On Christmas and America

In 1776, our forefathers created a new country, which they declared to be the United States of America. In the process of creating this new country, the wise men drafted an amazing document entitled the Constitution of the United States of America. This new document was filled with freedom, liberty, hope and promise.

Included in this document are a series of amendments that grant further specific rights and clarify others. Unfortunately, we have a group of idiots that call themselves lawyers that feel it necessary to over-think what our founding fathers had in mind. The issue specifically at hand is contained in the First Amendment to the Constitution. "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." This amendment is commonly referred to as directing the separation of church and state.

Let's talk about what they really meant and how it actually effects us. All this document actually says is that Congress shall not enact any law that restricts the formation of a new religion or the right of the people to practice that religion. It may also be interpreted to mean that the government does not specifically sponsor any one religion as being the "supreme" religion. In real world terms, what were they thinking?

The answer is very simple. At the time the United States was founded, there had been a number of years of religious turmoil in Europe. Most of the religions were based on Christianity or the belief in God and his son, Jesus Christ. One church in particular concerned many people of the time, that being the Roman Catholic Church. It wasn't a question of the Catholics being bad or anything of that nature, but instead it was an issue with the structure of the religion itself. Within the church, there is a supreme member, called the Pope. Over the centuries, the Pope(s) became very powerful figure(s) and directed the members of the church in matters beyond the spiritual. It is these matters beyond the spiritual that concerned our founding fathers. Their intent was to create a government free of outside influence, in particular, one that would not be dictated to by a head of state or religion in a foreign land, but instead would be governed solely by Americans living in America.

So, what does all this have to do with Christmas? Once again, extremists have decided that the First Amendment says something that it really doesn't. They have decided that there can be no religion in America at all...no prayer in school, no ten commandments in a courthouse and no Christmas in America. These idiots need to go back and read the Constitution again...America was founded by Christians. Christians that, in their infinite wisdom, decreed that all religions would be free to practice within the confines of our country, including all those religions that make up Christianity! One of the other very important tenets of the Constitution pertains to majority rule. Read up...virtually every function of the Constitution and the Government of this nation are based on the will of the majority. Therefore, if the majority of Americans wish to celebrate Christmas, that is their right...granted to them under the Constitution. By the same token, other religions are also free to celebrate their holidays, feasts and festivals as well.

Go forth and be of good cheer....celebrate Christmas, celebrate Hanukkah, celebrate Solstice, celebrate Kwanzaa or Festivus or any other made up event you want. Just remember that I have a right to celebrate and enjoy my holiday...and I will remember and respect your rights too. However, if you think for one minute that Christmas in America should be stopped because one Atheist thinks it should....you are sadly mistaken. That one Atheist has the freedom to not participate in my celebration, but he does not have the right to stop my celebration. That folks, is the very important distinction that the lawyers of the world seem to have lost sight of.

Merry Christmas and may God bless each and everyone one of us! Be sure and take a moment of your time during this busy holiday season to remember those brave men and women serving our nation in far away places. May God bless and protect them too.

P.S. Don't forget to leave a snack for Santa!

Health Care, Education and other Federal Benefits for Illegal Aliens

I find it very interesting that people keep using the same lame argument, "your parents and grandparents came from somewhere" when the subject of dealing with benefits for illegal aliens comes up. The vast majority of Americans can trace their ancestors back several generations and in most cases can show that their ancestors came to America legally...they sought permission to enter this country and become citizens. More importantly, they didn't expect the government to hand them a new life on a silver platter.

Since the ultra-liberals want to keep using our grandparents as an example, let's take a look at the facts. There was no government health care plan in those days. You paid the doctor. There was no student aid or subsidized education, you attended public school as long as your family could afford to have you not bringing in an income, then you went to work until you could afford to go on to school, which in the case of most people of that era was never. When you wanted to get a job, a driver's license or anything else that required an application....the form was in English and you either learned enough English to get by or you did without. We didn't print forms in German, French, Italian, Polish, Japanese, Chinese or any other language. If you wanted to be an American, you learned the American way and adopted it...not a complicated concept. While we are on the subject, what about all the people that can trace their roots back to Native Americans? I suppose they don't deserve any rights because they have been here too long.

Seriously, why do we now cater to people that refuse to learn our language, our laws or our way of life? Why is someone that comes to our country illegally entitled to more rights and benefits than a citizen? What next? Are we going to take the alleged terrorists that are currently detained in Guantanamo and set them up in a Holiday Inn? Maybe we should give them flying lessons while we are at it. It is time to wake up, to speak up and to stand up for what is right, what is fair and what we can afford.

9/11

Every year I expect it to get easier. Every year I expect to wake up and not want to hunt down the scum sucking vermin that felt it appropriate to take away our innocence. Every year I hope some idiot politician isn't going to tell me that we no longer need a military and we can just go forth and sprinkle sugar and honey on the rest of the world and they will love us.

Guess what....8 years have passed and it hasn't happened. My friends and colleagues are still dead. Many of those that went to help the dead and dying are now dying themselves, a very real and brutal by-product of the rescue and recovery process. I still want to personally string Osama bin Laden up by his scraggly beard, hook a set of jumper cables to his testicles and give him a little jolt every so often. I'd like every single American to have a remote control button they could press whenever they wanted...to give him a thrill too. I'd like to personally slap some sense into Nancy Pelosi, Hillary Clinton and every other bleeding heart that thinks you can make friends with terrorists or that they deserve the same rights and freedoms as Americans. They deserve nothing more than what they would get in their own country. They deserve no protection under the Geneva Accords...they represent no country, no government or state. They deserve to be treated by the same rules their victims and intended victims were treated to by them. They waged war on civilians, as civilians....time to pay the piper.

We need to draw the line with rogue nations. You are either on our team or you aren't. Pakistan....don't expect another cent in US aid until you turn over the people hiding within your borders. The same needs to apply for all these other places that don't want to help, but want our money...you want us to support you, then damn it, get off your asses and start supporting us. How long can your people eat sticks, weeds and dirt before they revolt? You want something from us...then give us something in return. Americans need to overcome their collective naïveté and understand that these people don't like us and never will...no matter how many times we kiss their asses, no matter how much money, food and medicine we give them or how many times we save them from being bombed back to the stone ages by other nations that are sick of their attitudes.

We can't even take care of Americans. We need a viable health care solution for this country and instead we have idiots dreaming up ways to complicate the process. Medicare and Medicaid have gotten so complex that doctors routinely spend a portion of nearly every day trying to get an opinion from some lawyer in Washington on how to treat their patients. Doctors should decide medical care, not lawyers. Just another example of how messed up this country has gotten. When it comes time to vote, people need to wake up and elect officials that are going to represent the interests of Joe Average citizen, not just the wealthy and arrogant.

The Snake

As some of you know, I recently completed a cross country safari, that was a mix of both business and pleasure. During the journey home from Mesa, AZ, I experienced one of the funniest episodes of real life that I can recall. The experience was probably heightened a bit by the fact that my good friend Dan Campbell features a beleaguered rattlesnake in his comics, but there is also a good chance that the absurdity of the moment played a pretty big role as well.

To set the stage a bit, I am not a big fan of snakes. This wasn't helped any by a stop at a New Mexico rest area where the first thing that greeted you was a very large sign warning you to be aware of the crawling reptiles. I hopped out of the car with a fairly strong urge to use the facilities. A truck driver exiting them casually said, "Don't worry about the one over in the corner, he's just a little guy and won't bother you." A quick peek around the corner and suddenly I no longer had either the need or the desire to use the restroom. What looked to me to be a very large rattlesnake was lounging in the far corner under the sinks. I managed to wait another hour until I arrived at my hotel before I even had any thought of needing a bathroom.

The following morning, I set out from Clayton, NM enroute to Dallas to meet up with some friends and fellow photographers. The first leg of the trip took me from Clayton to Amarillo. While traveling south along US 287, I couldn't help marvel at the beautiful day and the scenery that was so foreign to me. Vast tracts of flat, interspersed with an occasional rolling hill or a carved out river valley...it was interesting and had my eyes constantly scanning for a photo opportunity. I could only wish to have filmed what happened next.

Ahead of me were a tractor trailer and a large 15 passenger van towing a trailer. I pulled out to pass and had just cleared the semi when I noticed something ahead of the van that looked like a large stick lying in the road. The driver of the van was unable to avoid it and the wheels on the driver's side ran over the object very close to one end. At this point, it became crystal clear that the object was a fair sized rattler...maybe a bit less than 4 feet long. Instead of balling up like most snakes do, this one did something a wee bit different. It stiffened and went straight as an arrow. The trailer wheels struck it and the snake was thrown into the air...still stiff as a board! The snake passed me in mid-air in somewhat of a heads up vertical position, only to meet the radiator shroud of the tractor trailer. Splat! The truck now had a hood ornament with the head of the snake looking back at the driver. Now, if I didn't know better, I could have sworn that that snake looked at me as he went by, with that whole "help me" look plastered on his face. I suspect that I can give Dan the credit for that vision.

The driver immediately slowed his rig and pulled to the shoulder...no doubt to remove his passenger. I, on the other hand, stepped on the gas and headed to Amarillo, chuckling at the absurdity of the moment and thanking my lucky stars that the snake hadn't come to visit my car.

2009- -A Time to Grow

There is a minor uproar in the mountains about a cartoon that seems to allude to the fact we might be more at risk for swine flu as a result of our penchant for being ignoramuses with a fascination for livestock. Sadly, other than a few vocal transplants taking offense, there seems to be little or no effort to break the stereotype.

Within the past couple of years, there have been numerous incidents that have done nothing but reinforce the notion that all the residents of western North Carolina are a bunch of ignorant hillbillies. The first and probably most painful blow was struck by the nomination of a local high school senior for a prestigious national award. On paper, the young lady was by far and away the most qualified recipient and was invited to NYC to the final screening process. Unfortunately, everything fell apart when she began speaking in the mountain vernacular, instead of using the more formal American English that she obviously knew. Sure, there is a certain charm to a subtle southern drawl....but this was far beyond that.

Local television affiliate WLOS-TV 13 does nothing to help improve the situation. It seems every newscast that they go out of their way to find people that only speak in near unintelligible gibberish to showcase on their newsreels. The subject matter doesn't seem to have any bearing...if they can find someone that talks like they have a mouth full of marbles, on camera they go. Not only that, but the less intelligent the comments appear, the more airtime they get. If you can come across as a total yokel, you virtually guarantee your appearance on the 5, 5:30, 6, 11, 5-7 and noon newscasts...if the story is hot enough, you might make the cycle on two consecutive days. And lest we forget, you will be shared over on the sister station WMYA-40.

There is nothing wrong with being proud of your heritage, but damn...the Civil War ended 144 years ago. It is high time to stop propagating the stereotype and move into the modern era. There are far more intelligent and well educated people living in WNC than there are hillbillies. It is high time to start showcasing the positives!