It’s become tradition in this nation to look forward to July 4th, but it seems that in great part the true meaning of the day has to some degree lost its meaning. Oh sure, we have taken to heart John Adams’ desire that we mark the event with “pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations.” We wear our red white and blue, maybe play some patriotic songs on the stereo, then fire up the grill and pop open a beer. We have all too easily forgotten that in his letter to Abigail Adams, before speaking of the “pomp and parade”, John Adams said that July 4th “ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty.”

This nation was founded by men who believed that their rights — and the rights of all — come to us from God, not from man. These feelings were universal among the Founders, and captured so eloquently by Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence. God gives us the right to life. God gives us the right to liberty. God gives us the right to pursue happiness, the right to earn and own private property, the right to freely speak our minds, the right to freely worship Him, and the right to defend ourselves and our rights. They understood that Rights are given to us by God the Almighty, and that Man cannot give Rights to another, as Man can only grant privileges.

They understood the truth that these God-given rights, these natural rights, are blessings bestowed upon all of us, and the Founders understood that the rights given by God should not be stripped away by Man without just cause. As such, they believed that the role of Government was to help secure those blessings for all, and for that reason — and for that reason alone — Man forms Government: to protect the individual blessings of Liberty.

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As we outlined in Part I, there are powers at work that are trying to bankrupt the United States. (And if you haven’t read that piece, we recommend that you do for background purposes.)

We believe that the economic roller coaster of the past few years has been an intentional effort on the part of various Progressives to use the free market system against itself. They know how the free market system works, they know that the free market system does, in fact, work, and they are using free market principles against the free market in an effort to bring it down.

The current stock market prices defy all logic. Unemployment is officially over 10%, and in some areas of America it’s double that. Consumer spending is down. Yet stocks are on the rise? There is no reason that stocks should be as high as they are, especially stocks of companies making consumer goods. If you ignore the statements by the White House and the mainstream media that “we have turned the corner” and “the economy is on the rebound”, look deeper. Look at the unemployment rates. Look at the ads on TV that are pitching products as ways to save money. Look at the stores that are going out of business and the remaining stores that are positioning themselves to try harder then ever to get your business. Look at the uptick in telemarketers selling “extended auto warranties” and the increasing number ads encouraging you to keep your older car and change your own oil to save money. Look at the headlines saying that advertising sales are down… There’s no better indicator on the state of the economy than looking at the advertising market.

Look around you… pay attention. The economy is still heading south, and there’s no rebound any time soon. That is the reality.

Listen to the White House and the parrots in the media tell you the opposite.

What is going on here? (more…)

Now, we’ve been called conspiracy theorists for some time. Heck, we even have a column heading called “Paranoia Corner.” We do temper our conspiracies with a dash of common sense. For example, we don’t believe Oswald acted alone because logically it would have been impossible for him to do things like change the parade route. But we don’t, however, believe that 9/11 was “an inside job.” Common sense tells us otherwise.

So while we don’t believe that there’s some “secret conspiracy” — such as the Skull and Bones Society, the Bohemian Club, the Freemasons, or the Bilderberg Group — that is pulling the string to move us toward some “New World Order”, we do believe that there are a bunch of like-minded people who are looking to take advantage of opportunities to advance their agendas. That said, let us briefly explain how we believe politics work in America:

While every politician has an agenda, there are effectively only two types of politicians: tacticians and strategists.

Tacticians have a narrow-scoped agenda. And, since most politicians are horrible private sector employees, their agenda is to keep their cushy public sector job, with its high salary and a truckload of fringe benefits. So everything they do, every vote they make, is tied to “how do I keep my job? (more…)