Fun Facts About the 50 States: Idaho

objections from Illinois, Indiana, and Iowa that there
Welcome to Fun Facts About the 50 States, where – week by week – I’ll be taking you on a tour around this great nation of ours, providing you with interesting, yet completely useless and probably untrue, information about each of the 50 states.
This week, we’ll be crushed to discover that there’s no such thing as a Mr. Potato Head Land theme park as we visit Idaho, so let’s get started…
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The Latin motto on the flag, “Esto Perpetua” means “in the divorce, she gets the deer head.

* Idaho became the 43rd state on July 3rd, 1890, despite were already too many states beginning with the letter “I”.
* Gutzon Borglum, the sculptor of Mount Rushmore, was born in Bear Lake, Idaho. He did his famous work in South Dakota after ruining every mountain in Idaho trying to get Washington’s nose just right.
* Idaho has only one radio station, but since all the surrounding mountains ruin the reception, it has only a handful of listeners. Although this may also be because it carries NPR.
* Idaho is America’s largest lumber producer and the only state in the US with a National Forest consisting entirely of stumps.
* The word “Idaho” comes from the Crow Indian word, “E-dah-how”, meaning “Is there ANY month when it doesn’t snow around here?”
* The tourism motto of Idaho is “Cold and boring like Canada, except with more gun-crazed right-wing militias”.
* The state tree of Idaho is the stump.
* Because of the long distances between cities in Idaho, most trucks carry an emergency Hyundai in the glove compartment.
* If your Hyundai doesn’t work and you become stranded in Idaho, it’s traditional to wait three hours before resorting to cannibalism.
* Idaho is home to numerous private militias, which, like their revolutionary forefathers, have orders to shoot anyone wearing a red coat.
* Idaho state law requires all registered Democrats to wear a red coat to the polls on election day.
* Hell’s Canyon in Idaho is 7900 feet deep, which makes it both deeper than the Grand Canyon AND a great place to throw registered Democrats after election day.
* Although normally a peaceful city, Boise, Idaho occasionally erupts with violent gunfights between rival gangs of skiers and snowboarders.
* The state bird of Idaho is the Bluebird, a shameful choice which clearly discriminates against the colorblind.
* Elk River, Idaho is home to the state’s largest tree. At nearly 200 feet tall, it’s estimated that this single tree contains enough wood to build a chair capable of supporting Michael Moore.
* In Idaho, it’s illegal to give someone a box of candy weighing more than 50 pounds, which is why Rosie O’Donnell will never play the Boise Improv.
* Well, that, and she’d end up in Hell’s Canyon after election day.
* Idaho is home to North America’s largest sand dune. It’s 470 feet tall, and is visited annually by over 1 million stray cats looking for a place to pee.
* Appaloosa horses originated in Idaho and were first bred by the local Indians as a war animal. Today, this hearty breed is still highly prized for its thick armor plating.
* The largest diamond ever found in the US was a 20-carat stone discovered in McCall, Idaho, which then changed its name to Bling City.
* Being a large but sparsely populated state, land is incredibly cheap in Idaho. However, due to high transportation costs for lumber, you can’t afford to build a house on your property unless you make it out of potatoes.
* The first nuclear power plant in the US was built in Arco, Idaho in 1953, but was destroyed in 1955 by giant mutant sheep.
* Arco is now known as the “Radioactive sweater capital of the world”.
* The firefighting ax was invented in Wallace, Idaho after giant mutant sheep drank the town’s entire water supply.
* Beaver Canyon, near the city of Spencer, Idaho, is rumored to be the site of a huge fortune in buried treasure. No one has found it yet because they’re too busy giggling at the canyon’s name to search for it.
* In 1925, the entire city of American Falls, Idaho was moved to make way for the American Falls Dam. The dam itself was recently moved to make way for a Wal-Mart.
* Thanks for the Kelo decision, Supreme Court!
* Jackasses.
* Television was invented in Rigby, Idaho, which may explain the city’s frighteningly low scores on standardized tests.
* In 1896, Butch Cassidy robbed the bank in Montpelier, Idaho, after being screwed out of his free tote bag when he opened a checking account there.
* Idaho law forbids children from deliberately stepping on ants. The kids don’t mind too much, however, since pistol-whipping them is still legal.
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That wraps up the Idaho edition of Fun Facts About the 50 States. Next week we’re off to the Land of Lincoln for a look at Illinois.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go pistol-whip some ants.

Jay Carney Refuses to Identify Capital of the United States

WASHINGTON (AP) – After twice dodging reporters’ questions on whether Tel Aviv or Jerusalem was the capital of Israel (it’s Jerusalem), White House Press Secretary Jay Carney later repeatedly declined to identify the capital of the United States.
The White House transcript reveals the exchange went like this:
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“Look, I’m just not very good at geographology, OK? Leave me alone!”

CONNIE LONG (USA Radio Network): Ok, Jay, here’s an easier question – what’s the capital of the United States.
CARNEY: I haven’t had that question in a while. Our position has not changed, Connie.
LONG: What is the position? What’s the capital?
CARNEY: You know our position.
LONG: I don’t.
CARNEY: Ok, well, you know that position where you have one foot on an ice floe, and one foot on a glacier, and the ice floe is slowly drifting out to sea, and your legs are spreading further & further apart and your pants rip because you don’t want to commit to moving either foot, so eventually you just fall into the icy water and get eaten by a walrus?
LONG: I don’t, but Lisa Murkowski might.
CARNEY: Well, that’s the position Mitt Romney’s in from twisting President Obama’s words by quoting him verbatim.
LES KINSOLVING (World Net Daily): Did you just change the subject?
CARNEY [looking down, shuffling feet]: …nnnnnnnoooo…
LONG: What’s the capital of the US, Jay?
CARNEY: Well, as has been the position of this administration from the beginning on this very complicated question, there are many conflicting theories. At one time or another, cities such as Philadelphia, Baltimore, and New York City have all served as America’s capital. To say that any of them are no longer the US capital, simply due to the mere passage of time, would be to disparage their service to this nation. It may also constitute unjust racial discrimination, as most verbal statements do. For example, when Mitt Romney said “Anglo-Saxon“.
KINSOLVING: You’re changing the subject again.
CARNEY: Your face is changing the subject!
LONG: What’s the capital of the US, Jay?
CARNEY: Well, again, our position has not changed. It’s very complicated. It could be lots of cities. Like Sacramento.
KINSOLVING: Sacramento’s the capital of California.
CARNEY: In one sense, yes, but Sacramento is a “capital”, and since it’s within America’s borders, it can be described as being “of the United States”. So if you were given two cities, like Sacramento and, say, Winnipeg, you could say “Sacramento, the capital of the United States”.
LONG: You COULD, but only an idiot WOULD.
CARNEY: Did not!
LONG [impatiently]: Jay… what’s the capital of the United States?
CARNEY: According to Mitt Romney, who refuses to admit the truth about it: BAIN Capital! HA!
JIM TREACHER (Daily Caller): Obama ate a dog.
CARNEY [sniffles, cries]: You’re mean! I’m telling! [runs off stage]
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After the press briefing, the three divisive reporters who hurt Mr. Carney’s feelings were barred from the briefing room and suspended without pay pending the completion of sensitivity training and an apology where they say it like they actually mean it.

Know Thy Enemy: Koch Brothers

Liberals are always going on and on about the Koch brothers. Even Aaron Sorkin in his parody of liberalism, Newsroom, recently went on and on about how the Koch brothers are behind the Tea Party and all other evil. But what do we really know about them? I sent my crack research staff to uncover all they could about these Koch brothers.
FUN FACTS ABOUT THE KOCH BROTHERS
* The names of the two brothers are Moloch and Baal.
* There is no actual evidence they are actually brothers. Or human.
* They have billions of dollars, mainly made by turning cute puppies into nuclear waste that they then dumped on orphans.
* They use their billions of dollars to make people against government using mind control rays, brainwashing, and think tanks.
* No one is actually against government spending, so the Tea Party is composed entirely of paid actors. Paid actors we’re quite certain will turn violent any day now.
* The three main motivations behind the Koch brothers are evil, pure evil, and double evil.
* No one ever self-identified as a conservative before the Koch brothers and their insidious money. If you think you were a conservative all your life, that’s just a false memory the Koch brothers implanted in your head using money.
* The Koch brothers had tricked liberals into thinking George W. Bush was behind every bad thing ever, but it is in fact the Koch brothers. And sometimes Palin.
* Don’t turn around; there’s a Koch brother behind you right now with money ready to influence you, and if you even look at him you’ll want small government.
* Half the thoughts in your head were put there by the Koch brothers’ money.
* If you find yourself surrounded by the Koch brothers and their money, then it’s too late for you. You probably already think government spending is too high.
* In a battle between the Koch brothers and Aquaman, Aquaman would be influenced by the Koch brothers’ evil money and join the Tea Party even though he used to love taxes.
* Everyone would think all the ideas of liberals are great if it weren’t for Koch brothers money. The fact that right now you’re thinking of punching liberals in their dumb, monkey faces is just the influence of their money. Fight their money influence; you can do it!
* KOCH BROTHERS!!!1!!111!!eleventy!!1!!
FULL DISCLOSURE: This post was paid for by the Koch brothers.

14 Fun Facts About CFL Bulbs

Whoops! Turns out those curly-whirly CFL bulbs that the government thinks are the greatest thing since food stamps emit radiation that damages skin cells. The don’t say “cancer”, but it’s not a huge stretch to infer that it’s on the table.
Huh. Funny how that wasn’t brought up before the incandescent bulb ban got written into law, despite the existence of a study with a similar conclusion existing in 2008.
So, apparently, there are some surprising things that most people don’t know about CFL bulbs.
Here are some more:
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Because CFL bulbs have a lower “color temperature” than incandescent lights, using a CFL bulb will make you look like this, even if you are a dude and don’t wear glasses.

1) The first fluorescent light bulb was invented by Thomas Edison in 1896. In the original design, the glass tube was perfectly straight, and was a commercial failure, being shunned as “homophobic.”
2) If a CFL bulb is broken, a very small amount of mercury can contaminate the surrounding environment. It takes 300 broken CFL bulbs to equal the mercury found in one FTD logo.
3) If every American home changed five lamps from traditional incandescent light bulbs to energy-efficient CFL bulbs, the country could prevent one trillion pounds of greenhouse gases from polluting our air. However, 100,000 people would also die tripping over coffee tables while charging into darkened rooms because they didn’t wait for their CFL bulbs to come on after they flipped the light switch.
4) CFL bulbs use 2 feet of glass tubing curled into a double-helix shape, much like DNA. As such, CFL bulbs will eventually mutate from their own radiation and rise up to kill their human oppressors.
5) CFL bulbs should be stored in a cool, dry place, far away from any incandescent bulbs, lest a violent turf war break out.
6) CFL bulbs use 75% less energy than standard incandescent light bulbs. This doesn’t make them efficient, just lazy.
7) CFL light bulbs will typically last about ten times longer than incandescent light bulbs. Think of CFLs as the Stride chewing gum of indoor lighting.
8) CFL bulbs cost a bit more than regular bulbs, but they pay for themselves in the long run. Don’t buy them if you’re really old.
9) Because of the large initial current draw to start a fluorescent bulb, it is not energy efficient to use a CFL bulb in a spot where the light is typically left on for 15 minutes or less, which is why incandescent bulbs should still be used in places like the White House’s Bill Clinton Memorial Intern Closet.
10) Unlike their tubular predecessors, modern CFL bulbs, with their electronic ballasts, do not flicker. They do, however, carefully watch you type in passwords on your computer in order to make their blood-soaked victory all the swifter come The Uprising.
11) If you break a CFL bulb, you should immediately follow the EPA’s detailed 3-page list of cleanup instructions. If you don’t, it shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.
12) Modern CFL bulbs are built with durability in mind, and can only be destroyed by a crucifix, holy water, or a stake through the heart.
13) In a battle between a CFL bulb and Aquaman, Aquaman would emerge victorious, but the CFL bulb would have the last laugh by killing all his fish friends by mercury poisoning.
14) Most CFL bulbs do not work with dimmers designed for use with incandescent lamps. If you really need a dim bulb, Joe Biden’s not busy.
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In the interest of fairness, I should mention that the detailed procedure for cleaning up a broken incandescent light bulb – 1) grab broom & dustpan, 2) sweep, 3) empty dustpan – also runs three pages, assuming you print it out in a sufficiently large font.

At His Core -- Obama is Anti-individual

This is important – this election. We have a president who treats the Constitution like a disposable placemat and who believes that when someone talks about the rule of law, they’re talking about him. This is a president who truly believes that he is there to fulfill the role of a ruler – not a leader – a president who’s own transition chief told the nation “We will be ready to rule from day one.” Phrases like that aren’t accidental.
Now listen closely to Obama’s rhetoric as he tries to extricate himself from the “you didn’t build that” comment 12 days ago. Don’t just listen to his comments. Don’t just read over them with mild curiosity. Absorb them … digest them. He’s displaying an underlying philosophy with nearly every utterance – an underlying philosophy of anti-individualism. YOU didn’t build that! WE did! Just listen ….
I’ve told you before that liberalism is a philosophy of anti-individualism. It’s there if you just listen for it. Actions of the individual are diminished … “You didn’t build that!” … while actions of the collective are praised.
About 15 years ago I developed an interest in collecting quotes from liberals slamming the idea of individualism and praising the idea of the collective. I’m listing those quotes below. Read them .. and tell me whether or not in your mind you can hear these words coming from Barack Obama. If you can – and I certainly can – then maybe you will have a better understanding of the threat that this man poses to our Republic and to our freedoms and liberty.

• "The main plank in the National Socialist program is to abolish the liberalistic concept of the individual and the Marxist concept of humanity and to substitute for them the folk community, rooted in the soil and bound together by the bond of its common blood." (Adolph Hitler, quoted in Hitler, A Study in Tyranny, by Alan Bullock (Harper Collins, NY))
  
• "It is thus necessary that the individual should come to realize that his own ego is of no importance in comparison with the existence of his nation; that the position of the individual ego is conditioned solely by the interests of the nation as a whole ... that above all the unity of a nation's spirit and will are worth far more than the freedom of the spirit and will of an individual. .... This state of mind, which subordinates the interests of the ego to the conservation of the community, is really the first premise for every truly human culture .... we understand only the individual's capacity to make sacrifices for the community, for his fellow man." (Adolph Hitler, 1933)
  
• There is the great, silent, continuous struggle: the struggle between the State and the Individual; between the State which demands and the individual who attempts to evade such demands. Because the individual, left to himself, unless he be a saint or hero, always refuses to pay taxes, obey laws, or go to war. (Benito Mussolini)
  
• Fascist ethics begin ... with the acknowledgment that it is not the individual who confers a meaning upon society, but it is, instead, the existence of a human society which determines the human character of the individual. According to Fascism, a true, a great spiritual life cannot take place unless the State has risen to a position of pre-eminence in the world of man. The curtailment of liberty thus becomes justified at once, and this need of rising the State to its rightful position. (Mario Palmieri, "The Philosophy of Fascism" 1936)
  
• "Comrades! We must abolish the cult of the individual decisively, once and for all." (Nikita Khrushchev , February 25, 1956 20th Congress of the Communist Party)
  
• "All our lives we fought against exalting the individual, against the elevation of the single person, and long ago we were over and done with the business of a hero, and here it comes up again: the glorification of one personality. This is not good at all." (Vladimir Lenin, as quoted in "Not by Politics Alone.)
  
• “We must stop thinking of the individual and start thinking about what is best for society." (Hillary Clinton, 1993)
  
• "We can't be so fixated on our desire to preserve the rights of ordinary Americans.” ..." (President Bill Clinton, USA Today, March 11, 1993, Page 2A)

And while we’re at it, I thought I would throw in just a few quotes that you would NEVER hear from the mouth of our Dear Ruler.

• "The smallest minority on earth is the individual. Those who deny individual rights cannot claim to be defenders of minorities." (Ayn Rand)
  
• When will the world learn that a million men are of no importance compared with one man? (Henry David Thoreau)

Top Ten Things Obama Has Not Released

As the Obama campaign and the media continue to press Mitt Romney to release more of his tax returns, and to suggest--without a shred of evidence--that he is a “felon,” it is worth noting how much critical information Barack Obama has withheld from view--both as a candidate in 2008, and during his term in office. Here is a top ten list of things that Obama has refused to release (a complete list would fill volumes):

10. State senate papers. In the 2008 primary, Obama criticized Hillary Clinton for not releasing papers from her eight years as First Lady--but failed to produce any papers from his eight years in Springfield. “They could have been thrown out,” he said.
9. Academic transcripts. His supposed academic brilliance was a major selling point, but Obama (by his own admission) was a mediocre student. His GPA at Occidental was a B-plus at best, and his entering class at Columbia was weak. Can he prove his merit?
8. Book proposal. Obama’s literary agent claimed he was “born in Kenya”--for sixteen years. His original book proposal exists--biographer David Maraniss refers to it--and seems to have embellished other key details of his life. Yet it has never been released.
7. Medical records. In 2000, and again (briefly) in 2008, GOP presidential candidate Sen. John McCain released thousands of pages of his medical records. Obama, who had abused drugs and continued smoking, merely provided a one-page doctor’s note.
6. Small-dollar donors. In 2008, the McCain campaign released the names of donors who had contributed less than $200, though it was not required to do so. But the Obama campaign refused, amidst accusations it had accepted illegal foreign contributions.
5. The Khalidi tape. In 2003, Obama attended a party for his good friend, the radical Palestinian academic Rashid Khalidi. The event featured incendiary anti-Israel rhetoric. The LA Times broke the story, but has refused to release the tape--and so has Obama.
4. The real White House guest list. Touting its transparency, the Obama White House released its guest logs--but kept many visits secret, and moved meetings with lobbyists off-site. It also refused to confirm the identities of visitors like Bertha Lewis of ACORN.
3. Countless FOIA requests. The Obama administration has been described as “the worst” ever in complying with Freedom of Information Act requests for documents. It has also punished whistleblowers like David Walpin, who exposed cronyism in Americorps.
2. Health reform negotiations. Candidate Obama promised that health care reform negotiations would be televised on C-SPAN. Instead, there were back-room deals worth millions with lobbyists and legislators--the details of which are only beginning to emerge.
1. Fast and Furious documents. After months of stonewalling Congress, Attorney General Eric Holder asked President Obama to use executive privilege to conceal thousands of documents related to the deadly scandal--and Obama did just that.
In addition to the above, Obama and his campaign have lied about many facts about his past--his membership in the New Party; his extensive connections with ACORN; and his continued relationship with domestic terrorist Bill Ayers and Jeremiah Wright, among other examples. Obama’s own memoir is filled with fabrications. And now he is lying about his opponent’s honorable record in business. He--and the media--have no shame.

Fun Facts About the 50 States: Hawaii

Welcome to Fun Facts About the 50 States, where – week by week – I’ll be taking you on a tour around this great nation of ours, providing you with interesting, yet completely useless and probably untrue, information about each of the 50 states.
This week, we’ll discover that pineapple has other uses besides ruining perfectly good pizza as we visit Hawaii, so let’s get started…
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The current flag of Hawaii was first adopted on December 29, 1845, providing much-needed relief from the arduous task of trying to get a bobble-hip hula-girl figurine to balance on top of a flagpole.

* Hawaii became the 50th state on August 21st 1959, and is the only state in the US made up entirely of islands.
* At least until California’s next earthquake.
* The Native Hawaiian alphabet contains only 12 letters, making it less than half as difficult to pass a sobriety test there.
* Hawaii has five cities with a population over 100,000, none of which I can pronounce without hurting myself.
* Contrary to the popular stereotype, not all native Hawaiians wear grass skirts and do the hula dance. Just the men.
* Well, the gay ones, anyway.
* Hawaii is home to numerous species of beautifully colored butterflies. Unfortunately, they all have a taste for human eyeballs, so you probably shouldn’t look at them.
* Native Hawaiians all have dark skin, straight black hair, and brown eyes. Sorta like Mexicans, except without the “sneaking across the border” part.
* Most Dole pineapples are grown in Hawaii, and should NOT be confused with former Senator Bob Dole, since most pineapples could beat Bill Clinton in a Presidential election.
* Hawaiian pineapples also refrain from referring to themselves in the third person.
* Despite the impression given by the TV show “Magnum, P.I.”, most Hawaiians don’t have the same mustache as Saddam Hussein.
* However, I hear the John Bolton look is becoming quite trendy.
* The Hawaiian Islands are actually a chain of active volcanoes. Except for Mount Kilauea, which is dormant and serves as the hidden lair of an evil genius bent on global domination.
* The main mode of sea transportation in Hawaii is the outrigger canoe. On land, it’s hopping around and yelling, “OW! This lava’s burning my feet! OW! OW! OW!”
* The word “Hawaii” comes from the native Hawaiian word “Owhyhee”, which means “That drink’s gonna cost ya 15 bucks, ya stupid tourist! MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
* While vacationing in Hawaii, someone may approach you on the beach and offer to take your picture. Don’t fall for this scam. He’s actually trying to steal your soul with his evil voodoo box. Run away screaming.
* Although it never snows in Hawaii, “Sno-Cones” are a very popular treat. However, you’ll probably want to avoid the so-called “lemon-flavored” yellow ones.
* No, I *didn’t* enjoy my Hawaiian vacation, but thanks for asking.
* Much like Illinois, Hawaii has no professional football team worth mentioning.
* While at the beach in Hawaii, never turn your back on the ocean, lest scurvy pirates take you unawares. YARRRRR!
* Again – NOT a good vacation.
* If you have an extended stay in Hawaii, remember that ALL goods must be imported to this tiny island state. In the event of a Longshoreman’s strike, always booby trap your precious horde of toilet paper to discourage theft.
* Although Native Hawaiians never wear shoes this is NOT an invitation to play “this little piggy” with them.
* Hawaii Five-O was a fictional TV show, and is NOT an actual crime-fighting organization. If you’re the victim of a crime while visiting Hawaii, you’ll have to take matters into your own hands by handcuffing people at random until you’ve calmed down.
* The temperature in Hawaii almost never falls below 60 degrees Fahrenheit. At 59 degrees, native Hawaiians freeze solid and will shatter at the slightest touch.
* If you accidentally shatter a Hawaiian, blame another tourist and escape during the ensuing confusion.
* The state sport of Hawaii is shark-feeding… oh… sorry… “surfing”.
* While relaxing at the beach in Hawaii, tip your waiter generously, or don’t be surprised when you wake up from your little nap by the ocean with the word “DORK” written in sunscreen across your chest.
* Yeah… REALLY bad vacation.
* In Hawaii, bikinis and speedos are considered acceptable attire at even the most formal events. As long as you can remember that “eye-contact” involves actually lifting your head, you’ll be fine.
* Good luck on THAT one, ya perv.
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That wraps up the Hawaii edition of Fun Facts About the 50 States. Next week we’ll be fleeing for our lives from giant radioactive potatoes as we visit Idaho.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go find another tourist to blame this shattered Hawaiian on.

10 of the Lots of Things on Obama’s Plate

Asked why Obama’s hasn’t met with his Job Council for 6 months, Jay Carney said “there’s no specific reason except that the president’s obviously got a lot on his plate.”
[INSERT DOG-EATING JOKE HERE]
So, what else has been presidential platter-plugging since January?:
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Polishing his “Osama the Dead Terrorist” ventriloquist act.

1) Congratulatory slut-calls.
2) Working up an attack strategy for that tricky par 3 4th hole at Andrews.
3) Shuffling through mountains of potential names for the cradle-to-grave welfare-woman cartoon poster-child.
4) Up until late June, it was nothing but wait for the SCOTUS call on Obamacare, bite nails, bleed, bandage, repeat.
5) Researching whether there was a snootier-sounding way to pronounce “POCK-e-ston” (there isn’t).
6) Figuring out who his son would’ve looked like. Also, how he would’ve felt about Skittles.
7) Taking Russian yoga class for increased post-election flexibility
8) Finding excuses to sneak out of the White House without Michelle so he can get a meal that doesn’t include those deadly poisonous Toxic Avenger veggies from the White House garden.
9) Working on plan to come out as 1/32 Cherokee. Still looking for plagiarized recipes he can use as evidence. Also, having a devil of a time arranging surgery for cheekbone implants.
10) Busy creating shovel ready jobs, aka shallow graves for Fast & Furious documents.
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Of course, lately he mostly spends his time doodling tophats & monocles on pictures of Mitt Romney.

YOU DIDN'T BUILD THAT !!!!

Obama says: “Look, if you’ve been successful, you didn’t get there on your own…If you’ve got a business -- you didn’t build that. Somebody else made that happen.” The President chooses to overlook the fact that most business owners and entrepreneurs actually do work hard and have earned the right to be acknowledged accordingly. Granted, the incentive to be the best business and create the best product is rooted in monetary rewards as well as personal liberty. Yet, businesses do not create themselves. Someone has to create them and these individuals themselves deserve the credit for “making this happen”. My grandfather started a multi-generational business many years ago which has benefitted many generations after him. Using the resources available to him at the time, he made it happen, not somebody else.

Not only does the President want to “spread the wealth around” as he stated before he was elected but now it appears he wants to spread the credit of individual success around as well. I cannot think of one business owner who would NOT honestly give due credit to “roads and bridges” built by prior generations for our benefit, therefore I do not think that this is a credible argument for the President to cling to. Besides, a portion of the local taxes we all PRESENTLY pay are supposed to be allotted for these very services anyway.

To be logically consistent, if the President’s argument is to acknowledge our predecessors who have established the opportunity for our success then certainly God himself should be at the top of this list. I don’t hear the President giving Almighty God due credit for creating the raw materials of the world in the first place or the giving of wisdom to each new generation. Crazy thought, I know. The President says he’s a Christian yet I wonder if this thought has crossed his mind.

History demonstrates that the more money we give our government the more it is often mismanaged. This translates to less control of the ever dwindling amount we get to keep and invest ourselves. Who gets to decide when enough is enough? Government is not a prerequisite for success. There were plenty of successful hard working people who preceded the establishment of government. In fact, our balanced government is one defined as “We, the people”. All of us are accountable to God how we use our resources and we should all hold the few in government accountable as well. Just a few thoughts rolling around in my opinionated, fertile mind.

Resumes of the Candidates...

Mitt Romney:

Volunteer campaign worker for his dad's gubernatorial campaign 1 year.
Worked as an unpaid intern in the Governor's office 8 years.
Was a Mormon missionary in Paris for 2 years.
Worked as an unpaid bishop and state president for his church 10 years.
Took no salary as president of the Olympics 3 years.
Took no salary as MA governor 4 years.
That's a grand total of 28 years of unpaid service to his country,
his community and his church.


Why?
Because that's the kind of character Mitt Romney has!

President Obama:

Pot smoker
College student Community Organizer.
Absentee Senator
Sat in a swearing, ranting racist's church for 20 years.
Hasn’t kept any campaign promises.
Serial Liar!
Has run the country into the ground.
Failed President!

That’s a grand total of ZERO years in business and twenty years in a racist church…where he didn’t hear anything.

WHY?

Because that’s the kind of character President Obama has.

Top Ten Felons, Fugitives, and Shady Characters in Obama's Life

Now that the increasingly erratic and desperately sleazy Obama campaign has decided to cavalierly throw around the word "felony" when it comes to pushing a campaign of lies surrounding Mitt Romney and Bain Capital, this seems like a good time to jump in the wayback machine for a look at the actual convicted felons, criminals, and dubious characters who have always been associated with Barack Obama's political life.

What? What's that? You don’t want to talk about this?

Objection overruled, Corrupt Media!

The President opened this door, and now we're going to walk right on through it.

Starting with…

1. Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich: Sentenced to 14 years in prison for political corruption.

NBC Chicago:

President Barack Obama's chief of staff, then a congressman in Illinois, apparently attempted to trade favors with embattled Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich while he was in office, according to newly disclosed e-mails obtained by The Associated Press.

Emanuel agreed to sign a letter to the Chicago Tribune supporting Blagojevich in the face of a scathing editorial by the newspaper that ridiculed the governor for self-promotion. Within hours, Emanuel's own staff asked for a favor of its own: The release of a delayed $2 million grant to a school in his district.

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2. Tony Rezko: Sentenced to 10 and a half years for corruption and kickbacks.

Politico:

Rezko raised money for Obama when he ran for Illinois senator, but not during his presidential campaign, the AP noted.

Obama also involved Rezko in a house deal after he was elected to the U.S. Senate, a move he later called “a boneheaded mistake,” according to a 2008 report in ABC News.

Obama wanted to purchase a home that the seller had a specific condition on: the adjacent empty lot to the house had to be purchased at the same time, ABC News reported. In the house deal, Rezko’s wife paid the full asking price for that parcel, $625,000.

Obama shelled out $300,000 under the house’s asking price, paying $1.65 million, according to ABC News. Obama then purchased a part of Rezko’s lot for $104,500.

“It was a mistake to have been engaged with him at all in this or any other personal business dealing that would allow him, or anyone else, to believe he had done me a favor,” Obama told the Sun-Times at the time.

Obama said his connection to Rezko was “above board and legal.”

Rezko and others connected to him gave Obama’s 2004 Senate campaign more than $120,000, ABC News reported.

ABC News:

While Rezko's wife paid the full asking price for the land, Obama paid $300,000 under the asking price for the house. The house sold for $1,650,000 and the price Rezko's wife paid for the land was $625,000.

Obama denies there was anything unusual about the price disparity. He says the price on the house was dropped because it had been on the market for some time but that the price for the adjacent land remained high because there was another offer.

Obama then expanded his property by buying a strip of the Rezko land for $104,500, which the senator maintains was a fair market price.

Obama later told the Chicago Sun-Times, "It was a mistake to have been engaged with him at all in this or any other personal business dealing that would allow him, or anyone else, to believe he had done me a favor."

Obama had known Rezko long before the house deal, calling him a "friend."

An ABC News review of campaign records shows Rezko, and people connected to him, contributed more than $120,000 to Obama's 2004 campaign for the U.S. Senate, much of it at a time when Rezko was the target of an FBI investigation.

It's important to keep in mind that this was dutiful reporting from the media. Any attempts to turn this into the Bain-style narrative it deserved and still deserves to be has always been blunted by the media. This is the shadiest land deal involving a politician in my lifetime, and Obama got away with it legally and politically.

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3. Courtney Dupree: Democratic fundraiser convicted of bank fraud.

Daily News:

Dupree, who attended the elite Wharton School of Business, was a rainmaker in Democratic circles.

In 2008, Dupree hosted a $1,000-a-ticket fund-raiser for Barack Obama at his Broad St. apartment that was attended by top aide Valerie Jarrett.

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4. Willie Shepherd: Obama bundler plead guilty to assault.

Denver Post:

On Tuesday, Shepherd was sentenced to 12 months of supervised probation, according to state court documents.

Shepherd, the former finance co-chairman of the Democratic National Convention host committee, was originally charged with negligent child abuse and third-degree assault that knowingly caused injury — a class one misdemeanor. Those charges were dismissed and Shepherd pleaded guilty to the class two misdemeanor.

Denver Post:

Shepherd, 44, the former finance co-chairman of the Democratic National Convention host committee and $100,000-plus bundler for Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign, pleaded not guilty to the charges last month at a Denver court hearing.

Denver police on Sept. 13 were called to Shepherd's house by his wife, Sarah Trainor-Shepherd, who said she had been the victim of domestic violence, according to the arrest affidavit.

The court document says police officers noticed a red mark on her brow and bruises on her face and arm, but Trainor-Shepherd then told police she did not want to press charges.

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5. John Corzine: Top Obama fundraiser currently under FBI investigation. Obama's "Wall Street guy."

MSNBC:

Jon Corzine, now the center of an FBI investigation into the handling of hundreds of millions of dollars invested in his securities firm, was one of the leading Wall Street fundraisers for President Obama’s campaign and suggested to investors that he might take a top administration post if the president were re-elected.

His new legal troubles, sparked by the bankruptcy filing of his investment firm, MF Global, could complicate the president’s efforts to raise money from the financial community given Corzine’s central role in those efforts.

A recent list of top “bundlers” or elite fundraisers released by Obama’s campaign listed Corzine in the highest category -- reporting that he had raised more than $500,000 for the campaign. A substantial chunk of those funds were collected at a $35,800 per ticket fundraiser that Corzine hosted at his wife’s spacious Fifth Avenue apartment last April -- an event that was touted at the time as part of a concerted effort by the president’s campaign team to reach out to well-heeled Wall Street donors who had been alienated by some of his policies and previous public comments.

Star Ledger:

In a sign of his emerging role as a financial guru for Barack Obama, Gov. Jon Corzine Sunday unveiled the latest piece of the presidential candidate's plan to curb soaring oil prices.

The governor touted an Obama proposal that marked the latest clash between the Democrat and Republican opponent John McCain over energy policy, as voters rank the economy as their biggest concern heading into the November election.

In his plan, Obama calls for more regulation in oil markets by promising to close the so-called "Enron loophole" that exempts some energy trading from federal oversight. The rollout also provided a showcase for Corzine, the former Goldman Sachs CEO whom Obama referred to as "our Wall Street guy" at a meeting of Democratic governors in Chicago on Friday.

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6. Shervin Neman: Obama bundler currently under investigation for fraud.

Politico:

The Obama campaign will return the donations of an accused Ponzi schemer who is facing an SEC investigation, a campaign official confirms.

"With 1.8 million donors thus far, we constantly review those contributions for issues. In this particular case, we will be refunding the contributions and have placed the funds in escrow until a trusteeship or other appropriate place to return these funds is established given the interests of the investors," a campaign official told POLITICO.

Shervin Neman, a hedge fund manager in Los Angeles, stands accused by the SEC of defrauding members of his California Persian-Jewish community, the conservative Washington Free Beacon reports.

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7. Abake Assongba: Obama bundler under investigation for fraud.

Washington Post:

New Yorker Abake Assongba has pledged to help President Obama win reelection, and as one of his 400 volunteer fundraisers, she has delivered $50,000 to the cause.

But she is also trailed by some controversy, accused in court of defrauding a businessman out of $657,000, impersonating a bank official and dodging creditors.

Assongba disputes the allegations, but the mysteries around her personal life highlight a challenge for Obama’s reelection effort and other presidential campaigns. The astronomical cost of running for the White House requires an army of bundlers, many of whom are strangers to the campaign. And as candidates quickly learn, it is no small task to woo — and vet — those citizen fundraisers.

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8. Alberto and Carlos Cardona: Obama bundlers with ties to a Mexican fugitive accused of attempted assassinations.

Politico:

The Obama campaign will return more than $200,000 in campaign donations from the American relatives of a fugitive Mexican businessman and casino owner, a campaign official said Tuesday.

“On the basis of the questions that have been raised, we will return the contributions from these individuals and from any other donors they brought to the campaign,” said Ben LaBolt, a spokesman for the campaign.

The fugitive, Juan Jose Rojas “Pepe” Cardona, fled drug charges and other legal troubles in Iowa in 1994 and rose to prominence as a wealthy Mexican casino operator. State Department reports have also linked him as a suspect in attempted assassinations of business rivals and illegal political donations in Mexico.

According to a story first reported by The New York Times, Pepe Cardona’s American brothers have suddenly emerged as major Democratic donors — raising and contributing up to $300,000 to the Obama campaign alone, mostly from relatives. The donations put one brother, Alberto Rojas Cardona, in the top bracket of Obama campaign volunteer fundraisers, known as bundlers.

According to the Times, another brother, Carlos Cardona, has also been approaching political figures — including a former chairman of the Iowa Democratic Party and a former governor of Iowa — trying to seek a pardon for his brother Pepe Cardona.

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9. Solyndra: First company to receive taxpayer backed loans from Obama. Solyndra's investors are Obama bundlers. The FBI raided Solyndra last September.

Breitbart News:

The Obama Administration loaned over $500 million to Solyndra via an accelerated process; later, of course, Solyndra went bankrupt and had to fire 1,100 employees. Some of Solyndra’s biggest stakeholders were major Obama donors – George Kaiser, an Oklahoma billionaire, raised between $50,000 and $100,000 in 2008; Steve Westly, an Obama bundler, was linked with Solyndra; so was Steve Spinner, another Obama fundraiser, who pushed the Administration to greenlight the loan, even while his wife’s law firm was legally representing the company.

Bloomberg:

An FBI raid on Solyndra Inc., a solar-panel maker that failed after receiving a $535 million loan guarantee from the U.S. Energy Department, may signal the escalation of a probe into the Obama administration’s clean- energy program.

Agents for Energy Department Inspector General Gregory Friedman, who has called the department’s clean-energy loan program lacking in “transparency and accountability,” joined in the search yesterday at the Fremont, California, headquarters of Solyndra, which filed for bankruptcy protection on Sept. 6.

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10. Bill Ayers: Unrepentant domestic terrorist. Early Obama backer. Fellow board-member of the Woods Foundation. 4th of July pal.

Breitbart News:

As a presidential candidate in 2008, Barack Obama disavowed any connection with former domestic terrorist Bill Ayers, the Weather Underground radical who was one of Obama's early backers and his colleague on the board of the Woods Fund in Chicago. We now have proof that Obama's association with Ayers continued even after Obama had been elected to represent Illinois in the U.S. Senate--in the form of a now-scrubbed blog post placing Obama at the home of Ayers and his wife, fellow radical Bernardine Dohrn, on July 4, 2005.

Dr. Tom Perrin, Assistant Professor of English at Huntingdon College in Montgomery, Alabama, was a graduate student at the University of Chicago at the time, and maintained a blog called "Rambling Thomas." He lived next door to Ayers and Dohrn in Hyde Park. He wrote at 8:44 a.m. on July 6, 2005:

Guess what? I spent the 4th of July evening with star Democrat Barack Obama! Actually, that's a lie. Obama was at a barbecue at the house next door (given by a law professor who is a former member of the Weather Underground) and we saw him over the fence at our barbecue. Well, the others did. It had started raining and he had gone inside be the time I got there. Nevertheless.

Dohrn is a Clinical Associate Professor of Law at Northwestern University, and Chicago did, in fact, record rainfall on the Fourth of July holiday in 2005.

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We all know the media will refuse to vet Obama's sordid past until he's safely out of office. But other than Ayers, every convicted felon and person under investigation listed here was a part of Obama's political life while he was president or running for president.

In the case of domestic terrorist Bill Ayers, he and Obama enjoyed that barbecue together in 2005, when Obama was only a United States Senator.

Obama by the numbers

Some recovery.
The nation’s economy added just 80,000 jobs in June. That works out to 75,000 a month in the second quarter of 2012 — a third of the first-quarter pace, the Labor Department disclosed yesterday.
Plus, about one-third of the new second-quarter jobs were in temporary services.
The unemployment rate held steady at 8.2 percent — the longest streak at 8 percent or above since the Great Depression.
And even that number is misleading.
The Social Security Administration reported yesterday that more workers went on federal disability last month (85,000) than got jobs (80,000) — a startling development all by itself, but one that also obscured the real national unemployment rate
That’s because folks going on disability are no longer formally in the work force — and, thus, not counted as unemployed.
Amazingly, President Obama yesterday called the new numbers “a step in the right direction.”
Back in 2009, by the way, Obama predicted that if his $800 billion “stimulus” were passed, unemployment would be just 5.6 percent today.
Well, that bloated program passed. But somehow, things haven’t worked out as the president was certain they would.
Little wonder, then, that the White House yesterday cautioned Americans “not to read too much into one monthly report” — the same response Team Obama has been giving monthly since November 2009.
But a close look at some of the figures shows just how desperate the Obama economy is becoming:
* The broader unemployment rate, which also covers people who aren’t looking for work or who are employed only part-time because they can’t find a full-time job, is 14.9 percent.
* Minorities are being hit particularly hard: The unemployment rate among African-Americans is 14.4 percent; among Hispanics, 11 percent.
* The number of long-term unemployed (27 weeks or more) is 5.4 million — accounting for 42 percent of the jobless. Overall, there are 13 million unemployed Americans.
* The number of unemployed women is 5.785 million — up 780,000 since Obama took office.
Overall consumer confidence is down — Americans have cut back on spending, despite the rapid drop in gasoline prices.
And if Americans don’t spend, companies will have less reason to hire.
Moreover, since the labor force is growing at a much faster rate than job growth, unemployment is almost certain to keep rising.
“A kick in the gut,” is how GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney aptly put it.
“There are no quick fixes,” is how the chairman of Obama’s Council of Economic Advisers reacted.
And, it seems, no long-term ones, either.

Fun Facts About the 50 States: Georgia

Welcome to Fun Facts About the 50 States, where – week by week – I’ll be taking you on a tour around this great nation of ours, providing you with interesting, yet completely useless and probably untrue, information about each of the 50 states.
This week, it’s time to realize too late that the fuzzy thing you’re eating isn’t a peach, it’s just been in the fridge too long as we visit Georgia, so let’s get started…
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Between 2001 and 2003, the state flag of Georgia was changed 3 times before settling on this. The latest version consists of a white background with black lettering that says “YOUR DESIGN HERE: $50″

* Georgia became the 4th state on January 2nd, 1788, and its citizens commemorate this day each year by shooting British people with muskets.
* Contrary to popular myth, not everyone who lives in Georgia is a redneck. There’s plenty of toothless, moonshine-swilling hillbillies, too.
* Coca-Cola was invented in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1886. The original formula has changed since then, and the drink no longer contains actual cocaine or the blood of virgins.
* “Georgia” is a Cherokee Indian word meaning, “Are those rednecks or hillbillies?”
* Despite the way natives pronounce the state’s name, “Jawjah” is NOT spelled with a W.
* Unlike the word “dawg”.
* Since it almost never snows in Georgia, children there spend winters having cotton ball fights.
* While having a cotton ball fight, it’s considered cheating to stuff a peach pit in the cotton.
* In Georgia, everything is made out of cotton. Except the peaches, which are made out of okra.
* Atlanta, Georgia, has the worst traffic of any city in the US, since every street in the city is named “Peachtree Road”.
* The last time it snowed in Georgia, the confused natives thought it was ash from the Yankees burning Atlanta again.
* The state motto of Georgia is “Wisdom, Justice, Moderation.”, which replaced the old motto of “Whiskey, Hookers, NASCAR.”
* In Georgia, every soft drink is referred to as “Coke”. Except for Pepsi, which is referred to as “Damn Yankee Poison”.
* After Jimmy Carter left the presidency in 1981, he returned to his home town of Plains, Georgia, and went on a bloody shooting rampage.
* Wait… I meant to type “worked for Habitat for Humanity”. Stupid autocorrect.
* The only way to get to Florida from Georgia is by sea, since the Georgia-Florida border is heavily defended by landmines and alligators.
* The Georgia Music Hall of Fame in Macon, Georgia, celebrates the careers of all the talented musicians who were born in Georgia, and is currently empty.
* They WERE going to put in a Ray Charles exhibit, but they figured there was no point, since he wouldn’t see it anyway.
* Saint Marys, Georgia, is the second-oldest city in the US, and will soon be moving to Florida to retire.
* If it can make it past the landmines and alligators, that is.
* The state fish of Georgia is the largemouth bass, which shouldn’t be confused with the much more common loudmouth drunk.
* The name of Georgia’s largest swamp, the Okefenokee, comes from a Shawnee Indian word meaning “I’d rather live in a swamp than eat okra”.
* Georgia was originally populated by settlers from England and drunk people from Alabama who couldn’t find their way home.
* The Governor’s mansion in Georgia is the only quadruple-wide trailer in America.
* Some people are offended by the fact that three Confederate leaders are carved into the side of Georgia’s Stone Mountain. Other people figure it’s ok, since the back ends of the horses point north.
* In Georgia, it’s considered ungentlemanly to stare at a woman’s breasts while talking to her.
* Unless she’s REALLY hot.
* In the year 2227, Dr. Leonard McCoy will be born in Atlanta, Georgia and will go on to become Chief Medical Officer of the USS Enterprise. If you already knew this, then you’re a pathetic nerd who will never kiss a girl.
* The most common cause of death in Georgia is getting murdered in a fight over the proper way to pronounce the word “pecan”.
* Georgia is the state most likely to be invaded by Jane Fonda and have its peanut oil stolen to power her tour bus.
* The official state prepared food of Georgia is grits, which consists of coarsely ground bits of corn and shouldn’t be confused with hog slop, which is made from coarsely ground bits of corn.
* Although Georgia is already America’s #1 grower of peanuts, farmers there are working to develop a “super-peanut” which will be twice as large and shoot laser beams out of its eyes.
* They hope to use it to stop Jane Fonda.
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That wraps up the Georgia edition of Fun Facts About the 50 States. Next week we’ll be slipping into a grass skirt for our trip to Hawaii.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go murder someone who said “PEE-can”

FUN FACTS ABOUT DEMOCRATS

Fun Facts about Democrats:

• Democrats can’t enter the House unless voted in. (The Senate, however, is a different story).

• Democrats aren’t afraid of the dark. They are, however, afraid of Fox News.

• Democrats like to use the word “racist”. They don’t know what this word means.

• Everyone votes Democrat after they die.

• Do not accept a ride home from a Democrat.

• Democrats scream at things they don’t understand – like people who disagree with them.

• If a Democrat steals your Halloween candy, don’t worry — you’ll get part of it back as a “stimulus”.

• The founding fathers used invisible ink to write parts of the Constitution. Only Democrats have the special glasses that let you see those parts.

15 FUN FACTS ABOUT FRIDAY THE 13TH

I’m not superstitious, but millions of other people are, to one degree or another. On the off chance that one of those millions isn’t too petrified to go on the internet, I offer the following to help sweep away the gloomy clouds of supernatural fear by shining the light of knowledge against their primitive mindless terror with these
FUN FACTS ABOUT FRIDAY THE 13TH
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If Friday the 13th is so unlucky, how come his niece, Lady Aberlin, was so hot?

1) The superstition of Friday the 13th being a day of bad luck was created by Henry Sutherland Edwards on Friday, November 13th, 1868, while playing craps, after having lost his life savings on an all-or-nothing bet by rolling a 13. He died later that day of food poisoning after eating a bad Spicy Craft-Beer Cheeseburger at T.G.I. Friday’s.
2) Due to the year having a number of days not divisible by 7, plus the occasional leap year, the number of Friday the 13ths will vary between 1 and 3 each year. Biblical prophecy, however, clearly states that one year will have a 4th Friday the 13th, during which SyFy will run a Firefly Season 2 marathon.
3) The scientific term for fear of Friday the 13th is “paraskevidekatriaphobia”, which is derived from a collection of Greek words that translate literally as “superstitious pansy”.
4) In America, Friday the 13th is traditionally celebrated by donning sports equipment and chasing teenagers through a campground with a machete.
5) If your birthday is on the 13th, then Friday the 13th is actually a lucky day for you. Expect a shiny new iPad. Everyone else – have an Etch A Sketch.
6) The official flower of Friday the 13th is whichever one you’re allergic to.
7) Famous movie director Alfred Hitchcock was born on Friday the 13th, 1899. The first draft of the script for his classic film “Psycho” was originally a much tamer story, where Janet Leigh was horrified to discover that there was no mint on her pillow.
8) Cuban dictator Fidel Castro was born on Friday the 13th, 1926. Oddly, the day of his birth is officially considered a lucky day by Cuban citizens. The day of his death – even more so.
9) Stockbroker and author Thomas W. Lawson, in his 1907 novel “Friday the Thirteenth,” wrote of a stockbroker’s attempts to take down Wall Street. Bizarrely, without the use of bongos.
10) The Stress Management Center and Phobia Institute in Asheville, NC, estimates that airlines lose $900 million due to people’s fear of flying on Friday the 13th, which is about the same as the amount lost due to fear of overly-intimate TSA patdowns on any other day.
11) The British Medical Journal did a study that shows that car accidents occur more often on Friday the 13th, although some people claim it’s merely coincidental, since Friday the 13th is also “Drive on the Wrong Side of the Road Day” in England. Wacky Limeys!
12) Scientists predict that the Earth will be destroyed on Friday, April 13th, 2029 from an impact by the asteroid 99942 Apiophis. On the bright side, you won’t have to worry about paying your taxes for 2028.
13) Legendary rapper Tupac Shakur was shot and killed in Las Vegas on Friday, September 13th, 1996. His last words were “don’t point that gun at me, you superstitious pansy!”
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Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go set up the DVR for the Firefly Season 2 marathon.

OPEN LETTER TO MICHELLE

Dear Michelle...

On the day that your husband was elected, you said that you had never been proud of the United States until that day. For the last three and a half years, I have been observing your husband and you, and I feel that it is time I share my thoughts with you. The day your husband was elected was the first time I was ever ashamed of this country, and today I am even more ashamed.

I was ashamed then because your husband was not elected because he was the best qualified to do the job, or because he was the most intelligent, or even because anyone really thought he could get anything worthwhile done. The reason your husband was elected, the only reason, is because of the color of his skin. Your husband was chosen by the Democratic Party to be their “token black”, and that is the shame of the American public. We deserve better than a community organizer who seems to look down on his fellow Americans while bowing to an Arab leader. We deserve a president who was thoroughly vetted by his party and the media, not someone whom the DNC now admits was never even eligible for the job. There are many other men, Black, Hispanic, of Asian descent, Native American, and even Caucasian who are many times more qualified and eligible to be the president. If he had even a shred of self respect, Barack would resign and convince Joe Biden to do so as well, so that someone with a backbone could fix the mess your husband (NOT George Bush) has made much worse.

Your husband said he would bring unity to the country; instead, he has brought class warfare and fanned the flames of racism by saying that his son would look like Travon Martin. When the Pharisees asked Jesus what the greatest commandment was, he replied, “‘you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’” “This is the greatest foremost commandment.” “The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” “On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”(Matt.22:37-40 NAS). Notice that there is no modifying clause in the second commandment “You shall love thy neighbor as yourself.” NOT “You shall love your neighbor as yourself, so long as his skin is the same color as yours or he does not make more money than you.” In our home, race is not an issue; everyone is welcome and treated respectfully. My mother raised me right; she taught me these verses and the golden rule “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” I have lived this way all my life and never judge others; it is God’s job to judge, not mine. There is a big difference between loving the person and accepting the sin; I can love the person and still hate the things they do. The media was quick to condemn Sarah Palin’s daughter for getting pregnant (or was it because she chose to have the baby?), but at least she owned up and took responsibility for her actions, which is something your husband has said publicly he would not make his daughters do in that same situation. No, he would rather have them murder their baby should they be so shortsighted as to get pregnant before they were ready.

Make no mistake here, please; through Christ, I love you and your family, but I hate what Barack has done to this wonderful country of ours. He has no need to apologize for an accidental burning of the Quran anymore than they would apologize for a deliberate burning of the Bible or our Constitution. In fact, as a nation, there is nothing he needs to apologize for on our behalf, but instead much he needs to apologize to us for. He needs to apologize to us for his blatant disregard for the Constitution, the very foundation of our government, and the freedoms guaranteed to us by that document. I have family members who fought to protect that document and what it stands for; yet you and your husband treat it like toilet paper for all the respect you show.

You are fond of quoting the Scripture in Luke that tells us that “To those to whom much has been given, from them much shall also be expected”, but then you take it out of context and tell us that means that the federal government has the right to take what one man earns and give it to the man who sits on his butt all day doing nothing. Sorry, but I do not think that is what Christ meant when he said “take care of the widows and orphans.” He also told us that God loves a cheerful (or willing) giver. He did not want to force us to do what we so willingly do out of love. In case you had not noticed, when there is a crisis (i.e. Katrina) the American people pull together to help each other faster and better than the government (i.e. FEMA) could.

The recent decision by the Supreme Court to uphold the individual mandate of the “Affordable” Care Act was equally shameful and has added one hundred-fold to the stress of my daily life. Stress that was not a part of my life until Barack took the office that by rights does not belong to him. My husband has non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, the treatments are expensive, and how long now before the committee decides that because he is not a “productive citizen” he cannot access the treatments he needs to stay alive? I clench my teeth at night wondering if he will be here when our daughter (now fifteen) walks down the aisle on her wedding day. When I had a heart attack last year, it was a Catholic-run hospital that picked up the greatest portion of the cost, allowing us to make payments on the rest when we could, not the government. Through the contraception mandate, Obamacare will shut down that hospital and hundreds like it, leaving people like me to fall between the cracks of your “perfect healthcare”.

I am also ashamed that the first family sees the Presidency as a lottery they won (how many vacations do you need in a year, really?) I have not had a job in two years, and our family would love to have a vacation in Europe, just one, someday. Yet your family has taken over seventeen vacations, at my last count, on the taxes people like me have paid. So, in effect, the middle class of America has been paying for you and your entourage of secretaries and secret service personnel to run around the world, shopping and sightseeing, when we cannot afford to go visit relatives who live in another state. Your husband’s policies have not created any jobs worth talking about, but they have kept businesses from creating jobs. Even a low-paying job would allow us the luxury of going to visit family.

So tell me Michelle, just what are you proud of? Are you proud of the fact that you are living in the White House because people did not want to be called racist? Or perhaps you are proud that your husband has chipped away at the civil liberties of the American taxpayers? Or perhaps you are proud of the race riots your husband instigated when he said that if he had a son he would look like Travon Martin, instead of keeping his mouth shut and letting the police handle the situation? The truth (whatever it is) will come out. I do not think there is anything that your husband has “accomplished” while in office that you should be proud of. Oh wait, I forgot all that golfing he has done that must have improved his game; I guess you can be proud of that.

In Christ Always,

15 Fun Facts About Independence Day

1) The first Independence Day in America was celebrated on July 4th, 1776, the day the Continental Congress approved the document that declared our independence from Great Britain. The war that followed lasted until 1783, so basically less messy than most divorces.
2) The major objection to being ruled by Britain was pithily summed up as “taxation without representation”. Minor objections included “British hookers aren’t lookers” and “your tea tastes like pee”.
3) Thomas Jefferson presented the first draft of the Declaration of Independence to Congress on June 28th, 1776, but it wasn’t passed, so no one ever found out what was in it.
4) Betsy Ross actually sewed the first American flag two months before Independence Day, a case of premature embroideration.
5) The first public Independence Day event at the White House occurred in 1804 during the Jefferson administration and was attended mainly by hippies accusing the President of waging war to steal oil from the Barbary pirates.
6) Before cars ruled the roadway, Independence Day was traditionally the most miserable day of the year for horses, tormented by kids who threw firecrackers at them. Think of it as a primitive version of “Angry Birds”.
7) Lewis and Clark celebrated the first Independence Day west of the Mississippi at Independence Creek near Atchison, Kansas. The main festivity consisted of throwing firecrackers at cyclones, resulting in the death of over 100 Munchkins and the Good Witch of the South.
8) Both Thomas Jefferson and John Adams died on Independence Day, 1826. Jefferson, however, managed to outlive Adams by a few minutes, thus fulfilling the tontine and securing for himself the front of both the nickel and the two dollar bill.
9) The names of the signers of the Declaration of Independence were withheld from the public for more than six months to protect the signers from being prosecuted for treason. Not sure what Jane Fonda did to dodge that bullet.
10) In 1941, Congress declared Independence Day a federal legal holiday. It is one of the few federal holidays that has not been moved to the nearest Friday or Monday, due mostly to the fact that bills proposing the move are always introduced too close to the Memorial Day weekend to get acted upon.
11) Over 100 other nations besides America celebrate their own Independence Day. All of whom, ironically, are completely dependent on America to protect them militarily.
12) A large percentage of Americans also celebrate Dependence Day. Usually around the 1st of the month when the check from Uncle Sam hits the ol’ mailbox.
13) The traditional form of celebration on Independence Day is setting off illegal fireworks. If some killjoy cop tries to bust you for it, play “Angry Birds” with him.
14) Also traditional, yet less popular in modern times – writing long, bilious letters to monarchs That include random Capitalization and ftarting “s” words with the letter “f”.
15) To be safe on Independence Day, never carry fireworks in your pocket or shoot them off in metal or glass containers. To have fun on Independence Day, always light your fireworks with a burning sheet of safety tips.
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Have a happy Independence Day, and remember – an Independence Day parade ain’t an Independence Day parade unless it includes at least one tarred and feathered Redcoat.

Fun Facts About the 50 States: Florida

Welcome to Fun Facts About the 50 States, where – week by week – I’ll be taking you on a tour around this great nation of ours, providing you with interesting, yet completely useless and probably untrue, information about each of the 50 states.
This week, we’ll be thinking to ourselves that there’s GOT to be a better way to earn tuition money just before passing out from heat stroke while wearing an unventilated Disney character costume as we visit sunny Florida, so let’s get started…
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Florida’s flag was originally just a red X on a white background, until Alabama told them to either put a ton of crap in the middle or face a copyright lawsuit.

* Florida became the 27th state on March 3rd, 1845, an event which most of the state’s residents recall fondly from their childhoods.
* Or WOULD, if it weren’t for the Alzheimer’s.
* The knee is Florida’s official state arthritic joint.
* The largest private employer in Florida is Disney World. The second largest is the company that makes “this ride closed for repairs” signs.
* After the Presidential election disaster in 2000, Florida passed a law making it illegal to vote without first removing your souvenir Mickey Mouse gloves.
* The most common cause of death in Florida is being run over by old women who mistakenly voted for Pat Buchanan.
* The second most common is getting run over by ’57 Chevys that wash up on Miami Beach from Cuba.
* The state bird of Florida is the Pink Flamingo, a feisty animal which is actually capable of killing a fully grown alligator, thanks to Florida’s concealed carry law.
* Although most Floridians don’t speak with a strong southern accent, they DO tend to pronounce the word “hurricane” as “Oh, SH**!”
* Janet Reno was born in Miami, Florida, and only returned to the state because her magic mirror told her that Elian Gonzales was fairer than she.
* Twice yearly, Florida is victimized by uncontrollable destructive forces which lay waste to the state. These times are known as “hurricane season” and “spring break”.
* The state reptile of Florida is the alligator, which subsists on a diet of fish, birds, and Japanese tourists.
* The state song of Florida is “Grandpa, Don’t Wear That Speedo to the Beach”.
* If a hurricane strikes while you’re in Florida, just hand over your wallet and no one will get hurt.
* Spanish explorer Ponce de Leon discovered Florida in 1513 while searching for the legendary Fountain of Orange Juice.
* Despite the fact that the temperature never gets below freezing, Florida has a professional ice hockey team, which… nah, no one’s gonna believe that one.
* People from Florida are easy to spot on the road. They’re the ones driving around with sheets of plywood nailed over their car windows.
* If you move to Florida, buy a house with a colorful roof so that you can easily find it after it gets blown down the street by a hurricane.
* When visiting Seaworld in Orlando, be sure to stop by the restaurant for the “slow learner sandwich” special.
* Native Floridians never wear sunglasses because they have a special, inner third eyelid to keep out the sun’s harmful rays.
* Florida’s Disney World is technically in a state of war with California’s Disneyland, and the two theme parks exchange nuclear strikes several times a year.
* The University of Florida’s football team is named the Gators in honor of the millions of alligators milked each year to make Gatorade.
* Neil Smith of Montverde, Florida, invented the riding lawn mower in 1933, adding to the list of useful things that Floridians watch get blown down the street by a hurricane.
* The state tree of Florida is the Palm Tree – so named because that’s the part of your body that will be scraped raw if you try to climb it.
* While in Florida, NEVER try to climb any sort of nut tree.
* The Everglades in Florida is 2100 square miles of smelly, oozing, mosquito-infested muck. Most Florida natives still refer to it by its original name the “The Cesspool National Park”.
* Passing the test for a driver’s license in Florida requires that you be able to make a right turn from the left lane across 3 lanes of traffic. Or so I assume from what I saw last time I was there.
* Despite rumors to the contrary, “Florida oysters” is NOT a euphemism for boiled alligator testicles.
* However, eating Florida oysters WILL cause you to grow a special, inner third eyelid.
* The state flower of Florida is the Orange Blossom, which is a small, white flower with an insatiable hunger for human flesh.
* The refrigerator was invented in Florida in 1921. This represented a great technological leap forward, as now Floridians had a place to store their melted ice cream when the power went out.
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That wraps up the Florida edition of Fun Facts About the 50 States. Next week we’ll be sneaking north across the border into America’s peachiest state, Georgia.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to go milk me some fresh Gatorade