What’s going on?  Healthcare, financial and banking issues, unemployment, immigration, the oil disaster, two wars and a hotwire on the Korean peninsula — are we at the brink of total disaster?  TPB has never seen in her lifetime our nation so divided over so many issues at one time.  Not sense the civil war and the civil rights movement have we pitted our nation against each other.  In a time were we should be united, standing on the shoulders of the generations who made this country great, we are divided.  What a tangled web we have woven.

Can you hear it?  Those who despise America and the freedoms we enjoy are laughing at us.  Enemies who are determined to extinguish the flame of freedom are applauding the mess we are in.  What better way to gain influence and power than to divide us politically and economically?  Divide and conquer has always been a worthwhile strategy to pursue. 

Although America is in disarray, TPB believes Lady Liberty will prevail.  No matter what others think about our great land, our political ups and downs, our gaffes and missteps, TPB believes that as long as we, as a nation, heed the words of George Washington that “the Constitution is a guide I will never abandon” we will triumph.  We must never treat the Constitution as something that should be quickly dismissed or disposed of when things don’t seem to be working as it ought to.

TPB has faith in those three hallowed words “We The People”.   It is our strength that binds us together during this time of peril. We are a nation bound by a constitution that allows free men to disagree and to take responsibility to solve their own problems.  What the Constitution has joined together, let no man put asunder.

TPB

Memorial Day is a day of remembrance for our men and women who have paid the ultimate sacrifice in defense of our country.  Our nation’s most precious assets, our sons and daughters, must never be forgotten.

“The liberties of our country, the freedoms of our Civil Constitution are worth defending at all hazards; it is our duty to defend them against all attacks.  We never received them as a fair inheritance from our worthy ancestors.  They purchased them for us with toil and danger and expense of treasure and blood.  It will bring a mark of everlasting infamy on the present generation - enlightened as it is - if we should suffer them to be wrested from us by violence without a struggle, or to be cheated out of them by the artifices of designing men.” ~ Samuel Adams

Freedom is the most precious gift that exists in our world today.   It was born out of a revolution, and the blood, sweat and tears of men and women who understood that the torch of freedom is what drives America to be the greatest country in the world.

Memorial Day is a teaching moment for all Americans. We must never become a nation who has forgotten the sacrifices of the generations who have gone before us.   As the engraving at the Korean War Veterans Memorial on the National Mall reminds us “Freedom is Not Free”.   TPB

It appears the political debate is over.  The House and Senate have voted and healthcare is now a reality (at least on paper).   Although TPB is not sure whom to believe on what the future holds for this country, here is what I accept to be true:

Americans are angry.

The political process is in shambles.

The Country is divided.

Democrats and Republicans will never agree on anything.

Jobs will be lost to pay for healthcare.

The States are prepared to do battle over the healthcare reform.

We have lost credibility in the free world.

“We the People” is being usurped by a political agenda.

Tragedies and successes will be heralded by both sides.

Political and Non-Political Party lines will be weaken and strengthened.

There will be unseen and unattended consequences.

This is the first of many wars on the Political Battleground.

When all is said and done, history will ultimately analyze the tragedy of the cold-hard facts and unfold the political exploits, motivations, and narrative of a divided nation.  In the meantime, TPB encourages all Americans not to “return-to-their-seats, strap-in and place-their-seats and tray-tables-in-their-upright-position”.   During these turbulent times, we must have the courage of our Founding Fathers and stand-up and take back this great country from our narrow-minded politicians.   In the words of Thomas Paine in 1776 –“We have it in our power to begin the world over again.   A situation, similar to the present, hath not happened since the days of Noah until now.  The birthday of a new world is at hand.”

TPB

Oh the Ides of March.  For you literature buffs, Julius Caesar was warned by a soothsayer to be on his guard against a great peril on the Ides of March.  It turned out to be the day he was assassinated.  With the current irresponsible and reckless healthcare deliberations taking place, the Ides of March may serve as a warning to the beginning of the end of America.

The current healthcare sham under consideration asks the house Democrats to have “faith and hope” that the Senate will solve their issues on healthcare. Let’s see, there is the Cornhusker Kickback, the Louisiana Purchase, the Gator-Aid, the Union Reprieve Pact and other secret behind-the-closed-door deals to name a few major budget issues to be solved.  Then there is the case regarding Abortion.  With so much love within and across party lines, and trust becoming the newest “five-letter” word for offensiveness, lies and crudity on Capital Hill, TPB knows which way I would choose in the up and down vote the President of the United States would like to have.  TPB’s thumb would not be pointing towards the heavens.

TPB is not sure what is happening on the City on the Potomac.  The ruling governing body of our great country has been afflicted with a dysfunctional and adverse identity disorder from the American people.  They have become clinically impaired with a mental capacity characterized by an abnormality in the perception of reality; a possessed “hobgoblin of little minds” only adored by their reflections in the mirror.

The Democrats have forgotten the words of the late President John F. Kennedy when he said– “We must always consider, that we shall be as a city upon a hill–the eyes of all people are upon us.”  America is taking note and TPB predicts other states will follow in the “remedy” footsteps of the State of Virginia and pass healthcare legislation prohibiting any requirement for residents to obtain and maintain healthcare coverage.  A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden and all eyes are taking notice of the political darkness setting over our capital.

Americans do want healthcare reform, not for “historical” purposes, but for the true intent and meaning of reducing costs, saving lives, and not adding to our nations debt.  The current application of healthcare serves none of these purposes. 

TPB

Preamble to the Constitution of the United States 

The Constitution of the United States is the cornerstone document and unifying strength upon which our country was founded.  It is the power and influence behind what our nation stands for and is the underlying principle for the legal authority of the federal government of the United States.   The Founding Fathers penned the Constitution with appropriate “checks and balances” between the three branches of government to prevent the abuse of power.  In the words of James Madison “ambition must be made to counteract ambition.”  

This Administration’s continuous assault and attempt to dismantle the Constitution to promote an unwanted ideology continues to paralyze this country.  The Founding Fathers, all too familiar with the “supremacy rule” of the European nations, consciously called for the separation of powers within our government to prevent the “violence of the majority faction” over another.

As prescribed in the Declaration of Independence “Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, —That whenever any form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness.” 

Upholding unalienable rights are at the heart of the current Tea Party movement. Freedom is an unstoppable force.  May the Blessings of Liberty ring from sea to shining sea.  

TPB

It is amazing what a difference a year makes.  The American population’s “magnetism” of the current Administration has moved to a diametric state.  No longer is the Obama hype of “hope and change” good enough to carry the weight of the American people.  America and the world are looking at things more critically, rationally and logically.  They are standing up to the nakedness of this Administration’s policies. TPB is reminded of the application of a magnifying glass to sunlight.  Political derrieres are being burned as the current Administration is receiving focused attention under the eyes of the American people.  Even key Democrats are jumping ship.  Hype and bumper sticker slogans are no longer a means into the American people’s heart and minds.

Long-term success means focusing on the issues at hand, not moving forward on pure ideological political agendas. The current Administration has failed on so many accounts, that there failures are too numerous to list. They have forgotten about the basis premise that with Democracy  “disagreement is good.”  As Stephen Covey has stated: “the exercise of true leadership is inversely proportional to the exercise of power.”

TPB

Happy New Year!  Another year has passed us by.  With the final twelfth toll of the midnight bell, Father Time passed the duties of managing the 10^th year of the third millennium to Baby New Year.  The debate is still out to as whether this administration had a good 2009.   As always, the story you will get depends where you sit.  But with every New Year comes reflection and the call for new resolutions.  TPB offers the following thoughts as we move into 2010:

1. Focus on the priorities of “We the people”.    Nothing more needs to be said.
2. Take a look at the Government checkbook.   Ask Equifax, Experian and Trans Union for a credit score.
3. Try a hand at bipartisanship.   It takes two to tango.
4. Make transparency a reality.  Openness, communication and accountability must start at the top.
5. Put the “Blame and We Inherited Game” back on the shelf.  Focusing on the past hinders progress.

As we head into the New Year, let the words of Thomas Jefferson be our guide.   “The two enemies of the people are criminals and government, so let us tie the second down with the chains of the Constitution so the second will not become the legalized version of the first.”

TPB

Merry Christmas America!  Your gift from the Democratic Party appears to be a healthcare reform bill destined to bankrupt America.  A bill brought to you through back room promises, sleight of hand practices, vigilante tactics, midnight compromises, non-bipartisanship and lack of transparency to the American people.  When we thought the threat to our great nation laid outside our borders, it appears we are being destroyed from within.  The “hearts and minds” of the American people have taken backseat to the reckless and depraved ideology of the Democratic Party. 

TPB had high hopes that Senator Joe Lieberman and Senator Ben Nelson would rise to the occasion and right this wrong.  When America needed a “knight-in-shining-armor”, a hero who in the face of danger and adversity would display the courage and serve the will of the American people, both buckled.  By rejecting the voices of the constituents they swore to protect, the shadowy Democratic Party has become the antiheroes of the day.

As the clock ticks down to the final vote, America hopes and prays for the appearance of a knight-errant to save the day and stop the systematic annihilation of democracy.  The self-imposed Democrat Healthcare Reform Christmas deadline has made sure that “If you want something BAD enough, you will get it BAD enough.”   It appears that Santa Claus will be placing lots of coal in stockings this year. 

TPB 

There is a silent uprising taking place across the plains of mid-America that transcends from sea-to-shining-sea.  Hard work, integrity, faith, loyalty, and honor make up their code of conduct.  Americans ready to stand-up for their way of life.  A way of life that has sustained generations and captured the envy of the rest of the world.  Americans ready to contest the current political disobedience taken place within the halls of Congress.   Americans who are stakeholders in the words “We the People…”and are not of afraid of standing up for what they believe.  

Jeffersonian in heart, they believe:

- “Democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not”. 

- “A wise and frugal government, which shall leave men free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned - this is the sum of good government.” 

- “Liberty is to the collective body, what health is to every individual body. Without health no pleasure can be tasted by man; without liberty, no happiness can be enjoyed by society.” 

- “The God who gave us life, gave us liberty at the same time.”

- “That government is best which governs the least, because its people discipline themselves.”

- “.…most bad government results from too much government.”

- “When the people fear their government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty.”

Leo Tolstoy in his novel War and Peace expressed “the strongest of all warriors are these two — time and patience”.  The countdown has begun. 

TPB

The Tenth Amendment of the United States Constitution was written by our Founding Fathers to limit the powers of the federal government.  I quote: “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”  The ongoing delusional behavior of the current administration, as well as their liberal interpretation of the basic principles by which this country is governed is hemorrhaging America.  

The political importunity that goes on behind the scenes despite the merits and value of the legislation being debated is pure moral indignation.  The current Healthcare Bill is not about serving the people of this country, but for the gratification of tit-for-tat politics,  reciprocal altruism and subtle cheating within the Democratic Party.

TPB believes those states that are tired of the political deception and tomfoolery going on in Washington should be vocal and work within their states for Healthcare Nullification Legislation.   It is within your rights. TPB