The American Blog

The Death Penalty v. Abortion

Nick — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 02:02:10 +0000

A segment of Americans support abortion and are against the death penalty.

How could one justify such a position? A position where one is against executing individuals who have done exceedingly evil things and have been convicted in the U.S. legal system and yet supports the killing innocent, very young individuals (fetuses) when the mother wants this. One can’t have seen an ultrasound of a fetus in the second or third trimester of development, with a straight face, and claim that the fetus isn’t a very young living being.

Supporting the death penalty and abortion OR being against the death penalty and abortion are at least consistent positions.

Top 10 Most Important Citizen Actions

Nick — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:43:11 +0000

Abraham Lincoln in his famous Gettysbuerg Address talked about a democracy as a government “of, by and for” the people. This assumed that the “people” meaning American citizens were involved.

Unfortunately, most Americans aren’t involved in our democracy. Too many of us believe that the responsibilities of a citizen are to vote, serve on a jury when summoned and occasionally volunteer.

The void left by our lack of involvement has been filled by special interest groups . In fact one can safely say that the United States is a democracy on paper only. In practice, we are a SIGocracy, a government of, by and for special interest groups. And keeping this country strong isn’t one of those interests. Making money and gaining power are. And interestingly, many of these special interest groups are foreign-based.

The reality is being a good citizen goes well beyond voting, volunteering and jury duty. The reality is also that most of us aren’t going to be in an occupation whose job it is to keep the country strong like law enforcement, like judges, like elected officials and like teachers. So what each of us can do to do our part in keeping the country strong are small “citizen actions”. These “citizen actions” are things that:

Remind us of our heritage,

Keep us involved in the democratic process,

Support individuals with a special responsibility for keeping the country strong,

Promote a sense of community,

Help us understand the workings of government and,

Keep individuals and families strong.

100 of these actions can be viewed at www.goodcitizen.org.

What are the most important “citizen actions?” Here is my TOP 10. They surprised me to some extent and may surprise you. There isn’t any right Top 10 but I hope that hearing mine will get others to think about how to best keep the country strong.

10. Pick up a piece of trash each day.

9. Attend a School Board meeting.

8. Tell someone when you don’t approve of their actions.

7. Protest over something you feel strongly about.

6. Take a course on American history.

5. Discuss the responsibilities of citizenship with your children.

4. Extend small courtesies to individuals of ‘difference.’

3. Vote.

2. Express your opinion to an elected official, to a radio station, to a publication or to a company .

1. Resist intimidation.

American Express v. Medicare (A.K.A The Private Sector v. Bureaucracy

Nick — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 00:13:01 +0000

You’ve heard about government bureaucracies. You probably also know that many city, state, and federal government agencies are outsourcing many services to the private sector to save cost.

And you’ve no doubt encountered a government bureaucracy from time to time - whether it be the Department of Motor Vehicles, the court system, the IRS and on and on. So most of us appreciate that most public-sector agencies are slow to provide service, provide mediocre service, are difficult to get hold of and so on. But just in case you don’t or you need a reminder of how inefficient government is, this blog entry will highlight examples.

1. A friend lost his wallet. He called MediCare to request a replacement Id. He automated voice response system told him his call would be handled by a human within 10 minutes. The woman who answered was pleasant and helpful. “You’ll have your new card in four to six weeks” she said. My friend then called American Express to get a replacement card. They answered quickly. The woman found his record and told him “You’ll have it tomorrow.”

“The Pursuit of Happiness, Liberty, and Life”

Nick — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 17:31:52 +0000

Sound backwards? The founding fathers would think so. They knew that America’s priorities had to be “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” and in that order as stated in the Constitution. They understood that if the country isn’t safe or is at war (“life), then we couldn’t be truly free (“liberty”). And they understood that if we aren’t free, then we can “pursue our happiness”.

Unfortunately, we have our priorities backwards and it shows. Too many of us care more about our pursuits of happiness, than we do about ensuring the country is strong and thus free.

We spend more time getting on Do Not Call lists than we do communicating with our elected officials. We teach our children how to prove that two triangles are congruent but don’t teach them how to be good citizens.

The NFL can’t tolerate one of its stars, Jake Plummer, wearing a patch to honor a fallen war hero and former NFL player, Pat Tillman. How dare he violate NFL rules. We seem to get more upset with Janet Jackson exposing herself on TV than with an American getting beheaded by terrorists. We get upset if a teacher tries to discipline our child but don’t take the time to vote. While about 200,000 American soldiers and their families are making great sacrifices to keep this country safe, fewer that 40% of eligible voters take the time to vote. For the rest of us, voting is too big a sacrifice – it takes away from our “pursuit of happiness.”

The void that is created by our not being involved is filled by Special Interest Groups. Thus more and more the laws and values of this country reflect the interests of the Special interests and not our citizens. We have become a SIGocracy, a nation of, by, and for Special Interests, not the people.

Edmund Burke said it best. “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing”. In a democracy, we are part of the government, we are part of law enforcement, we are part of the education system, we are a part of our government. We blame politicians, but we elect them and fail to understand enough about them. We blame the media, but we are the ones who buy the newspapers and magazines and who watch and listen to the news shows. We blame corporations, yet we are the ones who buy their products. We blame the schools, but we are ones who berate them for discipling our children and we are the ones who abdicate our responsibility of raising them.

Each of us needs to be a more effective citizen. And when that day comes, there will still be issues and problems, but there will be fewer, their magnitude will be less and we will resolve them more quickly and in a manner that reflects the values of the majority of the American people and not the interests of Special Interests.

Good Citizen, a 501(c)(3) non profit, with a mission to teach Americans the importance of being involved in a democracy and how to be effective citizens has identifying 100 things – Citizen Actions – each of us can do on a day-to-day basis which when done by all of us when the opportunities arise, will keep this country free.

How To Appreciate

Nick — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 19:25:59 +0000

Most of us have things or individuals we appreciate. It could be a job, one’s eyes, a friend, where one lives or a place in the woods where one finds solitude.

I remember someone telling me that they hoped I appreciated how fortunate I was to be healthy. I also remembering then asking myself, well how should I appreciate that fact? Do I say “I’m fortunate to have good health” a few times a day? Do I write that fact in a Gratitude Journal?

After thinking about this for years, I’ve finally realized that: the way one appreciates something is to take care of it.

In the case of a job, you do your best, you get to work on time, you stay late when needed and you offer to work on holidays.

In the case of one’s eyes, you make sure you have good light when you read and you have a periodic eye exam,

In the case of a friend, you spend time with them, you give them priority and you thank them for being who they are.

In the case of a place in the woods, you keep it clean.

In the case of a country, you do the small things, citizen actions, that when done by all of us when the opportunities arise and over a lifetime, keep the country strong, vital and thus free. Good Citizen has a list of 100 citizen actions.

Waterboarding and a Civilized Society

Nick — Sun, 10 May 2009 21:17:15 +0000

Many Americans believe the interrogation technique called “water-boarding” is torture. And they say that civilized societies don’t torture because harsh interrogation isn’t one of the values of a civilized society.

Whether water-boarding is torture really isn’t the issue. It is to some and it isn’t to others. But the statement by those who oppose water-boarding and other aggressive interrogation techniques, that civilized nations don’t do these things is absolutely wrong.

The fact is civilized societies do whatever they need to do to survive - even when those “things” are “things” the society wouldn’t normally do. Most societies don’t go around killing others but they do when they are attacked and their survival is at stake.

After the Yom-Kipper War in 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab states, Golda Meir, the Prime Minister of Israel, said to Anwar Sadat, the President of Egypt, “We can forgive you for killing our sons, but we will never forgive you for making us kill yours.” Israel is a civilized society. They did what was necessary to survive after being attacked even though things they had to do in order to survive were things they abhorred as a nation.

You can believe that certain techniques don’t work as well as others or that certain techniques were used too often or at the wrong times, but to suggest that doing what is needed to survive as a nation is wrong is disingenuous. Societies that don’t do what is needed to survive eventually become non-societies.

Mumbai Slaughter and Walmart Stampede- Fingerpointing in the Wrong Direction

Nick — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:07:01 +0000

The next time you wonder why many of our problems persist, remember the headlines in the aftermath of the recent Mumbai slaughter and Walmart stampede.

In Mumbai the capital of India, Islamic terrorists slaughtered 200 individuals. The attacks were designed to kill 5,000 mostly “whites” and were indiscriminate - many women and children were killed. The Taj Majal was heavily damaged. The post slaughter headline: Indians Blame Government and Police.

At a Walmart in New York, a 34 year old male Walmart employee was trampled to death by hundreds of shoppers who had been waiting in line for hours to get the best Black Friday discounts. The post stampede focus - The union for Walmart employees plans to sue Walmart over lack of security.

When tragedy occurs, we too often focus our anger and emotions on those easiest to blame like the Indian government or on those who best serve a special interest like Walmart’s union rather than on the real source of the pain. The result is we spend our efforts on the wrong people and the real source of our anger is largely ignored.

India is a democracy. If, in fact, the politicians didn’t do their job, it’s the people fault as they elected those politicians. The facts are that a number of fishermen and hotel individuals saw suspicious activity prior to the attack but failed to report anything to authorities or to follow-up. The headline might better have read: Islamic Terrorism Still a Threat to Country - Needs Everyone’s Attention.

The notion that Walmart didn’t have sufficient security is bogus and merely a diversion by a self-absorbed union. Did they not have enough doors? Were the doors not wide enough? Did they not check out the backgrounds and dispositions of those who had been waiting in line. Were there not enough security personnel to stop hundreds or crazed, stampeding individuals. Is each of the hundreds of thousands of retail stores in the U.S. supposed to have their own security force?

Should all retail stores have metal detectors to prevent shootings like the one that occurred at a Toys R Us in Palm Desert, California in which two men shot and killed each other? Is stampeding the norm? The headline might better have read: Police Determined to Find and Prosecute All Involved in the Stampede Death of Walmart Employee or perhaps Greed Not Only a Major Factor in Housing and Credit Crises but also in Walmart Stampede Death.

Bulletin - There Are No Human Rights!

Nick — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 13:32:57 +0000

We keep hearing about our “rights”. A right to own a house. A right to go to college. A right to get married. A right to affordable health care. A right to drive. A right to own a gun. A right to have a job. A right not to “hurt” when you are being put to death. And now some in Congress want the NFL to make more of their games available for free - ah yes, the right to watch the sport of your choice.

News flash! There are no basic human rights! Oh, it might be nice if there were, but there aren’t. We live in a Universe. It doesn’t dish out “rights” - only needs and some coping mechanisms.

We have little knowledge of how it works and why it works the way it does. But we do know that when we are born, we need food, shelter and strength to survive. And we do know that there is no job or dwelling with our name on it waiting for us - that there is no supply of food stored for us - that there is little protection from others who may harm us. Like all animals, we humans have to work and fight for everything we get.

The U.S. is a society of people who want to live a certain way. We have done what is necessary over the past two centuries to create a country in which we are relatively safe, in which food and shelter are readily available, and in which each of us has the opportunity to find our “gifts” and to give them back to the world. We were not given anything including “rights”. Everything we have has been envisioned, fought for, and created - even the Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness described in the Declaration of Independence.

Many politicians and activists put the “basic human right” tag on causes they advocate. They do this knowing there are no such rights and that their cause has few convincing arguments. Yet they use the “basic human right” tag because they believe this conveys the sense that a segment of the population is being persecuted and thus plays on the fairness of the American people.

What we have in this country is our Constitution, laws and opportunities - not rights.

“America Last!”

Nick — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 20:14:35 +0000

No bailout, stimulus package, G7 edict, regulation or interest rate cut will get us out of our current economic situation until we fix the underlying problem. What is it?

“Blacks First”, “Republicans First”, “Gays First”, “Unions First”, “Hispanics First”, “Democrats First”, “Trial Lawyers First”, “Public Accountants First” and on and on with “America Last”.

We put our “special interests” above the interests of the country. What’s good for special interest groups may or may not be in the best interest of the country. But what’s good for the country is always in the best interest of these special interest groups. Because if the country isn’t safe (Life) and free (Liberty), then none of us or any special interest group can “pursue its interests.”

The underlying problem we face is that we, as citizens in a democracy, don’t take time from our “pursuits of happiness” to do the things needed to keep the country safe and free. Good Citizen’s website lists the types of things each of us needs to be doing. The only for this lack of involvement will change is to teach our children how to be effective citizens as part of the Social Studies curriculum in elementary school.

America’s Top Priority!

Nick — Sun, 12 Aug 2007 13:10:31 +0000

March 5, 2002 was election day in California. On that day, the bodies of three Americans, who had died in a “fire fight” in Afghanistan trying to recover the body of a Navy Seal, were being flown back to the U.S. for burial. They and their families had sacrificed everything.

On that same day, fewer than 40% of registered voters and 30% of eligible voters were willing to take the time from their “pursuits of happiness” to vote. It was too big a sacrifice.

Our unwillingness to take on the responsibilities of citizenship to keep this country safe and free is the single most important issue we face. It’s a national disgrace.

The top goal of this nation needs to be to teach its youth the importance of being involved in a democracy and how to be effective citizens.

If you want to learn how to be an effective citizen, you can go to www.goodcitizen.org. There are 100 citizen actions organized into 6 categories. Specifically citizen actions that:

· Remind Us of Our Heritage

· Keep Us Involved In the Democratic Process

· Support Groups Who Have A Responsibility for Keeping the Country Strong

· Keep Individuals and Families Strong

· Foster a Sense of Community

· Help Us Understand the Workings of Our Government

Don’t be a part of the “silent majority”. In a democracy, when one is silent, they are part of the minority.

Don’t blame others. In a democracy, we are responsible for everything that happens – not special interest groups, not the media, not elected officials, not organizations.

Don’t let special interest groups define this country. We’ve become a SIGocracy – a nation of, by and for special interests. Be a part of the special interest group for this country.

Don’t let down your children and future generations and those who are fighting and have fought to keep this country free. Make a list of citizen actions that you can do on a day-to-day and week-to-week basis.

Edmund Burke had it right when he said - “All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good people to do nothing”.