It’s the real issues that matter not ones the media have you believe

In the final four seconds of the game and down by three points, the gay quarterback drops back to pass from his opponent’s 20 yard line.  His transgender receiver trips despite making an impressive spin move to avoid the bump from the mean cornerback who defends the second amendment with all his soul. Preoccupied with global warming fears, his running back did not break on the hike signal forcing our hero to check off to his tight end but he’s rolled up in the fetal position after adding to the carbon emissions issue with a shot of methane gas.

He begins to scramble looking and hoping for anyone focused on the game but to no avail.  Time runs out and he is left holding the ball with no place to go but back to the locker room.  After the game the coach praises his players for their courage in facing their issues and hopes they will do better the next game.

In sports, games are not won without the focus on winning.  In politics, no one focuses on the real issue of moving our country forward.  Politicians create issues and crisis.  They get incensed at things people say but rarely do they ever show focus on managing this country.

Social issues are important but not at the expense of real business.

Donald Trump became the twelfth Republican presidential candidate yesterday and there are potentially four more candidates in the wings.  On the other side of the aisle sits Hillary Clinton.  Regardless of who the Republicans nominate, the mainstream media will favor Clinton and inundate us with stories of wretched Republicans.  That’s what they do despite the pretense of objectiveness.  We do not need the media to tell us who we should favor.  The diehard Liberals and Conservatives will blindly support their flavor of the month.  The Democrats and Republicans will support the party line because they are spineless idiots without the ability to think on their own.

Young voters in college will vote mostly Democratic because they are typically indoctrinated by left-leaning professors steeped in theory and not reality.  Plus, they have not lived long enough to understand the value of making a decision based on merit and not populism.  Independent voters and moderates are really a Republican or Democrat in disguise – too ashamed to associate with a party.

If nothing else Trump adds entertainment value to the stump.  But does he add more?  Will you take the time to understand the philosophy of each candidate?  Will you research the issues like you research details when car shopping?

Will you vote for Clinton because she is a woman or based on her record of accomplishments?  Does she have any accomplishments?  Will you vote for Governor Chris Christie because his bombastic personality is what we need to shake up this country or look at his record managing New Jersey?  Will you discount Governor Jeb Bush because of his last name and the desire to not have another Bush in the White House or will you take an honest look at his record?

Much like my first paragraph, none of the “issues” surrounding the candidates I mentioned mean anything to determine your vote.  They are distractions.  Distractions conjured by a media driven by an agenda.  This election cycle I am hoping for two things:  we vote based issues that matter like jobs, defense of the nation, infrastructure, and the economy. Each one of these issues has satellite issues that must also be addressed like illegal immigration that impacts all four and other such issues.  The second hope is we ignore the media and make up our own minds.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The time for unions has passed; time for something different

Unions grew out of a need to protect the common interest of workers but now it seems they have become what they were created to stop.  Unions fought for better wages, reasonable hours and safer working conditions.  All noble causes and needed at the time they were formed.

Back then, frontline workers needed help to ensure they got a fair share from rich owners who were always depicted as greedy wretches willing to sacrifice people for a buck.  In some cases, factory owners took advantage of frontline workers so Unions were a god send.

Do we really need unions in 2015?  Do professional sports athletes really need a union to help regulate living conditions to play a game?  Are federal employee unions necessary when there are so many laws and regulations protecting the worker?

There is a storm brewing in South Carolina now that Volvo has agreed to open a car manufacturing plant within its borders.  The United Auto Workers (UAW) immediately made overtures about the employees joining its union.  South Carolina has a right-to-work law which means workers at unionized plants are not forced to join the labor organization.

Isn’t it ironic that workers are forced to join a union in some states?  So the union confiscates fees from members who may not want to join it but must in order to be employed.  How is that any different than a factory owner dictating a wage as condition of employment? Why isn’t there a pro-choice movement for joining unions?

South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley has said the state has an international reputation “for being a state that doesn’t want unions, because we don’t need unions.”  She has said South Carolina has been “successful in attracting some of the world’s top corporate citizens and paving the way for expansion of the businesses we already have because our right-to-work law strengthens the direct relationship our employers have with employees.”

If that is the case shouldn’t union heads be happy and leave well enough alone?  If unions really did care about the workers and the worker is being taken care of properly why form a union?

It seems to me unions lost their way at some point.  They have become a business in and of itself and, like a politician seeking re-election, will do and say anything to keep the status quo.

How many times have we seen workers laid off because union demands forced companies to downsize? How often do you see a union head take a pay cut so rank and file members can keep their jobs?

There comes a time when everyone realizes their time has passed.  The industrial age has long been replaced by the Information Age.  Do workers need protection from keyboard fatigue? Do we need to limit the amount of Tweets an employer can ask us to send a day?

Rather than exist as a roadblock to progress, I think Unions should re-image themselves and serve the need of today.  Unions should collect dues but offer health care to the rank and file so rather than employers.  Now there is value.  Employers can then afford to hire more workers

I doubt that idea will ever fly and maybe it’s as ridiculous as it reads.  However, at present I think Unions are more of the problem then the solution and change is required.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

We need to elect real leaders and not aspire to mediocrity

How can you aspire to greatness when mediocrity is acceptable?  In a country bent on equalizing it’s citizenry by lowering standards, people who want more often get less.

The basic tenet of leadership is to motivate others to accomplish more.  This is mostly accomplished by offering incentives.  When I was interviewing for a management job early in my career, the hiring manager asked “So, how do you motivate people?” I responded “I don’t.  I look for motivated people.”

A motivated person gets the job done every time.  They are driven by success but when success is punished why should they try?  Highly motivated people will succeed regardless of incentives.  They are wired that way and nothing slows them down.

It’s the next level of achievers – the ones that have the right DNA but need a push – that are affected by disincentives to succeed.

The American landscape is changing from a land of rugged individualism to the quicksand of handouts.  We are becoming the equivalent of a discount superstore – we have the brand products on the shelf but are pushing the white label ones because it serves our purpose.

The leadership void in Washington, DC is punishing success and rewarding apathy.  People who start a business are overly taxed, face numerous fees and must contend with unfunded state and federal mandates. If you do nothing other than blame society for your lot in life you are rewarded with government subsidies.

I think the federal government has failed incentives 101.  The government takes initiative away, removes drive, and kills any chance for its citizens to earn a better life. The functional word in that last sentence is “earn”.   Politicians do not understand that concept.

But what do you expect from people who have other people pay for their campaigns, live off the citizens’ backs once in office, and can only gain revenue by taking more of what other people earn?

The only incentive politicians have to actually do the people’s will is the need for our vote.  Most politicians have no fear of losing our vote so they continually do what is good for them and not the country.  Buying votes is the name of the game and handouts are the currency.

So let me get this straight: I vote for a candidate who continually asks me for donations.  Once in office the politician charges me higher taxes to give a handout to another voter. This ensures the other voter will vote for him so he can stay in office to do the same thing to him.  Does anyone else see the need for the voter to change the playing field?

A representative government is supposed to have the elected official represent what the people who elected him want not the other way around.  So why do we vote for people who do not represent what we want?

Most parents want their children to have a better life, a better standard of living, and a better opportunity for success than they had growing up.  Look around.  Can you honestly say this will be true for the children graduating college this year?

We need to elect real leaders and not aspire to mediocrity.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

An opportunity is an opened door, not a handout

I have found when people complain about something not being fair they are really saying they want more favorable consideration for themselves.  Fairness does not exist in life. If you want fair look in the dictionary as it’s the only place you’ll find it.

America prides itself as the Land of Opportunity.  This is true regardless of how the Liberal media tries to convince us otherwise. There is one small caveat I would add.  Everyone deserves a fair chance at having an opportunity but that does not mean people need to be handed the keys to the kingdom.

Let me explain.  All I ever ask for is a fair shot at an opportunity.  I do not want it handed to me because I’m white, Italian, middle-aged, or any other demographic factor society deems appropriate to represent a given workforce. But if I have the proper qualifications for a job I just want the opportunity to apply for it.

Liberals feel otherwise. They believe they are doing justice by “equalizing” the field and demanding a certain quota of whatever race, creed, gender, or sexual orientation they feel appropriate.  In theory that is an admirable idea but one doomed to fail because you cannot legislate fair.

It’s impossible. I like the idea of an equal playing field but I want it equal in terms of everyone has a chance to apply.  The irony is the minute you start handing people something you immediately make it unfair for those that did not get the same treatment.

Liberals would say that is fair because those groups receiving preferential treatment had to contend with institutional bias in the past.  The fact is every immigrant group that came to America faced the same issues.  We just don’t incessantly whine about it and look for others to give us something rather than earn it.

I want the most qualified person to have the position.   I understand the argument that underprivileged people or minorities do not have the same level of access to education or additional means to help acquire the required qualifications.

But they have the opportunity to educate themselves via the public school system the unions rave about. They have the opportunity to break the cycle of dependence if they make the decision to better themselves.  They have the opportunity to not join a gang and take a job “that no one wants.” I presume those jobs exist which is the idiot Republican view of why they won’t stop illegal immigration.

In the bottom of the ninth inning with the game on the line and the pitcher due up, would you send your slugger up to pinch hit or be fair and “give” the pitcher the at bat? Do football teams insist the offensive line be representative of the racial makeup of the city or do they want the biggest guys that can block?  Do NBA teams have racial quotas?  In a youth sport league when choosing an all-star team, do the coaches pick the kid that can’t throw or the one who throws hard?

Why is it to use the best available person regardless of age, sex, color, or ethnicity OK in sports but not in life?

A fair shot in America should not mean a handout.  It should mean an opportunity to an opened door.  But the person must still walk through that open door and earn the right to succeed based on her or his own merit.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Reality is never what it seems

My younger brother posted a joke photo on Facebook depicting looters in Baltimore with the caption: “Looting: When free food, housing, phones and education aren’t enough.” The looters were African American so of course one of his black “friends” protested to the picture and called him a racist.

His “friend” implied my brother would not have posted the picture and joke if the picture depicted white people.  Well, one thing I know for sure the Facebook connection does not know my younger brother well.

It does not matter the color, creed, political affiliation, or any other group designation you want to apply, the act of looting is wrong.  But that does not matter to the victim crowd.  Rather than recognize and acknowledge the act of looting is wrong, his “friend” chose the militant approach and tried to silence my younger brother by accusing him of racism.

This approach creates more animosity and resentment towards African Americans than simply addressing the real issue. People looting, rioting, and partaking in criminal activity to honor a supposed saint makes no sense. The logic escapes me. People want to destroy businesses and other people’s property to honor the memory of a person they did not know. Then they wonder why there are no available jobs.

Pop quiz: If you were starting a business that requires a substantial time and money commitment are you going to build it in an area where you have to worry about possible riots or are you going to a safer area?

We need to shatter some myths.  The first is white police officers are racist and target blacks.  That’s like saying all Muslims are Jihadists, all feminists are ugly, and all Italians belong to the mafia.

According to a recent article in the Washington Times, more white people are killed by police officers than blacks but I do not see white people rioting in the streets. In fact, Gilbert Collar, an 18-year-old white student at the University of South Alabama, was shot and killed while naked, unarmed and under the influence of drugs by a black police officer.

I did not see a single news article on it until I started researching items for this blog.  I did not see white people rioting, demanding justice, or destroying other people’s property.  The bottom line is if you are partaking in criminal behavior, bad things are eventually going to happen to you.  If you do not want bad things ti happen to you because of criminal activity I suggest not partaking in criminal activity.

It seems pretty obvious.  However, if you do partake in criminal activity and something bad happens to you then you only have yourself to blame.  Accept it. Own it. And don’t complain.

Another myth is that only black people receive government assistance.  According to research from the Department of Commerce, the percentage of welfare recipients that are black is 39.8% while the percent of welfare recipients that are white is 38.8%.

Other than the familiar “white trash” moniker thrown at various groups that gravitate towards trailer parks I do not see white people admonished in the media for being freeloaders.  Why is that?

One possible reason is that white people are not rioting, destroying property, or otherwise engaging in activity that gets law abiding citizens to notice.  It could be that too many media types buy into the black stereotype.  It could be a combination of both.  In my experience, it’s never one or the other.  It always takes two to tango.

For the sake of society I think we need a new choreographer.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Forget non-Issues and focus on leading the country

The most recent foray into demonizing conservative candidates is asking them if they would attend the wedding of a loved one if they it were a gay wedding.  The hope is to trip up the candidates in a “Gotcha” moment.

I like the way Florida Senator Marco Rubio handled the question the other day.  He said he would attend the wedding and then added being against gay marriage does not mean you are anti-gay.  The media loves to depict candidates in black or white with Liberals always wearing the white hats.

Rubio has said in the past “Supporting the definition of marriage as one man and one woman is not anti-gay. It is pro-traditional marriage.”  That is a logical, and cogent thought but I’ll bet anything the media will portray him and other conservatives as anti-gay.

Using that same premise, would Liberals who believe in gay marriage be “anti-marriage.”?  Or “anti-heterosexual.”?  Why not ask the next logical question?  “Would you attend a heterosexual wedding of a loved one if you thought they were marrying the wrong person?”

Most of us have attended weddings where pools are started to see how long it will last.  No one says a word about that but put the word gay in front of marriage and anyone who says anything against it is a bigot.

Do you think anyone in the media will ask Hillary Clinton why she pays women on her staff less than men?  By some estimates she is paying women 70 percent of what she pays the men on her staff.  Isn’t that gender pay inequality?

You will not hear one word about that but I’m sure we’ll get days of coverage of a conservative candidate being anti-woman if he pays a woman on his staff a penny less than a man.

Frankly, I do not care about these non-issues.  I want the next president to fix the mess President Obama has created.  We need a president more concerned about running the country and less concerned about dogmatic issues that divide us.  I want a president focused on balancing the budget, protecting the nation, and letting the economy ebb and flow from capitalism.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

The lost art of coaching is ruining high school sports

Perhaps the mist of time conceals the fact most high school coaches were always the backend of a horse.  Maybe I saw things differently as a high school athlete trying to earn the respect of my coach which made me overlook the bullying.

Watching how high school coaches treat their players as an adult, I see things differently and fear more damage is done by ignorance than malice.  I must have missed the memo that stated screaming like a lunatic at a teenager and coaching were interchangeable.  It seems coaches do more yelling and little coaching.

I smack my head when I hear a high school coach say “I am not here to teach you how to play this game.  I’m here to develop you for the next level.”  Um, I think someone should tell such a genius that in order to develop the players must be taught.

I’m not sure why coaches believe yelling is the antidote to the player making a mistake but it seems this stupidity is rampant among the masses.  Perhaps over the course of a frustrating lifetime, certain coaches simply need to feel superior so they mask their passive-aggressive hatred of their own lives as coaching style.

Isn’t it odd that we entrust our children to ill-equipped people masquerading as coaches during the time they are most vulnerable.  Teenage years are hard enough without some coach berating a child for making a mistake in a game that has no true bearing in life.  From my perspective the coach should be understanding of mistakes seeing his or her employer made one in the hiring process.

A coach teaches, shows, and encourages people to succeed at the task at hand.  Screamers are impatient egotists more concerned about what their peers are saying about them than their youth athletes.

I suspect the time will come when high school sports are replaced by travel teams.  You still have your knucklehead coaches on the travel circuit but most programs will not tolerate such antics if people do not register for their teams.  High school parents have no such recourse.

The parents are trapped in the delusion that junior will make the pros and the necessity to be a sycophant to the coach ensure playing time for the next A-Rod.  At a public high school parents have no recourse and are stuck with frustrated wannabes coming to grips with their gym teacher life.

I was at a 16U travel baseball game the other day and saw a team completely botch a bunt that allowed the runner to score from first base.  Rather than scream and yell at the kids, in between innings the coach gathered his players and calmly explained what each player should have done on the play.  He explained their roles and why they are supposed to execute their roles in the fashion he explained.

There was no yelling or screaming obscenities at the kids.  There was coaching.  Is that too much to ask from a high school coach?

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

LGBT gone wild in Indiana unbecoming of tolerance

Homosexuals do not have a choice in their sexual orientation but they do have a choice in how they conduct themselves in regards to their sexual orientation. It’s no different for heterosexuals.

Can the same be said for people with deep religious convictions?  Are the religious convictions so much a part of them that they do not have a choice but to believe in them?  Will homosexuals disregard this theory and say those with religious convictions have a choice?

Kevin O’Connor and his daughter Crystal own Memories Pizza in Walkerton, Indiana which has become the most recent poster child for hate by the Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, and Transgender (LGBT) mob.

And hate is exactly what their recent actions display.  O’Connor told a local TV station he would not cater a gay wedding if asked.  It wasn’t as if he refused an actual request – he just said it and later explained to do so would go against his religious beliefs.

That’s all this Ox-Bow LGBT mob needed to hear before setting up a figurative hangman. The group inundated his Facebook page with hate, made threats to his family, and generally created such havoc that he temporarily closed his store.

The LGBT mob point to this as proof the Religious Freedom Restoration Act the state legislature passed will be used to discriminate against them.  So they do the natural thing and discriminate against O’Connor for his beliefs.

Ok, a few things come to mind.  First, why would anyone want to use a Pizzeria to cater a wedding?  I mean no offense to O’Connor’s restaurant as I’m sure the pizza is good but a Pizzeria for a wedding?  Really?  IS the LGBT crowd hurting that badly for a cause that it picks a ridiculous scenario as it’s rallying cry?

Second. O’Connor has every right to express his view.  It’s his privately held business and he can do what he wants.  By the same token, the LGBT group and anyone offended by O’Connor’s beliefs has every right to get their food elsewhere.

But why go to such lengths to destroy a person’s business? Why make threats against him and his family?  Why act in such a manner that makes others think LGBT people are not regular people with a different sexual orientation?

To me it is very simple. O’Connor does not want to cater a gay wedding but has never denied food or services to any customer. Why should he be forced to do so or bullied for his views?  The LGBT crowd and others are offended by his stance on gay marriage so take your business elsewhere.  How hard is that to comprehend?

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Is it a case of judging others as we judge ourselves?

The hot topic of the day belongs to Indiana where the state legislature passed a Religious Freedom Restoration Act.  That link brings you straight to the actual legislation that I’m sure very few people have read but it doesn’t stop them from getting hysterical and making unsubstantiated accusations.  As with most statutes, it’s a mind-numbingly hard read sure to cure the worst case of insomnia.

What you will not explicitly see in the statute is language saying “OK, listen up all you conservative bigots.  You now have free reign to discriminate against gays, blacks, cripples, Hispanics, Muslims, Jews, or any other minority group you don’t like.”  It’s not there.

To be fair, the language in the statute is suspect and may lead some to believe the law can be used as a shield for discrimination.  But the very people who claimed there was no agenda in their quest for equal protection rights when it came to gay marriage are the ones claiming there is a hidden agenda in the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

Is this a case of judging others as we judge ourselves?

I do not believe the Indiana state legislature went forward with a hidden agenda to discriminate against anyone.  I think the state legislature felt the recent trend of the Federal Government to infringe upon the rights of those with deeply held religious beliefs needed to be addressed.  Is it a perfect law?  No.  But what law is?  Indiana Governor Mike Pence said the legislature will address the concern.

But that will not stop the militant homosexuals from spouting their own form hate towards those with different opinions. Why is it OK for minorities to be intolerant of the majority view but not OK for the majority to be intolerant of the minority view?

I think both groups need a lesson in civility and accepting differences which leads to tolerance.  For me it’s a basic case of one group trying to impose its will on another group.  It should not happen and both groups are wrong to try and implement their agendas.

As a Catholic, I believe Marriage is a sacrament and do not want the term used for same sex couples.  That does not mean I am against same sex marriage.  I could care less what people do in and with their lives.  We all have to face a judgment day at the end so let the chips fall where they will.  Ostensibly, homosexuals want the same rights as heterosexuals.  That’s a fair request and every human should have the same rights.  A civil union accomplishes the equality sought by homosexuals so why push for the term marriage to be affixed to their union?

The Federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) passed in 1993 was created to protect different religious groups from being discriminated against because of their religion.  For example, the law prevents organizations from banning Muslim students from wearing head coverings.  So we would not ask a Muslim to remove a head covering but it’s OK to ask a Catholic to accept a different definition of a sacrament?

Everyone needs to take a deep breath and stop grandstanding so the issues can be worked out to achieve a compromise.  I suspect no compromise will be enough for either side.

By the way, the Indiana law explicitly allows any for-profit business to assert a right to “the free exercise of religion.” That means that a for-profit business is considered to have the same protections as an individual when expressing religion. According to the hysterical mob, that opens the door for a business to discriminate.

Are there a few that will discriminate? I’m sure there are but they are probably discriminating now by “being out of stock” or “overbooked” or any other excuse businesses use when they want a potential customer to go away.  I think that is a small group and they do not deserve to be in business and eventually will go out of business die to their hubris.

I think the majority of people will not use the law as open season to discriminate.  I also think we need less histrionics and more dialog.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

One person’s extreme is another person’s principle

Texas Senator Ted Cruz is the first to officially announce his intentions to run for president in what will be a long line of Republican suitors for the presidential nomination.  Get ready for the media frenzy.

The Liberal media will call him extreme and he may be extreme. By the same token, he may not be extreme.  Before you blindly accept someone else’s view of him at least research the guy than decide if he is too extreme for your vote.  I refuse to let the media define a person or topic for me.

He will be called confrontational.  A lot of establishment Republicans do not like him because of his role in “shutting down the government” in 2013.  They blame him for the hurting their image.  Really? A Republican getting a fair assessment from the mainstream media is as rare as seeing a unicorn.  Oh, that’s right, it doesn’t exist.

Do you know what you will not hear from the mainstream media?  That he is the first major Latino candidate to run for president.  How many times will we hear Hillary Clinton is a woman or how often did the media say President Obama was black when he was campaigning. But you’ll hear crickets from the media about Senator Cruz.  If he were a Democrat, then his nationality would be front page news.

By the way, some will say the first Latino candidates was New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson in 2008 or Ben Fernandez in 1980 but I am talking about a major candidate.

I have not decided who I am going to support or vote for because it is too early and I need to get a better understanding if each candidate’s views.  This is what I know about Senator Cruz.

He wants to repeal Obamacare and instead “expand Health Savings Accounts, [to] allow individuals to purchase insurance across state lines, and make health care more personal, portable, and affordable.”  The media will say he is against the poor and wants to steal their healthcare.

Senator Cruz is against granting legal status to illegal immigrants.  He says “We need to secure the borders, we need to stop illegal immigration, and we need to improve and streamline legal immigration.”  Is that a radical idea?  Is that extreme?   Again, the media will portray him as hating the poor.

He proposes a flat tax and desires to abolish the IRS.  I have advocated for a flat tax since the start of my blog so I’m good with his idea.  If we have a flat tax we will not need the IRS as it is constituted today so his idea is logical.  The media, however, will bombard you with stories about how heartless he is for trying to trim the government patrol.

He “embraces school choice” and supports vouchers.  He says education is a civil rights issue for the next generation.  Senator Cruz is a strong supporter of vouchers, and wants legislation to allow funds to “follow low-income students to any public or private school of their choice.”  You guessed it the media will portray him as anti-teacher.  What is wrong with wanting our children to have access to the best education they can find versus being forced into school because of proximity?  If Liberals really care about educating our children why does it matter if the school is public or private?

He is against Net Neutrality and wants a constitutional amendment to require a balanced federal budget.  Senator Cruz believes in voter ID, having congressional term limits, states’ rights when it comes to gay marriage and legalizing marijuana, and is a guns-rights activist.

All these positions to him are based on his principles to Liberals his views are extreme.  After I research him more he may not be the right candidate for my vote but I want the right to research him myself and not be fooled by a media with a slanted agenda.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment