s new economic stimulus package, the so-called “jobs bill,” contains as much as $15 billion for radical left-wing groups such as ACORN (his former employer). Obama has been using his presidential bully pulpit to demand that Republicans in Congress “pass this bill,” even though there is no bill yet. Despite all the rhetoric, the proposed “American Jobs Act of 2011” apparently hasn’t even been introduced in Congress.

$443 Million for a smallpox drug

Over the last year, the Obama administration has aggressively pushed a $433-million plan to buy an experimental smallpox drug, despite uncertainty over whether it is needed or will work.

$750,000 to virtually deserted airport

The St. Cloud Regional Airport is banking on a recently announced $750,000 federal grant to land an airline at the airport that’s been virtually deserted since Delta terminated service in and out of St. Cloud in late 2009. Despite a $5 million makeover of the terminal two years ago, St. Cloud’s airport has mostly sat idle as the city desperately seeks new commercial airline partners. St. Cloud received $750,000 in federal stimulus funding to assist with a portion of the renovation, but the project has thus far amounted to a passenger boarding bridge to nowhere.

$7 Million paid to foreign workers

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - A federal investigation found that at least $7 million in federal stimulus money intended to provide jobs for unemployed Oregonians instead paid wages to 254 foreign workers.

These are just a few.  I know what I would do if that money was in my pocket.  Talk about stimulating the economy.

Political Corruption

Usually I don't watch 60 Minutes, but, last night I did.  It was no real surprise to me that it showed how corrupt many of our politicians are.  I don't even find it shocking that our politicians don't have to play by the same rules as everyone else.  It's no wonder people want to be a politician.  Talk about Greedy.  This is a prime reason why we need to be more aware and active in the political process.  I get tired of hearing the argument that "we can't do anything about it."  That just is not true.

According to this article, based on the show last night:

Washington, D.C. is a town that runs on inside information - but should our elected officials be able to use that information to pad their own pockets? As Steve Kroft reports, members of Congress and their aides have regular access to powerful political intelligence, and many have made well-timed stock market trades in the very industries they regulate. For now, the practice is perfectly legal, but some say it's time for the law to change.

According to this article, it list the 50 richest members of Congress.  I have to wonder about the Senators as well.

Now what can be done about this?  Some Lawmakers are really trying to stop this from happening and have been since 2006.  According to this article:

Two House Democrats are pushing legislation that would prohibit lawmakers and federal employees from profiting from non-public information they obtain in their jobs official positions while requiring greater oversight. 

You can read the entire bill here.

Now for the question, What can I do?  It is real simple.  Contact you members of Congress here, and your Senators here.  Let them know how you feel about passing this bill and let them know that you will be watching.  Let your voice be heard by informing your Politician that you are watching and you will vote them out and get someone who will listen to the people.  We still have a voice in this country and we should be heard.  If we want our country back we must be heard and do not give up or give in.

Unions right or wrong for the U.S.

I have written about the unions before.  I will say once again, that I am sure there are some things good about belonging to a union.  I have also stated that I believe the union leaders are out to put more money in their pockets than in the pockets of the union members.

Here, I will put some articles to understand better who the unions really look out for.  In this article:

All it took to give nearly two dozen labor leaders from Chicago a windfall worth millions was a few tweaks to a handful of sentences in the state's lengthy pension code.

Twenty years later, 23 retired union officials from Chicago stand to collect about $56 million from two ailing city pension funds thanks to the changes, a Tribune/WGN-TV investigation found.

Because the law bases the city pensions on the labor leaders' union salaries, they are reaping retirement benefits that far outstrip the modest salaries they made as city employees. On average, their pensions are nearly three times higher than what the typical retired city worker receives.

Remember the Boeing Plant being attacked by the National Labor Relations Board?  According to Wikipedia:

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is an independent agency of the United States government charged with conducting elections for labor union representation and with investigating and remedying unfair labor practices. Unfair labor practices may involve union-related situations or instances of protected concerted activity. The NLRB is governed by a five-person board and a General Counsel, all of whom are appointed by the President with the consent of the Senate.

Now reports have come out about the NLRB and their decision to fight the Boeing plant. According to this article,  on April 22, 2011:

Acting NLRB General Counsel Lafe Solomon sent an email to Wilma Liebman, outgoing Chairwoman of the NLRB, “The article gave me a new idea. You go to geneva [Switzerland] and I get a job with airbus [French company]. We screwed up the us economy and now we can tackle europe.”

Last year, President Obama bypassed the U.S. Senate and recess-appointed Craig Becker to head the NLRB’s five-member board. The Becker appointment was made after the Democratic-controlled U.S. Senate refused to move forward on his confirmation. An ally of ACORN, Becker had previously worked for the SEIU and the AFL-CIO, major financial backers of Obama and the Democratic Party. Controversially, Becker has refused to recuse himself from certain NLRB decisions affecting his former union clients.

According to this article:

The new Obama DOL Union Officer and Employee Conflicts-of-Interest Disclosure Reports will no longer require disclosure of:

• Salary payments by employers to union officials who do absolutely no work for the employer except grease the skids in “grievance adjustments”;
• Bonuses and raises paid by employers to union officials who do absolutely no work for the employer;
• Promotions by employers to union officials who do absolutely no work for the employer;
• Director stipends of $20,000 or more to union officials for attending annual or quarterly labor-management conferences often held at a lush resorts;
• Labor union presidents’ spouses who receive payments of $250,000 a year from a HERE union pension trust will no longer be required to disclose it because Obama’s DOL believes that congress was uninterested in these types of conflicts.

Have you ever heard of the National Mediation Board?  Well, according to this article:

This board is specifically focused on labor relations between the railroad and airline industries. And just like the NLRB, the NMB is aggressively pushing Big Labor’s agenda. Last July, the NMB overturned nearly a century of precedent and issued a new pro-union rule regarding union elections. Instead of requiring the traditional democratic practice of a simple majority of members to unionize, now the rules only require a majority of votes cast for unionization.

So, what is next?  Do we want the Unions taking control of all the jobs in this country?  Do we want to be forced into joining a union in order to get a job?  Do we want to be like this family who is forced to pay Union Dues to take care of their disabled children?  Here is the story.

Al Gore's wish comes true with protesters

Not long ago, I wrote about Al Gore calling for an American Spring,  Well, it appears that Al Gore's request is coming true. Of course, it should be no surprise that this would happen in California.  As some articles I have read call the protesters "useful idiots", I have to agree.  Apparently they do not understand that their actions costs all of us, including them.  We all have to pay for the damages they cause, as well as the shut down of business and transportation.

According to this article,

The confrontation began after protesters started a large bonfire in the middle of a downtown street. Dozens of police in riot gear moved in on hundreds of protesters as the flames leapt more than 15 feet in the air from several large metal and plastic trash bins that had been pushed together.

According to this article,

Before the rioting on Wednesday Occupy Oakland goons were handing out this flier to fellow protesters calling for violence.
“Are you a pacifist?”

It is just my opinion, but, I think these protesters should be protesting things like:
Over $760,000 Stimulus Funds Go To Interactive Visual Dance
$1.5 Mil To Promote Collective Bargaining In Vietnam
or this .... just to name a few,
Stimulus Funds paid foreign workers in Oregon

Problems with Social Secuirty

"Man living as an ‘adult baby’ is cleared of Social Security fraud"  Read the story here.  This story is just an example of why I have posted many times about us taking responsibility for ourselves.  This is why we should not rely on the government for anything.  I cannot understand how or why this man deserves SSI.  It is just beyond comprehension.

According to the article:

John Hart, a spokesman for Mr. Coburn, said Tuesday that the senator, who is also a medical doctor, is still puzzled by how “a grown man who is able to design and build adult-sized baby furniture is eligible for disability benefits.”

And, according to this article:

Of the approximately 2.8 million death reports the Social Security Administration receives per year, about 14,000 -- or one in every 200 deaths -- are incorrectly entered into its Death Master File, which contains the Social Security numbers, names, birth dates, death dates, zip codes and last-known residences of more than 87 million deceased Americans. That averages out to 38 life-altering mistakes a day.

This is what happens when the government gets involved and we allow the government to "take care of us".  This is why we have a crisis with Social Security.  This is why we need to be involved in what our government is doing.  This is the reason we need smaller government.  With smaller government WE can control what is happening with OUR tax dollars.  And this is the reason we must take responsibility for ourselves and our families.

Politicians love of Solar Power

After reading and hearing about Solyndra's going bankrupt after receiving a government loan, it got me to thinking.  Are there others, and if so how many?  Is Solar power as good as they say?

Let's take a look.  According to this article, "Republican lawmakers on two House committees are seeking details about the loans given to First Solar, SunPower Corp. and ProLogis. Of those three companies, troubling financial revelations have emerged about SunPower, which sponsored a solar project that received a $1.2 billion loan, more than twice the money approved for Solyndra, which filed for bankruptcy last month after receiving a $528 million loan."

"The company is also politically connected. Rep. George Miller's son is SunPower's top lobbyist. The elder Miller, a powerful California Democrat, toured the plant last October with Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, and reportedly said, "We've worked hard to make renewable energy a priority because it represents America's future economic growth."

 

According to this article, "The deals announced Friday include a $1.5 billion loan guarantee to Florida-based NextEra Energy and other investors that bought a planned 550-megawatt solar farm on federal land in Southern California from First Solar, as well as $646 million to Illinois-based Exelon Corp. for a 230-megawatt solar plant near Los Angeles. Next Era Energy Resources and GE Energy Financial Services bought the Desert Sunlight project from First Solar, while Exelon bought the Antelope Valley project. First Solar will continue to build and operate both projects.

A third project, worth $1.2 billion, will help San Jose-based SunPower Corp. build a 250-megawatt solar plant in California, while $1.4 billion will go San Francisco-based Prologis Inc. to support installation of about 750 solar rooftop panels in 28 states."

According to this article, "President Obama's nominee for Commerce secretary served as chairman of the board of a solar energy company that recently received a $1.37 billion federal loan guarantee – the largest the Department of Energy has ever given for a solar power project."

"Now that company, BrightSource Energy, is attempting to build the world's largest solar power plant amid concerns such ventures may be too risky an investment for the federal government."

In this article, "The Obama Administration is giving $737 million to a Tonopah Solar, a subsidiary of California-based SolarReserve. PCG is an investment partner with SolarReserve. Nancy Pelosi’s brother-in-law happens to be the number two man at PCG."

For as long as I can remember, Solar Power was suppose to be the best thing since sliced bread. How good is it?  Is putting solar panels on your house all there is to it?  Could it be that easy?  Well, if you look into it the answer is no.  There are many things like special batteries, an inverter, and a place to store those batteries, among other things.  This is not cheap.

I ran across this article, "In Italy last year, "they discovered that after one year in the field, over 90% of the (solar panels) from a one megawatt project began to delaminate and ended up on the ground."

That pretty much answered my question.  After all the years of trying to get us to purchase Solar Power, I can't help but think that if it were such a great thing for us, why isn't it more popular?  Well, I have my answer now.  It's no wonder the politicians like Solar Power.  Pay back to family and friends.

What if they won?

Today, I was thinking of the protestors that are now spreading across the country.  I couldn't help but think about what they are standing for and against.  They are against Capitalism.  They are for taxing the rich.  They are for redistrubuting the wealth.  This is what I think.  Let me give you an example.

There are homeless people in this country that would consider everyone who was not homeless, rich.  So.. the government would tax you more than the homeless.  Since you are now considered rich, you have to pay more taxes to the government.  So... that would mean that you can't have as much stuff as you do because it will cost you more in taxes to have those things.  So.... why not give all your belongings to those that are homeless?  Now you wouldn't be taxed so much.  Since you are against Capitalism, why not get rid of everything you own, even the clothes on your back.   Capitalism provided you with the opportunity to have everything you own.  Even the clothes on your back are available to you due to Capitalism.  Now you would be a true anti-capitalist.  You would now know what it is like to be rich.  And, you have redistributed the wealth.

If the protesters accomplish what they seek, this is what things may end up looking like.  Maybe not to the extreme of having no clothes to wear, but, the rest is conceivable.  This is not what I want the rest of my life to look like.  This is not what I want the family I will one day leave behind to face.  I want us all to have the same chances in life and in business to accomplish what we can accomplish.  I would like to go back to the times where we had less government.  Where we had more opportunities to improve our lives and the lives of our children.  Is it possible?  I think so.  I think if we had the right government, we could have a country, where people from other countries could come here legally and contribute to make our country better.  I want a country where we are envied by all the other countries to the point they would learn from us and strive to improve their own country because of the greatness of this country.

Occupy Wall Street and lessons of the past

As I  read over the proposed list of demands, that the Occupy Wall Street protesters want, it makes me giggle.  Some of their demands are absurd. 

I couldn't help but reminisce about when I bought my first car in the 1970's.  I remember that before all these laws, rules, and regulations were put in play, we the people had control over so many different things.  I remember "gas wars".  If we didn't like the price at one gas station, we went to a gas station that had cheaper prices, thus, begin the price wars.  Boycotting businesses worked.  Companies wanted our business.  We had the power to keep the "big businesses" and our government in check.

As our government has grown, prices have risen dramatically.  For example, in 1970 the price of gas on average was 37 cents a gallon, where today it is over $3.00 a gallon.  I remember paying $3,000 for my first brand new sports car.  All before "NAFTA", and before the liberals began infiltrating our government.  Unemployment was at 3.6% in 1970, where if the actual figures were released today the unemployment would be close to 30%

What I am getting at is when government was smaller, it was much easier for us to control our government, not our government controlling us.   We yelled for the government to step in and make things better with our banks.  The government did, and now we are hearing reports of Bank of America charging $5 per month for the use of debit cards.  Read the story here.  Now Citibank has jumped in with it's fees, "If you're a Citibank customer who has one of the bank's two smaller checking account plans—the ones where the monthly fee is waived as long as you use direct deposit or their online bill payment—then maybe it's time to consider taking your business elsewhere. Starting in February, anyone with an average balance of less than $1500 will be assessed a monthly $7.50 service fee".  Read more here.

My question to you is, do you want more government involvement, or less.  I prefer less.  I don't like the government creeping more and more into my life.  Our government is not helping me or my family.  Our government is doing us more harm than good.  This is exactly what our founding fathers fought to prevent.  Our constitution was designed to keep government out of our lives, not to intrude on our lives.  Our government is now so large that it takes an army of people to keep up with what our government is doing.

Obama's love for the Unions

I have written before about the connection between Obama and the Unions.  I am sure there are some good things that come out of being a member of the Union, and I am sure that some Union members are decent people.  I want to take a closer look at the Unions.  Let's take a look at how Obama is putting the Unions ahead of the non-union workers.

According to this article, "I’m sure there are sophisticated arguments for why the UAW members shouldn’t pay back the taxpayers who bailed their employer out of bankruptcy before they negotiate a deal that gives them each a $5,000 bonus. I just can’t think of them right now."
 
According to this article, "Most city workers spend decades in public service to build up modest pensions. But for former labor leader Dennis Gannon, the keys to securing a public pension were one day on the city payroll and some help from the Daley administration.

And his city pension is more than modest. It's the highest of any retired union leader: $158,000. That's roughly five times greater than what the typical retired city worker receives.

In fact, his pension is so high that it exceeds federal limits and required the city pension fund to file special paperwork with the Internal Revenue Service to give it to him."

According to this article, "Collective bargaining agreements with seven labor organizations require the city to pay union officers and provide members with thousands of additional hours to conduct union business instead of doing their government jobs.

The total cost to Phoenix taxpayers is about $3.7 million per year, based on payroll records supplied by the city. In all, more than 73,000 hours of annual release time for city workers to conduct union business at taxpayers’ expense are permitted in the agreements."

Lastly, according to this article, "Taxpayers across the nation are spending millions of dollars to pay the salaries and benefits of government employees to work exclusively for labor unions, an investigation by the Arizona-based Goldwater Institute has found.

The practice is called “official time” in federal law, or “release” time in local labor agreements reviewed by the Institute. At the federal level, it cost taxpayers more than $129 million in 2009, the last year for which figures are available, according to a report from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management."

Now personally, if I were a Union member, I would not like my money going into the Union Bosses pockets.  The Unions are suppose to help workers, not to fatten their wallets.  I have to wonder if the Union members realize that every time they get a better "contract" for their work that not only do the non - union member have to pay for it, but, so do they.  Every time the Unions negotiate a contract, the new benefits they receive, they are paying for it as well as everyone else.  It just doesn't make sense to me, that union members have to pay more out in taxes or whatever the government wants to call it, in order for them to have better pay or benefits.  Is it really worth it, when you see the bosses of the Unions making as much money as they are and everyone is paying their salaries?

Obamagate

More and more stories are coming out, almost daily, about "investments" that Obama made on behalf of the American people.  As more and more comes to light, it shows that Obama has not left the Chicago style politics behind.

Solyndra, a solar panel company has many ties with Obama.  According to this article, posted by the Daily Caller back in September 2011,  "Tulsa billionaire George Kaiser, a key Obama backer who raised between $50,000 and $100,000 for the president’s election campaign, is one of Solyndra’s primary investors. Kaiser himself donated $53,500 to Obama’s 2008 election campaign, split between the DSCC and Obama For America. Kaiser also made several visits to the White House and appeared at some White House events next to Obama officials.

Campaign finance records show Kaiser and Solyndra executives and board members donated $87,050 total to Obama’s election campaign."

According to this article,  Solyndra received more tax dollars than 35 states for "shovel ready" jobs.

According to this article, "The Obama administration restructured a half-billion dollar federal loan to a troubled solar energy company in such a way that private investors — including a fundraiser for President Barack Obama — moved ahead of taxpayers for repayment in case of a default, government records show."  What a way to thank the taxpayers.

Now that Solyndra is under investigation not only by the FBI, but also a Congressional Committee, Solyndra, after promising to testify at the hearing has now invoked their Fifth Amendment right.  Which they have a right to do.  Question is, what are they hiding?  Who will be implicated?  Does the corruption go all the way to the top?

Now we have Lightsquared.  Remember Obama wanted to bring Broadband to everyone.  Well folks, looks like he had Lightsquared in mind for this project.  According to this article, "LightSquared is owned by the Harbinger Capital hedge fund, headed by billionaire investor Phil Falcone. He visited the White House and made large donations to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. Soon after, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) granted LightSquared a highly unusual waiver that allows the company to build out a national 4G wireless network on the cheap."

There are reports of pressure being applied to top officials to testify in a good light for Lightsquared.  According to this article,  "Gen. William Shelton, head of the Air Force Space Command, told House members in a classified briefing earlier this month that he was pressured to change prepared congressional testimony in a way that would favor a large company funded by Philip Falcone, a major Democratic donor, congressional sources told Fox News"

According to this article,  "Anthony Russo, director of the National Coordination Office for Space-Based Positioning, Navigation, and Timing, told The Daily Beast he rejected “guidance” from the White House’s Office of Budget and Management suggesting he tell Congress that the government’s concerns about the project by the firm LightSquared could be resolved in 90 days, a timetable favorable to the company’s plans."

To make matters worse, according to this article, "As Republican lawmakers begin to dig into the White House's cozy relationship with a startup wireless company and the wealthy Democratic donor who owns it, a new character has appeared on the story's edges: liberal superdonor, conservative bete noire and controversial investor George Soros.
Soros reportedly invested in the telecom company LightSquared through a hedge fund, and many of the nonprofits he finances have backed LightSquared in regulatory and policy disputes."

Keep in mind that George Soros wants a "New World Order".