Wednesday, February 24, 2010

News of the Day - 2/25/2010 - Reconciliation, Sales & Tea Party Independence

Today is another rapid fire news day.  Sorry for missing my post yesterday, I was not feeling it.  Plus I am starting to feel some burn out from writing everyday.  Any comments of going only three or four days a week?  Let me know my loyal readers.  Here are the stories of the day:

DEMOCRATS 2005: NUCLEAR OPTION POWER GRAB
This is a collection of videos from some legislation trying to be passed in 2005 by the Republican controlled Senate.  Reconciliation, aka the Nuclear Option, is a procedural rule in the U.S. Senate to block the use of a filibuster on a particular bill.  They can only use it once a year and it can only technically be used on something related to the federal budget.  For more extensive information check out this link.   The Democrats are currently working on trying to pass the health care legislation by the House, the Senate or now by President Obama through this process.  The hypocrisy of the democrats on this issues is unbelievable.  In this modern day of technology it makes me glad we have CSPAN, YouTube, TMZ and other organization who keep track of this information.  Whether its Republicans or Democrats these media outlets keep them honest.

EXPANDING GUN RIGHTS
The main idea behind this story is that most states are starting to expand gun owner rights.  The people on the other side are worried because no serious gun legislation has come out of D.C. since Obama's election.  Correct me if I am wrong but I believe the right to own firearms is not a federal issue.  The Second Amendment says that "the right of the people to own arms shall not be infringed."  That means the government, specifically the federal government, cannot prevent a normal everyday citizen from owning a firearm.  The state on the other hand can enact specific legislation regarding firearms as part of their reserved powers under Amendment 10 in the Constitution.  I think it's great that more people can own weapons.  They are essential for protection of a person within their own home and out in public. 

We saw this after Hurricane Katrina, the local police confiscated without warrants the weapons of law abiding
citizens.  What happened next, criminals moved into these neighborhoods and started rampant crime sprees, because they know the citizens were unarmed.  As long as they are properly licensed for their firearms, proof that you know how to use the weapon, then there is no issue.  An armed populace is safer since a criminal (who probably has a gun, purchased illegally) does not know who may or may not have a weapon.  Just like having an alarm on a house.  It helps prevent break in.

TEA PARTY DECLARES INDEPENDENCE
This article goes into details of how the organizers of the Tea Party movement in the U.S. have declared their independence from any political party.  The Tea Party movement, while conservative in nature, is not tied to Republicans, Democrats or any other party or organization.  Those who have tried to co-opt the movement or use if for their own ends have found themselves ridiculed by the true believers.  The Tea Party Movement, of which I am a follower, is mostly about several key principles:  1)  following the U.S. Constitution  2)  stopping the out of control spending of our government 3) making our government smaller.  I think the vast majority of U.S. citizens can agree on the majority of those principles. 

As always I welcome your response.  Have a nice day.

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