Wednesday, December 27, 2006

Gerald Ford

Gerald Ford was the first president I ever voted for. In the Fall of 1976 I cast my vote for Gerald Ford in Mrs. Hanold's 2nd grade room. Many things have changed in my life since though as a 2nd grader I still agree with my childish, yet wise assessment that voting for Jimmy Carter was foolish. History proved me right.

Gerald Ford for the most part kept his mouth shut during the terms of subsequent presidents. Though he was quiet he was always willing to give his own party advice about finding common ground with cooperative bi-partisanship. In the last 10 years Gerald Ford continued to warn the GOP of embracing the religious right and often scolded the GOP about those that mention God freely in the political arena. I always found his claim to be empty of conviction because I remember him as a president and I pay attention to what people say. Here is Ford's speech that he gave as he pardoned Richard Nixon:

Ladies and gentlemen:

I have come to a decision which I felt I should tell you and all of my fellow American citizens, as soon as I was certain in my own mind and in my own conscience that it is the right thing to do.

I have learned already in this office that the difficult decisions always come to this desk. I must admit that many of them do not look at all the same as the hypothetical questions that I have answered freely and perhaps too fast on previous occasions.

My customary policy is to try and get all the facts and to consider the opinions of my countrymen and to take counsel with my most valued friends. But these seldom agree, and in the end, the decision is mine. To procrastinate, to agonize, and to wait for a more favorable turn of events that may never come or more compelling external pressures that may as well be wrong as right, is itself a decision of sorts and a weak and potentially dangerous course for a President to follow.

I have promised to uphold the Constitution, to do what is right as God gives me to see the right, and to do the very best that I can for America.

I have asked your help and your prayers, not only when I became President but many times since. The Constitution is the supreme law of our land and it governs our actions as citizens. Only the laws of God, which govern our consciences, are superior to it.

As we are a nation under God, so I am sworn to uphold our laws with the help of God. And I have sought such guidance and searched my own conscience with special diligence to determine the right thing for me to do with respect to my predecessor in this place, Richard Nixon, and his loyal wife and family.


This is Gerald Ford mentioning God more times in one speech than most presidents do at their annual prayer breakfast. Also, keep in mind that the role of this speech was to convinced Democrats (especially those in the South) that he was doing the right thing. My how times have changed.

The one thing I'll always admire about Gerald Ford was that it was through his experience that I saw how media changed things. Even as a young boy I knew that the media portrayed him as a bumbling, clumsy man. The reality was that he was a man of great conviction who came out of extreme poverty. He had an alcoholic father that impacted his life so much that he and his wife have treated those bound by addiction. He was perhaps the greatest athlete to ever become president. I watched the 1978 Rose Bowl where my beloved Washington Huskies were playing Michigan. Gerald Ford was in the stands rooting for Michigan. My dad told me he was a football player for Michigan on their 1932 National Championship team and in 1934 was their most valuable player.

To the media Gerald Ford was a bumbling fool who stumbled into the White House and with the stroke of a pen denied them the red meat they desired so much. Ford prevented them from watching over an opportunity to see Nixon torn apart in a trial. (same media that has largely ignored Saddam's trial but I digress) It was for this reason really that the country did end up turning to a true bumbling fool of a peanut farmer from Georgia.

By the way, Ford won in a landslide in my 2nd grade class. Carter only got one vote and I even argued that the vote shouldn't have counted because it was from a kid in another class. If you have any seven year olds at home and they act like this...beware this is how they become libertarians.

May God Bless Gerald Ford and his famly.

Friday, December 22, 2006

Merry Christmas

I'm happiest in the Christmas time when I just ignore the entire season until December 18th. I don't listen to Christmas music, I don't shop, and I don't stress or worry about anything. Actually I seldom even plan for anything that will follow up until that point. Besides, with my family planning doesn't help anyway.

For two years in a row I've tried to have my entire family over to my house for Christmas. In year's past I've been to everyone's house who hosted Christmas. I even had to do split Christmas duty and spend the whole holiday driving all over the place just to make it everywhere. Now that I have a house I will have hosted the last two Christmas gatherings only hardly anyone shows up for various reasons. Mostly they'd rather just not bother. I used to be irritated by this but now I see it as a blessing because I don't have to do as much.

It's at these times people tell me to remember what Christmas is really all about, but with all due respect to Linus I think I'll just keep Christmas a secular holiday for me.

This is what I love about Christmas time:

Girls in sweaters
Christmas lights (especially blue)
Handel's Messiah
Holiday TV Specials (Rudolph and Charlie Brown are my favorite)
Getting Christmas cards when people actually write something in them.

Things during Christmas I could do without:

Christmas Cards where you just sign your name. Don't bother.
Any variation of the 12 Days of Christmas where someone thinks they can make it funny by changing the words. Stop it. No one cares?
Lame nativity plays
So-called Christmas stories where most of the Biblical accounts are wrong.
Family Stress.
Bad Gravy.

Have a Merry Christmas to all.

Wednesday, December 13, 2006

Immigrant Hero? Wrong again liberal media!

In Arlington Virginia Jaimen Ortiz rescued a toddler who fell from a second story window. MSNBC's article reports that Ortiz "hopped a fence and ran to the apartment building....put out his arms and caught her cleanly, perhaps saving her life..."

As you can see this man who is reported to be from Guatamala is probably used to hopping fences. So the media portrays him as a hero even though he has not bothered to learn English as the article continues, "If I had delayed one more second, she would have fallen to the ground," Ortiz said through a Spanish interpreter..."

How long will this country and the liberal media continue to portray Illegals such as Jaimen Ortiz as heroes while they continue to hop fences and thumb their nose at the beloved language of our nation?

Mr. Ortiz needs to be deported as he is obviously ruining our country.

Monday, December 11, 2006

Christmas Trees at our dumb airport

I'm amazed that the whole country has been talking about what happened at our little Seattle Tacoma International Airport. The Port of Seattle decided to remove Christmas trees from the airport because a local Rabbi threatened a lawsuit. I don't take sides in this because what happened is more of a commentary on how stupid religious symbols have become. Here are some facts about what happened:

1. The Rabbi didn't want the Christmas trees to come down but he was frustrated because the Port of Seattle ignored his request for awhile to place a Menorah as part of the seasonal display. For whatever reason they only responded to his correspondence when a lawyer representing the Rabbi's group pointed out that the law was not on the side of the Port.

2. The Port of Seattle realized that their biggest vulnerability was not having a policy regarding decorations. Because a policy wasn't in place it would just appear that they put up trees and decorated them in the month of December without giving it much thought...just like normal people.

3. The Christmas Tree is not a religious symbol but the Menorah is.

4. The Rabbi regrets threatening a lawsuit but wonders openly why it took the possibility of a lawsuit to get the attention of the Port of Seattle. I wonder this too.

5. It's funny that outspoken non-Christians are hung up about the Christmas tree while at the same time many Christians I know feel that the secularized celebration of Christmas is distracting from the true religious components of the holiday. They even have a slogan: "Remember the Reason for the Season."

6. Christmas is more of a cultural holiday than anything else. I don't know any non-Jews that celebrate Hannakah, but I know scores of non-Christians who celebrate Christmas and have a Christmas tree.

7. Christmas is a national holiday.


I'm done with the facts for now. I think the Port of Seattle did the right thing. It took this extreme act to show just how dumb this had all become. In Seattle we're used to this type of thing going on all the time but the outcome usually never ends the way anyone wants it. Not this time however, the trees are going back up and with the blessing of the Rabbi. I'd like to think this is a sign that we totally haven't lost our minds.

Thursday, December 07, 2006

This is how Democrats can win the White House

Governor Bill Richardson just opted in for a White House run. I stand by what I'm about to say: If you nominate him, he wins.

If he is your nominee the GOP stranglehold on the south becomes weakened and he will win throughout the industrial midwest. There will be no nail biting on election night and wondering about how certain votes didn't count because it won't matter. If Bill Richardson is your nominee he will win the White House outright.

The problem is that he will not win a nomination from your party because you will nominate someone who has a long enough public record to be properly Swift Boated.

I wish my own state could have a good governor and sadly it hasn't had one in my lifetime. New Mexico has had two great governors in the last decade with Richarson and former Governor Gary Johnson.

I don't have a formula for how the GOP could win the White House right now. If I see one I'll probably post it.

Friday, December 01, 2006

Big Breasted Women

Before I get to the part about big breasted women let me start by saying that regarding the 2006 election: You're all so dumb.

You all want the troops out of Iraq as do I but you voted for a party that won't do it. I'm here to tell you that the troops will not be leaving Iraq and it's actually quite possible that more will be deployed there. That is reason number one why you're all dumb.

Reason number two is that I kept telling you that neither party would address the problem of monetary policy in this nation and now yesterday it was reported that the American Dollar is at its weakest point in decades. Do you hear anybody in Congress or any of your newly elected chumps even talking about this?

As I type this the money in your wallets and bank accounts is becoming increasingly worthless because our government has to print more and more of it to pay for boondoggles, failed social programs, mismanaged wars, No Child Left Behind, and bridges to nowhere.

Only our policy of selling off our surplus Federal Reserve Dollars to countries like China who voluntarily devalue their own currency for trade favors with us has kept our worthless currency's head above water.

Our only hope right now is that the two parties in a divided government will not get along to the point where gridlock slows the spending.

As for Big Breasted Women? -- Yeah, they're really great. I had to give this post an intriguing title because there is no better way to get people to head to another site than to talk about monetary policies.