Friday, September 11, 2009

California's West Side Water Issue

So close yet so far away? It is said that into every life a little rain must fall. But in the case of Wast Side Water the rain would be a welcome relief to the drought being perpetrated by invironmentalists and policticians. Now it has come to my attention that Fox News is planning another visit to our valley on this Thursday September 17th.
As a farmer for 12 years and a pastor for the past 14 I have firsthand knowledge of the drastic effects water shortages can have on our valley. The current man made water shortage on the west side coupled with the housing crisis and recession present a triple threat to the people of that agriculturally rich region. Those communities though removed by a few miles are extensions of us as a whole. This truth was never as real as it was on September 12th 2001 in the aftermath of 9/11. Just as the ripple effects of the Sept. 11th 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center affected the totality of our nation. So to now we must realize that the humanitarian needs and the lack of agricultural output produced by the lack of water deliveries to our west side have produced a ripple effect across the entire valley economy.
We cannot afford to turn a deaf ear or blind eye to the suffering of those so near to us simply because we have water. We must understand that what affects our valley neighbors affects us as a whole. That joblessness and revenue loss have measured affects and can no longer be ignored. Now it appears that Fox News is returning once again to bring attention to the situation. I was made aware of their upcoming visit by Brandon Shoemaker a parishioner and friend. He is a Republican running for the 31st district assembly seat in the 2010 election.
As a community leader I feel it is my civic duty to inform myself on the issues facing our community, state, and nation. When I received Brandon's e-mail I was so glad to hear that Fox News was returning to additional recognition to the plight of the farming communities affected by the mismanagement of our state water resources. Last time they came they devoted only one segment of their show to this issue. I am hoping that they will be able to devote even more airtime on this next visit.
In connection with that I felt it was advisable to gather information regarding the issue as I see it. There are basically two things I feel might benefit our discussion on the water issue.
Firstly, UC Davis does a report for the US government on California’s contribution to the overall US export market in all areas. This is an eye opening report and brings clarity to the need for this valley as the bread basket of America. That report shows California produced 14.8% of the US agricultural exports in 2006. That is a staggering statistic. Additionally a bipartisan group called California Economic Strategy Panel appointed by the legislature in 1993 has the responsibility to and I quote; “develop an overall economic vision and strategy to guide public policy. The Panel engages in an objective and collaborative biennial planning process that examines economic regions, industry clusters, and cross-regional economic issues.” Where are they in all this? Why hasn’t this group recognized the plight of this region and sounded the alarm to law makers. Someone needs to hold them accountable.
The bottom line is environmentalists funded by our state and federal tax dollars and supported by our state legislature our running the show. The old adage, “food grows where water flows” is true! And transversely when the water doesn’t flow the food doesn’t grow. As a result of the mismanagement at the state level jobs are lost, whole communities sit in dusty ruin and our overall California exports diminish.
What this nation needs right now is less interference by environmentalist and legislature. They need to open up the doors for job creation instead of destroying jobs and by extension whole communities, for the sake of a few fish that to my knowledge are plentiful throughout the western hemisphere. The real story here is that a federal biological study done by the USBR and sited by a report at the CalCamber shows no significant increase in the smelt population as a result of shutting down the agricultural diversion pumps.
Additionally the real culprit to the reduced population in all fish populations from the Striped Bass to the Longfin Smelt appears to be the introduction and over population of the overbite clam. From my investigation, the overbite clam is not indigenous to the ecosystem of our fisheries, and feeds on the same natural food source as the smelt. (see page 43 last paragraph of the USBR report)
I realize this posting has become quit tedious and so I relent. Never the less I felt knowledge of the facts was in order. I hope this brief but tedious delineation of the issues helps in some way to bring some accountability to those with the power to send the water to our valley, and shine the spotlight on the insanity of those who would support the misguided notion to continue withholding water from this vital agricultural region of California.

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Who is this Ron Bloom character?

So how will Obama’s appointment of Ron Bloom affect American business?
In a recent [i]Washington Post article, Obama is said to have named Ron Bloom as his senior counselor for manufacturing policy. That article which is quit timely in respect to the recent uptick in polls showing a less than favorable approval rating for how this administration has handled the recession reveals several important facts about Mr. Bloom.First is says that Bloom, "was previously the influential figure in the national labor movement before joining the administration's auto task force earlier this year." Translation: Bloom was previously a Big Union Executive. The fact is Mr. Bloom, [ii]“was previously the special assistant to the President of the United Steel Workers based out of Pittsburgh since 1996. Before that he worked as an Investment Banker.”The second thing has to do with wages. And while it is not tied directly to the first by the writer of the article, it is to this reader (me) directly connected to the first fact. The second point I refer to is this, [iii]Obama said Bloom's "extensive experience with both business and labor" would help in "creating the good-paying manufacturing jobs of the future."
Now think about that for a moment, his (Mr. Blooms) previous experience as a big union executive will help us in creating, “good paying” “manufacturing jobs” in the future. Now I don’t want to belittle the creation of any job, but what’s the long term job future of a union worker. To spend all of his life supporting the salaries of fat cat union executives and voting for the Washington bureaucrats that pass the laws that benefit the unions.
So what are the similarities between a union worker and a cotton picker from the 1700s? Let’s see, union workers work tirelessly driven by task masters called union supervisors. Union workers do this day in and day out without question.
Why do they do this? They do it for life benefits provided for them by the union who basically owns them for the time they are union employees. You don’t believe that, just step out of line and see the lashing you will get. They will strip you down and leave you on unemployment. They use their position as employer negotiator as leverage to keep the masses in check. In the event of an uprising they quickly remind their workers of the alternative of not “belonging” to the union. Then they go on strike to demand from the employer who is to great measure handcuffed to the union at this point more benefits. At first glance working for the union may seem the way to go for a guy looking for work. Only one thing, it do not really lend itself to the American dream. There is not a lot of upward mobility in that model. It’s all who you know! The idea that you can reach the top is not part of the equation in this manufacturing model. You are not allowed to dream big in this model. The idea here is to just punch your time clock and be thankful that you are working. Still for many in our nation this kind of punch in punch out work would be welcome relief in a economy of joblessness.
However, personally I hold greater aspiration for a common laborer than to be sentenced to a 9 to 5 job the rest of their lives. That to me is not the American dream nor is it true freedom. True freedom and the thing that built this nation into one of the greatest nations on earth is outlined in the Declaration of Independence as the right to, “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of happiness.” It is the entrepreneurial spirit embodied in those words that made this nation one of the most productive, and affluent nations on earth for the past two centuries. Yet at the forefront of Obamanomics is not the pursuit of those ideals but the undermining of those ideals. The truth is all liberal progressives have managed to do with their policies is keep the poor beholden to them for the government entitlement programs they enjoy. And that is all they want to do!
Therein is the true lie. On the one hand the liberal promise progress and new opportunities for the poor and disenfranchised. But they have never truly delivered on those promises. All they have done is kept the poor “POOR,” and the disenfranchised dependent upon them.
Why? Because true reform, the kind that teaches a person how to fish instead of merely dolling out fish fragments would relieve the poor of their dependence upon the liberal progressive bureaucrats in Washington. Their goal is not to liberate but to castrate, to remove every notion that we can get ahead without government help. And the sad thing is people are buying this stuff. People are voting for it over and over again, they buy into the deceptions of smooth talking politicians who promise the moon and deliver nothing. And if by chance they do deliver it is merely for appearance sake. Rarely if ever have they done anything that truly changes the lives of the poor. It is merely to garner the next round of votes for an upcoming election.
I realize liberals love to site Medicaid and Medicare as liberal programs. But did those programs help the poor or merely provide fragments from the master’s table. Think about the last time you heard of a person on food stamps making anything of their selves. Never! The only way you make something of yourself is take the risk, abandon the program, and do something new. The program should only be a bridge not a lifestyle. And while manufacturing work is a legitimate, noble rewarding life style not to be shunned. It should not be looked at as the end to beat all, especially if that job includes my subservience to a bureaucratically controlled union. However that is exactly what the Obama administration wants.
Which is why appointing Ron Bloom as the Manufacturing Czar makes perfect sense to the liberal progressive elites in Washington. He is their stoolie, their ace in the whole. With his help we can destroy all competition and expand the reach of the union which we basically control with our votes. When we control the unions we control the workers.
Think this is far fetched do you? Then explain why would Obama appoint a ex union executive to sit on one of his Czars seat when a much simpler solution is right in front of them. Read the remainder of this article at my blog entitled, "American Financial Meltdown Looms Large."

[i] http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2009/09/06/obama_names_manufacturing_advi.html?wprss=44
[ii] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ron_Bloom
[iii] http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2009/09/06/obama_names_manufacturing_advi.html?wprss=44

American Financial Meltdown Looms Large!

At present any action on Obama's part that doesn't actually create job could send this economy over the edge.
I know from personal experience what the policies of this president will produce. As a farmer for 12 years I watched as the pressures for higher wages and increase in government restriction forced famers to automate where ever possible.
Take just the grape industry for an example. Throughout the 60s and 70s, most of what needed to be done on the farm was accomplished by hand labor. Then in the 80s and 90s we saw many changes in labor laws and government environmental requirements placed on farmers. Wages increased dramatically and so did regulations regarding insecticide use and other overhead costs to farmers. In order to keep up with these government mandates and wage increases farmers had one of two choices. Increase the price they receive for their crops or cut the cost of production.
Since the price of goods was set by the markets they knew the first thing to do was seek ways to cut overhead through automation. Thus slowly over the past twenty years farmers have been forced by labor shortages, wages increases and increased government regulations to go automated. As a result workers hours were replaced by machines. Now 6-8 men can do what 200 men used to do.
Now what makes us think that the introduction of more unions into the manufacturing sector will not translate into the same scenario? The truth is Obama’s business inexperience and liberal progressive advisors are steering this nation down a road to financial ruin and colapse. If the result of higher wages and increased government requirements caused the loss of jobs in the farming community, it will surely create the same dynamic in the financial sector.
Changes in wages or regulations inevitable force manufacturers to evaluate their ability to provide goods and services within the framework of those changes! Then in an effort to ensure profitability manufactures go automated in order to reduce costs. This in turn results in less jobs for those seeking employment.
The union higher ups and government bureaucrats controlling the strings are never hurt in this game of wage increases and greater government regulations. It’s the business CEO who get blamed for their heartless approach to corporate profits. Labeled as greedy, they have to automate and reduce jobs to create profits.
Listen people we have to stop seeing corporate profits as a bad thing. When corporations make profits Americans get jobs. “Where profits flow Jobs Grow” Instead of chocking business that are profitable through higher taxation government should be giving tax incentives to businesses that can turn corporate profits into long term job creation. But this is a conservative work model. That is why liberals fight against it. Have you ever wondered why liberals dislike such a common sense model as this? I mean really what is behind their dislike of conservatives work models.
This is my opinion and you don’t have to believe it, but if you think on it a while it makes more and more sense the longer you consider what I am about to reveal to you.
The real reason liberals don’t adopt conservative plans to fix the economy is that they don’t want to loss control.
Now when you are done calling me names and hating me for that last statement consider the following.
What have liberals gained by painting themselves as the upholders of human rights?
They had gained the trust and allegiance of the poor, the elderly, and minorities. What is their angle in this, to garner votes for upcoming elections of course!
But what about substance, have they really ever helped the poor. That depends on what you define as helped. If you mean meeting their basic needs yes. If you mean providing a way out of poverty, not so much! We have more poor people today than ever before. This is not a result of republican policies though. This is squarely a result of liberal progressives thinking they know best. If you don’t believe me answer the following question. When and how has poverty in the US measurably decreased as a direct result of any liberal policy?
No rather you can trace every increase in advantage to capitalism. No one is bettered by a system that feeds on itself. You can’t have a entitlements without a source of income to sustain it. Therefore every entitlement program is indebted to capitalism is some way. If corporation don’t profit then money stream is cut off to entitlement programs of every kind. When people work and corporation succeed money flows to entitlement programs both publically and corporately.
Now I realize that comes off as a far right perspective but is it true? I mean really isn’t that where this is all heading. Isn’t this really all about the government being in control of the whole manufacturing sector? What about the non-union manufacturers who are just as vested in our GDP? These also contribute to the jobs market and they are the counter balance to the complete unionization of this nation.
You say no, you say that the business sector would be unaffected by the implementation of a manufacturing Czar. And it doesn’t matter that he has known ties to big unions. It doesn’t matter that he sees workers as merely laborers designed to keep the machine going forward. Where is the American Dream in that?
Isn’t this just another example of how President Obama is steering this country away from a capitalistic economic model to a more socialistic model? The verdict is still out on whether President Obama actually knows what he is doing or whether he is just flying by the seat of his pants, and hoping everything works out in the end. It seems that this administration has no clear cut strategy on how to actually help our flailing economy. In an effort to seem proactive and on top of things they have passed several bills, a $800 Billion Stimulus package and the $410 Billion dollar Omnibus Bill.
But with his job approval rating falling and the ground swell of negative vibes coming out of all camps, one might wonder if just holding off on appointments might be a good idea at this time. Which begs the question, why? Why Ron Bloom? Why now?

Friday, August 28, 2009

Housing Still In Crisis!

Remember Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and the out cry over the whole sub prime mortgage debacle. It always kinda bothered me that we never got a straight answer on who was to blame for that. I mean they did blame the banks and speculators but were they really the problem. I mean if the answer now is we need greater oversight and regulation in the housing sector, doesn't that kinda point the finger back at congress.

Who is in charge of regulating? The congress! Who is in charge of oversight? The government! So why then did government officials get a pass on this one. Why is it that no major media outlets have kept the spotlight on this and investigative reporters have not done extensive expose on this. No heads have rolled and government officials have been publicly scrutinized for this.

But be very careful writing a bonus check to a corporate executive these days because you might find yourself in court. We can deal with keeping secrets another time.

This is not the time for secrecy. This is the time for exposure of the facts so in an effort to be forth right with the facts I posted the following video for your viewing pleasure. See if this doesn't not shed some light on who is to blame for our current financial situation. One quick apologize here to any liberal progressives that might watch this. Sorry it wasn't Bush!

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Why Obama’s FedEx Comparison Doesn’t Make Sense!

While stumping for his public run health care system last weekend Obama addressed the notion that private insurers would not be able to compete against the government run system. President Obama did this by equating Private Run Health Insurers -vs- The Government Run Option to the U.S. Mail Service -vs- UPS and Fed Ex. This is now the third time I have heard him make this assement. However this comparison fails in several ways.
First it fails: because it bases the success of his so called side by side competition on the across the board comparison of a system that by his own admission is currently failing to succeed in side by side competition. Which is by its very nature an oxymoron.
Secondly it fails: because he is not saying he plans to fail, no he is saying everyones a winner, except the insurance companies. They are the bad guys. The greedy "illigitimate sons" who need to be brought down. Therefore he is implying that there would be a different outcome than that being seen in the current system. However, He does this without defining how he actually plans to achieve that goal; the revelation of which would be too transparent a venture for the secrecy by which this current administration likes to operate.
Lastly it fails: because by likening the Government Health Care Option to the U.S. Mail Service you are actually conceding to the fact that if ObamaCare is not able to compete with private insurers it will like the U.S. Mail Service use whatever means it needs to stay in the game. In the case of the U.S. Mail Service the Fed. has raised the price of postage steadily to stay in business. In the case of ObamaCare private insurers would most likely outperform the government system in a fair and competitive market. This is due mostly to the bureaucratic waste and abuses inherent in all government run programs. So that like the U.S. Mail the government would have to find ways to keep the failing system afloat, which would probably lead to one or all of the following, a loss in benefits, censored rationing, and or an increase in taxes to keep the government run option in the game.

The only way to avoid this would be to create an unfair playing field which favors the government program over the private insurers. However creating such a system would render the promise of a one stop insurance marketplace with multiple options for consumers a disingenuous political ploy to pass a single payer system dispite the will of the people.

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Enforcement of Immigration Laws: It’s the right thing to do!

I have not agreed with much this President has done, but when I do agree I am not afraid to say so. I herald Obama’s stepping back away from his former stance and stepping up enforcement of current immigration laws. http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/jul/30/obama-loses-immigration-allies/?source=newsletter_must-read-stories-today_headlines&page=2..
He is not saying he is opposes to immigrants or immigration. He is simply reinforcing that we are a nation of laws. Furthermore he is saying that we should work within the framework of the laws we have, until the law are adopted that better address the immigration issue.
Can changes be made that all Americans can agree on? I have no doubt that we can come to a consensus as reasonable people on what should be done. But whatever gets done should benefit the entire nation not just a single segment of our nation.
The need for border security goes far beyond just being of Hispanic decent. Border security is just what the words imply, “Border Security.” The possibility of foreign agency smuggling in a WMD is a greater threat to the collective good in this country than the sympathetic worries surrounding the immigrant worker population. We need to get beyond personal disapproval and consider the bigger picture.
We will always have immigrants and we will always welcome the Mexican people into our country. This issue is not about limiting access to those seeking employment in the states. There is a legal method by which Mexican workers can come to this country and work. Obama and Ms. Napolitano are simply advocating the legal process over the illegal crossing of the border. A stand that would be equally adhered to if the roles were reversed and it was American working who were seeking employment in Mexico.
I am sure going forward that legal immigration will be made easier and that any of those seeking employment will be able to do so in a way that neither jeopardizes our security as a nation, nor hinders them from the opportunities afforded by crossing the border for work.

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Sotomayor Confirmation Emminent!

Will Sotomayor nomination be over shadowed by Health Care Reform? Only time will tell.

Monday, May 11, 2009

Say So Long To Democracy PART 1

It's just amazing how quickly the left dismisses the voice of the people if that voice happens to resemble Jesus or have any biblical underpinnings.
Case in point; last week President Obama completely dismissed the National Day of Prayer. Why? I don't know why? Perhaps because it was instituted in commemoration of our constitution, wherein the founding fathers of this nation discerned that we should live free as people but we should never forget where that freedom comes from. That as citizens we have been endowed by our CREATOR with certain inalienable rights. That those rights include but are not limited to the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Now in 2009 the thugs in Washington have taken to rewriting our constitution, and in the name of progressiveness they want to change those rights from the previously mentioned to the right to handouts, health care, and the pursuit of bailouts.

This is no longer a government for the people by the people. It is now a government for the government by the politicians. In the name of progress the mass of the electorate in America being uneducated, ill-informed or just plain dumb, have sold the minority out. The few people that did see this coming are the true Americans and the true conservatives. Such people were never in bed with George Bush although we did see the logic behind some of his policies. There were times however that we cringed at the things being done by the previous administration. So you can't link us to the old guard, and you can't link us to the new guard.

The new guard of expansive intrusionistic government and 1930 Chicago style political strong arming. But this time Eliot Nees and the FBI are not hunting them down they are helping them out. This new mafia has realized the error of the old and adapted. Now instead of working outside the law they working in the name of law. This new brand of Mafia doesn't break the law if the law doesn't allow them to do what they want, they just simply rewrite the law to fit their wants and desires.

What we want is America the beautiful back. The America that had a soul, cared about the family(the historic institution of marriage), cared about the unborn, cared about the poor, cared about the nations security, cared about the role we play in the world, cared about the reputation of the those holding office, and held officials at every level to high standards of ethical and moral behavior. That America that spawned the industrial revolution of the early 1900's and the technological revolution of the later half of the 20th century. That America where great minds like Einstein, Edison, and Wright changed the way we live forever. That America of invention and innovation is all but gone. The true entrepreneurial spirit has been squelched by the bailout the to big to fail mindset of a few Washington elites.

These people do not serve the greater good or the best interests of this nation. As I have said in other blogs before. You can't spend your way out of financial trouble. You must work your way out! That requires freeing the innovative spirit of this country.

Those in Washington would argue, but we are free the spirit of innovation, to combat global warming, to unlock alternative energy, and rebuild the American infrastructure.

It is interesting how blind these politicians are to their own power grab. They wield the power so we must invest our creative energy in their pet project or we don't get any money. That is not freedom gentle men that is coercion and that is slavery. It is just a legal form of slavery. And worst yet there is no guarantee in their strategy. They have not guaranteed a thing.

They say this will work but have never produced any true figures that show how what they are doing can be done without creating massive long term debt in the future. A future in which they will no longer be holding the bag. They intend to change our way of life and then leave us holding the bag. They intend to give away everything they can in order to weaken us to the point that we are no longer a world super power. I believe that to be their ultimate goal, how else do you explain it? All I have to say people is rise up, RISE UP! Or say So long to democracy as you know it.