Trump and GOP About to End the Facade?

08 Sunday May 2016

Posted by Paul Kiser in Government, Politics, US History

Tags

2016, Donald Trump, Election, GOP, Joffrey Baratheon, National Republican Committee, NRC, Paul Ryan, President, Presidential candidates, Reince Priebus, Republican

Donald Trump: The Republican Anti-Christ?

Cruz is out. Kasich is out. It’s all over. Donald Trump wins, and the Republican party goes down in flames in one of the biggest political blunders since Nixon began recording his phone conversations.

Could it be true? No.

I have a hard time believing that the current antics of the Republican party are genuine. A year ago all Hell broke loose in the Republican party. Every wacko came out to run for President, and the party was being divided up into little pieces. It looked like the 2016 Presidential race was over before it started. (SEE: The Trump Card – Aug 2015)

Joffrey: The Leadership Model for Trump

Enter Donald Trump. From the start, Trump’s tactic was to be the biggest and loudest wacko. It made no sense. The majority of voters of the United States of America were not going to elect the Joffrey Baratheon of conservative politics as President. Not even a majority of Republicans would fall for it.

But, Donald Trump was accomplishing one vital objective. He was rounding up all the wackos under one banner. That was huge.

The only problem was that, in the process, Trump alienated the rest of the country. Could Trump be so stupid to think that he could charm intelligent people after insulting them for a year? Could he be so stupid to not realize that he was inciting a backlash of voters who would not only send him down in flames, but send the rest of the party with him?

In August of last year, I said that I thought that Trump’s run for President couldn’t be real and in December I even predicted a date and time as to when he would drop out and order his minions to vote for the real Republican Presidential candidate. (SEE: Trump Dropout Countdown – DEC 2015)

Last month I admitted that at least part of my prediction was wrong, and that Jeb Bush was apparently not to be the beneficiary of Trump’s fake campaign. (SEE: Am I Wrong About Trump? – APR 2016)

Now it is less than ten days to my May 17th prediction and it there is no indication that Trump is ready to end the charade; however, I still believe Trump is faking it.

Why?

It’s Just Business
In big business, especially in investment and real estate, the game is deception. Make your competition think you’re doing one thing, while you are actually doing something completely different.

Trump is a businessman, and he is skilled at the art of deception. He is arrogant, but he’s not that stupid. Trump’s buffoonery is too much drama, and indicates he is trying to create the grand illusion.

To fake out the country, and then pull in the ‘hero’ who would save the day, would be Trump’s ultimate business deal.

Ryan’s Denials: Methinks the Lady Doth Protest Too Much
Paul Ryan is the most likely person to play the hero role at the end of Trump’s melodrama. He has been exceptionally low-key in this past year, which would be expected if he was avoiding any political controversies prior to a run for the President.

One could make the argument that it is easy to be Mr. Invisible when you don’t do anything, but Ryan has never been shy about the political spotlight even though he does nothing. To go from a rank and file Representative with national recognition to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and become invisible doesn’t make sense.

He has denied he would run for President, but Ryan denied that he would be the Speaker of the House five times before he ‘reluctantly’ accepted the position. He seems to play coy, and then force people to woo him before he suddenly take pity on the poor mortals, and does what he says he won’t.

The more Ryan denies that he will run for President, the more likely he will.

Reince Priebus: In on the big secret?

Anemic Republican Leadership
Another clue is the attitude of Reince Priebus, the chairperson of the Republican National Committee. For over a month now Priebus has been playing peacemaker with Donald Trump. This is odd. The party is in uproar over Trump as their nominee, and the leader of the party is acting as if Trump is just a misunderstood child.

This behavior doesn’t make any sense unless Priebus knows that Trump is running a fake campaign, and that he will drop out and throw his support behind a real candidate.

The End Game
Donald Trump has achieved his goal. All the GOP wannabes have dropped out of the race. There is nothing more for him to do but drop out.

However, Trump can’t just announce that he is dropping out of the race and tell his supporters to vote for Ryan. He has to lay the groundwork first. The following is a scenario of how it might happen:

GOP Uproar. There has to be enough outrage from high profile Republicans to make it look as if that Trump will not be able to win in November. This has already started happening, but this has to reach a crescendo just before he takes the next step.
The Big Meeting. Once it appears that Trump has no support from the GOP establishment, a meeting between Trump and the Republican leadership would be needed. The meeting gives Trump a cover story, so that it doesn’t look like his campaign was faked from the start. The meeting will later be credited with laying the groundwork for Trump to bow out and for Paul Ryan to step up as the Presidential candidate. Last Friday (May 6,) the Republican leadership announced a Big Meeting with Trump and the Republican leadership, including Paul Ryan. It is scheduled for this Thursday, May 12.
Trump’s Anguish. After that meeting, Trump will ‘have to think some things over.’ There will be leaks to the press that Trump was told he can’t win and that he will destroy the Republican party. Trump’s campaign will begin to leak that he is concerned about the damage he is doing to the Republican party, and there will be hints he is dropping out. The rumors will need a few days to soak in.
The Big Fall. As soon as all the news media is speculating that Trump is about to drop out, and that a deal has been brokered, Trump will make his announcement that he is falling on his sword for the good of the party and the nation. Paul Ryan’s announcement that he is stepping into the race has to come at the same time, or almost immediately to keep anyone else from restarting their campaign. May 17 would be about the right timing, even though Kentucky and Oregon primaries are on that day.

Of course, I could be wrong. Perhaps Donald Trump is stupid enough to think that he can reinvent himself and win over moderates, but I have faith in the citizens of the United States. Whether Abraham Lincoln said the following or not, it applies to Donald Trump:

You can fool all the people some of the time and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.

5 Reasons Why Sanders Should Be the Democratic VP Nominee

27 Wednesday Apr 2016

Posted by Paul Kiser in Branding, Ethics, Generational, Government, Government Regulation, History, Passionate People, Politics, Taxes, The Tipping Point, US History, Women

≈ 1 Comment

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2016, Bernie Sanders, Congress, Conservatives, Democrats, Dems, GOP, Hillary Clinton, House of Representatives, President, Presidential race, Republican, Republicans, Senate, vice president, White House

Bernie Sanders is passionate, if he is anything

Bernie Sanders as Vice President. It’s not going to happen. It seems like the logical move, but there are too many forces working against it. Hillary Clinton will not want an adversary as Vice President. Sanders won’t want to play second fiddle. Contributors for the Clinton campaign will fear Sanders influence in the White House. The list goes on.

However, Sanders as Vice President is exactly what our nation needs:

ONE: He will energize the ticket and bring in supporters who might not vote
Sanders will bring in the youth vote, who very well may walk away if he’s not on the ticket. A Clinton/Sanders ticket will end any chance for a Republican win. The best they can hope for is to try to keep the House of Representatives, which is unlikely with Trump at the top of their ticket.

Hillary Clinton: In her 3rd decade of fighting for a government by the people

Hillary Clinton needs Sanders as her liberal standard-bearer

TWO: He could be tasked with helping Democrats take back the House and Senate
There is no doubt that for Sanders to see anything on his agenda achieved, the Democrats have to control government. He would be the perfect catalyst to make that happen.

THREE: As Vice President, Sanders can push a liberal agenda
Sanders is relentless on changing the conservative status quo. Even before he would be sworn into office, he will put conservatives on the defensive, instead of taking the offensive as they did when Barack Obama was elected in 2008.

FOUR: Sanders on the ticket creates a big win
Red States, like Arizona, might turn to voting Blue if Sanders is on the ticket. Certainly, Clinton will beat Trump, but the win has to be so large that the unintelligent, immature, and racist Trump supporters must be humiliated. Sanders can make that happen.

FIVE: Clinton will do better with a team of rivals
A spirited debate within the administration will lead to better decisions. Liberals value intelligence, logic, and empathy, and that requires a thorough examination of all viewpoints. Sanders would be a key element in challenging the paradigms of politics, economics, and social values.

Post Hoc Ergo Proctor Hoc – The Outsider Myth

11 Monday Apr 2016

Posted by Paul Kiser in Ethics, Government, Government Regulation, History, Opinion, Politics, Taxes, US History

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2016, Bernie Sanders, Democrats, Dems, Donald Trump, GOP, latin, logic, myth, Outsiders, Preside, Presidential election, Republicans, Sander's supporters, Trump supporters

“He loves Trump because he’s an outsider, not a politician.”

Kemi Ajisekola from Who Are Donald Trump Supporters

“…Sanders – at least he is an outsider who understands that the government and the economy are broken.”

A 55 year-old male quoted in The Gaurdian

Supporters listen to a speech by Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at a rally at the Great Bay Community College, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, in Portsmouth, N.H. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

White people for Trump (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

Post hoc ergo Proctor hoc is latin and it means that just because one thing follows another, doesn’t mean one thing causes another.

The logic of Trump and Sanders supporters is as follows:

Our Government is broken.
Our Government has been broken by politicians.
People who are not politicians are outsiders.
Donald Trump and/or Bernie Sanders are not politicians.
Donald Trump and/or Bernie Sanders are outsiders.
Outsiders will fix our government.

All six of these statements have to be true for their logic to be valid, but Trump and Sanders supporters seem to believe that by stating statement number five (Donald Trump and/or Bernie Sanders are outsiders) that six is automatically true.

Post hoc ergo proctor hoc.

White people for Sanders (Reuters/Mark Kauzlarich)

Statement #1 – Our Government is broken
That is a broad statement that is often linked to conservative’s effort to stonewall any government action that doesn’t conform to their failed ideas. A careful review of our government and in our country will show that almost all problems in government have had a root in conservative ideology. The past thirty years have been a parade of bad decisions based on conservative concepts that they now refuse to allow to be changed. Despite that, the United States of America is still considered to be the place that most people would want to come to live and raise a family. That doesn’t really support the idea that our government is broken.

Statement #2 – Our government has been broken by politicians
Here again, it is conservative ideology that is the root of most problems that can be identified in our government. A lack of good government oversight, corrupt private businesses committing fraud in their dealing with the government, and undercutting the vital revenue needed for good government are all evidence that the broad brush blaming all politicians doesn’t adequately explain the cause of the problems in our government.

Statement #3 – People who are not politicians are outsiders
All colleges have a political science department, but that doesn’t mean only those with a degree in political science become politicians. Nor does the word, ‘politician’ specifically apply to someone who is elected to a political office. Anyone who attempts to shape social policy is a politician. The term ‘politician’ is often used to mean, “those bad guys,” but that is too general of a term to apply to everyone involved in politics. Our country was built by politicians, and many of them served in that role for decades. Electing an ‘outsider’ rather than a politician is like cutting down an entire orchard, that you planted, because one tree had sour fruit.

Statement #4 – Donald Trump and/or Bernie Sanders are not politicians

CONCORD, NC - MARCH 7: Donald Trump supporters cheer on the Republican presidential candidate before a campaign rally March 7, 2016 in Concord, North Carolina. The North Carolina Republican presidential primary will be held March 15. (Photo by Sean Rayford/Getty Images)

More white people for Trump (Sean Rayford/Getty Images)

Donald Trump has put himself into consideration for running for President in 1988, 2000, 2004, 2012, and for New York Governor in 2006 and 2014. He has been trying to get into politics for almost three decades. He is a politician, …and he’s really bad at it.

More white people for Sanders (Alan Diaz/AP)

Bernie Sanders has been in political office since 1981. He is a career politician. He has always stood as an Independent, but he is definitely a politician.

Statement #5 – Donald Trump and/or Bernie Sanders are outsiders
And Lance Armstrong is an ethical, honest person.

Statement #6 – Outsiders will fix our government
The history of our country indicates that those with the least political experience are the least likely to accomplish anything positive. Many of the people who are preventing any effective action in Congress, are novice lawmakers who were voted in on the belief they were outsiders.

Representative Paul Ryan is considered to be a maverick and an outsider by many. His accomplishments in Congress since 1999 are to have a Post Office in his District renamed, and to have an excise tax on arrow shafts lowered.

Trump and Sanders supporters have one thing in common. They have no idea what they are doing, nor why they are doing it.

Am I Wrong About Trump

06 Wednesday Apr 2016

Posted by Paul Kiser in Government, Politics

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

2016, candidates, Donald Trump, Election, fake candidacy, GOP, Paul Ryan, Presidential candidates, Republican, Republicans, Ted Cruz

Goodby Mr. Trump

If you’ve been reading my blog, seven and a half months ago I predicted that Donald Trump mission was NOT running for President, but instead he was gathering up all the wacko conservatives to deliver them to a real Presidential candidate. (SEE: The Trump Card – 21 Aug 2015) Four months later, I not only confirmed my prediction, I set a date and a time (17 May at 9:00 AM EDT) for Trump to drop out. (SEE: Trump Dropout Countdown – 21 Dec 2015) Now that we are about a month from my prediction, the question is, am I wrong about the Trump fake candidacy?

It appears that I am wrong about one part of the prediction. I predicted that Trump was gathering up all the unintelligent, older, white males to deliver to Jeb Bush several weeks prior to the Republican convention. Unless Jeb Bush steps back into the race, which is unlikely, my prediction regarding the beneficiary of Trump’s fake candidacy is wrong.

However, several things have happened in the past week that indicate Trump is following a path to drop out. First, he had a staged meeting with the Republican leadership on March 31. This meeting was allegedly about Republican ‘unity,’ but it is exactly the type of meeting I suggested that Trump would have with the Bush campaign before he dropped out. This meeting sets the stage for him to drop out ‘after discussions with the Republican party,’ which allows him to tell his supporters that they must vote for the chosen Republican party candidate when he drops out.

Second, Trump is dismantling his campaign staff. The headline for one of yesterday’s stories in the Huffington Post was “Trump’s Campaign In Disarray.” This indicates he is preparing to drop out soon, and by dismantling his campaign now, he will likely not perform well in the upcoming primaries in New York on April 19, nor in the rest of the Northeastern bloc of States on April 26.

The GOP’s Biggest Loser, To Become Their Last Hope?

All of this allows Trump to have enough excuses to justify ending his campaign in order to look like it wasn’t a fake from the start. That’s important so that he can convince his supporters to back the appointed candidate. At this time, I believe that person to be Paul Ryan.

However, everything that is happening is at least a month earlier than I expected. It might be possible that the Republican party wants to put Paul Ryan in the game early in order to keep Ted Cruz from being a front-runner.

Why the Deception?
Why would Trump need to run a fake campaign?

Simple. The Republicans have backed themselves in a corner on issues. All the issues they campaign with are destroying their chances of being elected. They have pandered to the stupid, white males to the point that the majority of United States citizens are disgusted with them.

Trump’s Chump?

To have a chance at winning, the Republican party needs to use trickery and deception to avoid a campaign on issues. Trump’s fake campaign provides a Presidential candidate that avoids a bumbling Primary race surrounded by idiot candidates that sink all boats.

It’s still possible I’m wrong, but if I am, the Republican party is done. A serious Trump Presidential campaign would be catastrophic to the GOP. If I’m right, then Ted Cruz is going to look pretty stupid when Paul Ryan steps in and he’s left at the altar…praying to his Canadian God.

5 Reasons I No Longer Feel The Bern

04 Friday Mar 2016

Posted by Paul Kiser in Aging, Branding, Communication, Education, Ethics, Generational, Government, Government Regulation, Politics, Pride, Public Image, Taxes, US History, Women

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

2016, Bernie Sanders, Conservatives, Democrats, Donald, GOP, Hillary Clinton, Howard Dean, liberals, Politics, President, Republicans

Nevada was an early caucus state. Caucus is Latin for a divisive meeting of unified people and, from the word, ‘caca,’ meaning excrement.

Hillary Clinton: In her 3rd decade of fighting for a government by the people

Prior to the Nevada caucus I was unsure who I was supporting. I always have liked Hillary Clinton, but I have been a little frustrated with the moderate viewpoint that we can all work together, when extremist conservatives have proven that we really can’t. I considered myself leaning towards Bernie Sanders until the February 11th Democratic debate, and then I began to realize that Bernie is not the man to lead this country.

1. Bernie: The One-Song Musical
In the February 11th Democratic debate I realized that Bernie Sanders has latched on to a handful of speaking points and beats them to death at every rally. I don’t really care what Hillary Clinton said in her speeches to any big bank, but I do appreciate she has their attention. Bernie’s harping on a few minor meaningless issues is exactly what conservatives have been doing for decades and I’m sick of it. We don’t need a leader to spend four years of blaming other people for small faults when we have the rise of a second Confederacy in our country that seeks to destroy everything we stand for in the United States.

2. Bernie Supporters: All Flash, No Dignity, No Honor, No Substance
I live next to the University of Nevada, so we have a lot of college students in our precinct. Needless to say our precinct went almost entirely for Bernie Sanders. They were all excited about themselves and how they were the voice of change. They were also rude and undignified in their manner of supporting their candidate. Both the elected President and Secretary of the caucus were Bernie supporters and wearing Bernie tee shirts and buttons. At one point, the Secretary, who did nothing during the meeting, walked in front of the fifteen Clinton supporters and announced to the room, “I’m not voting for Hillary. I’d never do that.”

But the real issue for me was when an envelope was passed around to help the Democratic Party. I went to at least thirty people before me, and none of them put any money in it. Not even a quarter. I put twenty dollars in it, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it came back with only that amount. None of the Sanders supporters were committed to helping the Democratic party. They were just there to pleasure themselves.

We don’t need screamers for leaders

Bernie Sanders is passionate, if he is anything

3. Bernie: Howard Dean’s Scream Over and Over Again
Every time I see Bernie Sanders speak, I see Howard Dean. Sanders is not passionate, he’s irrational. After he loses an election or caucus, he starts talking about momentum, as if losing is a good thing because the campaign is about momentum, not issues.

“What this entire campaign has been about is the issue of momentum….”

Bernie Sanders, after losing Nevada

It’s the ‘say nothing’ approach to communication that has no meaning, just key words strung together to incite applause. It’s not leadership, it’s Trumpmanship.

4. Bernie: Leadership Via Destruction
Much of Sanders campaign has devolved into leadership via destruction. I agree with him on most of the issues, but in his speeches he tends to present himself as a dragon slayer and yet, he comes off more like Don Quixote. I supported him when he stayed on topic, but now he seems stuck on a message of attack rather than building. That’s not the route I support for someone to become President.

5. Bernie: Bottomless Pit of Promises
It the past seven years have proven anything, it has proven that the President can do very little if he or she has a Congress that is not on the same page. Promises by a presidential candidate are the fairy dust of politics. What we need to hear from a Democratic Presidential candidate is:

…elect me, AND elect these Democrats for Congress, and we will get Citizens United overturned, a ban on assault weapons restored, improve the healthcare system, ….

Speeches are the leverage of action. If a candidate for President of the United States of America is truly seeking action, he or she needs to accept that their speech should acknowledge the path to action requires the citizen to do more than just elect her or him.

TRUMP: Product of 35 Years of Conservatism

29 Monday Feb 2016

Posted by Paul Kiser in Aging, Generational, Government, Government Regulation, Higher Education, History, Politics, Public Image, Public Relations, Religion, Taxes, US History, Women

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Cliven Bundy, Conservatives, Donald Trump, George W. Bush, GOP, John Boehner, Mitt Romney, Republican, Republicans, Ronald Reagan, Tea Party

President Ronald Reagan: Actor, Cowboy, FBI Informant, Destroyer of Good Government

On January 20, 1981, Ronald Reagan became President. Before he was elected this actor, FBI-informant, dictator-like Governor was a minor figure in national politics. His rise to power came after the collapse of the Republican party in the post-Watergate era. Reagan became the new face for disgraced conservatives. He rose to power by becoming the Great White demigod for Caucasian males.

After Nixon proved the lack of morals of the Republican party, there were two choices. The first choice to would be to humbly accept the failure of ethics within the party and commit to an honest approach to serving our government. The second choice would be to double down and make the party even less ethical than it was before Nixon’s gang of Dirty Tricksters.

The party chose to double down and go for the gullible voter. Conservatives became two-faced. The outward face was a facade of saying anything to suck in the weak and the stupid, and the other face was the hidden face of power and corruption that steered the true agenda of the party.

Conservatives Made Government Corrupt
Federal, State, and local government had brought us out of the depression, created the interstate highway system, and put us in space. Those achievements set the stage for a prosperous country that had a new power infrastructure, 20th century transportation system, and was on the leading edge of technology. In addition, cities and towns had new water and sewer systems, and new schools to elevate the level of education for everyone in the United States.

President John F. Kennedy: Making Big Government Do Great Things

Our country was great, because our government was great.

However, our government also maintained the balance of fairness for all citizens. Our government held corporations to higher standards. If an airline wanted to have a route that was a financial goldmine, they also have to serve a smaller community that wouldn’t have air service under the typical business greed motivation. Conservatives had to make government evil in order to gain public support to destroy it.

Undercutting Government
The first step was to bankrupt the government. That was a job for the Reagan administration. To the public he railed against the size of government and proclaimed that taxes were too high. In 1981, he cut taxes for the lowest wage earners by 3%, (from 14% down to 11%,) but slashed taxes on the super rich by 20%, (from 70% to 50%.) along with slashing estate taxes and corporate taxes for the rich and powerful.

Then in 1986, he slashed taxes again for the super wealthy from 50% to 28%, but INCREASED the taxes on those least able to pay from 11% to 15%. In the end he had increased taxes on the lowest wage earner by 2% and decreased taxes on the super wealthy by 42%.

At the same time, Reagan increased federal spending through massive and wasteful military spending that put the country’s economy on the brink of disaster. This would all be sold to the public as the failure of our government, not the insane policies of a conservative economic madman.

Radicalized Right

Cliven Bundy – Created in Ronald Reagan’s Image (photo credit cnn.com)

With the humiliation of the Nixon presidency, conservatives had to find support in citizens who were susceptible to manipulation, as they had lost the trust of most of the intelligent citizens of our country. They began seeking out false problems that would win favor with the lesser intelligent white person.

Issues like gun ownership, Christian extremism, racism targeting Hispanics, demonizing public education, and laws targeting women, minority voters, and gays became the banner of the conservatives. All of these issues appealed to the least intelligent white male who sought to blame others for their failures.

By raising these false issues, the people who were gullible felt empowered and believed that conservatives had become their voice for issues that existed only in the minds of weak, insecure, racists. The white male and his spouse saw conservatives as angels of a mythical God of white people who would bring back the United States to be something it never was before.

Obstruct, Obstruct, Obstruct: Do Nothing Conservatives
George W. Bush became the final straw in our country to expose the failure of conservatives. He followed the conservative ideology to the letter and when it all failed, conservatives distanced themselves as quickly as possible. By 2008, every idea of conservatives was proven to be a failure and had destroyed our government and our economy.

The GOP’s Biggest Loser, To Become Their Last Hope?

Trump’s Chump?

Speaker John Boehner’s Puppet Master

Conservatives: Go F**k Yourselves America

Ted Nugent: America’s Epic Fail

John McCain still bitter about 2008?

Senator Mitch McConnell: “Election, what election?”

Rove’s laughing now.

Bush Logic: Trust me. I know what I’m doing

Rick Santorum – Extremist’s Lap Dog…but he’ll support Romney…didn’t you get his eamil?

Conservative Investigation: Celebrate males testify about women’s contraception

Rush Limbaugh Wants Sex Videos

Bachmann, Perry, Cain all served up what Evangelicals wanted

Alabama Governor Robert Bentley

Angle: Manning up in stupid

3rd Place in Miss Alaska, attended five different colleges in four years (one of them twice,) and 1/2 term Governor of Alaska (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Donald Trump: The anti-American candidate

Still, conservatives refused to accept reality and took the one action left for them. Try to sabotage any program or law that would repair our country. During their reign of terror on the United States they had managed to gerrymander districts across the country to keep a conservative majority in the House of Representatives. That was enough to give conservatives the ability to prevent any effective action to fix our government, which allowed them to promote the myth that our government was broken, even though it was conservatives who were breaking it. Any attempt to circumvent this tactic was declared to be an affront to the Constitution and the separation of powers.

The Product of Conservative’s Lunacy

Trump: The Political Whore of Stupid, White People
Thirty-five years of conservative politics and distilled out all rationality in the Republican party. The party has degenerated to the point that the most successful candidate to win the Republican presidential nomination has to incite the worst elements of our country into believing that we are doomed and that the best course of action is to elect the people who have consistently failed.

Trump is the bastard child of Reagan’s legacy. He is the champion of the citizen with the mentality of a eight-year old boy. He enables stupidity as a way to govern our country. He will give his supporters whatever excites them as long as he doesn’t have to be around them too much. Trump is what happens when an ideology refuses to accept its own failure.

Five Fixes For Our Primary/Caucus Fiasco

04 Thursday Feb 2016

Posted by Paul Kiser in Government, Information Technology, Internet, Politics, Taxes, US History

≈ 1 Comment

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Caucus, Caucuses, Conservatives, Democrat, Democrats, GOP, Iowa, New Hampshire, Primaries, Primary, Republican, Republicans

Voting FAIL

For decades we have been given this advice about our system for electing Presidents: “If it’s broken, don’t try to fix it.”

People get nervous about elections and major changes are automatically assumed to create new problems…and it’s true. Any change will create new issues; however, the question is whether or not the new issues are really significant, or whether they are just the Elmer’s in the room who try to find a problem even if it is absurd.

First, we have to accept that our current political system works for some people. People with money and power really, really like the current system because it is easy to manipulate. In addition, people who have more pull in the political system than they should have really, really like it because the current system gives a handful of Iowans and New Hampshirites much more of a punch to our political system than they should have under an all voices are equal” system.

But the United States of America is spiraling out of control because our system of electing our leaders has become a type of reality TV show where entertainment is rewarded and common sense is punished. So how do we fix it?

ONE: Corporations Are NOT People
It is hard to fathom how absurd the justification was for the Supreme Court to rule in favor of Citizens United. Free speech is our greatest foundation of democracy. Each person has a right to voice his or her opinion. What the Supreme Court did was to dilute our voice and say that not only do individuals have free speech rights, but some privileged individuals can amplify their voice to have a greater access to free speech than the common individual. It’s a perversion of the First Amendment and everyone knows it.

The ruling has to be reversed if our political system is to be restored.

TWO: Tax Big Donors
The mega-contributor to political campaigns is now the tail wagging the political dog. Our country’s dignity has been slowly eroded by the wholesale purchasing of politicians by wealthy individuals and organizations. Yes, that means unions and corporations.

Contributions that exceed $500 in a two-year period given directly or indirectly to a campaign or cause should be taxed at 100%. Give a million dollars to a campaign, pay an additional $999,500 to the government entity the candidate or cause will serve or impact.

THREE: Government Established Primaries
The idea that political parties can establish any method of choosing a candidate is ridiculous. It plays into the hands of the buffoon who suddenly decides that the method was unfair and then we are off to the courts. Every State should have a Primary, not a Caucus and it should be done under the same rules in every State.

FOUR: Fifty Primaries in Fifty Days
By lottery pull the names of each State. The first State pulled holds their primary on February 1st. The second State pulled has their primary on February 2nd, etc. Candidates can begin campaigning in a State three weeks before the primary for that State.

FIVE: Use both Internet and In-Person Voting
Voting is going to be done by the Internet. It’s coming. Why not start with the primaries? Keep the in-person option available, but allow people to vote on a secure website.

Each registered voter is given a unique code for each election. They register for the election website and set up a password. On the election date they sign in, enter their unique code, and vote.

Why Trump is Really Missing the Debate

27 Wednesday Jan 2016

Posted by Paul Kiser in Politics, Public Image

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

2016, Debate, Donald Trump, Fox News, GOP, Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, Presidential candidates, Republican, Republicans, Tea Party, Ted Cruz, Wackos

The Debate Strategy: Trump has the idiots right where he wants them. Now he needs to step out of the light and let Bush shine a little. (Image credit: TheBusinessPundit.com)

Donald Trump is playing the “poor little o’ me” card in his justification for missing the next debate, but there is likely another reason for Trump to not take the Fox News stage on Thursday.

He’s doing his job to well.

Five months ago I suggested that Donald Trump was not running for President (SEE: The Trump Card,) and that he was likely trying to corral the less intelligent Americans into one group so he could deliver them to the Republican Presidential nominee this summer.

Last month I predicted the approximate date that he would drop out and tell his drooling, weak-minded supporters that they have to vote for Jeb Bush or else Hillary Clinton will win (SEE: Trump Dropout Countdown.)

But why isn’t he going to the debate on Thursday?

The problem is that Jeb Bush is having a hard time looking like a leader when the Republican class clown steals the stage. Bush needs to move up in the polls and this debate is a perfect format for him to do that….if Trump is not there.

Bush needs to leap over Ben Carson and Marco Rubio after this next debate (Poll analysis credit: Huffington Post)

Bush can probably hold his own against Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio. Cruz and Rubio are usually victims of their own stupidity and at this debate Bush has the opportunity to make himself look like the kinder, gentler, more sane candidate than the rest of the pack.

A Bush win would likely put him in third place which lands him within striking distance of a diminishing Ted Cruz. Cruz can’t out Trump, Trump, and Bush looks more presidential, so Cruz will find himself bleeding support to both ends of the GOP spectrum. That will eventually put Bush in second which is where he wants/needs to be until next May when Trump will drop out.

Time to Repeal Republicans

07 Thursday Jan 2016

Posted by Paul Kiser in Branding, Business, Communication, Ethics, Government, Government Regulation, Health, History, Opinion, Politics, Public Image, Religion, Respect, Taxes, US History, Women

≈ 1 Comment

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2016, Congress, conservative, Conservatives, Election, GOP, Healthcare, Obamacare, Paul Ryan, Republican, Republicans, Speaker of the House, Tea Party

The Republican party can’t help themselves. They are born to do the wrong thing.

Paul Ryan – Leader of the Stupid (Image credit: Wall Street Journal

Cliven Bundy – Created in Ronald Reagan’s Image (photo credit cnn.com)

Edgar Votes GOP (Image credit: Columbia Pictures

The United States of America was established on the principle that everyone is equal. Yes, there were ~~some~~ many of our founders who didn’t see African Americans as equals, nor were women seen as equals, but they probably also didn’t believe that the Earth orbited the Sun.

Over time we learned that all humans are truly equal. Over time we adopted a system of government that was committed to protecting the rights of ALL people. Over time we became the greatest country in the history of the world not only because of the principles that were the framework of our country, but because we took that framework and made it greater than the people who wrote it.

But there are always those who want to tear it all down under the belief that it is not ‘our’ country, but ‘my’ country. Those people who are too stupid to be let out in public, but want a gun in their purse when they our out among our citizens just in case they see someone they want to kill.

Conservatives have a history of tearing down great things. Guided by the concept that “we can’t,” conservatives have constantly battled for less for everyone else and more for them.

After fifty attempts the Cliven Bundy’s of Congress have finally passed a repeal of Obamacare. Nope, they don’t have a plan ‘B’, except they want American healthcare run by the greedy, not by compassionate. Republicans have proven again why they are the party of anti-Americans. They hate equality. They hate being told to be ethical. They hate paying for the privilege of being citizen of the United States of America.

It’s time we repeal Republicans and put our country back into the hands of the intelligent, the compassionate, and the true patriots.

Trump Dropout Countdown

21 Monday Dec 2015

Posted by Paul Kiser in Government, Politics, Public Image

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

2016, anti-American, anti-USA government, Ben Carson, Carly Fionia, Donald Trump, Election, GOP, HuffPost, Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, polls, President, racists, Republican, Republicans, Tea Party, Ted Cruz, Wacko, Wacko vote, Wackoism, Wackos

Trump Out of the Race on or about May 17, 2016

Four months ago I said that Donald Trump was probably not running for President (SEE: The Trump Card.) Not only am I prepared to say that Donald Trump is not running for President, I predict he will dropout of his ‘pretend’ campaign for President on or about 9:00 am EDT, May 17, 2016.

I know he’s not running for President because:

Any reasonable person would know that his outrageous statements are targeted to a small, unintelligent, USA-government hating, racist group of people who do not have the ability to elect a President.
His statements have alienated the intelligent conservatives to the point that even they would rather not vote than to elect him.
If he were the Republican nominee he would solidify the liberals and moderates leading to the biggest Republican loss in recent history.
With Trump at the top of the ticket, the House and the Senate might both go to the Democrats.
His over-the-top, implausible character is typical of an inexperienced actor who goes for fake drama rather than real emotion.

Trump has been on a mission since June 2015, and that mission has not changed. The field of Republican wackos for President that popped up in the Spring of 2015, was splintering the party to the point that no one candidate would be able to reunite the conservative voters in 2016.

Enter Donald Trump. His mission was to gather up all the wacko voters and get them in one basket. To do this he had to become one of them, and he has excelled in his effort.

One by one Trump has sucked the life out of other GOP wacko Presidential candidates by being the biggest, loudest wacko of them all. His tactics are simple. As one wacko rises in the polls, Trump steps up his antics. Ben Carson starts rising, Trump drops wacko bombs in the media, and Carson numbers start falling. His mission is not complete, but by the Spring of 2016, it will be Donald Trump, Jeb Bush, and possibly two minor also-rans.

With the exception of Trump, the candidates who went after the wacko vote have been unwilling to commit to the image that appeals to the least intelligent, most racist, most anti USA-government group of voters. Why? Because they actually had hopes of becoming President and they knew that the wacko vote may get them up in the polls, but the wacko image would be suicide in the general election. Trump doesn’t care about the general election because he’s not running for President.

Look who’s floating along. Jeb Bush. He was at around 13% last summer and he’s now down around 6%, but he’s still there. He’s not the target of anyone. He’s not on the public radar. He’s just there. He has no real fear of losing wacko support because he’s not interested in appealing to them. He’s waiting until they appeal to him.

HuffPost GOP President Blend of Polls – DEC 2015 (Go to website)

So what’s next?

Trump will continue to be the Wacko Pied Piper. He will continue to suck the wacko voters out of those candidates who built their campaigns on wackoism. On or about May 1, 2015, Trump will start making statements about his concerns that he may not be electable in the general election. He will then work to scare the wackos into submission. He will tell them that the first priority to the country is to make sure Hillary is NOT elected as President.

On or about May 15, 2015, the media will receive a leaked story regarding Trump having a “secret” meeting with the Bush campaign. Soon after that Donald Trump will fall on his rubber sword and instruct his wacko supporters that it is their duty to the country to support Jeb Bush. Jeb, having already secured the established conservatives, will then suddenly become the ‘conservative cause’ for the wackos. Two months later he will be the “Miracle Candidate” to be lauded at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland in August.

And Donald Trump will get anything he wants from the Republican party for the rest of his life. Donald Trump will drop out of the race on or about May 17, 2016. It’s a done deal.

GOP Presidential Race is Over

27 Sunday Sep 2015

Posted by Paul Kiser in Ethics, Government, Health, Politics, Pride, Public Image, Religion, Respect, The Tipping Point, US History, Women

≈ 1 Comment

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2016, America, conservative, Conservatives, Elections, GOP, House of Representatives, House Speaker, John Boehner, Marco Rubio, Pope, President, Republicans, resignation, right-wing extremists, Tea Party, United States of America

Marco Rubio basking in the glow of Boehner’s resignation

House Speaker John Boehner’s resignation last week has brought reality to the Republican party. The smallest minority in Congress is the right-wing extremists and they have been the tail wagging the GOP dog. House Speaker Boehner has been attempting to keep up appearances that common sense conservatives and right-wing extremists all want the same thing, but they don’t. Boehner’s resignation was the showdown between conservatives who believe in the founding principles of our country and conservatives who want to dismantle our country.

Senator and Republican Presidential candidate, Marco Rubio announced Speaker Boehner’s resignation to the cheers of a political group that desires to overthrow our 240 year-old government and replace our Constitution with Taliban-like laws based on mythology. Rubio then went on to say that it is time to “turn the page” on a government that sees all people as equal and install a government that dictates who people can love, what women can choose, and how people can worship.

House Speaker John Boehner takes the high road

Senator Rubio’s victory speech is premature. Boehner’s resignation exposes the Republican party’s festering wound and the hysteria of the mob mentality of right-wing extremists. The Republicans have two choices. They can either capitulate to the right-wing extremists and select a Presidential candidate that will not be electable, or they can finally stand up to those people who seek to overthrow our government and find a moderate conservative that might draw some support from left leaning voters.

In either case, it is unlikely that any Republican candidate can rid themselves of the poisonous environment created by extremists in their party. The right-wing extremists have devolved into a group that has lied and deceived so much that their social media posts are only propaganda for incestuous consumption of other extremists.

However, the right-wing extremists are not an unstoppable force. Their lies and deceit may entertain them, but disgust intelligent, loyal citizens. Right-wing extremists are parading stupidity as if it is something to be proud of in a country of highly intelligent people. The only question is whether common sense conservatives will stay on the right-wing band wagon until it goes off the cliff.

The Trump Card

21 Friday Aug 2015

Posted by Paul Kiser in Ethics, Government, Opinion, Politics, Public Image, Religion, US History

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

2016, Alaska, Bernie Sanders, Democrats, Donald Trump, GOP, Hilliary Clinton, Jeb Bush, nominee, Paul Ryan, Presidential election, Republican, Republicans, Sarah Palin

Donald Trump: The anti-American candidate

Why is Donald Trump running for President? This American version of Muammar Gaddafi or Saddam Hussein is making no attempt to appeal to intelligent voters, and acts as if he is running for President of the Student Council by being anti-school.

The answer is that he is probably not running for President; however, Trump is vital to the hopes of the Grand Ole Party (GOP,) that consists of a vocal white, ultra-religious, anti-American group, and a smaller group of intelligent traditional conservatives.

In the Spring of 2015, it was chaos in the Republican party. Every day another new candidate was announcing his or her run for the White House. Each of them desperately sought the favor of the anti-American faction that would give them the nomination. As each candidate carved out smaller and smaller slices of their party it began to look hopeless for Republicans. None of them could win the Presidency because winning anti-American support would be poison to them in November 2016. At the same time, the GOP candidates were dividing up the party, making reconciliation with a legitimate prospect almost impossible.

Enter Donald Trump. Trump’s role in the party is to be the Pied Piper. He is to gather up all the misfits of the anti-American movement in the GOP and gain their trust. He can be as outrageous as he wants because it will only serve to help him in his role of winning the loyalty of those who love to hate America.

As he solidifies the anti-American vote he will force other GOP candidates out of the race, and Jeb Bush will continue to chart out a more moderate course that will give him the best chance of winning a majority in the general election. Next summer Donald Trump and Jeb Bush will likely be the only two viable GOP nominees. It is at this point Trump will ask his supporters to “fall on their swords” for the party. He will explain that if they don’t vote for Jeb Bush, the Democrats will win…again.

Trump As Vice President?

Sarah Palin: 3rd Place in Miss Alaska, attended five different colleges in four years (one of them twice,) and 1/2 term Governor of Alaska

Paul Ryan, helped Mitt Romney lose in 2012

A fair question is whether Trump will be the Vice President candidate for the Republicans. That deal may already have been brokered with the Bush campaign, or it may still be a decision yet to be made. The problem is that Trump may bring too much baggage to the ticket. Attempts to use the Vice President as material to sew together a conservative coalition has failed in past elections (Sarah Palin in 2008, and Paul Ryan in 2012) as each made the Presidential candidate less appealing to moderates and intelligent voters.

Regardless, Trump’s ego is overflowing with the attention he is currently receiving from supporters and detractors. It is likely that he would see political office beneath him, but he loves being the center of attention. This is a win-win opportunity for him.

Republicans Deal With The Devil

20 Thursday Aug 2015

Posted by Paul Kiser in Ethics, Government, Government Regulation, History, Opinion, Politics, Religion, Taxes, US History, Women

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

anti-American, civil war, confederacy, Confederate Flag, Conservatives, GOP, hate, President Lincoln, racism, Republican, Southern Democrats, the Confederate States of America, The South, traitors

Republicans have a major problem. They are not the majority in the United States. They have managed to win congressional elections, and lesser political offices by convincing true conservatives and anti-Americans that they have the same goals. That strategy has worked because the anti-Americans originally were silent partners in the alliance and were easily led by true conservatives.

The problem is that the anti-Americans have managed use the Republican party to legitimize their 150 year effort to take over America and remake it in their image. That effort started when the white Southern Democrats were determined to make slavery the law of the new territories and they declared that if Abraham Lincoln (a Republican, ironically) were elected as President they would abandon the United States of America. The white, male, landowners of the South said they would disgrace our flag, country and Constitution by creating a new country where all men would not be equal all because their candidate lost the election.

What many Americans do not know is that the Confederacy lied. They were not content with stealing a handful of states and declaring themselves as a new country. Had that been their goal the Civil War would not have occurred. Lincoln was ready to let the six states abandon our country and be done with them.

However, after seceding, the Confederate States of America began attacking our country and sought to destroy the United States of America. Their intent was clearly to conquer us and put our citizens under their autocratic rule.

To defend our country, President Lincoln moved troops in to protect the capital but they were attacked in Baltimore by anti-Americans who attempted to disrupt the our military by operating inside our country. The result forced us into the Civil War.

The Confederate States of America incorrectly assumed that we would surrender rather than fight. That miscalculation not only caused them to lose the war, but also left them without a country. After the war the white, anti-Americans continued to behave as if they were not subjects to the United States of America, nor did they recognize African-Americans as equal despite laws that demand it.

One hundred years after the Civil War the anti-Americans were confronted by citizens who would no longer tolerate their lack respect to our Constitution and the rule of law. They continued to defy and disgrace our country and we were once again required to send troops into the South to force their compliance.

Making violent threats is part of anti-Americanism

Today they still maintain their defiance against America and our Constitution. They retain loyalty to the defeated Confederate flag, and seek to end American government. For the most part, our country has tolerated the anti-Americans and allowed them to use their right of free speech to disrespect our government and our country.

But over the last four decades Republicans, defeated by scandals and failed leadership, have sought to lure the vote of anti-Americans by promoting white supremacist ideals. Among the concepts promoted by Republicans have been a hate for minorities, claiming a religious doctrine that enshrines white males as dominant, pushing for absolute gun ownership that puts military weapons in private hands, interpreting the Constitution to use militias as a means to overthrow America, and promoting an ultra-patriotism that ironically claims that people who seek to overthrow America are patriotic. By using these tactics the Republicans have been successful in capturing the loyalty of the anti-Americans and that has kept the party viable.

Unfortunately, true conservatives have lost control of the Republican party to the anti-Americans. Now, a candidate has to practically pledge allegiance to the Confederate flag to be a viable candidate. Republican candidates must also pledge to bankrupt the government of the United States through no-taxes promises.

The result has created chaos in the Republican party. Like a shark feeding frenzy, anti-American candidates are leaping into the political arena sensing that this is their moment to be the Jefferson Davis of the 21st century.

Yet, America is still not ready to be overthrown. The last two Presidential elections have demonstrated that loyal American still have a majority, Now the Republican party is faced with two opposing facts. A true conservative cannot win the nomination as the Republican Presidential candidate, and an anti-American candidate cannot win the election. Republicans have to find a way to thin the frenzy, eliminate the anti-American candidates, and find someone who can appeal to moderate voters, conservatives, and anti-Americans.

Next: The Trump Card

Bashing “Respect For Others” By Calling It “Politically Correctness”

01 Wednesday Jul 2015

Posted by Paul Kiser in Aging, Communication, Education, Ethics, Generational, Government, History, Honor, Information Technology, Internet, Politics, Pride, Public Image, Public Relations, Relationships, Religion, Respect, US History

≈ 2 Comments

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African American, America, American, Confederate Flag, Donald Trump, Facebook, GOP, Hispanic, Mexican, political correct, respect for others, Twitter

I grew up in a small town. Mrs. Wick was the cranky old lady that lived next door. Mr. Valdez lived down the street and was a law enforcement officer.

It would have been easy to make fun of Mrs. Wick, but my mother would not allow us to do that, and in fact, we were taught to offer to help her whenever she needed it.

It would have been easy to disrespect Mr. Valdez in our small, almost-all-white town because he was Hispanic, but I would have never thought to do that, and his son was one of my best friends in elementary school.

Basic respect for the people in our town was how I was raised. It wasn’t being ‘politically correct,’ because it was part of being a decent person. Sure there were times when people failed to be decent, but the rodeo was only in town once a year and city people who pretend to be cowboys are idiots.

Today, our neighborhood is much larger. A Facebook post reaches around the world. Our community is no longer bound by city limits, county or state lines, nor national boundaries. What we say and do is part of a recorded history that will exist for hundreds, or possibly thousands of years.

It is not easy to be respectful of other people, but it is required. There should never be a question of whether or not to fly a confederate flag. It is always wrong to wave a symbol of traitors and racists in the face of our brothers and sisters around the world.

It is never appropriate to malign a group of honorable people who often risk their lives to have a better life in the United States by characterizing them as drug dealers and rapists. We have a responsibility to speak and act with respect to others. It is not a matter of being ‘political correct,’ it is a matter of personal honor and decency. That value has been the foundation of the strength of our country. It is why, when America faces a real threat, we drop everything and respond as one.

It is why Hitler failed, and Putin hates us. The test of a true American is the ability to respect others who are different in race, gender, religion, who they love, and where they are from.

Science Versus Stupidity

31 Sunday May 2015

Posted by Paul Kiser in Ethics, Generational, Government, Government Regulation, Green, Health, Honor, Internet, Politics, Religion, Science, Social Interactive Media (SIM), solar, Technology

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belief, Bible, church, Conservatives, evolution, fact, Global warming, GOP, logic, Mythology, Republican, Republicans, scientific process, stupid, Stupidity, Tea Party

Earth: Victim of Stupidity

“Science doesn’t have all the answers.”

It’s hard to know where to start when someone makes a statement like the one above. ‘Science’ isn’t an entity, so it can’t possess anything, but beyond the poor grammar is the issue of motivation and failed logic.

When a person makes this statement their motivation is often in defense of religion. The idea seems to be that if science doesn’t have all the answers, then religious and mythological beliefs are valid. Using this logic one could say that because nitrogen doesn’t make up all of the Earth’s atmosphere, (air is 78% nitrogen,) then the air we breathe is all fairy dust.

No intelligent person would say that science has all the answers. We are just scratching the surface of understanding the mechanisms by which our universe operates. Even after science has shown us how one system works, scientists may discover that there are other factors that affect that system. We are on a path of discovery and we have a long way to travel.

However, there are no shortcuts. Just because science hasn’t fully explained everything doesn’t give anyone license to invent an explanation that is based on opinion or agenda. This includes explanations that were created over a thousand years ago by people who didn’t even understand that urination and defecation are the end process of digestion.

All science begins with asking a question. Why? How? What? In the process of answering those questions, the scientific process rules some things out. By narrowing down what isn’t a cause or a factor the scientist begins to clarify the important causes or factors. Religion ignores this process and immediately jumps to an answer that lacks any support other than, “Because I say so!”

I have no problem with anyone’s mythological beliefs…until the believer wants the rest of society to abide by those beliefs. Public policies, laws, education and regulations that exist or are governed by someone’s mythological beliefs is pure stupidity, even if a majority believe in the mythology.

Those that don’t ‘believe’ in evolution, global warming, vaccinations, or any other scientifically based fact are stupid. I’m not calling anyone names, I’m saying they lack intelligence and logical thinking. They are incapable of making good decisions. They are, by definition, stupid.

Believe in God? Fine. But, giving credibility to religious beliefs over scientific fact defines one as being stupid. Making religious beliefs part of societal laws is mass stupidity.

This is Why (2015 vs the 1970’s)

15 Sunday Mar 2015

Posted by Paul Kiser in Aging, Business, Crisis Management, Education, Ethics, Generational, Government, Health, Higher Education, History, Honor, Politics, Pride, Public Image, Taxes, Traditional Media, Universities, US History

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1973 oil embargo, Afghanistan, American Hostage Crisis, Arab, Conservatives, Democrat, Egypt, fuel, GOP, Iran, Israel, Middle East, Munich Massacre, Munich Olympic Games, OAPEC, oil, oil prices, oil shortages, OPEC, petroleum, President Gerald Ford, President Jimmy Carter, President Richard Nixon, Republican, Russia, Soviets, Syria, USSR, Watergate, Yom Kipper War

The 1970’s – American Implosion

The Decade of Oil Domination

Population: 203.2 million
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita: $23,381
Median Annual Income: $7,559
Life Expectancy: 70.8
Average Age at Marriage: Men 23.2, Women 20.6
% of pop. w/high school degree or higher: 52.3%
% of pop. w/college degree or higher: 10.7%

ENEMIES DOMESTIC AND FOREIGN
America was rocked by the internal conflicts during the 1960’s, and the 1970’s did little to sooth the hearts and minds of the citizens. Inflation slowed slightly in 1970, only to be followed by recession. Then the White House was rocked in 1972, by an ever-growing scandal called ‘Watergate’ after the place where Republican operatives attempted to break into Democratic headquarters. Over the next year it would be revealed that the Republican party, including President Richard Nixon played dirty politics during the President’s re-election campaign and then used power tactics to cover up their misdeeds.

In the Fall of 1972, the world was shaken by a group of Palestinians that took Israeli athletes hostage in Germany’s Summer Olympic Games. The Palestinians were given logistical assistance by German Neo-Nazis which helped them penetrate the athlete’s living area and capture eleven of the Israel delegation (two of the eleven were killed during the invasion of the Israeli rooms.) As the world watched, the Germans eventually attempted a botched night rescue as the hostages were moved to an airport. The German snipers were untrained and had no night vision equipment. Every aspect of the German rescue plan was flawed and the Palestinians eventually made a decision to kill all hostages during a stalemate in the fighting.

In October of 1973, Israel responded to a surprise attack by Egypt and Syria (the Yom Kipper War) with a counter attack. The United States and Russia quickly began resupplying their allies (US/Israel and USSR/Syria-Egypt) with arms and materials. In response the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC, later OPEC) began a six month oil embargo that created massive fuel shortages in the United States. This caused the price of oil to rise from $3/barrel to $12/barrel and sparked a new round of inflation.

OUTCOME: American Politics
By the late 1974, the Watergate scandal had ended in resignations by the Vice President and President. Gerald Ford, who had just replaced the Vice President, became the President and limped his administration through the end of Nixon’s term. By the 1976 elections people were done with the Republican party and Jimmy Carter was thrust into the job of restoring faith in government.

OUTCOME: Oil, Greed, and the Middle East
The OPEC oil embargo and the Munich Massacre sent a message that America should be focusing on the Middle East, but the Watergate scandal had caused an information overload, so many Americans still saw Russia as the main foreign threat. However, because the Middle East had massive oil reserves it became the most strategic region in the world for oil consuming countries. This caused the governments of Russia and the United States to attempt to secure the region for each country’s own self-interest.

The questionable tactics of unscrupulous American oil companies opened new wounds in the Arab world. Our public image had been defined by U.S. business and political interference in internal matters of many Arab countries. Americans were caught off guard by the festering hate for America in the Middle East.

OUTCOME: Economic Instability
The roller coaster of inflation, recession, inflation left Americans with a sense of fear about the economy. The typical American was caught by surprise in 1973 when the oil embargo practically put the United States on its knees. The pride America had after beating the odds in World War II and putting a man on the Moon were all erased by one unethical President and our country’s economic vulnerabilities.

THE NEW HOPE EXTINGUISHED
Jimmy Carter’s election in 1976, brought a new hope to America. That produced a new fear for Republicans. Nothing could hurt conservatives more than to have a Democratic President restore America’s self-confidence. President Carter focused on peace and humanitarian initiatives that conservatives said made America look weak. Fortunately for conservatives, the Middle East would be what they needed to derail the Democrats and return to power.

In 1979, Russia invaded Afghanistan and students in Iran overran the American Embassy and took hostages. At the same time a mythical oil crisis (world oil supply dropped by only 4%) drove oil prices up to $39.50 per barrel in one year. The events dominated the news and overshadowed Carter’s re-election campaign. Republicans successfully used political ads to paint Democrats as out of touch during the worst political crisis of Carter’s administration. The events of 1979 could not have been more perfect for the resurgence of the disgraced conservatives.

NEXT: The 1980’s

THE SERIES: The 1950’s The 1960’s The 1990’s 2000’s Epilogue

Republicans Violated Sedition Act of 1918

10 Tuesday Mar 2015

Posted by Paul Kiser in Ethics, Government, Higher Education, Politics, Public Image, Respect, Universities

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Benjamin Netanyahu, Congress, Conservatives, Fraternity, Frats, GOP, Homeland Security, Iran, John Boehner, nuclear weapons, OU, Republican, Republicans, SAE, Sedition Act of 1918, Ted Cruz

There comes a point where it is clear that the line has been overstepped. Unfortunately, the realization comes after the offender(s) have not only crossed the line, but they have gone way beyond it.

Such is the case with the Republicans in Congress.

Congress was established to be a deliberating body of government. Issues are to be brought before the members, researched, debated, and a unified outcome reached. That doesn’t mean it is a consensus, just that every voice is heard. If it were not to be this way then our forefathers would have just had the losing party of each election stay home while the winning party runs rampant without listening to opposing voices.

However, Republicans in Congress have decided to act as if they represent the only voice in America, and as if they are in charge of the world, while placing Americans in peril. Of note:

Republicans have obstructed funding for Homeland Security and threatened to make the employees work without pay.
Republicans have invited Benjamin Netanyahu, the most hated person in the Arab world, to speak before all of Congress in order to provoke a new war in the Middle East.
Republicans have threatened the leaders of Iran with hostile acts if they agree to a nuclear arms deal with….the United States of America.

The last act can only be interpreted as an act of sedition, because for Republicans, not Congress, to make threats to a foreign country in order to derail diplomatic relations of the State Department and the President is not allowed. It violated the Sedition Act of 1918.

“…the use of “disloyal, profane, scurrilous, or abusive language” about the United States government, its flag, or its armed forces or that caused others to view the American government or its institutions with contempt.” (Sedition Act of 1918)

The Act was repealed in 1920; however, the fact that the Republicans who signed the open letter to Iran’s leaders could have been charged with sedition demonstrates how far over the line that they have gone. They have the behavior of OU Frat boys happily singing songs of hate and firm in the belief that they are the Master Race.

Boehner, GOP Pass Funding Scheme For Privatized Death Star

01 Monday Apr 2013

Posted by Paul Kiser in April Fools Day, Fiction, Government, Opinion, Politics

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budget, Congress, Death Star, Dick Cheney, Earth's Second Moon, GOP, John Boehner, John McCain, Paul Ryan, President Barack Obama, Republicans, Space

Washington, D.C. – April 1, 2013

Republicans in Congress managed to slip a little noticed addendum to the budget bill that provides a funding scheme for a Star Wars-like Death Star to be operated and run by private interests. The language of the addendum would void the entire budget bill if removed and authorizes the funding plan if Congress fails to pass or kill the budget bill on it by April 4, 2013. The authors of the measure have created legislation where no action is required to fund the Death Star. House Speaker Boehner (Ohio-R) said:

“We are very comfortable with legislation that requires no action. It’s what we’ve been doing for years and we’re getting very good at it.” (Rep. Boehner)

Under the GOP plan, the project will use a large asteroid pushed into Earth orbit and mine out the luxury condos and living envioronment

Under the GOP plan, the project will use a large asteroid pushed into Earth orbit and mine the luxury condos and living environment out of existing rock

Boehner added that this a budget neutral bill as the initial government funding for the project is a loan that will be repaid by a private consortium over the term of the loan. Unnamed sources have confirmed the term of the loan to be 10,000 years. Representative and former Vice Presidential candidate Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) said,

“This is a win-win-win project. It provides hundreds of thousands of new jobs over the next 100 years, it will put America’s back in space again, and it is the mother of all defense programs.” (Rep. Ryan)

When asked about a rumored plan to use prisoners from thousands of American jails as cheap and expendable labor, Ryan replied, “Another win-win! We’ll decrease the prison population and lower construction expenses.”

President Obama was asked about the Death Star project at his press conference today to encourage consideration of discussion regarding of forming a committee to address global warming. The President said:

“You know, back in December we killed this idea and gave good reasons why it should be killed, which is probably why the Republicans ran with it.” (President Obama)

Senator Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) chided the press for overstating the military function of the massive artificial satellite. McConnell said:

“Once again the liberal press has labeled this great project to re…re…uhm…what’s the word…reflect, that’s it! Uhm…what was I saying?” (Senator McConnell)

Senator John McCain (R-Arizona) then added:

“I believe that what Senator McConnell is trying to saying is that by referring to it as the ‘Death Star’ the liberal press has given a sinister impression of the purpose of this project. Most of this project will be dedicated to luxury condos for those who wish to use Earth’s Second Moon as their primary or secondary residence.” (Senator McCain)

It was reported by some unnamed sources, one of which was former Vice President Dick Cheney, that former Vice President Dick Cheney will be the President and CEO for the consortium building the artificial satellite. When questions were raised about someone of such advanced age running a 100-year project, Rep. Boehner said:

“We have that covered. We have identified five donors with the correct blood type and tissue match to keep the former Vice President healthy and active for at least the next twenty-five years. After that, we will have five more ready to go.” (Rep. Boehner)

When asked if the media would be allowed to interview the donors Boehner said:

“Oh they don’t know they are donors yet. This is a Homeland Security issue and they’ll know when they need to know.” (Rep. Boehner)

The six organizations will take the lead in the design, construction, operation, ownership of the project were identified are: Exxon, Koch Industries, KBR (the former subsidiary of Halliburton,) The Las Vegas Sands Corporation, the National Rifle Association (NRA), and Papa Johns Pizza.

Cheney said:

“These organizations are a perfect fit to carry out the construction and operation of this project. We have all our bases covered.” (Former VP Cheney)

When asked if the project will have a science component like the International Space Station, Paul Ryan answered:

“It will have a science component, but the science will be limited to the confirmation of the existence of God and how He create our universe. We’re not going to waste millions of dollars chasing after scientific hokum.” (Rep. Ryan)

Representative Steven King (R-Iowa) clarified:

“I think it’s important to understand the primary purpose of the Second Moon project. This is a place for certain people to escape Earth’s bounds and celebrate their success. It’s not the type of place that President Obama’s daughters will go for spring break.”

The project is tentatively scheduled for completion by the 2nd Quarter of 2110.

3 Reasons Why Boehner Shouldn’t Be Speaker

31 Monday Dec 2012

Posted by Paul Kiser in Crisis Management, Government, Opinion, Pride, Public Relations

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

112th Congress, 113th Congress, Congress, Election, GOP, House of Representatives, John Boehner, Republicans, Speaker of the House

Speaker John Boehner, The Symbol of Failure

On January 3, 2013, the United States House of Representatives will re-elect Representative John Boehner as the Speaker of the House. Whether or not he merits the Speakership is debatable; however, he has been a good servant to his financial backers and those financial backers also financed the campaigns of the same group of Republicans who will decide Boehner’s fate. They cannot vote for someone else for Speaker without biting the hand of the people who gave them money.

That said, there are good reasons for Republicans to not re-elect John Boehner as Speaker of the House. Three top reasons are as follows:

Reason 1: An Icon of Failure

Gallup Poll – Approval Rating for Congress

In August of this year the approval rating for Congress dropped to 10 percent for the only the second time. The first time was in February of this year. Recently named the ‘Do Nothing Congress,’ they have been the most non-productive Congress in seventy years. Some might blame both political parties; however, two years ago Republicans announced that their strategy would be to block President Obama from passing any significant legislation. Their success at this has resulted in the failure of Congress to do the job for which they were elected.

As Speaker of the House and the leader of the Republicans in Congress, Boehner is the symbol of all that has failed in Washington. November’s election demonstrated the public’s dislike for the tactics used by Republicans to obstruct progress when President Obama won every battleground State except North Carolina, and swept 332 electoral votes when only 270 were necessary. Republicans were also turned out of the Senate and House as Democrats gained significant ground in Congress.

Despite this stinging defeat, Boehner continued to use the same tactics of obstruction by spending this month leading America to the Fiscal Cliff. The irony is that Boehner has not only lost the confidence of the American people, he has lost the confidence of his own party.

In late December he attempted to move Republicans out of the hot seat by proposing a ‘Plan B’ that would have not passed the Senate, but would have given him the opportunity blame Democrats in the Senate for sending America over the Fiscal Cliff. It was a tactic that might have succeeded except for the betrayal of Boehner by his own party when he had to withdraw the legislation because it was not going to pass for lack of Republican support.

Boehner is a symbol of failure and he will carry the stamp of disgrace on his sleeve into the next two years. That means the Republicans will have to overcome Boehner’s public image in 2014 if they re-elect him as Speaker now.

Reason 2: Opportunity of New Blood
If someone else were to be elected as Speaker they would start fresh without all the political baggage Boehner brings with him. Boehner is the uncle no one wants at their family event. The right-wing extremists think he’s too liberal and the rest of the Republicans in the House are just glad they aren’t Boehner. He is seen as deceptive, condescending, and the pawn of the filthy rich. Almost anyone other than Representative Eric Cantor or Representative Paul Ryan would have a better public image to start with than Boehner.

Republicans are facing multiple legislative losses in the next session. The best hope is to drop Boehner’s obstructionist style and begin rebuilding the respect that Republicans have lost in the last two years. By working with the Democrats in early 2013, a new Republican Speaker could regain negotiation strength during the remainder of the 113th Congress. That will increase Republican’s chances in 2014 and put conservatives back on more equal footing. With Boehner as Speaker, Republicans may face humiliation after humiliation as the right wing extremist wag Boehner’s tail during the next session.

Reason 3: Shock Value
Boehner’s re-election will be seen as a business-as-usual when no one wants a repeat of the 112th Congress. A new Speaker will have a shock value that might give hope to Americans. While a majority of Americans do not support the right-wing extremist political agenda, Boehner has continued to pander to them in order to keep a majority. That majority is based on offending most of the other Representatives and a majority of American on a regular basis. A new Speaker might decide to turn the tables on the right-wing extremist by adopting a more moderate view. That would leave the extremists to either fall in line with the Republican mainstream or accept that America will be under rule by the Liberals for the near future.

Few Options Leave A Bleak Future
Sadly, Republicans are bound by fate and money to re-elect John Boehner as Speaker of the House of Representatives. This is like watching a train wreck in slow motion with the forces in play too strong to stop, but the results of disaster obvious to all who witness it. The outcome will be a deepening dislike for Republicans and their tactics and that will result in the 2014 elections continuing the down slide of conservative participation in American politics.

America Held Hostage: DAY 716

15 Thursday Nov 2012

Posted by Paul Kiser in Ethics, Generational, Government, Opinion, Politics, Taxes

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Dean Heller, federal debt, federal deficit, fiscal cliff, GOP, John Boehner, John McCain, Mitch McConnell, Republicans

John McCain still bitter about 2008?

Sure we’ll cooperate with the President….when he becomes a Republican

Republican Senator John McCain promised that a Susan Rice’s nomination for Secretary of State will be blocked. Republican Senator Mitch McConnell says that he has a mandate for Republicans to push America over the fiscal cliff. Republican Representative John Boehner says compromise with Democrats is now possible if President Obama gives up the tax increases favored by most Americans. At least we know that the wealthy, old, white men in Congress haven’t changed.

After Republicans had major wins in the House and Senate in 2010, 42 Republican Senators signed a pledge to gridlock Congress and defeat any attempt by President Obama to move the country forward. That was 716 days ago.

Senator Mitch McConnell: “Election, what election?”

After shocking losses in the Senate, losses in the House that defied the gerrymandering of State Republican legislatures, and Mitt Romney’s loss of the century for President, the GOP is determined to pretend the 2012 election did not happen. That means America can expect the Republicans in Congress to offer more of what they gave us in the last two years.

Perhaps Senator John McCain will once again suggest another corporate tax holiday so wealthy white men can buy private planes and yachts. Perhaps Senator Dean Heller will again attempt to pass a law that will prohibit millionaires from receiving Food Stamps. Perhaps Representative John Boehner will again suggest that the Department of Justice pay Republicans to uphold the Defense of Marriage Act. Whatever they do, we can expect that they will hold America hostage to make sure nothing works in Washington D.C.

What America Must Do: Step 1 – Silence the Wackos in Politics

02 Friday Nov 2012

Posted by Paul Kiser in Business, Ethics, Government, Honor, Opinion, Politics, Relationships, Respect

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

America, GOP, Republican, Richard Mourdock, right-wing extremists, United States of America, Willard Mitt Romney

America is no place for rule by stupid people

Conservative ideals are meant to balance liberal ideals. It is the ying for the yang. When conservative and liberal positions are debated the correct course for the country is usually the result. Unfortunately, people like Karl Rove, Sheldon Adelson, Rupert Murdoch, and David Koch want to kill liberal contributions in politics so that only conservatives determine our country’s path. These people have used their massive financial and commercial resources and orchestrated an elaborate slander campaign of liberals by empowering the most extreme and gullible citizens with a lynch mob mentality. The right-wing wacko takeover of the Republican party has destroyed the rational conservatives in politics and crippled our country.

Richard Mourdock and extremist conservatives want 100% of America run by the stupidest 30%

Before Representative Richard Mourdock of Indiana demonstrated his stupidity about God and rape he made it clear that Republicans should rule America without listening to anyone else’s point of view. He said:

“…bipartisanship ought to consist of Democrats coming to the Republican point of view…”

That is what right-wing extremist call “reaching across the aisle.” Mourdock is representative of the radical conservatives that believe 47% or more of Americans should be silenced and slaves to conservative rule. America cannot move forward with these type of people in political office.

Rational conservatives must reassert themselves and take back the Republican party. As reasonable, thinking people reclaim mainstream conservatism, the wackos will fade back under the rocks where they belong. Already people are distancing themselves from Tea Party affiliation, a trend that will continue if honorable conservatives will step forward and kill off the weeds of extremism that has taken over their garden.

Liberals should also be wary of extremist in their garden. America fails when we allow the stupidest people to speak for us, regardless of ideology.

Links to:

What America Must Do: Step 2 – An Extreme Makeover of Government at All Levels
What America Must Do: Step 3 – Restore Government Revenue and Fair Taxation
What America Must Do: Step 4 – Balanced Budget By 2015, Debt under 50% of GDP by 2020
What America Must Do: Step 5 – Restart a Federally Run Space Program
What America Must Do: Step 6 – Reinvent Higher Education

And This Was the Best Conservatives Could Offer?

31 Wednesday Oct 2012

Posted by Paul Kiser in Business, Ethics, Government, Opinion, Politics, Public Relations, Religion, Respect, Taxes, Women

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Conservatives, Dean Heller, Election, GOP, Karl Rove, Republicans, Richard Mourdock, Todd Akin, Willard Mitt Romney

Mr. Insincere

For President – Eddie Haskell?
Willard Mitt Romney is a poor choice for President by any standard. Sure he’s better that Michele Bachmann, Newt Gingrich, Herman Cain, or almost any of the other right-wing wackos that ran for President this time, but Romney is an embarrassment to America. He will say anything to get a vote, but we all know that is just a rich man who is trying to fool enough of the people enough of the time to get elected. In a party that has great people like Colin Powell, they serve up a smarmy equivalent of Leave It To Beaver’s Eddie Haskell for President. Epic fail.

Paul Ryan is not an alien from another world…as far as we know.

For Vice President – Paul Ryan?
Really? Ryan is a person who is a deceiver. If Satan had Apostles, Paul Ryan would be his Number 1. He, like so many conservatives, is owned and operated by America’s major corporations and his interest is in exploiting our country, not serving.

Charles P. Pierce wrote and interesting piece on Ryan’s family history on the Esquire Politics Blog. He definitely not worthy of the second highest office in the land…or any other office.

Senator Dean Heller making sure he’s seen at Reno Air Races crash news conference (2011)

For Senate from Nevada – Dean Heller?
When Governor Brian Sandoval appointed Dean Heller to replace the adulterous Senator John Ensign, his seat in the House of Representatives forced the cash-strapped state to hold a special election, which cost over $1 million. Nevada certainly hasn’t got its money’s worth. One of Heller’s first official acts was to propose legislation that would prevent millionaires from receiving food stamps. He must have done it as a joke, but nobody laughed.

Heller is a former Bank of America consultant and stock broker, but now he works for people with even more money. If politicians had to wear suits that identified all their sponsors like race car drivers, then he would have a suit covered in oil, mining, and gaming corporations. He is bought and paid for and the lowly citizens of Nevada are not even on his radar.

Heller is the guy who always shows up at major news events like the Reno Air Races crash last year to stand near the Governor as if to say, “see me, I’m here, aren’t I great!”

Richard Mourdock says the pregnancy from rape is what “…God intended..”

For Senate from Indiana – Richard Mourdock and for the House of Representatives from Missouri – Todd Akin?
Indiana and Missouri have many highly qualified conservatives that could be representing the Republican party as candidates for federal office; however, it would be difficult to find two less deserving to fill the job than Richard Mourdock and Todd Akin. Both seem to be weeds in the flower patch and yet both still may win despite their bumbling, non-factual statements about rape and pregnancy. If either or both win then the stupid people of the world can rejoice that they are well represented in the United States Congress.

2012 Idiots on Parade by Karl Rove
The lack of quality conservative candidates doesn’t stop at federal political office. Many Republican state candidates are embarrassments to the country in their own right, but why is the GOP field so bad? That brings us to one name, Karl Rove.

Rove’s laughing now.

Karl Rove is the God of Conservative Candidates. He decides who will gain millions of dollars in advertising support and who won’t. With that money comes the strings. Independent minded, critical thinking people is not what Karl Rove seeks. If you are going to be supported by the Republican party this year, you have to be Karl Rove’s political Boy Toy. Rove’s money comes from Big Oil and mega corporations and they expect payback.

That has led to a slate of corporate Yes Men who are supposed to stay within a script. Like a gang of henchmen, Rove’s army of zombies march across the nation with a brain eating agenda of kill the government, put women down, and give our money to the rich. Rove arms his candidates with some of the most distasteful tactics in politics today.

One of Rove’s typical tactics of taking the conservative candidate’s weaknesses and then running ads accusing the rival candidate of the conservative candidates weakness. If his candidate is a partisan obstructionist, then Rove’s team creates an ad that the Democratic candidate is partisan and only votes with their party. Blaming the faults of his candidate on the other confuses the issue and makes a response to the accusation almost impossible.

How long can Rove keep this up? It depends on the results of this election. If Rove’s candidates win then America can expect to see the same strategy in future elections. If his candidates lose then perhaps true conservatives can take their party back from Karl Rove and his corporate sponsors and re-build it into something more than a group of Tea Party zombies.

Romney’s Concession Speech

20 Thursday Sep 2012

Posted by Paul Kiser in Crime, Education, Ethics, Government, Government Regulation, Health, History, Opinion, Politics, Public Relations, Religion, Taxes, US History, Women

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Ann Romney, concession, Democrats, economy, GOP, job creators, Recession, recovery, Republicans, speech, Unemployment, Willard Mitt Romney

November 6, 2012 4:34 PM EDT

I know the polls have not closed in…well, anywhere, but the results of this election are obvious, even to a multi-millionaire like myself. We’ve lost…again.

Many complained that we lied and deceived the voters in an attempt to be elected. What were we supposed to do? Our choice was to acknowledge that President Obama did a great job in tackling the mess we created and began rebuilding the country, OR lie. We were not going to win any elections by telling the truth!

This campaign was built on the idea that we could fool people long enough to be elected President. As I said in May, 47% of Americans are too smart to be tricked by our twisting of facts, and we knew that 30% of Americans would vote for me no matter how bad we ran our campaign. So this campaign came down to sucking in less than 23% of the electorate. Unfortunately for us most of the citizens of this country are not as stupid as we had hoped.

But you have to credit us for our bravado in our attempt to buy and lie our way into the White House:

GOP Success: Stopping America’s Recovery

The Economy: Our fault, but that didn’t stop us from blaming President Obama. We almost convinced America that President Obama failed because he didn’t create full employment, didn’t pave streets in gold, nor had honey flow out of our taps in four years.
Unemployment: This one is funny, You’ll laugh. We told people that the wealthy are …ready for this..THE job creators! I know, I know. How stupid do you have to be to know that private business loves high employment. Low unemployment means employees can demand better pay, better benefits, better working schedules and all those other headaches that come when too many people have a good job. Employers now have employees by the short hairs and we’re never letting go.
The Recovery: It was remarkable under the circumstances, and conservatives fought hard to keep it from happening. There are no liberals in Big Oil and they worked with us to keep prices high this year. Still, no joy.
The Debt: The truth is that the Bush-era tax cuts cut knees out of the federal budget. That and two mega-wars, plus the devastation caused when my conservative banking friends wrecked the economy. Sure the stimulus and bailouts increased the nation’s debt, but none of that would have been necessary if conservative policies hadn’t put all the ingredients together for an economic disaster.
Big Government: We made it sound like President Obama made massive increases in government, and yet it was George Bush that created the TSA, and other massive increases in the size of federal government. Still, we just have to say ‘big government’ to stupid people and they start to sweat. It’s kind of fun.
Obamacare: We were blessed to have a major Democratic lead program that wouldn’t be effective until 2014. We could paint it to be anything we wanted and we wanted it to be evil. Who could argue with me?
Foreign Policy: Conservatives are warmongers. We love a good fight. We love a bad fight. We love it anytime we can send our young adults and technology to overseas to beat somebody up. I thought we had President Obama beat on foreign policy, but I sort of screwed it up in London…and Israel….and Poland. If you don’t like my foreign policy you can kiss my ass!

We also did a good job of ignoring what we didn’t want to talk about.

The Past: We had a Republican National Convention and we didn’t even invite either of the Bush’s. We didn’t need to highlight the past and good riddance to both of them.
Taxes: We didn’t want to talk about my taxes. As Ann said, if we let people see our taxes, “they will attack us!” Sure a President should have a thick skin, but who needs that when we can deny and hide? Richard Nixon taught me that.
Family History: I don’t want to discuss this, even now.
My First Name: Seriously, who would vote for someone named Willard?
Women: We probably should have been more sensitive to women’s issues, but really, who cares? Right Ann?
Education: Smart people don’t vote for idiots. Why did you think we didn’t want to talk about education?
Crime: We conservatives have always pushed a ‘lock’em up and throw away the key’ policy on crime. The problem is that it cost $30,000/year to house one inmate, and after they reach 55 years old, inmate costs go up to $60,000/year because of increasing medical issues. More inmates, higher costs. Who knew?

I know my mouth got this campaign into a lot of trouble, but honestly how can you only blame me for failed policies that are the very definition of being a conservative. Like everything else, it was the fault of the Democrats that I didn’t get elected as President.

Well, I guess I should end this before I say something stupid. I hope all of you feel better now that you won’t have Ann and I to kick around anymore.

Lack of Quality Jobs Killing Nevada’s Future

15 Wednesday Aug 2012

Posted by Paul Kiser in About Reno, Business, College, Education, Ethics, Government, Higher Education, Politics, Public Relations, Taxes, Universities

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Brian Sandoval, business friendly, Conservatives, Employment, GOP, job creation, job quality, Nevada, Republicans, Sheldon Adelson, Unemployment

No degree? No experience? Welcome to Nevada where you have no future.

For years Nevada conservatives have waved the banner of the ‘business friendly myth‘ that low taxes and minimal regulation will attract new business to Nevada. The truth is that ‘business friendly’ does little, if anything, to attract quality jobs and makes this former Mexican province one of the worst in the nation in societal quality-of-life factors.

Poor Job Quality
Typical experiences of Nevada’s unemployment disaster indicate a long-term unemployment crisis and not a temporary business downturn.

In May of this year a master’s degree engineering graduate from the University of Nevada wanted to keep his family in the state but had to move his family to San Jose, CA to find employment. Another unemployed resident couldn’t find a job because she was “overqualified.” Her skills consisted primarily of a stable work history managing a telephone answering service. In Nevada there are no jobs now nor in the near future that will be available for anything but the lowest qualified worker.

Sheldon Adelson: Godfather of Conservative Politics

While most of the country has experienced some recovery from the massive job losses between 2008 and the first quarter of 2010, Nevada has not, despite the assurances of Governor Brian Sandoval. Conservatives point to wealthy Nevadans as the ‘job creators’ who will be the source of new jobs. Instead wealthy people like casino mogul Sheldon Adelson have poured millions of dollars into campaigns for conservative politicians ( $70 million so far,) while the citizens of the state have borne the impact of the unemployment crisis.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal article by Ed Vogel stated that of the few new Nevada jobs available in the future, most will be low-paying, low-skill, non-career jobs. The top four fastest growing jobs in Nevada are 1) retail salespeople, 2) waiters/waitresses, 3) cashiers, 4) gaming dealers.

These type of jobs do not provide for a career with a progressive future and leave the worker with little spendable income after basic living costs. The highly qualified worker has little hope of finding a job that matches his/her abilities. This creates a ‘Catch-22’ scenario. Educated, skilled workers can’t find work in Nevada so they go elsewhere and businesses with high quality jobs want quality workers, which Nevada can’t retain for a lack of quality jobs.

Nevada is a perfect storm of failure under conservative ‘business friendly’ policies which financially benefit those who allegedly are the ‘job creators,’ but leave the citizens in a ‘unfriendly’ job environment.

Why Ryan, Why Now: Romney Repeats Mistakes of McCain & Nixon

13 Monday Aug 2012

Posted by Paul Kiser in Ethics, Government, History, Politics, Public Relations, Taxes, US History

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GOP, John McCain, Mitt Romney, Paul Ryan, paying taxes, Republicans, Richard Nixon, scandal, tax returns, vice president

Mitt Romney follows McCain and Nixon to failure

Mitt Romney had over two weeks before he had to reveal his choice for Vice President and it would have been advantageous for him to wait. Keeping the Vice President choice a secret would have built up anticipation and the pundits would not have been able to resist continued speculation on the selection. All this would have climaxed with the announcement of the choice on August 29, in prime time on center stage of the Republican National Convention.

Instead the announcement was handled with all the grace of an engagement announcement of a pregnant daughter. The news leaked on a Friday night during the final week of the Olympics and announced before most of the country was awake on Saturday morning. A Vice President choice should reflect the wisdom of the campaign, so why was this one handled as badly or worse than the McCain/Palin fiasco?

Simple. It was desperation.

In 2008, John McCain was desperate to shake up the campaign and re-energize it. Unfortunately, Romney has the same type of desperation, but for different reasons. Romney certainly needs to re-energize his campaign, but what is more critical is the need to shift the focus off the charges that he hasn’t paid taxes for ten years. Romney has his back up against the wall on this issue. If it turns out to be true his campaign is over.

Romney selected Paul Ryan, who seeks to control, not serve Americans, and is a no-compromise, anti-government, right-wing extremist similar to McCain’s Palin choice. Ryan will deliver the voters who are sworn to hate Obama and liberals under the idea that the ticket can be elected by 25% of voters. It didn’t work for McCain in 2008, and it will not work in 2012. It is not a smart choice, but at this point Romney needed something, anything to change the subject of the campaign.

Romney is operating like Richard Nixon in the belief that he can keep his worst secrets hidden through denial, lying, and non-cooperation. Instead he’s put a spotlight on the issue. His tactic of challenging people to ‘prove’ he didn’t pay taxes when he holds all the proof only makes him to looking guilty. It’s obvious he is hiding something in his financial past and if it is not about paying any taxes for ten years, then it must be something as damning.

Romney’s campaign is within hours, days, or weeks of imploding. If he fails to make his tax returns public then it will dominate the conversation about whether he is fit to be President. If he releases them then the truth must be bad enough to destroy his campaign. The only question is how Romney’s right-wing shift followed by complete collapse will carry over to other politicians who have embraced the extreme right.

3rd From Sol

~ Learn from before. Live now. Look ahead.

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