December Blogs

REDEFINING ENGLISH

December 10, 2009

I already mentioned the "scorched earth" policy of outgoing Governor Jon Corzine and outgoing Senate President Richard Codey. Some people call them "lame ducks" but that is not politically correct. It is an insult to physically impaired animals, ducks in particular. As the song goes, "Be kind to your fine-feathered friends, for a duck may be somebody's mother."

Corzine and Codey are trying hard to convince the New Jersey Senate to pass a bill legalizing gay marriage before Governor Christie takes office in January. Protesters on both sides of this issue have gathered in Trenton and thousands of phone calls are keeping the phone lines hot (I called my Senator, did you?). Most voters are opposed to the measure and elected politicians are aware of that fact. Scorched earth politicians don't care.

Senator Codey sensed that proponents didn't have enough votes to get the bill through the legislature, so he decided to postpone a vote until the Assembly Judiciary Committee has had more time to vet the measure. In making the announcement, Codey said, "I was looking forward to a really thoughtful, incisive debate on a very serious issue of moral conscience."

I must agree that this issue is a serious matter of moral conscience, but let's be clear. Matters of moral conscience are not decided by popular vote and most certainly not by politicians!

In America, politicians make laws and voters choose politicians according to how they perform. Because of a ridiculous electoral system that permits politicians to remain in office after they are voted out, "scorched earth politicians" take liberties that no one else has. They are now trying to redefine English words like "marriage" and "moral conscience."

PEARL HARBOR REMEMBRANCE DAY

December 7, 2009

Nine-eleven is still fresh on our memories, but few remember Pearl Harbor. There are striking similarities between these incidents.

Foreign suicide pilots inflicted heavy damage, killing thousands of American citizens.
Both tragedies touched off wars.
The initial reaction of the American people to these catastrophes was also similar. At first there was shock, followed by anger and then a unified resolve to find and punish the perpetrators.

Since 9-11, however, the situation has been vastly different.

From 1941 through 1945, Americans were unified as never before. Virtually every human, natural and industrial resource was invested in the war effort.

Sixty years later, the opposite is true. Americans have never been so divided as they are today. We are fighting each other on the home front in just about every area. Political, social, economic, health and educational matters are all hot-button issues that divide us.

And we are not even agreed in the war on terrorism.

In the 40s we were fighting enemies that had national cultures, languages, governments, flags and borders. Just to play it safe, the government interned many Americans of Japanese descent in detention camps.

Today, no one knows who the enemy is or where he might be lurking. New terminology has been invented to describe situations that hardly existed in other wars. In WW II the media reported deaths, but now it differentiates between "enemy casualties," "collateral damage" and "friendly fire incidents."

The same is true here in America. When we look around us, we see large numbers of obviously foreign-born people who may or may not be here legally. They speak other languages, have other customs and dress differently. A good number of cars on the road are uninsured. Stores and businesses use deceit and trickery to get your money and a guarantee is not worth the paper its printed on. Just one lawsuit or major health problem can mean financial ruin. Job security is practically non-existent. Banks, credit institutions and mortgage companies cheat honest, hard-working people out of their homes and retirement funds.

The media once took pride in its alliances with one party or another, or in being neutral. Today they all claim to be neutral but abide strictly by their chosen political agendas.

It's the same in politics. Everyone knows how much value you can place on campaign pledges. We can't even count on our nation's Constitution and Bill of Rights anymore. The Supreme Court has come up with new interpretations and some politicians simply ignore the documents of our founding fathers. Who and what a person believes depends on whether he or she is receiving or paying. In both cases, people are nervous, wondering if they will be duped -- again.

If you have read many of my blogs, you know that I am about to get on my hobby horse again. Greed and dishonesty are not unlawful. These, like ethics, are religious terminology. As most people will tell you, we dare not mix religion with politics, or public education, or business, or advertising, or economics, or reporting, or...

SEASONAL POLITICS and SEASONED POLITICIANS

December 4, 2009 (three commentaries from today's headline articles)

This is the time of year when politicians work hardest. Because most Americans are busy and stressed preparing for the holidays, they have little time to follow the news media, let alone digest what these report. A lot of unpopular laws and measures get passed in the weeks before Christmas.

It is no accident that the Senate is feverishly working to get Obama's health care package passed. Over in Copenhagen, Obama plans to place American energy decisions in the hands of the United Nations. "Cap and Trade" is the ecological equivalent of "spreading the wealth"

Some politicians, including NJ Governor, Jon Corzine, are what we call "lame duck politicians". They have only a couple of weeks to push through their agendas before relinquishing public office to the victors in last November's elections.

"Lame Duck" politics are similar to the "Scorched Earth" policy introduced by Hitler towards the end of World War II. When Hitler realized that the attempt to build his Third Reich (kingdom for those who don't know German) had been foiled, he ordered troops to destroy any yet intact infrastructures to prevent them from falling into the hands of the victors. It was a similar scenario in Kuwait during the 1991 Gulf War. Retreating Iraqi troops set fire to more than 700 oil wells.

In similar fashion, outgoing Governor Jon Corzine and Senate President Dick Cody are pushing the New Jersey legislature to vote on the legalization of gay marriages. Corzine hopes to be able to sign that legislation into law before Christie takes office. He also leaves Christie a whopping 52 billion dollar budget deficit to deal with.

KIDDIE KOLLEGE

Another front page headline article in today's newspaper that most people are too busy to read, has to do with an environmental measure which is before the legislature in Trenton.

Just two miles from our home, a child care center was operated in a former thermometer factory. Over 60 children were contaminated by mercury before the center was closed in 2006.

NJ lawmakers have determined that the present laws are not stringent enough. State law now requires at least five people to be exposed to environmental hazards and sustain serious bodily injury, meaning disfigurement or near-death injuries. The bill now before the legislature "would make it a crime for someone to expose a single person to a toxic pollutant, either through inhalation, ingestion or through absorption."

A national law that is soon to be implemented, will prohibit the sale of incandescent light bulbs and force consumers to buy bulbs containing mercury. Does that mean New Jersey citizens can be held liable if a light bulb breaks in the home, exposing a family member or guest to the toxic chemicals? If it should happen in a school or Kiddie Kollege, lawyers will have a field day filing class action lawsuits!

I wonder if that also means no one will be permitted to smoke in my presence?

REFINERIES CLOSED

The second headline is about the closing of the Sunoco Eagle Point refinery on the Delaware River in New jersey, putting 400 people out of work. Hardest hit is probably the CEO, who reportedly earned a salary of over 12 million plus bonuses.

The Valero refinery across the river in Delaware City also closed, putting 550 out of work. A third refinery was shut down in New Mexico.

Ironically, an article in Section B, Page 6, reports on Obama's appeal for the creation of more jobs.

COMCAST ACQUISITION

While I'm at it, I might just as well comment on another front page headline article from today's newspaper.

Comcast has bought itself a nice "winter holiday" present for a paltry $13.75 billion dollars. If the FCC doesn't voice any objections, Comcast will own 51% of NBC and Universal Studios.

I wonder if Comcast still gets tax breaks?

December 7, 2009 Nine-eleven is still fresh on our memories, but few remember Pearl Harbor. There are striking similarities between these incidents.

Since 9-11, however, the situation has been vastly different. From 1941 through 1945, Americans were unified as never before. Virtually every human, natural and industrial resource was invested in the war effort.

Sixty years later, the opposite is true. Americans have never been so divided as they are today. We are fighting each other on the home front in just about every area. Political, social, economic, health and educational matters are all hot-button issues that divide us.

And we are not even agreed in the war on terrorism. In the 40s we were fighting enemies that had national cultures, languages, governments, flags and borders. Just to play it safe, the government interned many Americans of Japanese descent in detention camps.

December 7, 2009

Nine-eleven is still fresh on our memories, but few remember Pearl Harbor. There are striking similarities between these incidents.

Since 9-11, however, the situation has been vastly different.

From 1941 through 1945, Americans were unified as never before. Virtually every human, natural and industrial resource was invested in the war effort.

And we are not even agreed in the war on terrorism.

In the 40s we were fighting enemies that had national cultures, languages, governments, flags and borders. Just to play it safe, the government interned many Americans of Japanese descent in detention camps.