Give Thanks for America

When we read the news headlines and see in social media, the images of unrest, mayhem, and despair, it is easy to forget where it is that we really live and what that really means. 

Thanksgiving as we celebrate it, is an American holiday. America, warts and all, is worth being thankful for.

There is one place, one shining place on earth where any individual can begin with absolutely nothing, yet go on to become, do, and achieve anything he or she wishes, through a combination of education, determination, and hard work. That place is the United States of America.

As long as we protect the freedoms, principles, and moral foundation upon which the founders built this nation, America will remain as a blazing beacon of hope for the rest of the world. 

I am thankful for being blessed to live in America.

The Path to Victory for CT Republicans

We all know the results of election 2014 in Connecticut. With the exception of some gains in the state legislature, once again the red wave that rolled across the nation, parted when it reached the borders of the nutmeg state, leaving us with just a sprinkle rather than the cleansing wash for which we so fervently hoped.

At the federal and statewide level, once again our candidates lost across the board, although two of our under-ticket candidates came within a hair's breadth of victory. (More on them shortly)

It is safe to say that the voters of Connecticut chose not to buy what our Republican candidates were selling.

What about Connecticut donors? 

I did some cursory research. I simply went to the Open Secret website, looked up the total CT. Republican contributions and subtracted the campaign totals to see what was left.

In 2013-2014 Connecticut political donors gave over thirteen million dollars to Republican candidates and parties. ($13,359,763) They just didn’t give it to candidates in Connecticut.

*Greenberg $1,589,000   (this number is actually less because Greenberg loaned his campaign about 900K)

Debicella $1,174,000

Brown $15,000

 Cavanaugh $88,500

Corey $21,000

Total =$2,887,500 in CT and $10,472,263 out of state.

Less than three million dollars went to Local candidates and over 10 million dollars went to Republican candidates and causes elsewhere. By the way, in 2012 Republicans gave over 35 million dollars of which, less than 8 million went to Connecticut races.

There is a lack of confidence in Connecticut’s Republican brand on the part of Connecticut’s Republican donors.

There is a lack of confidence in Connecticut’s Republican Brand on the part of voters both inside and outside of the base.

The drumbeat has already begun for a new face at the helm of CTGOP.

I would offer this. If change is to be made, what is needed is not a “manager” or a “party insider”.

What is needed is SOMEONE who is a visionary leader with the capacity to effectively articulate the conservative vision and principles to both groups in a way that they can understand and embrace. 

In short, we need a leader who can sell the Republican brand in Connecticut.

But what about the formidable Democrat ground game? How do we compete with that?

The key to an effective ground game begins with having people on the ground in the communities in question. This is achieved by showing up and forming & cultivating relationships within those areas. The time to show up is not September of election year. The time to show up is NOW. Show up and show genuine concern for the issues and challenges facing the people of our large communities.

By showing up, we have the opportunity show our principles in action. By showing up and forging relationships we begin to build a base of boots for the ground and votes for the ballot box

How do we get CT. Republican donors to be more supportive of Connecticut candidates?

Make no mistake. CT donors are very savvy individuals who already fully understand and embrace conservative principles and vision. THEY JUST DON’T SEE THEM HERE, which is why they don’t contribute here. They want their hard earned dollars to make a difference and tend to support conservative candidates and causes that they have confidence in and that have a strong base of support from others, like from the party. 

Currently, when good conservative candidates of principle and vision seek the support of many major donors, those donors are fully aware that the current vision and direction of Connecticut's Republican Party is...something different. Why then would they invest? After all, they didn't become wealthy by being stupid with their money. 

When Republicans in the state with arguably the richest donor base in the nation show something different, THEN perhaps donors will show something different...support.  

That brings us to the argument that conservatism sells everywhere else in the country but doesn't sell in Connecticut.

How then did Peter Lumaj, a candidate who from his own mouth, is absolutely and apologetically conservative, come so close to becoming our Secretary of the State?

How did Tim Herbst, who has been a firm, steady fiscal conservative leader of his town, come so close to becoming our Treasurer?

They did so by offering voters a clear and different alternative to what they have now. Neither man ran as a watered-down version of their opponent. They sold conservatism in a manner that appealed to a wide audience and they found a surprising number of buyers.

The Republican Party of Connecticut has two choices.

1: Find leadership that can effectively sell the Republican brand, energize our base and increase our presence and impact in the urban and unaffiliated voting blocks.  

Or,

2:  Continue with more of the same and continue to be ignored by both voters and donors.

   

      

  

A letter to a letter, to the Editor of Middletown Press

This in response to a letter published by the Middletown press from resident Eric Kuhn

In order to say that "Nationally, the Republican Party is the party of non minorities." One has to totally disregard the fact that one of the founding pillars of the Republican Party was the support of non-minorities in particular black non minorities.

To Mister Kuhn's assertion that Republicans live to prevent non-white voters from voting, I can only surmise the mountain of evidence in Connecticut and in many of blue area across these United States, that many a lifelong Democrat career has been nourished by preventing non-white voters from voting any other way than Democrat straight across the ticket.

By the way, when it comes to the so-called voter suppression by Republicans with such things as voter ID LAWS, in order to make the argument work, one has to start with the assuming that black voters like me are too stupid to figure out how to get proper identification in order to vote. Somehow requiring me to show identification in order to buy alcohol does not unfairly prevent me from buying a six-pack. Somehow requiring me to show identification in order to get a library card does not disenfranchise me from the public library system. Somehow requiring me to show identification in order to board an airplane does not unfairly suppress my equal right to access air transportation.

The Republican Party, of which I am a proud member, champions the values of individual freedom for ALL people that enabled this nation to rise to a level of greatness heretofore unseen in human history.

Too many members up today's Democratic Party seek and hold power through class warfare and racial politics.

It is not Republicans that continue to perpetuate the myth that black folks and other minorities are not quite smart enough, tough enough, or hard-working enough to succeed in America without help from the government. That is a Democrat philosophy.

I have a question for you.

How is it that here in the great state of Connecticut, the party that, according to mister Kuhn, hates black people, is the only party that has ever sent a black representative to Congress and is the only party that has black candidates for federal office?

The Democrat Party, in Connecticut which according to Mister Kuhn, looooves black people, appears to only like black folk up to a certain level.

Let's be honest here folks, the top tier of Connecticut's Democratic Party is as white as a Klan rally.

If you are a person of color who wishes to seek federal office, you need to roll with the GOP.

In 2012 when I, a proud American who happens to be black, virtually walked in off the street and announced that I would be seeking the Republican nomination for United States Congress in our third district, there was only one question. "Do you think you have the goods? If so, go for it."

That is as it should be when it comes to the dreams, aspirations and goals of every American. The United States of America is the one place on earth where regardless of where you come from or what you look like, if you think you've got the goods, you can take your shot.

Too many of our friends on the other side of the aisle have forgotten that fact, or worse, are choosing to ignore it for their own purposes.

No, overt racism, regardless of party, is not dead in America. But neither is the soft racism of low expectations which the late, great Ronald Reagan spoke about. That particular brand seems to rest mainly on only one side of the aisle.

It is precisely because of the misguided, ill-informed and bankrupt philosophies of racial and social elitists and political misanthropes like Mr. Kuhn that I am, and shall remain, a proud member of the Republican Party.

Connecticut's Republican Party need only choose to represent all of the people in a manner that protects the freedoms of all of the people. 

These African women just discovered something that too many Americans are willing to forget.

These African women just discovered something that too many Americans are willing to forget.
Nothing puts tyranny to flight more effectively than armed citizens determined to protect their lives, families and property.

As reported in this story by http://countercurrentnews.com,

"Several Nigerian media outlets have been reporting on local women in the villages of Attagara and Kawuri in Borno State who recently disarmed nearly a dozen Boko Haram terrorists. The notorious pseudo-Islamic terror groups tried to attack the Attagara and Kawuri communities over the weekend but the insurgents were instantly repelled by a group of armed women.

The Attagara and Kawuri villages in Gwoza and Bama Local Government Areas of Borno State resisted the attack using an array of local talismans and, of course, their assault weapons came in handy as well."

It is ironic that people on the other side of the world are embracing private gun ownership as a guardian of freedom even as America is flirting with letting that same guardian slip away.

The founding fathers of America had it right

"[T]he said Constitution [should] be never construed . . . to prevent the people of the United States, who are peaceable citizens, from keeping their own arms."

Samuel Adams, Signer of the Declaration, “Father of the American Revolution”


Read full quoted story here

They Paid the Price So We Don't Have To

In the United States of America:

We don't worry about catching a bullet while casting our ballot.

We don't fear being arrested for dancing in a You Tube video.

We don't scan the skies for incoming missiles during backyard barbecues.

We don't suffer the horror of having our school girls kidnapped en masse by masked terrorists.

These are just a few of the things going on in the world today that we Americans don't have to worry about happening to us because of the brave men and women who sacrificed their lives in the name of our freedom.

Thank you just doesn't seem to be enough, but it's the very least we can do.

Thank you to all of my comrades in arms, past and present, who died so that I can sleep peacefully in my bed.

Straight from Senator Looney's Bin

If you listen closely, every once in awhile a career politician will accidentally give their true position away.
such was the case recently with State Senate Majority Leader Martin M. Looney, who has been the Democratic state senator from the 11th District for 22 years.

MarryE. O'Leary, of the New Haven Register, quotes Sen. Looney as saying, Republican strategy since the 1980s, is to "dismantle government, disable government and prevent government from being able to run effectively and then blame it for not being able to run effectively. Democrats recognize that while government may not be the answer all the time, effective government is an important answer a good deal of the time.

Translation: Democrats tend to believe that more government and more of your tax dollars is the answer to many of our  problems.

I respectfully but vociferously disagree. 

More regulations won't make more businesses move to Connecticut and hire people. If that were the case, our state unemployment rate would be near zero right now.

More government intervention doesn't mean better education for our children.
If that were the case, Connecticut's educational achivement gap wouldn't be the largest in the entire nation, which it is. And such large numbers of mostly black and brown young men wouldn't be going directly from high school to hard time in prison. 

More taxes dollars  on candy and so-called junk food, as proposed by Democrat Sen Richard Blumenthal,  won't make our fat children suddenly shed pounds by switching to carrot sticks during their hours in front of the Xbox.  But this sweet deal would most certainly  lead to another cavity in the taxpayer's pocketbook.

Some things, like Parenting, Personal Responsibility and visionary Free Enterprise which drives innovation and puts people to work are all NON-LEGISLATABLE.

Benjamin Franklin, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, wrote,

"Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have need of more masters."

Apparently Senator Looney and his peers believe that we the unwashed peasants are too stupid to look after ourselves and are in need of more master government to look after us, at our own expense. 

You can't buy Morality with Liberty

Violence in Connecticut schools is again making headlines.
In the wake of the horrific tragedy in Sandy Hook, lawmakers rushed to enact sweeping legislation designed to prevent such a calamity from ever happening again.

That legislation was powerless to prevent the two latest attacks in Milford and Hartford. The weapon of choice for both assailants was not a firearm but a knife.
I'm waiting for the first knife control bill.

In their overall purpose and mission, neither guns nor knives have really changed since their invention. Both can be used as either tools for hunting and recreation or weapons for killing. It all depends on the user.

People, particularly those who live throughout the several states of this nation, have changed.
We have reached a point where more and more of our young people believe that killing other people is an acceptable reaction if they are angry enough.

The inescapable truth is this: People, not products, kill people.

At some point we must face the reality that American society is reaping the whirlwind sown by our decent into moral relativism. If everything is okay as long as it makes you happy, you're liable to do anything.
You can't legislate morality, you have to learn it.

Giving up our liberties won't enforce moral behavior among citizens. It is indeed, morality and virtue that allow a free society to exist.  

Benjamin Franklin, Signer of the Declaration of Independence "[O]nly a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters."