Ready? - On the Mark - SPEND!

"Dayton's days are numbered and his clone, Tina Smith has recently decided she will not run for his job. The field is wide open for the right person to turn this state around. Sorry Kurt - it is not you."

A few months ago, a much younger friend who was just getting interested in politics, asked me the main difference between a true Republican and true Democrat. First, I had to set my young friend straight. There really are no "true" Republicans or Democrats anymore. I did not have the heart, nor the patience, to go into all the fractures which each party has developed. To make it simple, I just said the two parties were conservatives and progressives.

Then I thought to myself, that was the easy piece. How can I explain all the fractures our nation has developed as the two major parties have slid down into two separate valleys? Should I talk about the originalist vs. organic? The party of death as compared to the party which cherishes life? The party of law vs. the party of anarchy? Or the party of government controlled money compared to the party of citizen controlled money. I chose the last one.

It is too bad that discussion did not happen right now. I could use Mark "clueless" Dayton as the poster child for how a pure unadulterated progressive acts. Whereas conservative citizens look at the gargantuan surplus we have accumulated right now and know our state government has overtaxed us (and owes us our money back), progressive leaders and progressive subjects looks at the surplus as theirs. And try to figure out different ways to waste it.

In short, Minnesota will have a $1.65B surplus over the next two years. Let that sink in for just a minute. That is 1.65 with a whole lot of zeroes behind it. And this is due to two things: 1) The Republican lead House has done an "okay" job in watching the budget. However, they could have done better if they governed like true conservatives. 2) Governor Dayton, who wanted more money for early childhood education, more money from gas taxes, more money from bonding - was stopped in this tracks last year due to a budget deadlock.

So if I was talking to my young friend right now, I would tell him to read the paper, watch the news, read blogs, watch podcasts, or whatever - to see how Dayton is acting with this large sum of undeserved cash. Then I would point out how much state government has grown in the past 10 years. For example, the number of people working for the state government has grown over 5% since 2007. That is insane.  We should be looking for ways to do more with less like the private sector does. However, in a progressive state like Minnesota, we do less with more.

How we elected Mark Dayton two times in a row will always remain a mystery to me. Two of the finest men I know in politics ran against him - and lost. Men who could have really turned this state around and made it competitive with states like Wisconsin. States which are now eating our lunch and stealing our wealth.

Dayton's days are numbered and his clone, Tina Smith has recently decided she will not run for his job. The field is wide open for the right person to turn this state around. Sorry Kurt - it is not you. Please keep being Speaker and keep holding the lid on.

I know the right person. Soon we all will. And when that person is our Governor, people from Wisconsin will want to move to Minnesota rather than visa versa.

  

Three Important Things to Remember

"On the way home after sharing a bowl of soup with others at the mission, I did some soul searching. I thought back on what Jesus asked of us."

Today was what is becoming an annual visit to one of our favorite giving partners. Union Gospel Mission (UGM) in the Twin Cities is really something to behold. We have gotten in the habit of contributing to UGM three times a year - Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter. Truthfully, UGM could use help just about every week of the year. 

What draws us to this valuable organization are two things. First, they can really stretch a dollar. Better than any charity that we have been associated with. For example, the Easter gift we gave this morning (which was not much) will feed on Easter Sunday a bit over a hundred people. And even though we have not been down there for Easter the Easter meal, we have heard it is quite a feast. Lots of ham with all the trimmings, and most importantly - fellowship.

The same is true for Thanksgiving. A small gift will again feed over a hundred people. Turkey, spuds, dressing, you name it - plus fellowship. And many of the people who come to UGM for this meal have little to nothing. Some have mental health issues. Some have addiction issues. Some have just had some real tough breaks in life. Some have all of the above. 

The other thing which draws us to UGM is they care for the entire person. People are not just here for a free meal and "see ya later". No. UGM really wants to help people who have seen some of life's tougher paths - and then get back on a better one.

UGM is really a one stop shop. Once you are there, they not only have a HUGE kitchen to feed many, many people, they also have some sheltering beds. Plus other services like dental, addiction, clothing, and so forth. The clients who visit there are always treated like friends and family. No judging, always welcoming. 

On the way home after sharing a bowl of soup with others at the mission, I did some soul searching. I thought back on what Jesus asked of us. Some people think that Christianity is very judgmental and complicated. It really isn't. There are just three things to remember which are the bright lights on the path to follow:

1. Love God.
2. Love others.
3. Care for the least of us.

That is it. The rest will fall into place. If you are looking for place which follows those three things, check out UGM. It is a place that never judges - they just help. 

Not a sexy Rexy....

"Just as Donald Trump is no Barack Obama, Rex Tillerson is no John Kerry (thank goodness!)." 

We were told after the election, that there would soon be a new sheriff in town. And our new sheriff is making quite a splash. People in our government as well as people in governments outside our shores, are learning how to deal with a POTUS who is hard to predict. That is, his behavior is hard to predict at times. However, as far as focusing like a laser beam on his campaign promises, he is rock solid. But don't spend all your time looking at how President Trump is doing. I think the man to also watch is our new Secretary of State.

Just as Donald Trump is no Barack Obama, Rex Tillerson is no John Kerry (thank goodness!). Even though many Democrats were strongly opposed to having this "oil man" be our next SoS, Donald Trump saw something in Rex Tillerson which was special. He could trail blaze for a new type of SoS in the future. And in my opinion, he is trail blazing right now.

For someone who has never been in government, I really like the way President Trump is taking on the North Korea issue. First he sends Secretary of Defense Mattis over there to "take the cover off the brick" before he sends the message. What message? The Norks are on thin ice if they continue down the path they are on. Then our Secretary of State goes over there. One might this that a SoS would soften up the harsh message sent by the Secretary of Defense. Nope. He gave it to them again - in spades.

In so many words he directed the message like an arrow pointed at Pyongyang. We are done talking. No more until you give up all your weapons of mass destruction. Plus, due to your truculent actions against your neighbors, all options (for us) are on the table - including military. 

By the way, just for the record, I need to clarify something. Jim Mattis does not want war with North Korea. Rex Tillerson does not want war. Believe it or not, Donald Trump does not want war either. The vast majority serving in the military as well as those who have served in the past do not want war. War is a losing proposition. Even the victors leave the battlefield with loses, some visible, some not. No, the vision that President Trump has for this country does not include a war with anyone.

That being said, Donald Trump, Jim Mattis, Rex Tillerson, John Kelly (Homeland Security), and other in the new Administration want a strong America. Peace through strength, just like under Ronald Reagan. As Rick Nelson from the Ozzie and Harriet show would tell people after he became an expert in the martial arts, "I am a nice guy who can be tough".

So bravo Secretary Tillerson! Keep up the good work. It is so nice to have plain talkers once again in our government. No more lawyer type gobblety gook. No more, "Depends what the meaning of is, is". Welcome to the fray Mr. Tillerson! Glad to have you on the team. This man is not a "sexy Rexy" - this is tough and fair man who understands how the world works.

The tip of the iceberg...

"There are a great many times I am glad I no longer have the obligation of knowing some of our nation's most vital secrets. However, in today's dicey environment, I just might give my eyeteeth to see below the iceberg's surface." 

Many decades ago, when I first received final TS SCI clearance, the chief who was doing the indoctrination told me something I have never forgotten. "When you are uncleared, when you see an iceberg, you will only see 10% of it. Now that you are cleared, you have the privilege, and obligation, to guard this nation's secrets. In short, often times you will know what part, to all, of the other 90% of the iceberg is made up of."

The chief continued, "Most of it you will find boring. Some you will find interesting. And once in a while, you will learn things that will scare the living hell out of you." In my 21 years of having a high level clearance in the Navy, I found that chief to be correct on all his points - even the last one.

Yes, I did know things which made my blood run cold. Times in which I thought, "this is it." There was one time back in 1972 that I was so convinced the trigger was about to be pulled, I wanted to call my folks to say good-bye. That I loved them. And when it was over, things went back to "normal". Yet, none of those scary moments ever saw the light of day. Never made the nightly news or the papers. They were the stories which resided on the bottom of the iceberg which nobody ever saw.

Today, the fact so much about North Korea is making the news really bothers me. If that is the 10% which is being leaked to the public, I shudder to think what the other 90% is. For example, it was reported today in the MSM that Japan just conducted its first missile drill. Air raid sirens went off and the public was involved in the whole civil defense protocol.

Let that sink in for just a minute. The Cold War is over, the "duck and cover" is in the history books. We have a civilized country in 2017, one of our major trading partners, worried about a rogue nation launching some kind of missile at them?

I will admit this. There are a great many times I am glad I no longer have the obligation of knowing some of our nation's most vital and guarded secrets. However, in today's dicey environment, I just might give my eyeteeth to take a peek below the iceberg's surface. On second thought, maybe not. It might just scare the crap out of me. All I can do is hope that our country, our nation's defenders, have war gamed North Korea enough to counter any threat.

On his show today, Glenn Beck once again talked about the EMP threat from the Norks. The Norks have never made it secret they would like to "level the playing field" by putting this country back into the dark ages. What I do not understand is this. A worst case scenario is where the Norks either by themselves, or with an accomplice, would launch 3 small nukes to detonate at the correct altitude at three strategic points over North America. It is estimated that up to 90% of our population (plus lots of Canadians and Mexicans) would perish within a year.

On the other hand, all our strategic forces are nuclear hardened. An EMP strike would not affect them. The retaliatory strike on North Korea would be absolute. Meaning - there would be nothing left alive- not even bacteria. So why would the Norks ever consider such a brazen move? I have no clue. The answer to that question might be in the 90% which lies under the water.

Fact from friction

"How do we fix things. First off, tell the American public they have a drug problem and it is killing the country. The drug is called federal government programs."

No, it is not a typo. It is meant to say "friction" instead of fiction. The old saying the hardest thing to kill in Washington is a government program. Amen to that! And I will add something else. One of the strongest addictions in the world is the dependence many have on government programs. Especially programs which should have NEVER been part of the federal government.

Where in the world did this all start? Things were so simple in the beginning. The states were given mucho power whereas the federal government was given very little. The 10th Amendment was constructed to be about as straight forward and simple as people from that era could make it. Then why have the federal government at all? Because there were some things that the states needed the feds to do. Like the protection of the states through a well run and funded military.

Then where did we go wrong? Some say the wheels first started coming off the apple cart when FDR created Social Security. Truthfully, at that time, it was not that bad of a program. So long as many folks dropped dead around 60 and families had about 8 kids, the math worked out okay. Today however, not so much. It has become a Ponzi scheme of the highest order. The math will never work out again, and this much beloved program is bankrupting us.

Then of course came another two nails in the coffin in 1965. Another progressive Democrat like FDR (that be LBJ) signed into law Medicare and Medicaid. Again, if folks had large families and died at a young age, it might have worked out fine for a while. Now, they along with Social Security, are killing us.

I will say this of President Trump. I have said this about most of our current and past Washington leaders. They are cowards and clueless when it comes to addressing our entitlements. Even getting rid of ObamaCare (notice I did not waste the ink going into this, our fourth entitlement) has resulted in another entitlement some are calling "ObamaCare lite".  So the ax is coming down on discretionary programs - the ones which should NEVER have performed by the federal government in the first place. 

Yes, I am talking about Sesame Street, which still makes about a zillion dollars. It will do fine without the feds. And Meals on Wheels, which is VERY worthwhile, but should be managed by private charities. Education? The entire department should have been eliminated. All education matters should be handled locally and by the states. I could go on and on and on.

How do we fix things. First off, tell the American public they have a drug problem and it is killing the country. The drug is called federal government programs. I would get rid of as many discretionary programs as possible and get them back to the states or private charities. Next, I would "sunset" Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid as they currently exist. Phase them out and phase in something for the next generations which is sustainable. 

If we did that, all of a sudden our government (and the humongous debt it carries) would start to shrink. We would have a state of the art military which could (just like in the 1980's), keep the peace without firing a shot. Those are the facts as I see them. Now lets stop with the friction. 

Agreement with one of my heroes

"Some might disagree, and that is fine. My feeling is if the federal government does nothing else for us, it should be to protect us. And the federal government takes in plenty enough money to maintain a well paid and well equipped military."

I have said this in the past. Senator McCain, when he was a POW, was, and still is a hero of mine. When the NVA found out this downed pilot's father was CINCPAC (head Navy guy for all Pacific operations), they were going to make an example out of him. They wanted to break him and make him look weak. They really wanted him to betray his country. Some say he broke, others say he did not. If he did or did not, he suffered mightily while in the Hanoi Hilton. In short, they beat the hell out of him.

As a Senator, I have not been as keen on McCain. He strayed of the reservation a bit too much at times. Not all the time, but enough. However, he came out the other day and ripped the new budget for reasons other than the Democrats are using. The $53B in additional defense dollars are simply not enough. Hallelujah! He gets it! I have said this before - our DoD needs annual care and feeding. Under Obama, that did not happen. Now it is time to play "catch up".

I have not addressed this issue before as it is a tough one. While my wife and I were in Florida last month, we did some shopping in the Navy Commissary (on-base grocery store). To shop there, you must be in the service, a dependent of someone who is, retired, or authorized base civilian. We saw numerous tags on different food items which said either "WIC Approved" or "EBT Accepted". Those are programs for folks in or close to the poverty line. There should be NOBODY serving this country that qualifies for those programs. Period.

I don't know of anyone who went in the service to become rich. Never happen. By the same token, when you join the ARMED FORCES, where you sign a contract to put it all on the line 24 X 7 X 365 if need be, you should not have to live in poverty either. Our soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines deserve much, much better. They deserve a big pay raise to ensure NOT ONE OF THEM needs to be on a poverty program in which to serve this great country.

By the way - to bring our forces up to date enough to counter the Russian, Chinese, Iranian, and North Korean threats, we need a big infusion of cash. And we need it now. So I agree with Senator McCain. $53B is not enough. Let's make it $100B and really get going to true up the pay scales and get better equipment in the field. 

Some might disagree, and that is fine. My feeling is if the federal government does nothing else for us, it should be there to protect us. And the federal government takes in plenty enough money to maintain a well paid and well equipped military. Time to get going.

How bout dem taxes, hey?

"However the winner for the Scrooge contest is our almost President ALGORE. That cheap son of a gun in 1997 gave a parsimonious $350 to charity out of a combined income of almost $200,000."

Oh crap. It did not work very well. We were supposed to get the "big surprise" out of seeing the Donald's taxes. Like maybe some of his reported income came from Moscow. Or through the trickery of paying high skilled tax attorneys, he only paid only 4% taxes on his income. Or he had huge "losses" which showed he could not manage his money. 

We did find out President Trump paid $38M in taxes on income of $150M in 2005. That is better than most Presidents or candidates have done in quite a while - maybe ever. President Trump might have paid even more than the "holier than thou" Warren Buffet. But speaking only for myself, I don't care. I really don't. As far as how President Trump filed was legal, I could care what his percentage of income paid is. I am however, a bit of a voyeur when it comes to looking at part of the tax form that any politician files.

What would that be? Charitable contributions. It is a peek into the person's heart. What they are made of. For example, President Obama is looked upon favorably, as he gave 15% to charity in 2015. But let's look back a few years. In 2005, he gave 4.6%. In 2004, he gave 1.2%. In 2003, he gave 1.4%. And in 2002, he gave a whopping .4%. But the story gets better from here.

In ten years of giving, the Bidens (who are in VERY good shape financially), gave an unbelievable $3,690 to charity. No - that is not a misprint. Joe and Dr. Jill Biden gave an average of less than $400/year for 10 years. Compare that with George W. Bush. He NEVER gives less than 10% of what he and Laura made. Never.

However, the winner for the Scrooge contest is our "almost President", ALGORE. That cheap son of a gun in 1997 gave a parsimonious $350 to charity out of a combined income (he and Tipper) of almost $200,000. In know, I know - the Clintons gave quite a bit more to charity - their own. Please - give me a break.

So Rachael Mad Cow- do you really want to start looking at tax returns? Our side can do that also. We have the evidence to show many Democrats are tighter than bark on a tree. So go after the Donald if you want. You might not like what you are looking for. But we will.