tagged w/ Conservative
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The European debt crisis has just gone to an entirely new level. Just when it seemed like things may be stabilizing somewhat, we get news of huge financial bombs being dropped all over Europe. Very shortly after U.S. financial markets closed on Friday, S&P announced credit downgrades for nine European nations. This included both France and Austria losing their cherished AAA credit ratings. When the credit rating of a country gets slashed, that is a signal to investors that they should start demanding higher interest rates when they invest in the debt of that nation. Over the past year it has become significantly more expensive for many European nations to borrow money, and these new credit downgrades certainly are certainly not going to help matters. Quite a few financially troubled nations in Europe are very dependent on the ability to borrow huge piles of cheap money, and as debt becomes more expensive that is going to push many of them over the edge. Yesterday I wrote about 22 signs that we are on the verge of a devastating global recession, and unfortunately that list just got a whole lot longer.The European debt crisis has just gone to an entirely new level. Just when it seemed... more
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Wouldn't it be great if a Republican presidential candidate could just buy the support of just about every major conservative talk show host in America? Well, it may not be as far-fetched as you may think. Clear Channel owns more radio stations (850) than anyone else in the United States. They also own Premiere Radio Networks, the company that syndicates the radio shows of Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, and Glenn Beck, among others. Needless to say, Clear Channel basically owns conservative talk radio in the United States. So who owns Clear Channel? Well, it turns out that Bain Capital is one of the primary owners of Clear Channel. Yes, you read that correctly. The company that Mitt Romney ran for so long is one of the "big bosses" over virtually all conservative talk radio in America. Of course Mitt Romney is not running Bain Capital anymore. He is a "retired partner", but he still has a huge financial stake in Bain Capital. We're talking about millions upon millions of dollars. If you doubt this, just check out page 34 of this public financial disclosure report. So if you have been wondering why so many conservative talk show hosts are being so incredibly kind to Mitt Romney, this just might be the answer.Wouldn't it be great if a Republican presidential candidate could just buy the... more
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Is your home secure? Are you absolutely sure? There are very few things that are more terrifying than having your home invaded. In fact, many people are never able to feel completely safe in a home again after it has been invaded. Our homes are supposed to be our fortresses. They are where we keep our families and our most cherished possessions safe. Unfortunately, due to the declining economy the number of truly desperate people out there continues to rise. When people become truly desperate, they will often find themselves doing things that they never dreamed that it would be possible for them to do. Hopefully the shocking home invasion stories in this article will motivate you to take action. We all need to learn how to protect ourselves and our families. For a long time the incredible prosperity that we enjoyed in this nation helped to mask the nightmarish moral decline that was taking place. But now that hard times have hit, we are starting to see the fabric of society come apart. All over the United States homes are being invaded, and some of these home invasions are almost too creepy to believe.Is your home secure? Are you absolutely sure? There are very few things that are... more
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Are we raising the stupidest generation in American history? The statistics that you are about to read below are incredibly shocking. They indicate that U.S. high school students are basically as dumb as a rock. As you read the rest of this article, you will be absolutely amazed at the things that U.S. high school students do not know. At this point, it is really hard to argue that the U.S. education system is a success. Our children are spoiled and lazy, our schools do not challenge them and students in Europe and in Asia routinely outperform our students very badly on standardized tests. In particular, schools in America do an incredibly poor job of teaching our students subjects such as history, economics and geography that are necessary for understanding the things that are taking place in our world today. For example, according to a survey conducted by the National Geographic Society, only 37 percent of Americans between the ages of 18 and 24 can find Iraq on a map of the world. According to that same survey, 50 percent of Americans between the ages of 18 and 24 can't even find the state of New York on a map. If our students cannot even find Iraq and New York on a map, what hope is there that they will be able to think critically about the important world events of our day?Are we raising the stupidest generation in American history? The statistics that you... more
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How should people prepare for the difficult years that are coming? I get asked about that a lot. Once people really examine the facts, it is not too hard to convince them that an economic collapse is coming. But once they accept that reality, most of them want to know what they can do to prepare themselves and their families for the hard times that are ahead. Well, the truth is that it does not have to be complicated. Many of the things discussed throughout this article are things that most of us should be doing anyway. Now is not the time to be splurging on luxuries or expensive vacations. Now is not the time to be going into large amounts of debt. Instead, we all need to get back to the basics and we all need to do what we can to become more independent of the system. Just remember what happened back in 2008. Millions of Americans lost their jobs and millions of Americans lost their homes. Now experts all over the globe are warning that another great financial crisis that could be just as bad as 2008 (or even worse) is coming. Those that don't take the time to prepare this time are not going to have any excuse.How should people prepare for the difficult years that are coming? I get asked about... more
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One of the unique things about the Constitution of the United States was that it guaranteed certain rights for its citizens. Those rights provided the foundation for an era of freedom and prosperity that was pretty much unprecedented in human history and dozens of other nations eventually copied many of the ideas contained in our Constitution and Bill of Rights because they worked so well. Of course our system never functioned perfectly, but when you compare it to what has gone on for most of human history, it truly was a bright light in a sea of oppression and totalitarianism. Unfortunately, our rights are now being systematically taken away from us. In America today, the politicians have convinced most of us that in order to keep us all "safe" we must give up many of our rights and move toward becoming a totalitarian police state. In the "new America", you don't get any rights. They tell us that giving people rights is too dangerous. Instead, you get some limited "privileges" which can be revoked at any time by the authorities. Sadly, most Americans have become so dumbed-down that they don't even realize what is happening.One of the unique things about the Constitution of the United States was that it... more
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As a result of the absolutely stunning 29-23 overtime victory by the Denver Broncos over the Pittsburgh Steelers, it seems inevitable that "Tebow Time" will become a household phrase all over America. The string of last second victories that we have seen Tim Tebow pull out this season is unprecedented and we will probably never see anything quite like it again. Unfortunately, miracles don't always happen in real life when we need them. Right now it is "Tebow Time" for the U.S. economy, the U.S. political system and the global financial system, and things look really bad. So will we see heroes rise up at this time to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, or will we see the biggest debt bubble in the history of the world implode and plunge the entire planet into a devastating economic depression? Most people have no idea how fragile the global economic system has become at this point. Global leaders are currently engaged in a frantic juggling act in a desperate attempt to keep all the balls in the air. One wrong move could unleash a financial panic that could potentially be even worse than what we saw in 2008.As a result of the absolutely stunning 29-23 overtime victory by the Denver Broncos... more
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Most Americans believe the lie that the mainstream media is "fair and balanced" and is looking out for the interests of average Americans. Well, that simply is not true. Those in the mainstream media serve those that are providing them with paychecks. The reality is that just 6 gigantic corporations collectively own most of the major mainstream media outlets in this country. Reporters are simply not going to be allowed to report stories that are severely damaging to those corporations or to the owners of those corporations. In addition, reporters are simply not going to be allowed to report stories that are severely damaging to those that spend millions of dollars on advertising (such as pharmaceutical companies) on those mainstream media outlets. At this point, our "news" is absolutely packed with propaganda. Way too often, things are not what they seem to be on television. The mainstream media lies, lies and then lies some more. They give us the version of "reality" that their owners want us to have.Most Americans believe the lie that the mainstream media is "fair and... more
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Most Americans do not realize this, but we are on the verge of a major doctor shortage in the United States. All over America, good doctors are going broke. The way that our health care system is currently set up, they simply cannot make it. These days a lot of politicians are warning us about the dangers of "socialized medicine", but the truth is that we already have it. About half of all health care dollars in the United States are now spent by the federal government, and a lot of health insurance companies base reimbursements on what the federal government does. In addition, there are a whole host of parasites that have gotten between the doctor and the patient these days. Everyone wants a piece of the health care pie. Health insurance companies, pharmaceutical giants, lawyers, health care "administrators" and government bureaucrats all make a sweet living off of the doctor/patient relationship. It really is sickening. And now Obamacare is going to make things much, much worse. As you will read about later in this article, a stunning percentage of doctors say that they plan to leave the medical profession because of Obamacare. What this means is that we are headed for a chronic doctor shortage and there is a good chance that there will be no doctor for you when you really need one in the years ahead.Most Americans do not realize this, but we are on the verge of a major doctor shortage... more
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We have all been lied to. For decades, the leaders of both major political parties have promised us that they can fix our current system and that they can get our national debt under control. As the 2012 election approaches, they are making all kinds of wild promises once again. Well you know what? It is all a giant sham. The United States has gotten into so much debt that there will be no coming back from this. The current system is irretrievably broken. 30 years ago the U.S. debt was a horrific crisis that was completely and totally out of control. If we would have dealt with it back then maybe we could have done something about it. But now it is 15 times larger, and we are adding more than a trillion dollars to the debt every single year. The facts that you are about to read below should set America on fire with anger. Please share them with as many people as you can. What we are doing to our children and our grandchildren is absolutely nightmarish. Words like "abuse", "financial rape", "theft" and "crime" do not even begin to describe what we are doing to future generations. We were the wealthiest nation on earth, but it wasn't good enough just to squander all of our own money. We had to squander the money of our children and our grandchildren as well. America has been so selfish and so self-centered that it is hard to argue that we don't deserve what is about to happen to this country. We have stolen the future of America, and yet we strut around as if we are the smartest generation that ever walked the face of the earth.We have all been lied to. For decades, the leaders of both major political parties... more
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Newt Gingrich is so angry right now that his head just might explode. Less than a month ago, Gingrich had a massive lead in Iowa. At one point he was averaging 31 percent support in Iowa polls. But after an unprecedented onslaught of negative advertising his numbers began to drop like a rock. Ultimately, he finished in fourth place in Iowa with only 13 percent of the vote. Pro-Romney "Super PACs" spent over $3 million on negative ads that just ripped Gingrich to shreds. Of course considering his track record, that is not hard to do. But Newt Gingrich is not someone that is just going to "forgive and forget". Gingrich honestly believed that he was going to win Iowa. In fact, he was so confident at one point that he told ABC News that he would "be the nominee". Now that his dreams have been shattered by pro-Romney forces, Gingrich has apparently decided that he is going to make it his personal mission to destroy Mitt Romney. The next few weeks of the Republican race should be very entertaining as Gingrich pursues this vendetta.Newt Gingrich is so angry right now that his head just might explode. Less than a... more
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When it comes to government debt, it is not just new debt that is the problem. Every single year, governments around the world must "roll over" gigantic mountains of debt that come due. That means that the actual borrowing that takes place each year is far greater than the yearly budget deficits that you see talked about on television. In 2012, a total of 7,600,000,000,000 dollars of debt must be rolled over by the G-7 nations, Brazil, Russia, India and China. When you add in interest payments, that number rises to over $8 trillion. And that does not even include any new borrowing that all of those nations will do in 2012. This is a debt bomb that could devastate the entire global economy at any time. Everything will be fine as long as global lenders are willing to lend these countries gigantic mountains of very cheap money. But if that changes, and there are already a multitude of signs that a massive global credit crunch has begun, it will mean a complete and total financial nightmare for the entire world.When it comes to government debt, it is not just new debt that is the problem. Every... more
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Do not ever give up. That is one of the secrets to life. Almost everyone comes to a moment in life when things look absolutely hopeless. But those that have come through those moments know that there is always a way to turn things around. When times get tough, the tough get a backbone. Yes, a horrific economic collapse is coming and the world is going to become incredibly unstable. But the purpose of waking people up and getting them to realize what is about to happen is not so that they can shiver in fear. When a military unit gets intel that indicates that the enemy arrayed against them is far more powerful than previously thought, do they give up all hope and run away like little girls? Of course not. Instead, they use that intel to prepare for the coming battle. Only cowards give up. When you totally give up, you lose everything and the enemy wins. Our life does not consist of what we own anyway. If every single thing that you own was taken away from you, would your life be over? No! When we leave this world, we will not be remembered for what we owned. Rather, we will be remembered for how we lived.Do not ever give up. That is one of the secrets to life. Almost everyone comes to a... more
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Once again, the Republican Party is being tempted to vote for "the lesser of two evils". A lot of Republicans are actually considering voting for Mitt Romney because they have bought the lie that he has "the best chance" of defeating Barack Obama in 2012. But just because he is the Republican candidate that is most like Barack Obama does not mean that he has the best chance of defeating him. The truth is that no self-respecting Republican should ever vote for Mitt Romney. A vote for Mitt Romney is a vote for the New World Order. Romney comes from the financial establishment, he is being showered with money from the financial establishment and he supports all of the goals of the financial establishment. This year, millions upon millions of dollars are being funneled into Romney's campaign and into pro-Romney organizations. The New World Order is literally trying to buy the 2012 election for their dream candidate. Romney would be the ultimate Wall Street puppet, and if you cast a vote for Mitt Romney you are playing right into the hands of the financial elite.Once again, the Republican Party is being tempted to vote for "the lesser of two... more
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Do you believe that 2012 will be more difficult for the global economy than 2011 was? Well, that is what German Chancellor Angela Merkel believes. The woman that has become the most important politician in Europe recently declared that 2012 "will no doubt be more difficult than 2011". The funny thing is that she has generally been one of the most optimistic public figures in Europe throughout this debt crisis. But now even Merkel is openly admitting that 2012 is going to be a really, really bad year. Sadly, most Americans simply do not understand how important Europe is or how interconnected the global financial system has become. The United States actually has a smaller population and a smaller economy than the EU does. In fact, the EU has an economy that is nearly as large as the economies of the United States and China combined. The EU also is home to more Fortune 500 companies that the U.S. is, and the European banking system is far larger than the U.S. banking system. Anyone that does not believe that a financial collapse in Europe will have a devastating impact on the U.S. economy is living in a fantasy world. Americans better start paying attention to what is going on over there, because we are about to be broadsided by a massive financial tsunami originating out of Europe.Do you believe that 2012 will be more difficult for the global economy than 2011 was?... more
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Once upon a time, the people of the United States constructed beautiful, shiny cities from coast to coast that were the envy of the entire globe. We had the largest and most vibrant middle class that the world has ever seen and life was quite good in America. But now all of our prosperity is coming crashing down and many of our formerly great cities are turning into open, festering sores. Unfortunately, we are drowning in so much debt that we can barely even slow down the shocking decline of our cities. Over the past decade, tens of thousands of manufacturing facilities and millions of good jobs have been shipped out of the United States. As our economic infrastructure has been ripped out right in front of our eyes, an atmosphere of unemployment, poverty and despair has descended on many of our major cities like a soaking wet blanket. Today, many of our cities that once were considered to be some of the greatest in the world have been transformed into rotting, post-apocalyptic hellholes. When you visit many of these cities and look into the sunken eyes of the residents, you almost get the feeling that something has sucked all of the hope and all of the life right out of them. For a while, large numbers of Americans still believed that the right politician would bring them "hope" and "change", but now crushing despair is giving way to absolute desperation for millions of people. Desperate people do desperate things, and as our major cities continue to decay they are going to become very dangerous places to be.Once upon a time, the people of the United States constructed beautiful, shiny cities... more
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What is a true conservative?
By Dwight C Douglas
When I watch television, I hear all the Republicans say they are the “true” conservative. They argue that what America needs in the White House is a conservative. This word has been reshaped by those who claim they alone make sense and know how to improve America.
Dictionary.com says that conservative means disposed to preserve existing conditions, institutions, etc., or to restore traditional ones, and to limit change. But when I hear the candidates talk, they talk about changing things and “taking their country back” as if they are somehow ordained to control its destiny. And as the say, that is why they play the game, or in this case, why we have elections.
Most politicians truly believe in their heart of hearts they are doing righteous public service. They promise they have a vision to make things work better in Washington. Along the way, they discover deep-pockets of beliefs and interests they need to please to get endorsements or contributions.
We enter this election year, we slide further and further away from the “existing condition.” The idea to preserve and limit change seems rather myopic. I love when I hear the neo-cons talk about same sex marriage, choice and values. They misquote the constitution and use their misinformation to deceive the public. They somehow forget that the original document permitted slavery and set up a rich white American male powerbase – women were not allowed to vote. Without amendments, this country would be living in the dark ages of democracy. Someone must have bucked those existing conditions and institutions. Was it zealous liberals, or just smart Americans?
These wild accusations of Obama being the “great divider” and this myth that he doesn’t meet with people to compromise is just plain oxymoronic. Some of the conservative candidates have decided that a person’s religious beliefs should be the basis for different treatment by the TSA. Is this what they mean by taking back “their” country? Are we going to select and divide the citizens into groups we can control?
The true conservative is someone who has already decided what is right and what is wrong. They see things in black and white. They want to lecture me and show me the way to think about issues. A true conservative tells me that the government has gotten too big, without any seeming understanding that the government is an employer. They cut budgets and cheapen our educational efforts and turn thousands of real public servants into unemployed statistics. Do we really want fewer police, firemen and teachers? How is that limiting change?
I may be a liberal-radical Democrat, but I am into restoring traditional institutions. I would like to see more things built in America. I would like to have call centers where I talk to an American, who gets my jokes and understands my frustrations. I believe the US Postal Service needs to be preserved. What’s wrong with a real letter?
We need to understand that the rich are getting richer and the middle-class is being debt-ridden into depression. We need a strong middle-class that gets raises based on their performance. The true conservative says we need to lower debt and lower taxes. That makes no sense. That is like telling Dad, hey, make a smaller paycheck and we’ll spend less money. FACT ALERT: if you make less money you will spend less money. We need more revenue, which means more workers paying taxes. And that includes those 13+ million illegal immigrants not paying taxes now.
We need to do something about our most important “existing condition” – our ever-growing population. According to the Census Bureau, the percentage of foreign-born population has grown from 4.7% in 1970 to 12.9% in 2010 (that’s 40 million people). The country is changing and those who hold onto this notion of limiting change will be left behind. We need to change Washington, we need to change Congress and we need to change the way America handles its taxation of the general public. Again, we need revenue. We need our government to be strong, not small.
I have never met a true conservative who didn’t bother me. I ask myself, why is this? The first thing that puts me off is this aurora of knowing what is right for everyone. The next thing that generally surfaces early in the conversation is this notion that other people are not pulling their fair share. A naiveté that somehow a person working two jobs to get by is less than those who have gotten a “good” education and “pulled themselves up by their bootstraps” to beat the system. And they accuse Obama of class warfare, what?
Another thing that ruffles my feathers is this feeling that non-Christians are not the rightful owners of our country. When these politicians are slightly less true in their conservative views, they might use the phrase “Christian-Judeo nation” as if there are no other value or belief systems than those chosen two. I mean, Hollywood is full of successful people who believe that a spaceship will rescue the righteous; are they not America? And Utah is full of people who wear sacred underwear; are they not part of the great country of freedom of speech and religious belief? There are large neighborhoods in this country where people face a place in the middle-east and pray five times a day; are those citizens not worthy of our respect? There are millions of people in America who don’t want to go back to the witch hunts of Salem, Massachusetts. We like the separation of church and state. It makes sense for America today.
We need to think about the words these people use. We need to comprehend the meanings and actions behind those words. When Rick Santorum said on national TV that Muslims should be handled differently by the TSA when clearing security at our airports, I couldn’t believe the only candidate to demonstrate disbelief was Ron Paul. Rick’s opinion is not a true conservative viewpoint. This would be racial profiling and a racist attitude that would be no different than slavery, female voting restrictions and ruling that only landowners could vote. Those were the original institutions. Would a true conservative in the White House really go back to that existing condition?
We will probably find that true conservatives are just nostalgic fools, who in a sense, are out of touch with America. Professional politicians and true conservatives are keeping us from righting the ship. Even Ronald Reagan raised taxes almost every year he was in office. What would Reagan do today? A true conservative doesn’t acknowledge that good decisions and compromises move things forward. They focus on a rewritten history, the opinion of the pack and their insecure need to appear holier than thou; with the “thou” in this case being the American middle-class.What is a true conservative?
By Dwight C Douglas
When I watch television, I hear... more
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Once upon a time, the United States had the largest and most vibrant middle class that the world has ever seen. Unfortunately, that is rapidly changing. The statistics that you are about to read prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the U.S. middle class is dying right in front of our eyes as we enter 2012. The decline of the middle class is not something that has happened all of a sudden. Rather, there has been a relentless grinding down of the middle class over the last several decades. Millions of our jobs have been shipped overseas, the rate of inflation has far outpaced the rate that our wages have grown, and overwhelming debt has choked the financial life out of millions of American families. Every single day, more Americans fall out of the middle class and into poverty. In fact, more Americans fell into poverty last year than has ever been recorded before. The number of middle class jobs and middle class neighborhoods continues to decline at a staggering pace. As I have written about previously, America as a whole is getting poorer as a nation, and as this happens wealth is becoming increasingly concentrated at the very top of the income scale. This is not how capitalism is supposed to work, and it is not good for America.Once upon a time, the United States had the largest and most vibrant middle class that... more
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It has been said that children are our future, and right now the vast majority of our children are being "educated" in public schools that are rapidly being turned into indoctrination centers and prison camps. Our children desperately need to focus on the basics such as reading, writing and math, but instead a whole host of politicians, "education officials" and teachers are constantly injecting as much propaganda as they possibly can into classroom instruction. Instead of learning how to think, our children are continually being told what to think. Not only that, our children are also being trained how to live as subservient slaves in a Big Brother police state. Today, nearly everything that children do in public schools is watched, monitored, recorded and tracked. Independent thought and free expression are greatly discouraged and are often cracked down upon harshly. If students get "out of line", instead of being sent to see the principal they are often handcuffed, arrested and taken to the police station.It has been said that children are our future, and right now the vast majority of our... more
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If you spend much time watching the mainstream news, then you know how incredibly vapid it can be. It is amazing how they can spend so much time saying next to nothing. There seems to be a huge reluctance to tackle the tough issues and the hard questions.If you spend much time watching the mainstream news, then you know how incredibly... more
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