Meet Me On The Edge Of The Cliff

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As a small child growing up during the 60's and 70's in a small mountain community in West Virginia, (pronounced West By God Virginia for those of you who are not from there,) I often got it into my head to participate in some activity which could only be described as incredibly stupid. Each and every time when questioned by my thankfully involved parents, (not the village that it takes to raise a child in states with Democrats in charge,) my answer was always the same, everybody else is going to be there, or doing it, or otherwise acting in some manner which certainly would have made their own parents not at all happy.

The answer I always received in response to this objection was, as I had come to learn later on in life, the ultimate parent's standard, "if all of your friends were jumping off of a cliff, would you follow them." (Author's note, in West Virginia, that parental favorite has a note of relevance to it that I learned in adult hood does not exist in most of the rest of the country.) So, here we are some Forty something years later, and I am forced to wonder if my fellow adult citizens have ever learned that all important lesson our parents tried so earnestly to teach us all those years ago. Come November, I will have my answer.

You may have noticed that at the top of this particular post, I have included an estimation of America's debt clock. According to the estimation of this wonderful tool designed to tell us all just exactly how screwed we are, early on the morning of September 4, 2012, we will reach $16 Trillion in national debt. Just to help you wrap your mind around how much money that is, let's pretend for one moment that you had real longevity in your family. Let us also pretend, just for a moment that you married someone who had both that same longevity, and was coincidentally a shopaholic. Then to complete the image, your make believe spouse was able to find a sufficient number of sucker banks to keep lending all of the money desired for the world's wildest shopping spree. If your spouse managed to buy $1 Million worth of worthless crap each and every day from the birth of Jesus until now, they would not have wracked up $1 Trillion of debt, assuming compounding interest due at prevailing rates.

We stand my friends truly at the side of a cliff. Each and every day, our government borrows on our behalf $4 Billion. To use our illustration above, that represents your imaginary spouse's spending spree being funded for 11 years. It would have taken your spouse 2,750 years to reach the single Trillion mark, and jesus is not that old. To reach our current debt load, your unusually long living spouse would need 44,000 years. Using that as a back drop, how on Earth can anyone label a budget proposal which would seek to stop this insanity, irresponsible or radical? What Universe is this, Vanilla Sky?

Over the last couple of days, I have seen pundit after pundit label, or attempt to label Paul Ryan as being some sort of alien for having attempted to address this very problem. If we allow him to cut off this spending, grandma, children, and puppy dogs will surely perish. I must once again state a simple fact, my grandmother, children, and dog all survived the Reagan years. What perplexes me most, is the insistence on continuing to call massively huge increases in spending, cuts. Again, and with all due respect to the people we elect to lead our nation, in what possible context could this possibly be true?

I understand how the purposefully deceptive practice of baseline budgeting affects the accounting which our CBO uses to score what Washington inflicts upon us. Even taking that into consideration, the scale of what these geniuses are doing to us is unfathomable. At borrowing $1 Million per day, it would take 44,000 years to reach this level of screwed. I would think that we would be holding contests to see who could chop this budget in half by now. Of course, some of the Democrat pundits have taken to claiming that Barack Obama plans on cutting $4 Trillion from the budget, mostly through cheap gimmicks and back loaded cuts which will be scheduled to occur a full 6 years after 2016, when he would leave office even if he won a second term. Which of course brings up a second point.

Cast your minds back to 1982, when Ronald Reagan was still with us. He and Congress struck a budget deal in which he caved in to the Democrat Party demands to increase spending for pet projects and programs in exchange for reforming the tax code and promised spending cuts which were to occur at the end of the ten year budgetary cycle. Funny thing happened on the way to those cuts however, they never happened. Future Congresses are not bound by deals made now. Just like the Popeye character Wimpy, endlessly promising to pay Tuesday for a hamburger today, Barack Obama's promise to back load cuts will be just as valid as any of the numerous other such deals which have been struck. You should have a mental image of Lucy VanPelt pulling the football away at the last moment about now, and Charlie Brown swinging, missing, and flying through the air to land viciously on his back side.

We can not spend our way out of debt, and any claim to the contrary is a lie, pure and simple. So, as we gather together on the cliff, and the Democrats are telling us all, that the only way to keep from falling off is to jump off, are we going to follow them? When asked by my Mom so many years ago, I answered that she was just being silly, of course what ever activity I had been trying to convince her to allow me to participate in was not so dangerous as jumping off the cliff. My friends would not be so foolish anyhow. Then I would concede that of course I would be smart enough to avoid it. I wonder now however, if she indeed was smarter than I currently give her credit for having been. Are there really a majority of Americans who can be so willingly convinced that it's O.K. to jump? I certainly hope not. Barack Obama's Magic Snake Oil Elixir will not give us the ability to fly.

We will reach the $16 Trillion mark on the second day of the Democrat National Convention, a fitting tribute, don't you think?

Cross Posted From Musings of a Mad Conservative.

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Comment by Debrajoe Smith-Beatty on August 28, 2012 at 7:42pm: They way things are going, I am now afraid that our paulbots will get Obama re-elected.

Comment by David Williams on August 28, 2012 at 6:43pm: @ John Wiseman,

Shockingly? LOL. Apparently you are unaware of how it was accomplished or you approve of some of the most unethical behavior matched only by that of Obama. As you must also be unaware that Palin was more than a blip as you put it.

Now the real fights begin.

The fight to elect Romney.

The fight to pull the teeth and claws of Romney or Obama regardless of who wins.

The fight to stop Romney from rigging future Republican nominee nominations as he just did.

The fight to stop Romney from continuing to appoint Liberal justices.

The fight to stop Romney from replacing Obamacare with Romneycare rather than repealing Obamacare in its entirety.

The fight to stop Romney from evolving as Obama did, again, on the definition of marriage.

The fight to stop Romney from committing down the same road of insolvency, dependency, weakening of the military, weakening of our national defenses, abuse of executive orders, refusing to uphold the laws of this nation, the turning over of our Rights and Privileges to the U.N., allowing the U.N. continued control of immigration, disregard for the Office of The Presidency, disregard for the U.S. Constitution, Bill of Rights and Declaration of Independence, etc.

I hope you get the point. I certainly can't assume. My guess is that you will be clueless on many of my statements. If you are, please do some research on your own. I certainly do not deserve anymore of my time. You get what you pay for. You have certainly been clueless on all info prior to this. If you aren't clueless, my guess is wouldn't have sent this last email. Spouting off "I told you so" doesn't speak well of your character. But don't worry, you can now relax, Romney is the nominee; at least for a little while, maybe 4 years. I along with Sarah Palin and many others will keep the fires of Liberty burning bright while you rest.

God bless one and all.

Comment by John Wiseman on August 28, 2012 at 5:22pm: @ David Williams,

Shockingly, Mitt Romney is the official nominee of the party now, and the silliness over thrusting Sarah Palin with the nomination despite her not actually running did not register so much as a blip on even the most acute of radar screens.

Comment by Billy Bowlegs on August 18, 2012 at 1:37pm: Debrajoe;

We got the Donky Kong Congressman from N. Fla, Cliff Sterns GOP RINO out with YOHO, a TEBOW type person. Only by a small margin. He ran adds using three SUIT DRESSED GOVERNMENT PEOPLE eating from the pig trough with the pigs dancing in the background.

Wants all government out of the pig trough. Working and doing their jobs. When announced that he beat out Sterns, he Said he would now do a TEBOW (Prayer).

TPN is working.

I voted Republican but not RINO. I had a choice. We need RYAN to declare that he and ROMNEY will not be RINOs. One step toward a second round of TEBOWs.

Comment by David Williams on August 18, 2012 at 10:40am: All TPN Members,

Here is a chance to get in on "how we can get off the side of the cliff" that the Republicans along with the Democrats have placed us on. Join in the nation wide effort to nominate and elect the Constitutional and Faith Based Conservative Sarah Palin. As many of you know there is still time to remove Romney from becoming the nominee.

As all of you should know by now through the many post by TPN and other conservative sites along with your personal research, Romney is not a Constitutional or a Faith Based Conservative. Romney's record as Governor of Massachusetts makes this very clear.

Below you will find a recent article written on our efforts in the Cedar Rapids. If we want real reform in Washington and a Reformer we can trust, we must elect an individual with a record of successful reform. Sarah Palin has that record.

Comment by MICHELLE MCMANUS 22 minutes ago

Our movement to get Sarah Palin nominated at the RNC Convention. We've got Billboards up in 4 States, Texas, Florida, Iowa and Wisconsin and have sent out informational packages to all of the Delegates. Here is an article written in Cedar Rapids about our efforts.http://www.kcrg.com/news/local/Group-Buys-Billboard-Space-for-Palin...You can read our Delegate packet pdf athttp://palinquakes.com/take_a_stand_-_our_time_our_country_our_choi...

JOIN US!!!!!

Comment by David Williams on August 17, 2012 at 8:51am: My dear John, name calling? Really? Calling people names is a ploy of the left; when you haven't the facts to back up your argument, call your opponent names. I hate to inform you that that tactic doesn't work and it only belittles the person doing the name calling as it usually shows how narrow minded you are.

"She (Sarah Palin) never declared herself." If you were a supporter of Sarah Palin or at least maybe not a subscriber of MSM, BNC and other media outlets of the Obama Administration you would know that Sarah Palin has declared her self a potential candidate for President, just not in the conventional way. Sarah Palin has stated this fact repeatedly, that is why I question your true devotion to Palin.

A true supporter (and I am in contact with millions of them) would know this, would not call another Palin supporter a moron, would be thrilled at the prospect that Palin has a chance to enter the race for President and would never call Sarah Palin a cheerleader. A cheerleader is one that sets on the sidelines and screams, "Go team go" because they haven't got what it takes to enter onto the Battle Field. Sarah Palin is a Leader and a Warrior for Constitutional and Faith Based Conservatism. There is not a single person in the political arena of today that has done more in the fight to restore America to its greatness or to defend her and her people. Suggest you spend more time researching Palin's personal and political record and most importantly what she has done between 2008 to the present then compare that to the others.

And your are right about what Palin said the other night. Most people agree with Palin, even me, Ryan was a good choice for Romney to make but what is it Palin didn't say and hasn't said? Or do you not listen to what is not said? I always listen, it is a job of mine that I take great pride in - lives depend on it. I am also a student of code words. Are you?

AS for the RNC, I have never stated that Palin will be the nominee after the RNC, only that there is a possibility. I say this because it is a true statement - violating the 9th Commandment is a pet peeve of mine and one that will not knowingly violate.

Nor have I said Romney will not be the nominee after the RNC, only that if there is an open convention that I believe he will not be the nominee. If Romney does become the nominee he will receive the vote of many, even Sarah Palin. And if Romney is the Republican nominee come 6 November hopefully he win. If he wins prayerfully he will remove the treats from within our government and those that are threatening our nation much like Palin did as Governor in Alaska.

But as you say, we will see. See you on the other side.......

Comment by John Wiseman on August 16, 2012 at 9:44pm: If you believe that Sarah Palin will emerge from the convention as the nominee, then you must be retarded. No, Mitt Romney is not the nominee, but he is the presumptive nominee. Being a supporter of Sarah Palin is different than being a moron. She never declared herself a candidate. She spent her time as a cheerleader for conservative values, but never solicited for a single vote for herself. As a matter of fact, I voted for Newt Gingrich during the primaries. I am not certain if Palin's running would have changed my vote or not. I never claimed that I would support her blindly, only that I was a fan. Your outfits attempts to subvert the already decided fate of the primary process does not even qualify as registering as a side show. I comprehended your intentions just fine. The problem that you have is that the entire idea is in fact so stupid, it does not even deserve so much as a snicker in terms of response.

Have you bothered to tell Governor Palin yet that she has been drafted for your, "plan?" I saw her on T.V. earlier this week touting her approval of Paul Ryan as Mitt Romney's running mate. She seems to be acting a lot like a woman that has no idea that this moronic less than a side show nonsense is taking place.

The good news is this, we have less than two weeks before the convention, which will ultimately settle who is right and who is not. So, I invite you to come on to any of my posts the day after the convention to either give my my well deserved comeuppance or to accept your defeat like the man you are. Consider those terms of a friendly wager.

Comment by David Williams on August 16, 2012 at 9:07pm: John Wiseman, good grief, I realize you can read but can you comprehend what you read? No, I am not being mean. I am serious. And this is just my thoughts after reading your first paragraph. So let me see if I got this right. If Sarah Palin is the Republican nominee come November 6, 2012, she will not vote for herself? Palin is going to recommend that I vote for someone else too?

As for the rest of your comments, all I can say is bless your heart. For you certainly are not a supporter of Sarah Palin nor were you ever according to the statements you just made. Many are beginning to think that you are one of the many trolls infecting conservative sights.

These trolls are easy to identify, they each claim to be strict conservatives, claim that Romney is not their first choice while claiming/demanding that all others should vote for Romney because a vote for anyone else is a vote for Obama.

Yet, Romney is not the nominee. Romney may become the nominee but he is not the nominee right now. If Romney is the nominee right now, prove it.

Another sure sign of a troll is one that makes such claims as "If only Sarah Palin was running", and "If only we could elect Sarah Palin all would be right with the world"; yet, at the mere mention of an open convention and Sarah Palin being nominated rather than being lifted up with joy at the mere possibility that Palin could become your nominee (your first choice) you immediately fire back with total disdain and claims that you are being lied too. Sure signs of a troll. I pray you are not a troll, just ill informed.

Comment by John Wiseman on August 16, 2012 at 7:47pm: David Williams,

Typing a response in all caps and then block bolding the font does not lend gravitas to an otherwise ridiculous argument. It only makes it that much more encumbering to read. why vote for a woman who will not even be voting for herself, is not actively asking any one to vote for her, and in fact is actively campaigning for all who support her to go out and vote for someone who is actually on the ballot?

Let us pretend for just one moment that you were able to convince 100% of the people who read every word you wrote on every on line forum that voting for Governor Palin, despite her refusal to make herself an official candidate. She would not awaken on the morning of November 7th, surprised by her electoral achievement of having become the first person in history to win the Presidency despite not running for office. She'd have a couple hundred thousand votes, tops.

Your theory that Mitt Romney is not a natural born citizen can only be characterized as stupid, and I am sorry to come right out with it in that way, but a supposition such as this one really precludes all diplomatic ways of putting it.

As for your open convention efforts, good luck. Mitt Romney is going to be the nominee. This law suit, if it does indeed exist anywhere but in the land of con artists fooling rubes, will not go anywhere, as the exact same thing was attempted by Ted Kennedy in 1980, and somewhere a federal judge is still laughing. I hope you didn't donate any of your personal funds.

Comment by David Williams on August 16, 2012 at 4:37pm: Debrajoe Smith-Beatty, bless your heart, I see you're still at it. Not patriotic? At least some of us don't lie and we don't demand you be kicked off of Constitutional, Faith Based, Tea Party and other conservative sites. We are here to take back and restore America. It is why we educate, share our knowledge, don't repeat the lies of the political elites of either party and above all else we don't violate our Constitutional and Faith Based conscience - two wrongs don't make a right. If our candidate loses IT IS NOT OUR FAULT! It is the fault of those that ask that we violate our conscience. BTW, Romney has yet to prove he is eligible to be President. NOTING that if Romney was eligible and the Republicans truly wanted to win Romney would prove he is eligible and then demand Obama do the same. Why doesn't he? What is Romney hiding?

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