Make no mistake about it, their goal is your wallet!

During the radio program this past Saturday, Skip and I discussed the "anti-tax pledge" warrant article that found its way onto 89 town warrants this year throughout the Granite State (including the ‘Grok’s hometown) with Jane Aitken of the CNHT. In a February 14th posting at NH Insider, Jane sounded the alarm: Once again it is that … Read more

Students For Concealed-Carry on Campus

Go ahead. Make my day! As I ponder the most recent school campus slaughter, once again I come up with the same conclusion: The only defense against some random nut crashing into a classroom with guns blazing is to have somebody in the room packing heat and trained to shoot back. Sure, there might be … Read more

Charles Barkley Unloads on Christians. Wow!

You’d think this guy would be on his knees every day thanking God for the many blessings he has been given. Man– kill the babies and marry the gays. Who knew? (The download buffer is a little slow- hit the “pause” icon after you start & wait a minute or so before restarting) fake christiansby … Read more

Dude, too many cups of coffee?

This guy needs to lighten up a little– perhaps he ought to switch to plain donuts and caffeine-free coffee… In the age of video in the hands of ordinary people everywhere, perhaps stuff like this will become less frequent. I find the cop "dude’s" statement at the end about hoping the video doesn’t wind up all over the Internet … Read more

Besides the fact we have no sales or income tax, here is another reason New Hampshire is so awesome:

It’s natural beauty co-existing in concert with her people. When one rides into the hills and mountains of central and northern New Hampshire by snowmobile, the views unhampered by leaves on the trees are simply amazing– on par with anywhere else in the US…
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snowmobiling NH
Somewhere near either East Hebron or Bridgewater,  NH
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Newfound Lake
Looking West at Newfound Lake

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“Live Free or Die” state or the nanny state? Sometimes it’s hard to tell.

John Sark..nanny
          John Stark: Live Free or Die!         NH Dems & RINO Republicans: We’re all gonna die!
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Every once and a while, you’ll hear somebody say that some particular movement or other to ban something somewhere in America "would never fly here in the Live Free or Die State." I’m almost positive one of the newsreaders on WMUR stated just that earlier this week in commenting on the story of lawmakers in Mississippi putting forth a bill banning obese people from restaurants in that state. And of course, when you learn the details, you can’t help but agree. "It could never happen here!" Check out the language in the Mississippi bill, as provided by a USA Today story:
House Bill No. 282, which was introduced this month, says: Any food establishment to which this section applies shall not be allowed to serve food to any person who is obese, based on criteria prescribed by the State Department of Health after consultation with the Mississippi Council on Obesity Prevention and Management established under Section 41-101-1 or its successor. The State Department of Health shall prepare written materials that describe and explain the criteria for determining whether a person is obese, and shall provide those materials to all food establishments to which this section applies. A food establishment shall be entitled to rely on the criteria for obesity in those written materials when determining whether or not it is allowed to serve food to any person.
The penalty? Again from USA Today:
The proposal would allow health inspectors to yank the permit from any restaurant that "repeatedly" feeds extremely overweight customers.
"Yeah, but Doug, the wags are right. That wouldn’t fly here in NH!" Really? Are you sure about that? What about when we consider the rise of walk-in medical care centers across America? While it’s not throwing fat people out of restaurants, NH isn’t exactly ready to welcome the latest innovation in personal health into our state without the state regulators’ stamp of approval, either. While you might think that opening a business in the "Live Free or Die" state would be easy, think again…

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Economic Facts and Fallacies. If only more people knew this stuff…

. Our buddy John Hawkins at RightWingNews interviewed Thomas Sowell late last week. Discussing his latest book, Economic Facts and Fallacies, Sowell offered a few tidbits showing why he has few peers when it comes to the subject: what we’re really saying is that there are lifestyle differences that have profound effects on economic outcomes. So, … Read more

From the little acorn… The growing Democratic scandal

. …. . Today’s New Hampshire Union Leader has three interesting stories that reveal the start of the public exposure of the NH Democrats’ emerging scandal surrounding the sale of taxpayer-prepared statewide voter lists. (Item #5 of NHGOP Chair Cullen’s top ten reasons things are looking up for Granite State Republicans) As it turns out, the unfolding story … Read more

NH’s “long march”

The new New Hampshire… . This letter appeared in Saturday’s Citizen newspaper (Laconia, NH). It needs litttle comment: Editor, The Citizen: . I am writing to congratulate all the people who worked so hard to pass the Civil Union legislation in New Hampshire. I especially want to thank our Sanbornton Representative, Gail Morrison. I cannot … Read more

Fix Sgambati’s Abortion Bill

Sen. Kathy Sgambati’s as drafted an “abortion notification bill,” as Tom Fahey of the Union Leader describes it in his State House Dome column.  Fahey writes:

The state has had no parental notification law on abortions for minors since the Legislature repealed its flawed statute last year.
A new abortion notification bill would require a girl to talk with a guidance counselor or a health professional before obtaining an abortion. Parental involvement is preferred, but optional.
The bill, SB 527, sets a goal of "objective and comprehensive counseling to all minors who are seeking an abortion."
The bill by Democratic Sen. Kathy Sgambati requires a counselor to discuss "the possibility of involving the minor’s parents." But it adds "there are circumstances where the health and safety of a minor would be endangered by mandating parental involvement."

It requires girls to get information about carrying a pregnancy to full term and adoption. The bill is not yet scheduled for a hearing.

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Ooh baby… Give me some STIMULUS! Yes… Yes… Huh? That’s it?

Stimulus Package
One shot deal?
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I’m sorry, but I’m havin’ a bit of trouble getting overly excited by the "stimulus" package being offered up by President Bush and his spend-happy pals on Capitol Hill. And of course, it’s bad enough as it is, but, as usual, there are some in the Senate that want to add even more scabs to the package…
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Don’t get me wrong–  as a small business owner, I appreciate the tax cuts offered should I decide to purchase some new equipment. And I do like the drop in the rate on the first 6/12K of income. It would be nice to see this accompanied by a meaningful and much deeper cut in the overall rates. Because I employ people, I see how much money is taken from everybody’s paychecks, plus from my business as a whole in addition to what they pay. A once time payment, as also included in the package is great, but for most people, in an instant, it will be gone.

"How’s your ‘stimulus’ doin’, Frank?" 

"Not bad, Doug. I paid for a tank of heating oil, and the wife bought some new clothes."

We know where THAT stimulus ended up, don’t we?
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Dragon Soup: Front page of USA Today reports: 75% of Baghdad Secure

Colonel Ricky Gibbs, commander of the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division
Colonel Ricky Gibbs, commander of the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, talks to Iraqi children in the Masafee neighborhood of East Rashid, Baghdad during a recent visit there. (U.S. Army photo by Maj. Kirk Luedeke, 4IBCT Public Affairs)

 
Kudos to USA Today reporter Jim Michaels, whose front page story in the Jan. 18-20 edition of the paper reports that 75% of Baghdad’s neighborhoods are secure as opposed to just 8% exactly one year earlier.
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This is an important story because it quantifies the progress that has been gaining momentum in mainstream media reporting since General David Petraeus issued his Iraq War progress report to the House and Senate back in September.
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My boss, Colonel Ricky Gibbs, commander of the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division stationed here in Southern Baghdad, was interviewed for the story and I sat in on the telephonic interview he conducted with Michaels. Here are some points that didn’t make the final cut in the story, but provide further context for Michaels’ fair and accurate reporting:

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Not a dime’s worth of difference? I don’t think so. It’s the socialism, stupid!

Heil Hillary
Towards national socialism?
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feel good slogans
Intoxicating cliches?
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Having listened to many of the presidential wannabees of both political parties as they crisscrossed the Granite State in the leadup to the primary, I can assure readers that the difference between ALL the candidates is vast. To a man (and woman), the Democrats advocate a rapid expansion of the nanny state while the top Republicans definitely bring free market principles to the fore. Of course when you strip the specifics away, what it comes down to is the American free market system versus one of socialism.
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While policy wonks and wags of all stripes can debate the relative strengths and weaknesses of the various candidates as to whether they’re not conservative enough, upon listening to them, there is no doubt where the Republicans stand and where the Democrats weigh in. 
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"But Doug, SOCIALISM– please! That sounds so, you know, harsh. Aren’t we all Americans? Can’t we all just get along? Why must you use such labels? It’s almost downright insulting!" Of course, I disagree with that sentiment. I believe in open, forthright debate, and I like labels. 
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When it comes to the discussion about socialism and its basic tenets, you’ll no doubt agree that one of the main buzzwords bandied about by many Democrats at all levels of politics is the lovely sounding term "social justice." One of the best definitions I’ve come across is found in my signed copy of Balint Vazsonyi’s book, America’s Thirty Years War: Who is Winning? In the chapter entitled "Social Justice" he writes
The quotation marks in the title are used most advisedly. The words themselves are among the most successful deceptions ever conceived. Ask a variety of people to define what "social justice" means, specifically, and you will get as many answers as people queried. Ask the same person at different times and you will get different responses. All "definitions" of social justice boil down to any of the following:

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MAKING MONEY??!! In the Cradle of Liberty? Whaddayuhnuts?

… . . When we debate the health care "crisis" we tend to miss what the real battle involves. To me it’s clear: we are caught in a tug-of-war between our free market (capitalist) system and socialism. The private sector in which people "profit"– which is then split between the earner keeping the fruits of … Read more

Attention WalMart Shoppers: The Doctor is IN.

Redi Clinic
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In prior postings on the subject, I noted that the delivery of health care services in my local region is controlled in total by a single monopoly. I wrote
…the local "non profit" health-delivery institution is, for all intents and purposes, a monopoly. Through the years, they have worked all the machinations of government regulations to stifle any and all competition that has attempted to make its mark in the area. They have now either driven from business or purchased any effectively competing health-care delivery service that would bring any alternative choices to the area. With no market forces working against the costs, they rise exponentially.
When a person has catastrophic insurance to cover "the big stuff", it’s "pay as you go" for the sore throats and other various "minor" medical needs– coming straight from the wallet. That describes many people I know. Dittoes for those with huge deductibles on their insurance policies. When paying out of pocket, it goes without saying that whatever is saved for the health care service is money left for food and other life needs.
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No one will deny that when Wal Mart showed up on the scene, people were able to spend less money for life’s necessities like toilet paper and food storage containers. This left more to spend on other things, thus increasing the standard of living for consumers of all stripes. Wouldn’t it be good if, instead of being left at the mercy of a monopolistic system with no incentive to control costs to the consumer, somebody like a Wal Mart could offer low-cost alternatives for some of the more mundane medical matters of life?
Guess what? The time is now. Ever hear of something call RediClinic? If you haven’t, you will, I hope. Check this out, from the RediClinic website:

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Romney Advisor Tom Rath Busts a Move

One of these days, EVERYBODY will get the memo about the new world in which we now live. Could Republican "stalwart" Tom Rath look more out of place?   . . Good God, man! Have you no shame? . Could it be, thanks to the New Media, we will finally be rid of dinosaurs like this, … Read more

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