Our Culture and our “Freedom” this #FourthOfJuly Weekend…

In honor of our nation’s anniversary, below are THREE separate items on the topic: 2 videos, along with a post from one of our Guest Bloggers…

First up, a video from our ol’ pal Remy, highlighting our ever-dwindling “freedoms”:

“God Bless the USA”, #VAScandal Edition – (by Remy)

No one, and I do mean NO one, does political satire today quite like ReasonTV’s Remy. His efforts this time combine two major recent headlines, and he makes an inescapable (and deeply troubling) point.

Welcome to the new United States of America, where a people “…of the government, by the government, for the government…“, shall not perish from this earth:

“Happy” – (Remy’s Tax Day video)

Happy Tax Day, gang!!

Before you watch Remy’s brilliant (as usual) remake of the Pharrell Williams hit “Happy”, you might want to check out a couple things first: 

Democrat Senator Feinstein on Gov’t Surveillance: Rules for Me, but Not for Thee

It must be wonderful to live in a world where the rules don’t apply to you, …because you make all the rules.

And it must come as quite a shock when suddenly your rights are being usurped, right along with those of the hoi polloi:

(via Washington Post) – “…Senate Intelligence Committee chair Dianne Feinstein (D, Calif.) made waves Tuesday when she publicly accused the Central Intelligence Agency of spying on Senate computers in an alleged attempt to thwart her committee’s investigation into Bush era interrogation and detention practices. The senator even suggested that the agency had violated the Constitution and federal law.

But while Feinstein is up in arms about the intelligence agency’s search of her staff’s computer system and network, she has been an avid defender of National Security Agency surveillance programs. “It’s called protecting America,” she said shortly after the news broke that the NSA was collecting domestic phone records in bulk...”

#NSA spying: New Efforts and New Effects

A couple NSA-related news articles from the last few days which, for whatever reason, haven’t generated nearly enough buzz:

NSA surveillance hurting tech firms’ business

(via USA Today) – The National Security Agency, and revelations about its extensive surveillance operations — sometimes with the cooperation of tech firms — have undermined the ability of many U.S. companies to sell products in key foreign countries, creating a fissure with the U.S. government and prompting some to scramble to create “NSA-resistant” products. The fallout could cost the tech industry billions of dollars in potential contracts, which has executives seething at the White House.

Say Your Goodbyes to Edison’s Light Bulb

We’ve known this was coming for a while now, and still… it just feels wrong.

(via CBS Baltimore) – The days on incandescent bulbs are dimming. It’s been a seven-year phase-out effort by the government. The 100-watt disappeared from store shelves back in 2012. Now this year, they’re pulling the plug on the two most popular incandescent bulbs–the 40 and the 60-watts.

All I want for #Christmas is: “An End to Quantitative Easing”

We’ve linked to ReasonTV’s Remy before: he’s original, he’s funny, and he’s right.

And with his latest entry (at the bottom), he has really outdone himself.

But before we get to the video, let’s briefly discuss his subject matter. I’m all too aware that as soon as most folks hear the words “Quantitative Easing”, their eyelids start to flutter. Yeah, I’m with you. But our nation’s fiscal policy is a GIGANTIC part of what allows us to actually enjoy our freedom, and right now it’s a ticking time-bomb.

Happy Halloween, from #Obamacare: “The Healthcare Mash”

The (un)-Affordable Care Act is still front-and-center in the news today, but since it’s ALSO Halloween, we were seeking some way to blend the two topics.

Courtesy of Remy at ReasonTV, this clip made me laugh out loud. And considering how completely NOT funny Obamacare is, …that’s quite an accomplishment: