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Co-founder of GraniteGrok, my concern is around Individual Liberty and Freedom and how the Government is taking that away. As an evangelical Christian and Conservative with small "L" libertarian leanings, my fight is with Progressives forcing a collectivized, secular humanistic future upon us. As a TEA Party activist, citizen journalist, and pundit!, my goal is to use the New Media to advance the radical notions of America's Founders back into our culture.

Dontcha just love seeing a taxpayer supported employee arguing against taxpayer interests? Here’s one: Nathan S. Greenberg, Superintendent

This was passed on to me by a concerned citizen – actually, an outraged citizen.  If this letter checks out (and nothing that I have found thus far leads me to think contrary to it), we see one level of taxpayer funded government (a local SAU Superintendent) electioneering against a proposed law that taxpayers have requested. Is his school system doing so well that he can turn his visage outward?  Or, is this really more of the entitlement mentality we are now seeing everywhere: hey, that’s MY money!!!  How DARE you take my entitlement to taxpayer money and give it to someone other than me!!  Don’t you know who we are?

Paid to lobby against you on your dime!  As my friend Doug said when we caught our taxpayer funded Superintendent getting ready to electioneer to a meeting of senior citizens (sponsored by the taxpayer funded Parks N Rec department on the topic of “why a tax cap would be bad for the School District): “LEAVE THE POLITICKING TO THE POLITICIANS!” In other words, the School Board should have done it – not a supposedly neutral employee.

This seems, more and more, to be the norm among the Public-Educational-Industrial Complex (which is larger, financially, than the Military-Industrial Complex) rather than what is best for the kids.  Remember too, the mentality seems to also be that they know better what is best for your kids.

Londonderry SAU LogoLONDONDERRY SCHOOL DISTRICT

April 12, 2012

Senator Nancy Stiles
Chair Senate Education Committee
Legislative Office Building
Room 103-A
33 North State Street
Concord, NH 03301

Dear Senator Stiles:

Unfortunately, I am unable to attend the hearing on HB 1607 on April 17, 2012 due to work related responsibilities.  Thus, I would greatly appreciate it if this correspondence could be entered into the record as my testimony in opposition to that bill.

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An apology and a retraction

Our official motto is “Spank’em when they’re wrong and Thank’em when they’re right”.  That can be applied to ourselves as well (as well as it should).  We try to get all of our facts rights.  With GraniteGrok closing in on 10,300 posts, we pretty much get it right almost all of the time. Almost. This … Read more

You know, it would be good to get it right, Mr. Kitch

Yesterday was a “day off from work / a day of blogging activities” for me as I had promised a lady in our town, Barbara Aichinger,  to video record a Supervisor of the Checklist hearing.  The back story is just before our local election last month, local Democrat activist and public employee  Joe “No Show” Wernig decided on a crass political stunt and accuse her of not being eligible to vote here in town.  Which,  as it turns out, meant that she could not run for office to. More on this later (full video of the hearing is here at the ‘Grok’s “little sister” blog I keep just for local activities) and in my opinion, an attempt to silence a strong voice that advocates for exactly for everything that Wernig stands for: smaller government, less taxes, and more personal liberty.  Why else call a press conference when issuing a voter challenge based on flimsy Internet based information?

Well, two of the local pro-scribblers showed up; Michael Kitch from the Laconia Daily Sun filed his report and did a decent job (after having a “discussion” with Barbara, but that’s for another post) but got something wrong:

David “Skip” Murphy, who video recorded the session for his blog — Granite Grok — upon learning that Miller’s services cost the town $160 per hour wondered if there was any means of compelling Wernig, who has complained about the cost of frivolous litigation to the town, to foot the bill.

“No,” said Miller. “There is no recourse.”

Er, no.  This is why one brings a recording device to such an event – as he got this part of the my “public input” absolutely wrong:

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Another thing that this Voter Challenge made me realize

Like I said here, we had a political ideologue by the name of Joe Wernig issue, in my opinion, a thinly veiled attempt of political intimidation by trying to keep local Libertarian activist Barbara Aichinger off the local ballot via a Voter Role Challenge (complete video here of the hearing, with more commentary above that post).  As the hearing slowly wore on, the thought hit me: how often is this now happening, where the most basic philosophies of American jurisprudence is being turned on its head?  Just like we are loosing our freedoms as the Government continues to loom larger and larger and inserts itself into more and more areas of what used to be off-limits.

All of us have been brought up believing “innocent until proven guilty” and that you should have the ability to confront your accuser.  This hearing, through no fault of the Supervisors of the Checklist, seemingly turned that upside down.  Joe Wernig had made sure that when he accused Mrs. Aichinger of not being eligible, she was out of the country on business.  He didn’t notify her of his press conference or his intention of going to the Supervisors in issuing that challenge.  He made sure that she could not directly confront him and his charges.

Yesterday, he doubled down – he was a “No Show” – but his baseless charge put all three Supervisors through hours of research during the 30 day interval.  Barbara had to spend hours in assembling her records in her own defense.  This political coward couldn’t muster the courage to even make a token appearance before skidaddling back to his secure government job.  He couldn’t face the person he challenged.  Yes, I meant that word: Coward.

So much for the Mrs. Aichinger being able to face her accuser: he simply ran away like when a bully runs up against someone who isn’t willing to back down.  In fact, I’m betting he really thought she’d fold – not a smooth move.

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GrokTV Special Interview: Pam Tucker-RNC Committeewoman Candidate on Freedom, 10th Amendment, Party Platforms

Even though the last question was the last formal question, Pam and I kept on talking after I had turned off the camera.  Here, you will see that I picked it up and turned it on again as what we were discussing I thought were important.  So, just call this “The Questions after the Last Question” edition.  We talked about the concept of Freedom, the value of the 10th Amendment, and the importance of the Party Platform:

Previous Questions: (on the jump)

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Notable Quote – Alex de Toqueville

“A man’s admiration of absolute government is proportionate to the contempt he feels for those around him.” –  Alex de Toqueville, French historian And Obama wants to radically transform America to be a Government-centric country to replace its citizen-oriented one…. (H/T: PowerLine)

Notable Quote – Dr. Thomas Sowell

As many have warned in the past, freedom is unlikely to be lost all at once and openly.  It is far more likely to be eroded away, bit by bit, amid glittering promises and expressions of noble ideals. – Dr. Thomas Sowell, Economics Professor, syndicated columnist, author (H/T: Cafe Hayek)

Why America needs “a gun in every pocket”…

…and why the anti-Second Amendment and anti-self defense movements in places like New York, Chicago, and California (with their draconian anti-gun laws) need to get used to it.

How to react to a terrorist or other criminal when you have no gun.

A few days ago The Wall Street Journal published a column by Con Coughlin, entitled “Mohamed Merah and the New Breed of ‘Nike Terrorists’.” Mohamed Merah is the radical Islamist who murdered three French soldiers and four Jewish civilians in France last month. The article explained that Merah is part of a developing “new breed” of Islamic terrorists who will act alone or in small groups with “homemade bombs, knives and guns.”

Think it won’t happen?

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GrokTV Special Interview: Pam Tucker-RNC Committeewoman Candidate. Question 11 – Get the NH GOP to become more active in local elections?

Since this series of questions was done, most towns have had their local elections (be they SB2 based or the traditional formats).  This season, a number of conservatives and libertarians who are Republicans lost their bid for local offices and were replaced by rather hard-left leaning folks (e.g., Carla Horn, a real self-avowed Leftist that would fit in well with the Democrat Socialists of American won over a really good conservative, Colette Worseman up in Meredith; I and a few others lost in Gilford).  Many politically active folks on the Right have been watching the ‘staff up’ being done by the Dems, ostensibly for the Presidential election – it is now evident that they had active hands in organizing in these elections too (as well as the Unions).

Thus, this question,  a future-now-past,  proves that there is a problem: Can you, as Committeewoman, help nudge the NH GOP to better assist local elections “below the NH House races (think: farm team)?

Previous Questions: (on the jump)

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Obama’s Buffet Rule – serious or a campaign stunt?

Update:

NTU - Who Pays Income Taxes - 2009So, Joe Biden wants to come and defend this crock?  Hey Joe, those folks ARE paying the same rates on their EARNED income – how else is the top 1% paying 37% of all income taxes? And if this chart is insufficient, try these.  Fair, Joe Biden – how much is enough to be “fair” to “help others”?  Remember, this?

=============================================

Obama, over the last two weeks has let us all know that he is in full campaign mode – after all, he is attacking pretty much anything that moves in the political world that doesn’t fit his political worldview (boy, how paranoid he must feel to know that everyone is out to “get him”?  Well, sport, you’ve kinda brought it upon yourself, eh?).  Certainly, one of his tools is going to be those misbegotten words (at least, now it is) “fair” and “fairness”.  Sure he uses it, but as I have learned over last few years, he isn’t about to define and REALLY state what “fair” and “fairness” is, other than to be a political club against his enemies (and make no mistake – we’ve seen him treat those that most of us would consider to be national enemies (or, “not friends at all” at best) far better than his political rivals here at home.  Truly, he believes that old saw “Conservatives believe that Liberals are just wrong; Liberals believe that Conservatives are EVIL!” and treats everyone else as such (why does Obama hate “The Other” so much?  Isn’t he all about diversity?  Oh, sorry, that only goes skin deep – ask his Granny).

For a guy that promised so much to be a “post-political” President and “unite us and heal our planet” kind of guy, he’s really showing his BULLY side, ain’t he?

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Stacy McCain spins a great phrase “the Denunciation Derby”!

OK, this weekend’s political scalps: on the Left, the still anonymous NBC “producer” that doctored up the now famous Tryvon Martin case’s “he looks black” in trying to insinuate “racism by a white Hispanic” (what, as opposed to a purple and green one?), Mr. Zimmerman.  On the Right, John Derbyshire, late of National Review for a column at another site, got cashiered by NR for saying what he did.

However wrong their actions and words, Stacy points out the Level 2 problem: “the Denunciation Derby” (quick Stacy, trademark that!):

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So, how is Karl Marx linked directly to the modern Democrat Party?

Presto!  Multiple links!  And remember, Political Correctness is simply Cultural Marxism: And they call TEA Party folks “radical”??  Only from the perspective in that we refuse to submit to Marxism.  Hey Collin, care to comment?  Wanna dispute any of this?  I do have a question for you, Collin – didn’t they miss the SEIU when … Read more

Speaking of the modern Democrat Party roots, here’s one of their results

When you give the reins of power, you have done so because of their rhetoric.  What you actually end up with is the results of their philosophy.  Like their actions not reflecting their rhetoric: Obama PROMISED, his minions PROMISED that the Stimulus would keep more Americans off the dole and gainfully employed if we just. … Read more

Where Maya Angelou intimates that we can be legislated to love each other

Huh? I was looking up a word that was the equivalent of gaggle at Dictionary.com but starting with a “p” (then it popped up in my head: ” radical vision of Obama and his punishing posse of Progressives“) but there was a quote that was in the right sidebar from  Maya Angelo (emphasis mine): Strictly … Read more

From James Pindell’s Political Standing

Really? “Is there any truth to the rumor that next weekend Republican National Committeeman Steve Duprey will be challenged on the floor from an opponent from the right flank?” Interesting rumor…

“Germany set to tax young”

Well, the Blue Social Model of Socialism is its own Ponzi scheme – and when you run out of young people, you run out of other peoples’ money.  From the Sydney Morning Herald (reformatted here): GERMANY is proposing to levy extra taxes on the young to pay for the costs of the country’s growing numbers … Read more

President Obama’s stewardship of the Federal Government downrated AGAIN.

From Big Government (reformatted here): A small credit ratings agency downgraded the United States’ credit rating for a second time, arguing the country was no closer to solving its runaway debt problem.  In a move that could foreshadow decisions from larger agencies, Egan-Jones downgraded the US to AA from AA+. The company on Thursday cited … Read more

Data Point – Interest payments on slope to exceed DoD budget

Liberals and Progressives have, for years, said that we have to decrease spending on defense and spend it on more important things – don’t think that they meant debt payments.  Sorry, but you guys, in the end, are going to be the ones that screwed your own social programs. (H/T: Weekly Standard)

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