These United States

It's time for more rants from a mad man!!!


Today I have to admit to you that for the major portion of my life I have been very insecure. The reason is because I did not graduate from college, and I am not very smart.

That being said, something I just can't seem to grasp is who is doing the work in Washington, DC, for all of the politicians that are traveling all around the country running for President?

They are away from the office for, in some cases, over two years while they are campaigning and if you add in their sick leave and vacation time, well I had some math in school and this just doesn't pencil.

This is all the political parties, not one or the other.

Another thing I can't wrap my arms around is what they stand for. All I ever hear is how bad things are now and how changes need to be made.

After eight years we all grow tired of things and want something new.

Take a look at your car. After eight years you want a change, maybe with a tweak here or there or a total brand change.

Say what you want about car dealers, but when you are looking to change to a new car at least they can tell you all about the new features, what those features will do for you and how it will change your life.

The car dealer knows after eight years you know everything you want to know about your old car and what it did or didn't do for you, so they don't keep beating up your car since it is about to leave your garage anyway.

All the politicians running for office nowadays just want to tell you how bad your old car was rather than give you ideas and workable solutions as to how the new car will make your life better.

Crime is rampant, the national debt is outrageous, we are being taxed to death, our national security is a joke, we import way more than we should, and if it is edible, the safety of it is suspect as well.

None of that is ever addressed and if mentioned, it is never in the same sentence with a solution!

Just once I would like to know how and what they are going to do that will benefit America. Not just shallow rhetoric.

They say the parties work so closely together for the betterment of the people. The "how" part might not be an easy answer but we deserve an answer.

The whole campaign will be about the Iraq war and if elected how they will all end it. That my friends will get someone elected to office with no other platform. Sweet deal.

There once was a president that scholars rank among the top three U.S. Presidents, with the average of those surveys placing him at number one.

He is noted for his lasting influence on U.S. politics, so much so there is a monument of him in Washington, DC. His name was Abraham Lincoln.

I'm not a scholar but I think one of the most profound endings to one of his speeches should be required reading for anyone running for any office.

"and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth...."

These are true words the politicians have forgotten, and if they continue the way they are, we shall perish.



Switching gears:

In my April 27 post I talked about the proper etiquette for flying the United States Flag at half staff.

As many of you know, St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Josh Hancock was killed in an automobile accident Sunday. At Busch Stadium the Flag was flown at half staff.

We all feel bad when someone is killed in a car accident, but once again I ask by what right is our flag flown at half staff for him?


In contrast, Robert Rosenthal passed away and I didn't see any flags flown at half staff.

The news coverage of St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Josh Hancock death was a media frenzy.

How many of you saw, heard, or read about Robert Rosenthal's death?

Who was Robert Rosenthal?

Mr. Rosenthal was not a sports figure. He was just a World War II bomber pilot who twice survived being shot down in raids over Europe.

Rosenthal's 52 missions included one, on Oct. 10, 1943, in which his aircraft was the only one of 13 to return from a raid on Munster, the rest having been downed by anti-aircraft fire and waves of Luftwaffe fighters. Rosenthal's B-17 reached England with two of its four engines gone, severe wing damage and two wounded crew members.

Rosenthal's plane was disabled by flak over France in September 1944 and he suffered a broken arm and other injuries in a forced landing, but was helped to safety by French resistance fighters. Five months later, he was shot down again during a raid over Berlin, and got home with the aid of Russian troops, via Poland, Russia, Iran, Egypt, Greece and Italy.

With 16 decorations including the Distingushed Service Cross, the nation's second-highest award for heroism, Rosenthal was a quintessential example of the young Army pilots, some barely out of their teens, who defied seemingly hopeless odds to carry out daylight strategic bombing raids against Germany's industrial war machine from 1942 to 1945.

I guess no one remembered that prior to enlisting in the military one day after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Mr. Rosenthal was the football and baseball team captain at Brooklyn College or the flags would have been at half staff.


Those are my words for today!!

What more can one do?

Drop back in again tomorrow and see if anything on here interests you!!!!