So long as our society moves in the direction of "spreading the wealth" and becomes a "land of entitlements".......it will no longer mean anything to "live within your means"!! It is already a concept that is becoming extinct as we find new ways and reasons to "bailout" a FAILURE!
Many of us do it today with our "youth" under the guise of "protectionism", "no child left behind", and the need to "make it better for the next generation"..... All at the expense of never learning the lessons of life!!
Yes...I know; we must keep up with the needs of "the household" and the busy schedule of our hectic two-income lives that.... well, its apparently OK for the government to step in and provide those things we just don't have time for, Right?? After all, its more important to adhere to "peer pressure" and keep up with "the Jones's"
When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough..... remember the The GOLF BALL story with the mayonnaise jar and the 2 Beers.
Here it is:
"A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls.. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.
The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.
The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous 'yes.'
The professor then produced two Beers from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed..
'Now,' said the professor as the laughter subsided, 'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life..
The golf balls are the important things, your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions and .....if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.
The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.
The sand is everything else---the small stuff.
'If you put the sand into the jar first,' he continued, 'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life.
If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.
Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.
Spend time with your children.
Spend time with your parents.
Visit with grandparents.
Take time to get medical checkups.
Take your spouse out to dinner.
Play another 18.
There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal.
Take care of the golf balls first---the things that really matter.
Set your priorities.
The rest is just sand.
One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the Beer represented.
The professor smiled and said, 'I'm glad you asked.'
The Beer just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's......
always room for a couple of Beers with a friend.....
Please share this with someone you care about... I JUST DID!
LIFE ISN'T ABOUT WAITING FOR THE STORM TO PASS... ... IT'S LEARNING HOW TO DANCE IN THE RAIN !
Newt Gingrich, a Republican, served in the House from Georgia from 1978 and as House Minority Whip in 1989. He was Speaker of the House from 1995 to 1999. During that time he never made use of military air craft.
Nancy Pelosi, Democrat from California, current Speaker of the House. The Pentagon provides the House speaker with an Air Force plane large enough to accommodate her staff, family, supporters, and members of the California delegation when she travels around the country. But, Pelosi wanted routine access to a larger plane. It includes 42 business class seats, a fully-enclosed state room, an entertainment center, a private bed, state-of-the-art communications system, and a crew of 16. Pelosi wanted "carte blanche for an aircraft any time," including weekend trips home to San Francisco . Pretty nice but very expensive perk! Her Air Force C-32 costs approximately $15,000 an hour or approximately $300,000 per trip home.
And she has the guts to confront the Big Three CEOs for flying their corporate jets to Washington ! YOU WOULD THINK SHE, ALONG WITH A HUSBAND WORTH AN ESTIMATED BILLION DOLLARS, WOULD LEASE OR BUY AND FLY THEIR OWN PLANE, OR FLY FIRST CLASS ON COMMERCIAL AIRLINES LIKE OTHER RICH PEOPLE.. NANCY PELOSI FACTS:
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's home district includes San Francisco . Star-Kist Tuna's headquarters are in San Francisco, Pelosi's home district. Star-Kist is owned by Del Monte Foods and is a major contributor to Pelosi. Star-Kist is the major employer in American Samoa employing 75% of the Samoan workforce.
Paul Pelosi, Nancy 's husband, owns $17 million dollars of Star-Kist stock. In January, 2007 when the minimum wage was increased from $5.15 to $7.25, Pelosi had American Samoa exempted from the increase so Del Monte would not have to pay the higher wage.. This would make Del Monte products less expensive than their competition's.
Last week when the huge bailout bill was passed, Pelosi added an earmark to the final bill adding $33 million dollars for an 'economic development credit in American Samoa ..'
Pelosi has called the Bush Administration "CORRUPT" !!
How do you spell "HYPOCRISY" ??
EVERY AMERICAN SHOULD READ THIS !! Especially before entering the VOTING BOOTH....so you won't Forget!!
The new Health Care bill from the House uses the word “shall” 3,425 times. The word “shall” in a bill becomes a government order when that bill becomes law. One of those “shall” provisions deals with vending machines. Under this bill, the federal government will now dictate how snacks are arranged in vending machines - imagine that! Talk about the long arm of the federal government! Good thing everything is so transparent and OPEN, huh!!!
GEE, and you thought they were going to "sneak" something by you!! Shame on you!!
Here's the latest update from Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn:
Friends,
Working in the district this weekend, I encountered so many people who have deep concerns about the latest version of the Democrat health care bill. Over and over people asked me for sources of accurate information about the bill and Republican alternatives.
Of course, the best source of information is to read the bill itself, which you can find on my website. The bill is nearly 2,000 pages, so it may take you some time. As you read it, what will become clear to you is that if this bill passes, it will centralize health care decision making in Washington, rather than in your doctor's office. For more on that, I would also point you to this piece by Minority Leader John Boehener. He lays out the principles of reform that Republicans, and many Democrats agree on.
Floor debate on Speaker Pelosi's health care bill could begin as early as this week. A theme in that debate from liberals is that if you oppose this one bill, that means you are comfortable with the status quo and oppose any kind of health reform at all. A similar theme was picked up in the editorial pages of the Tennessean this week. As I explained in a Letter to the Editor that was published this morning, this simply isn't true. We can go a long way to fixing what is wrong with health care by committing to the reforms Republicans have laid out in the bills we have written:
1) Allow families to purchase insurance across state lines.
2) Allow individuals, small businesses, and other groups to pool together to purchase insurance in the same way that labor unions do today.
3) Curtail frivolous lawsuits and the defensive medical practices they create.
Liberals believe that if we shift the decision making on health care from your doctors office to Washington, it will cost less and more people will be covered. The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office has already warned Ways And Means Chairman Rangel that their Washington run public option would "typically have premiums that are somewhat higher than the average premiums for the private plans in the exchanges." I discussed the true costs of this plan on Fox Business Channel this past Friday. Tennesseans know from our experience with TennCare that a public option doesn't lead to lower costs.
As always, I will keep you posted as this debate continues. In the meantime, don't hesitate to speak out about how you feel about the Speaker's 2,000 page health care bill. Each of you has a strong network of friends and families who value your opinion. Let them know what you think, and as I keep you informed, please keep them informed.
Let me get this straight..... We're going to pass a health care plan written by a committee whose head says he doesn't understand it, passed by a Congress that hasn't read it but exempts themselves from it, signed by a president that also hasn't read it, and who smokes, with funding administered by a treasury chief who didn't pay his taxes, overseen by a surgeon general who is obese, and financed by a country that's nearly broke. What possibly could go wrong?
Take a look at this one. It will blow your mind Off Shore Oil Exploration
Finally - Offshore Oil Exploration gets approved and funded - However ----- You need to read the "rest of the story" ......
This was NOT reported on any of the mainstream news outlets such as ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN or MSNBC. However, it was reported as follows:
On 20 August 2009, on a segment of the "Glenn Beck Show" on FCN (Fox Cable News) ... the following statement was read:
"Today even though President Obama is against offshore drilling for oil for this country. He signed an executive order to loan 2 Billion or more of our taxpayers dollars to a Brazilian Oil Exploration Company (Petrobras - which is the 8th largest company in the entire world) to drill for oil off the coast of Brazil. The oil that comes from this operation is for the sole purpose and use of China and not the USA . The Chinese government is under contract to purchase all the oil that this oil field will produce, which is hundreds of millions of barrels of oil".
We (the American People) have absolutely no gain from this transaction whatsoever.
Wait, it gets more interesting: Guess who is the largest individual stockholder of this Brazilian Oil Company, and who would benefit most from this ---??? It is American Billionaire, George Soros, the Liberal businessman who is a radical left wing supporter, finances "MoveOn.org" as well as other liberal programs, and was President Obama's largest and most generous supporter during his campaign.
If you are able to connect the dots and follow the money, you are probably as upset as I am.
Not a word of this transaction was on any of the other news networks. Does anyone think this was the type of change Obama meant ---??? Or, maybe it was!!!.
As a helpful answer and reference for action items, I am posting this outline here:
The following points have been summarized from Patrick Miranda's Blog (Patrick is a new candidate running for the 5th U.S. Congressional Seat)...and I fully support and endorse these positions:
1. Keep the Federal Government OUT of the business of running our schools. Sure the Feds can set national standards that our kids should be able to reach, but they should really give adequate money to the states and let them run and fund the schools as they see fit. Bush had said at one time, and I agree with him, that we should give these schools ALL that they need to provide a good education to their youth, but, at the same time, they need to be held accountable for their successes and FAILURES. Bottom line, give the local school districts what they need to succeed and then get out of the way!
2. We need to ABOLISH the NEA and completely scrap its influence in our schools. The fact that tenure is more important than educating our youth is a primary reason that our schools are failing. Furthermore, the NEA needs to be audited and should be put on notice as an organization beholden to the most Leftist groups/politicians in our nation. Force your teachers to TEACH our children, or loose ANY and ALL funding that you receive from American tax payers.
3. We MUST end political correctness in our grade schools. If a student can't read AT or ABOVE his/her current grade level, then they MUST either be held back or required to attend summer school or extra tutoring sessions in order to progress to the next grade level. We have got to quit allowing our students to advance if they aren't equipped to do so...if their feelings get hurt, then they can deal with it. I was told I made mistakes in school and I worked harder...we should tell kids they are wrong when they mess up and help them to do better; STOP the CODDLING.
4. We WILL take thuggery out of our schools. Far too often our students and teachers feel fearful when going to school; they feel as if they always have to be on guard in order to avoid physical harm. For this, there needs to be a ZERO tolerance rule...if you cause harm at school (selling drugs, buying weapons, excessive bullying), then you will be kicked out, PERIOD. You will be required to go to school, but you will be required to do so at a military school or somewhere similar where discipline is MANDATORY. Parents, you will be required to PAY at least part of the fee to enroll these hoodlums in schools like these...stop making our children suffer while we deal with your child. For all other offenses, we need to enforce, without fear of lawsuit, etc, a "three strike rule" for those who continually break the rules.
5. We need a VOUCHER system. We should allow parents to use the money they'd otherwise be paying in taxes to put their money in a voucher or in a TAX-FREE education fund for their children. They can use this voucher to attend the schools of their choice. If under performing schools fail, then so be it...competition will breed success.
6. EMPHASIZE and SUPPORT charter schools. Obama shut down one in DC recently which forced primarily "inner-city" youth, who were preforming well, to attend schools in the DC school system...this is a TRAVESTY! We should reward schools and administrator who excel in their jobs and keep our students performing at top levels.
7. We must end busing. Local school districts ought to be allowed to determine if they want students bused to their schools from other areas of the city...the government needs to stay out of these choices. If local schools are failing, then it should be up to LOCAL officials and parents to FIX the schools...not the job of better performing school districts to take in additional students from these failing schools (this does not include students with vouchers).
8. Understand and support the needs of schools with Special Education courses. Make schools perform to the standards set forth by law, but take into account schools with special needs youth. Reward schools who have good special needs programs which not only educate but allow for greater social interaction with the youth they teach.
9. ESL classes are necessary, but we MUST insist on parents and students to learn the English language as quickly as possible. We should mandate how long a child can be in a ESL class...if, for example, the child hasn't learned sufficient English in 3 years, then they need complete English immersion...no questions asked. Also, we MUST retool our curriculum to focus on Reading, Writing, Arithmetic, US History and Geography. We must also allow our students to take financial awareness courses in late grade school and high school which will teach them the basics of investing, earning and spending money...financial literacy so that they will learn the importance of money in their daily lives.
Finally, STOP the motto "All children CAN learn". Rather, make it "All children WILL learn".
