There is one group no one has recognized, and it is the group that will decide the election: the Angry White Man. The Angry White Man comes from all economic backgrounds, from dirt-poor to filthy rich. He represents all geographic areas in America, from urban sophisticate to rural redneck, deep South to mountain West, left Coast to Eastern Seaboard.His common traits are that he isn’t looking for anything from anyone — just the promise to be able to make his own way on a level playing field. In many cases, he is an independent businessman and employs several people. He pays more than his share of taxes and works hard.
The victimhood syndrome buzzwords — “disenfranchised,” “marginalized” and “voiceless” — don’t resonate with him. “Press ‘one’ for English” is a curse-word to him. He’s used to picking up the tab, whether it’s the company Christmas party, three sets of braces, three college educations or a beautiful wedding.
He believes the Constitution is to be interpreted literally, not as a “living document” open to the whims and vagaries of a panel of judges who have never worked an honest day in their lives.
The Angry White Man owns firearms, and he’s willing to pick up a gun to defend his home and his country. He is willing to lay down his life to defend the freedom and safety of others, and the thought of killing someone who needs killing really doesn’t bother him.
Read the rest of the excellent op-ed article here: Aspen Times News for Aspen Colorado - Aspen Times Weekly Opinion
Ladies and gents, this is the way to vote with your wallet:
On January 31, 2008, I wrote a letter to the mayor of Berkeley, California, stating my position regarding his and the Berkeley City Council’s position on the proposed ousting of the U. S. Marine Corps recruiting station in the city of Berkeley.
I passed that letter along to a couple of Marine handball buddies. They passed that e-mail/letter to the guys who play in the Semper Fi handball tournament at MCRD, who passed it along to still others.
In my wildest dreams I never envisioned the response I have received. I now spend ALL DAY answering my cell phone acknowledging that yes, I really did write “THE” letter, and receiving personal thank yous from Generals, Majors, Colonels, SGTs, PVTs, CEOs, COOs, talk-show hosts, and average everyday American patriots. I have received over 500 calls in the past two days (today is the February 8.) Likewise. I spend the balance reading e-mail from the same sort of people.
I am humbled to a degree that is hard to state clearly. I am emotionally overwhelmed with the positive response to my letter and want to thank everyone who has called me or e-mailed me to state their support.
My intention was never to shine the spotlight on me; it was to cause–to whatever degree I could–great fiscal discomfort to the city of Berkeley in retaliation to its un-American, cowardly, and despicable stance that the U.S. Marines are unwelcome, and uninvited intruders in that city.
If in my small way I helped light a fire that now appears to be blazing across the nation, I am proud of that, but I am more proud of the fact that I could, at a time when our heroes are fighting against those who would destroy us, help focus some attention to the vast debt, and undying respect, that we as a nation owe to the men and women of the United States Armed Forces. My letter to Mayor Tom Bates is below.
Follow the link to read the text of Mr. Dennard’s letter.
While every presidential candidate is pushing some form of socialized health care, a company is now doing to health care what should have been done years ago: introduce competition into the mix.
Carol.com is currently in beta testing and is available in Minneapolis only. I encourage everyone to check it out, and keep tabs on the company for whenever it is available in your area.
It is time to unleash the free market on healthcare. When you are paying for your own healthcare services, with something like a health savings account, you’re more likely to:
- Choose healthcare services wisely
- Only go to the doctor when you need to, instead of for every sniffle
- Develop a better relationship with your doctor, so he can phone simple prescriptions into the pharmacy, without requiring a visit
- Live a healthier lifestyle, because “if you break it, you have to pay to fix it”
Health insurance and frivolous malpractice suits are what are driving healthcare costs in this country out of control.
People with insurance are less likely to take care of themselves because their attitude is “I’m covered.” (This is especially true for those on Medicaid. “The government is paying for it, so who cares if I live an unhealthy lifestyle? I like my Big Macs.”)
Frivolous malpractice suits encourage doctors to order endless rounds of “cover your butt” tests and exams, so that the risk of malpractice suits is lessened. But in The Land of The Lawsuit, everyone thinks that if Mr. Rich Doctor screws up, it’s their chance to get rich and retire. What is lost on seemingly everyone is that doctors are human, and therefore they will make mistakes. Certainly, there are doctors who should not be practicing medicine. But lawsuits aren’t the solution to this: the free market is.
If you can go to a website and rate your doctor (or dentist), and view ratings and comments by other patients, won’t you be looking for the 4 and 5-star doctors? Won’t you be avoiding the 1-star and 2-star doctors? And if the 1-star and 2-star practicioners don’t get better, they’ll fare as well as 1-star and 2-star restaurants: they’ll go out of business. The end result is better — and less expensive — care for all. And isn’t that the goal?