We're not crooks, we're just incompetent.

The message coming out of the White House following a string of scandals is not reassuring. Considering that they seem to be saying the government is too big for the president to be aware of everything is concerning, especially given his health care bill will create the largest increase in the size of government since welfare was introduced. What then?

I don't expect the president to be aware of everything. But some things: the assassination of our citizens and attacks on our assets, his Chief of Staff and lead counsel having knowledge of intimidation by the IRS against specific groups of Americans, or say, his Department of Justice intimidating the press and violating it's privacy under the guise of national security. These seem like pretty big deals to me; things the president might WANT to be aware of. And all we hear from the president and his administration is the equivalent of "road-hog". They admittedly do not know what is going on around them.

As damaging and problematic as these domestic developments are for the United States, there is a regional storm brewing which has the capacity to become a global nightmare.

Buried in the news cycle is Israel's deteriorating national security situation.

Israel is justified in their concerns of what their adversaries are planning; these groups have repeatedly stated their desire to wipe Israel off of the world map. It is not news that Iran supplies Syria with weapons and Syria ships arms to Hezbollah in Lebanon. The news is, that Israel has conducted cross border attacks on weapon storage sites and other targets inside of the Syrian border and the ensuing tit for tat is now escalating.

Add to this the 'incompetence' of leadership our current administration openly admits and the global storm will now come into view.

I am afraid Obama's team has gotten just a little too far behind in their "lead from behind" strategy which has been a catalyst in each of the current scandals and bodes the same for Israel: too little, too late.

Lest you, dear reader, suspect me of advocating military intervention, anywhere, let me clarify what I am attempting to say: Stating there is no there there, in other words, stating there is no problem does not make it go away. Ignoring or avoiding a problem does not solve it. And attempting to deflect responsibility, pawning it off on "low level employee's in the Cincinnati branch", does not absolve one from their obligations.

The obligation to protect free speech seems to be of little or no importance to President Obama despite his lip-service to the media shield law. He sure has not voiced outrage over the invasion of privacy to the Fox News correspondent.

The obligation to protect Americans from harm does not appear to be urgent to Obama as we still do not know his whereabouts during the attack on Benghazi and subsequent murder of four Americans. We do know that he spoke by phone to Leon Panetta ONE time during the attack.

The obligation to bring the country together (as opposed to dividing it - racially - economically - politically - continually and repeatedly I might add) is apparently a low priority based on Obama's "ignorance" and subsequent actions upon "learning" of Americans who were politically targeted by the IRS.

As a conservative American, I have felt targeted for the last 7 years. I now know why. I was.

Israeli's must be feeling quite alone right now.

The destruction of the tea.

On December 16, 1773, in a protest by the Sons of Liberty, against the tax policy of the British government, a group of colonists boarded several East India Company ships and destroyed their tea by throwing it into Boston Harbor.

Two hundred and thirty four years later I was involved in my own, sort of, tax revolt, when during my first audit, for tax years 2005 and 2006, the IRS determined I claimed some things which I was not allowed; according to their standards, I had only a "passive interest" in my business. So, I had to pay a couple thousand dollars in back taxes and about the same in penalties and interest. Frightened and alone since I had completed my own taxes, it was all "yes mam" as I silently prayed for leniency. In 2007 I learned a valuable, $4,500.00, lesson - use a professional tax accountant. And I have ever since.

A couple of year's later I learned two more lessons from my now, one time a year best friend, my tax accountant. The first was, that when conducting an audit, the IRS is not required to disclose any errors in your return which are in their favor. After my accountant reviewed my '05 and '06 returns along with the IRS audit paperwork, she determined I had overstated my income by $19,000 and $21,000 respectfully. The IRS auditor surely would have identified this but did not point it out. This income overstatement FAR outweighed the exemptions which the IRS disqualified - bottom line - they actually owed me money. Including wrongly collected penalties and interest. The second lesson was, upon accepting an audits findings, you have only three years to request an amendment (they, of course, have 7 years to audit you). I had missed the window.

As if my education in the 'ways of taxation' had not been interesting enough, I learned yet another lesson in 2009.

The state of KS wrongly confiscated my state refund that year. It took my accountant - thankfully I had a professional on my side this time - 18 months of fighting with the KS Department of Revenue before they admitted their mistake. Unfortunately for me, by the time of their concession, KS had run out of money from their 2009 revenues. For the record, they said they were very sorry and promised to add my name to a list for tax reimbursement if and when they collected additional revenue for that year. You see, their accounting laws restrict debits and credits to the same year - they are prohibited from reimbursing money out of any other tax year except the year the revenue was received. I'm still waiting.

The president and his advisers have continually and publicly belittled, ridiculed, accused - often falsely, demonized and attacked the groups singled out in this IRS mess since Obama began running for office in 2006.

So I am not surprised by the current IRS scandal. And this is not the first administration to be accused of allowing, encouraging or overlooking abuse by our all powerful tax collectors.

I am, however, terrified about the pending changes to the IRS's greatly increased and wholly unclear responsibility regarding the assessment and administration of fees for the implementation of the Affordable Care Act.

I wonder if the health care bill would have passed had we known all of the "IRS" information up front... 15,000 new IRS agents (at an average annual salary of $75,000 that will cost us $1,125,000,000 - One Billion, One Hundred Twenty Five Million Dollars per year) employed to audit and assess our tax returns for the funding of the bill, open access to our medical records, open access to our banking and financial information and, thanks to Sandra Fluke, access to our bedroom via free contraception. Americans are, even if tongue in cheek, suspicious of the IRS. My experiences certainly give me reason to be skeptical of their intentions. This week's revelations of profiling and targeting individuals and groups reminds us we are right to be weary of tax collectors and the power we grant them.

Did you get that? The power WE GRANT THEM.

And today there's this. Are you kidding me? Surely this is just a script for a Saturday Night Live skit... it cannot possibly be real!

Everyone agreed we needed to overhaul our health care system, in some form or fashion. Half of us liked the Obama care solution - at least the way it was sold in the beginning. The number now approving of it, following the revelations over the last year, hovers closer to 38%. And we still don't have a clue about the entire process. I am pretty sure no one agreed to put an over zealous leader in charge of our already over zealous tax collectors (including an additional 15,000 over zealous recruits), not to mention allowing them into our bedroom, bank and doctors office.

The cronyism, partisanship, deception and power grab in our government has become overwhelming. Regardless of which party holds power, there seems to be no end to their insatiable appetite for control. Is it any wonder then, that in a recent poll, when asked if "In the next few years, an armed revolution might be necessary in order to protect our liberties," do you agree, disagree, or have no opinion? An astounding 30% said they agreed.

One look at Syria should prevent the sane among us from taking that step. May I suggest instead: Study history, research political candidates, and then take advantage of the wonderful gift of democracy we have in America.

Trust but Verify.

Vote.   

Here we go again!

"It depends on what the meaning of the word 'is' is." Wait, sorry, wrong story... well, same story, different circumstances. This time we don't have a dress with 'stains' on it. We do however have another president telling us to move along folks, nothing to see here.

The presidents comments today proved yet again, that without a teleprompter and script - preferably one refined 12 times, he is not the orator we were led to believe. The curtain has been pulled back on Oz.

By lashing out at his critics and insisting recent evidence of a cover-up is a sideshow orchestrated by partisan politics, his actions and words today prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he knows what happened and he knows it was wrong. He just can't get around to admitting it.

The Benghazi timeline clearly contradicts statements the president made today and has made in the past. There 'is' no disputing that fact. Regardless of what your meaning of the word 'is' is.

Understanding the spin President Obama himself put on this is critical. Not what Hillary Clinton said or did - she has her own cross to bear - not Susan Rice, not Victoria Nuland or anyone else. President Obama.

September 18, 2012
While making an appearance on the Late Show With David Letterman, Obama was asked about the Benghazi attack. The president said, “Here’s what happened,” and began discussing the impact of the anti-Muslim video. He then said, “Extremists and terrorists used this as an excuse to attack a variety of our embassies, including the consulate in Libya.” He also said, “As offensive as this video was and, obviously, we’ve denounced it and the United States government had nothing to do with it. That’s never an excuse for violence.”

September 20, 2012
When questioned by co-host Maria Salinas during an appearance on the Spanish language channel Univision "Do you have information indicating that it was Iran, or al-Qaida was behind organizing the protests?", Obama answered, "Well, we don’t know yet. And so we’re going to continue to investigate this. We’ve insisted on and have received so far full cooperation from countries like Egypt and Libya and Tunisia in not only protecting our diplomatic posts, but also to make sure that we discover who, in fact, is trying to take advantage of this."

September 25, 2012
During his appearance on The View the president states they are still gathering evidence and despite the weaponry used it is too early to tell if it was an act of terrorism.

Fact is, the white house was advised by new Libyan President Magariaf on September 12, 2012 that the attack was carried out by Islamic extremists with ties to al-Qa'ida and he was convinced it was premeditated.

The three events above and to be sure, there are more, when taken with his statement to provide us with the facts of the investigation as they collected them, the timeline of events as we now know them, clearly place President Obama in the compromising position of lying to the American public.

What other evidence do you need to acknowledge intentional deceit perpetrated by the president himself? During, let me remind you, an election period, that by all measures was very close at the time. A dress?

For her part, Hillary Clinton, while answering questions on the hill, was waving her hands and elevating her voice as if to say who are you to question me. What she actually said was "what difference, at this point, does it make"? The difference it makes, Mrs. Clinton, is confidence and trust in our leaders. Sadly, it appears from your history that you just don't get that.

Character matters.

The difference between a politician and a public servant

Without question, and I believe the great majority of Americans would agree, we need more public servants and fewer politicians.

So let us consider today's example: Representative Elijah Cummings, D-MD, top democrat on the oversight committee and Greg Hicks, top US Diplomat in Libya following the assassination of Ambassador Chris Stevens.

The difference was highlighted and well defined during the House Oversight Hearing on Benghazi. The first went out of his way - as a lawyer - in partisan support of his party, to restate previous talking points while getting ahead of potential hearing revelations by creating reasonable doubt to the jury, American voters, about the motivations behind the inquiry. He revealed arrogance.

The second, while providing a timeline of events on the ground, facts, during the attack at Benghazi, reminded us he was not a security specialist and could not speculate why the decision to stand down military support was made. And it was. He also said he was not a politician, was not consulted on and would not speculate why Susan Rice promoted her now infamous and false talking points following the attack. Although she did. He revealed humility.

Watching the hearing, one thing became immediately clear. Questioning by the congressional committee was a partisan effort. Which begs the question why. Who stands to lose what?

As evidenced by our tolerance, do we now just accept that our leaders will use subjective information when they communicate with us? Why do we, US citizens, not demand an objective accounting for events when available evidence contradicts what our leaders say publicly?

"I am afraid we must make the world honest before we can honestly say to our children that honesty is the best policy."
George Bernard Shaw

New information regarding the events and subsequent response, as well as the lack thereof, of the attack on Benghazi is being revealed today. Are you paying attention?

Sadly, the verdict of Jodi Arias is also headlining the news. Considering the facts of this case, I can only wonder why she has not already faced execution. But, I thought Casey Anthony was headed for that outcome too... There is a mob outiside the courthouse clamoring for the Arias verdict. To the best of my knowledge, no such gathering - interest - awaits the outcome of today's Benghazi hearing. So why are we more interested in the death, deceit and outright lies of these high profile murder cases than we are in the death, deceit and outright lies by the very people responsible for our national security, our government?

Alas, the popularity, and spectacle, of feeding Christians to lions signaled the end for Rome.

Our great country is filled with many public servants and too many politicians. But the good news is, we get to choose which group we want to represent our interests, and based upon those decisions, the direction for America's future.

My hope is that, as a society, it is not too late. That our interests are not now purely for our own immediate gratification.

Yes, without question, we need more leaders who will be honest and transparent in their actions . We need more public servants.

It takes a village. Or a pill...

Is a 15 year old girl a woman?

Did we not just live through the war on women so that free contraception would be available to all? Are we still fighting? I haven't heard from Sandra Fluke since she stopped campaigning for Obama after drawing crowds in the 1's in Nevada (if you hold a rally and no one shows up does it make a sound?) so I just assumed that women had won and republicans had lost.

Abstinence be damned!

Obama's health care law makes contraception free to everyone - well, almost everyone. To date, the following are exempt: Some religious groups, unions, Christian Scientists, Amish, Mennonite, American Indians, various companies  and of course congress is still trying to exempt itself. All told, there are currently around 4 million people, give or take a million, who are exempt from the new health care law. So help me understand why, for the rest of us chumps who have no choice but to accept our free contraception - and like it - 15 year old girls need unchecked access to the Plan B abortion pill. That is what it is - an abortion pill. Don't get me wrong, I am pro-choice but lets not play politically correct with the description or action of this pill just to make ourselves feel better.

Is this a reaction to Dr. (I use that title with disgust) Gosnell being pulled out of service? I will deal with him later.

Are we keeping up with the (Joneses) East Africans?

Now that we have left 17 in the dust and 15 is the new threshold, where will the 'right' for women to make decisions for their our own body end? I still do not understand how that statement works with regards to an abortion since there is another 'body' involved but that is another story. And where does common sense begin?

"You can not escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today."
Abraham Lincoln

Let me get this straight. We tolerate abortions because we should be allowed to choose what is best for us. We provide free contraception to anyone who asks because we want them to avoid being punished with a baby. And we look the other way while the Gosnell's of the world prey on the uneducated. All in the name of preventing unnecessary births. Just in case a baby is born, Child Protection Services  reserves the right to take the baby away at their discretion. Do I have this right?

So aren't these reactions just that - reactions? Band aids? If we continue to treat underage and unwanted pregnancies like we treat the 'War on Poverty', by giving more and more to those in need while expecting less and less effort from them, we will soon need to re-visit the 15 year old age threshold and / or come up with new solutions. Maybe lollipops with the Plan B active ingredient inside?

Values are taught and learned at every socioeconomic level. They are not exclusive to the rich, any particular ethnic or religious or even age group. The question is are we teaching them? Are we applying as much effort to teaching values as we are to covering up the absence of those values? I know kids don't always listen, I didn't. I am afraid that more than ever, we may not even be talking to them.

Consider these abortion demographics:
58% were under 20
64% were minorities
85% were unmarried
29% were co-habitating
61% had at least one other child
42% were poor
And interestingly, they were more likely to have a college degree and less likely to have a religious affiliation.

Is it any wonder then, that Kermit Gosnell stepped in to supply the demand created by our ever decreasing sense of moral direction? Make no mistake, this is the culmination of a trend in American society to take the 'life' out of an abortion. And FYI, this is not Kermit's first rodeo. Mothers Day Massacre 1972.

A 15 year old girl is not a woman and we do not need monsters like Gosnell, or, for that matter, the government, under the guise of helping the poor or otherwise unfortunate, telling us she is a woman.

We need to teach our girls, and boys, values.

Our government can help by setting the example. When our leaders live the life of rock stars and schmooze with pop culture icons whose bad behavior seems endless, they are sending us the wrong message. We need our leaders to model the values and behaviors absent from many in the demographics above. More regulations, agencies and czars are just not getting the job done. Correcting these lifestyle behaviors will make the biggest impact on this issue. It does take a village. A village with leaders who live and teach values, inspiring us to do the same.

While values drive behaviors, principles govern consequences.
Stephen Covey