Ron Paul's Farewell Speech

Gettysburg Address

47% statement in a Word Cloud.

You didn't build that in a Word Cloud

The tragedy of this election has been the use of out of context statements by both candidates as a foundation for the POTUS Campaign.

Waxing Poetic on Southern Style

Welcome to the land of grits. It is a place of considerable warmth,
character and profound simplicity. A simplicity that values common sense
and hands-on life experiences. Intellectualism is valued but always
tempered by the reality of circumstance.

It is a land where signs that read "Do Not Feed Or Harass Alligators"
mean exactly that. It is a place where a local will watch in amusement
as a genius actually tries to catch an alligator with their child's Disney
Princess fishing pole. Smiling to himself with the understanding that
the genius has not thought about what happens if the alligator actually
takes the bait, dumb ass.

It is a place where Summer thunder storms reveal amazing cloud
formations. Formations that reveal Mother Nature and provoke a
contemplation of the meaning of the time, space, our place in both, and
the revelations of religion.

Accents are slow, talk is measured and the fluidity of honey dictates
daily life. A pace that picks up under pressure and slows when in
balance. A pace that doesn't often hit like a cold shower, but
rather ebbs like high tide in the warm Atlantic.

Fiscal vs. Social Conservatism

Have a seat, I’m gettin’ out my stump and climbing up. Today’s rant, defining conservatism. Let me put forward two definitions of conservatism, although there are many derivations, to capture the political realities of today, fiscal conservatism and social conservatism. These terms are often used interchangeably in political debates and lead to misguided or misunderstood followings.

Fiscal conservatism is economic in nature. It calls for fiscal prudence in the governance of the economy. The preference of fiscal conservatives is to allow the free market to provide goods and services to the polity. Republicans use this form of fiscal conservative ideology to label their Democratic counterparts as “tax and spend” fanatics.

Social conservatism is social-cultural in nature. It seeks to influence society by implementing policies that conform to a “desirable” social-cultural norm. A “return to traditional” values or “moral ideals” are sought to get the polity back on the “right” track. Political issues such as marriage and sex education fall under the rubric of social conservatism and rally particularly vocal factions.

Now for the stump part…Tennessee Republicans stop being hypocritical. Stop blaming Democrats for deficits and then using this smoke screen to implement your social agenda. Here are a couple of examples of note:

SB2580 Welfare Drug Testing, a Republican sponsored bill that allows for selective drug screening of welfare recipients passed this year.

HB2411 Lawmaker Drug Testing, a Democrat sponsored bill that allows for the drug testing of state lawmakers failed this year.

So how do we interpret this seeming contradiction? Is it OK to do drugs if you are earning a living wage? Or, if you aren’t making a living wage it is because you are doing drugs? Perhaps it is too costly to pay for the drug testing of state legislatures? Here is an option: if you receive public monies then you must submit to a drug test.

Here is a no brainer for fiscal conservatism, SB1372 Per Diem Freeze. SB1372 was a Democrat sponsored piece of legislation that would freeze the per diem expense allowance for state legislators. SB1372 would not eliminate the reimbursement, just put a cap on the allowance amount for specific activities. Surely this is something that fiscal conservatives could rally behind, but it failed to pass the Republican controlled state legislature.

What happened to the fiscal conservatives? Have social conservatives usurped them? Have we entered a new phase of politics where social conservatism is an easier agenda to push than fiscal conservatism? If we have, then let’s stop the hypocritical posturing and call a duck a duck.

Life on the Point

On top of Signal Mountain is an area, well let’s just call it the Point, that has pockets where time has stopped. Folks live within their means and generally keep to themselves in these pockets of the past. Bologna, beer, friends, family and long standing feuds embroil the day to day residents of the Point. Once in a while modern day conveniences make an appearance on the Point, and this is a story of such an instance.

February, 1989, was witnessing a typical winter in Tennessee, highs in the 30s and lows in the 20s. Cletus, name changed to protect the innocent and me from being hurt, was living in a single wide trailer on some family land on the Point. Cletus supported his Miller Lite habit by taking on various construction jobs when they could be had. He siphoned water from his parents well and was used to taking cold showers, a rare occurrence in the winter.

The sun did shine on Cletus once in a while, however, and that day occurred when Horace helped him install an old hot water heater they retrieved from a job site. Horace was a local stone mason that employed Cletus from time to time when he needed an extra pair of hands. The timing couldn’t be better, for a hot shower warms the soul during Southern winters.

The next morning Horace pulled down the aluminum can drive that leads to Cletus’ trailer and noticed smoke pouring out the windows and door. Horace entered the trailer expecting to find a grease fire on the stove, but was treated to Cletus jumping in and out of his bathroom wearing nothing but his birthday suit. Cletus had the hot water on full blast, his skin red, and was trying to rinse soap out of his hair. Horace asked him what he was doing, and Cletus replied: “That water is hot as hell.” Horace reached in and gated the hot water back so that Cletus could finish his shower without risking 1^st degree burns.

During the lunch break at the jobsite Horace overheard Cletus telling the other extra hands that “Horace is a genius. He can turn hot water to cold.”

From a friend at work....

The light turned yellow, just in front of him. He did the right thing, stopping at the crosswalk, even though he could have beaten the red light by accelerating through the intersection.

The tailgating woman was furious and honked her horn, screaming in frustration, as she missed her chance to get through the intersection, dropping her cell phone and makeup.

As she was still in mid-rant, she heard a tap on her window and looked up into the face of a very serious police officer. The officer ordered her to exit her car with her hands up.

He took her to the police station where she was searched, fingerprinted, photographed, and placed in a holding cell.

After a couple of hours, a policeman approached the cell and opened the door. She was escorted back to the booking desk where the arresting officer was waiting with her personal effects.

He said, "I'm very sorry for this mistake. You see, I pulled up behind your car while you were blowing your horn, making obscene gestures at the guy in front of you and cussing a blue streak at him. I noticed the 'What Would Jesus Do?' bumper sticker, the 'Choose Life' license plate holder, the 'Follow Me to Sunday-School' bumper sticker, and the chrome-plated Christian fish emblem on the trunk, so naturally ... I assumed you had stolen the car."

Shades of Gray

The invisible hand guiding the supply and demand of goods is the foundation of many political economic arguments put forward by politicians, pundants and drunks at locals everywhere. The simplicity of this theory is also the root of its efficacy. It is, however, just a theory with its own baggage. Primarily, that it views the political economy in black and white. Barriers to entry are rife in the economy and unless observers are willing to delve into the gray, analysis will be incomplete at best and misguided at worst.

Some products are so prohibitively expensive to produce and it is necessary for government, federal or local, to finance the production of these goods. Education, roads, ports, etc., are just some examples of these public goods. Public goods are often subject to political horse trading, but many of these goods are essential for the proper functioning of society.

Politically motivated barriers of entry typically motivated by national interest arguments. The defense industry is an obvious example. Not many citizens would foot the bill for a nuclear submarine, nor would we want the average citizen to have access to such weaponry technology. Other national interest arguments often involve protecting labor. The recent bail-out of the automobile industry is a prime example. These politically motivated barriers are implemented via shear political force, military, or by economic enticements in the form of subsidies or duties, sugar and apparel.

Cartels, or collusion, are another barrier to entry which has the potential to distort the forces of supply and demand. Cartels can distort the market in three ways. First, cartels can control the supply of a particular good to the market. Second, cartels can agree upon the quality of a particular good in the market. And finally, cartels can control the price of a particular good in the market. In some cases, all three forms of control are used, OPEC.

The final, and probably most manipulative, barrier to entry is the lack of complete information. Adam Smith envisioned an economy where both producers and consumers had complete information. Each would respond until the market reached equilibrium. Equilibrium would eliminate excessive profits and ensure the consumers are able to obtain the goods they want.

It is imperative for citizens to look deeper into the economic arguments that our politicians are putting forth if we are to receive the price and quality we deserve.

Witch Hunt

The people of the United States of America will never forget September 11, 2001. It changed the way we perceived the world and ushered in a renewed sense of patriotism and unity. Our foreign policy set, our targets were articulated and we entered a war against terrorism with the full bravado of a nation with purpose and determination. The utterance of “crusade” to describe the ensuing war on terrorism foreshadowed the changes that began taking place in the domestic arena as well.

Civil rights became subject to interpretations of “national security.” The suspension of legal rights for detainees, domestic and international, as well as wiretapping became acceptable forms of civility. The palatable hostility towards critics of these policies rivaled the Red Scare of the 1940s and 50s. Perhaps the ugliest manifestation of this intolerance is used today by those claiming that President Obama is a Muslim. Our new found patriotism and unity have also witnessed a return to our Puritan roots domestically.

Faith-based initiatives have enabled religious non-profits to help the federal government provide social services. There are clear delineations to prevent proselytizing, but precedent has been set and the mood of the country seems to be changing. Politicians are chipping away at Roe vs. Wade and stem cell research has been curtailed. As the war on terrorism continues the United States has entered a period of witch hunts. The contraceptive controversy is the most recent victim of our growing intolerance.

Ironically, we would do well to heed the words of President George W. Bush: “We have no intention of imposing our culture -- but America will always stand firm for the non-negotiable demands of human dignity: the rule of law ... limits on the power of the state ... respect for women ... private property ... free speech ... equal justice ... and religious tolerance.” The United States of America is the greatest polity today. Our greatness stems from our tolerance and our reliance on a legal system to enforce civility.

Partisan Cancer

There seems to be a World Wrestling Federation mentality in our political system that has brought our country to a standstill. We have become a polity where name calling, posturing and the bending of the truth is more popular than considering what our fellow citizens have to say. It happens with plumbers as well as politicians, so called professionals that make a nice living carrying out the rule of law in our country. It is an ugly cancer that has stumped intellectual discourse and threatens to completely paralyze our polity.

The Founding Fathers designed a Democratic Republic with checks and balances to ensure that our country does not change too rapidly. We are democracy to protect the majority, and a republic to protect the minority. We have three branches of government with specified duties to ensure our civility and guarantee the rule of law. So we don’t really need the partisan cancer that has plagued our polity.

The violent partisanship that has gripped our country has the potential to be our downfall if it is not checked. We are a resilient people but we are not a stagnant people. The Constitution is a living document and government was designed to grow and adjust with the social, political and economic changes. The Founding Fathers were correct in setting up our system to move slowly, but they did set it up to move. They engaged in deep ideological debates that sometimes lead to compromise, sometimes to stalemate, but they made a conscience effort to come to the table and hear what their fellow citizens had to say.

Don’t the American people deserve a government that will listen to all ideas? Don’t our representatives get paid to do just that? We are giving you money and entitlements, the only thing we want is that you do your job.