Rick Scott for Governor

Now, before all ye Alex Stink . . . er Sink . . . fans get all upset with me, let me assure you this was the toughest pick to make this election cycle. That's why it's the last one I'm featuring in a post in the dryer.

Mostly, because there was so much mud slinging.

By both candidates, admittedly.

At the end of the day, though, more mud sticks to Sink.

The most effective ad of the season were the ones showing old tape of Stink . . . I mean Sink . . . endorsing the ObamaNation's economic policies and stealth scare plans.

In light of her record as a typical Tallahassee politician who is constantly trying to find scapegoats for her own missteps and failures, I have to go with the anti-politician. It's just that type of year . . .

I hope ye socks will join me in voting for Rick Scott for Governor of Florida.

Teresa Jacobs for Orange County Mayor

Ye socks will recall how frustrated yours truly was with the very crowded field of candidates that assembled to succeed Orange County Mayor Rich Crotty earlier this year.

But, after the August primary, the field was narrowed to just two: current commissioner Bill Segal and former commissioner Teresa Jacobs.

It has been quite easy to compare and contrast these two candidates.

Both have well-documented histories in this little corner of heaven.

If the decision had to be made on demeanor alone, however, I don't see how anyone could vote for Mr. Segal.

In a recent public forum, he sat with arms crossed in what could only be interpreted as a defensive posture. Answering voters' questions, he was more than happy to rattle off how many boards and task forces he belongs to or has belonged to in the past. But, his own ideas are half-baked--particularly when it comes to cutting county employees' healthcare costs and property taxes.

When it comes to jobs, Segal made it clear that his approach as county mayor would be to act as the area's chief salesman. He would pimp out our great natural resources and public amenities to draw new businesses to the area.

At the same forum, Jacobs actively engaged each voter's question. She was leaning forward, looking each person in the eye. And, believe it or not, she actually remembered to use their names as she detailed both her experience and her vision.

Beyond body language, I really liked her answer to the question of improving the local jobs market. Rather than following the tired old formula of selling-out to outsiders, she put more emphasis on utilizing the tremendous resources we already have on hand and encouraging the LOCAL entrepreneurial spirit.

After mulling over this race for the last several months, I can now whole-heartedly endorse Teresa Jacobs for Orange County Mayor.

Pam Bondi for Florida Attorney General

Both major candidates in the race to become Florida's next attorney general have demonstrated their prosecutorial skills.

Each of them have contributed to making our state a safer place by putting criminals behind bars.

But, Dan Gelber has vowed to pull Florida out of the ongoing lawsuit to thwart ObamaCare. He supports the government takeover of our nation's healthcare system.

Pam Bondi, on the other hand, has promised to keep up the fight on behalf of the majority of people in this state--indeed, the majority across the nation--who recoil at the costs to personal liberty.

Our attorney general is not simply the state's "top cop," he (or she!) must also be willing to stand up to federal infringements on state sovereignty.

On that basis, I strongly endorse Pam Bondi for Florida Attorney General.

Exercise your discretion in considering Labarga

Justice Jorge Labarga is another candidate for the state supreme court that our illustrious governor placed on the bench ahead of more qualified jurists.

In fact, he helped him pad his resume during the process by appointing him to a seat on the 4th District Court of Appeal . . . where he served for ONE WHOLE DAY!

Labarga may be better remembered for his role in the disputed 2000 presidential election when, as a Palm Beach County judge he rejected the idea of a re-vote down there.

But attorneys who had to defend their clients against criminal charges in his courtroom remember him better for being overly anxious to crank thru his cases. Speed trumped justice in Labarga's courtroom.

A case in point was the first degree murder charge against one Mark Barrow. Despite requests to the contrary, Labarga would not allow the jury access to transcripts of testimony during their deliberations. Re-reads take too much time, he explained.

It is true the question of re-reads are completely up to the discretion of each judge. But, an appeals court subsequently slammed Labarga for proclaiming a blanket policy in lieu of actually exercising the discretion on a case-by-case basis.

Did I mention said slam was issued by the same 4th DCA on which Labarga had served for that very lengthy term of JUST ONE DAY?!

Since making the move up to Tallahassee, Justice Labarga has further distinguished himself by siding with the previously profiled Justice Perry to throw judicial roadblocks in the way of those trying to exempt Florida from ObamaCare.

Yeah, this guy is a real winner. Not.

Vote NO on retaining Labarga.

Dump Judge Perry

One of the first things Governor Charlie Crist did last year after literally embracing The ObamaNation's agenda at a pro-stimulus rally was to appoint a Democrat to the state supreme court.

Said Democrat is James Perry, who lives in nearby Longwood but is a native of North Carolina and passed the bar in neighboring Georgia before moving to this little corner of heaven.

Perry was suggested to Crist as a candidate for the high court by the Orlando NAACP.

Since taking his seat on the bench up in Tallahassee, Justice Perry has distinguished himself by throwing judicial roadblocks in the way of ongoing efforts to exempt Florida from ObamaCare.

Way to go, Charlie!

The bad news is, while we know Crist is leaving Tallahassee in January, in this case the results of his maladministration will linger unless the voters of the state VOTE NO on the question of Perry's merit retention.

Delusions of Competence

It is no mere coincidence that the updated jobless numbers were released this Friday before a long holiday weekend. The ObamaNation would rather not trumpet the fact that 125,000 more people are without work and the unemployment rate still hovers around 10%.

If too many people were focused on the report, they might start asking questions. And, the answers would inevitably reveal that things are even worse than the official statistics. The truth is there are more like 24 million unemployed and underemployed, a much higher rate of misery.

This is not the sort of "hope and change" they promised, is it?

Poor Christina Romer. She's the unfortunate soul who chairs the president's Council of Economic Advisors. So, it was her unenviable task to spin the dismal results of her advice on all the cable news outlets today. When the folks at Bloomberg TV pressed her on what the administration is going to do now, her frightening response was: "We're always talking about what more we can do."

What MORE they can do?!?

One might argue that all the tinkering they've already done is exactly what is prolonging this great recession. And, if they want the business environment to improve, the best thing they could do would be to exercise restraint. Romer et al would do us all a great service if they encouraged the president to pursue a simple three-point strategy on the economy: (1) extend the low '01 & '03 tax rates, (2) stop discouraging banks from lending, and (3) repeal the many and onerous mandates of ObamaCare.

Instead, she is busy sputtering her flimsy defenses and laughable claims that her boss still has job creation at the top of his agenda.

Actions speak louder than words.

Since taking office, Mr. Obama has made socialized medicine and relaxed immigration policy his primary domestic concerns, not job creation.

Today's jobless numbers reflect that misdirected focus.

And, don't even get me started on the Gulf oil leak. It is, after all, the Friday before a long holiday weekend . . .

March Madness

Having had another 24 hours to further digest the recent constitutional travesty, I am pleased to see our state's attorney general Bill McCollum is taking the lead on filing a lawsuit against the ObamaNation's stealth scare scheme.

Florida, along with eleven other states (so far!) have filed suit in federal court at Pensacola, claiming the socialist agenda is unconstitutional. I'm pleased to see the AG from Louisiana, a Democrat, standing by our side on this one.

Virginia, for a variety of reasons, has filed a separate suit up in Richmond. The basis of their claim is that the mandates issued from on high by Pelosi, Reid, and their ilk, conflicts with existing state law.

Furthermore, it is my understanding that at least 32 other states have either put into place, or are in the process of creating, legislative and constitutional challenges in a variety of forms.

So, America isn't just sitting back and taking it.

I love it!

It sounds like this version of "March madness" may just be settled in the courts, too!

Hope and change, y'all!

Rights vs entitlements

What a travesty last night's vote in Congress was.

Simply put, it is the product of ignorance.

I'm not saying the perpetrators of Socialized Stealth Scare are ingorant. Far from it. Rather, the people who drink their KoolAid are the real dopes.

For instance, let's clarify the definitions of the words "right" and "entitlement."

Rights are endowed by our Creator. They are inalienable. They are NOT granted to you by the government. You are born with them.

Entitlements are simply government hand-outs. They are given or taken away at the whim of our illustrious leaders.

Of course, Socialists have been purposely using the word "right" for "entitlement" for many years, and not just as relates to Stealth Scare.

Back in the days of the late great Soviet Union, they decreed every comrade had the "right" to free food.

Those of us with a little gray hair remember how well that worked for them. Everytime we saw a news report about a grocery store in Moscow, it showed lines of people snaking around a city block. And, when the reporter asked them what they were waiting for, they never knew. They just figured since everyone else was in line . . .

Eerily similar to what's going on in the ObamaNation, no?!

I fear we have not only trashed the Constitution, but have also bankrupted ourselves and future generations . . . wonder if our unborn great-grandchildren are experiencing buyers remorse this morning?!?

I guess they're entitled to feel that way . . .

Pre-empting the State of the Union

Unlike so many of ye socks (tongue planted firmly in cheek), yours truly does not plan to watch this evening's State of the Union address.

Instead, I plan on tuning-out the coverage that is blanketing the airwaves and cable channels more heavily than the recent Haiti earthquake coverage. The alternatives offered by our friends at Netflix are far more palatable.

I did, however, read an advance copy of the speech.

Not only did it reaffirm my viewing choice for this evening, it also made it abundantly clear the White House still doesn't "get it."

The American people want the economy (and JOBS!) at the top of the priority list, not a federal takeover of our healthcare system.

And, even if we did, the manner in which the president's minions in Congress have been conducting business should be repudiated.

At the end of the day, Americans of all political persuasions prefer basic fairness to back door deals like the Cornhusker Kickback, the Louisana Purchase, union exemptions, etc., etc.

It's piffle and nonsense like this that is causing people to turn to DVD's in their mailbox instead of their representatives in DC these days.

Any more loop holes we should be aware of?!

So, the latest absurdity surrounding the Stealth Scare legislation up in DC involves the Amish.

That's right, the Amish. You know, the people who have sworn off all modern conveniences and tool around Pennsylvania in quaint little horse-drawn carriages.

We all know about the Cornhusker Kickback, whereby Senator Ben Nelson exempted his home state of Nebraska from the increased costs that the other 49 states will have to pay.

Here in Florida, our own illustrious Senator Nelson (Bill) got a similar exemption for the three southernmost (and most-Democratic) counties.

We also know about the Second Louisiana Purchase, whereby Senator Mary Landrieu netted her home state hundreds of millions of dollars to buy her vote.

We learned recently of the unions winning exemption from the new "Cadillac Tax" on their health insurance plans.

Now, we hear that the Amish are going to be exempted.

I guess my question is this: If this is such great legislation, and is going to be such a good deal for the American people, why are SO many people scrambling to find a loop hole to escape being subjected to it?!?!? Hmmmmm . . . .

Get ready to get scrooged.

In case ye socks ever doubted the fact that The ObamaNation is completely out-of-step with the real concerns of the American people, I offer you the following poll results.

53% of the American people put the economy & jobs at the top of the national priority list.

Yet, the current occupant of the White House is spending most of his time pimping his global redistribution of wealth plan as THE answer to global warming (an issue only 2% of us put atop said priority list).

And, his minions in Congress are ramming thru their stealth scare legislation in the middle of a blizzard, thumbing their noses at the typical holiday recess.

Only 10% of us put health care reform atop the national agenda. Even that is a misnomer. Health care in this country is the best to be found anywhere in the world. Access to it, and affordability are the things that really need to be reformed. And, you don't accomplish that by socializing the delivery mechanisms.

Yet, this is the path we are on. Printing up more greenbacks to hand out to developing countries so they will halt development in the Quixotic pursuit of global cooling. And, the double-whammy, we're poised to hand over 1/6 of our national economy to the DC beltway brain trust.

Yeah, those things will kickstart the economy and put people back to work.

Hope and change?!

While you were sleeping . . .

Sneaker . . . er Speaker . . . of the House Nancy Pelosi pulled a fast one on you, America.

Borrowing a page out of the Mussolini and Hitler play book on national socialism, she rammed an unconstitutional piece of tripe disguised as healthcare reform legislation through Congress in the middle of the night.

You know, if it won't bear the light of day, then vote on it when the public is fast asleep.

And, I suppose that's the problem, isn't it? We all need to wake up and stop the madness.

Pelosi and her goose-stepping goon squad, with a FIVE VOTE MARGIN, rushed-thru roughly 2,000 pages of incomprehensible gobbledy-gook with a price tage of $1.2 trillion.

Mark my words, ye socks, unless cooler heads prevail in the Senate, this assault on America's fragile economy will:

1. sink small business

2. cause our already astronomical deficit to soar to dizzying new heights

3. force us all to buy insurance policies from Washington

4. cut Medicare spending by $400 billion.

Hope and change = dope and deranged.

Crist statements smell fishy

Yours truly has never been a big fan of our too-tan governor. And, his stock dropped precipitously in this little corner of heaven when he embraced TheObamaNation's wreckless "stimulus" plans to rob future generations. The image of that embrace will always be on my mind when I see his name, particularly on a ballot.

Recently, however, we Floridians have further been shamed by our illustrious chief executive. And, not just by his Q-tip hair.

Now, I don't expect him to stay in Tallahassee 24/7. Wouldn't wish that on anybody. A chill just ran down my spine thinking about it. But, with all this great state has to offer, it is really perplexing why our governor is perpetually traipsing around the other 49 states and the District of Columbia. I guess he's more interested in building a national profile than actually doing the job he was elected to do . . .

This past weekend found him up in Michigan, lying to the GOP faithful. Ok, maybe "lying" is too strong a word. But, he was certainly stretching the truth beyond the point of decency when he claimed credit for cutting Florida's budget from $73 to $66 billion. Ummmm . . . . Last I recall, the budget numbers are smaller because the recession has caused tax revenues to plummet. And, I also recall how Crist actually vetoed a trimmer budget passed by the state legislature in January.

Even more galling, Crist spent today making the rounds of the cable news networks. I guess he'd rather lie to the talking heads than to his actual constituents. Ok, again, maybe "lie" is too strong a word. But, I saw at least two interviews that made me want to retch.

The first was on MSNBC's Morning Joe, where he nearly dislocated his shoulder trying to pat himself on the back for improving Florida's public school system. I'm pretty sure all the accountability measures created by his predecessor (Jeb Bush) deserve the actual credit. But, I guess that's one of those inconvenient truths he'd rather ignore. Any efforts Crist may have made have been completely overshadowed by his out-of-state travels, tv appearances, and presidential hugs.

The second was with John Roberts on CNN, during which he sounded like a only-slightly-less-socialist version of the current occupant of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. He was practically crowing about his version of a "public option" for health insurance: CoverFlorida. What a pathetic joke that has turned out to be. With premiums in the $150/month range, the governor has persuaded a whopping 4,129 people to sign-up since he took office. (We have a population of more than 18 million the last time I checked . . .)

I don't care how many dollars Charlie Crist raises from his out-of-state buddies, or how many times his grinning mug graces the airwaves. I'm just not buying his brand of politics any more. And, I definitely don't want to see it transplanted from Tallahassee to Washington, DC.

Sorry, Charlie.

The real inconvenient truth

Free speech reigns in America, even in these dismal times.

There's a reason it is guaranteed in the FIRST amendment, as it is the primary cornerstone of our republic.

The odd thing is that some people think this amendment should only apply OUTSIDE of the U.S. Capitol and off the airwaves of the major networks. Or, maybe certain citizens have more of a claim to the right than others?

Inside the halls of our illustrious Congress, they would have ye socks believe that decorum and deference to the lying figurehead of a supposedly "co-equal" branch of government is more important . . .

Check your outrage at the door. Shut up. Sit quiet. And, listen to the boldest of lies as they come one after another . . .

Poppycock and piffle!

Frankly, I think we could learn a lot from our British cousins. I kinda like the raucus exchanges between the Members of Parliament and the Prime Minister.

Despite namby-pamby John McCain's assertions to the contrary, no one should apologize for or feel bad about speaking their mind in America . . . ANYWHERE or ANY TIME in America.

It may be inconvenient to the current powers-that-be, but dissension and free speech is still alive and well in this country.

Hope and change, y'all!

Grayson stacks the deck, stifles free speech

Well, ye socks, our illustrious freshman congressman Alan Grayson finally got around to hosting a "town hall meeting" in the district tonight.

I put that in quotes, because the hastily-thrown-together circus was anything but an open forum for his constituents.

It was held in the union hall (go figure) of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, immediately following a meeting of the local Democratic Party.

This meant there were only about 120 seats to be had, and most of them were filled by party activists who hung around after their meeting.

Many, many more people surrounded the building, but were denied entry. Instead, they had to stand outside in the sultry summer air to express their frustration, wave signs, and chant slogans. Surprisingly, there was only one arrest during the two hours of protest: a man who jostled someone while trying to record video of the scene.

Inside, despite the late hour, Grayson used his three children as human shields, reminding every one of the four people who actually dared to ask him a probing question that they were present.

Amazingly, he had the nerve to dismiss questions about tort reform and Medicare fraud because they were not part of the socialist health care bill pending before Congress. In that, he totally missed the point. The fact that these items are not addressed in the bill are just two of the things that make it bad legislation. But, I suppose it is too much to expect our representative in Washington to listen to our concerns and . . . oh, I don't know . . . maybe introduce an amendment or two to address them?!

Ultimately, Grayson was forced to admit the real cause of the nation's high health care costs: "There is a profound lack of competition." Yep, his precise words. And, they ring true.

It is the lack of free and open competition that causes people in New York to pay double the premiums that their neighbors across the state line in Pennsylvania pay.

Any REAL health care reform would address things like that and remove the contrived barriers to affordability.

Instead, Grayson and his ilk seem hellbent on erecting even more barriers, constructing an even bigger bureaucracy in Washington, and leaving an even more astounding mountain of public debt to our children and grandchildren (and their children and grandchildren).

Pitiful and pathetic.

The beauty of competition

In the late 1500's, the lives of three great artists converged in a single place: Venice. And, the competition sparked by these intersecting talents produced a flurry of masterpieces we socks still appreciate today.

The artists in question were Tiziano Vecelli, Jacopo Comin, and Paolo Cagliari--though, ye may know them better by their nicknames: Titian, Tintoretto, and Veronese.

The Museum of Fine Arts up in Boston is hosting an exhibit dedicated to this rivalry thru the 16th of this month. (http://www.mfa.org)

One wonders if, individually, these three great masters would have achieved the heights of their greatness without the competition.

I doubt it.

And, that lesson resonates today--and in more than just the arena of fine art.

For example, as The ObamaNation has recently turned our collective consciousness to it's latest pinata of healthcare reform, those of us who appreciate the beauty of competition should make our voices heard.

The greatest opportunities for real reform lay not in the creation of some behemoth new federal entitlement program or bureaucracy. Rather, they may be found in the removal of existing barriers to competition.

Were ye socks aware that current regulations allow . . . nay, encourage . . . insurance companies to charge nearly twice as much for policies written in New York than they do for policies written in Pennsylvania?

We do not need to create either a single-payer system or a glideway to it as folks like Barney Frank suggest. Either of those "solutions" would effectively kill competition.

Instead, our elected representatives would do well to foster an environment that encourages competition among the various insurance companies that already exist.

Let those underwriters in Pennsylvania compete in New York and elsewhere, and ye will see premiums plummet.

And, the beauty of THAT sort of competition will resound for generations, too; because, unlike the alternatives proposed by the administration and its minions in Congress, it will not bury posterity under a mountain of debt.

A suggestion to Anheuser Busch

Is it just yours truly, or is there electricity in the air on this Beer Summit Eve?

Now, I know a lot of ye socks have criticized The ObamaNation for hosting this event at all. And, I understand the reasons for believing it is beneath the dignity of the White House to get involved in a petty issue like the scrap between Professor Henry Gates and Officer James Crowley--much less propose to act as referee over adult beverages.

I don't know why folks are getting upset now, since we now have a pretty good explanation why we've seen such interesting behavior in and around the executive mansion in recent months: beer!

Is that whole multi-trillion dollar deficit thing beginning to make sense to you now?

And, you thought they were just drunk on their own power as they went about shackling us and future generations with staggering debt and concocted schemes to hijack Wall Street, Detroit, and the nation's healthcare system!

It was just the beer talking, all along!

But, here's my thought. The problem here isn't too much drinking in the West Wing. Rather, there's not been enough!

If we could just convince a patriotic distributor to commit to delivering a keg or two to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue every day, maybe these jackasses* would get plowed and pass out before they could do any more damage!

(* The term jackasses was not used here to offend, but rather as a reference to the reigning party's mascot. And, no, that's not Ted Kennedy . . . though, he does know a little bit about drinking to excess . . . )

And, while they're at it, maybe they could drop a couple off at the other end of The Mall to keep our illustrious legislators busy, too . . .

ABC = All Barack Channel

If ye socks haven't heard this one, yet, it's probably because you've been getting your "news" spoon-fed to you by ABC.

Apparently, they have agreed to give the ObamaNation a free 90-minute infomercial disguised as a town hall meeting to pimp socialized medicine.

It won't be a very good disguise, though.

In real town hall meetings, there's a good cross-section of the community present. And, they don't all march lock step behind The Benevolent Leader like a bunch of Maoist lemmings.

ABC has explicitly said they will not only disallow those who oppose socialized medicine from offereing a rebuttal, they won't even be allowed to attend. Period.

I'm not much one for boycotts, but this sort of behavior does not deserve to be rewarded.

Ironically, in my search to find out who was underwriting this free infomercial for the ObamaNation, I discovered a lot of pharmaceutical types on the list. Hmmmm . . .

Check it out for yourselves at: http://www.nationalcenter.org/ABCNewsSponsors.html

Liberte, egalite, et BROKE

I just got done watching a story about the healthcare system in France on my favorite CBS Sunday Morning show.

Piffle.

The "resident correspondent in Paris" who put the piece together extolled the virtues of socialized medicine, but buried the most important part of the story:

The French government extorts an awful lot of money out of its workers to pay for their socialist boondoggles.

AND, they still come up short!

Even with the high taxes, their national healthcare "system" still operates with a DEFICIT!

Don't gloss over the FACTS, ye media types!

Socialism is NOT the answer to healthcare . . . or anything else for that matter. It deserves its place in the proverbial dustbin of history, not to be glamorized in a segment on a tv news magazine.

Democrat lies to scare voters into government take-over of healthcare

While the "mainstream" media is busy tripping all over itself in their grand effort to make the junior senator from Illinois appear competent on his overseas travels this week, yours truly would like to shift focus to his domestic agenda. I like to call it his "Contract Against America."

Neither he nor his ilk in the Democratic Party are above citing bogus numbers (a.k.a. "lying") to scare voters into believing their socialist propaganda. In this little corner of heaven, we remember all too well the shenanigans of our late not-so-great pill-popping governor Lawton "Smiles for Miles" Chiles.

Well, now their presumptive presidential nominee is propagating the lie that there are 47 million uninsured Americans. And, of course, the only answer is to have the federal government take-over that entire sector of our economy. Bureaucrats know best, don't ya know?!

Poppycock and balderdash!

I refer to the real numbers compiled by the Congressional Budget Office to arrive at the following:

47.00 million "uninsured" in this country at any given time.
-21.15 million who are only temporarily between coverage (less than 4 month gap)
-10.00 million non-citizens (for whom I don't believe we have any obligation to pay)
-7.65 million who are eligible for Medicare or other state-level programs but have failed to apply

= 8.2 million truly long-term uninsured.

That is nothing to be crowing about, to be sure. But, neither does it warrant the higher taxes and bigger government the latest media star is advocating.

Don't believe the hype!