Monday, May 27
Types of Government
Some governments are run by one powerful person or a small group of people in a country. These types of governments are called authoritarian because the people must serve the government. Because of this, authoritarian governments frequently do not respect the rights of individuals. Sometimes, an authoritarian government may give the appearance of being something other than authoritarian. For example, they may hold elections, but those in control of the government will make sure they keep the actual power. Before the United States was founded, most countries were ruled by authoritarian governments.
Nicolae CeauČ™escu was the dictator of Romania from 1965–89 (image courtesy Biography).
Democratic Governments
Not all governments are authoritarian. In some countries, the people decided that the government should serve the people instead of the other way around. These governments are called democracies. There are many different kinds of democracies; most are responsible for creating an environment that promotes the common good. The common good is the idea that governments can try to make decisions that help most of the people in the group. Within a democracy, who is authorized to make decisions, in what ways the government is responsible to the people, and the kinds of choices people have vary widely. In most democracies, the ideas of rights and liberties is important. A right is something a person should have access to just because they are human. A liberty is a form of freedom that no government should take from an individual. The rights a person has simply because they are human are called, “natural rights.” Democratic governments tend to respect individual rights and liberties to a greater degree than authoritarian governments. At times, democracies may not respect the rights of a minority group because they are designed to follow the will of the majority.
The Durant City Council is a representative democratic government body (image courtesy the City of Durant).
The US Constitution begins with the phrase, “We the People” to make clear that the people of the United States are where the government’s power lies, and that the government exists so that we can govern ourselves.
Students demand equality in Oklahoma, 1963 (20246.38.84.5, John Melton Collection, OHS).
Some governments are organized according to a set of rules that must be followed. The rules explaining how a government must operate are called a constitution. A constitution can also include protections for individual rights and liberties for all people, including minority groups. Governments that follow their constitution and laws closely respect the “rule of law.” Governments that follow the rule of law offer more protection for individuals because the decisions governments make have to be based on the rules. Another thing the rule of law introduces is the idea that there are some areas of life where the government cannot interfere. This idea is called “limited government.”
One way to understand “rule of law” is to think about your favorite sport: it has rules, right? You want to make sure the rules of the games are enforced fairly to all teams. This is also true of governments.
Another idea that some democracies consider important is the idea of equality. Many democracies will include in their constitutions that all people are equal and include rules to ensure that the people that run the government treat each person as having equal worth.
Monarchy
A monarchy is ruled by a hereditary leader, such as a king. Monarchies can be absolute, constitutional, or ceremonial. An absolute monarch controls the entire government; an example of this form of government is Saudi Arabia. A constitutional monarch has power and serves as the executive, but the constitution limits this power; Monaco has a constitutional monarchy. In a ceremonial monarchy, the monarch has very little power and performs ceremonial duties; Great Britain is an example of a ceremonial monarchy.
Abdul-Aziz ibn Abdul-Rahman al Faisal al Saud founded Saudi Arabia in 1932 (image courtesy History Today).
Dictatorship
A dictatorship is ruled by a group of people selected by one person. The people who run the government are responsible to the dictator and no one else. The country of Turkmenistan under Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow is a good example of a dictatorship. While the country has a constitution, a parliament, and elections, Berdimuhamedow is able to make changes to the rules as he wishes whenever he wants.
As of 2022, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow is the authoritarian leader of Turkmenistan (image courtesy Reuters).
Oligarchy
An oligarchy is ruled by a smaller group. There are many different kinds of oligarchies. In many places, the military holds the power. This type of government is called a stratocracy. Currently, Thailand is a country under military control. Another kind of oligarchy, a plutocracy, is where the wealthy are in control. During the Renaissance, the city-states on the Italian peninsula were often plutocracies. The country of Iran is a theocracy, which means that the country is controlled by a group of religious leaders. Another kind of oligarchy often practiced is rule by one political party, such as the Communist Party in China.
The Communist Party of China is a kind of oligarchy (image courtesy The Diplomat).
Parliamentary Democracy
A parliamentary democracy is a form of democracy in which the people elect a legislative body called Parliament. The executive, usually called a prime minister, is selected from this group. Often, parliamentary democracies will have many different political parties, and the parties will have to cooperate in running the government because no one party has a clear majority in the body. India has a parliamentary system.
The chambers of the British Parliament are well known (image courtesy CNN).
Presidential Democracy
A presidential democracy is where voters select both their representatives in the legislative body and the executive. For example, in the United States, voters choose their representative every two years, electors who select their president through the Electoral College every four years, and their senator every six years.
George Washington served as the United States’ first president (image courtesy of the White House).
Participatory Democracy
A participatory democracy is a form of government in which people have greater responsibilities than voting for representatives. This could include serving on advisory boards, commenting on policy changes, or proposing legislation. A specific kind of participatory democracy is called direct democracy. A direct democracy is a government run by all the people of a place. Most of the time, other types of governments will include elements of participatory democracy rather than organize the entire government around the idea that everyone should be involved in making day-to-day decisions.
A town hall meeting is a kind of direct democracy (mage courtesy New York Times).
Friday, February 17
Domestic Spying
The US government, with assistance from major telecommunications carriers including AT&T, has engaged in massive, illegal dragnet surveillance of the domestic communications and communications records of millions of ordinary Americans since at least 2001. Since this was first reported on by the press and discovered by the public in late 2005, EFF has been at the forefront of the effort to stop it and bring government surveillance programs back within the law and the Constitution.
News reports in December 2005 first revealed that the National Security Agency (NSA) has been intercepting Americans’ phone calls and Internet communications. Those news reports, combined with a USA Today story in May 2006 and the statements of several members of Congress, revealed that the NSA is also receiving wholesale copies of American's telephone and other communications records. All of these surveillance activities are in violation of the privacy safeguards established by Congress and the US Constitution.
In early 2006, EFF obtained whistleblower evidence (.pdf) from former AT&T technician Mark Klein showing that AT&T is cooperating with the illegal surveillance. The undisputed documents show that AT&T installed a fiberoptic splitter at its facility at 611 Folsom Street in San Francisco that makes copies of all emails web browsing and other Internet traffic to and from AT&T customers and provides those copies to the NSA. This copying includes both domestic and international Internet activities of AT&T customers. As one expert observed, “this isn’t a wiretap, it’s a country-tap.”
Secret government documents, published by the media in 2013, confirm the NSA obtains full copies of everything that is carried along major domestic fiber optic cable networks. In June 2013, the media, led by the Guardian and Washington Post started publishing a series of articles, along with full government documents, that have confirmed much of what was reported in 2005 and 2006 and then some.
Thursday, May 5
Charging Electric Cars
Ford will soon start delivering its shiny new F-150 Lightning, the electric version of its pickup truck, and other auto makers are racing to electrify their most popular models.
But many drivers considering switching to electric vehicles cite a similar concern: the hypothetical nightmare of getting stuck in the middle of nowhere without any battery left.
The Biden administration has an ambitious plan to address that. It wants to build tons of chargers so that they become as common as a gas station, and closer to the ease and speed of pumping gas.
Here's how the plan would work – and what it would mean for electric car owners and prospective buyers.
What's the plan?
The federal government will spend $5 billion dollars to build 500,000 chargers. The money will go to states, who have until late summer to submit their plans to the federal government.
The funding comes with strings attached – strings intended to ensure that this network of chargers is fast, reliable, and convenient. READ MORE...
Sunday, April 24
Disney's Powers in Florida Revoked
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has signed a controversial bill dissolving Walt Disney World's self-governing status in the state.
The move is seen as retribution for Disney's opposition to the state's so-called "Don't Say Gay" bill.
The company's status in the state in effect allowed Disney to operate as its own municipal government.
It included the ability to levy tax, build roads, control utilities and operate its own fire department.
The Florida bill will eliminate Disney's Reedy Creek Improvement District and several others.
The measure, however, allows for districts to be re-established in the future.
At a bill signing ceremony on Friday, Mr DeSantis accused Disney of lying about the controversial bill, which bars many primary school classrooms from discussing sexual orientation.
"You're a corporation based in Burbank, California, and you're gonna marshal your economic might to attack the parents of my state," he said.
"We view that as a provocation, and we're going to fight back against that." READ MORE...
Saturday, February 12
Biden's Burden(s)
COVID - 19 Confusion
Increasing Inflation
Supply Chain SNAFU
Illegal Immigration Invasion
Sporatic Lockdowns
Sporatic Facemask Mandate
Democrats retiring from Congress
Patronizing Mainstream Media
Not Willing to Answer Questions
Russian Invasion of Ukraine Potential
China Invasion of Taiwan Potential
North Korea Testing Long Range Missiles
Iran Nuclear Program Escalating
Terrorist VOW Destruction of America
After being our President for a year now, the above are the indisputable accomplishments of the Biden Administration...
I remember when Biden won the election, I received an email that read: OUR NATIONAL NIGHTMARE IS FINALLY OVER... If I were to send that person an email now, it would read: OUR NATIONAL NIGHTMARE HAS JUST BEGUN...
Sad to say, but I believe that the Republicans will win control of the House and Senate after the 2022 midterms and the balance of power will shift back to the conservatives...
It could also mean that in 2024, the Republicans could acquire the Presidency and REVERSE all the orders that Biden put into place just like he REVERSED all the orders that Trump had put into place...
Who wins with this type of seesaw government?
Thursday, February 3
PROTEST... Protest... protest...
It Is Your RIGHT...
Rights and Protections Guaranteed in the
Bill of Rights
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Henry David Thoreau's essay Resistance to Civil Government, published posthumously as Civil Disobedience, popularized the term in the US, although the concept itself has been practiced longer before.
Wednesday, January 19
Our Government Spending
How large? The federal government is projected to spend $5.7 trillion in 2021, according to the Congressional Budget Office. If you’re wondering where that money comes from and where it goes, here’s what you need to know about the federal budget and how it impacts you.
NOTE: Our government spent $1.1 Trillion than expected...
How the Federal Budget Process Works
If you think staying on top of your household budget is tedious, consider the process the federal government must go through each year. Actually, the process takes more than a year. The U.S. government doesn’t budget for the calendar year starting on Jan. 1 but rather a fiscal year starting on Oct. 1 and going through Sept. 30 of the following year. The process for creating the budget begins a year and a half before the fiscal year begins.
Step 1: Government agencies start compiling their spending proposals in the spring (1 1/2 years before the fiscal year begins) to submit to the White House Office of Management and Budget.
Step 2: Using the agencies’ request, the OMB and president create a budget request that typically is submitted to Congress by the first Monday in February.
Step 3: The House of Representatives and Senate budget committees draft budget resolutions. Then a House-Senate conference committee resolves the differences between the two resolutions to create one budget resolution that both the House and Senate are supposed to approve by April 15. READ MORE...
In 2021, the federal government collected $4.05 trillion in revenue.
In 2021, the federal government spent $6.82 trillion.
The U.S. government spent at least $5.2 trillion to combat the covid-19 crisis. It stands as one of the most expensive, ambitious experiments in U.S. history. And it succeeded.
A final phase of that assistance could begin this week, when the Treasury Department starts a $110 billion program of child tax credit payments for millions of Americans. Those benefits are set to run through the end of the year.
But even that program will run out, assuming it is not renewed. And policymakers will be undertaking an equally uncertain experiment by letting most other covid-19 relief aid run its course. Businesses and households that were able to navigate the coronavirus pandemic with large levels of government aid will soon test their ability to forge ahead on their own.
Previous attempts to let pandemic-related benefits expire were met with last-minute extensions, as economic updates remained dismal and hardship remained prominent. But the White House appears ready to let the training wheels come off this year as positive indicators pile up. READ MORE...
Friday, September 17
Against Big Government and Their Controls
There are basically two groups of people living here in the United States and each group has their little spinoffs... these two groups are:
Those who favor BIG GOVERNMENT (50%)
Those who favor SMALL GOVERNMENT (50%)
It would appear that the United States is equally divided in what it believes and what it wants which in a way is damn near perfect because one side does not control more than the other side...
However,
our Federal Government SHOULD NOT TELL US what we should or should not do with our bodies...
that is to say:
- if a woman wants to get an abortion she should be allowed to get an abortion
- if a male/female does not want to get a COVID vaccine they should be allowed to do so
- if a male/female want to take illegal drugs they should be allowed to do so
- if a male/female wants to drink alcohol they should be allowed to do so
- if a male/female wants to smoke cigarettes they should be allowed to do so
- if a male/female wants to own a firearm they should be allowed to do so
- if a male/female wants to become a terrorist they should be allowed to do so
- if a male/female wants to sell illegal drugs they should be allowed to do so
- if a male/female wants to speak out against the government they should be allowed to do so
- if a male/female does not want to pursue an education they should be allowed to do so
- if a male/female wants to get themselves into endless debt they should be allowed to do so
- if a male/female does not want to pay higher taxes they should be allowed to do so
- if a male/female wants to change genders they should be allowed to do so
- if a male/female wants to believe in communism they should be allowed to do so
- if a male/female wants to worship their God(s) they should be allowed to do so
- if a male/female hates other races or ethnic groups they should be allowed to do so
- if a male/female wants to organize a movement to defund the police they should be allowed to do so
- if a male/female believes the US Constitution should be written they should be allowed to believe that way
- if a male/female steals something from someone else they should be allowed to do so (but punished)
- if a male/female wants to be homeless they should be allowed to do so
The United States... IN ALL ITS GREATNESS... has not been able to prevent the WEALTHY from CONTROLLING all of those individuals and couples that are NOT WEALTHY...
The BIGGEST PROBLEM in the United States is NOT politics, employment, education, or healthcare... it is all the MILLIONAIRES AND BILLIONAIRES who invest their monies in CONTROLLING AMERICANS...
Monday, August 16
AMERICA: Living Off the Government
One of the main lessons that my parents engrained and/or imprinted upon me was the concept of NEVER LIVING OFF THE GOVERNMENT... to pull myself up from my own bootstraps, calling upon family or friends for help, if necessary, but never the government.
However, under the Biden Administration and the new Progressive Democrats, our Federal Government has put itself in a position of attempting to arrange as many Americans as possible to start living off the government with:
- unemployment benefits
- healthcare benefits
- food stamp benefits
- education benefits
- housing benefits
Sunday, July 25
Vaccination Passports
All over Europe people are protesting the government requiring a vaccination passport in order to be allowed entry into a variety of venues because of COVID and all the varients that are coming online...
They are protesting this direction because they believe that it is an invasion of privacy and an intrusion into an individual's medical history...
Saturday, June 12
Back Porch Written Reflections
Americans are different from the rest of the world because we live in a Democratic Society with a Democratic Republic form of governments that values FREEDOMS above all else except for maybe GREED and MONEY.
Many people on the LEFT SIDE of our freedom fence are saying that ALL WHITES are bad, evil, and OPPRESS all other races and ethnic groups, especially BLACKS and that this practice MUST STOP,
Many people on the RIGHT SIDE of our freedom fence are saying that we value of freedom, especially our freedom of speech that allows the LEFT to say whatever it is that they want to say.
These two views are so different that we are tearing ourselves apart because of our DIVISION; and, while that concerns me a little, what concerns me more is that our global enemies will take advantage of that divide.
While there are BAD PLAYERS in America on both sides of our Freedom Fence, we should be more concerned about the following:
- Our quality of education or the lack thereof
- The care we give our disabled veterans
- A growing economy with less than 3% inflation
- An economy that has close to FULL EMPLOYMENT
- A strong global military presence
- An open immigration program
- Equalizing the salary/wage scales
- Keeping all taxes as low as possible
- Reducing to the point of eliminating debt
- Ending our dependence on illegal drugs
- Becoming and maintaining energy independence
- Having politicians everyone can trust again
- Having leaders everyone can trust again
- Having managers everyone can trust again
- Having supervisors everyone can trust again
Monday, June 7
Don't Give A Damn No Mo'
Livin' off the government and lovin' it...
I retired during the Presidential administration of Donald Trump and only began to LIVE LARGE under the new Presidential administration of Joe Biden...
...excerpt for the Harry Belafonte song ZOMBIE JAMBOREE
Already talkingBack to back, belly to belly
I don't give a damn, I done dead already
Oho back to back, belly to belly
Monday, May 17
Ain't Nothing Free
When I attended Graduate School to pursue an MBA, my Economics Professor, Dr. Peter Peacock lectured to the class that there was no such thing as a FREE LUNCH... from the standpoint that someone had to pay for the lunches that others got free... I am sure that there were many lessons learned from his class but this lesson is the one that stayed with me all my life.
So... when our Federal Government says that its citizens will now be receiving free education or free healthcare or free meals... someone else in the country will be paying for that who may or may not want to give people free education or free healthcare or free meals because they had to earn the money and pay for all of that themselves... so why can't these other people do the same?
Our Federal Government using the TAX Codes and Laws steals money away from others for these purposes... I say steal because our Democratic Republic from of governments has been authorized by the US Constitution to protect us, negotiate trade deals and treaties with other governments, and enforce the laws but really nothing else.
- public education
- public housing
- public mail service
- public healthcare
- public transportation
- public parks and recreations
- Social Security
- Unemployment Insurance
Thursday, May 13
60% Versus 12%
According to the most recent census data, the percentage of whites in the US population is 60% whereas the percentage of blacks in the US population is 12%... In other words, there are FIVE times more whites in America than there are blacks.
What does that mean?
ONE out of every FIVE Americans are black... and yet, minority group wants to control everything that is going on in this county from law enforcement to politics to Hollywood to Professional Athletics to Musicians and Artists to those CEO's who are managing our companies.
Blacks want to receive preferential treatment because they were brought to this country in 1619 against their will... that is over 400 years ago... and 157 years before we gained our independence from Great Britain; however, just because the whites gained their independence does not mean that the blacks actually gained their independence as well... NO... it took another 87 years for the blacks to actually receive their independence.
WHY... did it take so long?
OUR FOUNDING FATHERS (All of them) WERE RACISTS... there is no doubts about that fact... now, here is the interesting question:
DID PRESIDENT LINCOLN FREE THE SLAVES TO INCREASE THE SIZE OF HIS ARMY AGAINST THE SOUTH OR DID HE FREE THE SLAVES BECAUSE HE WAS AGAINST SLAVERY?
Lincoln's wife owned slaves...
We, that is to say Americans, treated the Native Americans almost as bad as we treated the blacks... and, to compensate them for our bad treatment, we allowed them to operate GAMBLING CASINOS on their territory only... but, they get all the revenues.
That was really white of us to do that.
Interestingly, the US Constitution that governs our country was actually written for the WHITES not the BLACKS even though they were included by an amendment... but, in the minds of most blacks that did not correct the injustice; however, what will correct the injustice will be that REALITY where ALL WHITENESS is removed from the way Americans live... that is to say that the 60% should bend over backwards to pacify the 12% as a form of compensation.
What does that mean exactly?
That means BLACKS no longer want WHITES to be White... because if WHITES continue to be White, then that is racism and racism negatively impacts 12% of all Americans.
It means that laws should be rewritten to favor blacks over whites in the courts of law.
It means that Blacks should get preferential treatment at college and university over the WHITES.
It means that Blacks should be hired before Whites are hired even if they are less qualified because it was the Whites that manipulated the system that forced them to be less qualified in the first place.
However, I don't think Blacks want to be first in line in the MILITARY since being first there might result in a loss of life... but that is just a personal opinion and not based upon any solid evidence or facts.
I am also not sure how this relates to selling illegal drugs either because most of the dope dealers are black and most of the dope users are white... and, I doubt very seriously if they really want to change places.
Because blacks were slaves they should be given every thing they want or they will revolt in the streets, burn, and loot to show their disappointment. And... since the law enforcement is systemically racist, then we should do away with the police force... or at least have NO WHITE LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS so if blacks are killed by police, they will have been killed by black police.
IT IS TIME THAT WHITES LISTEN AND STOP BEING WHITE ONCE AND FOR ALL... white should not even be a color or for that matter a word in the dictionary.
Monday, April 19
INCREASE THE SIZE OF THE SUPREME COURT...
MAKE WASHINGTON DC A STATE...
MAKE PUERTO RICO A STATE...
END THE FILABUSTER...
ALLOW ALL ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS IN...
CENSOR CONSERVATIVE VOICES...
DEFUND THE POLICE...
IF YOU ARE WHITE YOU ARE A RACIST...
WHITE PRIVILEGE MUST END...
This is no longer the country in which I was born and I really don't recognize her anymore... These changes will not really impact me that much since I am retired and really do not have to play these games anymore... and, as long as the Stock Market continues to grow, my retirement income will grow as well... If the Stock Market stops growing and declines, I have money in straight saving accounts and can simply use that money as is needed and there is enough money to pay my wife's and my expenses until we are both 95 years of age... What could impact us negatively is INFLATION and if that happens we will just have to reduce our expenses as we have already done and can continue to do...
Governmental changes will not really impact us... but, they will impact YOU... and your future unless you do something about it. If you decide to ignore, then down the road you will pay the price... and, down the road, I will be dead and will not care...
Friday, March 26
Take Care of Me
I WANT OUR FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO TAKE CARE OF ME...
I want FREE housing
I want an increase in Social Security
I want FREE education
I want a guaranteed income
I want the wealthy Americans to share their wealth
I want the police to be defunded
I want the black people to always be given the advantage
I want an end to white privilege
I want only black law enforcement personnel
I want the conservative voice to be permanently censored
I want our government to control all businesses
I want businesses to be forced to employ workers
I want our military to be substantially reduced
I want an end to petroleum crude oil and natural gas
I want an end to gasoline cars
I want an end to interstate speed limits
I want illegal drugs to be legalized and taxed like alcohol\
I want white pregnancies to be aborted
I want it to be illegal for black females to have an abortion
Tuesday, March 2
What We Deserve
Thomas Jefferson, years later (1800) said, "the government you elect is the government you deserve..."
H. L. Mencken, American Journalist (1940) said, "people deserve the government they get..."
So... what does this quote mean?
It means that every group of people, a nation of people let's say, is ultimately responsible for what happens to the nation IN TOTAL but not necessarily individually...
For example, when the PEOPLE elected Donald Trump, whatever he did the people deserved because they elected him to the office of the Presidency... the same hold true now for Joe Biden... whatever he does we deserve because we put him in power as well...
The problem with this logic is that if the vote is 51% to 49%, then WE THE PEOPLE did not really put anyone in power because... WE THE MAJORITY did... therefore, almost 50% of the the people DO NOT DESERVE THE GOVERNMENT THEY GET...
DEMOCRACY is based upon a MAJORITY and may or may not reflect the WILL of all the people.
Friday, January 29
Thank God It's Friday
Friday, January 8
Breaking Down Capitalism
Monday, September 28
Endgame of Silencing Conservatives
The government of the United States of America hangs in the balance of the fight between conservatives and liberals.
And, it is the government that regulates taxes, provides services to the people, and decides how the country will interpret the actions of foreign countries.
It DOES NOT REGULATE BUSINESS in that:
- the government cannot tell the business who to hire or fire
- the government cannot tell the business where its corporate office should be
- the government cannot tell the business how much of a dividend it can pay
- the government cannot tell the business what products it will sell or invent
- the government cannot tell business how much profit it can make
Only a few LIBERALS manage businesses like:
- Amazon
- Microsoft
- Apple
- Dell
- Oracle