ARE WE HEADED IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION?

It occurred to me recently that even though I think this country is headed in the wrong direction, some people must think differently. Who are these people and why do they think this way? Or, maybe I am the one who is wrong. 

 

Our southern border is under siege by individuals from all over the world. Yet, I saw a sign being carried by a "demonstrator" that proclaimed there are no illegal people. Some folks do not believe that we should have borders. We should just open up and let anybody in who wants in. Can you imagine what that would do to our country? Half of the world would be at our doorsteps. 

 

Taxpayers pay for our schools. They pay for social welfare programs. None of this is free. Why should it be okay for people from all over the world to just jump the fence and take advantage of these benefits? It isn't theirs and should be reserved for citizens who paid for them.

 

Socialism is creeping into our country. The same form of government that has failed everywhere it has been tried. Think Cuba or Venezuela for example. And yet many of our colleges and universities are teaching their students that this is the preferable form of government. Not only higher education but also the media. They seem to champion every opportunity they can to tout socialism. It might be helpful to remember when Fidel Castro took over Cuba and brought his socialism with him, he forced the higher ups in that country to go into the sugar cane fields and do manual labor. I am pretty sure that caught them by surprise. 

 

Hugo Chavez was the dictator of Venezuela. When he died his net worth was, according to Forbes, over two billion dollars. Today his oldest daughter is the wealthiest person in that country worth over four billion dollars. Socialism works, but only for the dictators in charge. The rest of the country goes into the toilet. People are streaming out of Venezuela by the thousands.  Even with all the evidence available, some, the media, higher education, liberal Democrats, etc., still seem to think socialism is for us. What morons. Wake up. 

 

In my eighty years on this planet I have seen activities, which at one time were illegal and punishable with prison time, become not only legal but are now celebrated. What was once seen as lewd and lascivious is now seen by some as just an alternative lifestyle. Abnormal has become normal. Unnatural has become natural. And the worst part of this is that these people insist I celebrate with them. No thanks. I'll continue to retain my traditional thinking. When it is more important to celebrate homosexuality than Christmas, I begin to think I am in the wrong country. Homosexuals get a month and Jesus only gets one day. Seems a little strange to me. Or maybe, just maybe, the morons are wrong.

 

I just saw a transsexual "woman" weight lifter. He spent most of his life as a male but wasn't very successful as a weightlifter. So, he decided to become a female and now is setting records as a female weightlifter. He is looking forward to winning gold at the Olympics. And no, I'm not kidding you. Can anyone tell me what, if anything, about this is fair? What this will do is pronounce the end of women's athletics. Is that what the "progressives" want? 

 

For many years America has been the shining city on the hill. We have been the envy of the world. For some that is unacceptable. They don't see us as exceptional. We are the envy of the world because we are free. We are the envy of the world because we are the most successful democracy on earth. Why do you think everybody wants to come here? If the liberal progressives get their wish, we will become just another failed socialist state. 

 

Ron Scarbro June 30, 2021

 

CONGRATULATIONS LIBERALS. YOUR PLAN IS WORKING.

I am pretty sure that Biden was elected not so much by votes for him as for votes against Trump. Donald Trump spent his entire Presidency under attack by liberal lies and assault by the ultra liberal media. He faced phony impeachment proceedings the likes of which we have never seen before. His very difficult job became even more difficult by all the crap thrown at him by his enemies. 

 

Through it all though, he accomplished more than most Presidents who are left to just do their jobs. But, even at that, he lost his bid to be re-elected. Future historians will be amazed by this phenomenon. 

 

So, the liberals got their wish. They turned their backs on the most successful President in modern times. They elected instead a veteran of many years of feeding at the government trough. A man who had been in government for over forty years. 

 

My question is, did the liberals get what they wanted? This column will examine some of the accomplishments of the Biden presidency since he took the reins. Is this what they wanted? 

 

On January 20, the southern border was relatively under control. On January 21, Biden's first day in office, all hell broke loose. Since that day our border has been under attack by people from all over the world. These are unknown, unvetted, mostly unskilled people who have decided to invade the land of milk and honey and get in on the free stuff. These are not educated scientists, or doctors, or teachers who can contribute to our country. No, they are future welfare recipients and candidates for criminality. They are coming by the hundreds of thousands. Congratulations liberals. Your plan is working. 

 

On January 20, gasoline and fuel prices were decent with most of the country selling gasoline for about $2.50 a gallon or less. Today most service stations are selling gasoline for $4.00 a gallon and up. I heard there are places where the price is near $6.00 to $8.00 a gallon. Now, mind you, this is after just five months of Biden in office.

 

In order to placate the far left of the Democrat party, he cancelled the Keystone pipeline and halted oil drilling on Federal land. Price increases were the only possible result of such action as well as our losing energy independence. So, again, congratulations liberals. Your plan is working. 

 

Under President Trump our slogan was "America first". Not so under Biden. He just returned from Europe where he was basically man-handled by world leaders from everywhere. He looked and acted weak. Who knows what he gave away. Putin treated him like a puppy dog. Can you imagine if Trump was there this time? When he represented America to the Europeans, they knew who was in charge. Of course, when Biden represented our country, they also knew who was in charge and it wasn't Biden. I am more and more convinced that the liberals want us to be weaker. They don't see America as exceptional. So, again, congratulations liberals. Your plan is working.

 

Biden is working hard to bankrupt this country by spending us into oblivion. His so-called "infrastructure" plan will cost trillions of dollars. Money that will have to come from increased taxes. When he says only the extremely wealthy will see an increase in their taxes, don't believe it. That's not the way it works. Any and all tax increases filter down to everyone. Besides, the plan in question is not an infrastructure plan at all. It is just a liberal pipe dream. 

 

So then, we can only conclude that all of this is the liberals’ plan. Congratulations, liberals. Your plan is working. You had better get it done by election 2022 though. That will be the end of your pipe dreams.

 

Ron Scarbro June 22, 2021

 

SOME THINGS THAT UPSET ME

There are a lot of things that upset me. I try to keep them to a minimum for the sake of my blood pressure, but sometimes they just get to be too much. In this column I intend to air some of my grievances to see if you too are irritated by some of the same stuff. 

 

The national so-called "mainstream media" leads the way as one of my pet peeves.  They are without doubt a propaganda arm of the Democrat party. They are not fair and they are not balanced. What really upsets me is that the non-Democrats don't have any national media that offers their side of issues. There are parts of this country that never hear the conservative side of the news. They only get the liberal left version of everything. It's hard to believe but, there are still some people who think the New York Times is a truth-telling reporter of news. 

 

This is strange. I just saw on the news today a school board member from Fairfax County, Virginia giving a commencement address to a graduating class. She is the only Muslim member of that board and she was dressed in the full costume of that faith. The problem was not in her dress or even that she was a Muslim. The problem was what she had to say. She encouraged the students to reject capitalism and to remember jihad. Does she understand where she is? She wants the graduating class to go to war against their own country. If she is so unhappy living in this free country, perhaps she should take the next flight out to one of those Muslim dominated countries where women are considered as property. She might come to her senses then. It might also be helpful for her to understand that advocating for the overthrow of our government is a crime punishable by serious time in a Federal prison. 

 

How about this one? Critical race theory. This is the latest attempt on the part of the far left to further divide America along racial lines. The theory is that all white people are oppressors and all black people are oppressed. In the minds of the advocates of this theory a young black person has no chance for success because the white oppressor will deny him opportunity. So, why even try. Sounds a little stupid to me. Also, it doesn't speak very highly of any black person's initiative. Surely then the many successful black people that I know of must be an aberration.

 

Do you remember the "DO NOT CALL LIST"? I don't know about you, but I reported many, many calls to that number. It did nothing to stop the robocalls. I wrote a letter to my Congressman and he assured me that he had introduced another bill which would surely take care of the problem. Well guess what. It didn't. I get more calls now than ever. It brings to mind a simple question. Can my Congressman do nothing about this, or is it just that nobody really cares?

 

The pronoun war is going strong. Bruce Jenner wants to be referred to as a female. Sorry, Bruce. Surgery and hormone injections don't change the fact that you are a male. If I cover you in any writing, I will use any pronoun I choose. 

 

Our own government is having fits trying to keep up with all the "woke" people and their demands. Have you heard this one? You can't use the term mom or mother. You must refer to them as "birthing people". Apparently non-parents might be offended by the term "mom".

 

I haven't even begun to discuss transexual boys wanting to play on girls’ sports teams. Of course, that would include sharing the bathrooms and the showers. What could possibly go wrong? 

 

As you can see, a lot of stuff ticks me off, but I'll deal with it. I just feel so bad for the future of this country unless we change course and get back to traditional America. What do you think? 

 

Ron Scarbro June 15, 2021

 

THE OLDER I GET

We are all getting older. That's life. From time to time, I try to re-examine my life. How did I do? Did I make the right decisions? One thing is certain and that is I can't change it now. I have to live with the way I conducted my life. What have I learned? This column is for me as much as for anyone else.

 

For my entire life I have been a fan of "country" music. To me it represents the poetry of the common man in America. I especially appreciate the lyrics. There is usually a story involved. Country music has been identified as three chords and the truth. To me that is a great definition. 

 

A good friend recently sent me a forward of country great, Alan Jackson singing the song, "The Older I Get". I am going to share with you the lyrics of this great piece of music in the hope you enjoy it as much as I do. 

 

The older I get

The more I think

You only get a minute

Better live while you're in it

It's gone in a blink

 

And the older I get

The truer it is

It's the ones you love, not the money and stuff

That makes you rich

 

And if they found a fountain of youth

I wouldn't drink a drop and that's the truth

Funny how it feels I'm just getting to my best years yet

 

The older I get

The fewer friends I have

But you don't need a lot when the ones you got

Have always got your back

 

And the older I get

The better I am

At knowing when to give

And when to just not give a damn

 

And if they found a fountain of youth

I wouldn't drink a drop and that's the truth

Funny how it feels I'm just getting to my best years yet

 

The older I get

I don't mind all the lines

From the times I've laughed and cried

Souvenirs and little signs of the life I've lived

 

The older I get 

The longer I pray

I don't know why, I guess that I've just

Got more to say

 

And the older I get

The more thankful I feel

For the life I've had and the life I'm living still

 

Many of the readers of this blog are getting up in years, as am I. My life has been filled with hills and valleys as I imagine most have. Some of my valleys have been low but my hills have and continue to be higher than high.

 

I have been blessed with a beautiful lady who is still by my side after almost sixty years. We have been given two spectacular children who love us as we love them. 

 

The older I get, the more I think of the blessings I have been given. I hope that the sharing of this piece of music touches you as it has me. It is pure country music and it speaks to us all. 

 

Ron Scarbro June, 2021

THE CONTENT OF OUR CHARACTER

I do not believe America is inherently a racist country. I do not believe that America was founded by individuals who were racists. I am not a racist and I resent the almost constant drumbeat of today that we are all racists. 

 

There is no doubt that in our history this country did some ugly things. Slavery was one of the worst. Now, I don't want this to come as a shock to you, but none of us living today had anything to do with slavery. Slavery was part of the commerce of that bygone era. Most Americans were overjoyed when it ended.

 

In my lifetime I have worked for, with, and hired people of different races. When I was in the Army it was understood that you would never question the race of the man next to you in a foxhole. Only that he was as ready as you to deal with whatever came our way. 

 

What we did to Japanese Americans during WWII was terrible. We put them in concentration camps.  Fortunately, most of them survived our ignorance and have fared well. May we never again be so stupid. 

 

So, what is all this racism talk about? Many believe it is an effort to force this government to pay reparations to black people of today who were never slaves and probably don't even have distant relatives who were slaves. Reparations means to repair. Well, I didn't break anything. Therefore, I don't owe any reparations.   

 

There is an effort to make "critical race theory" a part of the public school curriculum. If ever there was a better way to further divide us as people, I don't know what it would be. What is that theory? It begins with the false notion that black people are oppressed by white people. It furthers the idea of white privilege. Some in this country want us to believe black people are victims of white supremacy. The truth is that no Americans are victims. All Americans are free people who can accomplish anything their effort and talent will allow. The sooner that black people get over the "victim" identity, the sooner they will be able to succeed just like anybody else.

 

In America we all have the freedom to try. We do not have a guarantee of success however. I just read that Michael Jordan has a net worth of over two billion dollars. Granted he was a great basketball player, but that didn't create that kind of wealth. He has also proven to be a very talented businessman. He regularly gives a lot to charities as well. 

 

Barack Obama was elected President of this country. How could a racist country elect a black president? Granted he was only half black but personally I didn't like either half. I didn't vote for him. It had nothing to do with his race. It was his politics that I didn't like. I would vote for Condoleezza Rice or Dr. Walter Williams, both of whom are black, for President any time. It has to do with their politics, not their skin color or gender. 

 

I believe the claim that black people are oppressed by white people is an excuse for lack of accomplishment and maybe even laziness. 

 

Martin Luther King Jr. said it clearly. He longed for the day when people would be judged not by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character. As a white man I long for the same treatment. To those who believe my success, albeit moderate, is due to my whiteness, I say give me the same consideration King longed for. Judge me not by the color of my skin but by the content of my character.

 

Ron Scarbro May 30, 2021