The Stafford Voice

Our little place to talk about and share about life.

Politics

Foundation Series: The Structuring of a New Government

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When the Founding Fathers were sitting at the table, contemplating which direction to take the newly independent United States, one of the most difficult decisions they had to make was how to structure the government. They were faced with two options: anarchy, and at the other extreme end of the spectrum, tyranny.

Anarchy didn’t provide enough law, while tyranny gave too much power to the government. What they were in search of was something that fell somewhere in the middle. It would become what many people would call the greatest political experiment ever to be tried.

People’s Law was a revolutionary system of government at the time and one that had only been sketched out on paper and in journals of thought. The government would be kept under the control of the people with enough power granted to the government in order to maintain security, justice, and good order but not enough power that they could abuse the people. And, of the limited powers the government would hold, would be divided in order to have a check and balance. Again, so that their power couldn’t be used as an abuse of the people.

Illustrated above, you will notice a stark contrast in the placement of power. On the left, we see the power structure working from the top and trickling down to the individual. Very little power is given to the individual in this example. The majority of the power resides at the top at the national level.

When you compare this Ruler’s Law model on the left with the People’s Law model on the right, which falls in the middle of the first diagram, you see the reversal of power. A model the Founding Fathers would become particularly attracted to.

They understood, as already stated in the Declaration of Independence, that the individual was blessed with power by their Creator. It didn’t come from a specially appointed group of people. It was about finding a balance between being governed and self-governed. This thought would be discussed by James Madison when he wrote in Federalist No. 45 saying:

The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the federal government are few and defined. THose which are to remain in the State governments are numerous and indefinite. … The powers reserved to the several States will extend to all the objects which, in the ordinary course of affairs, concern the lives, liberties, and properties of the people, and the internal order, improvement, and prosperity of the State.

The entire idea was to keep the power base close to the people.

Oh, When POTUS Goes Tweeting Along

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So the President tweets. So what! Seriously? Wait, what?!

Here’s an example:

I admit I toyed with the idea of even posting anything about this. But I think it should be said.

And, before I say anything, let me say I’m 100% okay with Trump, or any other elected official, tweeting. It’s the ultimate town hall if you will.

But, I think some level of caution should be exercised. Especially with respect to tweets like the one above.

Doesn’t the First Amendment say something about free speech and press? Sure, it’s been proven that some stories aren’t full of truth. And we should be okay with undercover journalists like Project Vertitas exposing CNN in their efforts.

But, what I’m interested in is the thought that the leader of the US is posting tweets as he did. It’s funny! I get that. I laughed. But… is it okay for him to attack – and I use that term loosely – a media outlet?

Should we expect more or is this the standard for a ‘MODERN DAY’ president?

103 Year Old Confederate Time Capsule Found

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As a Confederate monument was removed Thursday, a 103-year-old time capsule was uncovered.

Found as part of the deconstruction phase at the Confederate Memorial in St. Louis, MO, has now been removed from the site and sits in storage at an undisclosed location.

Archives show it contains documents from the Daughters of the Confederacy and at least one other item.

Mark Trout, director of the Missouri Civil War Museum said:

“As we were jackhammering around, we vibrated it. It popped loose.

“It was like Indiana Jones. Lifted it up and there was the box.

“We know the last thing put in the box was a magazine placed in there by one of the soldiers of General Pickett’s (Confederate) division at Gettysburg; the famous ‘Pickett’s Charge’. He held it up at the ceremony saying, ‘Hey look, we’re in the magazine. Put this in the box.’ When we open that box the first thing laying on top should be the ‘Star’ magazine that the soldier placed there.”

The time capsule is set to unsealed privately in the coming days, with the contents revealed at a fundraiser for the Missouri Civil War Museum preservation fund.

The Obamaphone Could Not be Completed as Dialed

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Known officially as the Lifeline Program, the controversial Obamaphone program turns out to be riddled with fraud.

(As if many of us ever thought anything that was titled ‘Obama-anything’ wouldn’t be found out to have fraud and wasted government resources?)

A new report by the Government Accountability Office found that more than a third of enrollees may not even be qualified to receive the perks of the Obamaphone.

Senator Clair McCaskill of Missouri, ranking Democrat on the Senate’s chief oversight committee said:

“A complete lack of oversight is causing this program to fail the American taxpayer — everything that could go wrong is going wrong.

“We’re currently letting phone companies cash a government check every month with little more than the honor system to hold them accountable, and that simply can’t continue.”

(Funny to hear a Democrat say something like this until you realize they’re up for re-election!)

The GAO report found:

  • 10.6 million people have an Obamaphone
  • 36% of them may not qualify
  • more than 5,500 people were found to be enrolled for two phones
  • nearly 6,400 phones for persons the government has listed as having died are being paid for by the program

I know what you’re thinking: “How is this paid for exactly?”

While the Obamaphone program is being administered by the federal government, funding comes from cellphone carriers, passed on to you through that little universal service fee on your monthly statement.

Title has been updated.

Free Speech Hypocrites

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Allow me to be one of the first people to welcome you to a land and time where good is bad/bad is good, and right is wrong/wrong is right. I could add others to the list but I think you get what I’m saying. 

Here’s the deal. The other day with one of the Mashups, I told you about the Shakespeare in the Park ignorance where they’re portraying someone who resembles Trump as Julius Caesar. If you remember how the play plays out, they stab Caesar to death. 

Is this okay? No. 

Is it art? Yes. 

Is it free speech? Yes. 

So, what’s the big deal? That all depends on who you ask. 

I don’t agree with it. Others do. Would I want to see the production shut down? No. Now, before you react like a melting snowflake, take a second, maybe even a minute or two, and realize that you may just be a hypocrite if you want it forced to be shit down. 

But what about the Laura lady who walked up on stage during the middle of one of their performances and protested to shut it down? Some of those in the Trump-can-do-no-wrong praised her. Even celebrating on social media and issuing a #FreeLaura hashtag movement. 

Silly hypocrites! 

Are they not the same ones who just  six to eight months ago were all up in arms over leftists who protested Milo or Shapiro or Coulter or any other republican leaning talker?

Yes. YES they were!

But now because it’s their cause it’s okay? Yeah, um, that’s not how any of this works! 

Wake up snowflakes and smell the hypocrisy!

Trump Administration Gets to Work on Deregulation Starting with Y2K

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Think back if you will to 1999 and the buzz was all about Y2K. Like many others, the government was somewhat concerned about their preparedness. So, many government agencies would report to the White House their updates.

Fastforward seventeen years to 2017, and those same agencies over the years have had to continue their reports on Y2K preparedness. Yes, you read that right. We’re spending time and money to report on our preparedness for something that happened/didn’t happen seventeen years ago.

So, let’s give credit where credit is due and congratulate the Trump administration on their efforts of eliminating wasteful regulations.

According to a Bloomberg report:

The Trump administration announced Thursday that it would eliminate dozens of paperwork requirements for federal agencies, including an obscure rule that requires them to continue providing updates on their preparedness for a bug that afflicted some computers at the turn of the century. As another example, the Pentagon will be freed from a requirement that it file a report every time a small business vendor is paid, a task that consumed some 1,200 man-hours every year.

“We’re looking for stuff everyone agrees is a complete waste of time,” Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney told reporters at the White House. He likened the move to the government “cleaning out our closets.”

Seven of the more than 50 paperwork requirements the White House eliminated on Thursday dealt with the Y2K bug, according to a memo OMB released. Officials at the agency estimate the changes could save tens of thousands of man-hours across the federal government.

“Many agencies have forgotten how to deregulate,” he said. “It’s been so long since somebody asked them to look backwards.”

ISIS Leader Baghdadi Reportedly Killed in Russian Air Strike

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According to Russian reports, an air strike on May28 may have killed Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and up to 330 other fighters.

BBC reports:

A statement by Russia’s defence ministry published by the state-funded Sputnik news agency said 30 IS commanders and up to 300 soldiers were at the Raqqa meeting.

“According to information that is checked through various channels, IS leader Ibrahim Abu-Bakr al-Baghdadi, who was killed as a result of the strike, was also present at the meeting,” it added.

Colonel John Dorrian, a spokesman for the US-led coalition, said the US could not confirm whether Baghdadi had been killed.

There has been no official comment from Syria’s government.

Multiple claims of his death have been made in the past which turned out to be false.

 

A Tale of Two Bookstores

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Allow me to make a confession of sorts. We like going to the bookstore. Almost to a fault. And when I say that, we really like going to the bookstore. So much so that, even though we’re sure there was a long list of things to do and places to go and see, we looked at each other and said, ‘Let’s just go to the bookstore.’

Where’s this coming from?

We spent our Saturday bookstore hoping. Sad, I know. But we did stuff between stops if that helps.

I went for a bike ride while she stayed home and worked on picking up the house.

Before and after that, yes, we went to the bookstore. No, not the same one. Two completely different types offering two completely different experiences.

The first one we went to was your general run-of-the-mill bookstore. The kind you go into searching for just the right book to whisk you away into some fantasyland. Or just the right leadership book.

While we’re here, we tend to find it as a place of comfort. A thinking man’s safe place if you will.

The other bookstore we frequent is a Christian bookstore. I, we, never realized until now that this kind of bookstore makes us feel pretty inadequate.

I’ll explain.

How could a Christian bookstore make anyone feel inadequate? When was the last time you went to one would be my response? Honestly? Picture if you will, an entire section devoted to telling you how to be a better father or mother. The father section was only a fraction of the size for the mother section.

This begs a whole list of other questions to be asked. Mostly, what are we telling mothers?! You’re doing it wrong and if you buy this book or that book you can be a better mom? And the same could be said about fathers.

I get it, Christ was perfect and we are imperfect. We’re full of imperfections!

What about a section devoted to telling you your marriage is failing but that it can be saved if you buy a couple of books to help get you on the right path? You guessed it, there’s an entire section for that too! What message are we telling married couples?

Need a book on how to pray properly? You’ll find it. Need one on gospel cooking? Yep, it’s there too.

Needless to say, once we realized our thought process while perusing the racks, we realized just how comical it was. By the time we were ready to leave, we were laughing at many of the titles. We were even asking one another if we needed this one or that one.

Side note: As I was writing this, I realized that Christian bookstores are the equivalent of WebMD. If you think you have a problem then you could have this or that or even this and that! And, yes, we’ll still continue to go because there are some good reads to be found.

Health Police Set Sights on Caffeine Regulations

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Nutrition experts have their sights on energy drinks, calling on the government to regulate the levels of caffeine permitted.

The Daily Signal reports:

Pat Crawford and Wendi Gosliner, researchers with the University of California’s Nutrition Policy Institute, want the Food and Drug Administration to crack down on energy drinks with restrictions similar to those placed on alcohol. They argue that the FDA must “ban the marketing of energy drinks to young people of all ages,” and launched a public education effort on the dangers of caffeine.

“Caffeine is a strong and potentially dangerous stimulant, particularly for children and adolescents,” Crawford and Gosliner said in the editorial. “Making matters worse, consumers do not know the risks of the high levels of caffeine in an energy drink. Unlike coffee, energy drinks are widely marketed to adolescents, putting them at risk of extreme caffeine overload with potentially devastating cardiovascular and neurological consequences.”

Cries for regulation come in the wake of the death of a teen who overdosed on caffeine. It was reported that he consumed a large Mountain Dew, a cafe latte from McDonald’s, and, according to classmates, chugged a 16-ounce energy drink over a span of two hours.

All of which, while consumed in such a small period of time, led to a fatal cardiac event.

So, what they’re saying is that while he consumed other caffeine-containing beverages, the one that sent him spiraling into his fatal cardiac event was the energy drink.

Everyone knows we cannot bring up the fact that most drinks served at Starbucks, the liberal utopian capital, contain just as much if not more caffeine than the average energy drink.

Think I’m crazy here? A 16 oz Grande Dark Roast has 260 mg of caffeine compared to a 16 oz can of Monster with only 160 mg.

See what I did there? Actual research in order to provide facts. (Something those with an agenda tends to twist into their favor.)

Let’s look at a few others, shall we?

16 oz Grande Caffè Americano has 225 mg

16 oz Grande Cold Brew Coffee has 200 mg

16 oz Grande Iced Mocha has 175 mg

Have we picked on Starbucks enough yet? What about another average energy drink? 16 oz of Redbull has roughly 160 mg of caffeine. Let’s up the ante a bit and look at a 16 oz can of Rockstar Punched at 240 mg.

NOW WE’RE TALKING!!!

Have we not realized how ridiculous of an argument it is to want the government to regulate the amount of caffeine in energy drinks when the average cups of coffee at Starbucks contain more?

Life Lessons: Balance on a Mountain Bike and in Life

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Admittedly, we’ve had a lot of rain over the last few days here in the Kansas City area. And, to be honest, I didn’t think I’d be able to get in a ride at all this weekend. So, when I checked the trail status and it said WYCO was a go, I loaded up the bike and gear and headed out.

My goal was simple. Just make it out alive. LOL! Seriously though, I just wanted to have some fun and unwind for a few.

During the time I was riding, I was thinking about something that was said to me, I think, last week. And the topic was…

Drum roll please…

BALANCE

He was talking about the need of having balance in life. And, as always, this got me thinking.

Riding a bike takes a great deal of balance. Something I have yet to master!

Okay… side note before I forget. I had already passed the halfway point of the ride, so I packed up some of my gear, downed a bit of strawberry lemonade, and was in the process of making my way back to where I had started. The trail was a bit slick from a bit of rain the night previous. The rocks and tree roots? Well, let’s just say they get greasy when your tires are wet. Okay, so I was trying to climb a little hill and my rear tire got hung up on a rock and all forward momentum had ceased to exist. At this point, everything started to move in slow motion. Heck, I couldn’t even get my feet off the pedals to catch myself. The next thing I know, as I’m making my way to the ground all the while, literally, laughing out loud, all I could think was how I had WISHED the camera was on so I could show my epic fail to everyone. All I could do was laugh! 

Now, where were we?

Riding a bike takes a great deal of balance. And, obviously, I still have yet to master it.

Life, also, needs balance. You need to be balanced in your work, your play, your family life, and even spiritually. You need to have balance in all of these areas in your life.

Will there be balance 100% of the time in 100% of these areas and more? No, not at all. It takes effort.

Sure, it’s easy to give up when things get hard. Trust me, on a bike, it’s easy to stop, get off, and walk around an obstacle. But, in life, that’s not how any of this works.

You’re gonna have bad days. And, you’ll certainly have good days. But, if you want to try and minimize the bad days, as well as some of the days in between… you’re gonna need some balance.

Make the effort to find some level of balance in your life right now. It won’t take much to get started. What are you waiting for? Go find some balance!