July 5, 2009
By Laura Armstrong
Columnist
For so many of us this Independence Day our flags might be flying high, but our patriotic spirits are profoundly troubled.
Allow me to point out the dichotomy of the weekend. Amid your celebrations, were you uneasy? As you watched parades, or fireworks, or ate barbecue, perhaps a little voice inside said something like, "It took America eight years of bloody Revolution to become a free republic, and in just months look at how far we've strayed from that ideal."
Oh sure, this holiday weekend has been fun. We right-wing extremists were born to hum along with Sousa or supervise the decorating of bikes in red, white and blue streamers. Who can't muster a smile for a child with his first sparkler?
As I watched my 30th Peachtree Road Race on TV (I've never quite made it downtown on the Fourth) I marveled again at American creativity and our ability to take good ideas and build them into something truly grand - if government doesn't interfere, that is.
Yet then I remember: In the statist Obama nation, private enterprise and achievement are under attack - distinctly un-American.
Meanwhile, despite his "Mission Accomplished" moment last week, when Obama announced his bailout policies have really, truly worked (is Baghdad Bob running White House communications?) we have 9.6 percent unemployment, the highest in 26 years. In June alone, Americans lost 476,000 jobs.
As Dr. Phil would say, "How's that working for you, Barack?"
In just months, corporations have been taken over by the feds. Profitable private auto dealerships were closed and individuals, even CEOs, were threatened, victims of the new gangster politics.
Last week, our Democrat Congress and eight turncoat Republicans moved us closer to the change America so ignorantly voted for, passing the largest tax increase in history, despite a harsh recession and Obama's "no middle class tax hike" pledge.
Obama lied, but Gov. Sanford cried and Michael J. died, and the media barely noticed. Now we're close to enacting the Cap-and-Trade (Waxman-Markey) Bill, aka, the Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009.
Based on phony science, this monster levies more taxes on everyone, will reduce GNP, possibly destroying 1 to 2 million jobs each year, and will force us to live in the strange little world of carbon emission haters, i.e. environmental inspections by the feds before selling your home and restrictions on appliance use from wood stoves to light bulbs, none over 60 watts allowed. It even specifies where to plant trees in your yard, if it even allows yards - no one has read the whole 1,200 pages of the legislation yet.
Still to be considered in the Senate, this bill needs to die. It's un-American.
So this week, call Johnny and Saxby. Attend a future Tea Party, like the one conducted in Cobb last Friday. It's good to be with others who understand history, political theory and the implications of creeping socialism and fascism.
Continue to support our troops, and pray for them as they push deeper into Afghanistan, fighting Obama's refocused War on "Overseas Contingencies," his PC term for Terrorism.
And keep the faith until Election Day, if you can.
(My friend Laura Armstrong nails it again! It is good to be with others who understand what American is facing! It strengthens our resolve to stand tall and proud, knowing that we do not stand alone. Keep up the great work Laura, you are making a lot of us very proud. As Laura said, "How's that working for you, Barack?"
Yeah, she said it and we are entitled to her opinion on this blog too! VN8)
