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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.

Smart guy, smart phone, smart App

The free market at work – see a need, think of a solution, make a company.  Even if deployed in Afghanistan with the Screaming Eagles:

An iPhone app that tracks down the Taliban has been developed by a US soldier who used pds 17,000 ($27K) of his own money into the project.

Captain Jonathan J. Springer said the idea for a Smartphone app to help soldiers in combat came to him in a dream last July.

The 31-year-old, from Fort Wayne, Indiana, has worked with programmers ever since to make the idea a reality.

Tactical Nav, which is expected to be available through Apple’s App Store next month, assists soldiers in mapping, plotting and photographing waypoints on a battleground and conveying coordinates to supporting units.

The soldier, who serves as a battalion fire support officer in eastern Afghanistan, said most soldiers use smartphones and the app has been designed specifically for them.

‘Basically, the problem is the fact that smart phones were not utilized by the military potential, and I am motivated by it. Therefore, I intend to change it, even if I have reached into their own pockets to make it happen,’ added the soldier.

The app’s main functions include a compass, camera and a gridded map that aids in accurately pinpointing exact locations down to a few feet. The information is then relayed to others soldiers linked into the app.

Tactical Nav is also designed to be used to direct artillery fire or call in helicopter support for injured soldiers.

…’I started the process to legally form my own company and began trade marking my intellectual property…

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“Put your money where your mouth is”

Our friend Andrew Hemingway has been getting a lot of press the last couple of days; this in the UL: While Kimball disputes the characterization of his win as a Tea Party win, the fact is, his victory has fired up liberty activists. New Hampshire Republican Liberty Caucus Chairman Andrew Hemingway said his group used … Read more

Evergreen hits home

That would be the law and not one of the pine trees that overlook the Home.  NH has an Evergreen law that basically says "Contract with union employees NEVER runs out"; it stays in force until a new one is negotiated and signed.  In these tough times, I’m betting that more than a few unions … Read more

You know, sometimes they just make it too easy…

Once more, he tries for relevancy from the fringe:

 “He thinks everyone else is a sellout and a RINO,” said Fergus Cullen, a former chairman of the state’s Republican Party, using the acronym for Republican In Name Only. “He is absolutely a purity Republican.”

(H/T: NYT)

Unity speak, this is not (perhaps sour grapes, though). This from the guy that was the NH GOP Chair before Gov. Sununu decided to run, saw that he had NO chance at winning a second term (sorta like Jimmah Cahtah, and soon, Obama) as such, slunk away.

RINO. Indeed. He couldn’t even get elected to be a Member so as to be able to vote this past Saturday.  

Ya think, Fergus, that if you weren’t SO much the pontificating squish, so obviously biased against the Conservatives in the Party in word and deed, you just might have fared a tad better?  But, I will give him kudoes for speaking his mind (we do need to be reminded from time to time of his stint as NH GOP Chair and the such "sterling" results, unlike Gov. Sununu, he produced)

But I betcha he isn’t gonna get the offer to be the next Comms Dir……

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Prez 2012 – Pence down, Demint….?

Congressman Mike Pence has decided to run for another office – just not President: U.S. Rep. Mike Pence shut the door today on a run for the presidency, but left wide open the likelihood that he’ll seek a different office: Governor of Indiana. “In the choice between seeking national office and serving Indiana in some … Read more

NH GOP Annual Meeting – a few pictures

Well, a couple of folks took the time in taking pictures of us at the NH GOP Annual meeting – if they were willing to take the time, we’re willing to take the time to post them!

This by Bob Jursik is really neat:

 Grok at NH GOP Annual meeting overhead

Top left is Jorge Mesa-Tejada being interviewed by me, Tom Flaherty is at his laptop talking to a couple of passerbys.  I got there real early and kinda" commandered this spot as being best suited for our special edition of GrokTALK! all day long – mixer, cameras, mics, et al – and we thank Mike Rodgers for the comms gear and expertise to keep us up pretty much all day long (no Wifi).

And Alan "The Camera" Glassman took this and the two after the jump:

I’m yakking with Steve as Phyllis Woods, RNC Committeewoman from NH, stops by to say hello (and yes, we did talk with her as well).

Many thanks, sirs!

Oh yeah – many people thought this was amusing as I wore it all day long:

I am not the second coming of Ryan Williams

(in reference to the rumor that I was going to be the next Comm Dir of the NH GOP – Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!)

 

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Rebuttal to a Letter to the Editor – civil society?

In one of the local papers was this Letter to the Editor:  Editor, The Citizen: Just another thought on current events both locally and nationally: Why is gun ownership necessary to live in a civilized society? Dianna BabcockSandwich My response was this: I will answer Ms. Babcock’s question of 1/22: Why is gun ownership necessary … Read more

The Great NH blogger weight loss (v 2) challenge – week 3

OK, it’s not Monday but Chan was a tad preoccupied with a more serious matter yesterday than fooling around with a graphic that shows that we two are in Michelle Obama’s crosshairs.  But, we are making a bit of progress and it was good to see I’ve jumped onto the wagon again.  Next week, hopefully will be down into the next "5 lb bucket" (after all, I may not be able to lose 30 lbs but I can certainly do 5!).

 

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More on the SOTUS tonite

While you are playing cards, courtesy of Steve, Boortz has a few things for you to consider:

Here is just part of the reality of Barack Obama as he prepares for the SOTU tonight.

  • He still dislikes the free markets and private enterprise
  • He still believes that the economy should be planned by a central government
  • He still believes that our nation is no more exceptional that, as he has said, Greece.
  • He still harbors an intense resentment toward America for what he believes to be it’s role in the colonization of Africa.
  • He still believes that America’s greatness comes from government, not from free people living and producing together under the protection of the Constitution.
  • He still believes that the Constitution is an inconvenient document
  • He is still a man who spent his childhood years being raised in cultures where American history was not part of the learning experience, or a footnote at best.
  • He still believes that the tax code should be used to seize one person’s property to give to another out of a sense of "fairness."
  • And … perhaps most importantly … Barack Obama is still a man who believes it is his mission to "Radically Transform The United States of America."
  • He is still, therefore, a radical. 

Obama’s poll numbers were getting crushed before Nov. 2 but are rising right now.  Ask yourself:

  • Is that due to the latest pronouncement from Obama and the rhetoric he has been using?
  • Has he changed his philosophical underpinnings that much solely for political reasons i.e., getting re-elected)?
  • Do you believe he means what he says (concentrating on jobs now) or is it more saying what he thinks you will believe (hopey changey)?
  • Or is it because simply because the Firewall (Republican tsunami on Nov 2) that are giving people a sense of relief?

In his speech tonite,  does it sound like:

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Yeah, Buckles should be talking about “offensive remarks”

Oh, Harrell, we feel SO left out – how come you won’t send us your Pressers!  Well, if you are that discriminatory, we’ll rely on our friends over at NH Insider to help us out!  Remember, we just PINE for New Hampshire Democrat Chair (and Political-Correctness-in-Chief) Ray "Hitler should have bombed it / The Gold Star Mom is lying" Buckley’s pronouncement on Jack Kimball being elected as his equivalent on the GOP side:

Concord – New Hampshire Democratic Party Chair Ray Buckley issued the following statement on Jack Kimball’s election as the New Hampshire Republican Party Chair.

"Jack Kimball’s election as Chair completes the radical right wing take over of the Republican Party in the Granite State.  Never before has the chair of either the Republican or Democratic Party in the Granite State proposed a litmus test for candidates.  We Granite Staters are by nature fiercely independent people. Either political party forcing everyone of their candidates to have the exact same set of beliefs is directly at odds with that independence.

"In addition, Jack Kimball has a history of making offensive statements. Less than a year ago, as a candidate for Governor, he compared paying taxes to violent sexual assault.  That kind of rhetoric has no place in New Hampshire or in civil political discourse anywhere.

"Be it the election of Jack Kimball, or the reckless and out of touch behavior of Republican legislators thus far, it is clear that the New Hampshire GOP is embracing the fringe of their party."?

So nice of you to be so welcoming, Ray!  Inclusive to boot – trying the snark right from the get go.  Boy, I CANNOT wait to see you go head to head – POPCORN time!  

BTW, Ray?  Nothing says "fringe" any better than when the voters take your Party from being the majority, sitting at the levers of power, to that of being in the position of having to plead "Please sir, may I have some more?".  If the Democrats had been in the mainstream of what the voters wanted, more of their seats would still be in those seats, eh Ray?

And Ray, that wimpy attempt of playing the Political Correctness card ain’t cutting it any more – we have promised that we will make you the hypocrite each and every time you clowns try that stunt.  Only when we see a Presser scattered loud and proud in the press and on your web site abjectly stating your sorrow in calling for the deaths of the people of the Hague back in WW II, then perhaps we’ll start believing your contriteness.  Until then, your words are nothing more than mere political wailing in a canyon so you can hear your own echo.

Litmus test, Ray?  Are you REALLY sure you wanna go there?  Your whole Party seems to be a litmus test of political correctness behavior and stances.  After all, aren’t we here at the ‘Grok simply "Haters" because we differ from you ideologically and have the temerity to disagree with you?  Especially on the gay agenda?  

Ponder this:

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More on “it’s not mine to give”

More on the meme – is the use of property taxes really charity? (earlier here and here). From the Laconia Citizen, 1/14:  Rebuttal to Laura DiFonzo

By all means, all of the charities (which you call service organizations) you list do good work; no one on the Gilford Selectboard or Budget Committee have stated otherwise. What they have said, if I maybe so bold (as I am an elected Budget Committee member but do not speak for the Committee here), is that it is rightfully up to the citizens of Gilford to make that  decision, via the ballot box, whether or not to use their tax money AND that of their neighbors’ to support them. 

Personally, I am against the practice of sending tax monies and plan on voting no on these warrant articles.  Why?  I do not have the hubris to demand that my neighbor, or my fellow citizens in Gilford, to be forced to support any given charity no matter how good the intention even if I believe they should. At that point, it is no longer charity – it is forced giving.  Charity is an act of individual kindness and responsibility; using tax monies is neither. Someone is declaring their disrespect for the property of others (i.e., their money) when they advocate someone else’s money should be used for a purpose that they might not otherwise support.  

It should be up to the individuals of the town to make their own decisions whether or not to reach into their own wallets and no one else’s.  Ms. DiFonzo asks the question of "what is a NH Citizen to do?" The answer is exactly what she is doing – as a United Way volunteer who works diligently to persuade individuals to be charitable and part with their money for her cause, she asks individuals as it should be.

Is she now advocating that people should no longer have a choice in how their money is to be spent?  Does she believe that politicians should now be in charge of who receives charity – and who doesn’t?  And by her Letter, is she signifying that all should be forced to give to those she supports?

In my estimation, these charities have lost their way and have become too professionalized as well as too dependent upon government monies.  Perhaps, as the United Way does, they should return to the roots of charitable contributions – seeking funding from the actual public instead of from the individual town Public Treasuries.

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Prez 2012 – Tim Pawlenty’s new video

Well, the ‘Grok was there last nite as Tim Pawlenty spoke at the Merrimack County Republican Committee meeting last night, but the technical gremlins decided to come home to roost.  So, consider this a stand in – this video was presented for the first time last night: Note: I have received a copy of his … Read more

Notes on the Nutty Professor’s lecture.

Ah yes, the Nutty Professor (aka Leo Sandy of Plymouth State University) penned a column that just called for a bit of commentary.  Although we have commented on him before, be sure that he is a very left-wing person who would have no problem in confiscating other peoples’ property for fairness and believes that we, as a nation, should renounce our sovereignty to the United Nations.

Professor Sandy has given us a column that perfectly shows the condescending and patronizing attitude that Progressives have toward most of the general public.  

Instead of reinforcing his phrase "must accept the person as he or she is" and thereby acknowledging that the vast majority of the public are grown adults, he clearly elucidates and provides the perfect example of one of the Pillars of Progressivism – we, the elite, must "progress" the rest of society  to a higher plane of being – we must undertake to "perfect you" – and then continues his column as if we are mere children under his tutelage.

He uses the horrible tragedy in Tuscon of a seemingly deranged person to subsume the notion of personal responsibility and free will to that of the Progressive ideal: it is the sense of a Collective responsibility & salvation, an entire society, that drives an individual to actions resulting in bad outcomes.  The lesson he attempts to  teach is that if only the rest of us were as self-actualized as he, society would be a wonderful utopia (but not until we all think like him).

What about his acceptance of who we are, sir, for it is clear that he will not.  The majority of his words were spent in lecturing us on civility and the marketing of another Pillar of Progressivism – that of technocrats guiding the rest of society via a "scientific society" as  his lecture of Maslov’s principles of psychology pointedly outlines. Then and only then, will we all live in efficiency, harmony and kumbaya-ness.

Hmmm, I do seem to remember a Letter from him just before the Nov. 2 election that pretty much made Republicans and Conservatives out to be the spawn of Satan and the second coming of Attila and his Horde.  Acceptance of “the other”, Leo?

Perhaps before we allow the Progressives to “perfect we children” to his level of conformance of political correctness and behavior (where much of it demands we give up our individual selves to the collective), may I suggest that he spend a few moments contemplating the three words: mote, beam, eye.

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Live blogging: SOTUS thoughts

 Update: Incoming from Rep. Frank Guinta’s office, if you are so inclined:

 Representative Frank Guinta will be interviewed live on the C-Span cable TV network’s “Washington Journal” program about his reaction to President Obama’s State of the Union address.  He will be interviewed by host Greta Brawner, and viewers around the country can call in their questions.

WHO:     Representative Frank Guinta (R, NH-01)      

WHAT:   Live interview on his reaction to State of the Union speech      

WHEN:   Wednesday, January 26,  9:10-9:30 a.m.       

WHERE: C-Span’s “Washington Journal” cable TV program

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

Thoughts on SOTUS (oldest first):

  • Empty seat – for Gabby Giffords – totally appropriate.
  • Robust debate?  Gee, didn’t he stifle a debate with the Republicans with a quick phrase "I Won"?
  • Common beliefs?  Not all that sure of that…
  • "Work together tomorrow" – consiliatory or a challenge?
  • Shared Responsibility – gee, does that mean he’s going to make a "shared sacrifice"
  • No sir, the stakes ARE in who wins the next election.
  • Progress – small biz guy growing his biz?  Such irony as they cut to Soldis, Sec. of Labor.  Reminder – the NLRB is cracking down on small biz that doesn’t want to unionize.
  • TMEW – Why is Biden’s mouth corners downturned?  Is he always mad?  Me – looks an awful lot like  Jeff Dunham (the ventriloquest) dummy – Walter
  • Oh, here we go with the "invest" word….
  • International competition – no, it is not the international competition that is scaring biz; it is their government and the unknown that it brings.
  • The future is ours to win.
  • Uh-oh; a fault of the free enterprise system that govt HAS to spend for.  Internet, chips, space – doesn’t he realize that those were related not to the private market but to defense (a proper role of govt)?
  • Invest in biotech, IT, clean energy – here we go with the Govt-centric economy…  
  • Yeah, solar shingles – but what happens when the subsidies run out – I saw this ALL back in the 80s when I tried to get that stuff fixed after the companies went under when the govt $$ stopped.
  • 1,000,000 electric cars by 2015?  Is he insane?  Has he looked at the latest sales figures?  Crap – he’s going to tax the oil companies.

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Live Blogging: Merrimack County Republican Committee

Am at the Grappone Center in Concord, NH where Tim Pawlenty will be speaking.   Hopefully, will also get a chance to talk with him afterward.  As always, follow us on Facebook (LIKE us, please!) or Twitter.

NH GOP Annual Meeting – Intro Speeches

OK, let’s face it – when ever a bunch of political folks gather, people are going to give speeches (even those that aren’t running at that particular moment).  The NH GOP Annual meeting was no exception.  This year, NH State Senator Jeb Bradley, newly minted NH Speaker Bill O’Brien, newly minted Congressman Frank Guinta, and … Read more

NH GOP Annual Meeting – Micro-interview with Leigh MacNeil

Leigh MacNeil, Merrimac GOP Chair, sat down with GraniteGrok at the end of the NH GOP Annual Meeting to dicusss the day’s happenings with Jack Kimball being elected the new NH GOP Chair, possible future scenarios, and the upcoming event with Tim Pawlenty on Monday night at the Grappone Center in Concord, NH  

“Bold & Brash” loses to “Send me reinforcements!”

A tale of two tales – "Bold & Brash" was the phrase that Gov. Sununu tried to use to characterize Jack Kimball as being unfit to be his replacement.  "Send me reinforcements" was the battle cry of NH Speaker of the House Bill O’Brien (who also noted that Jack is the guy that the NH Democrats fear most) gave in nominating Jack to the next Chair of the NH GOP.

  

  

On the left is Gov. Sununu’s last Chairman’s speech.  While he did review the immediate past good results, he spent the majority of the time speaking to the future in that the minutiea is of the prime importance and needs to be managed, that the "watch is now ticking well".

Unfortunately, that "future speak" very much also included his determination to determine the outcome of that that day’s upcoming election to replace him.  Several times, it was evident that he was disparaging the Liberty & Freedom candidate, Jack Kimball, by using the phrase "Bold & Brash" and by the "below the surface" political slur" meme that Prez candidates might not be welcome in NH due to a litmus test (picked up from NH Journal in a political questionaire that was then used against Jack).

On the right is NH Speaker of the House Bill O’Brien’s nominating speech for Jack.  The obvious comparison almost does not need mentioning (but hey, why not?): where Sununu’s could be construed as "anti-Jack", O’Brien completely avoided the negatives of either candidate and was a rousing "Pro-Jack" stemwinder.  He realizes that we are still in a war against the Democrats and they will try anything to regain power.  Bill knows Jack, knows his stances, and agrees with the political philosophy.  He realizes that in this time to come with attacks on the way, the NH GOP needs a person on the parapets willing to take on all comers and defend the Party as the "face of" the Party.

The Sununu’s contention was that…

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NH GOP Annual Meeting – Gov Sununu announcing the New NH GOP Chair: Jack Kimball!

Yesterday was the 2011 Annual Meeting of the NH GOP Party where several internal Party positions were up for grabs including the Chairman’s position (Sununu was retiring).  Here is the announcement:

And yes, the entire auditorium EXPLODED in cheers – I apologize for the quality of the video as I also got caught up in the moment…

We’ll leave this one up on top for a bit…

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