Extreme Disappointment

I don't even know what to say.  I can't believe this happened again after what has gone on for the last four years.  It seemed as if so many who voted for Obama in 2008 were not planning to vote for him again.  The ignorance of half the population stuns me.  They must not do any research at all.

His extreme stance on abortion, his support of gay marriage, his failed economy, the bail outs, the way he divides our country along racial, political and economic lines, his policy on immigration, his failure to pay down the debt, instead raising it to over $16 trillion, his treatment of the military, no energy policy, no budget, redistribution, his treatment of the Catholic Church...I could go on and on.  People should learn about these things before voting for someone.  Instead we see videos of people being interviewed about the election, and most of the Obama voters don't even recognize a picture of Joe Biden and think Paul Ryan is black!  They don't even know what they are voting for.

I hate politics and don't say much about it, but I am extremely disappointed.  Half the population are "takers," and I'm sorry, but that is the truth.  The "makers" are expected to pay higher and higher taxes to support the "takers."  And the takers won this election for Obama.  He is taking our country down the path of socialism.

My son says that no matter who is elected, we are still on that path, just at a slower pace.  Maybe so, but my prayer for this election was that we get Obama out of the White House.  

No matter what has happened, or will happen, I know that God is in control.  I just wish I understood His plan.  So, I put my faith in Him, and go on with my life.  I still have the things that are most important to me--Ron, our family, our home, our faith.  I'll focus on all the delightful things in the world rather than the negative, ugly things.  But I'm afraid things are going to get even uglier.  

A Message From Eduardo Verastegui

2016

Ron and I went to see the movie 2016: Obama's America last night. If you haven't seen it yet, I hope you will. Mr. D'Souza did his research, and came to a very reasonable conclusion. He identifies with Obama and has a different understanding of him than do most ordinary Americans.

As the ads for the movie say, whether you love him or hate him, you don't really know him. I'd like to know what Mr. Obama thinks of this movie--whether he thinks it is a realistic picture of his past, his present and his future. I'm sure he hates it, but is it accurate? (I believe it is).

This and That

Happy that it's Friday and Reece will have a 3 day break from school.

Went to the BMT clinic yesterday. My labs were pretty good, except for that pesky low red cell count. It's about the same. My doctor is going to give me the Epo shots once a month to help with my red cell production. My liver function is a little off, and he believes that may be what is causing the problem. Everything else was normal, though. I won't have to go back to the clinic for 3 weeks!

I watched the convention last night off and on while trying to put the littles to bed. Reece is having trouble going to sleep early and sleeping in his own bed all night. But we'll get there. The girls, Aubrey in particular, fight going to bed every night. They like the stories and the songs, but not going to sleep.

The speeches last night were really good, I thought. I do think we will have a different president soon, and I'm glad of that.

I made apricot glazed pork roast for dinner on Wednesday. We liked the sauce. Next time I think I'll make it in the crock pot, then shred the meat and mix it with the sauce. This time we spooned the sauce over the sliced pork. You can also make this recipe with chicken. The recipe is here.

Not sure what else the weekend holds, but we plan to have a cookout on Monday, and to celebrate Mom's 86th birthday. I asked her what she wants for her birthday, and she said she doesn't want a thing. But I'm sure we can come up with something. :o) Her birthday is Sept. 5, but we will have the celebration on the 3rd.

Time to get to work around here. Have a great Friday!

Chick-fil-A for Lunch

Reece and Aubrey went with me to Gran's today, and we stopped at Chick-fil-A on the way home to pick up lunch.

Adrienne, that's the chicken sandwich I ate for you on the table. :o)

The line for the drive-thru was all the way out into the street, the parking lot was full, and people were parking in the TGIFriday parking lot next door! TGIFriday went out of business, so their parking lot was available. It was amazing, and made me feel good that so many people came out to support traditional marriage and Chick-fil-A. I bet it was like this all over the country. Hurray!

And lunch was delicious. :o)


(That's a Wendy's cup in front of Reece. His daddy had Wendy's for lunch and one of the kids always seems to wind up with the rest of his soda).

I'd Support This Amendment

My sister sent me this in an email. I'm passing it along through my blog.

No one has been able to explain to me why young men and women serve in the U.S. Military for 20 years, risking their lives protecting freedom, and only get 50% of their pay on retirement. While Politicians hold their political positions

in the safe confines of the capital, protected by these same men and women, and receive full-pay retirement after serving one term. It just does not make any sense.

If each person who receives this will forward it on to 20 people, in three days, most people in The United States of America will have the message. This is one proposal that really should be passed around.

Proposed 28th Amendment to the United States Constitution: "Congress shall make no law that applies to the citizens of the United States that does not apply equally to the Senators and/or Representatives; and, Congress shall make no law that applies to the Senators and/or Representatives that does not apply equally to the citizens of the United States ."

Chick-Fil-A and Good Labs

Reece and I had lunch at Chick-Fil-A on Wednesday. There is one very near our house and we have it fairly often anyway, but we especially wanted to support them on Wednesday. There was a long line at the drive-thru, and it was busy inside, too. We'll be going again on August 1 to show our support for Chick-Fil-A, freedom of speech, and traditional marriage.

When our oldest son was little, he called Chick-Fil-A "Chick-A-Flick." He's 41 now. Yeah, we've been Chick-Fil-A fans for a long, long time. :o)

I didn't have to have a blood transfusion on Thursday. That was a surprise to the staff at the BMT clinic, but not to me. I really felt pretty good all week, and usually when my blood count is low I am so tired I can barely function. My hemoglobin actually went up a little bit over the week. I hope that continues!

And my blood sugars are going down. The insulin is really helping. Once I get off the steroid (prednisone, 10 mg every other day) it should be even better. Hey, I might get healthy yet.

Have a great weekend, dear readers.

A Political Discussion With My Son

My oldest son and I have been exchanging emails about the election. He believes that I have compromised my principles by casting my vote for candidates whose views and values do not reflect my own. And he's right. I have. I compromised because I want the current administration gone, and was willing to vote for what Jason calls "the lesser of two evils" in order to make that happen. Rather than vote for those whose values most closely reflect mine (because I didn't believe they had a chance of winning), I voted for those I thought had the better chance of beating the democrats.

I think I'm more optimistic than Jason. But he is realistic and looks at things with clarity, whereas I'm usually wearing my rose-colored glasses. Anyway, I asked his permission to post one of his emails on my blog, and after some consideration he agreed to allow it. I believe his arguments are good and well thought out, and maybe they will give you food for thought, as they did for me.

It's long, but worth the read.

Stop Voting for Democrats and Republicans

The Constitution of the United States of America has failed. It has not achieved its essential purpose: to safeguard and secure the blessings of liberty for the American people. Thomas Jefferson wrote:

“It would be a dangerous delusion were a confidence in the men of our choice to silence our fears for the safety of our rights… Confidence is everywhere the parent of despotism. Free government is founded in jealousy, and not in confidence. It is jealousy and not confidence which prescribes limited constitutions, to bind down those whom we are obliged to trust with power… Our Constitution has accordingly fixed the limits to which, and no further, our confidence may go… In questions of power, then, let no more be heard of confidence in man, but bind him down from mischief by the chains of the Constitution.” (Draft Kentucky Resolutions, 1798)

As Jefferson notes, the Constitution was intended to bind down the national government (and the men who possess power within it) from “mischief” against our rights and liberties. Accordingly, the Constitution enumerates a specific list of powers granted to the national government, reserving everything else to the states and the people, and it acknowledges the inherent natural rights that individuals possess—not because the Constitution grants them—but because they are inherent and inalienable and precede any law or dictum of government.

The founders of our nation held an abhorrence of democracy and simple majority rule, since it lends an aura of legitimacy to actions which would otherwise be deemed criminal or tyrannical. James Madison wrote, “Measures are too often decided, not according to the rules of justice and the rights of the minor party, but by the superior force of an interested and overbearing majority.” (Federalist Paper #10) John Adams said, “Remember, democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There was never a democracy yet that did not commit suicide.” This clarity of vision is what drove our founders to institute a constitutional republican form of limited government, which attempts to reduce the tyranny of mob rule and makes the protection of individual rights the very purpose of government. (“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights…That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men…)

But look at us, today. Do you believe our government is what the founders intended? Would they even recognize what it has become? The government ignores the Constitution. It passes unconstitutional laws. It establishes and funds unconstitutional federal agencies and departments. It both exceeds the limits of its enumerated authority, every day and all the time, and it also infringes on the natural rights it’s supposed to uphold. It intrudes in and regulates almost every aspect of our lives.

“The air you breathe. The water you drink. The size of your toilet tank. The water pressure in your shower. The subjects your children study in school. The manner in which your physician treats you when you’re ill. The speed you drive your car. What you can drink before you get in the car. All of these are regulated by the Congress. Congress has written over 4000 criminal laws that take up over 1 million pages of text… Does the Congress recognize any limits on its ability to legislate whatever it wants? Yes…whatever it can get away with.” (Judge Andrew Napolitano, “The Verdict,” Fox News)

As it continues to grow and to intrude and to impose itself in more and more aspects of our lives, the government drains more and more of our prosperity to feed itself. Merely by its intrusion, it disrupts our economy and stifles our productivity. It increases the tax burden on us. Where it doesn’t tax us, directly, it borrows the money, increasing our debt through deficit spending. Where it doesn’t tax us or increase our debt, it increases the supply of money, causing inflation that devalues every dollar we own. In fact, it has changed the monetary and banking laws to allow the creation of new money at will, removing any fixed foundation of value (e.g. gold or silver) from the dollar. It ignores some of its chains and legislates others out of existence.

The problem is systemic. It is not limited to one political party. We both know the policies of the Democrats are bad for the nation, so I’ll concentrate all my opprobrium on the Republicans. The Republicans are just as culpable as the Democrats. Even Republican governments that are popularly viewed as free market, libertarian-leaning, and laissez-faire have marched in exactly the opposite direction. Reagan is often seen as a champion of small government. But under Reagan the government grew, with the increased spending being funded through inflation and massive debt. In 1980, the government spent $591 billion and ran a $73.8 billion deficit. In 1988, the government spent over $1 trillion and ran a $155 billion deficit. Despite lip service to free trade, imports facing restrictions increased 100% over the course of his two terms. Reagan promised to end draft conscription, but later flip-flopped his position. He promised to restore sound money through the gold standard, but failed to follow through on that, as well. He pledged to abolish the Departments of Energy and Education, but instead strengthened them. The bottom line is that government grew, debt grew, and inflation grew. This is not the legacy of a champion of limited government and free markets.

The Bush presidency is even worse, in many respects. Over the Bush years, federal regulation continued to expand. Federal regulations went from 64,438 in 2001 to 78,090 in 2007. Far from acting as a check or balance on Congress, Bush vetoed fewer Congressional bills than any other president in history. Instead of working to reduce or eliminate government interference in the market, he signed a record $190 billion farm subsidy bill. He signed the market-stifling Sarbanes-Oxley Act into law. He signed McCain Feingold into law, even while conceding he thought it was unconstitutional. He increased spending in many areas, including medical welfare programs and education programs (e.g. No Child Left Behind). He signed the Patriot Act, which runs roughshod over rights (warrantless searches and communications monitoring, etc). He instituted the TSA. From 2001 through 2007, Bush increased spending an average of 4 percent per year. Then he nationalized Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and instituted the first of the ruinous bailouts to which we have been subjected. To follow the previous Republican Fed appointment of Greenspan (who gave us the inflationary dot-com and housing bubbles), Bush selected Bernanke, which is more of the same, as far as economic and monetary policy goes. Government spending, size, and power grew more under Bush than under any former President in my lifetime. In fact, in terms of expanding the scope of government and its influence and intervention, he ranks up there with FDR and LBJ. This is not the legacy of a champion of limited government and free markets.

You have said that the issue of abortion is your main issue, and view the Republicans as the party that supports the right to life. Yet the Sanctity of Life Act, which would have overturned Roe vs. Wade by defining human life and personhood as beginning at conception and amending the federal judicial code to remove Supreme Court jurisdiction, never became law and never even received serious consideration or press coverage. This, despite the supposedly pro-life President and Republican-controlled Congress. Just like they give lip service to libertarian economic and personal liberty policies, but don’t follow through, I think Republicans give lip service to pro-life issues, but don’t pursue serious actions in that direction.

Our country has been on our current track, the wrong track, for at least a century. Government power and influence has continued to grow all throughout that time. The ideals behind the Constitution have become more and more marginalized. Both of our major parties are on this course. The differences between them are meaningless, in the big picture. They are two sides of the same (cupronickel clad) coin, flipping over to show first one face, then the other. And as a nation, we citizens keep believing that turning the coin over is going to make things better, “this time.”

You believe that the Republicans are a “lesser evil,” and that choosing the lesser evil is a good act because you have no other practical or meaningful choice. I disagree on several grounds. I disagree that you have no other practical or meaningful choice. I also disagree that voting for the Republicans is good because they are the lesser evil. A lesser evil is still an evil. And in this case, “lesser” is meaningless: a distinction without a real difference. When you vote for politicians who stand for positions and take actions which harm us and which violate both the Constitution and our natural rights, you are endorsing them. You are condoning the evil. You are saying that it is acceptable. You are offering them your mandate. You sanction their evil and give it the legitimacy of “popular support.”

You also believe that maybe “this time” the Republicans mean what they say. You want to be optimistic. You want to have confidence. But even those “tea party” Republican candidates who give such fine speeches about reducing taxes and spending can’t offer an example of a federal program they would cut. On Fox news, tea party candidate Carly Fiorina was asked seven times by Chris Wallace to name “one single entitlement expenditure you’re willing to cut” in order “to extend all the Bush tax cuts, which would add 4 trillion to the deficit.” Mr. Wallace asked her “…where are you going to find $4 trillion dollars to cut?” She did not name a single expenditure she would cut or say where she would find the money. Instead, she accused Wallace of “asking a typical political question.” Remember what Jefferson said about confidence in such people, and what a “dangerous delusion” that is.

You believe that you should vote, that it is your patriotic duty, and that you must therefore make the best of the selection that is presented to you. However, you are being presented with a false choice. A choice which is no choice. And you are accepting this with the attitude that there’s nothing else you can do and that you must make the best of it. When a steer is led to slaughter it might be given a similar choice: go down the left channel or go down the right channel. Both journeys end the same. That is how I see the choices we are given to vote on. And that is why I refuse to select a “lesser evil that can actually win.” I would rather make a vote of no confidence by simply not voting, or by “throwing away” my vote on a third party candidate who can’t win, rather than offer my mandate, my approval, and my support to a candidate who represents policies and performs actions that I repudiate.

Imagine that we were debating this with the founders. When I rail against the government and its abuses, when I reject the farce of choosing between two parties who do violence to our Constitution and the principles it stands for, when I go so far as to refuse to vote at all, am I unpatriotic? When you vote for the lesser evil, are you doing your patriotic duty? Do you think the founders would stand with you, or with me? My opening sentence was the shocking statement that the Constitution has failed. But that’s a distorted picture. The Constitution is just a piece of paper; it can’t protect and secure anything. If the principles and ideals of the Constitution have not been upheld, it’s not because the Constitution was derelict in its duty. We have been sheep. We have been cattle. The people have failed.

“I know no safe depository of the ultimate powers of the society but the people themselves, (A)nd if we think them not enlightened enough to exercise their control with a wholesome discretion, the remedy is not to take it from them, but to inform their discretion by education. This is the true corrective of abuses of constitutional power.” (Thomas Jefferson)

“If a republican government fails to secure public prosperity and happiness, it must be because the citizens neglect the divine commands, and elect bad men to make and administer the laws.” (Noah Webster)

“It is the duty of the patriot to protect his country from its government.” (Thomas Paine)

“He therefore is the truest friend to the liberty of this country who tries most to promote its virtue, and who, so far as his power and influence extend, will not suffer a man to be chosen into any office of power and trust who is not a wise and virtuous man….The sum of all is, if we would most truly enjoy this gift of Heaven, let us become a virtuous people.” (Samuel Adams)

“In selecting men for office, let principle be your guide. . . When a citizen gives his suffrage to a man of known immorality he abuses his trust; he sacrifices not only his own interest, but that of his neighbor, he betrays the interest of his country.” (Noah Webster, again)

“Now more than ever before, the people are responsible for the character of their Congress. If that body be ignorant, reckless and corrupt, it is because the people tolerate ignorance, recklessness and corruption. If it be intelligent, brave and pure, it is because the people demand these high qualities to represent them in the national legislature…. If the next centennial does not find us a great nation … it will be because those who represent the enterprise, the culture, and the morality of the nation do not aid in controlling the political forces.” (President James Garfield)

We have the government we deserve. We deserve it because we follow the easy path, we vote for the lesser evil, and we do not jealously guard our liberty. Jefferson said to educate the people so they would make good decisions, but in our government schools we don’t learn to mistrust the government and to jealously guard our liberty, we learn how wonderful our government is. Patriotism is conflated with nationalism and state, rather than with liberty and the principles that truly made America and her grand experiment great. Our political candidates tug on the strings, invoking “country” and we leap high. They say “come and vote — do your important and essential patriotic duty” and we rush to pull the lever, giving sanction and legitimacy to a government that tramples the very ideals our founders sought to protect. And we get a sticker.

I repudiate the status quo of our government, including the policies of the Democrats and the Republicans over the course of the last century. It is a single course. It is the wrong course. I forswear it. I renounce it. I would nullify and abrogate it. I will never again lend it my mandate, even if every other voter in the land chooses to condone it. There are issues where compromise is possible, and there are issues where compromise is not. On the question of the unalienable rights the Constitution is intended to secure no compromise is possible. Give me a party and a candidate worthy of my vote—one who recalls that the purpose of government is to protect liberty and rights, recognizes the limits of government authority, and honors the inalienable rights of men in both word and deed—and I will offer it. Otherwise I offer nothing but opposition.

“Resolve to serve no more, and you are at once freed. I do not ask that you place hands upon the tyrant to topple him over, but simply that you support him no longer; then you will behold him, like a great Colossus whose pedestal has been pulled away, fall of his own weight and break in pieces. (Étienne de La Boétie, The Discourse of Voluntary Servitude)

In our conversation, you said we can’t have a revolution. You’re wrong. We can have one. I think we must have one, or else we will go the way of other doomed democracies and republics that preceded us. I’m not talking about violence. That’s foolishness, and would only cause a “rally ‘round the flag” reaction, anyway. I’m talking about a radical change in perception among the people: a paradigm shift. I’m talking about a shift to principles that are worthy of patriotism. I’m talking about people waking up and refusing to pay their coin to go around the carousel again. If we’d step off the carousel we might get somewhere, instead of going around in circles.”

The government needs our support for its legitimacy. We need for people to say “no more,” and to mean it. We need a revolution in thought and perception. We need to stop accepting the status quo and “doing what we can” and start demanding the liberty the founders wished for us. You believe your one vote is worth something? Then only use it on something worthy.

Lab Work, Airport and Voting

I was supposed to be at the hospital at 8 AM this morning, but a thunderstorm slowed traffic to a crawl. I had to stop by Mom's on the way to pick up my iphone that I accidentally left over there yesterday. Ron was supposed to call me from the airport when he got in, so I needed the phone.

I got to the hospital late and had to wait for them to draw blood, then wait for the results to come back, then wait for the picc line dressing to be changed. But I still got out of there about 11 AM. I knew that Ron's flight was due at 11:something, so I headed for the airport. Just as I arrived he called to say his plane had landed. I waited in the cell phone lot until he got his luggage. He's been in Colorado, and thought it was hot here. I think he is glad to be home, though.

We went to vote this afternoon. There was a line at the polling place, but not nearly the line there will be on election day. I'm glad we got it done early.

I didn't do anything else today. I stayed up way too late last night watching some dumb movie, then got up at 6:30, so I was really sleepy and took a long nap.

Not sure what the weekend holds. Hope yours is wonderful!

Health Care Travesty

Over 60% of the country has told this corrupt congress that we don't want this health care bill, but they've rammed it through anyway. It makes me sick that the people who are supposed to be representing US have caved in to president obama and his cronies. All the pressure tactics, bribes, and arm twisting worked. It's pitiful.

It's not as if we haven't tried to do something to prevent this. We've contacted our senators and representatives, signed petitions, sent faxes, and showed how we feel at tea parties and town halls all across the nation. But they haven't listened to us. They don't care what we think or what we want. This president wants to go down in history as the one whose administration brought health care under the control of the government.

I don't know about you, but I don't want socialized medicine. I certainly don't want one red cent of my money going to fund abortions for ANY reason. There is just so much about this that is wrong.

I didn't want my money used to bail out banks, car makers or big business, either. I didn't like the "changes" that obama promised before he was elected, and I still don't. And these "changes" are just going to keep on coming, because if they can't get what they want by following the rules, they just say there are no rules and do what they want.

But maybe, just maybe, what happened tonight will be the straw that breaks the camel's back? Over 30 states attorney generals have said they will file suit if the bill passes. All Americans who opposed the passage of this bill need to shout out in protest. We can't let up.

Here's the statement from the Texas attorney general:

Attorney General Abbott: Texas and Other States Will Challenge Federal Health Care Legislation

Following the passage of the health care legislation, the Texas Attorney General provided the following statement:

"The federal health care legislation passed tonight violates the United States Constitution and unconstitutionally infringes upon Texans' individual liberties. To protect all Texans' constitutional rights, preserve the constitutional framework intended by our nation's founders, and defend our state from further infringement by the federal government, the State of Texas and other states will legally challenge the federal health care legislation."

Greg Abbott
Attorney General of Texas

Maybe this travesty can still be stopped in some manner.

I'm Sooo Disappointed.

Well, my favorite candidate for Texas governor, Debra Medina, has probably lost my vote.

Here's the story.

She's now saying she doesn't believe in the 9-11 conspiracy theory, but it sounds like CYA to me. She should have said that when Beck asked the question.

She said she only meant that citizens should have the right to question their government. Well yeah, of course. But she also said the 9-11 truthers make some good points. Uh uh. She's just ruined her chances for election.

Now who am I gonna vote for? Dang. I'm going to have to give this some thought.

My Vote For Texas Governor

When Kelly and I went to the Austin Tea Party Express in November, we heard several candidates for governor speak. We were impressed by several of them, but in particular by Debra Medina. At the time I remember thinking that she probably didn't have much of a chance running against two career politicians, Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison and Governor Rick Perry. But I was wrong, and we were not the only ones who've been impressed with Mrs. Medina.

I like her position on most of the issues, including the most important one to me, abortion. Check this page to see where she stands on the issues.

(From her website):
Debra on Life

Pro-Life Period

Life begins at conception and concludes at natural death.

Every human is created in the image of God. God, not man, is the measure of all things. Every human life is precious and I will work to protect innocent human life.

I like her outspokenness. She calls it as she sees it, and doesn't mince words about it:

To kick off the last debate of the primary season between the big three in the GOP, Debra Medina called out Rick Perry.

"In a recent interview at the Blogger's Summit, Governor Perry said that ending the property tax in Texas was a very intriguing and positive idea. However, he fell short of embracing the end of property tax or any significant change in management of the state's current fiscal crisis, maintaining that Texas is on the right path. "Well, I'm saying "bullshit" and here's why," Medina said.

"Not only have we seen loss of jobs in the private sector, the most recent State Comptroller's Fiscal Notes shows total state tax collections have fallen by over 20%, while funds from the federal government to the state government have risen nearly 34% so far this year over last year, to plug the huge hole in Governor Perry's state budget."
Source: The Dallas Morning News

Check her Common Sense page to see her thoughts on the role of government, state sovereignty, taxes and spending, business in Texas, and private property.

Texans, do a little research, and see what you think about what this lady has to say about how she would govern our state. I think you'll like her. Here's the link to her website to get you started:

Debra Medina for Texas Governor.

Debate The Health Care Bill?

Harry Reid wants a vote to debate the health care bill this weekend.

SENATORS, DON'T YOU THINK IT WOULD BE A GOOD IDEA TO READ THE DAMNED THING BEFORE TRYING TO DEBATE IT?

I think they are trying to rush things.

And just like I thought, they are trying to take the part about NOT funding abortion out of it.

On a controversial issue that threatened to derail the House-passed bill, Reid would allow the new government insurance plan to cover abortions and would let companies that receive federal funds offer insurance plans that include abortion coverage.

A provision in the House bill — passed at the insistence of anti-abortion Democrats over strenuous objections from liberals — banned both those things. Reid attempted to tighten up the abortion language to strictly segregate private from public funds, but that did not pass muster with the National Right to Life Committee, which issued a statement Wednesday night calling the language "completely unacceptable."

Read more here.

Texas State Capitol

Kelly and I enjoyed visiting the Texas State Capitol building while we were in Austin. The dome looked beautiful against the blue Texas sky.

The flag is at half staff in memorial of the soldiers who were killed at Ft. Hood on Thursday. The grounds of the Capitol are beautiful.












Kelly took a lot of pictures of the interior of the Capitol building, too. The state seal in the rotunda is impressive, as is the view of dome from the inside, looking up. We went exploring and saw the room where the Texas House of Representatives meets. No representatives were anywhere to be seen, though.








The iron fence around the grounds is topped with these gold Texas stars. I like this shot of one of them with the Capitol building in the background.












Kelly took this picture as we were leaving. Pretty.

It would be fun to go back when the House is in session just to get a load of this Lloyd Doggett that Austin conservatives dislike so much.

Tea Party Express Stop In Austin

My daughter Kelly and I drove up to Austin to meet the Tea Party Express yesterday. We had a great time, and joined lots of other patriotic Americans on the steps of the capitol building at 5 PM.









The rally opened with a prayer and a moment of silence for those who were killed at Ft. Hood on Thursday. The speakers were all very good, most of them looking to "take out Lloyd Doggett" in the next election.







The Tea Party Express bus didn't arrive until around 6 PM, with more speakers and entertainers, including Lloyd Marcus, who wrote the Tea Party Anthem, and Kenneth Gladney, who was attacked by the SEIU union thugs for selling Don't Tread On Me Flags outside the town hall meeting in the St. Louis area back in August.









We left before the end of the rally because I was tired from walking around and standing, but I'm so glad that we went. It lifts my spirits to be with so many other people who feel the way I do about what is going on in our country.





These tea parties and town hall meetings have at least let "the powers that be" know that the people are watching what they are doing, and that we aren't going to sit passively by while they ignore the Constitution.







These are just a few of the great photos Kelly took during the day. Thanks for going with me, Kel. It's always fun to spend time with you, no matter where we wind up. :o)

(I doubt that Kelly ever thought she would be asked to accompany her "right wing extremist" mom to a protest rally...but then again, maybe it didn't surprise her). :o)

Obamopoly

My husband sent me an email:

Now this really took some thinking!

The object of the game is to destroy American capitalism
by having the government take over everything!

Wanna play? No? Too bad. You're already playing. (Click to enlarge picture).

World's Smallest Political Quiz

My sister sent me an email with a link to the
World's Smallest Political Quiz .

Here's the email:
So, you think you know where you stand, politically? Think again. The result from this short test may surprise you and give you some food for thought.

You'll be asked just 10 questions, and then it instantly tells you where you stand politically. It shows your position as a red dot on a "political map" so you'll see exactly where you score.

The most interesting thing about the Quiz is that it goes beyond Democrat, Republican, and Independent.

The Quiz has gotten a lot of praise. The Washington Post said it has "gained respect as a valid measure of a person's political leanings." The Fraser Institute said it's "a fast, fun, and accurate assessment of a person's overall political views." Suite University said it is the "most concise and accurate political quiz out there."

The test said I'm Libertarian. That's my map in the picture at the top of the post. Go take the test and see where you land. :o)

Thanks for the link, Johnnie!

No Swine Flu Vaccine For Me, Thanks.

(I had to change the pig picture to something cuter; couldn't stand looking at the other one).

I am not getting the H1N1 vaccine, I don't care who says I have to. I had a bad reaction to a regular flu shot last year. After that shot I had a frozen shoulder for months. It was very painful, and took weeks of physical therapy to resolve it. Later I found out that frozen shoulder is NOT an uncommon result of receiving a flu shot.

This vaccine has been rushed through, and frankly, I don't trust it. The World Health Organization is pushing it all over the planet, and I don't trust them, either. I have a bad, uneasy feeling about the whole thing. I'm not into conspiracy theories, but the "population control" talk is scary.

Going To The Chapel

My nephew is getting married! And we're going to the wedding next week.

Teddy and the puppies will be staying at the same place that Darcy and Banzai will be during our out-of-town trip. I made the reservations today. At least all 5 of them will be together, and they will be in an air-conditioned pet hotel. Katy and Sister will stay together in one "room," and Ted will have his own space, but they will be able to play together during supervised play times. I think Darcy and Banzai will have a room together, too. It will be like a vacation for them, too. :o)

I need to find Teddy's paperwork to see if his bordetella vaccine is up-to-date. As the time for our trip approaches, I keep thinking of more and more things I need to do!

I'm getting my hair cut tomorrow. I have mixed feelings about it. My hair is longer now than it has been in many years, and I've enjoyed being able to pull it back in a ponytail, bun or french braid this summer. Much cooler than having it down! But it makes me look like an old woman (I am an old woman, but I don't want to look older than I have to). So I'll go back to my longish swing bob tomorrow.

I need to do a bit of shopping. We will be celebrating two birthdays while we're all together, in addition to the wedding. My mom and my niece's husband both have birthdays on September 5th. Mom will be 83. My niece is bringing birthday cakes for both of them. :o)

I've had politics on my mind a lot, but all that is going on is so overwhelming I don't know where to start. Rosemary, at A Catholic Mother's Thoughts posted something this morning that has me fuming. Please read her post, No Rationing In National Healthcare? Think again! It's incredible to me that a person who is in the president's inner circle believes that a human life has so little value. If you love someone with dementia, you'll want to read this.

I have to get off this computer!

Maybe I'm Just Paranoid

A few days ago when I wrote this post, I went to the whitehouse.gov website to copy and paste the paragraph asking people to send "fishy" emails and conversations to a certain email address. I copied and pasted the paragraph into my blog post and posted it. A few minutes later, I went to another site on the internet, and later tried to return to my blog. I was unable to access my blog and got an error message similar to this from google (except that mine said "automated queries" not "automated requests"):



I have never gotten that message before, don't even know what it means to send automated queries, and thought it was weird. I ran my anti-virus program to make sure I didn't have a virus, and nothing came up. I finally shut the computer down and went about my life. A few hours later when I turned the computer back on, I was able to come straight to my blog without a problem.

Then I started hearing about all of the people receiving unsolicited emails from David Axelrod at the White House. They are wondering how the White House got their email addresses. I haven't received any emails from David Axelrod, but now I'm wondering if the White House somehow connected to my computer when I visited the site. Am I being paranoid or could this have happened?