Salsa!

Fresh Salsa~2011

1 lb onions (ours!)
1 & 1/2 lb peppers
(mostly Jalapeno & some banana) (ours!)
4 & 1/2 lb tomatoes- peeled, not seeded
(roma, porter & rutger) (ours!)

2 T. salt
10-11 oz tomato paste
7 T. lime juice (bottled Real Lime)
5 T. olive oil
4 & 1/2 t. cumin
2 & 1/2 t. garlic
1/4 t. powdered cayenne

Process in the food processor.
Pour into clean jars, and keep the extras in the freezer.


Serving suggestion: serve with Costco's Organic Corn Chips!

note: we used all the Jalapenos we had, and it was not enough...
Tweaked Salsa Recipe HERE.

THE GENERAL'S SON

Miko Peled is a peace activist who dares to say in public what others still choose to deny. Born in Jerusalem in 1961 into a well known Zionist family, his grandfather, Dr. Avraham Katsnelson was a Zionist leader and signer of the Israeli Declaration of Independence. His Father, Matti Peled, was a young officer in the war of 1948 and a general in the war of 1967 when Israel conquered the West Bank, Gaza, Golan Heights and Sinai. Miko's unlikely opinions reflect his father's legacy. General Peled was a war hero turned peacemaker.



From the end: ".....For those people who do want to associate themselves with Israel and Zionism and drape themselves in the Zionist flag, the flag that has come to represent intolerance, hate, racism, and brutality, they can feel free to do so, but they need to know this, that when the trials begin and the tribunals take their place and the Truth and Reconciliation commission begins its work and they are finally shamed into admitting that they were wrong, they need to remember to go down on their knees and beg forgiveness from the people they so blatantly wronged because they need to realize that we will never forget them and their conscience will never allow them to forget that they supported the killing, they draped themselves in the flag and they mocked the bereaved....the rest of us will move on and.....we will go on to create a democratic secular state in our shared homeland where Muslims, Christians and Jews live as equals......"

Too true, I'm afraid............

"America is a land of enchantment, virtually the entire population is in a trance induced by the magic spell of mass media".

William Whitten, Social critic

Can your own food...

...it really is a lot of fun!
(Click here!)

SIMPSON: TSA’s full-body oglers

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/may/20/tsas-full-body-oglers/

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/may/20/tsas-full-body-oglers/

Feel like a radiated sitting duck?

Check out this terrific blog post I found at Farm Wars:

http://farmwars.info/?p=6062

By Barbara H. Peterson

Farm Wars

At this point in time, most of us can say “no” to vaccines, genetically modified (GM) food, fluoride, and Big Pharma drugs. But we can’t “just say no” to radiation in the air all around us coming from Japan, and through oceanic contamination resulting from the BP Gulf incident. So, the difficult question is not how do we avoid this contamination, but rather, how we mitigate our exposure.

Let’s face it. We are surrounded by radioactive contaminants in the air, water, soil, and in our food, which is grown outdoors. We cannot control the air, which contaminates the soil, water, and plants. So, if we cannot get away from the problem, then what do we do? We can start by making sure that we have the knowledge to do the right things and collect the right resources to lessen our exposure. The following is a collection of some of the materials and applications that can be used to mitigate radiation exposure. ....... (continued here...)

Just stand up and say no!

Rick Donaldson says:

"Nullification in action "Protesters target FDA, drink fresh milk on Mall..." "

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/may/16/mothers-crying-over-raw-milk/?page=all#pagebreak

BARBARA L. SALISBURY/THE WASHINGTON TIMES MILKY WAY: Liz Reitzig of Bowie (far left) and Karine Bouis-Towe of Takoma Park prepare to drink fresh milk from Morgan the cow at a rally at Upper Senate Park in the District on Monday. The organization Grassfed on the Hill held the rally to support Pennsylvania dairy farmer Dan Allgyer.

Click here to watch the video!

www.realmilk.com

Texas House passes David Simpson's bill (Anti-Pat Down)

David Simpson is our RP newbie in the state house.

http://blog.tenthamendmentcenter.com/2011/05/texas-house-to-the-tsa-you-are-nullified/

http://trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2011/05/fun-with-frisking-legislation.html

http://www.wtaw.com/2011/05/13/texas-house-bans-offensive-security-patdowns/

The 82nd Legislative session ends soon! We don't have much time!

Tell our Texas Senate to stand up and say NO to DC.

Click here to support HB 1937 Banning Intrusive Groping of Travelers petition.

Our trip to Austin, May 10th 2011

(Click here for a little video that we made on the way home)
Testimony before the House committee hearing on SB9:

http://www.campaignforliberty.com/blog.php?view=42175

We made a last minute, whirlwind trip to Austin, I had to wait and see if donations came in to pay for the trip! I'm so glad we went. Besides speaking at the hearing we were able to meet with others working for our freedom and visit some legislator's offices.

After testifying I was approached by a member of Sen. Williams staff who assured me that those terrible REAL ID elements had been removed from the bill. I am distressed that they were even there in the first place - introduced and co-sponsored by Republicans. It's in the Rep party of Texas platform - they are against REAL ID. Some may say we were overreacting, but we have learned from past experience that anything can happen up until the eleventh hour and fifty-ninth minute. We have seen it with TxDOT and the Trans Texas Corridor (not dead and renamed) bills, amendments slipped in at the end that totally voided all our hard work. If they even thought about the implementation of REAL ID and random check points (this has come up in other legislation) then we needed to cry foul as loudly as possible - only then do we get their attention and help stem the tide of tyranny.

A gentleman spoke who came here from Ethiopia in the early 1940's, he fought for the US in WW2. He said he came to live in a free country and we aren't free anymore. He was very passionate and emotional as you can imagine. He is the perfect example of how others can see what's happened here, but too many of us native born Americans have become accustomed to it little by little like the frog in the kettle, we haven't noticed how hot the water has become.

If we don't stand up and say NO - the state as well as local and federal government will continue to bleed us dry and control us more and more, by littles.

Here are my rough draft comments I distributed to the committee members: I didn't have a chance to say much when testifying, I was rushed and interrupted by the chair, oh well, I did what I could. (I put these down quickly while getting ready to leave Monday night, didn't have time to polish and fine tune.)

Several reasons I oppose any legislation that brings us further into compliance with the Federal REAL ID ACT.

1. Unfunded mandates, the people can't take anymore increases in fees/taxes, etc.

2. Unlikely to help curb illegal immigration with our porous borders and welfare/public services/citizenship incentives, mainly it will serve to hassle and harass law abiding people.

3. Collecting finger prints of law abiding people is an invasion of privacy (I know this has been done for several years, and I protest it).

4. Check points for any reason other than road blocks for specific crimes/criminal suspects ie: man hunt - UNCONSTITUTIONAL

5. GPS tracking without court order - UNCONSTITUTIONAL

6. Federalizing state databases UNCONSTITUTIONAL. It is the duty of the state government to protect her citizens from the Federal government. Whether it's REAL ID, no child left behind or mandatory health care.

7. When will Texas stand up to DC and say NO to these encroachments? Do you realize that we are becoming a more and more controlled society? We are looking more and more like the Soviet Union or Nazi Germany. We aren't free. If you aren't part of the solution then you are part of the problem. You work for us, not the Federal government. You work FOR us, we don't work for you. In the testimony before the Senate hearing an assistant to the director of DPS/License bureau referred to us as customers. We aren't customers if we have no choice in whether we do business with you. We sure aren't customers if we can go to jail for refusing to do business with you. After the War for Independence can you imagine George Washington or Thomas Jefferson being stopped and checked for their papers or obtaining a license to ride their horse to town or church?

Yes, we live in very different times, but I put it to you that many of the evils we face are a result of government actions and more government actions will not solve the underlying problems. It's the classic Hegelian Dialectic. Cause a problem, provoke a reaction, and provide the solution. The real result is more and more tyranny.

Campaign for Liberty has 18,988 members in Texas. The overwhelming majority of our members oppose this legislation.

"Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." ~Benjamin Franklin

For Liberty,

Debbie McKee, Interim State Coordinator for Campaign For Liberty

Interesting tibbits from our visit to Austin:

http://www.campaignforliberty.com/blog.php?view=42177

One fellow named John came to testify. He was wearing a t-shirt that said "TYRANNY - enough is enough". While going through security he made some comment about the technology used these days, the trooper didn't care for what he said, I suppose. He was detained and had his photo taken. He was late to join us and told us what happened. After we were done with the hearing we went to file a complaint with the DPS office there in the building. We traipsed into the supervisor's office - about a dozen of us. There is a video of it, I hope to see it posted somewhere soon. It was quite interesting, especially the fact that there was an "assault rifle" (I'm guessing that's what it was) propped up in a corner just inches from where my daughter ended up standing. (we were crowded in and some of us were in the doorway).

Another fellow with us was given a hard time by a trooper at the security check point over his hair style. One of our group later made the comment (paraphrased) "How do you like that? Coming into to your own house and being insulted by your hired doorman? " How inappropriate is that?

It was an interesting day.

A People’s Uprising Against the Empire (Middle Eastern tea parties??)

by Llewellyn H. Rockwell, Jr.

Those of the young generation, people too young to remember the collapse of Soviet-bloc and other socialist states in 1989 and 1990, are fortunate to be living through another thrilling example of a seemingly impenetrable State edifice reduced to impotence when faced with crowds demanding freedom, peace, and justice.

There is surely no greater event than this. To see it instills in us a sense of hope that the longing for freedom that beats in the heart of every human being can be realized in our time.

This is why all young people should pay close attention to what is happening in Egypt, to the protests against the regime of Hosni Mubarak as well as the pathetic response coming from his imperial partner, the US, which has given him $60 billion in military and secret police aid to keep him in power.

The US is in much the same situation today as the Soviet Union was in 1989, as a series of socialist dominoes toppled. Poland, Romania, Hungary, East Germany, Bulgaria, and Czechoslovakia all experienced dramatic meltdowns, while the Soviet regime, supportive of these systems since the end of the Second World War, sat by helplessly and watched. Leaders made vague statements about the need for peaceful transitions and elections, while the people on the ground completely ignored them.

What has sparked the uprising? There are economic considerations, of course. A good rate of inflation in Egypt is considered to be 10%, and currency depreciation works as a massive punishment against savings and capital accumulation. Unemployment is high, about the same rate as the US, but is even higher for young people who are worried about the future.

Economic growth has been much better in the last decades thanks to economic reforms, but this tendency (as in the old Soviet bloc) has only worked to create rising expectations and more demands for freedom. It remains a fact that nearly half the population lives in terrifying poverty.

The core of the problem, it appears, relates to civil liberties and the very old-fashioned conviction that the country is ruled by a tyrant who must go. Mubarak tolerates no challenges to his martial-law rule. There are tens of thousands of political prisoners in the country, and it is easy to get arrested and tortured simply by calling the dictator names. The press is censored, opposition groups are suppressed, and corruption runs rampant. Mubarak’s will to power has known no bounds: he chooses all the country’s elites based solely on personal loyalty to himself.

Mubarak has ruled for 30 years and yes there have been elections every six years, but these are widely seen as for show only. Opposition candidates end up prosecuted for a variety of invented crimes. Democracy in Egypt is merely a slogan for one-party rule. And this is striking: the main excuse for his martial law is one that is all-too-familiar to Americans: the war on terror (and never mind the terror dispensed by the warriors themselves).

Probably a more substantive issue concerns the digital revolution and the opening up of the entire world through the Internet – a species of the very thing that the US cited as the reason for the anti-Soviet uprisings of the late eighties and early nineties. Many young people in Egypt are as connected to the world through social media as American teenagers, and enjoy access to the sights and sounds of the modernity that the regime so opposes.

To understand what is driving the protests, consider the date that they began: National Police Day on January 25. This is the holiday created by Mubarak only in 2009. Talk about misjudging the situation! And sure enough, the government’s response was to jam nearly all Internet communications and shut down all cell-phone service on the day of the planned protest. But it didn’t work: Thanks to what is now being called "hacktivism," the revolution is being broadcast around the world through Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, even as Wikipedia is being updated minute by minute. And the Al Jazeera English live feed has, as usual, put biased US media to shame.

Meanwhile, official government voices in the US have been pathetically behind the times. Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton have been refusing to describe Mubarak as a dictator, while lamely urging a transition to an election – run by and ruled over by the Mubarak regime. The protest leadership immediately saw that line for what it was, and rejected it outright. It is unbearably obvious that the US is nearly alone in more-or-less supporting Mubarak, but that is exactly what you would expect of the imperial backer of the despot.

What are the protesters’ demands? It is not complicated. As in 1989, the one demand is that the dictator go. This makes complete sense and is the only solution that accords with what is right and just. This and only this will establish the basis for a transition to anything. What follows after that is really something that has to be worked out by the Egyptian people, who have had their voices muzzled for far too long, and not by the CIA.

What the uprisings underscore is a fundamental reality that the world too often forgets. It gets to the core of the relationship between any government and any people, in all times and all places. The people far outnumber the government, and for that reason, and even when the government is heavily armed, every government must depend on some degree of consent to continue its rule. If the whole of a people rise up and say no, the bureaucrats and even the police are powerless. This is the great secret of government that is mostly ignored until revolution day arrives.

More than the anti-Soviet protests of the late 1980s, the Egyptian uprisings reveal what might eventually come home to the empire itself. Under the right conditions, and at the right time, there might come a time when the consciousness will dawn right here at home. It could happen here for the same reason it could happen anywhere.

Government knows this, and hence its accumulation of weaponry and relentless propaganda. The difficulty for the State comes when its will to power generates what Thomas Jefferson called "a long train of abuses" that create a burning desire within people to rise up and demand freedom, since, after all, it is the right of a people, is it not, to alter and abolish the form of government under which they are forced to live.

February 1, 2011

Llewellyn H. Rockwell, Jr. [send him mail], former editorial assistant to Ludwig von Mises and congressional chief of staff to Ron Paul, is founder and chairman of the Mises Institute, executor for the estate of Murray N. Rothbard, and editor of LewRockwell.com. See his books.

Copyright © 2011 by LewRockwell.com. Permission to reprint in whole or in part is gladly granted, provided full credit is given.

Saving Our Country, One Boy at a Time

The article I could have written and the message I have been trying to get across to those who would listen.

So sad, I wish I could have persuaded my own son............

Click Here for the article

Rockwall "tea party" event in Greenville?

To be published soon.

Dear Editor,

Well, the “Rockwall tea party rally” last night got off to a late
start. After a long session of listening to elected public servants
and candidates or their representatives, I was beginning to wonder
whether we’d ever get to the Q and A which was the main reason many of
us chose to attend. Almost two hours later the Q and A began which
was moderated by John Stacy, who did a great job. There were some
really good questions asked.

Some people were surprised to find that the event was not put on by me
and wondered why Rockwall would host an event in Greenville.


The best things I heard were from Rep. Jodie Laubenberg District 89,
Rockwall, she agrees that we should tell DC no about the Federal
health care mandate and that Texas should take care of Texans. She
also mentioned something I’ve been stressing - the importance of
showing up during the session. And from David Simpson, candidate from
District 7 - Longview, who won a real David and Goliath primary race
and has no formidable challenger this November. He spoke of the
importance of returning to the PROPER, LIMITED role of government and
more important than how to reform taxes is reducing spending. He
briefly mentioned choice in education. Let the money flow to good
schools and good teachers. Without competition in education we will
continue to suffer from mediocrity. We can increase teacher pay by
cutting out some non-teaching positions.

Our Rep. Dan Flynn, District 2, answered one of my questions about the
procedure and criteria to review and eliminate agencies and programs.
He has served on the Sunset Advisory Commission in the past.

So the work continues - educate yourself and others, show up, keep the
pressure on them. We will reap if we faint not.


The Greenville Area Patriots continue to meet every Monday at 6 PM at
the Greenville Public Library. “Securing the Blessings of Liberty:
An Examination of the US Constitution” is our current program. Our
meetings are free and open to all. Contact netxlc@gmail.com or
903.862.2214 for more info.


Debbie McKee
Greenville Area Patriots

my reply to a fear mongering WW3 forwarded email

Are you aware the CIA overthrew the government of Iran in 1953 to protect BP's interests?

A former USAF officer wrote this article:
http://www.lewrockwell.com/latulippe/latulippe41.html

...In essence, the United States had engaged in a massive covert operation designed to remove a democratically elected leader from power and reinstall an authoritarian monarch (a move which makes a mockery of our currently stated desire to "spread democracy" in the Middle East)....

More:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wg1WuPgFJQ&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Js9mU8evhqs

Explanation of the CIA's term "Blowback", some of it's covert operations and the consequences:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5SoE9vBc6I&feature=related

For further digging into our intervention/foreign policy and protection of the multi-national corporations:
Major General Smedley Butler "War is a Racket"
John Perkins "Economic Hit Man".

There is always more to the story than we are lead to believe.

Letter to the Editor About Redistricting

At the bottom I added additional notes that weren't included in the originally published letter. GHB 10-3-10

I attended the Texas Redistricting committee hearing last week in Richardson. I testified, saying that although I’m a member or organizer for several different grassroots groups I was there to represent myself and I felt confident that I was speaking for millions of Texans.

1. I urged them to be fair, independent and non-partisan, do what is best for Texas. 40% of Texans consider themselves politically independent.

2. I urged them to get this worked out before the session starts and to not let this issue bog it down. There are many vital issues to address and we don’t want valuable time wasted fighting over this.

3. I urged them to put blindfolds on and do NOTHING to protect ANY seats. Too many have been in office for far too long, and if their district gets redrawn, they can run for office like anyone else. I urged them to be open and transparent about the entire process, no back room deals.

I neglected to mention one issue, frankly because I couldn’t imagine that it WAS an issue. The longer I sat (I was there for over 4 hours) and listened to comments from committee members (half of whom were not present at any given time), and the testimonies, the more I realized that it WAS an issue. Carving out districts for “communities of interest”. There are some genuinely racist folks in ALL groups, but I truly believe the vast majority of Texans are color blind. We look past skin color or last name and judge people based on their character.

The voting rights act was mentioned as the legal basis for this practice. If the lines are drawn fairly and impartially to keep cities and towns together as much as possible, no one can claim they are being disenfranchised.

I really don’t understand how any one group thinks it should have some special benefits from or access to the government. Our representatives should represent ALL of us. Doing what is best for an entire county or city will benefit ALL the residents. If government was limited to its proper role, there wouldn’t be such a fight to get our snouts in the trough.

What if I insisted that as a homeschooling family they should carve out districts that represent us – so that we can have our own representatives in office- how ridiculous does that sound? It’s just as ludicrous to think that your skin or heritage warrants that type of treatment. Groups don’t have rights; individuals in groups have individual rights.

Do what’s best for Texas! Who cares if the Feds think we should draw lines differently? As long as it’s fair and impartial there should be no complaint. It’s been over 30 years since it was enacted This KEEPS the wounds open, keeps us divided – let’s heal, come together, work together, grow up and get over it. As some testifying put it, “we work together, go to school together, shop together, play together, it’s time to move on”.

Additional notes not included in letter to the editor:

Rep. Marc Veasey, Ft. Worth, hurt his cause and his people when he exhibited such a disgraceful, arrogant and unprofessional attitude. I was shocked to watch how he disrespected people with his body language, facial expressions and words. When Barbara Harless spoke about the Constitution and the members’ oaths they had taken, he covered his face, turned away and began typing on a keyboard. He was the acting chair at that time. It was utterly disgraceful.

The fact that half the time half the committee wasn’t there and that so many didn’t even seem to pay attention to the people who took time out of their busy lives, took time from work to come and testify was very disappointing and disturbing. THEY are our elected public SERVANTS, we hired them to do a job and we expect them to take it seriously.

Do the right thing and follow the simple Golden Rule.

(Rep. Bryan Hughes -one of the members in attendance - is not included in this criticism.)

Would you like to sign a petition?

This is what the petition states:

We the people of the City of Gainesville Florida, and others everywhere who support freedom of religion, sincerely request that the Dove World Outreach Center Church not proceed with their plans to burn the Koran on 9/11 or at any other time. Freedom of religion is a founding principle of our Constitution and the burning of any people's sacred texts is in direct opposition to this principle. If you proceed with your plans to burn the Koran, please understand that this act will not serve to lessen our respect for the Muslim faith, but will only serve to lessen our respect for you and what you are preaching.

This is the link to the petition:
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/PleaseDontBurnTheKoran/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
And my comment was:
Your actions will only serve to foster more hostility toward the TRUE religion and teachings of Christ. This will not help you carry out the Great Commission and "make disciples of all the world". You are like the Pharisees of Jesus' day... who thought they were religious and chosen by God. Yes, they were religious and yes they were chosen by God, but chosen for damnation, not for life everlasting WITH HIM. We are to be salt and light, ready to give an answer for the hope that lies within us. Who did Jesus have the harshest words for? The heathen? NO. The ones who thought they were religious. The ones who crucified Him.

To the Muslims who may read this, please know that this hateful attitude is representative of only a small number of extremist "christians". NOT true followers of Christ.

Not So Funnies (from thelibertyvoice.com)

Everyone should read his farewell address. He warned us about lots of things we are dealing with today. There really is nothing new under the sun.

Independent thinkers seek out thought provoking news and are willing to learn from those whose perspectives come from another angle. No one ever learns unless their presuppositions are challenged. Get outside the box, look at things from a bird's eye view. Be a "good Berean" and see whether these things are so. Don't just dismiss a commentator because he's a "liberal". Listen with an open mind to what he has to say. Don't just accept what the "conservative" talking head is saying just because he uses catch phrases you are familiar with.
Think for yourself.

Left and the Right Demagogue Mosque, Islam

by Congressman Ron Paul

Is the controversy over building a mosque near ground zero a grand distraction or a grand opportunity? Or is it, once again, grandiose demagoguery?

It has been said, "Nero fiddled while Rome burned." Are we not overly preoccupied with this controversy, now being used in various ways by grandstanding politicians? It looks to me like the politicians are "fiddling while the economy burns."

The debate should have provided the conservative defenders of property rights with a perfect example of how the right to own property also protects the 1st Amendment rights of assembly and religion by supporting the building of the mosque.

Instead, we hear lip service given to the property rights position while demanding that the need to be "sensitive" requires an all-out assault on the building of a mosque, several blocks from "ground zero."

Just think of what might (not) have happened if the whole issue had been ignored and the national debate stuck with war, peace, and prosperity. There certainly would have been a lot less emotionalism on both sides. The fact that so much attention has been given the mosque debate, raises the question of just why and driven by whom?

In my opinion it has come from the neo-conservatives who demand continual war in the Middle East and Central Asia and are compelled to constantly justify it.

They never miss a chance to use hatred toward Muslims to rally support for the ill conceived preventative wars. A select quote from soldiers from in Afghanistan and Iraq expressing concern over the mosque is pure propaganda and an affront to their bravery and sacrifice.

The claim is that we are in the Middle East to protect our liberties is misleading. To continue this charade, millions of Muslims are indicted and we are obligated to rescue them from their religious and political leaders. And, we're supposed to believe that abusing our liberties here at home and pursuing unconstitutional wars overseas will solve our problems.

The nineteen suicide bombers didn't come from Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan or Iran. Fifteen came from our ally Saudi Arabia, a country that harbors strong American resentment, yet we invade and occupy Iraq where no al Qaeda existed prior to 9/11.

Many fellow conservatives say they understand the property rights and 1st Amendment issues and don't want a legal ban on building the mosque. They just want everybody to be "sensitive" and force, through public pressure, cancellation of the mosque construction.

This sentiment seems to confirm that Islam itself is to be made the issue, and radical religious Islamic views were the only reasons for 9/11. If it became known that 9/11 resulted in part from a desire to retaliate against what many Muslims saw as American aggression and occupation, the need to demonize Islam would be difficult if not impossible.

There is no doubt that a small portion of radical, angry Islamists do want to kill us but the question remains, what exactly motivates this hatred?

If Islam is further discredited by making the building of the mosque the issue, then the false justification for our wars in the Middle East will continue to be acceptable.

The justification to ban the mosque is no more rational than banning a soccer field in the same place because all the suicide bombers loved to play soccer.

Conservatives are once again, unfortunately, failing to defend private property rights, a policy we claim to cherish. In addition conservatives missed a chance to challenge the hypocrisy of the left which now claims they defend property rights of Muslims, yet rarely if ever, the property rights of American private businesses.

Defending the controversial use of property should be no more difficult than defending the 1st Amendment principle of defending controversial speech. But many conservatives and liberals do not want to diminish the hatred for Islam -- the driving emotion that keeps us in the wars in the Middle East and Central Asia.

It is repeatedly said that 64% of the people, after listening to the political demagogues, don't want the mosque to be built. What would we do if 75% of the people insist that no more Catholic churches be built in New York City? The point being is that majorities can become oppressors of minority rights as well as individual dictators. Statistics of support is irrelevant when it comes to the purpose of government in a free society -- protecting liberty.

The outcry over the building of the mosque, near ground zero, implies that Islam alone was responsible for the 9/11 attacks. According to those who are condemning the building of the mosque, the nineteen suicide terrorists on 9/11 spoke for all Muslims. This is like blaming all Christians for the wars of aggression and occupation because some Christians supported the neo-conservatives' aggressive wars.

The House Speaker is now treading on a slippery slope by demanding an investigation to find out just who is funding the mosque -- a bold rejection of property rights, 1st Amendment rights, and the Rule of Law -- in order to look tough against Islam.

This is all about hate and Islamaphobia.

We now have an epidemic of "sunshine patriots" on both the right and the left who are all for freedom, as long as there's no controversy and nobody is offended.

Political demagoguery rules when truth and liberty are ignored.

http://www.campaignforliberty.com/article.php?view=1077

'Mosque' Debate Is a "Red Herring"...

....All this posturing is getting tiresome. The "mosque" controversy isn't
about property rights or religious freedom. It's a bogus issue seized by
the GOP establishment to distract the rank-and-file from the party's
reluctance to shrink government.....It's all too typical: Feed the rubes conservative... identity politics,
and, with luck, they'll be too distracted to notice you've grafted a
Republican "K Street Project" atop the same old edifice of Big
Government.

The establishment Right wants to play the Tea Party movement for suckers. It remains to be seen whether they'll play along."

Click here to look at an article by Gene Healy

Have you read this book?

"Nullification: How to Resist Federal Tyranny in the 21st Century"

(click here to buy)

Unsustainable Empire

(I do not know if they will print this letter)

Dear Editor,

I appreciated your column on Sunday July 18^th about how the way things are going is unsustainable. I agree with you.

If only folks who supported Bush would look at his record as critically as they look at Obama’s AND VICE VERSA!!!

Until that happens we will never recover, regain or restore our country. What is the saying “those who don’t know history are doomed to repeat it”? Well, we’ve been in a downward spiral of repetition for a good 100 -150 years.

Unfortunately, since the government controls education and the corporations control the media (and our government) the average Jane and Joe will never learn the truth. They are too distracted with their favorite TV shows and the kids’ sports activities. If they do catch the news or their favorite political pundits they are served up pre-approved, pablum from the “Ministry of Truth”. Yes, they have two “flavors” - left and right, something for most everyone.

I keep hoping and praying that more people will wake up and realize what’s going on before we come to total collapse and ruin. But that may be what it takes to finally get people’s attention.

Empires come crashing down eventually. We spend approximately ONE Trillion per year on our military budget. More than ALL other countries combined!!! We have bases/troops/outposts in over 150 countries/territories/regions and over 700 bases on foreign land. We give 7-8 million PER DAY to one wealthy ally in military aid (which of course provides corporate welfare to the US companies that fulfill the contracts.)

Just more ways we are being looted while the Empire is crumbling around us. This is unsustainable.

Don’t let them continue to distract you with the flag while they burn the Constitution. Read the Declaration of Independence for a refresher. It’s the duty of every American to criticize the government. The Federal government is not America. We the People are America.

Debbie McKee

Campbell, TX

Report on the 2010 RPT Convention, June 8-12

We started the week on Tuesday – attending the temporary rules committee meetings. Following the party rules and Texas election law is important and we were there to carefully observe the discussions and proceedings, testify and present amendments that would bring the party into compliance with the Texas Election Code (the subject of the lawsuit filed against the party in 2008) and strengthen the accountability the party has over candidates and elected public servants by requiring a pledge for ballot access. Both were rejected.


We spent a little time in the platform committee and also heard a challenge (Bruce Bollock, Brazoria County) in the credentials committee on Thursday. The challenge was over the refusal of a request for access to public record. The same challenge was filed in 2008, but was rejected on a technicality. It was rejected this time as well, but a minority report was filed. Many of those who voted against the challenge felt the punishment was too harsh – the only consequence allowed for breaking party rules is to have credentials removed and not be seated as a delegate. So it didn’t lose on the merit of the case, but for the required consequences.


The highlight of the week was the launch of former gubernatorial candidate, Debra Medina’s “We Texans” grassroots organization. The party denied her vendor space so she held a banquet Friday night and invited FOX news’ Judge Andrew Napolitano as the keynote speaker. The audible moans of dismay and surprise from the guests when he told us things you won’t hear in the mainstream news (yes, even FOX) was very encouraging.


The party chair race was a three way race. Many were unhappy with the current (and past) leadership, lack of progress, accountability and transparency. Anybody but the incumbent (Cathie Adams) was commonly heard.


Steve Munisteri won the nomination on the second ballot of the nominations committee. Each Senate district caucus nominated a candidate and sent a representative to the committee. The third candidate running, Tom Mechler, came out in support of Steve. Some wanted to nominate Cathie from the convention floor and although former parliamentarian Robert Johnson did not support her, he called for the chair to allow it according to the rules. Steve Munisteri won by almost 2 to 1. It was a clear mandate from the delegates present. Cathie never came out to address us or give a concession speech, which we thought was very odd. The convention ran very late for the speech filled, two day agenda didn’t leave much time for the actual convention business. Some people wanted to hurry up and leave while others cried from the microphone “this is what we came here for!”


Overall, much progress was made. The 2010 convention was run more fairly than the 2008 was. The (rules and credentials) committee chairs at least allowed testimony and discussion, the delegates were permitted some voice on the floor, parliamentary procedure was not followed exactly, but it was much improved (they didn’t cut the microphones or railroad us as much as in 2008). I think they realized they’d have mutiny on their hands if they didn’t straighten up somewhat.


One immediate change was noted. The SREC (representatives from each senate district make up the board of the state party) meeting held before the convention was held in a tiny room, barely space for the committee, and very limited space for observers. Our request to move to a larger room was denied. There were more people outside trying to get in than there were inside! I gave up my seat for the soon to become new state party chair. One very disgusted older man with a cane called the fire marshal! During the meeting motions were made to bring the convention agenda into compliance with the TEC and to open the books and see the expenditures of the party chair. Both were rejected.


The meeting held by the new chair upon adjournment of the convention was held in a much more adequate space. One third of the SREC was newly elected, mainly due to term limitations.


All in all, those who desire to see the party held to its stated principles and want transparency and accountability were not disappointed. We are hopeful that with further involvement and hard work we can turn this party (and our government at all levels) around. The political parties are the seedbeds for our public servants. We must clean them up and demand integrity and accountability, to do that we must become involved, as distasteful as that can be. For we know that “Evil triumphs when good men do nothing.”

Another perspective

(I've been following this situation for several years. Getting info from various sources (outside the mainstream US media). This was from Jewish Voice for Peace where I first learned about Israeli young people willing to go to jail instead of serving to occupy Palestine. At least look at another perspective....)

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Lying About The Gaza Flotilla Disaster

June 02, 2010 1:31 pm ET — MJ Rosenberg

It's been one lie after another in the US media about the Israeli attack on the Gaza-bound relief flotilla. No matter that the Israeli media views the whole incident as a debacle for Israel, in this country the Israel-can-do-no-wrong crowd is on overdrive defending the operation. As usual, facts don't matter to them.

Except they do.

The first thing you need to know about the Gaza flotilla disaster is that the intention of the activists on board the ships was to break the Israeli blockade. Delivering the embargoed goods was incidental.

In other words, the activists were like the civil rights demonstrators who sat down at segregated lunch counters throughout the South and refused to leave until they were served. Their goal was not really to get breakfast. It was to end segregation.

That fact is so obvious that it is hard to believe that the "pro-Israel" lobby is using it as an indictment.

Of course the goal of the flotilla was to break the blockade. Of course Martin Luther King provoked the civil authorities of the South to break segregation. Of course the Solidarity movement used workers' rights as a pretext to break Soviet-imposed Communism.

The bottom line is that the men and women of the flotilla had every right to attempt to destroy an illegal blockade that Israel had no legal standing to impose and which was designed to inflict collective punishment on the people of Gaza. (There is no truth to the story that Israel would have delivered the goods on the ships to Gaza if asked; the Israelis never made that offer and, judging by years of precedent, would have blocked any delivery.)

As for the Israeli argument that its soldiers were attacked, that is ridiculous. Israeli commandos were ordered to board a civilian ship in international waters and the government that sent them claims that the resisting passengers attacked them without provocation. This is like a carjacker complaining to the police that the driver bashed him with a crowbar that was under the seat. Neither carjackers nor hijackers should expect their victims to acquiesce peacefully.

Here are the facts about life in Gaza today -- facts that only can be changed by breaking the blockade. These data come from the American Near East Relief Association (ANERA), which provides relief to Gazans to the extent permitted by the Israeli (and American) authorities. ANERA is neither "pro-Israel" nor "pro-Palestinian." It has no political agenda at all. It merely determines what human needs are and tries to respond to them.

8 out of 10 Gazans depend on foreign aid to survive.

The World Food Program says Gaza requires a minimum of 400 trucks a day to meet basic nutritional needs - yet an average of just 171 trucks worth of supplies enters Gaza every week,

Clothes that were held in the port of Ashdod for over a year were released into Gaza but arrived covered with mold and mildew, unusable.

95% of Gaza's water fails World Health Organization standards leaving thousands of newborns at risk of poisoning.

Anemia for children under the age of 5 is estimated at 48%.

75 million liters of untreated sewage are pumped into the Mediterranean Sea every day - because piping and spare parts are not permitted.

During the 2009 bombing:

More than 120,000 jobs were lost as Gaza's industrial zone was destroyed... 15,000 homes and apartments were damaged or destroyed... 1/3 of all schools were destroyed.

None of these can be rebuilt, because construction supplies are kept out by the Israeli authorities.

Also, check this out from The Economist. It is a partial list of commodities allowed into Gaza and commodities banned.

So what is the blockade about?

It is not about stopping terrorism. Hamas has repeatedly offered Israel an indefinite cease-fire in exchange for lifting the blockade. And, on a half dozen occasions, Israel accepted the deal but did not live up to its side of it. In fact, the 2009 war began after Israel ignored its commitments under the Gaza cease-fire agreement, continued the blockade, and then provoked the resumption of attacks on Sderot through a series of targeted assassinations of Palestinians (Israel claims that no cease-fire agreement curtails its right to kill any Palestinian it deems to be a terrorist).

Israel asserts that it will not accept any long-term cease-fire agreement with Hamas because Hamas does not recognize its right to exist.

But Israel does not need the permission of anyone -- let alone Hamas -- to exist. All it needs from Hamas is an end to violence and that is precisely what Hamas is offering, in exchange for lifting the blockade.

This is not to say that Hamas need never recognize Israel. It should. But it is ridiculous to insist on recognition as a precondition for anything. Recognition would be the end result of negotiations, not a precondition for it.

But that is not what Israel wants. It wants to destroy Hamas because it is a terrorist organization. And that makes sense until one realizes that the African National Congress, Sinn Fein, the Israeli Irgun, the Algerian FLN and a host of other resistance movements were called terrorist organizations before negotiations brought them to power. Former Israeli Prime Ministers Menachem Begin and Yitzhak Shamir were both unabashed terrorists prior to their entrance into respectable politics. And so what? If dealing with terrorists -- as Israel has repeatedly done with Hezbollah -- will help achieve a worthy goal, why not do it? After all, if negotiations fail, one can always walk away.

But Israel will not change its self-defeating policies until we change ours. And there is no evidence that is happening (at least, not until after the November elections, for obvious reasons).

For now, our policies are joined at the hip with Israel's. We support the blockade of Gaza. We oppose any efforts at reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas. We even back Israel's opposition to the Arab Peace Initiative, which offers Israel full peace and normalization of relations with every Arab country in exchange for the creation of a Palestinian state in the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem.

Enough is enough. The Obama administration needs to join the rest of the world in demanding an end to the Gaza blockade as a first big step toward the resumption of negotiations.

The attack on the flotilla was one of the most disastrous blunders in Israel's history. At last, the whole world sees Israel's policy of collective punishment for what it is -- a means to perpetuate the occupation forever. Only the United States government has chosen to close its eyes.

The occupation is killing Israel. And we are on the sidelines letting it happen. Some ally!

I am thinking about daytime curfews........

From a pragmatic stand point, yes, it could seem necessary, but from a liberty stand point, it's just moving us further from where we ought to be. The government will always come up with a "good reason" to limit our freedom. For safety, security, etc. But then we end up a LONG way from where we should be. And it happens little by little, unnoticed by most people. Frogs in the kettle.

We have truancy laws in place - there is no need for a daytime curfew. If the current laws aren't sufficient then that should be addressed.

If kids don't want to stay in school, then we should address the reasons for that.

Infringing upon parental responsibility will do nothing to encourage it.

In the Dallas city council meetings they were telling us, don't worry we won't bother your neighborhoods (meaning white neighborhoods), that's not the point. Then they said we won't bother homeschoolers, they can get an ID! That's the last thing we want!

Curfews only limit the freedom of law abiding people, those bent on committing crimes will continue to do so. They just change their working hours.

Studies have shown there is no conclusive evidence that curfews are effective.

Whether or not you mind being stopped and ID'd is not the issue. The right to freely travel and assemble is infringed upon when people are inconvenienced unnecessarily by the police. We are talking about basic unalienable rights.

No one should live in fear of being caught doing something that isn't a crime. We should feel free to go about our lives and not feel apprehensive when we see a patrol car or someone in uniform.

I for one don't appreciate being pulled over late at night so they can check on me and ask where I'm going and where I've been. That is none of their business. If I'm not committing a real crime or suspected of it, then they have no business to approach me or stop me or ask me anything. No matter what hour. Same goes for our youth. Especially young adults who could pass for children.

We don't think of curfews as a form of martial law, but that's really what it is. We don't think of where the easy acceptance of such policy can lead.

Our youth have the same basic unalienable rights we do.

Our country is becoming more and more over criminalized. Laws that aren't enforced teach us to disregard the law. Encroaching or unconstitutional rules teach us to disrespect the law and its agents.

Isn't this quote the truth?

The only power any government has is the power to crack down on criminals. Well, when there aren't enough criminals, one makes them. One declares so many things to be a crime that it becomes impossible for men to live without breaking laws.
Ayn Rand

...Thanks to our media and many government officials, Americans have become conditioned to view the state as our protector and the solution to every problem. Whenever something terrible happens, especially when it becomes a national news story, people reflexively demand that government do something. This impulse almost always leads to bad laws and the loss of liberty. It is completely at odds with the best American traditions of self-reliance and rugged individualism.

Do we really want to live in a world of police checkpoints, surveillance cameras, and metal detectors? Do we really believe government can provide total security? ..... Or can we accept that liberty is more important than the illusion of state-provided security?...

Freedom is not defined by safety. Freedom is defined by the ability of citizens to live without government interference. Government cannot create a world without risks, nor would we really wish to live in such a fictional place. Only a totalitarian society would even claim absolute safety as a worthy ideal, because it would require total state control over its citizens’ lives. Liberty has meaning only if we still believe in it when terrible things happen and a false government security blanket beckons. Ron Paul

For liberty and justice for all,

Debbie McKee