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GraniteGrok

GrokTV Event: GSPLPAC presents Rosa Koire on Agenda 21 – Parts 6 and 7

I’ll tell you, the more I hear about the subject, the thoughts of “are you serious”?  Yet, when I look at the example in Portland, Oregon where “sustainable development” is the end-all-be-all of urban planning, I start to think “mmmm, maybe there is something to this” (here, here, here, and here).  Skyrocketing housing costs have … Read more

Book Review – Rebuild the Dream by Van Jones – Part 1: Lie 1

Rebuild The Dream by Van JonesAs I posted here, I purchased a copy of Van Jones’ new book and had it signed by Van himself.  Unfortunately, I didn’t have a shot to start reading it.  Until today.

There’s been a lot of stuff going on, both in my blogging life as well as in the life outside of the laptop (little as it might be) and I just needed to switch gears for a bit.  So, I started to read some of the books that have been sitting on the shelf for a while – and realized how much I’ve missed holding a book in my hands!  So I as said earlier, it was time to read this book by one of the biggest cheerleaders for a “government centered life” for us all – and basically, someone who has no problem in slagging folks like TEA Partier me.  After all, I’m not someone who studied Marx as a political way to follow and have little truck with Communitarianism – a word that you’ll be seeing more often here on the ‘Grok.  Essentially, the emphasis is on “the community” and while the Wiki definition makes it seem benign, read the section on Positive Rights:

Central to the communitarian philosophy is the concept of positive rights, which are rights or guarantees to certain things. These may include state subsidized education, state subsidized housing, a safe and clean environment, universal health care, and even the right to a job with the concomitant obligation of the government or individuals to provide one. To this end, communitarians generally support social security programs, public works programs, and laws limiting such things as pollution.

A common objection is that by providing such rights, communitarians violate the negative rights of the citizens; rights to not have something done for you. For example, taxation to pay for such programs as described above dispossesses individuals of property. Proponents of positive rights, by attributing the protection of negative rights to the society rather than the government, respond that individuals would not have any rights in the absence of societies—a central tenet of communitarianism—and thus have a personal responsibility to give something back to it.

I digress in a small part -but make no mistake in that in many cases, the emphasis is always that the individual Rights must be subsumed to the need of the Collective.  With these watermelon environmentalists, there will be more and more emphasis that we need to give up stuff and Rights “for the common good” – at and by their command.  The problem is that ” the needs for the Common Good”, just like the vaunted “social contract” that Leftists accuse Conservatives of violating, there is never a sheet of paper that lay out what the “Common Good”‘s needs are, or the boundaries vis-a-vis our Individual rights.  All there is seems to be a never ending, vaporous commentary of “we more, you less”.  How do you defend yourself against what is basically vaporware?  (er, easy: start asking them the hard questions of “what?”, starting writing them down, and don’t take “no” when they say “er, later – we have to go over this other stuff” or “I’ll get back to you”.

Thus, this fits in both with Van Jones as an environmentalist and with the Granite State Future Plan / Sustainable Communities Initiative posts I’ve been putting up lately. So, back to the review – I haven’t even made it to Chapter 1 yet – the Prologue is 35 pages long.  In it, two things struck me:

  • He shoulda listen harder to his Dad; he comes around to believe him but missed the most important point
  • He lies

About what?  “Of course, President Obma had no intention of closing America’s coal mines.” (page xxvii).  Just one big lie through that nice big smile he has!

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GrokTV Event: GSPLPAC presents Rosa Koire on Agenda 21 – Parts 3, 4, and 5

Rosa Koire continued to talk this past Tuesday night about how the UN Agenda 21 program has made its way into the Federal bureaucracy and what it means for New Hampshire citizens, their private property, and the traditional NH town life.  She outlined how representatives from the EPA, DOT, and HUD are out to change … Read more

I just couldn’t stop coming back to this headline:

Over at Fox:

Supreme Court upholds ObamaCare and Americans have lost the right to be left alone

Regardless of what I wrote here concerning the Commerce Clause (it is now longer unlimited) and that Federalism has been strengthened (roping in Federal coercion of the States by  ransoming monies that came from the States in exchange for meeting certain mandates), the above hit home – hard.  When I heard that inactivity cannot be regulated via the Commerce Clause, I went YES!  When I heard no more coercion by the Feds, I went YES!  And then what Roberts said about taxation and individual choice, my heart dropped.  The headline had it right – they just won’t leave me alone.

One of my regular Internet Doodlings come from TreeHugger.  It’s a great site for a Conservative to visit (as loyal ‘Grok commenter C. dog e. dog now frequents those haunts, howling at the entrenched denizens, has learned).  They now combine an absolute faith that there is a future of  “no future” for any of us unless their Green vision is realized in how we all should live in their Utopia of a pre-modern civilization / Gaia dystopia of a low energy world (and a low level of life to boot).  There is that loud stream of “all in for one vision” and we all should have no choice in it. “You cannot live your life your way because if we let you, the planet will die.”  Thus, they will do and support anything that will force the rest of us to change our behavior – for them, keeping the planet alive trumps the Rights and philosophy of the Constitution.  They will not stop until we live the way they want and as you have seen with some of my recent posts (here and here), they are on the march to make that happen, forcibly if necessary.

From the political side, Obama and his fellow Progressives are also convinced they can create a Utopia here on Earth – and as Obama has said:

“my individual salvation is not going to come about without a collective salvation for the country.”

Translation:

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Former Obama Appointee that wanted to crucify energy companies, expectedly turns up at Sierra Club (who wishes to do the same)

A while ago, Al Armendariz (an Obama recruit / appointee), a high level EPA district administrator for the oil areas of the South and Southwest regions got caught in a 2010 video admitting that his style of environmental overwatch was akin to the Roman soldiers (video after the jump) (emphasis mine):

“But as I said, oil and gas is an enforcement priority, it’s one of seven, so we are going to spend a fair amount of time looking at oil and gas production. And I gave, I was in a meeting once and I gave an analogy to my staff about my philosophy of enforcement, and I think it was probably a little crude and maybe not appropriate for the meeting but I’ll go ahead and tell you what I said. It was kind of like how the Romans used to conquer little villages in the Mediterranean. They’d go into a little Turkish town somewhere, they’d find the first five guys they saw and they would crucify them. And then you know that town was really easy to manage for the next few years. And so you make examples out of people who are in this case not compliant with the law. Find people who are not compliant with the law, and you hit them as hard as you can and you make examples out of them, and there is a deterrent effect there. And, companies that are smart see that, they don’t want to play that game, and they decide at that point that it’s time to clean up. And, that won’t happen unless you have somebody out there making examples of people. So you go out, you look at an industry, you find people violating the law, you go aggressively after them. And we do have some pretty effective enforcement tools. Compliance can get very high, very, very quickly. That’s what these companies respond to is both their public image but also financial pressure. So you put some financial pressure on a company, you get other people in that industry to clean up very quickly. So, that’s our general philosophy.”

Of course, the whitewash machinery went to to work right away to disavow his actions and words and to make him out to be an outlier and not typical of the outlook of the EPA itself.

Yeah, like anybody believed that – and with this news as to where he landed after he resigned (just before he was to go before a Congressional hearing), does anyone believe that the Obama Administration WASN’T out to get the oil companies (disbelieve me?  See after the jump for a reminder)?  The Hill reports:

A former Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) official who resigned earlier this year for comparing his work to crucifixion has found new employment with a leading green group.

The Sierra Club on Friday announced that Al Armendariz would be joining the group’s “Beyond Coal” campaign next month as a senior representative:

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A new name for Obamacare? And other Obamacare random thoughts

A little thing, perhaps, but this caught my eye over at Betsy’s Page:

Now that Obamacare has become Obamatax…

After all, the Supremes (a la Chief Justice Roberts made it so) have made it simply a taxing offense (“According to the CBO, the Obamatax may amount to $1.7 trillion over a decade.”)…

*******

A friend of mine asked:

Now that Obamacare has been ruled valid, are Republicans ready for Tenth Amendment solutions like the Health Care Compact?

My response :

Wrong first question.

First Question: are Republicans willing to man up sufficiently to grow TWO pair each first???

*******

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GrokTV Event: GSPLPAC presents Rosa Koire on Agenda 21 – Parts 1 & 2

Behind The Green Mask: UN Agenda 21

Tuesday night, the Granite State Patriot Liberty PAC presented Rosa Koire, author of the book “BEHIND THE GREEN MASK: U.N. Agenda 21” – The Agenda for the 21st Century Sustainable Development.

She spent two hours talking about how zoning laws have been targeted by those wishing implement mandatory high density housing, the community data compiled by local towns and cities that would be used against them in attempts to “provide justice against institutionalized racism”, the attacks on personal property by calls to move to a commutarian philosophy (where the “common good” outweighs any Rights of the individual), and a forced move from personal cars to an all public transportation model.  Governance would go from elected and accountable officials to an unaccountable and unelected bureaucratic regionalism model.

Here is Part 1:

Part 2 after the jump:

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Holder in Contempt

Eric Holder held in contempt The other ‘big’ story from yesterday was the House vote to hold Attorney General Eric “Guns” Holder in contempt of the House.  He was and is in contempt.

The left, lead by Nancy Pelosi, continued to spin it as a partisan political stunt, though coming from her that means nothing.  Democrats are committed to making everything “political” so that they can control it with legislation, or use it to construct narratives, or rhetoric.  And under no circumstances should they step aside in the face of corruption or incompetence–how could they that is how they govern.

So we get to play this game where Democrats lie and hope it all just goes away.

But the facts are not in dispute.

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GrokTV Event: Brookfield Planning Board – presentation on “Sustainable Communities Initiative” – Part 2

Ken Eyring continues and finishes his presentation of some of the paperwork that just never seems to stop once a local community signs onto the “Granite State Future Plan” (the NH adaptation of the Federal program called “Sustainable Communities Initiative”  operated by a consortium of the Federal EPA, the Federal Dept. of Transportation, and the Federal Housing and Urban Development).

Sidenote: viewed from one angle, that last department’s name is indicative of the goal – to fundamentally transform how Americans will be allowed to live by creating “urban development” villages with high density housing and just public transit: not just bringing the city to rural areas but making rural communities into “micro-cities” where everyone is forced to live together instead of the types of town NH has historically had).

Some main points, overall:

  • The endpoint has already been established
  • Local control will be a thing of the past
  • Why is taxpayer money being used against taxpayers best interest?
  • Those presenting “the plan” are not being honest – they are not upfront about what towns are about to get themselves into and not honest about the techniques being used to do so.

Part 3:

Part 4 (and last) after the jump:

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GrokTV Event: Brookfield Planning Board – presentation on “Sustainable Communities Initiative” – Part 3

Eileen Mashimo next addressed the Brookfield Planning Board and added some of the connections to some of the groups that are behind the scenes of this initiative, how the people and the groups all  interconnect, and the methods by which this “Granite State Future Plan” is being rammed through the process (it is rather manipulative).  All said and done, it is clear that those behind this do not have the standard model of democracy in mind, nor values that our Founders would agree with or give their blessing to them.

Part 1:

Part 2 is after the jump

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Quick Thought on the Supreme Decision on Obamacare

Updated Thought:  Roberts is getting a lot of grief for siding with the Liberal Supremes and finding that Obamacare was Constitutional under the taxing ability of Congress.  Putting aside the argument that the tax language originated in the Senate (instead of the House where Constitutionally it must originate), I’m mulling over the idea, given other commentary I’ve seen, has Roberts actually laid in a hidden ambush (albeit, long term) by creating a virtual dead-end canyon into which Lib Big Govt-ers are going to get led into?  I’m no lawyer, but are we seeing a “boxing in” strategy starting to appear – like a good military planner, willing to accept the short term (and perhaps, massive) losses in order to set the stage for an eventual judicial Originalist victory (with a wee bit of help from a helpful Congress)?  I can see the two sides but not the end of canyon – at least, not just yet.

**************

In addition to the philosophy that I am paid to work and not to blog, work is REAL busy today – and my boss keeps calling with new fires to put out.  But it is lunch time, and a couple of quick thoughts:

  • I am generally an optimist, but to be sure, at the first blush of the news, my heart sank as the immediate reaction is: Freedom is hanging by a thread – or less.  If NOTHING is done going forward, it will break.  The question still remains – how far can Government go in telling us how to live our lives legislatively?  Are we at that tipping point where we can be told to buy broccoli or be taxed if we don’t?  What is the definition of “limited Government” now?

But there ARE some good things here:

  • HUGE – Supremes finally put a stop to encroachment of Govt via the Commerce Clause. It sets the stage for a disavowal of Wickerd (that ’42 decision that denied a farmer the ability to grow his own wheat).   It also can be used to set the stage for killing off the mantra that the “General Welfare” phrase means “we can do anything we want to”.
  • The Medicaid clause has permanently killed part of the club that Congress has used for years to force States to do something against their own interest (leaving the discussion on 17th Amendment aside).  The ruling said that the Feds CANNOT cut off funds meant for the States for vastly expanding Medicaid (and then stop the funding later on but leaving the States on the hook)  if some of those States that refuse to participate in the expansion.  The Feds will have to fully fund those parts that the States now engage in – the club was to be that all the funding would be pulled.  This will have ramifications in years going forward

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Here’s the “Obamacare – I won’t raise your taxes” Tax over which Mr. Obama will send Mr. IRS to chat with you

“Under my plan, no one who makes less than $200,000, you will not see an increase in your taxes”

– President Obama

Here’s the financial penalty TAX box future that Mr. IRS will be showing you if you decide that buy healthcare insurance is not in your future.  You may try the latter but you certainly will be paying the former:

Obama Penalty Taxes

(H/T:  Patheos)

I will have to say that for a Party that is ALL about the Progressive Income Tax, this chart, created by them, shows how regressive and repressivethe Obamacare TAX is.   Those earning over $100,000 can afford the lawyer / account to help defend them if need be.  You think that the $30K wage earner can do the same? The penalty is $173.75 per month – for a lot of lower income folks, that’s a car payment.  No doubt about it – this tax will result in lower overall economic activity. And if that lower income bracket dude’s company decides it is cheaper for them to drop insurance altogether, the premium will be even more.

Let’s see – do I buy that new Obama Prius that’s been vetted by the EPA and the Fed D.O.T.?  Or do I make Mr. IRS go away by paying this new TAX?  What’s the economic good to me to have to just throw my money away in the latter case?

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GrokTV Event: Brookfield Planning Board – presentation on “Sustainable Communities Initiative” – Part 1

Monday night, the Brookfield, NH Planning Board heard a presentation by Ken Eyring and Eileen Mishimo on their research concerning the Federal Government pushing their Sustainable Communities Initiative (called Granite State Future Plan here in NH, a “massive entitlement / welfare program”).  Those that are pushing this agenda are doing so by making it seem innocuous in the beginning but based on the hundreds of hours of research that Ken and Eileen have done on primary documents, it results in a virtual takeover of local communities by land use and zoning changes and collected demographic studies that are then used in lawsuits when Federal “standards” are broached by local communities (i.e., how local towns give up their sovereignty via “Federal money with invisible strings attached” and “strumg up” by their own efforts to comply with ensnaring federal regulations and mandates).

Ken Eyring from the Southern NH 9.12 Project presented first in his slow, quiet, methodical manner (hey, he’s a software engineer – what else would you expect!).  Here are the first two segments:

Part 1:

Part 2 after the jump:

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really – “bipartisan financial support”?

There is a piece in the NY Times byCampell Brown calling out Planned Parenthood for being too ideologically pure when pummeling supporters that stray from “their line”. Gay rights supporters in New York offered an instructive lesson during last year’s battle for marriage equality. Gay marriage passed in New York because four Republican legislators crossed … Read more

A couple of things about Organizing For America / NH that has me scratching my head

Anybody wanna buy OFANH.ORG and OFANH.COM cheap?

 

This graphic was at the front page of the NH Democrat Party website.  As part of trying to find out if the NH Dems were going to be consistent with insisting that NH Supporters should not have to present ID to get into Obama’s Durham event, given that they do not support presenting IDs for voting.

A curious thing – I followed the Please contact your local OFA-NH Office here and there were a bunch of offices listed across the state.  Like this one for Concord:   

 

 

Well, I looked at the email address and saw the domain name: OFANH.COM.  I didn’t think much of it, but being the curious kind, I decided to go visit the site, OFANH.COM.

 

 

Heh!  Not even a re-direct for the “Forget about shooting straight, this is the Gang that can’t pick up the gun”?

Here’s what I found when I decided follow it out:

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