Category: Features
Representation without Taxation?
Written by Troglodad
Friday, 30 July 2010 10:26
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Ay, carumba. What was that Court thinking?

Let me begin by saying, this isn't a brown-white thing. I don't hate Mexicans. Unless they're being stupid. Or not paying their taxes. Or committing crimes.

Why, just this morning, I say a van broke down in the middle of the street. The young man driving it was doing his best to push it to the side of the road, but cars kept driving around him. Not a damn one of them stopping to help. I stopped, asked if he needed help. The young man turned out to be hispanic. And he barely spoke english. If I was truly race-biased, I'd have driven on, like the a**holes I watched go by. But no, I stopped, got out, and helped this kid push his van across the street to a parking lot.

No, my issue with all the illegals is taxes. They don't pay them.

Let me tell you a little story. A tale of how a band of people crossed the border with their neighboring country, without permission. How they fed off the land, stole from the citizens of this neighboring country and refused to pay taxes, or contribute in any way. The people in this neighboring country didn't like it. They rebelled against the invaders, some of whom killed them. The invadees' government didn't protect them- they rolled over to the invaders, giving in to demands and handing over their nation's riches.

I'm of course talking about the Nazis and the French.

The Nazi Wehrmacht crossed into France in May 1940, cleverly sneaking around the ginormous Maginot Line the French had belt to keep them out. In case you're wondering, the Maginot Line was a massive wall of fortifications built along the French-German border precisely to keep the Germans out. But the Nazis just went around it.

Once inside France, the Nazis quickly defeated the French forces, then began to steal from the French citizens. Nazi soldiers took what they wanted; food, women, physical property. The French Government didn't organize a rebellion, they caved in and adopted socialism, and fell right into step with Hitler. Meanwhile, French citizens who didn't like having what little their government hadn't taxed being stolen by the invaders, formed a resistance. They fought back.

The United States faces a similar, if less organized, threat to the south. Illegal immigrants are pouring through gaps in our border and stealing from us. They don't come in and become citizens and pay taxes. They sneak in and become freeloaders. Using our roads, without paying taxes to upkeep them. Putting kids in our schools, without paying taxes to keep up the schools or hire more teachers. They are a burden on our society. Spanish-speaking bums.

If someone snuck into your home while you were at work, and set up residence in your basement and started eating your food, watching your TV, running the air conditioner you normally kept off during the day and otherwise running up your utilities, would you let them stay? Or would you call the police to have them thrown out?

Why then is it so bad for Arizona to want to get rid of illegals? Last I checked, the United States still has a citizenship process where anyone can come and go through the process to become a citizen. We aren't saying we don't want any hispanics here. We just want them to come here legally and start paying their fair share.

The United States was founded when a bunch of angry people in New England decided that paying taxes but having no real say in their destiny sucked. They called it "taxation without representation". They set forth a precedent that if you want our tax money, you have to give us something in return. The flip side of the that should be a cornerstone of our nation as well: if you want to live here, and get services, your lazy ass needs to pay taxes. Why should the color of your skin exclude you from taxation?

Coming to this country and taking, taking, taking… why that's no better than being a Nazi. Just ask the French.

 
THOR’S DAY RANT: Stolen Valor, or Infringed Speech?
Written by Troglodad
Thursday, 22 July 2010 15:16
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Let me preface this rant by declaring I am a veteran of the USAF (1990-1994) but that I have no combat awards, medals, etc other than the Nat'l Defense Medal given just for being on Active Duty during a conflict.

So I was watching Fox News this morning and they have this schmuck on TV whining about how a Court ruled the "Stolen Valor Act" is unconstitutional. Stolen Valor? WTH?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stolen_Valor_Act_of_2005

Apparently, this law was passed in 2005 and makes it a Federal Misdemeanor to lie about military awards. Indirectly. Under the act, it is illegal for unauthorized persons to wear, buy, sell, barter, trade or manufacture "any decoration or medal authorized by Congress for the armed forces of the United States, or any of the service medals or badges awarded to the members of such forces." (-Wiki)
WTF?

What's next? Are we going to criminalize women lying about their age or weight? Make it a crime to lie to women in bars about your marital status, what car you drive or your profession?

Whiney-ass this morning on TV felt that liars cheapen the awards. He was upset that his fallen comrade in arms never got to see their awards- they were posthumously given.

Hey, dumbass, heroes don't do it for the glory.

I absolutely can't stand jackasses that have to rub it in everybody's face they were a Navy SEAL, or they have a purple heart, etc. etc. I'm not saying they shouldn't have been given an award, but let's be brutally honest. Medal of Honor winners didn't charge machine gun nests thinking "Damn, this medal is going to look AWESOME on my uniform!" No, they did what had to be done out of selfless heroism. And anyone who brags about their medals is a complete ass.

Think about it this way, Mr. Medal-Winning-Whiney-Ass. You are bragging about how you killed people and got a shiny award for it. God forbid someone else claimed to be a killer just to get some bling. Maybe you should think about why anyone brags about something like that. Heroes don't brag. Heroes tend to stay mum on the subject. It's attention-seeking punks that brag- whether the source of bragging is true or not.

Is it despicable to lie about military service? Yes. It is. We veterans- whether or not we won any awards- sacrificed our freedoms and liberties, and some, their lives, to ensure the freedoms and liberties of all Americans. Liberties like freedom of speech.

Those who went above and beyond were given awards, not to wave around and brag with, but as thanks for exemplary duty. Anyone who rubs such an award- earned, or imagined- in your face cheapens all award winners.

Society is full of people with inferiority complexes. They hang plastic testicles on their trucks. They wear flashy jewelry. They stick their noses in the air. These are all indicators of people desperate to make you believe they are better than you. Precisely because deep down, they don't believe it themselves. But do we really need to criminalize people who try to make themselves feel better? Isn't the fact they know they are liars enough? Yes, it's wrong they claim to have saved lives, but short of making the claim to commit some kind of fraud, do we really need to pass judgment on them? Surely our judgment won't be as bad as the judgment they've already passed on themselves.

Maybe Mr. I-got-a-bronze-star-and-you-didn't should think more about his fallen comrades, and be thankful he isn't one of them, then trying to get people locked up for self-aggrandizing lies.

This whole story reminds me of a classic military saying: "There are old pilots, and bold pilots, but no old, bold pilots."

I guess next, we'll start going after all those "ninjas" running around.

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Posted By Troglodad to Troglodad at 7/22/2010 02:51:00 PM

 
This conservative agrees with Barack Obama
Written by Chad Phillips
Wednesday, 21 July 2010 12:43
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I never thought the day would come, but it has. Today in an article entitled, Obama to GOP: Restore unemployment benefits now President Obama said the following, "These are honest, decent, hardworking folks who have fallen on hard times through no fault of their own." For once, I agree with you Mr. President. That is, in general, I think most folks are hard working and decent enough. They're not greedy and they're not lazy; they just want to be able to work and support their families unfettered by government constraints. Most aren't interested in handouts either, although tough economic times have made that a necessity in some cases.

That said, extending unemployment is not the best way to help people, especially when you’re increasing the deficit to do it.  Long term, the best way to help Americans is to roll back our current free trade policies. These are the same free trade policies championed by most politicians on both sides of the aisle. In particular the GOP backs these utterly failed and morally bankrupt policies as a matter of course. As I said, democrats do as well. But the Dems aren't pretending to be the Party of Mom, Apple Pie, and everything that's wholesome, good, and fiscally responsible for America. The GOP is…and that's why their commitment to unchecked free trade in the U.S. is all the more reprehensible.

When our free trade policies level the playing field and give corporate America incentives to come back to this country, the jobs will come back as well. Equally important is America's once intact standing as self sufficient. Our founding fathers knew this and legislated after that fact. But then, they believed in enduring principles. Our current legislators only operate by one guiding principle: Me first…everyone else last.

As most of you know, I am a paleoconservative. Therefore, I am against extending these unemployment benefits in principle. However, I would support this band-aid action if (1) it could be paid for, and (2) our legislators would go back to the free trade policies which helped make this country great. Since neither of these actions are going to happen EVER! I reserve all of my ire for the self serving bastards on the Hill.

UPDATE!!!!! At the time of this writing, the bill to extend unemployment without any way of paying for it had not yet passed. The Obama administration, which includes democrat legislators, were waiting on the votes of three turncoat GOP senators, who according to Obama, “put politics and partisanship aside” when they voted for this bill.

I’d like to make a couple of observations here:

First, Obama repeatedly cast GOP opposition to the bill as heartless, partisan, hyper-political maneuvering. But that was hardly the case. Rather, the GOP was for extending benefits, provided they were already paid for, as opposed to Obama’s plan, which is going to increase the deficit even further. To that end, Obama proves he’s more than able as a political opportunist and liar of the highest order.

Second, I find it most convenient that any time members of the GOP go along with whatever lame assed, stupid, irresponsible, myopic legislation the Dems want, it’s applauded by the prez as being bipartisan. Yes, Mr. President, all of us out here in the Land of Stupid are far too “dumb” to understand what you mean when you say that these GOP backstabbing, gutless, Benedict Arnolds, “put politics and partisanship aside.” That simply means that the legislators in question “went along.” They played your rigged little game. They sided with you, and our children’s, children’s, children’s children will be paying for it, along with the rest of the irresponsible spending bills you and your pals have rammed down our throats over the past 6 years. You people are reckless and you’re destroying this country.