Joe the Plumber Should Sue

All he did was ask a question within earshot of a microphone. Now, Joe the Plumber is the subject of an ruthless invasion of privacy for his "outspokeness." Is this what dissenters have to look forward to in an Obama nation?

Police in Ohio confirmed that a Toledo police department records clerk is accused of using the police department data system to perform an illegal search on Joe Wurzelbacher's background. The clerk was part of the Toledo police Investigative Services Bureau. She claims she was doing a favor for a reporter. She has been charged with Gross Misconduct. Searching his records was a violation of State law not just department policy.

Immediately following the last debate, Obama donor and director of the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, Helen Jones-Kelly, ordered a check on Wurzelbacher's background claiming, “Our practice is when someone is thrust quickly into the public spotlight, we often take a look.”

Well Joe is mad and I don't blame him. However, the intimidation affects the rest of us regular Joes as much as it does him. Now that his job is toast, I hope he can make up for it in a lawsuit and send a message back for us. Do you think people would be less willing now to get involved in politics after hearing how he is being treated? Wouldn't this affect citizens who are conservative more than those who are liberal?

The Phil Gordon Recall - Thanks ACU!

Phil Gordon may take a sigh of relief with the knowledge that the petitions for his recall are due in the City Clerks office on August 28th. I would publicly like to thank American Citizens United for organizing the recall drive. They acted on what many Phoenicians were just dreaming about, and for that they are due a special thanks.

Without knowing when, what, who, where, and how many signatures where collected, I can only say, if you signed the petition, you are a friend of Phoenix. One thing this recall should have revealed to Phoenix residents is the true nature of Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon. Soliciting city employees to campaign for his re-election but preventing them from exercising their political right to sign the petition was a great example of just how little he intended to serve Phoenix as mayor. Rather, Phoenix is his step stool.

Do We Need a Brown President?

Well of course not. But if we really have the audacity to hope for "change" let's go in a healthier direction. I'm am keeping an eye on Bobby Jindal. He sure is getting his feet wet in Louisiana politics these days. The state legislature is planning to vote themselves a huge pay increase. From the math, it's going to cost the state roughly $5 million more annually. Compensation is proposed to increase from $16,800 to $50,790. I'm not convinced that sum is a budget-breaker, therefore I would concur with the battle Jindal is choosing NOT to fight. Besides, this may improve their prospects for a more honest, self-respecting body of legislators. God knows the reputation the state has for corruption.

Conservative Arizona legislators have made similar attempts to raise the Governor's salary, but veto-Napolitano wouldn't hear of it. A higher governor's salary risks attracting quality conservative candidates. Shh, but don't tell politicos in Louisiana, let this be our little secret.

Janet Napolitano Cuts Off Money for Sheriff Joe Arpaio

Janet Napolitano must be feeling desperate. In a foolish attempt to halt the enforcement of illegal immigration laws by Maricopa County Sheriff Arpaio, she issued Executive Order 2008-22. Her order takes money from a grant dedicated to the Maricopa County Sheriff's office to fund a task force under her direct control through the Department of Public Safety. The new task force would seek out felony warrants and give priority to gang-related criminals and "undocumented" aliens.

Arizona Speaker of the House, James P. Weiers, says DPS has been allocated plenty of money for that purpose plus $1 million devoted to a Lexis-Nexis system which can find anyone. He said the agency should not have needed the sheriff's $1.2 million grant. The Speaker informed the press, that DPS has not used any of its own money yet which makes the governor's move very suspicious. In addition, none of the budgets of the other counties were touched.

The sheriff told the press today that the governor's Chief of Staff lied in saying that the sheriff was not sharing intelligence. The sheriff stated that his office sends intelligence constantly to her office.

It defies human logic that you can get more done with a task force than you can with a Sheriff with 160 federally trained officers, 4,000 employees and crime/immigration enforcement programs already in action. Napolitano has been governor for six years and attorney general prior to that says Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas. He finds it strange that only now she addresses the matter of felony warrants and at the last minute denies the grant her office promised to the sheriff.

What incredible gall! Everything about this move spells dirty politics. The governor's judgment is clouded by her ambitious desire to please special interests groups. The residents of Arizona mean squat—her agenda reigns supreme. Every conceivable poll taken in the state shows overwhelming support for the crime suppression and immigration enforcement being performed by the sheriff. Frankly, I'm kinda of glad this happened because it shines bright light on the real priorities of the Governor of Arizona.

Never mind a recall, impeach her now.

Recall Phil Gordon-Redux

Like Troy Hayden of Fox 10, media types may be tempted to reflect on the recall of Phil Gordon in a sympathetic tone. It's not his fault that Phoenix has an illegal immigration problem. He doesn't have authority to deal with immigration issues, they could say.

Well not exactly.

Mayor Gordon didn't have authority to change Op Order 1.4 which he admitted, but he put on a charade and hired a panel to affect changes anyway. Mayor Gordon doesn't have authority over the county sheriff, but nothing stopped him from publicly excoriating the sheriff and calling him and the rest of Phoenix racists.

Mayor Gordon may not have authority to arrest illegal immigrants personally, but no one made him send a letter to the U.S. Attorney General complaining that the only elected official who had such authority was in fact arresting illegals.

Actually, he did have authority to mediate complaints by local business owners about loitering, littering, and the public nuisance in front of their stores caused by illegal immigrant day workers. No one made him renege his agreement with Pruitts Furniture to help resolve that problem.

He's had mucho opportunity to advance the best interests of legal residents in Phoenix regarding illegal immigration, and he refused them all. The city is in shambles with trash, gangs, violence and dangerous roads, but anytime anyone does anything about it, he leads with the racist, white supremacy rhetoric.

It's too late for sympathy, someone should have pulled him aside a long time ago and explained to him the ABC's of being a mayor.

Phil Gordon On His Way Out

Phil Gordon has pulled a lot of stunts in the last three years trying to shift the blame for city's sanctuary policy. Only recently has he written the U.S. Attorney General decrying Sheriff Joe for upholding state and federal illegal immigration laws. However, the biggest parade was in 2007 when he pretended to investigate Police Operations Order 1.4. Gordon never had authority to direct subordinates of the City Manager to do anything. Needless to say, upon threat of a recall and an investigation by Judicial Watch. Gordon offered up a four-man panel staffed by four of his sympathizers to look into Operations Order 1.4. Needless to say, little came of it. Crime is way up in Phoenix. Gordon is still hissing all over town about being upstaged by the county Sheriff, and the residents of Phoenix are embarrassed and fixin' to send him back to Texas. They'll know what to do with him there.


Now with the fortune of a recall petition underway, the whiny mayor will fight this tooth and nail. And when he exhausts his LaRaza talking points he'll start calling us racists again. How would you like a mayor who regularly called you a racist? Who wants a job governing a town full of racists? Obviously, he doesn't.

Recall Petition For Phil Gordon

If you still want Gordon recalled, you got your wish. A petition recall of Phil Gordon was just announced. A press conference is set for Thursday, 9 am. There aren't a lot of details yet. Check out American Citizens United for more contact information.

Who: American Citizens United

Where: City Hall, 200 W. Washington St, Phoenix

When: Thursday May 1, 2008, 9:00AM

Stay tuned here for updates.

Arizona HB2807

A new bill just passed the Arizona legislature that requires sheriffs and police departments in the State to tackle federal immigration violations.

It prohibits restrictions on receiving or exchanging information about people's immigration status. The training lets police officers make immigration arrests while carrying out their regular duties. It also allows jail officers to speed up the deportations of criminal immigrants after they complete sentences on state violations, thus reducing local corrections costs and getting them in the hands of federal authorities quicker.


And, It prohibits restrictions on verifying eligibility for public benefits that are off limits to illegal immigrants! Those cases include determining the eligibility of people for public benefits that are off limits to illegal immigrants, confirming the identity of arrested people and verifying people's status if the status is required under law.

Consistent with her pro-illegal stance, Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano will likely veto HB2807. However, voters can support HCR2064. The same thing but, in the form of a ballot initiative!!

Mayor Phil Gordon Changes His Tune: Was He Telling the Truth In the First Place?

A gesture which was needed several years ago is still a non-issue because Gordon has not really done anything yet but talk about illegal immigration and Phoenix Op Order 1.4.3. Furthermore, it remains to be seen, what real change will come from his "panel" of friends. I agree with County Attorney Thomas, why is a panel needed to decide this issue? It ceases to amaze me what a big deal Gordon makes of his own selfish agenda.

Not two months ago, after a press conference with the Phoenix police union, Gordon declared he had no control over Phoenix Op Order 1.4.3. He verified that it was up to the Police Chief and he was not supposed to have any say in the matter. At that time, Gordon stood by the order and basically inferred we were racists to want to change it.

Gordon is untrustworthy at best. It would be a great disservice to the state of Arizona were he to pursue another elected position. All of his wrangling and manipulation suggests that he thinks Phoenix residents are mindless and forgetful stooges. Most definitely, we are not.

Not only that, but this week's latest propaganda attempt via the "Project for Arizona's Future" or better, the "Project for Phil Gordon's Future," adds to the general insult, reiterating the police chief's parroted point of view: "We believe it is inappropriate to shift the burden of this societal issue from the federal government onto the back of local law enforcement."

Now, enter the threat of a career-maiming law suit from Judicial Watch and Gordon sings a couple of octaves higher. He continues his shameless blame-fest against the federal government while trying to backpedal his way upstream to the governors office. Per his new edict, "the federal government is unable to complete what they should be doing, and I as mayor cannot allow the situation, the status quo, to stay the same and risk public safety."

Of all his blundering, transparently self-serving, politically-motivated, conspicuously egregious ploys, this takes the cake!

Who's Planning the Mexican Revolution?

Vicente and his pals have ripped off the poor in Mexico and are sending them thither. That's not enough, with the threat of more deportations, a chillier reception of illegals, and the FENCE (that ecologically insensitive racist fence) something has got to be done. So they've gotten busy. Not developing jobs for their economy, not asking the U.N. for relief, not passing new legislation for farm productivity, no they are busy writing books to persuade Americans to keep them!

Twenty- thirty- million Mexican illegals need to take the "Revolution of Hope" to Mexico City and flog the ones who have been fleecing them for the last thirty years. Can someone from Mexico please check Forbes.com? Some of the richest people in the world are Mexicans and drilling your oil, selling your crops, mining your gems, and sending you to beg for U.S. welfare and equal opportunity. But they've got your back. They'll scream racism while you stand in line. They want you to March on Washington—resurrect a movement inspired by plight of a race that had truly been disenfranchised. It is the shame of a century.

Mexico needs a revolution, but not the one Fox wants. A real revolution. Fox won't convince a soul that one of the one of the most beautiful and richest geographical masses on earth can't support the people who live there. It's a pity that those who can make a difference are continually brokering deals to shut out the bulk of the nation from her share. It's a pity that those who can make a difference can't think of any remedy other than to call Americans racists. The conquest Mexico needs is in Mexico. Mexico City, the second largest city on earth, the cite of the world's next civil war.

Vicente Fox Calls Americans Racist: Wants Us to Buy His New Book!

Vicente Fox Wants Americans to Send More Money

Word is out. According to an article on myfoxphoenix.com, Vicente Fox is after a piece of the action with a book of his own (in English). He aims to garner publicity by taunting the American public decrying us as racists.

Former Mexican President Vicente Fox said Monday that the United States is letting racism dictate its policies, especially when it comes to immigration. "The xenophobics, the racists, those who feel they are a superior race ... they are deciding the future of this nation," he said, without naming names, in an interview with The Associated Press. In his first interview to promote his new book, "Revolution of Hope," Fox applauded President Bush's desire to pass an immigration accord that would allow more Mexicans to work legally in the U.S.But he criticized Bush for failing to pass the promised reform. --myfoxphoenix.com

What orbit is Vicente in anyway? Why won't anybody tell him that all of us (white, black, yellow, red xenophobes) are supposed to be deciding the future of this nation...not the leaders of Mexico. Who told him Bush was God? He got sold a hill of beans and now he wants to salvage his crisis by selling us a book.

If the U.S. State Department had reason to believe that Americans were in trouble in another country, those Americans would be warned to leave that country. They would be assisted in leaving were that necessary. Considering the surge in American frustration and the crumbling buttress of American largess, Mexican illegals are facing a type of "threat" indeed. By contrast, with Margarita in hand, Mexican leaders are writing books and referendums to chide the U.S. for not providing for their citizens and their criminals. In my previous post, Fox's buddy Juan is also planning a book (in English too). He wants to address the growing anti-ILLEGAL immigration sentiment in America.

First of all, I hope not one American buys either book. But, you can bet that until those books are published, both Fox and Hernandez will continue to exploit the liberal media for free publicity by calling Americans racists and xenophobes. The Mexican elite wants to sell us books. They want Americans to buy books about why Mexican illegals should become citizens. The Mexican elite want us to give them money. They want Americans to pay them to tell us why we should give 30 million illegal Mexicans U.S. citizenship!

Mahmoud and Hernandez Love to Exploit Freedoms They Won't Pursue For Their Own Countrymen

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Mexican-sometimes American Juan Hernandez love uniquely American freedoms when it comes to capitalizing on them personally, but not for their own countrymen. The people in Iran aren't free to express themselves on an international stage. They will not be free to see the uncut versions of the Columbia University fiasco or other world events as long as Mahmoud and his backers control the country. And the majority of Mexican workers will not be free to earn livable wages while any of Hernandez's homeboys have anything to do with it.

Hernandez has a book to be released, "The New American Pioneers." Can you believe it? "We don't need to close our borders," he rants. "Why are we afraid of Mexican immigrants?" He obviously thinks Americans are dumb? Is that it? Are we mindless drones who can't discern the delicate distinction between legal and illegal immigration? Are we so unwitting that we fail to see the consequence of a hostile foreign under-class. I wonder if Hernandez will publish his book in Mexico or the U.S.? Will Side1 be upside down in Spanish and Side2 upside down in English? Of course he won't allow that nonsense. Despite La Raza's best efforts, U.S. students are still taught American history. English-speaking consumers will know that his "new pioneers" aren't really new or American. I predict sluggish sales.

Both Hernandez and Mahmoud shamelessly dispense 1950's style propaganda targeted at the generation that perfected propaganda. But neither one spends half as much energy trying to improve the lot of their own countrymen. Iranians and Mexicans are suffering tremendous poverty and disenfranchisement. Hernandez's answer is to send them here. Mahmoud's answer is to blow up Israel. Their propaganda merely communicates their disdain for America and their unreasonable trust that we are all senseless and indiscriminately impressionable.

Interstate Highways For Sale

"Nothing like public service; it's why we're paid the big dollars." That was a comment from a DOT official in Texas this week. They've been getting angry email about the proposal to convert Interstate roadways to private toll roads. I thought this was humorous comment, but it's really too serious to laugh. Civil servants along with elected officials operate with a very vague sense of accountability to the public. To them, American citizens have become the masses that need to be managed. We are not thinking, reasoning families and individuals. No... the arrogance in "public service" these days suggests that government officials think we are herds of cows waiting for the next crack of the whip to tell us where to go.

My longest stint with the Federal Government lasted seven years. If you have ever worked in a government office, you know that government employees receive a lot of training. Anything, sexual harassement, diversity awareness, retirement coaching, photo copier training. The problem is that most government employees never get any training on the function of government--what it is supposed to do and to whom it is accountable. They don't get it in our broken down public schools and they don't get it on the job. What we end up with is essential a corrupted system. Abusers and unwitting alike don't have a clue what to do with authority other than use it to their advantage. That's how you get the Federal Reserve Bank, Dubai-owned American ports, Dubai-owned New York Stock Exchange, and Dubai-owned London Stock Exchange.

Anytime you can figure out a way to tax American citizens each time they perform a routine activity--like driving down the road--you should look over your shoulder for a well-financed "private interest." Texas is only the proving ground. Lou Dobbs reported this phenomenon earlier this year, but it was too incredulous at the time for me to wrap my head around it.

I'm writing letters a lot these days and I'm teaching my children how to write letters too. We have a population of misguided and poorly-educated adults who are assuming leadership positions they don't always understand. It's time right now to get busy making noise. Loud noise, so that the ones who are not really interested in public service scram and make room for truly noble public servants.

How to Answer a Serial Attention-Seeker

There is commentary adrift that pretends to discredit Andrew Meyer as a crazed attention-seeker. I find it illogical and suspiciously political. First of all, Meyer was thought to be off-center when he started talking to Kerry. What sense does it make to change the headlines now? Besides, what does attention-seeking have to do with being tasered by the police? It doesn't matter. Short of intending to harm property or person, police should not have used any sort of gun. His crime was annoying a crowd of people. You can see how shallow real tolerance is in our culture. He annoyed the crowd, so he deserved to be shot. This from a room-full of people gathered to see John Kerry. Look folks, he did not have a back pack full of cocaine. The book he was waiving was not a weapon of mass destruction. He wasn't trying to steal your identity. But somehow he was annoying enough to "deserve" being roughed up by the police. Aren't there more important things to be annoyed by.

Despite his rude behavior, he was prompted to speak. Apparently, Kerry continued to speak past his scheduled limit too which provoked the short Q&A session. If campus police had approached Kerry with handcuffs for going overtime, don't you think Kerry might have inquired with a curious "what for?"

The Best Way to Answer a Serial Attention-Seeker

People who don't subscribe to the Britney Spears/Paris Hilton genre of marketing don't go after the celebrities with tasers. They don't buy their videos, they don't visit their websites, or buy their perfume. How did we get here? We reserve ample latitude for people who commit violent crimes and show utter contempt for those who disrupt our meetings.

Imagine it if Britney walked into the University of Florida auditorium in her classic attention-getting style. Imagine she refused to leave and suggested that she had some questions for Kerry. Perhaps some of Britney's questions were uttered with slurred speech and infringed upon the ability of others to ask questions. Imagine Kerry invited her to speak anyway. Now annoyed by her rudeness, what if the police grabbed her without warning. Petite as she is, what if she managed to slip away to inquire why she was being arrested? Do you taser her and bring on worldwide sympathy for her cause. Or do you drag her out of the room and let her behavior bring on the adjustment she needs?

Late Breaking: University of Florida Student Tasered

There is a rude and obnoxious person around every corner. If this is was a justifiable use of a gun, how do you evaluate which rude people deserve to be shot in the future? It's sad that so many condone the use of a taser to control rudeness which is precisely what happened. I saw the video, Meyer was not threatening HARM to anyone. He was merely an "inconvenient" presence. If the police had tasered a dog, there would be jail time for the offending officer. Case in point, in Phoenix a police officer was jailed for the accidental death of his police dog. The officer is in jail, but in Maryland, a child molester is on the streets. Back on the streets because, over the course of three years, the judge could not find a translator of his native language. Never mind that it only takes six weeks to learn English. The man who's repeated, premeditated crime was against a child is free, but the one who's accidental crime was against a dog is in jail. Guaranteed, if the rapist had been tasered, the policeman would have gone to jail, not the rapist. Andrew Meyer DID NOT deserve to be tasered. I don't care how much he inconvenienced you. On the ground with multiple burly officers on top of him was not the time to pull the trigger. John Kerry and his squat team have it backwards. This is an obscene lapse of judgement by a brood of unprepared "officers of the peace." How is it that the penalty for infringing upon the schedule of a U.S. Senator is a crime deserving such action by the police? John Kerry owes the public an apology for his smallness and cowardice. As a public official, he had an opportunity to lead the police through the safe removal of the student-OR-to gracefully remain patient. But he blew it because he was consumed with himself and his ideology too much to see that Andrew Meyer was him 40 years ago.

Why Are Any Voting Ballots in the U.S. Printed in English and Spanish?

Every year, I get ballot information in the mail that costs twice as much in time and money than it should. It takes twice as long to read it because everything...every word and punctuation mark is translated into Spanish and printed alongside the English portion of the ballot or printed upside down on the back of the ballot. It costs twice as much to print, and extra to mail.

The City of Phoenix can't afford the number of police we need to manage the exploding crime rate, but somehow we have the resources to create and publish EVERY public document and every public website in two languages. It takes a few weeks total to learn English. We pay to educate the anchor babies and illegal immigrant children alike. Then we pay to duplicate every public document in Spanish! What sense does this make! None, it's i n s a n e ! How, how do we end up with eligible voters who CAN'T SPEAK AND READ ENGLISH! I studied Spanish from grade school through high school as an ELECTIVE. I learned Spanish to enrich my mind, not so I could vote!

Now, the mayor declares we need more money to pay for extra police and firemen. We do, but which of us can’t figure out why? An unreasonably significant portion of the population in Phoenix doesn’t understand English. And too much of the city’s influx are fugitives, are coming to commit a crime, or coming while committing a crime.

First of all, stop wasting our money. I work hard. I don’t like it when greedy, top-heavy municipalities demand extra money because they refuse to use common sense. Phoenix exacts one of the highest sales taxes in the United States. The most upscale municipalities don’t tax as much as Phoenix does. And I am furious, that any government has the gall to propose to intelligent hardworking people that more taxes are needed to “protect us” while they simultaneously try to score a raise. Phoenix police men and women must cope with a horrific wave of crime for which the city government is partly responsible. As a result of Gordon's sanctuary city, indeed we are all more vulnerable to chaos. Stop all that winning about the federal government and do something smart. Phil Gordon has more authority to manage Phoenix than the White House ever will. However, he will continue to whine because he does not seem to understand the American constitution. Moreover, Gordon is on the same page as pro-illegal immigration activists who care nothing about the U.S. and despise those of us who do. And a note to all broadcast producers: spare us from any more dribble by foreign spokesmen and the likes of Juan Hernandez. They wrongly assume we are a bunch of witless dummies who believe everything we hear. It’s unimaginable—thinking you've tuned into an update about the illegal immigration but instead, in broken english, hearing how Americans WANT illegal workers, DON’T WANT to work, and how the economy would CRUMBLE if illegal aliens were not here.

This is not about hispanics, turks, blacks, buddists, etc . What American in their right mind should tolerate the disdain of arrogant foreigners who want to tie our hands with our own laws while they run off with our elections, schools, hospitals, quiet neighborhoods and streets.

What Good Is a Fatwā Anyway?

Dennis Prager interviewed Robert McFarland (of the Reagan Administration) telephonically on his show this morning. I listened as McFarland described his participation in negotiations between the top religious leaders of Shia and Sunni tribes. These leaders are considering issuing a Fatwa condemning violence against either sect. The fatwa would deem it contrary to Islamic religious law to kill a Sunni if you are Shia and to kill a Ahia if you are a Sunni. Based on Mr. McFarland's testimony on the air, this fatwa would be the first of its kind in history! Both Prager and McFarland were dumbfounded that the story had not been picked up by mainstream media. McFarland indicated that he would attend further negotiations to nurture the process. It is expected that the ruling would be effective very soon.

While the Sunni-Shia war is having it's most catastrophic effect in the middle east and parts of Africa right now, isn't it coloring lives across the globe? It is impossible to tune into local or world news and not hear about its effects locally. We mourn fallen heroes from our hometowns almost everyday. All the cities in Europe that I have ever wanted to visit have major problems rising from within their Islamic populations. I have no Muslim acquaintances that I can name at the moment, but what is going on among Muslims gets closer and closer to home on a daily basis.

I don't care if main stream media picks up on it or not. Godspeed to McFarland and everyone involved. It's probably no panecea. The tension in Islam is systemically entrenched in history I suppose. But how much longer will it be before the movers and shakers in that movement see that the strategy to blow up innocent women and children is viewed as insanity by the rest of the world. How much longer will it be before the movers and shakers in the rest of the world act as if a problem that stems from religious beliefs needs a solution that stems from religious beliefs. I think religious threats may need to be dealt with militarily sometimes. I am not on the "defund-the-war" band wagon. But I am on the "end-the-threat" band wagon. Go McFarland Go, success here may save someone I know.

The Iraq War: No One Needs To Tell You How You Feel About It

Is there a terrorist threat? And if there is a threat, do I think it affects me? Furthermore, if I have an opinion, should it drive war strategy in Iraq. My answer: yes, yes, no.

I watched the Presidential Address about Iraq tonight and afterward, I watched the “post-game show.” This was not this first time I tuned to the analysts, but this time, all the noisy cogitating really got under my skin. This time, I’d heard enough malarkey about opinion polls and what anybody thinks “the American people want.”

Every political activists claims to know what we want. This doesn't bother me normally, even though some of them think Americans are mindlessly controlled by the power of suggestion. I felt that way throughout the debate on illegal immigration. I have conservative political views, and I consider myself to be a discerning and concerned citizen. I do believe there is an imminent threat to U.S. citizens rising from religiously motivated violence. I do believe this will affect me and my family significantly if allowed to persist unchecked. How to check it? Well, I suppose that is why we built a military force and intelligence network like none other. What we need are brilliant strategies. What we don’t need are misguided theories about public opinion as though public opinion is the substance of strategy or policy. Opinion poll puppets trying to shovel in political agendas should be called to the table for their dullness.

We know what to do with our public opinions. We take them to the polls. We send them via telephone, post, and email to the halls of congress. We can even hit the streets and fuss all night.

My concern is not that Americans are mindlessly persuaded by public opinion polls. My concern is that more and more, Americans are bogged down with the happenings of life. Too busy with jobs and diapers and holidays and bills. We have real opinions that have a place in our government. My concern is that we are not taking a breath long enough to send the email or write the letter. Maybe our generals don’t post them on walls of the war room, but it’s time we deny wily statesmen the latitude to pass empty laws based on empty statistics and give them some real numbers to crunch.

Write your representatives. Tell them what you think about more troops in Iraq. It will make a difference somewhere in the future.

Send a quick note to your senator: http://senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
Send a quick note to your congressmen: http://www.house.gov/writerep/
Read plain information about our government: http://www.thegreenpapers.com/

Another Aspect of the Culture War

It is 8:00pm Sunday night, my two children have been in bed for ten minutes and I am getting ready to turn in too. My euphoria about being on schedule tonight was soon eclipsed by someone knocking on our front door. Then they rang the door bell. Both children, were startled by the knocking and were on their way out of bed to find me. By the time the door bell rang, all my efforts to calm them down again were vanquished.

At this hour, it should be someone pretty close to us at the door. Peering out of the living room window, I saw a woman at the door. She was Hispanic and I did not know her. She was talking and gesturing to someone else in the direction of the street. Through the glass, I asked her what she wanted. Soon, she was joined by a toddler, a little girl. She would not reply in English, but in Spanish. She was holding up the lunch sack draped over her shoulder. She's selling tamales.

I like tamales, but I was annoyed. One, she woke up my household. Two, she's trying to get the kids, attention, and I'm trying to get them back to bed. Three, she would not respond in English. There are two cultures clashing here.

American life is enriched by our welcome of people originating from different cultures. Most western nations are in fact immigrant nations. We are not THE immigrant nation. But if we don't insist on living together under one culture—not two or three—we invite an ancient problem. One we should be wise enough by now to avoid. I don't care what anybody says, it's never going to be okay for a stranger to wake up my family at night to sell us something. Neither will I ever care for six foot tall speakers in a nearby front yard blaring Mariachi (or any other) music at 10 o'clock pm to kick off a barbeque. This is a culture issue.

Culture clashes occur because they threaten the routines of family life and business life, etc. Expect deep-seated reactions when you disrupt family routines or the way people do business. If America is not a land of one culture, all our "open-mindedness" will be lost in the ensuing war. Most Americans boast "open-mindedness" but only their brand of open-mindedness. Let a family move next door that threatens their way of life, and you will soon find out what their brand is about. Open-mindedness does not mean you acquiesce to the disruption of routines that sustain your life. That's insane.

My parents experienced housing discrimination before the laws were changed. The predominantly Jewish subdivision was set up for the Montgomery County Maryland Jewish, and they did not want new people upsetting their way of life. We were not a threat to their way life because we subscribed to the same values they did, but ultimately, my folks signed a contract agreeing to conform to certain community rules as a condition of the sale of the home. And you know why they signed it! They wanted the same protections for themselves.

It makes sense to protect when we can put our children to bed and how much sleep you can get at night. It does not make sense to dislike someone because of the color of their skin. It doesn't take a high IQ to tell the difference either. One is a culture issue and the other is racism. The former is defensible and the latter is not. And may good people defend the defensible. It is illogical to think that a preference which keeps up the neighbors at night is going to co-exist peacefully in a culture weaned on "Early to Bed Early to Rise, Makes a Man Healthy Wealthy and Wise." Indeed, American culture defines certain routines for family life, and I defend this one without apology.

Evil practices notwithstanding, when in Rome, do as the Romans do. That's good wisdom for multi-ethnic living.

The Context of A Child's Education

I have a personal desire to see both children and adults gain a basic understanding of history, arts, and architecture. Perhaps the world will seem more valuable to them with such knowledge under their belts. In grade school, my brother was required to learn Latin. He subsequently learned German too. Just one generation ago, our education system was still ripe with context, ripe with an appreciation of culture, so that intuitively, a child understood the application of his technical skills. The beauty in teaching a child about life and culture in concert with technical skills is that such context lends purposefulness to everything he learns.

It does not seem to be that way anymore. Nationwide, our educational requirements have been reduced to rudimentary tasks. If you don't know why you are learning anything, it really won't matter much to you. That is a huge problem. For a child to cultivate vision for his own life is rarer in the absence of cultural context. I am a strong proponent for homeschooling for this reason. Good parents can do miles more providing their child's education today, than most any institution.

I have a BS in Civil Engineering and a Masters of Architecture. I spent four years at MIT in Cambridge to earn my M.Arch. When I was in school, I observed that the students who had architects in their family were more thorough in their design projects. This is a good example of context in education. In architecture, for example, apprenticing with someone like a grandfather early in the game, frees up your ability to be creative and execute your own designs. You learn technical skills with specific insight into how they are useful. It's exciting. The student goes into an institutional setting all the more ready.

But that isn't all there is to career readiness. Parents must get into the habit of steering their students to learn the business of their respective crafts, not just the craft itself. Believe me, it doesn't matter how much tuition you pay. Schools don't do this for you, despite being such an important aspect of education. Parents, make it a part of growing up. This is how leaders are made. We want our children to be ready to start their own companies. They should be ready to be the employer if they are so inclined--not only the employee.