Michelle Bachmann on Barney Frank's New Bill

There is so much information in this video about what's going on in Washington right now that I can't do it justice by trying to describe it. Please watch the whole thing (it's about a half hour, but worth it) and take action against the trend that is being established by the Obama administration. We are losing freedoms right and left and aren't even being told the half of it by the supposed watchdogs of government, the mainstream media.

One more of those Global Warming "heretics" weighs in...

Richard S. Lindzen, a professor of meteorology at that backwater of science, MIT, weighs in and exposes himself to ridicule with common-sense analysis of the evidence concerning anthropogenic global warming in this article in that supermarket tabloid known as the Wall Street Journal. I know, it's a bit long for a mainstream media headline, but if they were allowed that much space, I can see it...

Dramatic Portrayal of Unemployment Trend

A friend of mine on Facebook linked to this multimedia portrayal of the unemployment statistics for the US since January of 2007. Notice how it gets much more "interesting" in the last few months, starting in about November of last year...Hmmm, wonder what happened then to make things pick up like that? Oh, wait, I know...

Thank you

To all those who are serving, have served in the past, and especially to those who gave their lives in the line of duty, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. You have made it possible to be free--possible to be... Especially on my heart this day are the families of those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for freedom, in particular those who died last week in Fort Hood, Texas. No matter how it may look from media coverages, etc., the true freedom-loving people of America are heartbroken on your behalf. Peace be with you, and the blessings of Almighty God surround you.

"Global Warming" will be our downfall--just not in the way they think...

Lord Christopher Monckton, a noted skeptic of global warming, or climate change, or whatever they are calling it these days, issued a dire warning to the US a couple of days ago in St. Paul, MN. Please watch this video and know that this WILL come if we don't do something to stop it.

He May Not Have The WHOLE World In His Hands...

Regardless of his recent Nobel Prize win, Obama is not the darling of the entire world--some people actually want to see results. This article from the UK Telegraph outlines what they see as the top ten unfulfilled pledges of the Obama administration. Granted, there are a couple of these pledges that I am glad that Obama has not brought to fruition, namely numbers 5 and 9, but on the whole, one would think that Obama is becoming quite the disappointment to the left. Seemingly, this is not the case. It would seem that, as long as the left is happy to settle for style over substance, they will be willing to overlook a multitude of sins of omission.

Very funny, but true nonetheless...

This is apparently a response to an internet ad that Will Ferrell and some other so-called "celebrities" made to promote Obama's health care bill. Ferrell and friends promoted the bill in the same way that liberals these days promote everything they want, by engendering "class envy". I think it's very interesting that these actors, who are not required to have any actual educational credentials in order to make millions of dollars a year for what they do, feel they have the right to take other people to task for making money.

One More Liberal Starts to Wake Up...A Little...

Apparently, President Obama has finally gone one step too far even for Rachel Maddow...

Interesting trivia (well, to me anyway...)

I like to check my counter stats every now and then, just to see who's been sneaking by. :) A random check today shows that someone in Hawaii found me by Googling the phrase "patchouli beliefs". Well, that's just too interesting to pass up, so I took a look at some of the other results for that search. One site, called Heathenry Wiki, shows the following bit of trivia under "Patchouli":

Patchouli is strongly useful for warding off beings (either human or spirit) which are more evil in nature, as good-natured beings are attracted to the scent, while bad-natured beings loathe it.

Now, I know my friend Leland doesn't like patchouli, and he thinks it's solely the domain of unwashed, doped-up hippie types. I posit to you, Leland, that if the above is true, then we conservatives would do well to re-examine the benefits of the maligned patchouli oil, as it could help us in our quest to stamp out evil in government. I'm just sayin'... :D

For Once, He's Not Lying...

Those of you out there who know me know that there is very little on which I agree with President Obama. Mark the date, I found an area of commonality. President Obama, in off-the-record comments yesterday, called Kanye West a jackass. I wonder if Kanye now thinks that Obama hates black people?

Now See, THIS Is a Class Act...

Some People Just Don't Learn...

'Tis better to be silent and be thought a fool, than to speak and remove all doubt. ~Abraham Lincoln

UPDATE: Apparently, the original video I linked to was removed from YouTube by the user. Let's see if this one stays up...

In Memoriam

It seems unreal that it's been eight years already. The pain and tears for those who died and those left behind seem nearly as fresh as that day, although I know that it has faded to some degree. My prayers will be with those who lost loved ones on this day, and with those who fight to keep this from happening again. In Your Mercy...

The Meaning of Fascism

I Googled the word "fascism" this morning, in an effort to educate myself on its true meaning (in order to properly educate others, of course...). In the course of my web browsing, I came across this most excellent article from the Library of Economics and Liberty's Concise Encyclopedia of Economics. The article traces the history and development of fascism as an economic system, and is balanced and merely factual in its presentation. My eyes perked up (is that possible?) when I came across the following passage:

Under fascism, the state, through official cartels, controlled all aspects of manufacturing, commerce, finance, and agriculture. Planning boards set product lines, production levels, prices, wages, working conditions, and the size of firms. Licensing was ubiquitous; no economic activity could be undertaken without government permission. Levels of consumption were dictated by the state, and “excess” incomes had to be surrendered as taxes or “loans.” The consequent burdening of manufacturers gave advantages to foreign firms wishing to export.

Does any of this sound familiar? Cross-reference this article with current events (cap-and-trade, corporate bailouts with their subsequent levels of control by the federal government, nationalized health care, etc.) and you will see clearly that the "progressives" in this country are deluded when they call Conservatives fascists. At best, they are victims of that psychological disorder known as "transference", or as PeeWee Herman called it, "I know you are, but what am I?"

If it weren't so true, it would really be funny...

click image to embiggen

Oh, Snap!

Van Jones Resigns "Amid Controversy". Controversy. No kidding?! Amazing that it took something like putting his name on a petition without "carefully review[ing] the language in the petition". And he says that other accusations against him are a "smear campaign". There's a phrase called "hoist by one's own petard" that might apply here. Pesky technology, that records things one says and does, and then allows it to be played back for others to see and hear. To say things like, "I was a rowdy nationalist on April 28th [1992], and then the verdicts came down. By August, I was a communist" in 2005, and then have them played back as evidence of one's mindset and beliefs in 2009, is so unfair. I have to say, though, that I doubt this is the last we will hear of Mr. Jones. Just because he is no longer employed by the White House does not mean that he will no longer "work" for the President. I fully expect Mr. Jones' opinions and mindset will still inform Pres. Obama's decision-making. It will just be a bit more circumspect, is all. One lesson that the Obama Administration is learning from WWII is this: loose lips sink ships.

Beating the censors...

I was surfing YouTube the other night, and clicked on the video above. I'm a big fan of Craig Ferguson; in fact I think he's the best of the late-night hosts out there. Maybe it's the accent (probably), maybe it's that he's the least liberal and most aware of his status as entertainer. Anyway, I was watching this, and about 2 minutes in, they started talking about dealing with the censors in the days of the Smothers Brothers TV show, and how they got around them. Watch this, and listen very carefully, starting at about 4:50 and especially at 5:20. Tommy talks about negotiating with the censors, and how they might have to cut something bigger, but in return some smaller stuff would be allowed in. This reminds me of the way the current administration is working, especially this thing with the address to the children and the health care reform bill. I personally think that a lot of this controversy is about the principle of "shoot for the stars, but hit the moon". It's a time-honored principle wherein a politician puts forth some ideas that he knows in advance will never get past the voters, but in rejecting those larger ideas, some smaller ones slip by. And in the process, the politician's agenda is still furthered, just in more incremental ways than he might have liked. It's the old frog-boiling scheme all over again, only this time the frog appears to be fighting back. Keep kicking, frogs--maybe the water we splash can douse the flame of socialism and we can get about the business of life, liberty, and the pusuit of happiness.

Calm down, people...

So, I'm distressed by the way the current political climate has turned people on both sides into...well, such babies, for lack of a better word. I know that in some times past, people just didn't talk about politics, because it made them uncomfortable. I happen to be a person who is ever hopeful that we can express our differences in ways where we don't end up hating the people we square off against. Maybe I'm just being naive. It seems these days that people are just so unused to real political debate, about issues and right and wrong, that the conversations inevitably devolve into name-calling and hurt feelings and friendships ended. All because two people disagree about the best way to accomplish a goal. Sometimes the goal of both people is the same, they're just bickering about how to get there, but yet it ends with something along the lines of, "Well, I just can't be friends with someone who thinks like YOU!" Chill down, peeps. Learn to discern ideas from feelings. We'll get a hell of a lot more accomplished that way...

The New Beginning...

So here I am, in my new digs as Patchouli Pundit. Looks pretty good, if I do say so myself...

I had another blog, once upon a time, but at that point I was using my real name, and found myself somewhat stifled in what I could write, for fear of offending someone who knew me. After a while, I couldn't take not being able to express myself fully, so I gave up blogging for a bit. Now I'm finding that I needed that outlet more than I thought I did, so I've decided to give it another go, only "anonymously" this time. Hopefully, this will give me more freedom to say what I need to say without worrying about whether I've parsed my words enough.

In this space, I will talk about politics, God, and just the junk floating around in my head. I have a "real" job, so don't expect me to be one of those people who post 10 times a day, or even once a day. Probably once or twice a week...let's see how that goes first...Anyways, welcome!