A "Profile" in Courage

Guess that new Arizona illegal immigration law has caused quite a stir heh?  I think the best outcome from Arizona's courageous attempt to control the crisis is that it has re-ignited the debate.  I still don't get what part of "illegal" people don't get.  They are not simply undocumented immigrants, they have entered the US illegally!  We are a free nation but we are also a nation of laws.  To be a functioning society we need to obey the laws and punish those who don't.

I do not purport to have any answers here but I know that no politician wants to tackle this issue. The far left wants amnesty for all.  The far right says throw them all out.  I suspect the answer lies somewhere in the middle but none of our leaders have the courage to take a stand.  The key is to have open, honest debate (something seriously lacking in DC today).  For example:

• There are cries that the new law violates the illegal's rights.  How about this - not US citizens, then not entitled to US rights.
• It will lead to profiling.  We all profile everyday - get over it.  Advertisers target (aka profile) their audience all the time.  A father will profile his daughter's date choices (trust me on this one).  Maybe if the TSA was allowed to profile they'd leave the 80 yr old grandma alone and pay attention to the guy with a fuse sticking out of his pants.
• People shouldn't have to prove their citizenship.  I'm guessing the people saying this have never traveled to another country.  First rule - don't lose your passport.

I applaud Arizona's attempt to control their border.  And by the way, their law does not differ much from the federal law that is currently not being enforced.  That's why the state had to take matters into their on hands.  I'm sure a liberal judge or two out there will shoot this law down.

But hey, at least we're all talking about it.

College - at what cost?

My oldest daughter is a junior in high school so this was a good time to spend spring break looking at colleges. I had heard all of the horror stories about how tuition costs have increased much more than the inflation rate. I choose to ignore this fact until now when I can't anymore.

First up was the school that I went to. It's a private school so of course tuition is even higher. When I went there costs averaged about $9,000/yr. When I graduated I got a job paying $28,000. So my 4 year education cost was 130% of my first year salary. Today that education will cost $40,000/yr. My comparable starting salary would be $60,000. So that 4 year education will now cost 267% of that first year salary! And that's assuming you can get your kid in and out in 4 years. All of our tour guide students seemed to be on the 5 to 7 year plan. We also went to several state schools and I'm confident the numbers are similar.

So is today's education twice as good as the one I got? I didn't hear much from the schools on how they've improved the education. All I heard about was how all the dorms are are conditioned and have cable TV. And the highlight of each tour was the new recreation building with rock walls and lazy rivers.

Maybe we should shelve all the talk about healthcare, taxes and redistribution of wealth and address this education issue. It dwarfs all that other stuff.

We were smart (and lucky) enough to start saving for the kids education early on. It ain't gonna cover it all but at least we should be able to make it work. Of course, since we had the wherewithal to save we won't be eligible for any financial aid. Maybe we would have been better off taking better vacations all these years and buying a bigger house.

The progressives always talk about giving the poor a better chance at success. There's no better place to start than education. We all agree that college grads do better in the real world so shouldn't we work on keeping the cost of higher education down for everybody?

Now that’s change I could believe in.

Those who forget history. . .

. . . are bound to repeat it.  I borrowed this from Ann Coulter:

ARTICLE 42 OF THE SOVIET CONSTITUTION

Article 42. Citizens of the USSR have the right to health protection.

This right is ensured by free, qualified medical care provided by state health institutions; by extension of the network of therapeutic and health-building institutions; by the development and improvement of safety and hygiene in industry; by carrying out broad prophylactic measures; by measures to improve the environment; by special care for the health of the rising generation, including prohibition of child labour, excluding the work done by children as part of the school curriculum; and by developing research to prevent and reduce the incidence of disease and ensure citizens a long and active life.

Hey, does anyone know how that worked out?
 
I'm guessing if you actually read the current health care bill it'd sound a lot like this.

Only in Washington!!

Where else can you take a word like Reconciliation and make it divisive? It is simply ironic, oxy-moronish, and ludicrous. Webster's dictionary defines Reconciliation as:

a : restoring to friendship or harmony
b : settle, resolve

If the Democrats decide to push through an unpopular healthcare bill (that poll after poll shows the American people don't want) by using this arcane motion than they should call it irreconciliation. Congress will have failed us. Our country works best when we compromise.

But Obama has too much at stake. There are two reasons that he got himself into this situation. First is that he is an intellectual and, as such, he thinks he knows what’s best for all of us. Second, his only leadership experience before becoming president was being a community organizer. In a small community he could affect the majority of the people and ‘sway’ them to see his point of view. Our country is too vast and our people too varied (and smart) for this to work.

Since Obama is actually a president-in-training, and has surrounded himself with equally inexperienced people, he needs to start with smaller initiatives. Taking control of 1/6th of our economy is a daunting task for even the most experienced of leaders.

Now is the time to pay close attention to how our elected officials act. If they throw public opinion out the window and shove this catastrophic bill down our throats then we need to be committed to throwing the bums out in November. It will be the most important vote in your lifetime.

And it’s what I would call reconciliation!!

Choose your Heroes Carefully

I had promised myself I would not write anything about Tiger Woods and his troubles. I have continued to be amazed by the uproar and media blitz. But I have been more surprised by the reaction of so many of my friends and this post came out of that amazement. Why do we continue to attach our hopes, dreams, and morals to people we don’t even know? Just because a person can hit a ball, throw a ball, or shoot a ball we expect them to be as good or better than us?

So last week I get in this conversation with good friends of mine and one of them still can’t believe Tiger could be so stupid, wrong, immoral, or whatever. He’s never even met the guy. Plenty of our “heroes” have disappointed us over the years. Based on many of their transgressions, what Tiger did could be considered to be not so bad. Heck it appears plenty of people have forgiven/forgotten Bill Clinton’s transgressions. I’m just guessing but I bet he cheated more than Tiger!!

Anyway, this thought came to me during this conversation. I looked at the three guys I was sitting with at Nick’s Bar and I realized they are all bigger heroes to me than any celebrity. I know them and have for years. They are all good husbands and fathers. They try to make the world and people around them better and happy. Then I started thinking about all the other heroes in my life. My wife is incredible. My parents – incredible! My in-laws - raised six successful kids – incredible. Then I thought about all the people that came to our aid during my cardi-astrophe. The love and support they provided was absolutely heroic.

So just maybe we should stop attaching these mythical fantasy attributes to people we don’t even know. Look around your own life and I bet you’ll find plenty of heroes that deserve your respect and admiration.

I sure know I did.

It's already a victory

I wanted to be sure to write this before the election tomorrow in Massachusetts. Coakley vs Brown, a Democrat for the infamous Ted Kennedy seat against a Republican. This election should be a slam dunk for the Dems. But the latest polls all show Brown ahead. Now I won’t believe it ‘till it’s over but one can only hope.

If it really happens it is absolutely a referendum on this past year of congressional politics. Actually, the fact that the race is this close is already a referendum. But watch what happens if Brown actually wins. The democratic spin machine will be in full force. Since the oh so popular Obama couldn’t even help then whom? They may need to bring in the master himself, James Carville, to spin this one.

They’ll say Martha Coakley was a weak candidate.
They’ll say the third party candidate pulled votes away from her.
They’ll say Brown was more likable.

Hell they’ll say whatever they have to shift the talk away from healthcare reform and the rest of this administration’s unpopular agenda.

But it won’t work. Don’t let it work. Every incumbent Congressman/woman should already be shaking in their boots, from both parties. But the Democrats should be more worried. The largest expansion of government and the excessive spending is all on them. The back room deals and late night votes are all on them too.

So yes, tomorrow’s election is a referendum. Just maybe come November there will be a changing of the guard in Congress. Maybe we can get back to enough gridlock so we can have thoughtful, open, and bipartisan decisions.

Hey one can only hope.

Twas the Day Before Christmas

Twas the Day Before Christmas

Twas the day before Christmas, and all through the Senate
The Dems said they would pass health care and by God they meant it
The votes were bought one by one
If you don’t believe me just ask Senator Ben Nelson

Just days earlier they had a vote in the night
It wasn’t transparent, just doesn’t seem right
The vote was cast straight down party lines
We’re headed for trouble, there are all sorts of signs

The people had spoken, they raised quite a clatter
The senate vote shows that public opinion doesn’t matter
They think they’ll make history and have statues erected
But they forgot why they’re there, why they were elected

President Obama wants this done and he wants it done quick
Thinks he can give people something for nothing, must think he’s St. Nick
But unlike St. Nick he comes in my house uninvited
So don’t tell me I get too excited.

This legislation makes promises that it just can’t keep
As history has shown us, the cost will be steep
And so as he pressured them, one by one they came
It’s important that we call them each by name

Now Boxer! Now Durbin! Now Reid and Lieberman
On Baucus! On Dodd! On Feinstein and Franken
Get this bill done so I can sign it at last.
Hurry now! Hurry now! My popularity won’t last!

He will add more bureaucracy claiming he’ll lower the cost
Showing once again that common sense is lost
Government agencies are full of corruption and waste
So I ask you again sir, what is the haste?

Obama is not Santa, he is more like Robin Hood
But redistributing wealth will do more harm than good
Innovation and competition is what makes this country strong
Take away those incentives and we won’t last long

Let insurance companies compete, that will lower the cost
And that you should do so soon, before all is lost
Add tort reform too, that’s what we all need
Doctors should heal not have to worry how they’ll plead

You will tell us it’s a good bill, but you can’t make your case
No one likes this bill, not even your base
We can’t afford Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid
It is always the tax payers that you want to raid

If Obama was truly St Nick, he would look at my list
And then maybe, this opportunity wouldn’t be missed
There’s no doubt healthcare costs are out of control
But getting them down is not the government’s role

But still he insists, I will sign this bill though I didn’t read it
I can do whatever I want ‘cause I am that conceited
Let’s get this thing done, then we’ll have it made
Then we can move on and pass cap and trade

So as he jumped in his limo he shouted to Pelosi and Reid
Reconcile these bills and do it with speed
Obama waved goodbye although there weren’t many cheers
Because I heard him exclaim ‘I’ve still got three more years!’