Consider This 3A Tale of Two Cities ..............................................Chicago, IL ----------vs----------- Houston, TX ....................... Population....................2.7 million----------vs-----------2.15 million Median House Hold Income ...... $38,600..................... $37,000 % African-American..................... 32.9%....................... 24% % Hispanic..................................... 28.9%....................... 44% % Asian.......................................... 5.5%......................... 6% % non-Hispanic White.................... 31.7%....................... 26% A reasonably similar match-up -until: ..............................................Chicago, IL ----------vs----------- Houston, TX # of gun stores.............................0.................................84 dedicated gun shops, 1500 places to buy guns (Wal-Mart,etc.) Homicides in 2012......................... 506.........................................207 Homicides per 100k....................... 18.4........................................ 9.6 Average January high temp, F ....... 31...........................................63 Conclusion: cold weather causes murder....... Wrong! See the real answer below: Body count: In the last six months 292 killed (murdered) in Chicago compared to 221 killed in Iraq , and Chicago has one of the strictest gun laws in the entire US. President: Barack Hussein Obama The leadership in Illinois - all Democrats. Thank you for the combat zone in Chicago. Of course, they're all blaming each other. Can't blame Republicans; there aren't any! Chicago school system rated one of the worst in the country. Can't blame Republicans; there aren't any! State pension fund $78 Billion in debt, worst in country. Can't blame Republicans; there aren't any! Cook County (Chicago) sales tax 10.25% highest in country. Can't blame Republicans; there aren't any! This is the political culture that Obama comes from in Illinois. And he is going to "fix" Washington politics for us??? George Ryan is no longer governor; he is in the big house. Of course he was replaced by Rob Blagojevich who is...that's right, also in the big house. And Representative Jesse Jackson Jr. resigned a few weeks ago. That's because he's fighting being sent to....right again, the big house! Should the U.S. pull out of Chicago? Nice read and all these years we thought Al Capone was a bad dude. Thanksgiving 2022 And ever since the government officially changed the name of "Thanksgiving Day" to "A National Day of Atonement" in 2020, to officially acknowledge the Pilgrims' historically brutal treatment of Native Americans, the holiday had lost a lot of its luster. Eating in the dining room was also a bit daunting. Still, it was good getting together with family. Or at least most of the family. Winston missed his mother, who passed on in October, when she had used up her legal allotment of life-saving medical treatment. He had had many heated conversations with the Regional Health Consortium, spawned when the private insurance market finally went bankrupt, and everyone was forced into the government health care program. And though he demanded she be kept on her treatment, it was a futile effort."The RHC's resources are limited," explained the government bureaucrat Winston spoke with on the phone. "Your mother received all the benefits to which she was entitled. I'm sorry for your loss." Ed couldn't make it either. He had forgotten to plug in his electric car last night, the only kind available after the Anti-Fossil Fuel Bill of 2021 outlawed the use of the combustion engines - for everyone but government officials. The fifty mile round trip was about ten miles too far, and Ed didn't want to spend a frosty night on the road somewhere between here and there. Thankfully, Winston's brother, John, and his wife were flying in. Winston made sure that the dining room chairs had extra cushions for the occasion. No one complained more than John about the pain of sitting down so soon after the government-mandated cavity searches at airports, which severely aggravated his hemorrhoids. Ever since a terrorist successfully smuggled a cavity bomb onto a jetliner, the TSA told Americans the added "inconvenience" was an "absolute necessity" in order to stay "one step ahead of the terrorists." Winston's own body had grown accustomed to such probing ever since the government expanded their scope to just about anywhere a crowd gathered, via Anti-Profiling Act of 2022. That law made it a crime to single out any group or individual for "unequal scrutiny," even when probable cause was involved. Thus, cavity searches at malls, train stations, bus depots, etc., etc., had become almost routine. Almost. The Supreme Court is reviewing the statute, but most Americans expect a Court composed of six progressives and three conservatives to leave the law intact. Winston's thoughts turned to his own children. He got along fairly well with his 12-year-old daughter, Brittany, mostly because she ignored him. Winston had long ago surrendered to the idea that she could text anyone at any time, even during Atonement Dinner. Their only real confrontation had occurred when he limited her to 50,000 texts a month, explaining that was all he could afford. His 16-year-old son, Jason, was another matter altogether. Perhaps it was the constant bombarding he got in public school that global warming, the bird flu, terrorism, or any of a number of other calamities were "just around the corner", but Jason had developed a kind of nihilistic attitude that ranged between simmering surliness and outright hostility. It didn't help that Jason had reported his father to the police for smoking a cigarette in the house, an act made criminal by the Smoking Control Statute of 2018, which outlawed smoking anywhere within 500 feet of another human being. Winston paid the $5,000 fine, which might have been considered excessive before the American dollar became virtually worthless as a result of QE13. The latest round of quantitative easing the federal government initiated was, once again, to "spur economic growth." This time, they promised to push unemployment below its years-long rate of 18%, but Winston was not particularly hopeful. Yet the family had a lot for which to be thankful, Winston thought, before remembering it was a Day of Atonement. At least, he had his memories. He felt a twinge of sadness when he realized his children would never know what life was like in the Good Old Days, long before government promises to make life "fair for everyone" realized their full potential. ==================================================================== Little Red Hen, Circa 2012 "Who will help me plant my wheat?" asked the little red hen. "Not I," said the cow. "Not I," said the duck. "Not I," said the pig. "Not I," said the goose. "Then I will do it by myself." She planted her crop and the wheat grew and ripened. "Who will help me reap my wheat?" asked the little red hen. "Not I," said the duck. "Out of my classification," said the pig. "I'd lose my seniority," said the cow. "I'd lose my unemployment compensation," said the goose. "Then I will do it by myself," said the little red hen, and so she did. "Who will help me bake the bread?" asked the little red hen. "That would be overtime for me," said the cow. "I'd lose my welfare benefits," said the duck. "I'm a dropout and never learned how," said the pig. "If I'm to be the only helper, that's discrimination," said the goose. "Then I will do it by myself," said the little red hen. She baked five loaves and held them up for all of her neighbors to see. "Excess profits!" cried the cow... (Nancy Pelosi) "Capitalist leech!" screamed the duck. (Barbara Boxer) "I demand equal rights!" yelled the goose. (Jesse Jackson) The pig just grunted in disdain... (Harry Reid) And they all painted 'Unfair!' picket signs and marched around and around the little red hen, shouting obscenities. When the farmer (Obama) came he said to the little red hen, "You must not be so greedy." "But I worked, I earned the bread," said the little red hen. "Exactly," said Barack the farmer. "That is what makes our free enterprise system so wonderful. Anyone in the barnyard can earn as much as he wants. But under our modern government regulations, the productive workers must divide the fruits of their labor with those who are lazy and idle." And they all lived happily ever after, including the little red hen, who smiled and clucked, "I am grateful, for now I truly understand." But her neighbors became quite disappointed in her. She never again baked bread because she joined the 'party' and got her bread free. And all the Politicians smiled. 'Fairness' had been established. Individual initiative had died but nobody noticed; perhaps no one cared so long as there was free bread that 'the rich' were paying for. And perhaps....this is the end................... So, they all starved equally. Now The End EPILOGUE: Bill Clinton is getting $12 million for his memoirs. Hillary got $8 million for hers. That's $20 million for the memories from two people, who for eight years repeatedly testified, under oath, that they couldn't remember anything. DO WE LIVE IN A GREAT BARNYARD OR WHAT ? ==================================================================== I was in my neighborhood restaurant this morning and was seated behind a group of jubilant individuals celebrating the coming implementation of the health care bill. I could not finish my breakfast. This is what ensued:. They were a diverse group of several races and both sexes. I heard the young man exclaim, "Isn't Obama like Jesus Christ? I mean, after all, he is healing the sick." The young woman enthusiastically proclaimed, "Yeah, and he does it for free. I cannot believe anyone would think that a free market would work for health care. Another said, "The stupid Republicans want us all to starve to death so they can inherit all of the power. Obama should be made a Saint for what he did for those of us less fortunate."? At this, I had more than enough, I arose from my seat, mustering all the restraint I could find, and approached their table. "Please excuse me; may I impose upon you for one moment?" They smiled and welcomed me to the conversation. I stood at the end of their table, smiled as best I could and began an experiment. "I would like to give one of you my house. It will cost you no money and I will pay all of the expenses and taxes for as long as you live there. Anyone interested?" They looked at each other in astonishment. "Why would you do something like that?"? asked a young man, "There isn't anything for free in this world."? They began to laugh at me, as they did not realize this man had just made my point. "I am serious, I will give you my house for free, no money what so ever. Anyone interested?"? In unison, a resounding "Hell Yeah"? fills the room. "Since there are too many of you, I will have to make a choice as to who receives this money-free bargain." I noticed an elderly couple was paying attention to the spectacle unfolding before their eyes, the old man shaking his head in apparent disgust. "I tell you what; I will give it to the one of you most willing to obey my rules."? . Again, they looked at one another, an expression of bewilderment on their faces. The perky young woman asked, "What are the rules?"? I smiled and said, "I don't know. I have not yet defined them. However, it is a free home that I offer you." . They giggled amongst themselves, the youngest of which said, "What an old coot. He must be crazy to give away his home. Go take your meds, old man." I smiled and leaned into the table a bit further. "I am serious, this is a legitimate offer."? They gaped at me for a moment. "I'll take it, you old fool. Where are the keys?" boasted the youngest among them. . "Then I presume you accept ALL of my terms then?" I asked. The elderly couple seemed amused and entertained as they watched from the privacy of their table. . "Oh hell yeah! Where do I sign up?? I took a napkin and wrote, I give this man my home, without the burden of financial obligation, so long as he accepts and abides by the terms that I shall set forth upon consummation of this transaction." I signed it and handed it to the young man who eagerly scratched out his signature. . "Where are the keys to my new house?" he asked in a mocking tone of voice. All eyes were upon us as I stepped back from the table, pulling the keys from pocket and dangling them before the excited new homeowner. "Now that we have entered into this binding contract, witnessed by all of your friends, I have decided upon the conditions you are obligated to adhere from this point forward. You may only live in the house for one hour a day. You will not use anything inside of the home. You will obey me without question or resistance. I expect complete loyalty and admiration for this gift I bestow upon you. You will accept my commands and wishes with enthusiasm, no matter the nature. Your morals and principles shall be as mine. You will vote as I do, think as I do and do it with blind faith. These are my terms. Here are your keys." I reached the keys forward and the young man looked at me dumbfounded. "Are you out of your mind? Who would ever agree to those ridiculous terms?"? the young man appeared irritated. "You did when you signed this contract before reading it, understanding it and with the full knowledge that I would provide my conditions only after you committed to the agreement." The elderly man chuckled as his wife tried to restrain him. I was looking at a now silenced and bewildered group of people. . "You can shove that stupid deal up you're ass old man, I want no part of it!" exclaimed the now infuriated young man. . "You have committed to the contract, as witnessed by all of your friends; you cannot get out of the deal unless I agree to it. I do not intend to let you free now that I have you ensnared. I'm the power you agreed to. I am the one you blindly and without thought chose to enslave yourself to. In short, I am your Master."? . At this, the table of celebrating individuals became a unified group against the unfairness of the deal. After a few moments of unrepeatable comments and slurs, I revealed my true intent. "What I did to you is what this administration and congress did to you with the health care legislation. I easily suckered you in and then revealed the real cost of the bargain. Your folly was in the belief that you can have something you did not earn; that you are entitled to, and that which you did not earn; that you willingly allowed someone else to think for you. Your failure to research, study and inform yourself permitted reason to escape you. You have entered into a trap from which you cannot flee. Your only chance of freedom is if your new Master gives it to you. A freedom that is given can also be taken away; therefore, it is not freedom." With that, I tore up the napkin and placed it before the astonished young man. "This is the nature of your new health care legislation."? I turned away to leave these few in thought and contemplation and was surprised by applause. The elderly gentleman, who was clearly entertained, shook my hand enthusiastically and said, "Thank you Sir, these kids don't understand Liberty."? He refused to allow me to pay my bill as he said, "You earned this one, it is an honor to pick up the tab." I shook his hand in thanks, leaving the restaurant somewhat humbled, and sensing a glimmer of hope for my beloved country. Use reason: Remember, four boxes keep us free: the soap box, the ballot box, the jury box, and the cartridge box. ==================================================================== Top Ten - Only in America - By a Canadian 1) Only in America could politicians talk about the greed of the rich at a $35,000 a plate campaign fund-raising event. 2) Only in America could people claim that the government still discriminates against black Americans when they have a black President, a black Attorney General, and roughly 18% of the federal workforce is black while only 12% of the population is black. 3) Only in America could they have had the two people most responsible for their tax code, Timothy Geithner, the head of the Treasury Department and Charles Rangel who once ran the Ways and Means Committee, BOTH turn out to be tax cheats who are in favor of higher taxes. 4) Only in America can they have terrorists kill people in the name of Allah and have the media primarily react by fretting that Muslims might be harmed by the backlash. 5) Only in America would they make people who want to legally become American citizens wait for years in their home countries and pay tens of thousands of dollars for the privilege while we discuss letting anyone who sneaks into the country illegally just 'magically' become American citizens. 6) Only in America could the people who believe in balancing the budget and sticking by the country's Constitution be thought of as "extremists." 7) Only in America could you need to present a driver's license to cash a check or buy alcohol, but not to vote. 8) Only in America could people demand the government investigate whether oil companies are gouging the public because the price of gas went up when the return on equity invested in a major U.S. Oil company ( Marathon Oil) is less than half of a company making tennis shoes (Nike). 9) Only in America could the government collect more tax dollars from the people than any nation in recorded history, still spend a trillion dollars more than it has per year for total spending of $7 million PER MINUTE, and complain that it doesn't have nearly enough money. 10) Only in America could the most productive people who pay 86% of all income taxes be accused of not paying their "fair share" by people who don't pay any income taxes at all.. ==================================================================== This rather brilliantly cuts thru all the political doublespeak we get. Lesson # 1: * U.S. Tax revenue: $2,170,000,000,000 Let's now remove 8 zeros and pretend it's a household budget: * Annual family income: $21,700 Got It ????? OK, now Lesson # 2: Here's another way to look at the Debt Ceiling: Let's say, You come home from work and find there has been a sewer backup in What do you think you should do ...... Raise the ceilings, or pump out the crap? ==================================================================== It will be far easier to limit and undo the follies of an Obama presidency than to restore the necessary common sense and good judgment to an electorate willing to have such a man for their president. ==================================================================== This tells the story, why Bush was so bad at the end of his term. Please Read Carefully Don't just skim over this, read it slowly and let it sink in. If in doubt, check it out. The day the democrats took over was not January 22nd 2009, it was actually January 3rd 2007 the day the Democrats took over the House of Representatives and the Senate, at the very start of the 110th Congress. The Democrat Party controlled a majority in both chambers for the first time since the end of the 103rd Congress in 1995. For those who are listening to the liberals propagating the fallacy that everything is "Bush's Fault", think about this: January 3rd, 2007 was the day the Democrats took over the Senate and the Congress. At the time: The DOW Jones closed at 12,621.77 The GDP for the previous quarter was 3.5% The Unemployment rate was 4.6% George Bush's Economic policies SET A RECORD of 52 STRAIGHT MONTHS of JOB GROWTH Remember the day... January 3rd, 2007 was the day that Barney Frank took over the House Financial Services Committee and Chris Dodd took over the Senate Banking Committee. The economic meltdown that happened 15 months later was in what part of the economy? BANKING AND FINANCIAL SERVICES! Unemployment... to this CRISIS by (among MANY other things) dumping 5-6 TRILLION Dollars of toxic loans on the economy from YOUR Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac FIASCOES! Bush asked Congress 17 TIMES to stop Fannie & Freddie - starting in 2001 because it was financially risky for the US economy. And who took the THIRD highest pay-off from Fannie Mae AND Freddie Mac? OBAMA And who fought against reform of Fannie and Freddie? OBAMA and the Democrat Congress So when someone tries to blame Bush... REMEMBER JANUARY 3rd, 2007.... THE DAY THE DEMOCRATS TOOK OVER!" Budgets do not come from the White House. They come from Congress and the party that controlled Congress since January 2007 is the Democrat Party. Furthermore, the Democrats controlled the budget process for 2008 & 2009 as well as 2010 &2011. In that first year, they had to contend with George Bush, which caused them to compromise on spending, when Bush somewhat belatedly got tough on spending increases. For 2009 though, Nancy Pelosi & Harry Reid bypassed George Bush entirely, passing continuing resolutions to keep government running until Barack Obama could take office. At that time, they passed a massive omnibus spending bill to complete the 2009 budgets. And where was Barack Obama during this time? He was a member of that very Congress that passed all of these massive spending bills, and he signed the omnibus bill as President to complete 2009. If the Democrats inherited any deficit, it was the 2007 deficit, the last of the Republican budgets. That deficit was the lowest in five years, and the fourth straight decline in deficit spending. After that, Democrats in Congress took control of spending, and that includes Barack Obama, who voted for the budgets. If Obama inherited anything, he inherited it from himself. In a nutshell, what Obama is saying is I inherited a deficit that I voted for and then I voted to expand that deficit four-fold since January 20th. There is no way this will be widely publicized,unless each of us does our part ! 1) Only in America could politicians talk about the greed of the rich at a $35,000 a plate campaign fund raising event. 2) Only in America could people claim that the government still 3) Only in America could we have had the two people most responsible 4) Only in America can we have terrorists kill people in the name of 5) Only in America would we make people who want to legally become 6) Only in America could the people who believe in balancing the 7) Only in America could you need to present a driver's license to 8) Only in America could people demand the government investigate 9) Only in America could the government collect more tax dollars from 10) Only in America could the rich people who pay 86% of all income Tax code explained in Beer Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100... If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this... The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing. So, that's what they decided to do.. The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve ball. "Since you are all such good customers," he said, "I'm going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20". Drinks for the ten men would now cost just $80. The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes. So the first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free. But what about the other six men ? How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his fair share? They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody's share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer. So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's bill by a higher percentage the poorer he was, to follow the principle of the tax system they had been using, and he proceeded to work out the amounts he suggested that each should now pay. And so the fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% saving). Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to drink for free. But, once outside the bar, the men began to compare their savings. "I only got a dollar out of the $20 saving," declared the sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man,"but he got $10!" "Yeah, that's right," exclaimed the fifth man. "I only saved a dollar too. It's unfair that he got ten times more benefit than me!" "That's true!" shouted the seventh man. "Why should he get $10 back, when I got only $2? The wealthy get all the breaks!" "Wait a minute," yelled the first four men in unison, "we didn't get anything at all. This new tax system exploits the poor!" The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up. The next night the tenth man didn't show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had their beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn't have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill! And that, boys and girls, journalists and government ministers, is how our tax system works. The people who already pay the highest taxes will naturally get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start drinking overseas, where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier. David R. Kamerschen, Ph.D. For those who understand, no explanation is needed. BILLIONS <--- With a B. This is unconscionable and the IRS and the CONGRESS have done NOTHING to stop it. http://www.wthr.com/video?clipId=7054149&topVideoCatNo=103348&autoStar And that, my friends, is how it all works! ==================================================================== http://blog.heritage.org/2012/04/18/top-10-most-expensive-obamacare-taxe... Recently, while I was working in the flower beds in the front yard, my neighbors stopped to chat as they returned home from walking their dog. During our friendly conversation, I asked their 12 year old daughter what she wanted to be when she grows up. She said she wanted to be President some day. Both of her parents - liberal Democrats - were standing there, so I asked her, "If you were President what would be the first thing you would do?" She replied,"I'd give food and houses to all the homeless people." Her parents beamed with pride! "Wow...what a worthy goal!" I said. "But you don't have to wait until you're President to do that!" I told her. What do you mean?" she replied. So I told her, "You can come over to my house and mow the lawn, pull weeds, and trim my hedge, and I'll pay you $50. Then you can go over to the grocery store where the homeless guy hangs out, and you can give him the $50 to use toward food and a new house" She thought that over for a few seconds, then she looked me straight in the eye and asked, "Why doesn't the homeless guy come over and do the work, and you can just pay him the $50. I said, "Welcome to the Republican Party." Her parents aren't speaking to me. ====================================================================
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