Ruminations - 11nov2009 (updated 12nov09)

George Rebane

Veterans/Armistice Day.  This morning I rushed down to the Grass Valley Veterans Building to partake of the scheduled ceremonies that annually observe our debt to the armed forces of America.  Given the involvement of our armed forces and current events, the observance was not well attended – many seats on the floor were empty, and the bleachers were sparsely occupied.  Our Congressman Tom McClintock gave a quick speech before having to rush off to another engagement – these are busy times for politicians.  His good and proper remarks were entirely backward looking – there was no mention of the current global battle with Islam, no outrage at Ft Hood, no rallying of our citizens to resist and preserve.  The rear view mirror contains such clear and comforting reflections.

The Ft Hood massacre by one of our homegrown Islamic terrorists was similarly observed at a massive memorial service yesterday.  The murdered GIs were remembered as if they had died in a bus accident on the way to catch a plane to their mid-east deployments.  The President’s reference to the murderer’s “twisted logic” was a brief sop to the fact that this had not been a bus accident.  But then he totally misinformed his audience on the peaceful nature of all religions.  Army Chief of Staff, General Casey, got up and recited the next verse of his longstanding ode ‘Let’s Not Irritate the Muslims’.  Islam is a mighty belief system that informs and motivates the lives of over 1.6 billion or about a fourth of the world’s people and many of its cultures.  Yet somehow it is still difficult for us to get past the notion that our war is only about shooting some ragheads flitting among the rocks in Afghanistan.  This is the leadership under which our troops must fight and sacrifice.

EPA is still trying to gag Dr. Alan Carlin, one of its own scientists whose March 2009 report (5.12MB pdf) “questioned whether EPA should simply defer to United Nations’ assertions that carbon dioxide emissions are causing a global warming crisis that threatens human health and the environment.”  The good doctor is finally starting to speak out about his censorship and the so-called science that has now been swallowed worldwide.  In his words, “The business of science is being skeptical, and if you’re not skeptical, you’re probably not doing science. … It’s my view that the EPA needs to go through the scientific arguments themselves and not rely on what others outside the EPA have said.”

[12nov09 update]  Here is another recent report on scientists whose arguments contradicting man-made global warming are being ignored and/or attacked by the one-worlders.

Finally, the Tea Party Patriots and related organizations are forming up to launch the “Citizen Power Campaign” to gather 1.1 million California signatures for a November 2010 initiative to stop public sector unions in their onslaught on the democratic process.  I guess the important thing to note from the gitgo is that it is not a y’all come ‘people power’ campaign.  This highly discriminatory enterprise attempts to distinguish between the interests of American citizens and those who got here through a hole in the fence.  Over the next twelve months, pay particular attention to the groups rising in opposition.  More here.

Comments

[Steve Enos]

George, I think one of the biggest scams and "problems" is Calpers and how a number of the current and former Calpers "leaders" have conducted themselves to get rich and gain political power. Real good story in the Sac Bee today about some of the Calpers "games" and pocket lining that has taken place.

[Steve Enos]

Californai is not alone... seems one of the states "barreling toward an economic disaster similar to California's ongoing fiscal crisis" is... FLORIDA... and Nevada and Arizona!

A study released Wednesday warns that nine states are barreling toward an economic disaster similar to California's ongoing fiscal crisis that has been marked by IOUs and budget-busting deficits.

The budget woes could mean higher taxes, accelerated layoffs of government employees, more crowded classrooms and fewer services in the coming year for some of the nation's most populous states.

Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island and Wisconsin join California as those most at risk of fiscal calamity, according to the report by the Pew Center on the States.

Double-digit budget gaps, rising unemployment, high home foreclosure rates and built-in budget constraints are the key reasons.

The analysis urged lawmakers and governors in those states to take quick action to head off a wider economic catastrophe. The 10 states account for more than one-third of America's population and economic output, according to the report.

"While California often takes the spotlight, other states are facing hardships just as daunting," said Susan Urahn, managing director of the Washington, D.C.-based center. "Decisions these states make as they try to navigate the recession will play a role in how quickly the entire nation recovers."

California leads the most vulnerable states identified by Pew, which describes it as having poor money-management practices. According to the Legislative Analyst's Office, California has made nearly $60 billion in budget adjustments _ in the form of cuts to education and social service programs, temporary tax hikes, one-time gimmicks and stimulus spending _ since February as tax revenues plunged.

Many of those fixes aren't expected to last. The state's temporary tax hikes will begin to expire at the end of 2010, while federal stimulus spending will begin to run out a year after that.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger estimates California will likely run a deficit of between $12.4 billion and $14.4 billion when he releases his next spending plan in January. The top estimate amounts to 17 percent of the state's $84.6 billion general fund budget, the main account for day-to-day spending. General fund spending in California has dropped nearly $20 billion over the past two years.

The governor warned that the toughest cuts are ahead.

[George Rebane]

Great comments Steve, and thanks for the heads up on the SacBee editorial. Here's the link to it -
http://www.sacbee.com/editorials/story/2310977.html

[Mikey McD]

Here is "Citizen Power Initiative":http://ag.ca.gov/cms_attachments/initiatives/pdfs/i851_initiative_09-0054.pdf

[George Rebane]

Thanks Mikey, good to have the link with this post.

[Steve Enos]

George, the Sac Bee has another great story about what has been going on at Calpers over the years. The Bee is doing a great job, doing real investigative reporting on this issue. Folks should be following the Bee coverage on this and today's(Thursday)Bee story is VERY informative and VERY disturbing.

[George Rebane]

More thanks Steve. The SacBee has been and continues to be one our good sources on the innards of Calpers. There's more stuff coming down the pike on that organization. A big pile of money like that attracts hanky-panky. The link to the SacBee article you mention is http://www.sacbee.com/investigations/story/2301120.html .