We’ve been hitting politics all week, and I’m calling “time-out” for the day. There’ll be time for politics tomorrow.
Instead, we thought you’d enjoy some of these graphs that we found on the humor site, GraphJam.com (which now appears to have been absorbed into another website?).
Have a great one, gang.
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Saw this initially over at That Mr. G Guy’s Blog, and almost didn’t believe it. Even as jaded as I am, I’m still kinda shocked once in a while, when something just seems ludicrous.
And this is one of those times.
From NBCPhiladelphia.com:
A local lunch lady says she may no longer be able to serve free food to her community due to a law in her town.
For weeks, Angela Prattis has run a free lunch program in the Toby Farms community of Chester Township. As many as 60 children a day receive a free sandwich, fruit and milk during the summer. The program is funded by the state department of education and administered by the archdiocese of Philadelphia which drops off the boxed lunches daily.
Prattis tells NBC10 she was just put on notice by the township however and received a letter telling her that she needs a variance to run the program in the residential area.
“It’s a letter stating, ‘shut it down or face a $600 fine,’” said Prattis.
“Apparently the township has said there was one more hurdle that she had to jump from their point of view,” said Anne Ayella of the Archdiocese. “But from our point of view she’s done everything right.”
…..
NBC10 spoke with Bill Pisarek, the Chester Township business manager, to find out what exactly she’s in violation of.
“Basically the property is in an R3 residential zone,” said Pisarek.
According to the town, Prattis is zoned residential and therefore needs a variance to offer free lunches. Pisarek told NBC10 she can apply for a variance. It costs $1,000 just to apply however.
“We’re not here to go after her, to hurt her, to take money from her or to prevent her from feeding kids that need the food,” said Pisarek.
Of course they’re not there to take her money or prevent her from feeding kids….which is why they threatened her with the fines and to shut her down. They’re just trying to help her.
Yeah.
Remember the article from yesterday, where the neighbors of the lady in Virginia showed up with pitchforks to illustrate their “displeasure” with the local government’s arbitrary rules? I’m wondering if we need to send some pitchforks over to Philly.
Here’s just a little bit more, this time from Mr. G’s post:
“You have houses here, the roofs are falling in, and they could be focused on a lot of more serious issues than me feeding children,” (Prattis) said.
Chester Township, which has a per capita income of $19,000 a year, says Prattis lives in a residential zone, hence handing out food to children is not allowed. The township says she needs to go before a zoning board to ask for a variance, which would cost her up to $1,000 in administrative fees.
“I don’t think it’s my responsibility to go to her to say, ‘why don’t you come to talk to me to see if there’s something that we can do to help your program,’” William Pisarek, the Chester Township business manager, said.
Back a couple hundred years ago, I may have agreed with Mr. Pisarek. Once, when laws were simple, ignorance of the law was not an excuse for not adhering to the law. But now? It’s absolutely Mr. Pisarek’s responsibility to contact Angela Prattis. Even the archdiocese thinks she is in compliance. Let’s face it: with the Labyrinthian zoning laws, the layer upon layer of permits, and all the blankety-blank fees (which only serve to prevent anyone from doing anything at anytime without the government’s imprimatur), EVERYONE is ignorant of most of the laws on the books, including most of the politicians.
However, I have an additional problem with this. At the beginning of the article, did you happen to notice who “funds” this program? That’s right, boys and girls: it’s funded by the “state department of education”, which means, by US. Now I’m not saying that this is a bad program; far from it. But look at the issue: one level of government “funds” the program (with taxes), it takes its share (always), then lets the archdiocese administer it. I’m sure the archdiocese has some administrative costs as well. Then, with the remaining money they buy food for the poor….except that the folks like Angela Prattis then have to pay MORE taxes/fees/dues for the privilege of doing something which she ALREADY PAID FOR WITH HER TAXES once.
It’s times like this when I realize (for about the gazillionth time) that our government looks at us like a farmer does a cow, …minus the affection and pride, of course.
The Nanny State is alive and well, and goodness knows we have covered the issue before (feel free to look here, here, here, here, and here for just a few examples). This particular article is just the latest illustration of a government doing what governments do: crushing freedom.
From the Independent Journal Review:
In recent years, the US has been tarnishing its reputation for freedom, due to these little devils called ‘zoning laws’. In essence, if your business, event, hotdog stand, or gathering is not properly zoned (or you didn’t run to the Nanny and get a permit), then you might be fined thousands of dollars or spend some time in jail. Besides, the existing corporations who’ve already bought the local politicians hate new competition.
Nowadays, you can’t host a bible study without asking permission from our all-knowing, all-caring Big Brother.
Evidence of this can be seen from a rally that took place in Virginia. What were these Virginian farmers protesting? Fox News reports on an incident where a farmer held a birthday party for a family friend’s child …so the local municipality will be fining them $5,000, because they were never asked for approval. The report states:
“Martha Boneta, owner of Liberty Farms in the northern village of Paris (Virginia), was threatened with nearly $5,000 in fines for selling produce and crafts and throwing unlicensed events, including a birthday party for her best friend’s child. She told FoxNews.com she wasn’t doing anything farmers haven’t done for generations, and at a recent zoning board meeting, her agrarian friends literally showed up with pitchforks to express their support.”
It seems, those in power simply love to …well… exercise that power. They become very offended when the citizenry denies them an opportunity. They are under the impression that they have a say in the littlest of things:
Boneta was told that she did not have the proper event permits for the party and other events, including wine tastings, craft workshops, and pumpkin carving.
“Why I would need a permit for a pumpkin carving?” she said.”
I am tempted to call this unbelievable, but it is all too believable at this point.
Now I’m sure the local government is probably confused by this reaction, since they are making the permits available… and that’s the whole problem. Why should a permit even be required for these activities? This is their own property! Why should someone have to grovel, hat-in-hand, to the government and ask “Mother, may I?” every time they want to do anything? Does this sound like freedom to you? ‘Cause it sure doesn’t to me.
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The election in November is going to be about ideas and ideology. It will be about government’s proper role in our lives. We need to take, not only the top of the ticket, but the majority of the down-ticket races, too. We need to win again as we did in 2010, when Republicans won 680 seats in state legislative races, along with 63 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, recapturing the majority. And then we need to make sure that the leaders we elect do what they said they’d do, and don’t give in to the temptations which power holds.
A win like that one, and we have a shot.
On a related note, Monica Crowley recently wrote a book titled ‘What the (Bleep) Just Happened?’ and in it she talks of the fourth branch of government. Crowley points out that most people believe “the Founding Fathers gave us three branches of government. Not true. They gave us four: the executive, the legislative, the judiciary…and the American people.” Basically, she says that the Founding Fathers anticipated that, someday, all three of the primary branches would all be in the crapper, and then it would be up to us. It’s up to us to lead politically, economically and culturally. She also quotes Thomas Jefferson: “Should things go wrong at any time, the people will set them to rights by peaceable exercise of their elective rights.”
This is our time, ladies and gentlemen. We can avert our own eyes, and hope that the gaze of government happens to fall upon one of our neighbors, or we can stand up and say “No more”.
Not really much of a choice, is it?
I’ll leave you with another quote from Crowley, which perfectly captures this issue. She’s talking explicitly about the Obama administration, but it applies to governmental control everywhere: “The vast majority of Americans are now sitting bolt upright. It took a while for the country to become hip to what Team Obama was up to, because nobody wanted to believe that any president, administration, or political party was capable of such deliberate destruction.”
Look around you. Look at our debt, our eroding freedoms. If there was any question before, there isn’t now.
Ever since the formal announcement on Saturday morning that Paul Ryan would be Mitt Romney’s VP, the web and the TV talking heads have been on fire with articles and opinions about Ryan’s selection, alternately praising and castigating it. The Left seems to be acting especially happy, which I am taking as the political equivalent of “whistling past the graveyard”.
As soon as I heard the news, I had the immediate flash in my brain of Wyatt Earp on the train platform in ‘Tombstone‘: “You called down the thunder!…..“, and it seems that it occurred to more folks than just me.
I think I know why, too.
Ryan has already made Obama look foolish on national TV, while coming across as the non-threatening-yet-brainy boy-next-door. The Left responded as they always do, telling lie after lie about Ryan, which after three years has had zero effect …other than to make them look shrill and desperate.
With the addition of Ryan, the choices are more stark than ever:
Oh, yeah: I’m gonna definitely need more popcorn for this.
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UPDATE: For those of you who are coming late to this party, here are some links for you that pertain to or include Mr. Ryan:
Admittedly, we’ve been on Ryan’s bandwagon for a long time now. He’s not a perfect man, just a good one …but he’s just about perfect for this particular place and time.
I’ve been pondering the ache of the beautiful. Why does Vaughan Williams’ “The Lark Ascending” give me chills, every time I hear it? What is so arresting about the branches of a pine tree against a crisp blue sky? Someone else may be moved to tears by Gabby Douglas’ gold medal performance in the Olympics. Certainly, I’ve wept more than my fair share of tears over ice skating pairs, ballet dancers, and theatrical productions, either for their sheer beauty, or their breathtaking achievement, or (usually) both.
Just observing my granddaughter on any given day, whether she’s looking coy, or adorable, or delighted, or mischievous…can give me such intense pleasure it almost hurts. The closest I’ve come to being able to explain this phenomenon is to say that the ache of beauty is a symbol of what we yearn for, and what we know is ephemeral in this world.
Even the greatest (human) works of art are impermanent: Da Vinci experimented with a different technique in painting The Last Supper, and it began to deteriorate within a few years of its completion. A lunatic smashed parts of Michelangelo’s Pieta. Fire, war and natural disasters have destroyed more treasures than we’ll ever know.
Last week I wrote about this world as my home, and yet not my true home. This post ties in to that, I guess. All of us have our own notion of the ideal, whether in art or music or relationship or government (or kitchen!). For many, it’s an intuitive sense of “the ways things ought to be”. Perhaps that’s why utopian fictions are a recurring theme in literature and film…and why repeated attempts to create utopian communities always fail.
I don’t think we ever get to experience lasting perfection in this life–happiness, peace, health, beauty are all temporary. If it were possible to live on earth in some idyllic state of tranquility, surrounded by aesthetic perfection and living in complete harmony with one’s fellows…then why would we need a notion of heaven? But our senses allow us to experience, among other things, a glimpse of divine beauty which we will one day be able to really enjoy.
Always the gifts should point us back to the Giver. I think there is always a danger, when we focus too insistently on what we desire to achieve in this world, that we will begin to worship it. Do we worship the idea of individual freedom in America? Does the musician or actor or dancer worship a perfect performance? Does the engineer in quest of a manufacturing breakthrough worship the results of his invention? Parents may fall into the trap of worshiping their children, making their successes and strengths the most important goal of their lives.
I’d like to write more about this, as it relates to the believer as a citizen. Suffice it to say that, no matter how truly great a society is, it will not last. God does not intend it to. One of my favorite Irish folk songs, “Eileen Aroon”, sums it up surprisingly well:
Youth will in time decay…/
Beauty will fade away…/ Castles are sacked in war, chieftains are scattered far. Truth is a fixed star…
Or as the writer of Proverbs put it: “Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;
but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.” (Proverbs 31:30)
It’s Sunday. Take a break from bad news to meditate on the Good News. Celebrate beauty wherever you find it. But don’t forget to thank the Artist.
When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place, what is man that You are mindful of him? (Psalm 8:3-4)
It’s the weekend, and we’re just tryin’ to relax.
…Emphasis on “try“, of course…
So today we have two routines from one of my favorites, Bob Newhart. I don’t recall either of these, so we must not have owned this particular album as kids. Too bad: they made my boys laugh, so it’s a good bet we’d have liked them at that age, too.
Have a great day, gang,
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***(…IF we each do our part, of course.)
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I have several reasons for today’s headline, so please allow me to explain.
Back in May or June, I was doing my usual web/news surfing when I stumbled on an article in Townhall.com by a guy whose name I didn’t recognize immediately. Turns out he was Wayne Allyn Root, the 2008 Libertarian Vice Presidential nominee. He’s been making headlines of late with his call for Obama to release his college transcripts. The gist of his post was that he believed Obama would lose in November, and he laid out all sorts of reasons. I was busy, so I bookmarked it to read later, …and promptly forgot about it.
Hey, it happens.
Anyway, I was cleaning up my old bookmarks and luckily decided to read his post before I trashed it. His message was simple: Obama had turned off so many of his former voters that, regardless of what the day’s polls might say, he was doomed.
Before you disagree (or agree), let’s look at a few of those former Obama voters from Wayne Allyn Root:
Convinced yet? My favorite line from the entire article is the one below, simply because it’s so hard to argue against it:
Will anyone in America wake up on election day saying “I didn’t vote for Obama 4 years ago. But he’s done such a fantastic job, I can’t wait to vote for him today.”
The more I think about that line, the more sense it makes. Apart from some of the folks in the Hispanic community (due to Obama’s Executive Order from June for a temporary Amnesty for illegals under 30) and others who were impressed that he “evolved” in his support for gay marriage (and yet actually did nothing), ….who else is there? Those two groups don’t begin to outweigh the list from above. So what hope does he have?
Well, he has two hopes, actually: (1) the media (that’s a given), and (2) his decision to run the most ruthless, scorched-earth campaign ever.
Before you chalk that last part up to hyperbole, hear me out. Forget all the hopey-changey stuff: that’s soooo “2008”. Democrat voter enthusiasm is down, WAY way down. Black pastors are grabbing headlines, and it’s not because they agree with our president’s evolved views. Obama is well aware that he could easily lose a straight-up fight this year, so he’s decided to try to depress/turn-off all the voters …except his.
Every four years we’re greeted by both parties telling us something along the lines of, “…THIS year, my opponent will run the most vile, hateful, dishonest campaign that our country has ever seen”. In 2012, the Romney gang might actually be correct when they say it, because this week’s ad from the Obama SuperPAC was as dirty as it gets.
If you have somehow missed this ad previously, you might be rubbing your ears, asking, “Did that guy just blame Mitt Romney for his wife’s death?”
If that is your question, the short answer would be: yep.
The last 48 hours have been filled with stories on just why this was a complete lie and, in fact, may be the worst travesty of a political ad ever (look here, here, and here). However, it’s also apparent that the Obama campaign isn’t embarrassed in the least, which leaves the question: exactly what would embarrass them?
Let me know when you find something, ‘kay?
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It’s still August, and there are still millions of folks who aren’t paying attention to anything other than their kids’ summer activity calendars and their own vacation plans. Those folks won’t even begin to focus on the election for several more weeks. I get that.
But deplorable lies like that ad leave a scar, and no amount of ‘positive media spin’ can airbrush it away. I predict it will end up having the exact opposite of its intended effect. Much as in the case of Scott Walker in Wisconsin, the very people whom Obama seeks to depress are actually waiting none-too-patiently for their chance to boot him and his entire administration out of office. What’s worse, they’re intent on bringing as many people as they can with them, almost like a pilgrimage.
We’re only going to get one shot at this; let’s make it count.
(***Image shamelessly stolen from our friends over at “A Father’s Apocalypsis” blog***)
Two Heads are Better Than One 