Why Was America's Revolution Different?

This latest video from PragerU explains it nicely... for me to say more would do it injustice.

Defining Tolerance

This latest PragerU video does a good job of explaining this issue in today's "language redefinition" culture.

My Opinion on the Failure of Education Today

This poster was on the wall in the hall of a school I worked at only a year ago. 
Taken w/ my iphone.

I could go into the data and link to articles which support the fact that the quality of our public education has declined over the last several years, but I would be willing to wager that any reader would understand the validity and accuracy of such an assertion. As a retired educator, such assertions are from experience and understanding from the changes witnessed over time.

So, what is it that I think has contributed to this decline?

There are many factors which may be playing into this issue, but I'm going to focus on just one issue which has become obvious to me recently that I would like to share.

Let me ask a question or two. What media industry outspends education 10 to 1? (Hint: There's a profit in it for this industry.)

Advertising outspends education in brain research because they use the understanding to more effectively connect - usually on an emotional level - with the viewer watching the ad to make a product "stick" in their mind and recall it when out shopping.

Education? It's still training its teachers in elementary classrooms to use little "sing-song" mnemonics to memorize something, if that! I know from Common Core curriculum in teaching mathematics to fourth graders, the process of learning the multiplication tables is considered a waste of time; as one specific example.

Here's another question... What has been replaced by technology, causing it to gradually disappear, or fade away, in our modern culture?

If you guessed stories, or more accurately, story telling, you're correct!

Why are stories being read aloud, or spoken, significant to the developing brains of children? Through the audible mode of listening, children use their imagination to contrive images in their minds. Today, our youth are saturated with visual stimuli along with the audible, and the child doesn't have to create any imaginary imagery in the minds to go with it; it's all done for them.

Here's another question I have which I believe relates to mental laziness. Why do today's children give up on working out difficulties?

Brain research has revealed that developing brains in children grow through having to make an effort at understanding something and being able to articulate, or demonstrate the concept learned.

I can't tell you how many times my students were giving up at learning something new. However, when they were told that their brains were having a difficult time with it because their synapses and dendrites - the components of the brain's memory network - which were created during the process of learning something, it took a greater effort to hang in there over time for our brain to make the connections. 

Knowing this, they gradually began to realize that, if they were going to get smarter, and better marks on whatever they going to be assessed on, they shouldn't give up, but press on with determination and effort; knowing that it would eventually pay off for them.

Rather than training today's teachers to understand this and utilize it in their instruction, they are focusing on how to save the planet from a mythical threat of carbon pollution, or loss of forests, or being a social justice warrior. This has become more prevalent than most of us realize.

I believe if there's one thing that would help combat our culture's march toward bringing up future generations of mislead and compliant generations to not learn to think for themselves, it would be reading aloud to them from an early age. Why? Because while raising our two daughters from infancy, we read aloud to both of them until they didn't want us to. Yet, both of them started Kindergarten possessing an independent reading ability at a 3rd grade proficiency level. Talk about a head start!

They also grew up as intelligent, thinkers who understood the need to question and cross-check things before accepting them as gospel by the media advertising and news that worked daily at brainwashing them.

I grant that there are many other factors not touched on in this post, but it still is a huge one.

Are We Unaware of What's Really Happening?

For the past four years, ever since Hillary lost the election to Pres. Trump, we've occasionally heard the phrase "The Resistance" mentioned; either by the Media (D), or prominent liberals and fascists.

In previous posts here on my blog, I've written about my personal suspicions of communists, left over from the now defunct Soviet Union which collapsed in the early '90s infiltrating our country and taking up occupancy in the DNC where they knew progressivism would readily embrace their socialist policies.

Well, here's further proof from another source - this time a former FBI agent - who's written a book about it. The following is a summary from G. Edward Griffin's site about an interview with the author on Tucker Carlson's show:

Terrie Turchie is a former FBI Deputy Assistant Director and the author of In Their Own Words, a book about the Democratic party’s push for Communist America. He says that Democrats are using the words, actions and policies from communist China, Cuba and Russia to change attitude[s] of Americans about our system. He showed that the Weather Underground’s strategy of using racism to divide America is nearly word for word what radical Democrats are using today when they push socialism. He says that the US is on the verge of incremental communism, without understanding what is happening.

 For those interested in viewing the interview, here's the link to it.

Need further evidence? Check out this article! If this doesn't raise hairs on the back of your neck, then I question why you're reading my blog.

Why the West Won

For the past few centuries, Western Civilization has dominated the world both culturally and economically. Why? Some point to imperialism, slavery, and colonial wars. But those sins are common to all empires throughout history. What separates the West from the rest? Stanford historian Niall Ferguson has the answer in this highly informative video.

BTW... Did you happen to notice what major factor which was the major "killer app" behind the rise of Western Civilization?

The Non-crime, Crime or Impeachment - Part 2: The Swamp Thickens

Mueller's investigation begins with the realization that no evidence exists to actually prosecute the president with impeachment.

What to do? Let's look at the campaign team members of Trump's team, because the DNC operative, Chalupa, has gone to Ukraine and produced this "black ledger" which supposedly reveals that Manafort was paid big bucks by Ukrainian oligarchs. He must have been paid off by Putin's lackeys.

Muller's team successfully prosecutes Manafort on process crimes - lying about some minor details - and the "black ledger" allegations, and sentences him for years to solitary confinement in prison.

Fantastic! See Trump haters? We got our "pound of flesh" with this guy from Trump's campaign team. But wait, there's more!

We've got this other dude named Roger Stone who's got a tattoo of Pres. Nixon on his back, so he must be guilt of doing something illegal, so we'll sick our finest "bull-dog" prosecutor team of lawyers, drag him in too and get him prosecuted on process crimes too.

Hey CNN, we've got a great scoop for you! Show up quietly in front of this Stone dude's house at the crack of dawn and wait for our FBI SWAT team with an army of AR-15s, bazookas, mini-tanks and other cool stuff so you can have your cameras capture the moment we bust down his front door and arrest this crook.

What's that? They proved that Manafort's "black ledger" thingy was a complete fabrication by the Ukrainian oligarch guy? Ahh... small potatoes, there's nothing to worry about with that. Forget it, so will the public. Minor detail!

We got this dude, Stone, for witness tampering! What? He did? You mean the witness he allegedly intimidated gave a statement saying he never felt intimidated by Stone and knew he was just joking around with him? Don't worry, we confused him enough to get him to trip up on his answers after we interrogated him for hours on end and we got him on a process crime too. We can get him sentenced for lying to us over minor details, even if we have to ask the GOP in Congress for information.

When the prosecutor team comes before the judge, we hear them say, "Your honor, we are pleased that you're an Obama appointed judge ruling on this case. We're going to let the A.G. Barr know that we're going to recommend something less than a nine year sentencing for this seventy year old man who's lost all of his assets defending himself in this case. But since he's a Trump campaign lackey, we'll give him time, you can be sure!"

When A.G. Barr learns that these three prosecutors actually recommend to the judge in a later hearing a sentence of nine years, the A.G. looks into this conflict and calls them on the carpet for saying one thing, then doing another. So, the pundits in the Media (D) and some in Congress get all huffy about Pres. Trump Tweeting remarks about Stone's sentence, as though Pres. Obama never engaged in such things, right?

The three prosecutors then resign in protest from the case before the sentencing is actually declared by the judge. Oh my lord! People, look how this A.G. is interfering with our court case! And the president is Tweeting about it too! Oh my lord! He's obviously defending his buddy the president!

In steps Cong. Swalwell (D) CA, who announces, "Well, it's clear that this president is obstructing justice, it looks like we can't discount the possibility that he should be impeached for this!" (Of course, we all know how hands off Pres. Obama was during his administration.) On a hot mic, Swalwell's caught off camera saying, "Hey Steve, be sure to get in touch with the gang of those four radical leftists to pressure the Speaker again on calling for another impeachment inquiry! Okay?"

What? Did you say the foreperson of the Stone jury was outed as a biased liberal against Stone? Aw, come on! That can't be! Really? Really!

What a perfect setup! Given all the fake whistleblower garbage we've learned that went on to frame our sitting president over a phone call asking the Ukraine president to help our country investigate corruption in his country, which  only resulted in an acquittal, does this not smell like the same swamp gas we've been dealing with just last month? 

So, do you think the nation's going to put up with another Pelosi, Nadler, Schiff, Swalwell impeachment circus in the House for another six to eight months leading right up to the election date in early November?

Sure! It's just what the Media (D) ordered for boosting their ratings again! Yea! Now we get to rake him over the coals again!

Folks, this all a scam! Everybody knows something, and everyone involved has got something to hide. If you could see a web graphic of who they are, you'd be amazed!

The Modus Operandi of the Socialist

It's not surprising to me that many of the political pundits on both sides of the isle are beginning to express concern about Bernie Sanders doing well in New Hampshire.

The Democrats have been doing their best to convince their people to go with Quid-Pro-Joe, or Fauxcahontas Warren, but Sanders currently is surging and they don't know what to do. They know that if Sanders does well, it will damage the Democratic Party for decades to come because of his policies for "free stuff" which won't wash with the moderates.

My personal feeling about it is that they're knee-jerking to the outcome of a state primary that's next to his home state of Vermont, and once primaries move south and west for Super Tuesday, the shift will occur and results will move away from Sanders to reveal a new leader.

We here in the Puget Sound Region of Western Washington have been dealing with another full-blown socialist of our own; Kshama Sawant on the Seattle City Council. So, we're familiar with how they usually operate. In fact, it seems the general sentiment is beginning to turn on her. 

We're now seeing more clearly that they have their own way of deal with confrontation against their policies which are getting growing push-back. Before I reveal exactly what that way is, let me provide you with an example to see if the reader can detect it themselves, (Courtesy of ShiftWA.org):

Seattle City Councilmember Kshama Sawant admitted her office violated city ethics regulations and Seattle election laws when her office used government resources (i.e., taxpayer funds) to promote a ballot measure.  Despite admitting guilt, Sawant spewed some serious ignorance in a prepared statement: “I’m disappointed to see this complaint filed against my office and our movement. It’s shameful that while big business has license to run amok trying to bully or buy politicians … working people have to follow the most onerous of restrictions.”  It is interesting to see the wealthy Sawant categorize herself as a “working” person, all while pretending that her desire to impose a vengeful tax on Seattle employers is not a perfect example of “bullying.” Additionally, the “restrictions” she ignored are not “onerous” at all – how hard is it to understand that you can’t spend taxpayer funds on your personal political projects? (Seattle Times)

Did you catch it? No show of remorse, display of repentance for violation of law. 

Instead, go on the offensive and brow beat the opposition and blame it as though she and her movement is in the right, and they are bullies. It's not her fault for the fact that her kind have promoted and enacted regulations which make workers deal with the "most onerous of restrictions." Oh no! It's not the socialist's fault, it's those horrible capitalists! Yet, as the last half of the statement points out, the hypocrisy of her own remarks validate the old adage, "Actions speak louder than words." and that the socialist believes that they ARE above the law.

Capitalism Vs. Socialism

Today's debate seems to be whether socialism is superior to capitalism. This debate has been fostered because of the many socialist oriented professors in our institutions of higher learning have put a lot of effort into convincing the younger, inexperienced students in their classes that somehow there is a widening gap of disparity between the rich and poor in our world.

What these professors are not pointing out to them is that the same students who are being brainwashed about the supposed virtues of socialism and the evils of capitalism are living a life of prosperity like no other generations in history because of capitalism.

Should the reader disagree with this premise, I invite them to take a look at this PragerU video which explains how this is so. After viewing it, one will understand what the true reason is for these professors - who, by the way, are doing very well earning their capitalistic salaries - putting down capitalism. I believe it is because there's been a concerted effort over several decades by socialists, concentrated within our colleges and universities, to undermine the image of the greatness of our nation's capitalistic economic engine which has embarrassed Lenin and Stalin's failed Soviet Union model, which is gradually, but stubbornly, been dying out.

Here's information on Bernie Sanders to provide some historical perspective and illustrate just how our country's favorite socialist has established himself in the current campaign.
= = = = = = = = = = 

"In all her years in congress Elizabeth Warren introduced 110 bills. 2 passed. 

Cory Booker introduced 120 bills. 0 passed.
Kamala Harris introduced 54 bills. 0 passed.
 
Then there is Bernie Sanders, he is truly special. 

He never held a job until he was finally elected mayor of Burlington, Vermont, at age 53. He lived off of welfare and the support of four different women, had a child out-of-wedlock with one and the marriages to the other three did not work out.
 
In all his years in the Senate, he introduced 364 bills; 3 passed. Two of those were to name post offices.
 
If you want to know what kind of leader Bernie is, go to Wikipedia, it's a long report. The following is condensed:
Bernie Sanders' father was a high school drop-out, who tormented his family with rants about their financial problems. He blamed society and economic inequality for his plight, though as a white male in a middle class neighborhood, he was hardly among the downtrodden.
 
This was Bernie's inspiration to take up the cause of economic justice, though he would spend half of his life as an able-bodied college graduate living off of unemployment checks, and the women in his life, between odd jobs.
 
By his own admission, Bernie was not a great student, starting at Brooklyn College and transferring to University of Chicago, but his enrollment kept him protected from the draft.
He joined socialist organizations and dabbled in far-left communist politics, gaining national notoriety by petitioning the school to let students have sex in the dormitories.
 
This was before birth control and abortion were legal, when there were still very serious repercussions for women , but that didn't stop him from crusading against those silly rules that were an obstacle to his own satisfaction.
 
He participated in the 1963 March on Washington, a few other demonstrations, and was arrested once, but his activism for civil rights ended when he became obsessed with socialism. NOT "democratic socialism," but oppressive far-left Marxism.
 
Bernie married his college sweetheart, Deborah Shilling, and spent his small inheritance on a summer home in Vermont on 85 acres. The shack had a dirt floor and no electricity, maintaining his proletariat credibility, but not impressing his new bride.
 
He refused to get a steady job, so his wife didn't stick around long, she divorced him after 18 months.
 
The Viet Nam war was escalating, and when the next draft was announced, Bernie applied for a conscientious objector deferment.
 
His deferment was denied, so he dodged the draft by having a kid out of wedlock in 1969 with his new girlfriend, Susan Mott, even though he STILL wasn't working, and had no way to support the child. By the time his draft number came up, he was too old to be drafted anyway.
 
He continued to subsist on odd carpentry jobs and unemployment checks, and occasionally writing and selling $15 articles to publishers, including the one about how women fantasize about gang rape. He still refused to get a steady job to support his child. His girlfriend left him.
In 1988 he married Jane Driscoll, and took a cold-war era honeymoon in communist USSR.
 
His new wife supported him financially through his many attempts to win a public office, and shared his radical leftist political views.
 
They visited the pro-Soviet Sandinista Government in Nicaragua known for their human rights violations, support for anti-American terrorists, and the imprisonment and exile of opponents. Bernie blindly overlooked the carnage to stand with fellow socialists.
 
They traveled to Cuba in hopes of meeting Bernie's hero Fidel Castro, but access to him was denied.
 
Bernie Sanders managed not to hold a full-time job his entire life or vote in a single election, until he finally ran for Mayor of Burlington at the age of 40. After several failed elections, he finally won the office of Mayor of Burlington, and eventually a Senate seat, which he has managed to keep off and on.
For all of his years representing Vermont, the U.S. Senate passed three of Bernie's bills, two of them were for naming post offices.
 
He's a draft-dodging, deadbeat dad, a globe-trotting communist dilettante, and a petulant detractor of hard-working honorable Democrats.
 
His one skill is yelling about how unfair the world is, and how everything SHOULD be. But he has no plans for how to make it happen, and no idea what goes on in the rest of the world or how to deal with problems overseas.
 
His excuse for not having a foreign policy or national security plank on his platform: "I've only been campaigning for three months."
 
His socialist friends are bitter about what they see as a betrayal of their values by Bernie's pursuit of the Democratic nomination.
 
His former wife and girlfriend run when they see reporters and will not speak to the press.
 
Bernie's past, including a brief stint living in a kibbutz in Israel, is cloaked in secrecy. (It worked for B Hussein Obama.)
 
Former employees and coworkers describe him as hostile and belligerent. All of the Democrats in Vermont's government endorsed Hillary Clinton.
 
The people who know Bernie best cannot stand him. His supporters can't explain how he is qualified to be president."

Why Paul Manafort Was Framed

Andrew Weissmann

 

For anyone who's paid attention to the "Russia Hoax" which was the left's first of many hoaxes to conduct a soft coup, it may have seemed a bit puzzling to learn about Paul Manafort being convicted, sentenced and going to prison for something which had nothing to do with colluding with the Russians.

 

Well, new information has surfaced which, if it gets to Pres. Trump, might result in an eventual pardoning of Manafort.

 

Here is the opening line of John Solomon's latest report...

One of Robert Mueller’s pivotal trial witnesses told the special prosecutor’s team in spring 2018 that a key piece of Russia collusion evidence found in Ukraine known as the “black ledger” was fabricated, according to interviews and testimony.

You may not remember, or ever heard about, the "black ledger" which was the core evidence for convicting Paul Manafort, who rots in prison today.  Andrew Weissmann - Mueller's right hand man leading the investigation team - used this totally fabricated evidence to convict Manafort, has convicted yet another individual * and sent him to prison in the past.

* You may recall that this same lawyer, Weissmann, is documented as having convicted another innocent man who went to prison for the Enron scandal back in the early 2000s. (Read "Licensed to Lie", by Sydney Powell... who's now Lt. Gen. Flynn's lawyer, defending him in his case.

Oh yea... you may not have heard, but Weissmann's now a legal consultant for CNN. Gee! Just like John Brennan did. Isn't if funny how these sleaze balls end up their? 

The New Way Forward Act?

Just when we thought Congress would get back to work debating bills that would address the issues which need consideration, we learn of this "stealth" bill the media was too busy ignoring for the value of the Kabuki theater the impeachment trial provided them.

What, you haven't heard of it before? Well, neither has the rest of the country! But if you watch this whole piece, it should strike a nerve of concern about just exactly what the radical progressive left is attempting to propose for the future of our country. 

 

The only thing which gives me reason to not just throw up my arms and exclaim, "We're toast!" is that saner minds in Congress who understand just how absurd this bill is, will not allow it to even make it out of committee, let alone be voted into law.  

For the whole piece, and quality sound, try this link from Fox News. 

Skolkovo? What's That About?

Much of the public knows about the Clinton Foundation; how it was acquiring billions of dollars in donations. But what for? Had Hillary won the presidency in 2016, you can be certain that much of what's been discovered through actual investigative journalism would have been completely covered up, and we'd have no knowledge of it. Even with the outcome of Trump winning, the Media (D) which is well known for aiding the left those who watch their fake news has no clue, or believes it was perfectly legit for the Clintons to have collected so much wealth under a premise that it was going to benefit the poor and downtrodden.

Some of the public is familiar with UnraniumOne; the deal Hillary Clinton was part of that sold Russia 20 per cent of the U.S.'s uranium material for building nuclear warheads. That's only a part of the deals the Clintons had engaged in back then in exchange for hundreds of millions in donations.

What most of the public has not learned about is how, as the Secretary of State (S.O.S.) during the Obama Administration is her husband, former Pres. Bill Clinton, and the Clinton Foundation worked with the Skolkovo Project which was, as the U.S. Army confirms, helping Russia with developing hyper-sonic weaponry through the process of stealing military information for this project in Russia.

If this explanation isn't clear, just go to this Daily Caller link and read the article which spells things out clearly. 

Remember... everyone involved in the impeachment of the president - and don't delude yourself, it isn't over yet, even if he's been acquitted just yesterday - not only know each other, they all have something to hide regarding their involvement in illegal activities during the time they thought their reign of control and dominance would never end.

The Aftermath of the Iowa Hawkeye Cauceye

Chalk it up to incompetence - remember the Obamacare website fiasco? - but the outcome of the Iowa Caucuses has produced not only a massive embarrassment for the Democratic Party, but deepens the suspicions in the minds of those who were already skeptical about the integrity of our elections with a combination of voter fraud, accuracy, and reliability... and it's NOT because of the Russians!

 

This article in the Spectator does a great job of spelling out the ramifications of this outcome in this election; especially the implications going forward in the last part of this article.

 

Fair? They Say We're Not Being Fair?

Let's review... then, a question and  an answer.

Hillary pays FusionGPS to dig up dirt on Trump during campaign.

FusionGPS hires a foreign spy to give the FBI garbage on Trump.

FBI Director Comey lets Hillary "off the hook" for her illegal private server, and destroying subpoenaed emails.

Trump wins election, Hillary loses.

The N.Y. Times, within 15 minutes of inauguration, calls for his impeachment.

FBI uses false information on FISA warrant requests.

Trump fires Comey, Mueller investigates Trump.

Hundreds of bureaucratic regulations are removed and better treaties are negotiated.

Mueller indicts and imprisons low level campaign team members on "process crimes."

Unemployment plummets and prison reform is passed.

Mueller's report reveals Trump is innocent of any collusion with Russians.

Trump later calls Zelinski and asks him to follow through with his corruption cleaning promise.

I.G. report reveals FBI and leaking bureaucrats committed real crimes.

The country is respected by other nations once again and Trump rallies overflow.

"Whistleblower" Ciaramella files false claim of Quid-Quo-Pro about Trump's call.

Two conservative Supreme Court Justices are appointed and the wall is being built.

Trump releases the transcript revealing no "this for that" is involved.

Pres. Zelinski and other Ukrainians assert no coercion about foreign aide funds.

In fact, funds and lethal aide are sent to Ukraine before deadline.

Speaker says no impeachment unless there's a bipartisan vote on it and undisputed evidence.

House impeaches Pres. Trump in December with no evidence of a crime.

Not one Republican votes for impeachment, but two Democrats vote with them.

Speaker sits on sending articles to Senate for over a month.

House also refuses to allow due process under law during hearings in basement bunker.

Democrat media continually - 24/7 - pounds impeachment drum while polls reveal no change by pubic.

House also refuses to call witnesses and presents only two "non-crime" articles of impeachment.

Senate finally takes trial while Democrats try to "strong arm" trial procedures to their favor.

Senate votes to not call for more witnesses during trial after Democrats cry unfair.

Now it is expected the Senate will vote to acquit the president.

During these three years the economy has skyrocketed.

Question: With the president impeached, will any who actually committed crimes go to prison, or will we have to wait until Pres. Trump's second term?(There are those who are more radical in their solution to remedying our current circumstance today, as the link above reveals.)

 
Answer: Something tells me that they're busy getting things ready down at Gitmo!

I Wish My District Had A Senator Like Him!

This was a January 24th feature interview on ShiftWA:

 

This week’s Newsmaker Interview is with Senator Doug Ericksen who has represented the 42^nd District (Whatcom County) since 1999 – first as a House member for 12 years, and as a Senator since 2011.  Ericksen is the ranking minority member of the Senate Energy, Environment, and Technology Committee, where he sees many of the misguided and ineffective climate change policies of the extreme left and big government liberals.  Ericksen talks with Shift about breaching the Snake River dams and the Ballard Locks, low carbon fuel standards, Governor Inslee, taxes, and out-of-touch Seattle legislators.

 

1. Several of your fellow Whatcom County legislators favor a low carbon fuel standard – do they not understand how bad that would be for the county’s economy?

In Whatcom County we have 2 oil refineries.  We create great jobs locally and we produce the energy that powers the economy of the entire state.  When I fight to protect our state’s refining capacity it is not just about my area, it is about the entire state.

 

A Low Carbon Dioxide Fuel Standard is essentially a cap and trade system for liquid fuels.  If your goal is to reduce human based C02 releases into the atmosphere, the LCo2FS program is very inefficient.  The cost per ton of Co2 reduction is very high compared to other methods.

 

It is very hard to construct an effective LCo2FS program.  Under current proposals, consumers would be paying up to 50 cents more per gallon of gas for limited results.

 

This extra tax on gas would not go to roads.

 

2. Do you think that Gov. Inslee actually believes his environmental rhetoric – such as saying his low carbon fuel standard would not raise gas prices – or his he just trying to fool voters?

This is a great question.  I am not a climate alarmist, but I am a person who supports new technologies and a cleaner environment.

 

Gov. Inslee presents himself as a true believer in a radical man-made climate change. I can never claim to get into our Governor’s head to know his true feelings.

 

However, I think that many people have a religious fervor with regards to global warming.  It is my view that Gov. Inslee wants to believe in global warming because he wants to implement a big government, high taxes, high regulations agenda.  The global warming agenda is a mechanism to implement the agenda that Governor Inslee wants.

 

So I would say that Governor Inslee believes his environmental rhetoric because he really wants to believe it is true as a means to achieve his agendas.

 

3. If you were governor for a day, what state regulations would you eliminate – or add – to create jobs?

This is an easy one.   Number one—I would veto any tax increase that did not get a 2/3s vote in the House and the Senate.  I would veto any budget that grows government spending faster than inflation plus population.  I would require that for any new regulation put into place, two regulations would have to be deleted.

 

I would also create rules for economic empowerment zones in Washington to expedite permitting for high quality manufacturing jobs in all parts of Washington.

 

4. Do you believe your Seattle legislative counterparts understand how their proposals will impact non-urban communities?

No.  I could stop right there. When you live in a concrete jungle, I think you lose some understanding about what is means to live on real soil.  The radical elements that currently control Seattle politics scream for the removal of the Snake River dams or for massive buffers on rural streams.  They really do not know the massive environmental changes that were made to the City of Seattle to create the lifestyles they live today.

 

I think the Ballard Locks should be breached before we even talk about tearing out Snake River dams.  Seattle City Light gets their power from dams in my district in Whatcom County.  Perhaps we should free the wild Skagit River by tearing out these dams and let Seattle find its power somewhere else.

 

I will not even try to explain the Denny Regrade—but those who know what it is know how much Seattle has altered their landscape.  I do not think the even 10% of the radicals in Seattle would even know what the Denny Regrade is without searching it on their phones.

 

5. Many counties on the west side of the state have many jobs connected to agriculture. Are the needs of the farmers on the west side any different than those in Eastern Washington?

Yes and no.  We have similar issues.  But our water issues, the scale of our farms, the products we produce, and many other aspects are different.

 

What we share in common is over regulation, over taxation, and a lack of freedom to produce the local food stuffs that urban people say they want.

 

A great example of how out of touch Seattle legislators are was provided in the 2019 session.

 

The State Senate passed a bill requiring all dairy and berry farmers to report to the state the number of slaves they had on their properties.   This is insulting to farmers because we do not have slaves—obviously.

 

Here is the part you cannot make up—the prime sponsor of this legislation was from Seattle.  While there are no slaves on our farms, a law enforcement operation in the Seattle district of the prime sponsor freed several dozen young women trapped in the sex slave industry.

 

6. You have made headlines for suggesting the state should study the removal of the Ballard Locks and the dams that provide power to Seattle.  Do you believe this has had any impact in the thinking of urban environmentalists who want to tear down the Snake River dams?

No.  The goal of this legislation is to highlight that all parts of Washington should have the chance for economic prosperity.   The goal of this legislation is also to educate people about the realities of what needs to be done to build big projects in Washington State.

 

I am not trying to alter the viewpoints of carbon jihadists, I am not trying to alter the viewpoints of radical deep ecologists.  I am trying to work with people who want to improve our quality of life, create good jobs, and build better communities.

 

I am an environmentalist.  I am working on positive solutions to protect our environment while creating more opportunities to enjoy our environment.  Current policies in Olympia are wasting limited resources to take us down the carbon rabbit hole, while ignoring policies that could create better communities.

Prophetic, or Just A Phase?

The following posts put out by ShiftWA.org today provide a disturbing view of the kinds of things currently going on in this beautiful, but rapidly degenerating state. If this trend continues, It's going to become the northern portion of the left coast, called Washinfornicated!

Skim through these items and you'll understand why...

State

Regulatory delays from Inslee’s Department of Ecology (DOE) are the reasons why Phillips 66 announced last week it was canceling the construction of a job-creating renewable diesel facility in Whatcom County.  The company described tactics similar to those DOE is also using with the Kalama methanol facility, and the bureaucratic delays are costing local communities hundreds of jobs and millions of dollars in tax revenue.  These job-killing delays are conducted to boost Governor Inslee’s environmental portfolio so he can selfishly obtain a job for himself (he hopes) in a future Democrat president’s administration. (Lynden Tribune and Senate Democrat caucus) Comment: Looks to me more like he's workin' hard at pissin' off his taxpayers. Department of Transportation road crews used to concentrate on highway “beautification” projects, but today they focus on cleaning up tons of garbage created by homeless encampments.  A spokesperson says $3 million in the department’s budget is currently set aside for “homeless cleanup.” Now that’s a liberal job-creation program! (KIRO) Comment: And the next thing you know,  the U.W. and W.S.U. will be offering degrees for it, with salaries starting at $250,000 a year! In just three weeks, Washington’s new family leave program is already overbudget and behind schedule.  22,000 people have applied for the weekly payout since the program began January 1st.  State bureaucrats had projected they would receive that number of applications in the first three months, not first three weeks. Because the Inslee Administration failed to correctly estimate the caseloads, payment delays will occur. Guess they should have known that when you promise free stuff, people will sign up fast. (AP) Comment: Hey, ain't socialism great? Rep. Melanie Morgan (D-Tacoma) has introduced a bill to make it illegal to discriminate due to “hair texture and protective hairstyles.”  Current state law makes it illegal to discriminate due to race, religion, or sexual orientation, but hair is not on the list…yet. (KREM) Comment: After that... a bill to make it illegal to discriminate against those who wander the streets naked.

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Western Washington

A leader of a liberal special interest group attempts to portray Amazon as an “abusive boyfriend” simply because the company has stood up to the crazies in Seattle government.  If we use writer Katie Wilson’s silly analogy, and honestly analyze the dysfunctional relationship, isn’t the Seattle City Council the “abusive partner” here?  First the council blames Amazon for the homeless problem the city has created (development and landlord regulations that reduce affordable housing, and a criminal justice policy that enables a drug/crime/homeless culture).  Amazon has arguably done more to help homeless individuals with its support for Mary’s Place and other effective charities than the city has with its expensive homeless programs that selfishly increase government employee headcount (the city council giving money to their “enablers”, i.e. government unions). Then, even though Amazon and its employees pay millions (maybe billions) in local taxes, the city thinks it deserves all the money Amazon earns.  The abusive partner (city council) keeps saying that if we just give them a little more money, things will get better. Yet they keep coming back demanding more money.  Finally, the abuser (city council) now wants to punish Amazon for standing up for itself.  The Seattle City Council is the real abusive partner here.  (BTW – we won’t attack Wilson for her sexist stereotype that only men are abusive in relationships.) (Crosscut) Comment: I thought this was the from the script of some soap opera show. Predictably, the Seattle City Council is attempting to find a scapegoat instead of fixing the criminal culture which led to the recent mass shooting.  Members of the city council focused their efforts on computer programed aps that automatically increased fares as people were attempting to escape downtown after the shooting.  Apparently councilmembers believe they are empowered to force private-sector Uber/Lyft drivers to risk their own lives to go the scenes of a mass shooting, after public-sector transit officials had stopped serving the area, at a price the city council determines. (Seattle Times) Comment: Let's face it, Seattle isn't dying, it's  DEAD! Sex trafficking is also associated with the homeless culture which liberal policies have created.  At a recent forum in Federal Way, victims who were homeless spoke how they were promised shelter, food, clothes, and drugs in return for sex. (Bellevue Reporter) Comment: Okay, so what's new? Leaflets around the University District reveal there is a “Seattle Drug User’s Union.”  The flyers indicate members are “Proud to be a drug user” and they are seeking ways to decriminalize their drug use.  The union members meet the first Thursday of each month at a needle exchange location. (MyNorthwest) Comment: I know, let's enroll them in SEIU! Reports are circulating that the name of Seattle’s new National Hockey League team might be the Seattle Kracken.  For those who are unfamiliar, a “kracken” is a giant octopus-like creature from Scandinavian folklore (and Pirates of the Caribbean movies). (MyNorthwest Sports) Comment: Yea... and the fans will be puffin' on their pipes in the seats too.

It Isn't Much Better Outside Seattle Either!

After scanning through the entire article, I kept telling myself, "This is how bad it's gotten now!"

Question: Why are public schools so bad now, in terms of both learning and behavior, that we are regularly learning about teachers who are being reported for behavior we find difficult to believe?

Answer: To anyone who thinks they can do the job of most teachers currently dealing with the kinds of students in many schools today, go for it! If they think they can both maintain discipline and keep them interested in learning, be my guest! Good luck!

After 40 years of doing my best to do the same, I speak with experience and authority in saying that over those years, the deterioration of decent social behavior of a growing percentage of students, especially by the time they get to middle school age, has gotten to the point where I can understand why many school districts will do their best to keep teachers, rather than fire them. 

And why do I say that? Because those teachers who have attempted to do the job for a reasonable amount of time know from experience that even though they're paid what seems to many as an exorbitant salary for the work they do, leave as soon as they realize they can no longer tolerate the abuse and disrespect they must endure on a regular basis, while also feeling that the district administration's edicts about what they can, and can't do, finally leave for another profession; it's just not worth it! So, many districts do their best to keep who they can.

Until and unless school boards begin to stand behind teachers who are attempting to establish their classroom as one that is oriented toward a learning environment that observes polite, respectful social conduct and treatment by the student of the teacher who's there to help them apply skills to get them prepared for a prosperous future, then public schools will only get worse.

Think about it... why are private, charter, and home schooling growing in popularity and demand by parents across the country? Because they can afford it? No, because they understand that their child's learning, as opposed to a constantly disruptive and anti-social, disrespectful climate which dominates many classrooms in middle and high schools today stunt's their child's experience and, in the long run, their potential for success in the future.

The President of the Washington Education Association testified against state funds being used to support charter schools.  Since the teachers’ union does not control charter schools – nor receive dues from the teachers in those schools – the unions are opposed to parents providing their children with an education option that better fits their needs.  Charter schools are increasingly more attractive to students from low-income families than their neighborhood public schools.  The teachers’ union continues to demonstrate that its greed and political power are more important than parents choosing what is best for their children’s education, especially those from poorer families. (WEA) from ShiftWA.org

The last 10 years were spent substituting in a few different districts. Even through that brief period, I experienced a noticeable deterioration of even elementary students at the upper grades exhibiting what I dealt with at the middle school level years before. Why? Because many children see their older siblings modeling the inappropriate behavior in various settings, or on television.

I know, I've managed to hang in there over the past four decades and it's gotten worse with the type of undisciplined child who comes from a home that has no father figure to provide them the needed guidance and nurturing so critical to a growing child. This is where our society has failed itself.