The latest from Sarah: US Troops Must be Second to None

Here's the latest from Sarah Palin on Facebook:

US Troops Must be Second to None

Can’t wait to meet our troops – and all those who love the U.S. Armed Forces – today at Ft. Bragg. Read my book’s dedication page. The book is for these Patriots who fight for freedom. They deserve our support and our government’s unwavering commitment to equipping them for victory.

The book tour is beyond all expectations. This feels like the time when a team comes together, gearing up before a major competition to show unity and supply strength and encouragement to each team member equally, regardless of the team member’s role or title.

On this tour I hear the grave concerns Americans have for our children’s future. I also feel the hope so many of you want to cling to – hope for those on Capitol Hill to see the light, hope for politicians to be humble enough to acknowledge that growing the federal government isn’t the answer to our economic challenges, hope that it won’t take another terrorist strike to wake us up to continued threats by those who hate America and our allies.

At every stop on this tour I see Americans coming together to say, “Enough. We love our country too much to just sit down and shut up while politicians take us for a ride. We shall be heard.”

We see a united team.

Now, I want to give you more hope: We are Americans. Anything is possible in America. Anyone can make a positive difference. You don’t need a title or a political position or a pedigree. We can take our country back from those who think growing national debt will grow prosperity for us, the little guys. We can take it back from those who think shrinking military power will make the homeland safer for us, the little guys.

We can take it back because we’re fired up, and we’re all about telling our government to listen to us, trust us, get back on our side… or politicians: you’re fired.

Plunging our country deeper and deeper in debt; borrowing billions from foreign countries; relying on foreign nations to supply us with energy; talking about sanctions against dangerous regimes but not following through; hesitating to surge aggressively to stop terrorist strongholds from growing; allowing government to take over health care, banks, the auto industry, and who knows what else they’ve got up their sleeves... it’s all too much and we’ve had enough.

Ronald Reagan knew it took a united team to right the wrongs of Washington. He told his team in essence, “Gentlemen and Ladies, I hate inflation; I hate taxes; I hate terrorists. Do something about it.”

America, you’re doing something about it! Thank you for standing up and speaking out. Thank you for holding on to hope, for loving America so passionately and supporting our troops who fight for freedom. Keep the faith!

- Sarah Palin

PS: Please continue to follow the tour’s progress by following me on Twitter atSarahPalinUSA. Enjoy the photos below!

There are pictures below the note of the book tour and also of Governor Palin's visit with Billy Graham at his home. By all means, take a look and enjoy.

Countdown to Judgment Day

That's what awaited my dad and I when we entered Lakeview Middle School in Warsaw for a major rally to kick off the 2010 election season.

The rally was held in the school's gym. I've read the number there was at 1,000 to 1,500, but frankly, I don't know. A lot of people, there were certainly were.

Peter Recchio of the Michiana 9/12 Project got the rally started. Scheduled to start at noon (about the time we arrived at the school), the rally began not long after. After a medley of patriotic songs were sung, we began hearing the keynote speakers. The big surprise of the rally was right after the singing when we saw a video featuring none other than Minnesota Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann wishing us the best.

Author Thomas Tabback kicked it off with a rousing speech. I had heard him speak before, and frankly, he does Texas proud.

Emery McClendon spoke next; his speech was as rousing as Mr. Tabback's. He started up the Fort Wayne Tea Party on April 18th (bringing in Alan Keyes to speak as well), and I first heard him speak on September 1st during the townhall meeting featuring our U.S. Senators (sorta).

Wes Robinson, a male nurse and candidate for State Representative in Indiana's 97th District, spoke of the time he spent in Alaska and in Burma, and how he never expected he would be here now.

Rev. C.L. Bryant from Shreveport, Louisiana was next to speak, and boy, just when I thought I had heard some rousing speeches, he gave the most rousing speech I had yet heard.

Peter Heck, a teacher, writer and radio host from Kokomo, was spot on in his speech. After the speakers had finished, we all had a short break as the stage was set for a candidates forum featuring the three men seeking the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate against Evan Bayh. Outside the gym, there were a number of booths, including booths with information about some of the 9/12 groups, the candidates for the Senate, a man named Phil Troyer (whose running for Congress against Congressman Souder in the primary), the FairTax, the NRA & Huck PAC.

Left to right: Josh Gillespie of Hoosier Access, who was the moderator; Don Bates, Jr., Richard Behney and State Senator Marlin Stutzman.

Mr. Bates, who has worked in the financial services industry for 14 years, began with his introductory remarks.

Mr. Behney, a licensed plumber who organized the Indianapolis Tea Party on April 15th, was next with his remarks.

Mr. Stutzman, a state legislator for six years, concluded the introductory remarks with his own.

Now, as you may have already known, I'm supporting Sen. Stutzman in this election, but I found all three spoke well and concluded any of them would make a good U.S. Senator. There were very few disagreements between the candidates (the 17th Amendment and term limits), but the disagreements themselves are not major.

One of the last questions asked of the candidates was about the FairTax, and all the candidates expressed support for the idea of a national sales tax.

At about 3:30 in the afternoon, the rally was over. I wished both Mr. Bates and Mr. Behney good luck with their campaigns, signed petitions to put both of them on the ballot (because they're willing to put their lives and careers on hold to run for the Senate, they deserve to have their names on the ballot), went over to the FairTax booth to get information and left. It was quite a day, indeed; the countdown to judgment day, November 2nd, 2010, has begun.

The latest from Sarah: In The Midnight Hour

Sarah Palin wrote last night in her latest Facebook note of the Senate voting to proceed with the monstrosity known as the Senate's new health care bill:

In the Midnight Hour

The Senate is set to vote Saturday night, right before the holiday, on a motion to proceed on its latest health care government take-over bill. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is pushing for yet another weekend vote (commonplace now for the party of “transparency”) because he knows that the American people will be none too happy about the Democrats’ proposal the longer they have to look it over.

A vote against the Democrats’ motion will help stop Obamacare before it gets any closer to becoming a reality. While this Saturday night vote might seem like a procedural matter, at the end of the day a vote against Senator Reid’s motion is a vote against massive new government spending and a take-over of 1/6th of the U.S. economy; it’s a vote against billions in tax increases and penalties; it’s a vote against federal funding of abortion; and it’s a vote against ignoring responsible tort reform.

And in case you hadn’t heard – just a reminder that you’ll start paying higher taxes to fund this scheme in 2010 even though it doesn’t start up until 2014. Only in Washington does that make any sense. Among the provisions in this bill will be a $2500 cap on Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs). The IRS allows families with special needs children to use FSAs to cover educational expenses. This new $2500 cap will hit these families especially hard and cost them hundreds of dollars in new taxes every year.

Contact your senators and tell them to vote against the motion to proceed tomorrow night. The American people don’t support this – we support the commonsense solutions that have been proposed, but totally ignored by (at this point) some out-of-control Washington politicians. Let’s put a stop to Obamacare before it goes any further.

- Sarah Palin

Rational Advice or Rationed Care?

Early yesterday morning, Governor Palin wrote on Facebook about a particular portion in the new Senate health care bill:

Cancer Screenings - Rational Advice or Rationed Care?

It was a breath of fresh air to finally hear the Democrats admit to their health care bill as “a lot of show and tell and razzmatazz,” (see Democrat talking points, in reference to my book). At least now we’re all on the same page when discussing the problems with their monstrous government health care “reform” plan.

Now, tonight, more disconcerting news – the New York Times reports of new guidelines to scale back cervical cancer screenings. The recommendation from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists comes on the heels of another recommendation to limit breast cancer screenings with mammograms. There are many questions unanswered for me, but one which immediately comes to mind is whether costs have anything to do with these recommendations. The current health care debate elicits great concern because of its introduction of socialized medicine in America and the inevitable rationed care. We need to carefully watch this debate as it coincides with Capitol Hill’s debate and determine whether we are witnessing the early stages of that rationed care before the Senate bill is rushed through as well.

Another question is why these women-focused cancers are seemingly receiving substandard attention at a time when proactive health and fitness should be the message. Every woman should encourage rigorous debate to ensure that our collective voices are heard. We are paying attention to Washington’s health care proposals, and we want to hear what helps patients the most.

We need answers: Is early screening not saving lives? Why do doctors’ groups disagree? Did costs play any role in these decisions to change the recommendations on breast and cervical cancer screenings? We need assurances that everything we’ve heard this week about fewer tests for women’s cancers is a result of patient-focused research and providing the best care for the right reasons, and not because of bureaucratic pressure to control costs.

Obviously the first thought that comes to mind when hearing of these new recommendations from bureaucratic panels is “rationed care.” It’s fair – and healthy – to ask if that’s what Washington has in mind with a government-controlled takeover of a health care system.

- Sarah Palin

The decreasing of screenings Governor Palin writes of would be the first step down the slippery slope to the hell that is government controlled health care. This alone is more than enough reason to oppose this monstrosity of a bill.

The Going Rogue tour so far

Today found Sarah Palin in Ohio and Pennsylvania as her book tour continues. She posted today on Facebook about the tour in Michigan and Indiana, which included appearing in Fort Wayne:

Going Rogue Tour!

The first three stops on the Going Rogue book tour have been exhilarating!

I am humbled by the outpouring of support and have so enjoyed meeting and hearing from such great Americans in Michigan and Indiana. Our next three stops will keep us in the Heartland, and we hope that you can make it to one of our events in Cincinnati or Columbus, Ohio; or Washington, Pennsylvania.

Enjoy the pictures and go rogue with us!

- Sarah Palin

As much as I wanted to be in Fort Wayne and have a copy of her book signed by Governor Palin, I was neither able to be there, nor has my copy arrived. She also wrote on Facebook this note:

Not Enough Hours in the Day

The response on this book tour has been overwhelming. We are truly humbled, and I thank you.

I've been told that yesterday there were supporters in Noblesville who stood in long lines for hours in the cold and rain, and the book signing event ended without a chance to say hello to everyone who showed up. I am so sorry. We are working on a solution for those who were left behind.

I apologize.

- Sarah Palin

One final thing of note: if you noticed the picture of Governor Palin with her lookalike, I gotta tell you I am sure I saw that same woman in Noblesville during Governor Palin's first Indiana rally in the 2008 election! Do see the pictures taken of her book tour in Michigan and Indiana; it sure is something.

Taxes, taxes everywhere

That's what the health care bill introduced in the Senate recently has; all kinds of new taxes. An editorial from Investor's Business Daily features some of the new taxes and tax hikes, including a 40% tax on special health insurance plans, a .5% hike on the Medicare payroll tax & a 5% tax on elective cosmetic surgery. The editorial also mentions increased taxes on the insurance companies, said to bring in an additional $19 billion (but I seriously doubt it will).

I remember that when we were colonists, the British government starting taxes on all kinds of things (stamps, tea, paper, glass, etc.). We responded with outrage and were appeased to a degree, then we had a tea party to convey our grievances and ultimately we ended up going to war. Does Harry Reid have a problem figuring out how people are going to respond with these additional taxes he wants to impose on us?

Please read the editorial from Investor's Business Daily, and also an article from The Washington Times. What Senator Reid wishes to impose on us is as bad as what Lord Townshend wanted to impose on us almost 250 years ago.

Now isn't that interesting, chapter 29

In a comment he wrote on this blog, cbullitt at Soylent Green has a post on an interesting update involving scientists in Britain, their claim a solution (a la the Waxman-Markey cap-and-trade bill) would solve the problems with the environment and the information they had but withheld.

An unknown hacker broke into the files of the scientists in question, discovered the information previously requested but not given, and released it. Although the focus is on the hacking, the telling thing is the information itself, which seems to prove the claims made by the scientists are backed by distorted and misleading facts. Now that is interesting.

I have long believed the motivation behind the efforts to impose environment-related laws is politics; the science to prove their claims isn't irrefutable, isn't universally accepted and simply isn't there. Much thanks to cbullitt for the heads up.

Grassroots News Minute (November 20th)

Left or Right: Where One Truly Is In The Political Spectrum

(This post was written specifically for the website The Blogmocracy.)

On this blog, bringing up the issue of fascists and socialists and where they are in the political spectrum is borderline overkill, if not plain and simple overkill already. I myself have already written about the subject on this blog. However, this is something I believe needs to be said.

Fascists (a.k.a. Nazis) have usually been labeled as right-wing and socialists (a.k.a. Marxists, Stalinists, Communists, Trotskyists, Leninists, you get the idea) have been regarded as left-wing. Rodan, among others elsewhere in the Internet, has presented the arguments that fascists and socialists share very few differences. Looking at the stances the fascists and the socialists hold on the issues we contemplate over today, at the methods employed by both sides when they were (in some cases, are) in power, and at the goals both sides have sought, I agree with Rodan on his contention.

The one real difference between the fascists and the socialists is how they describe their ideology. The fascists describe their “struggle” along the lines of nationalism and racism, while the socialists describe theirs along the lines of societal classes. The ideological difference is there, but is so minor compared to everything else about both sides, it's a cosmetic difference. It is also a difference which doesn't differentiate where the two sides are on the American political spectrum.

The best way to prove both sides are left-wing in nature is to ask yourself this question: Where do they stand on the roles of the individual and the state in society? Based solely on the writings and spoken words of Hitler, Marx and Lenin, they contended the state is greater than the individual; the individual serves the state, and the state is paramount in all things. My own opinion of what constitutes a left-winger or a right-winger is this: if you believe the individual serves the state, you are a left-winger; if you believe the state serves the individual, you are a right-winger.

Those who call themselves “democratic socialists” will doubtless say the state serves the individual and vice versa, but their idea of the size of the roles of the state and the individual should play in society still makes them left-wingers in my opinion. Our Founding Fathers had some choice words to say about the role of the state and the individual in American society, and what the democratic socialists envision for American society lies in the middle between what our Founders envisioned and what Marx envisioned; it lies between the midpoint and the far left point of the spectrum.

Those who claim the fascists are right-wing cite racism as the reason, as if being racist is one of the symptoms of being far-right. I don't buy that crap. Racism is a part of bigotry, bigotry is an evil, and evil (in whatever form) transcends groups. Race, ethnicity, age, sex, nationality, religion; there's always at least one bigot in every group. To use any form of bigotry as a factor in deciding one's political location is misleading.

Calling Pat Buchanan, Ron Paul, Alex Jones, Jesse Ventura, VDARE, the BNP, Vlaams Belang, Stormfront and others racists or bigots or just crazy is one thing (whether you're wrong or not depends on the individual or group in question), but if you want to know whether they are right-wing or left-wing, ask them what they think is the role of the individual and the role of the state in society. If their answer isn't crystal clear, look at where they stand on the issues and discern how it affects the individual. There's no other way, in my opinion, to decide one's place in the political spectrum.

Empty Suit

Marlin Stutzman has the first television ad for his campaign:

If any of you reading this live in Indiana, by all means take a look at the ad, and afterwards, visit his campaign website. And, of course, if you can, a donation wouldn't hurt.