What Part of Limit Don't They Understand?

Our representatives in Washington DC are at it again. Some of them are insisting that the national debt limit must be raised. This country is $14 TRILLION in debt already and they want us to go further into debt. Maybe I shouldn't have spelled out trillion as that doesn't show exactly what I want it to show. Here's what it looks like as a number; $14,000,000,000,000.00. Yes, that's 12 zeros before getting to the decimal point.

What does that mean to you and me? Well, based on the 2010 census, the U.S. population is 310 million. Dividing $14 TRILLION by 310 million means that each of us is in debt to the tune of $45,161.29. That's over and above your mortgage, car payments, college loans and any credit card or other type of personal debt you may already have. My household consists of 3 people so combined our share of the debt is $135,483.87.

Unfortunately the $45,161.29 figure is also too low since only people that actually pay taxes are really in debt since they’re the ones that will actually pay it. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics May 2010 figures the unemployment rate was 9.1% or almost 14 million people. Further, while I am aware that there are tax payers that are less than 17 years old, the vast majority of those younger than 17 don't pay taxes. So we now have to deduct 74,181,467 (according to the 2010 census) from the 310 million. That brings the number of people that can pay the national debt down to almost 222 million people. Now deduct illegal immigrants which is conservatively estimated at 14 million (a figure I personally think is low) people. Now we’re down to 208 million. Guess what that does to each of our shares of the national debt. It brings it up to more than $67,300.00. If you're married that's $134,600.00 for you and your spouse. If those in Congress that want to increase the debt ceiling get their way all it will do is increase your share.

So what should Congress do? Do I really have to spell it out for you? In your household, if you, for whatever reason, went credit card crazy and increased the amount you owed to an almost unreachable ability to pay off, what would you do? I can tell you what I would do and have done. I cut up the credit cards and quit making the hole I was already in any deeper. It's that simple. No matter what those that want to increase the debt limit say, it is that simple. If you agree I beseech you to contact your Congressional representative and Senators and tell them to cut spending and do not attempt to increase the national debt. Things may be, and probably will be hard for a while as they were for me, but in the end a valuable lesson will have been learned. And we will all be better for it.

Ch Ch Ch Changes

On the first day of my college philosophy class the professor asked, by a show of hands, if it was possible to step into the same river twice. Almost all of my classmates thought that of course you could step into the same river twice. I didn’t raise my hand. The professor noticed this and asked me why? I told him that because rivers flow and time constantly moves it was not possible to step into the same river twice. The river wasn’t the same river the second time it was stepped into nor was the person that stepped into it. If nothing else, they were both older. My professor agreed with me and announced that there is one universal constant in life. That one constant is flux. Everything that ever happens everywhere is in a constant state of flux. What is flux? Flux simply means change.

Life is constantly changing and you never know when and how it will change. Last night I was home relaxing watching American Idol. Outside there was an early spring mixture of snow, hail and rain. Other than the weather it was just a typical Tuesday night with nothing going on. Then the phone rang. How often is it that our lives suddenly change and it begins with the phone ringing? The caller ID said it was coming from Nicky’s (my nephew/god son) cell phone. This in itself wasn’t unusual. My nephew is a responsible, caring young man. He’s taking some evening classes at the local community college two nights a week. For convenience sake on the nights that he has classes instead of going home he sleeps at our house. So getting a call from him on a night he’s expected to be with us telling us he’s going to be late or that he’s already eaten, or that he’s going to the gym isn’t out of the ordinary. My wife answered the phone and it wasn’t that typical phone call. He was calling from his car where he was pinned in because he had just been in an accident. Shortening the story, other than some superficial burns on his arms from the airbag and his knee being somewhat banged up, he’s expected to be fine.

On October 14, 2001 my son Robby was diagnosed with leukemia. He was 12 years old. He underwent 3 ½ years of treatment and is fine today. It goes without saying that his, my wife’s and my lives were profoundly changed because of that diagnosis.

My point in writing about change is that there is no avoiding it. And being that there is no avoiding it we have to accept and deal with it. You’ll notice I didn’t say embrace it. Who would want to embrace having their child diagnosed with leukemia? Or having their car totaled? No sane person would embrace those situations. However we can and must deal with changes. On the night of learning about Robby’s leukemia my wife Janice and I were devastated. This devastation lasted just that night. Janice stayed with Robby at the hospital while I went home to care for our dogs and get some essentials. When I got home I sat on the couch and bawled my eyes out. Naturally I prayed. I also sent an email to every one of my contacts letting them know what was happening. The next day I went to the hospital where Janice and I set our minds on what had become the one overriding goal in our lives, curing our son. From that point on we dealt with this change that fate had put in our path. We didn’t embrace it, but we did deal with it. And that is what everyone has to do with change.

A People to Admire

As anyone that has a radio, television or is able to read a newspaper knows last week the nation of Japan was struck with an earthquake measuring 9.0 on the Richter scale and numerous after shocks. If this wasn’t bad enough this quake was followed shortly thereafter by a devastating tsunami. These twin disasters have, as of 3/15/11, killed a confirmed total of 3,373 people with the death toll rising every day. Estimates are that the total killed could be more than 20,000. Along with these natural disasters is a potential disaster of melt downs in nuclear power plants. Millions of people are now homeless where whole towns have been washed away.

How have the Japanese people responded to what has happened to them? How are they dealing with the shortage of housing, food and fuel? Well the answer as of this writing is remarkable. I have not seen, heard or read about any civil unrest in Japan. While I am not surprised by this I have to express my heartfelt admiration of the Japanese people. While I would hope that if a disaster of this magnitude were to have occurred in the United States the people of this country would respond similarly I have extreme doubts this would happen. I have good reason for my doubt. Do you recall what happened after hurricane Katrina hit the U.S. gulf coast? If you need a reminder take a look at this video. Post Katrina Looting  As Carl Quintanilla noted even those charged with preventing this from happening were involved in the looting. He said they were police, but to me they looked like they were security guards Regardless of whether they were police or rent-a-cops doesn’t make a difference. Their behavior was just plain wrong, and they knew better. I would ask that you compare that behavior with this report from the 3/15/11 airing of the NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams. Extraordinary Resilience (you have to watch the commercial before the story) A stunning difference, don’t you think? We should all strive to follow the examples the Japanese people have displayed.

They Are Illegal

I am under no delusion that the problem with illegal immigrants has a simple solution. I am fully aware that with the exception American Indians (and don’t bother me with the term being Native Americans since every American Indian I know prefers American Indian, not Native American) every citizen of the United States is either an immigrant or descended from someone that immigrated. We are a nation of immigrants and as Bill Murray said in the movie Stripes “We’re Americans! With a capital A! Huh? You know what that means? Do ya? That means that our forefathers were kicked out of every decent country in the world.” Now obviously the vast majority of our forefathers weren’t kicked out of their homelands. Many came for the opportunity this country provided, some came to escape the oppression of their former countries, others were stolen or sold to be enslaved and yet others came to escape some type of natural disaster. Regardless of why or how people came to the U.S. we’re all immigrants. Thanks to these immigrants the U.S. came to be the world’s only super power and we live a life that is distinctly American. We are one of the only countries in the world where the lyrics from Brad Paisley song American Saturday Night are true.

Woahhhhh woahhhhhhh
She’s got Brazilian leather boots on the pedal of her German car
Listen to the Beatles singing back in the USSR
she’s goin’ around the world tonight
but she ain't leavin him
she’s just going to meet her boyfriend down at the street fair

It's a French kiss, Italian ice
Spanish moss in the moonlight
just another American Saturday night

There's a big toga party tonight down at Delta Chi
they've got Canadian bacon on there pizza pie
they've got a cooler for cold Coronas and Amstel lights
It's like were all livin' in a big ol' cup
just fire up the blender, mix it all up

It's a French kiss, Italian ice
margaritas in the moonlight
just another American Saturday night

you know everywhere there's something they’re known for
although usually it washes up on our shores
my great great great granddaddy stepped off that ship
I bet he never ever dreamed we'd have all this

You know everywhere has somethin' they’re known for
although usually it washes up on our shores
little Italy, Chinatown, sittin' there side by side
live from New York, It's Saturday Night!

French kiss, Italian ice,
Spanish moss in the moonlight
just another American, just another American, its just another American Saturday night

In the late 19^th and early 20^th century the U.S. had a huge influx of immigrants. Between 1881 through 1930 over 27,500,000 people immigrated to the U.S. Other than being immigrants, do you know what else they all had in common? Each and every one of them was documented. The government had a record of who they were and they had a legal standing to be here. Unfortunately today it is estimated there are between 11,000,000 and 15,000,000 illegal aliens in the U.S. The politically correct term is undocumented alien. That’s a bogus term. It’s a term that someone made up to disguise the fact that what is really being discussed are people that are committing a crime. Therefore they are not undocumented aliens, they are illegal aliens or illegal immigrants if you prefer. Regardless of which term you prefer the point is that they’re in the U.S. illegally.

One might say, so what? It’s no big deal and has no effect on me. Well that’s not true. It’s estimated that illegal immigrants cost U.S. tax payers $113 billion. That’s over $1,100.00 for each native household. Of that $113 billion nearly 75% of it ($84 billion) is burdened by state and local governments. For states with lesser numbers of illegal aliens the $1,100.00 figure is smaller, but for states like California, Texas, Florida and New York with huge populations of illegal aliens that figure increases exponentially.

The biggest cost created by illegal immigrants is the education of their children with an estimated outlay of $52 billion. But wait a second, aren’t these children U.S. citizens, and shouldn’t they be educated? So how can the cost of their education be included in the illegal immigrant expenses? The answer to that is simple. First not all of these children are U.S. citizens and secondly for those that are U.S. citizens if their parents weren’t here illegally they wouldn’t have been born here, Therefore they wouldn’t be afforded the education they’re currently being provided and wouldn’t cost the states and localities.

Now if the costs of educating illegal aliens or the U.S. born children of illegal aliens doesn’t bother you, although I can’t imagine why it wouldn’t, perhaps the effect the illegal alien has on the job market does. Don’t misunderstand me on this. I have no doubt that those illegal aliens that are working, whether on the books or as part of the underground economy, are hard workers. That’s not the point. The point is that if they’re working it means that a U.S. citizen isn’t working. Some say that illegal immigrants are only taking jobs that Americans won’t take. That’s ridiculous. We currently have unemployment of nearly 10%. Americans will do those jobs. What Americans won’t do is be underpaid for doing those jobs. Illegal immigrants will take jobs where they’re underpaid and because of their illegal status they’re exploited. That is good for neither the illegal immigrant nor the native worker.

What needs to be done? First and foremost we need to secure our borders. They are much too porous. This is not a reflection on the border agents. We simply do not have enough of them. Along with stemming the tide of illegal aliens this will also have the side benefit of slowing down the smuggling of drugs into the country. Secondly since the current penalties on employers that hire illegal aliens don’t seem to be enough of a deterrent they need to be much more severe. Right now there is no deterrent to crossing our border illegally. Those that are caught are simply sent home. So my third proposal is to build and then populate prisons for illegal immigrants that are caught. Prior to sending them back home they need to be punished for violating our law. A first offense would be a mandatory 1 year sentence. A second offense would be 5 years. A third offense would be 10 years. There would be no parole on any of the sentences. Is this too severe? Not when compared to the laws of Mexico. Under Mexican law, illegal immigration is a felony. It is punishable by up to two years in prison. Immigrants who are deported and attempt to re-enter can be imprisoned for 10 years. Visa violators can be sentenced to six-year terms.

Time to End the Segregation

Ever since I was a kid I have been perplexed as to why this condition exists. As I got older I understood it to a degree, but to this day it still bothers me. What’s that you ask? The answer is simple. It’s segregation. But more specifically the most segregated hour of each and every week. That hour is when Christians worship. It is far and away the most segregated hour in any week.

The neighborhood where I grew up was completely desegregated. My neighbors, classmates and friends were of all different ethnicity. We went to school together, played together, hung out together and yes, got in trouble together. However when Sunday came around, with rare exception, we didn’t worship together. Now I know that to a degree some of that had to do with us being of different denominations and some being Catholics. I understand that. What I don’t understand is there being two churches of the same denomination with congregations that are predominantly of one race in the same area.

As I said earlier I came to understand, to a degree, segregation. That segregation I came to understand is what I’ll refer to as the segregation of commonality. This simply means people with things in common will tend to gravitate to one another. Using myself as an example, I am a huge fan of Walt Disney World. As I write this I’m wearing a Mickey Mouse watch and a Tigger rugby shirt. If I see two people that I don’t know, one wearing Disney paraphernalia and one not, I am far more likely to speak with the person with the Disney gear on than the other person. I do this because my initial perception is that I will have more in common with that person than the person not decked out in Disney. This may or may not turn out to be true, but it’s a starting point. I don’t have a problem with this natural segregation. People with things in common will naturally gravitate to each other (Poles to Poles, Irish to Irish, Blacks to Blacks, Hispanics to Hispanics and within Hispanics Dominicans to Dominicans, Cubans to Cubans and Puerto Ricans to Puerto Ricans) etc. etc. etc…

Recognizing this segregation during worship is the first step. The second step is obviously to do something about it. But the question is what? People, me included, have a comfort level in attending their home church. So I guess the first step is to come out of that comfort level and attend a worship service in a church that is predominantly of a different race. It doesn’t have to be a permanent change. Just do it a couple of times a year. I think you’ll find that while the ways we worship are different they’re all beautiful in their own way. And in the end what we’ll be doing is praising God which is what it’s all about anyway.

Who Is the Enemy?

I can’t stand it. I just can’t stand it. America has enemies. This is an undeniable, inescapable, indisputable fact. And what I can’t stand is the political correctness that refuses to acknowledge that this enemy is made up of Islamic fanatics. These people want to destroy the United States and will go to any measure to bring it down. They want us dead and will go, and have gone, to any extreme to kill as many of us as they can. Our enemy isn’t the 89 year old WW II vet that fought for and in some cases was wounded and was always willing to die for this country. It’s not the single mom who scrimped and saved to take her kids on a once in a lifetime trip to Walt Disney World. It is the Islamic fundamentalist that is our enemy. Yet it is because of political correctness that the Transportation Safety Administration, under the direction of the Department of Homeland Security, is required to indiscriminately pull the vet or single mom out of the line at the airport security checkpoint for a more thorough screening. How does that make sense?

Our nation’s leaders, or perhaps it’s our activist courts, have determined that profiling is not allowed. That’s just stupid. If someone is killed in a drive-by shooting the likelihood is that it was done by a gang member. The police know this and they do their investigation based on this. Does this mean that they don’t follow the evidence if it leads in another direction? Of course they follow the evidence. If a suspected member of a crime family is murdered the likelihood of it being done by another crime family member, whether his own family or another one, is far greater than the crime having been committed by an 89 year old WWII vet or a single mom.

Profiling works and there is no sensible reason not to use it. But noooooo we can’t use it. It might offend those in the Islamic community that truly are, as the word Islam means, people of peace. Well hell, I’m offended. I can’t understand those in the Islamic community that aren’t pointing out those in their own midst that are enemies of peace. If they are to be taken seriously as people of peace it is their moral obligation to do just that. If the goal of the Islamic zealots is to convert the world to Allah the way to go about it is not to do it by pointing a gun at the head of those that you want to convert. It didn’t work for the Christian faith during the crusades and it won’t work today.

As I said earlier it is our nation’s leaders or our activist courts that won’t allow the use of profiling with regard to terrorists. So along with the extremists being our enemies there is another set of those that do us harm. To paraphrase Walt Kelly’s great philosopher Pogo we have met the enemy and he is also us. And by us I’m not talking about politicians. I am talking about the electorate. Instead of doing our due diligence and researching those that run for office we rely on sound bites, skewed political ads, labor leaders, a press that has its own agenda (both on the right and the left) or the appearance and style of the candidates. Or even worse than all of those I’m also referring to those that don’t vote at all either because they don’t care or as I’ve heard thousands of times they’re (politicians) all crooks. Less than 50% of eligible voters actually vote. We get the government that we deserve. Lincoln said that we are a government of the people, by the people and for the people. It’s as true today as it was in Lincoln’s day. Our government is made up of us, we the people. If less than half of us bother to vote and those that do vote don’t take that responsibility serious enough to learn for them selves what a candidate stands for, we deserve the government that we have.

Introducing?

Here I am writing my first blog and have no idea what I want to write about. How much do I want to reveal about what's going on in my muddled brain? Is my mind really muddled? No. not really, at least not for most things. I've come to a point in my life where I know pretty much what I can accomplish and what will always remain a fantasy. The goals that I have yet to attain are well within the realm of possibility. Those goals are pretty much the same as what most people want. Continuing to be able to provide shelter, food and clothing for my family is probably first. Paying off my mortgage and putting away enough money to have a comfortable retirement. Ensuring that my son Robby is as able as possible to live his life as comfortably after my wife Janice and I die as he does now. Those that know me know why this is important. Not that most all parents, (yes Virginia {and no I’m not talking to my sister here, but the Virginia that wanted to know if there was a Santa Claus yes-virginia} there are asshole parents) don’t want to provide for their children. But most children will be able to provide for themselves. Robby is autistic and may not be able to provide for himself. Being able to leave as much as I can behind for my son’s welfare is a huge priority for me.

What else do I want to reveal about myself? I am the sixth of seven children and the fourth of five boys born in the mid-fifties. I guess that would mean that I am a child of the 1960’s and 70’s. My mother was a full-time homemaker and up until my mother was diagnosed with a brain tumor when I was 17, I can’t remember a time when my Dad didn’t have at least two jobs.

I am a United States Marine, having served from 1974 to 1978.

Next month Janice and I will be celebrating our 30^th anniversary.

I am in my 15^th year with my current employer. Prior to this job I spent 11 years with Eastman Kodak/Sterling Drug. The reason for the slash between Kodak and Sterling is because while working for Sterling, Kodak acquired them. We lived in Greece NY, a suburb of Rochester, for four years.

I was raised in the Methodist tradition and still attend a Methodist church. Well, attend is probably not a strong enough word. I am a member, but more than that too. I am currently the chair of the church council and prior to that I was a member of the Staff Parish Relations Committee. SPRC is the committee that is responsible for the hiring and firing of the church’s staff. I am a liturgist and also a member of the church’s chancel choir and Men’s Ensemble. With all of that on my “religious resume” you might think I’m some type of Holy Roller. Well nothing could be further from the truth. I can party with most anybody and cuss you out like a drill instructor. Does this make me a hypocrite? In the eyes of some I would imagine yes. But, I’m reminded of one of my pastors who greeted the congregation with “Good morning saints.” which followed immediately by “Good morning sinners.”  In both instances he was greeting everyone, including and especially me, as we all fall short in the eyes of God. I am not hesitant to talk about my faith,but as Paul taught us, we all have differnt gifts and mine is not being an evangelist.

Politically I am conservative, but being the father of an autistic child I am fully aware of the dire need for social programs. My problem with the social services now provided by all levels of government is the terrible job they all do. The number one problem I have with them is the recipients that shouldn’t be receiving benefits. I’m talking about those that are able mind and body to work but that play the system and the encouragement they receive to do just that. It’s mind boggling the amount of money that is wasted because of this. I am a believer in teaching people to fish instead of giving fish to them. Obviously, or maybe not so obviously, I don’t believe that those that are truly unable to fish, whether for physical or mental reasons or both, should be required to learn how to fish.

Sports-wise I love the four major sports popular in the United States; football, baseball, basketball and hockey. On the professional level I root for the NY Giants and Jets with the Giants being number one of the two football teams, the NY Mets in baseball, the NJ Devils in hockey (with my nephew Jeff we have a partial season ticket plan) and the NY Knicks and NJ Nets in that order for basketball. On the college level I root for the Scarlet Knights of Rutgers University, and having two nephews and a brother-in-law that are alums of the University of Tennessee, the Volunteers of that school.

Well I’ve rambled on enough, or maybe more than enough, for one blog entry so I’ll end here. Feel free to leave a comment, or don’t. If you do, I’ll read it. If you don’t then I won’t know what you think, but that’s OK too, since this blog is about my thoughts. ;-)