Our Two Blue Minnesota Giants

 

 

"Sorry Babe - you are NOT one of our two blue giants!"

 

Most political geeks will tell you that Minnesota is a schizoid state. We can produce a Michele Bachmann as well as a Paul Wellstone. We can produce a Rod Grams as well as a Fritz Mondale. This state is not purple - it is pockets of bright red and bright blue that will not mix well together.

 

I live in the 6th District. Well known for being the "reddest" district in Minnesota (and I love it). It is not an overly large district - from a land mass perspective, it is small as compared to the 7th and 8th Districts. Those two districts I refer to as the "Blue Giants". They are huge as far as land mass goes. And they are blue. Why? Good question.

 

Let's look at the 7th District first. Rural, flat, and bordering the Dakota states. From a topography and agri-business standpoint, the 7th looks quite a bit like a Dakota. Yet, the 7th has voted blue for congressional representation for over 20 years. Whereas the Dakotas, especially North Dakota, are much more red than blue. There is no reason, no reason what so ever why this large and important district is lured year after year by the Democrats. 2014 should be the year of the change for the 7th. It should be, but will it?

 

The district which puzzles me even more is the 8th. These are good hard working people who like to fish, hunt and log. In addition, they recently found out they are sitting on one of the biggest mineral deposits in the world. When Chip Cravaack won the district in 2010, I thought the sea change had finally begun. Nope. The good folks of the 8th dumped Capt. Cravaack in 2012 and replaced him with an aging, later day hippie. This year however, another good candidate has emerged to attempt to retire Mr. Nolan back to his world of sunshine and lolly pops.

 

One more word about the 7th which makes the puzzle even more confusing. As the 6th is the most Republican district in the state, the 7th is the second most Republican. And yet, it has voted for Collin Peterson for over 20 years.

 

A final word about two other districts. This is only my opinion, so I will share it. The 4th (Betty) and the 5th (Keith) are write offs. If you live in either of these two districts, all we can do is pray for you. They are not only blue, they are the darkest Navy Blue you could ever imagine. Finding a true conservative running for office in either if these two districts would be as rare as finding a shark in Lake Calhoun. They are lost - living in the Matrix, waiting for Santa Clause.

 

So there is my take for 2014. The Republicans SHOULD control the 2nd, 3rd, 6th, 7th and 8th. And the 1st? A topic for another day. For 2014, the political map in Minnesota should show the demise of our two "Blue Giants". We should have five districts securely in the red, two dark blue districts lost forever, and one more blue district left to win over in 2016. If there is a reason why we can't do this, I would like to hear it.

 

 

 

The Russian Reset

 

 

Hey! This stupid button seems to be broken! When I hit it, things get only worse!

Truthfully, I remember it like it was only yesterday. Candidate Obama, who proudly carried around his paper thin resume, told many of the "sheeple" in our fair land that Bush had screwed things up all over the world. In particular, he had really screwed it up with Putin. Our once "hugs and kisses" relationship with the Russians had now turned frosty, and it was all the fault of GW. "No worries though", said the community organizer from Chicago, "just let me in the door of Air Force One and I will hit the reset button with Russia."

Fast forward to today. The reset button has been hit alright, and where are we? Back to the future we are. Back to the cold war. A few days ago, a spokesman for the Kremlin said Russia could turn America into "radioactive ash". Really? Are we going to have to teach our kids how to hide under their desks like I did when I was a kid? I know, I know - Russia invaded Georgia when Bush was President. Maybe Mitt was right when in one of the debates he told Barry that Russia was our biggest international challenge. He did have a point. It was first Georgia, now Crimea, next Poland?

Putin may be a thug and a bully, but he ain't stupid. He knows where the cards are on the table. Our current President has recently said "I have a phone, and a pen, and know how to use them." Putin on the other hand may have said, "I have lots of gas and oil, and a 800,000 man Army, and I know how to use them."

So what can the West do to show Putin we are mad as hell and not going to take it anymore? Not too much. As long as Russia has China has a trading partner, and a oil dependent Euro Zone right next door, he is holding a good hand. Yesterday, a pundit on the Left said, "If sanctions don't work, we will supply arms to Ukraine." Is that another reset? Taking us one step closer to a war with Russia? Reagan kept us out of war with Russia by using a strategy called "peace through strength". We are in his current pickle because as our current strategy of "weakness through debt and disarming" is not working.

Where do we go from here? Hard to say. Most experts agree that Crimea is lost - now part of the new USSR. Will Putin stop there? Again, hard to say. What I will say is this - nature, and the world, abhor vacuums. When the strong stop being strong, the evil doers and the tyrants start to roam free. The best thing we can do is follow Reagan's playbook. Stop the defense cuts. Install the missile defense shield in Poland. Bring back a more modern and robust version of SDI. Reagan let his actions do his talking - our current guy talks, and talks and then writes a very angry letter.

The Boogie Man

 

 

 

Now that, will scare anyone!

Most of us when we were young and playful, were afraid of the Boogie Man. The Boogie Man was usually non-descript, yet very scary. One would think when we became adults the Boogie Man would go away. He has not. Now there is more than one Boogie Man and they are the money men behind both major political parties.

Who are they? George Soros on the Left and the Koch Brothers on the Right. All billionaires, with Soros making his fortune primarily by currency manipulation, and the Koch Brothers making their fortunes building sound businesses. Soros and the Koch Brothers are both feared and loathed by the other side of their political spectrums.

Recently, the Koch Brothers have become the target of vicious attacks by the Senate Majority Leader. He even called them "anti-American". He also referred to the Republicans in the Senate as being "addicted to Koch" (funny play on words), so they could not vote their conscience. However, for some reason Harry Reid seems to think George Soros is a Boy Scout. Go figure.

Our side is not immune from this hyperbole. George Soros is our best Boogie Man to date. From currency manipulation to the now famous "SOS (Secretary of State) Project", George has earned the Boogie Man name with the Republicans. However, what is really interesting is the Boogie Man has made it all the way down into the Minnesota 6th District Congressional race. Yes, some are accusing one of the candidates in the race of being a "tool" for Soros (taking his money).

So this will play out all the way up to the primary. I was going to say the endorsing convention, but some might not play fair and go to primary even if not endorsed. If that happens, the Boogie Man will again have won. Without firing a shot. Without even hiding under a bed. The Republicans will once again become the Hatfield's and the McCoy's and use all their ammunition on each other while the enemy is at the gates. Yes, if the Republicans play their cards right, they can actually lose this rock solid seat just by letting the Boogie Man stories scare the masses.

Most times the honorable thing to do is campaign hard, keep the eleventh commandment, and when it is over, join the team. We are, after all, supposed to be on the SAME TEAM! I don't for one minute believe any Boogie Man stories. Period. What I want is a strong, united team in November that can TAKE OUR COUNTRY BACK! No more fratricide. No more bearing false witness. No more splitting the party like we did in the last governor's race. Victory in November. No more, no less.

The Heart

 

 

 

 

"Wow - I love the heart on that person!"

 

 

Like many of us, I have been pondering quite a bit as of late. In particular, I have been thinking about the heart. More specifically, what is the heart? We hear about it constantly. John has a heart for politics, Sally broke my heart, my wife has my heart. But then again, what exactly is the heart?

 

Lets first look at anatomy. The physical organ, the heart, is very important to us all. Without our heart, we would not last more than a minute or so. The physical heart has no feelings - it is a magnificent pump which operates at the direction of our autonomic nervous system. And what about the the brain? Is the heart in the brain? Well, as magnificent as the brain is, along with all the synapses and memory paths, it is still just a physical organ.

 

Those of us who tinkered with the piano as youth, remember playing Heart and Soul. I am beginning to think that song should have been named Heart is Soul instead. I am convinced our hearts nothing more than the reflection of our soul. In other words, if you cut someone open and looked for their heart, you would never find it. But trust me, it is there.

 

I have met so many people who have such good hearts. I have seen hearts change. I have seen God change hearts. This invisible thing, which lives within all of us, directs our path more than anything physical. Many years ago, when I told my wife she had my heart, I meant it. Because she had my heart, she got he rest of me also. Heart, soul and body. That is the combination.

 

We can't change the world by ourselves. It just can't happen. However, we can change our hearts. If we need help, God is more than willing to help us on that journey. God can look into our hearts, no matter how much we try to hide what is in them. And He can change them. Who knows? If enough hearts change, maybe the world will follow. 

 

 

WE WANT OUR COUNTRY BACK!

 

 

 

"Our bench strength, out passion, this time around is simply incredible!"

Just returned home from my district's endorsing convention. It was quite a ride. For this day, my Senate District was the epicenter of Minnesota. It was where the action was. Many of the state wide candidates showed up to speak for 5 or 10 minutes. I was simply amazed by the bench strength we have this year.

However, the best part came towards the end when the non-politicians, the delegates spoke. The folks attending the convention who wanted to represent our district going forward. The people who wanted to be considered future delegates could speak for 30 seconds on why they wanted or deserved this honor. They all said something different, but had a common theme. I will paraphrase this a bit. Most all said (with feeling) - WE WANT OUR COUNTRY BACK! No sugar coating, no "PC" word smith, just plain talk. Everyone was sick of the status quo. The debt, the intrusion by the government, the lies, the undoing of everything good.

It was great to see some old friends, and to make some new ones. Everyone, without exception, was hospitable. Okay, they were just plain nice. Good folks, really good folks. However, as nice as they were, they also had a "prickly side" to them. Not towards each other, but rather towards an intrusive government and those who allowed it to become that way. No sugar coating, sometimes invective. Plain talk from plain folks. The shout went up over and over again - WE WANT OUR COUNTRY BACK!

After the attack on Pearl Harbor, it is rumored that Admiral Yamamoto said, "I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and filled him with a terrible resolve." After over five years of transforming our country from a super power to a debtor nation, we can't take it any longer. The sleeping giant of America, the people who make it work, are waking up with a vengeance. They are waking up, and they are pissed, really, really pissed.

I for one will rally around WHOMEVER our endorsed candidates are. No more shooting our wounded, eating our young. No more circular firing squads. No more third parties that divide the electorate. WE NEED TO WIN ELECTIONS! We have the right people running this year - real and honest change agents. 

So to those on the Left, the Progressives in both parties, hear this. Your time behind the wheel is over. It is time to put the grownups back in charge. We don't have pitchforks and torches, but trust me, they are close by. We only want one thing, and one thing only in November -  WE WANT OUR COUNTRY BACK!

At the end of the day...

 

 

"There is nothing like a good sunset to top off a good day!"

There are a growing number of people who strongly dislike the phrase "at the end of the day". I am one of them. At one of my former companies, it was used so often that my comeback on "eventless days" was "Sometimes at the end of the day, you just have the end of the day."

The end of today however, will mark the end of one more endorsing convention in Minnesota. There will be winners, and there will be some who came up just short of winning (no losers here). "Not winning" will have a certain sting to it - it always does. But we are all players on the same team, some trying out for starting positions. By "not winning", it does not mean you are off the team. The ones who did not make the starting lineup should stand ready to coalesce with the starters and help the team win!

I fully expect if incumbents comes up short, they should be thanked for their service to date. They have a treasure trove of knowledge, and that will be key in any victories to be had this fall. Should challengers fall short, they should also be thanked. The challengers have made the incumbents better candidates. This is the political version of "Iron sharpening iron."

Ever since the Gipper quoted the eleventh commandment for Republicans, I have fully endorsed it. Hurtful words once spoken, are hard to take back. We can disagree without being disagreeable. I really do have very little time for mud wrestling. I can listen to a good policy debate until the cows come home. However, when the words get personal, or the stories are nothing more than anecdotal, I tune out very quickly.

So that is my hope for the day. Good behavior by all. Gracious winners and gracious "not winners". We have much work to do once the endorsing conventions are over. The Republic is at stake, and we need a strong, undivided team. It truly is all hands on deck. No regrets, no hard feelings, just a thirst for victory this fall. That is what I want to see "at the end of the day"...

Letters and Numbers (not Pi)

 

 

"Where in the world is Malaysia Flight 370? Or is it even in this world?"

Every day the mystery deepens. A large plane, with over 200 souls on it, vanishes into thin air. Terrorists, rouge pilots, or massive electrical failure? As of this posting, nobody (we think) knows. However, there are theories.
 
HAARP (High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program) is defined on the government website as follows: "A scientific endeavor aimed at studying the properties and behavior of the ionosphere, with particular emphasis on being able to understand and use it to enhance communications and surveillance systems for both civilian and defense purposes." HAARP is jointly funded by the U.S. Air Force, the U. S. Navy, the University of Alaska, and DARPA. From this, it sure sounds harmless - so what is all the fuss?

First is should be pointed out that some believe HAARP is indeed a weapons program that is a remnant left over from the now infamous "Star Wars" SDI (Strategic Defense Initiative) from the mid-1980's. This is one theory - now we are going to take a trip down the rabbit hole.

In some circles HAARP become synonymous with intrigue. Determined investigators, delving deeply into the permutations of power the globally expanding high frequency radio installations wield, claim that HAARP can create weather, steer massive storms, ignite mighty volcanoes, and trigger devastating earthquakes. Others say they have uncovered evidence that the project far exceeds the study and manipulation of the Earth’s ionosphere, and may actually affect gravity and time. As you will see from a subsequent article, they are even suspected to be causing the recent phenomenon of "sky spirals".

On March 11, 2011, a massive 8.9 Richter scale earthquake and resulting tsunami rocked the Japanese city of Tokyo. Some believe this catastrophic event was due to the effects of HAARP. Many believe that HAARP was energized on 9 March 2011 - just two days before the earthquake. Coincidence or not? 

There are more theories abound concerning HAARP. All I know is this - when I was in the Navy, I dealt with radio wave propagation and there are interesting things radio waves can do in the very low or very high frequencies. In short, some of these theories suggest that HAARP has the ability to take down an aircraft, hide an aircraft, manipulate weather and trigger natural calamities. All these possibilities help make HAARP one of the most interesting conspiracies in the world.

We know from the past our government is capable of doing amazing things which are hidden to us. Could HAARP be one of them? I really don't know. I do know this however - for a plane the size of a 777, to disappear without a trace, is the stuff only Rod Sterling dreamed of.