Hope-the Real Kind

'It is to me a new and consolatory proof that wherever the people are well-informed they can be trusted with their own government; that whenever things get so far wrong as to attract their notice, they may be relied on to set them to rights." Thomas Jefferson

I feel so happy this morning that we have a vote again!  We have a say again in our government!  It is small right now, but we can make it bigger this year.  It gives me hope!  I haven't felt hope for several months if not almost a year!  We proved again yesterday that the constitution is an amazing miracle.  It provides a way for us to throw off or at least balance out ideas and governing that we do not agree with without going to war.  Here again is another great video that shows the power of what happened last night. And as my mother in law said, "We got our miracle!"
Massachussett's Miracle
I'm so grateful to the founding fathers and for the inspiration they received to create such a process. No, our problems are not over. But it gives me such hope today to know that when the people don't like something the government is doing, they CAN make their voice heard one way or another. Those in power right now have NOT been listening to us.   It has been so frustrating to be on the side with no say, or virtually none because of the Democrats super majority.  But they weren't even listening to their own side!  So as Thomas Jefferson said above, we will set things right in a way that they cannot ignore. 

I was reminded in my studies this week of the whole point behind the two wings of government.  Two wings to the Eagle.  The book, Making of America by Cleon Skousen describes it this way: "The left wing was meant to be the "problem solving" wing or the wing of compassion.  Those who function through this dimension of the system are sensitve to the unfulfilled needs of the people.  They dream of elaborate plans to solve these problems."   Obviously, those solutions cost money.  So there is the right wing which "has responsibility of conserving the nation's resources and the people's freedom.  Its function is to analyze the programs of the left wing with two questions: First can we afford it?  Second, what will the proposed plan do to the rights and individual freedom of the people."  We need both sides of the eagle in order to fly straight and to fly higher.  When the left wing becomes too powerful we drift toward tyranny because there is no one to protect costs or the rights of the people.  When the right wing becomes too powerful then the we drift towards anarchy when the government "loses credibility" and the people take things into their own hands. 
 
This year we have been drifting...well, I would say rushing into tyranny as the left wing has had free reign.  But last night was a huge step back towards the middle.  Let's tip the scale some more this year.  Let's put our government back in the middle in November!  But let's do it with more people like Scott Brown and less people who are career politicians.  But I get ahead of myself.  That's a post for another day!
Congrats to Scott Brown, the people of Massechusetts AND the American people.

Not MAD Tonight!

Go Scott Brown!  I couldn’t be more thrilled that Scott Brown won the Senate race in Mass!  Even if the Democrats figure out a way to stall his seating, he will still be the 41st vote to restore some balance!!!!  Filibusters here we come!  Let’s do it again in November!!~!!!  I just can’t stop smilin!

Why I Can't Sit Back and Keep Silent

"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."
Martin Luther King

I read Martin Luther King's I have a Dream speech to the boys again today as I do every year and I was once again moved to tears at the beauty of his words and the life he lived.  It is so wonderful to be able to show the boys examples of people who lived Christlike lives.  They looked at me incredulously as I told them that MLK was arrested 30 times in his life and was never violent.  He fought, and fought hard for what he believed in.  He didn't just sit back and let the status quo remain.  He is a hero of the highest order in my eyes.  And I am grateful for his example of standing up and fighting for what is right.  As proof of his great work we have a black man as president of our country.  Every time people scream racist at someone who does not agree with Obama's politics I want to scream right back and tell them they are WRONG.  I want to tell them how proud I am that we DID elect a black man.  How glad I am for my children's sake that he could be considered and chosen to lead in this country where blacks were for so long opressed.  No, I don't agree with his politics.  I don't want him to get his way on his agenda items.  But it does not for one minute change the fact that I am again, moved to tears when I think of the miracle that he WAS elected.  That he had a chance at all.  And we owe that in large measure to Martin Luther King.  A hero indeed.

What I’m Reading

A friend asked me to share what things I’m reading to study up and keep up on current events.  Here’s my list….(note, this list includes ones I’ve read and ones I want to read)

Books:
-The 5000 Year Leap by Cleon Skousen (good one to start with)
Soon I’ll start doing a chapter by chapter review of this one because this shows the dramatic shift from where the founders started to where we are today.
-The Making of America-the Substance and Meaning of the    Constitution by Cleon Skousen
-The Federalist Papers-Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, John Jay
-Common Sense by Thomas Paine (see below)
-Glen Beck’s Common Sense (which has Thomas Paine’s original Common Sense in the back-VERY good-Beck’s is ok taken with a grain of salt.  He’s a little extreme/harsh, but I agree with a lot of what he says)
-Liberty and Tyranny by Mark Levin (good one to start with)
-Locke’s treatises on Government
-Democracy in America by Alexis De Tocqueville
-Ben Franklin’s autobiography
-The Real George Washington
-The Real Thomas Jefferson
-New Deal or Raw Deal by Burt Folsom
-Liberal Fascism by Jonah Goldberg
-America Alone by Mark Steyn

Classic Fiction:
I’m trying to read some of the classics of that time period:
Pilgrims Progress, Gullivers travels, Johnny Tremain, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, April Morning

Online News Sites:
Almost daily I read one or all of these Online News sites:
-Wall Street Journal (I used to write this off as only a financial newspaper.  Not true at ALL.  It covers all aspects of news and has wonderful opinion pieces on politics and the world.  I get the bulk of my news from this site probably.)  You do have to pay for subscription though, which can be pricey.  There are student discounts I think.
-National Review Online National Review Online
-Human Events Human Events
I almost never read NBC or the main news sites because they’re so liberal and full of garbage anyway.  But they are always good for sensationalistic news and pictures.

Other ways I get news/info:
-Newt Gingrich’s weekly email letter (you can sign up here: http://newt.org/  I like Newt.  He is a historian so he uses history as a basis for his ideas, which I really appreciate.  I like a lot of his ideas for governing and solving America’s problems.   No, past his personal life is not the greatest, but I do like his ideas.
-Imprimis, a monthly publication from Hillsdale College.  They call it a Liberty Digest with articles and speeches from leading conservatives.  It’s free and very educational.  Imprimis Subscription
-The Claremont Review of Books-a quarterly Magazine (very good) 
-Talk Radio-I also listen to talk radio/podcasts when I can.  I like it because they take issues and news events and explain them, discuss them and give background on them.  For a busy mom, I like to have someone do that for me since I can’t spend my whole day studying up on the issues. 
- Rush Limbaugh
-David Boze  on KTTH Seattle 770 am 3-6 PST.  He is in seattle so you get news from there too, but he is the best I’ve found so far.   He studies the issues and then talks about them rather then yelling at the other side.  He is kind and civil to his callers and not rude like many I’ve heard.  I get really turned off by the ones that rant and rave at the other side and are mean to callers like Mark Levin and even Rush sometimes.  I download the David Boze show podcasts and listen to them on the treadmill.
-American Conservative University Podcast often has good stuff to.  Speeches and interviews.
So that’s what I’m reading/listening to right now.  Feel free to keep sending new websites, articles or shows my way!

Don’t Shut Me Out!

I get MAD at the news on a daily basis right now. What set me off yesterday was the news that Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi are planning to kick C-Span out of the negotiations and proceedings as they hammer out the health care bill. How anyone can call themselves a representative of the American people and then shut them out of the process as Reid and Pelosi have done and apparently want to do some more as they finalize their monstrosity is totally beyond me. It is so incredibly wrong that I wonder why more people aren't screaming about it. The President of C-Span wrote a letter to the White House which hasn't been answered as of yet. Newt Gingrich wrote his weekly letter about it. And the Wall Street Journal had an op-ed about it.
See here:
Newt Newsletter

and here: 
WSJ Article 
But I think there should be more shouting of foul being heard. To create such life changing, economy changing, government changing legislation behind closed doors so the American people cannot see it and therefore cannot fight is tantamount to treason in my opinion. 
trea⋅son /ˈtrizən/ [tree-zuhn]
–noun 1. the offense of acting to overthrow one's government or to harm or kill its sovereign.
2. a violation of allegiance to one's sovereign or to one's state.
3. the betrayal of a trust or confidence; breach of faith; treachery.<strong> </strong>

Why are more people not screaming? Is it because everyone knows this is so ludicrous they won't get away with it? How could one think that after Reid's Christmas Eve backroom dealings? They can and often DO get away with it. They'll bribe whoever they have to to get this bill through. So what can we do? I wrote my congressman and senators yesterday to tell them what I think of such an idea. Feelin like that won't do much here in the liberal state of NJ but at least I can vent here. If you agree with me WRITE YOUR CONGRESSMEN. If you have other ideas let me know!! Here is a great video that describes perfectly the corruption in Washington right now. Though I did not fall for the "Hope and Change" slogans and certainly did not vote for these people, it is wonderful to know that other people are MAD too and that not everyone is asleep. Some of you have seen it I'm sure and thanks to Mom H for sending it my way. I apologize for the bikini girl (stupid adds!)
http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2010/01/025329.php

I'm MAD

I am MAD-a Mother Against Drunk Governing. I am so sick and tired of the corruption that goes on in our Nation's Capital that I have decided to start this blog to 1. Vent my frustrations 2. Express my study of how government should be done in writing and 3. Somehow be a rallying wake up call to those who read it. If nothing else, my poor husband is tired of listening to me rant and I have got to do something before I explode. So here goes.

I am not a political scholar and I have never run for office. But I have a deep love and life long interest in US history, our Founding Fathers and the incredible work they accomplished. Not many children would spend their book order money on books about Abraham Lincoln, or spend date night in college reading up on the Declaration of Independence, but I did. I was even asked once by my roommates in amazement, "You're reading that just for fun?" But life and a major, my job, marriage, then children kept me from my study. Recently, though, I have felt an overwhelming need and desire to learn all I can about our founding documents and history. In part, so that I can teach that knowledge to my children so they can carry on the Founders legacy and also so that I can help stop our country's headlong rush into the socialism that would destroy that legacy. There are major problems in Washington. Our government leaders are ignoring the constitution. It is breathtaking to see how far we as a country have come from those founding principles, from what the founders wanted or planned or even solidified as law in the constitution.

I wasn't always aware of this shift. I grew up in a home that was not apolitical, but not openly opinionated about politics. My parents voted Republican most of the time but didn't share strong feelings about their views. And though I've always had an interest in US History I was not very aware of what actually went on in Washington. But now, thanks to all the current political events I am coming into my political knowledge and awareness with a crashing bang. And I am MAD. I want to shout to the rest of my generation and others "DO YOU SEE WHAT IS HAPPENING? WAKE UP AND TAKE A STAND! DON'T LET THE GOVT. DO THIS! DON'T LET THEM RUN AWAY WITH YOUR MONEY AND YOUR FREEDOM WHILE YOU WATCH YOUR REALITY SHOWS AND PLAY YOUR FACEBOOK GAMES! I really feel like that is why government is headed the direction it is, why it is as BIG as it is. Because people are not paying attention. They are asleep at the wheel assuming those they elect will drive correctly. They assume that it is enough for someone else to know the constitution and uphold it's principles. It's someone else's job. But that is NOT what this country is about. So I see these problems and I want to shout. Over the last year or two I have ached to do something, anything to make my voice heard, to make a difference, to stop the massive expansion of our government. As a mother of young children it is hard to do much, but I will start here. I will study so I can understand our constitution well enough to know when leaders in Washington step beyond it's bounds and so that I can fight to uphold it. And I will write about my study and my thoughts on the current events so that my kids (and anyone else who cares to read it) will know that I cared what happened to our country. They will know I love America and believe it to still be the greatest nation on earth BECAUSE of it's inspired beginning. And they will know that I did not just sit back and watch the founding principles die without a fight.

One final note on my study this week. I finally did something I've always wanted to do. I memorized the major parts of the Declaration of Independence. It is amazing how just memorizing the words helped them and the men who risked everything to declare them come alive for me. "And for the support of this Declaration with firm reliance on the protection of Divine providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor." Those words now etched in my memory made those men real to me. Made their fight real to me. Made it MY fight. They spent their lives fighting for freedom and working to create this country and make it free. And so I ask you today, what are you willing to do to keep it that way? At times I read the news and political journals and blogs and start to feel hopeless. Sometimes I feel like turning it off because it's already too far gone and they obviously don't care what the people of America think. That they'll just do what they want anyway. And I'm tempted to shut it out and ignore it. I know people do that. But if you choose to sit at home and do nothing, the political elite in Washington will decide your freedom away. And you'll wake up one morning and wonder where it went. I don't know exactly how to fight the Big Government corruption and politics, but this blog entry is one step for me. Going to a Tea Party is one step for me. Writing my congressmen is one step for me. Staying current on what's going on in the news and the world is one step for me. Learning about the constitution enough to defend it with my voice and my vote is one step for me. I will keep taking little steps and hopefully I can encourage someone else to take some steps of their own so that we can march ourselves back into a government that really IS run by its people and not corrupt career politicians.