Just my Opinion

I know many of you are disappointed that President Obama so far has chosen not to come to Gettysburg for the commemoration of Dedication Day at the Gettysburg National Cemetery on November 19, 2013.

This should be a surprise to no one who studies history.

In a recent political tiff the president had with congress, he used the National Park Service as political club to inflict as much pain as he could into the lives of patriotic Americans.

It wasn't the closing of scenic lands and recreational parks that cut deeply into the flesh of veterans and historians, rather the unnecessary closure of national battlefields here in the U. S. and the national cemeteries both home and abroad.

Those actions betrayed the most historically tone deaf president in our history.

His actions were designed to support his political agenda by creating a straw man that would destroy his political opponents by creating a public opinion conflagration. It did not work and he was seen as the clueless historian he truly is.

He had many alternatives but he chose to inconvenience the American public as much as possible.

His disrespect for the American dead that occupy all our "hallowed ground" was witnessed by everyone on the planet. It would seem an extreme example of hubris if now he tried to show reverence for the soil he had secured behind locked gates a short time ago.

A Shameful Incongruity

The inability for the President and Congress to sit down at a negotiating table and produce some productive measures to satisfy all political factions is disgraceful.  All voters regardless of party, should be angry with their elected officials.

This failure to compromise is hurting the taxpayer and government employee on a daily basis.  People aren't paid and government services cannot be fulfilled.

With living near Gettysburg, one can really feel the pain.  Tourists have been deprived of visiting the battlefield and national cemetery.  Licensed guides suddenly have lost income overnight due to the inability to guide anywhere with the closure of federal property.  Locally businesses are losing income everyday as tourism spirals downward.

The real shame is that all of this could have been prevented regardless if there was a government shutdown or not.  The Executive Department (i.e. President Obama) made a political calculus on how to address the government slowdown and decided on closure in order to hurt the public the most.  This has been confirmed by at least one federal park ranger and the actions of the Department of Interior which have adversely affected private commerce near the federal parks.

In the instance of Gettysburg, the Visitor's Center is open because it is run by a private non-profit organization.  There is a minimal federal staff present in law enforcement and maintenance. 

The point is President Obama could have allowed the public to walk and visit their OWN property but he decided not to.  He decided to take the "pour the salt in the wound" approach to remedy a political imbroglio of his own making.

The biggest shame is not economic nor service related, it is that patriotism, thanksgiving, appreciation, remembrance, thankfulness and respect for American sacrifice has taken the largest and most painful hit.  And to think, this avenue of political vengeance has been ordered by the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the United States.

Until further notice,  we cannot contemplatively stroll the National Cemetery or amble the hallowed ground of the Military Park until this present president changes his mind.

That is a vile shame and a repugnant disgrace.

Hopelessly Clueless

So we left Iraq, we are leaving Afghanistan.  Both are now a devil's stew.

And we are going to Syria for???  Bombing milk plants and aspirin factories?  Oh, WMDs.

A good old fashion "I have no idea what to do so let's lob some missiles at them and see what happens!" 

I admit, this may be more effective than his "Grovel and Apologize" foreign policy.

When is the next presidential election?

A Memorial Day Remembrance

In the early morning hours of June 6, 1944, Private First Class Clairus L. Riggs of Company B, First Battalion, One Hundred Sixteenth Infantry of the Twenty-Ninth Infantry Division was being transported across the English Channel aboard the troop transport S.S. Empire Javelin.  He was from Coalport, Clearfield County, Pennsylvania.

At 0330 hours, the landing craft containing Boat Team One of Company B was heading toward Omaha Beach.  Riggs carried a Browning Automatic Rifle which is a light machine gun that was deployed in a squad of men.  At 0640 hours the ramp of the landing craft was lowered in the surf off of Dog Green Sector.  As the six foot two inch soldier stepped on the ramp he was hit by enemy gunfire and fell into the water, dead. 

PFC Riggs was originally buried in an American cemetery in Normandy but his body was one of many that were requested to be re-interred in the United States.  On November 26, 1947, the U.S.S. Robert Burns arrived in New York harbor with its blessed cargo.  Since Clairus was from Pennsylvania he was selected for a U.S. cemetery in this state. 

On December 16, 1947, at about 2:00PM, PFC Riggs was buried in Plot 2, Site 308 at the Gettysburg National Cemetery.  He is one of twelve D-Day KIAs buried there.  He rests peacefully with all his comrades from the other wars America has fought.

Rest in peace Clairus L. Riggs.

The I Word

• Fast and Furious,  a clandestine and clownish operation by the ATF which resulted in guns being sold to Mexicans and one of those was used to kill a U. S Border patrol agent.
• The Benghazi cover up and scandal in which the Obama administration has been lying about since September 11, 2012.
• The IRS was prejudicially targeting conservative non-profits for punitive political purposes.
• The DOJ wiretaps the telephones of the AP at an unprecedented level which even sparked the ACLU to call for an investigation.
• The Homeland Security Department refuses to enforce the federals statutes concerning illegal immigration.

Impeachment, to bring formal charges against a public official for wrongdoing while in office.

This isn't oral sex in the Oval Office, this isn't a burglary of a private office, this isn't violating the Tenure of Office Act and questioning the legitimacy of Congress.

Americans died, some needlessly, the rights of Americans have been violated by governmental agencies.  All the agencies or departments involved are under the purview of the executive branch of government.

Investigations into some of these matters have not even begun and others have been stonewalled by an uncooperative executive branch.  Impeachment now, no,  but it's a possibility.  I guess it all depends on what the meaning of the word is, is.

" The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors."

Generations, generations.

I grew up in a small town in the Southern Tier of New York State during the sixties and seventies. 

In our modest six member household we had about a dozen long guns in the house.  We all loved out of door activities such as fishing, hunting and camping.  It was a rite of passage that my two brothers, my sister and I became of age and took the state mandated hunter safety training course at fourteen years old.

With each of us it was the same procedure.  Upon successful completion of the course my father would take that child to Dicks or Philadelphia Sales to get our hunting license AND buy us our first shotgun, used of course.

I remember the other long guns in the house as a 30-06 rifle, several .22s  ( one long and one short) rifles, a .225 (?) rifle, 410 shotgun and probably a few others that I have forgotten about.

The firearms and ammunition was stored away but not locked up.  My whole family had unfettered access to all the guns and all the ammo on a 24/7 basis.

We shot a lot of rabbits, squirrels, grouse, pheasants and deer.

We never thought to use the guns for any other purpose other than hunting or target shooting or the emergency of self defense.  Our household was typical of the homes in our neighborhood in regards to firearms.

Fast forward to today in New Jersey.  A picture of a youth that was lawfully possessing his rifle is shown on social media.  Due to a flawed reporting system, overzealous child protective personnel and police rush to the residence to investigate the matter under the guise of child endangerment.  They brow beat the father of the child to gain entrance to the home and insisted on seeing the firearms that were locked in the safe.

The confused and concerned father contacts his attorney via phone and the attorney advises him that unless the authorities have a warrant they must leave the premises upon his request.  He requests, they leave.  

At the time of this writing it is not know if any charges are being contemplated by the authorities.

I suggest that the agents of the state, in New Jersey, that were involved in this incident, go to a refresher course at an in-service training session on topics that include the rights of citizens in regards to the Second, Fourth and Fifth Amendments.

Generations, generations.

A Glimmer of Hope

After having 27 years in government let me explain to the politically naive what sequestration actually means; smoke and mirrors and sleight of hand in conjunction with a gullible public.

The government has OUR money.  They will spend it where THEY want to.  At the same time the government (legislators and chief executives) realize they don't have enough money for THEIR stuff.  One way it get more money is to take financing from other programs and put the funding in their favorites programs and or to raise taxes and fees.

Now, because of their greed, stupidity and fiscal ineptitude they are caught in a pinch where they have no money to back THEIR programs.  

Here is where the deception and the use of Teflon clothing comes in.  Bring the fiscal crunch to the public forum by cutting the MOST popular or MOST strategically important programs and BLAME the loyal opposition.  

This is where the public is to rebel and approve of the solution to the fiscal problem set forth by the current administration.  You the public rejoice as the useful fools that you are (some of you anyway).

Four years ago, President Obama abdicated his fiscally responsible leadership to guarantee an approval to the fiscal irresponsibility of the 111th Congress.   Hence the PORKCULUS BILL was made law and we all suffer from it today.

The voting populace who voted for President Obama and the 111th Congress and also those who voted for giving President Obama a second term, are those responsible for our present fiscal woes.

A glimmer of hope remains.  It appears that not everyone is backing the administration's way of avoiding finding a real solution.        

Safety and Respect

While doing some historical research I came across an interesting article which appeared in The Washington Post dated January 4, 1913.  The subject of the piece was a report given by Major General Leonard Wood, Army Chief of Staff, concerning improvement of the army. He mentioned several ways to accomplish this task which included getting rid of unfit officers, improving the canteen services and reorganizing the artillery branch.  I found the last statement of the article very telling in how our American society has changed.  It read, "Gen Wood strongly recommends the enactment of legislation pending in Congress for a certain amount of government support of rifle shooting in the public schools."

I graduated high school in 1972 and I can't honestly remember if my school had a rifle team or not.  I know they weren't uncommon at the time.  A quick check of the web shows high school rifle teams still exist as do college rifle teams.  Air rifles and .22 caliber rifles are used most commonly.

Does anyone remember any story about a rifle team member going berserk and killing or wounding others?

Times have certainly changed for the worse.

It isn't the firearm that causes the death and destruction at a shooting incident, it's the mental state of the person pulling the trigger.

Personal privacy concerns govern treatment for mental illness rather than public safety concerns. 

The movie industry and gaming industry have more power and effect on our society than we want to admit.

Topsy Turvy

It seems incongruous that law abiding gun owners have to listen to and be lectured by President Obama about what types of firearms and magazines they may possess in light of the fact that the president has the power to execute an American citizen without due process.  Also, he and other governmental officials are guarded by employees that not only possess high capacity magazines in their firearms but also have fully automatic weapons as well.

The killing of subjects that are believed to be dangerous to the United States is being done on a continuous basis with the help of drone aircraft.  Sources now indicate that under Obama's watch more have been killed in the name of national security than under the Bush administration, even to the point of killing an American citizen without utilizing the constitutional  guarantees of due process.  Where is the public outcry? 

Bush- Cheney evil: Obama - Biden good. 

This is an extremely sad commentary on today's society.

Many Americans remain smug and unfeeling that law abiding firearms owners are having their constitutional rights to firearms possession eroded away by law and regulation.  The same people sit idly by when a American citizen is executed without due process by the president.  How long will it take until those torpid spectators start to have their constitutional rights violated?

Oh, don't worry, "Some animals are more equal than others."  Which category do you belong to?  For now.  Enjoy it while it lasts.

While we are at it.

The easiest target is always the law-abiding citizen or the person that would turn the other cheek.

Soft headed intellectuals and criminals see these traits as weaknesses in human beings. So now that some people have harassed legal gun owners who exercise their constitutional right, let us turn the table!!!!

Let's have all Americans with any criminal record or mental record or medical record have their name, address and crime or malady for all to see, published in the newspapers. The purported reason for putting handgun owners in the newspaper was in response to so-called public safety concerns. Okay, what is good for the goose is good for the gander.

I want to know if the guy next door is a criminal whether he committed DWI, smoke pot or physically abused his children or spouse; IT IS FOR MY SAFETY AND THE SAFETY OF MY FAMILY!!! SO IT'S OKAY.

I want to know what mental illnesses my neighbors suffer from. IT IS NOT THEIR PRIVACY IT IS FOR MY SAFETY AND THE SAFETY OF MY FAMILY.

I want to know what diseases my neighbors have. Are they communicable and dangerous? Do they have HIV OR HEPATITIS? THEY HAVE NO RIGHT TO PRIVACY WHEN IT COMES TO MY SAFETY AND THE SAFETY OF MY FAMILY.

Legal firearm ownership, criminal tendencies, mental disease and infectious disease; it's all the same, right? Oh it's not? Why not?

What about MY RIGHTS!!!!!

Get Rid of New Years Day Holiday

How many of you are in favor with doing away with the New Years Day Holiday? In today's world what purpose does it serve except to give non-essential government workers a day off.

We have to suffer through endless, boring looking-back -over -the- year- perspectives on television which are totally meaningless. Drunks crowd the downtown square while public officials try to burn downtown by igniting tons of fireworks. For what purpose, because the next day is January one and it is a new year? We are not celebrating the birth of a messiah or birth of a nation; it is just a new year like last year was, BIG DEAL!

What do you think?