"America's Last Hurrah"

            Slowly.  Ever so slowly I'm coming to the idea that the president is a couple of cards short of a full deck.  He looks at the world through some sort of weird contraption that shows him that everything is white puffy clouds and blue skies...when, in fact, America has been made the laughing-stock of the world.  When he was asked about whether he was wrong, or everybody else was wrong...he said everybody else was wrong.  Does that strike you as a man that has a grasp of the situation at hand?   Dithering, and when he made a decision it was the wrong one, and that just piles on the concerns about his mental state.   In a taped interview he says a red line can't be crossed...but it is, and then he denies ever making the statement.  His overt, and covert, assistance to Muslim groups, many of whom have been identified as terror organizations with direct connections to the Muslim Brotherhood, tilts the balance to one side, and that side of the scale is pro-Muslim

            Muslims are in the government.  Many are in key positions, perhaps even advising the president.  Any flag officer who had any sort of a backbone has been forced out for one reason or another.  Those that are left are, probably, the cadre the president might count on, should an armed conflict break out inside the United States.   The big question in my mind is whether the armed forces would fight their countrymen.  As a backup army, so to speak, there are about 70 agencies that are armed, nearly as well as the military.  The president made mention of that army in a pre-election speech in 2008...and now he's creating that shadow army to go with the shadow government.   We are going to be leaving the battlefield in Afghanistan, and in my opinion, it will revert back to what it was, and we will have wasted lives, money, and materiel.   For what?

            I read somewhere that there's about 275 million guns in the hands of private citizens in this country...and that's a lot of people to speak up for the 2nd Amendment.   Still, the anti-gunners, most of whom have concealed permits or are protected by armed personnel, would have the public give up their weapons...make the whole country a gun-free zone.  Now I ask you, if you're a bad person looking to do some damage with a firearm, where are you going to go.  The obvious choice is to go where no one can shoot back at you, right?  The facts are plain...where gun ownership goes up, crimes go down.  The NYPD has just had their hands tied because they can't stop and frisk anyone, so Mr and Mrs Tourist are walking to their car and they get mugged.  They report it to the police with a full description and the cops say, "Oh yeah, we just saw him...but we can't stop him and frisk him to see if he's got your stuff on him."  Crime is steadily rising in NYC...and will continue to do so until somebody comes to their senses and reverses that stupid order.

            Money, money, money...that's the big sticking point in Congress, isn't it?   Maybe if the politicians get out of the way of free enterprise, do the right thing and abolish the IRS, crank up the pipeline and other revenue-generating ventures, our economy might quit dragging its feet and start walking briskly...before it's too late.  Listen, even as a private citizen, you and I can do things for the country, instead of to the country.  Make a pest out of yourself writing to your elected officials.  Make them understand that you don't want form letters back, you want answers to your questions, and then pepper them with questions about why they are/are not doing this or that.   If they don't want to do what you elected them to do, get them out of there in this next election.

            My friends, we may not be the big dog for much longer.  The next big dog that comes along will bite us in the neck and we'll be finished as a world power.  We owe everybody, and we don't make enough to pay it all back...ever.  We no longer have staunch allies, and going it alone is not an option for a weakened military.  Wake up and smell the coffee...that's all you may have left after the bad guys eat our lunch.

            Larry Usoff, US Navy Retired

           

Our President vs. the United States of America, Part Two

As I write this, the day after the remembrance of a heinous attack on America, both in 2001 and 2012, it occurs to me that we are doing some wrong things.  Logic is a good thing and very difficult to argue against, so let's apply some logic to some of our current problems.

            First, we are worried about Iran getting a bomb, right?  Nah, not to worry.  They want a bomb?  Let's give them one.  We can send a high-flying drone over there, armed with a delayed-explosion nuclear weapon, and drop it right on their main "laboratory".  Oh sure, there's going to be damage, and there's going to be people killed...but they will be killed there, and not here.  Do I value our lives more than Iranians?  No, but it's logical to get them before they even start to get us...and if we are hesitant, they WILL get us.  Let's get this country off its knees and on its feet.

            Next, there's the matter of our current president.  I believe him to be working against this country, in every way, shape and form.  Let's put together a panel of experts, discover what we can about the man and, as I believe him to be foreign-born, impeach, indict and incarcerate him.  If he is not who he says he is he must go to jail...for a long time.

            Ok, what's next?  We have an economy that's in the tank.  We have a military that, while technologically quite good, is seriously under-manned, so we can kill two birds with one stone one this one.  Build up the military services, providing jobs for those going in, and for those supplying the goods.  Also, let's quit buying materiel for our armed forces from other countries.  It's been shown that some Chinese-supplied stuff is inferior and doesn't hold up.  Get the government out of private sector business, and you'll see lots of things happening that need to happen, but are not now getting done.  There are thousands of miles of roads in this country that need rebuilding, along with hundreds of bridges and dams.  We have the people and we have the know-how.

            Kill the IRS.  Period.  Base the tax system on money spent, not money earned.  I like THE FAIR TAX because it IS fair, and it's simple.  When you buy something on a retail level, you pay the tax.  Period, end of story.  When the IRS disappears you'll see a flood of money coming back into this country, and it won't just be our money, but foreign investors as well.  Also, we have to stop selling off pieces of this country to foreigners.  It is not good practice and while I have nothing against them owning a house or two, I have to draw the line when they buy huge chunks of land, or whole towns...and that has happened.

            We have to pare down big government.  The founding fathers never meant for Congress to be a career, so let's get them out of there after two four-year terms, and that goes for everybody in the federal service.  The ONLY exception would be for the armed forces.  They could remain in the service for 20 years and get retirement, or 30, if they are in good shape and necessary.  Our veterans need, and deserve, the finest care they can get, and if that means we have to clean house at the Veteran's Administration, so be it.

            If you think these ideas are worth considering, either let me know or, better yet, let your elected officials know what you think.

            Larry Usoff, U.S. Navy, Ret.

Our President vs. the United States of America

Let me say, right off the bat, this is about several things that I think I understand...but that a lot of Americans do not.  We have a black president, and that is a good thing because it does show that it can be done.  On the other hand, the president is an incompetent, lying, probably foreign-born, idiot.  He has surrounded himself with people that think like he does...and he does not like the United States.  I believe that his Attorney General, Eric Holder, has no idea of what he's supposed to be doing because he's doing the opposite.  He was held in contempt of Congress and didn't lose 20 seconds sleep over it.  Granted, the current president inherited a couple of wars that may, or may not, have been warranted, I'll leave that to history...but he has made it all worse, much worse.  The general thinking in this administration is that they can lie to the public, about everything, and the public will buy it.  Congress has become so wussified that there aren't enough real patriots to make a difference, and that is obvious, because of the mess we're in.  Our Constitution was made inconsequential by Congress in their willingness to allow the president to sidestep it.

            Although I'm a Republican and a conservative, the problems that this country faces are not the fault of either party exclusively...and the problems are huge!  As a nation, we are laughed at, scorned, dismissed as a paper tiger...and it can't all be laid at the feet of this president, but he's a big part of it.  How far back do we have to look to find our America?  My guess is that we have to go back to somewhere around 1945 or 1946 when we were the top dog in the world and no one, but no one, would have dared to take us on!   Back then we had patriots, thousands of them, men and women that had fought for this country because it was the right thing to do.  The thinking then was that if it was good enough to live here, it was good enough to fight for.  Now?  No, I think the armed forces have been selectively emasculated for what purpose I don't know.  When this country goes to war, the armed forces don't wear a D or an R on their uniforms...they wear the flag of their country...and they wear it proudly.  The navy I served in was not as technologically great as it is now...but at least the sailors could read, write, and comprehend what they were doing.  My friends who have not retired, have sent me stories of members of their units going to remedial reading and writing classes!

            Service doesn't just mean the armed forces.  The so-called service industries, which used to be called "the crafts", like plumbing, electricians, carpenters, masons, and so on...are aging, and there's not enough young people going into those occupations to keep up.  That's one reason why your service-related bills are going up and up.  The upcoming generations have been lulled into thinking that computers will do it all, and, although they will do a lot, they will never do it all...when they break down, and they do, there will have to be a human capable of fixing them.  By the way, try getting a robot or a computer to build shelving, or fix a backed-up toilet.  While we're here on the subject of jobs...how many do you estimate the Keystone pipeline would create?  That pipeline should be built for a couple really good reasons, not the least of which IS the jobs.

It's been estimated that, between the Keystone, the activity in the Dakotas, and whatever we can conjure up off shore, we could kick the Arab cartel right in the rear end.  The deliberate delaying of the pipeline, and that's what it is, baffles me, as to why the public doesn't wise up?  Remember, Obama is for Obama, first, last and always.

            Wake up America!

Larry Usoff, U.S.Navy, REt.

WHAT IS WRONG WITH THE AMERICAN PEOPLE TODAY?

            What is wrong with the American people today?  There are domestic problems and international problems, and we can do something about both...if we have the nerve and good sense to do it.  First, let's look at the domestic problems which, in my opinion, have been caused by the current administration.  The tax system in this country is SO screwed up that nobody, from the IRS Commissioner down, understands it completely.  It picks and chooses who, or what, will be taxed and at what rate.  The system has been manipulated so much that the loopholes it has in it makes it look like Swiss cheese...but that only benefits those that can afford to hire a tax expert.  The so-called middle class in this country, and I always thought we were a classless society, takes it on the chin, over and over.

            So, let's deal with that domestic problem, in a logical manner, and that is to abolish the IRS.  We now know that the IRS, again from the top down, is corrupt, convoluted and crazy.  Enact THE FAIR TAX, which is a logical approach to taxing.  You buy something at the retail level, you pay the tax.  Period!  The bill, as it was written originally, is 135 pages, all easily understandable.  When the IRS is gone, you'll find that much of the money that was whisked out of this country to save it FROM the IRS, will be returning.  When money comes back, so do jobs.  We may never regain the pinnacle of manufacturing that we once attained, but enacting THE FAIR TAX will go a long way to achieving that.  I believe that unemployment will go down, and go down dramatically, once THE FAIR TAX is up and running.  So, we've killed two birds with one stone, so to speak.

            My next domestic problem is the government itself.  For reasons unknown to me at this time, we, as a people, have allowed the government to overstep its bounds.  Those bounds were put in place by the founding fathers because they KNEW that government, if left unchecked, can become dictatorial...and it

is approaching that quickly.  So, here's what we need to do for that problem...first, we establish term limits for EVERY elected federal employee, and include the Supreme Court in that.  Congress was never meant to be a home for politicians.  Our brilliant founding fathers meant for a person to be elected, serve his time and then GO HOME to his work, or farm, or whatever.  Career politicians are a modern "invention" and they should be sent packing.   NO FEDERAL EMPLOYEE IN ANY POSITION SHOULD BE ALLOWED

TO RETIRE FROM GOVERNMENT SERVICE, with the one exception of members of the Armed Forces.

They would be the only ones to be allowed to serve long enough to retire at 20 years, 30 if they are mentally and physically capable.  The Armed Forces, because of what they do for this country, should be given the best healthcare that is available. 

            Beginning at "time X", aspirants to public office will understand that they get NO pension, NO special health care, NOTHING that the public doesn't get as well.  That, I believe, would winnow out those who want to do public service, from those that are looking for a gravy train.  The Constitution, along with other important documents, will be the law of the land.  No foreign laws will be taken into consideration in any court in the land.   Any further delay in stiffening the American backbone is going to be disastrous…

and you can take that to the bank.

Larry,

AS A NATION, WE MUST STAND TOGETHER

            Wake up America...as a nation we have to stand up, hitch up our big-boy pants and tell the world that we are back!  Of course, that's going to be difficult with the sniveling, incompetent, buffoon we have leading this country...and where is he leading us?  Down the road to oblivion, that's where, but of course, that's only my opinion and I have been wrong.  I think it was in 1941, when I thought I was wrong, but I was wrong.   As an American, and I like to think I'm a patriot, it sickens me to know that one person could bring down a country, MY country, in such a short time.  If the president has the best interests of this country at heart, he would do the honorable thing and resign, and take Joe "Shotgun" Biden with him.  There are any number of people, men, women, white, black and of every political stripe, that could do a better job than what the president is doing.

            Let's have some plain talk when we talk about people.  Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson and Louis Farrakhan are, in my opinion, professional black victims and if they had to actually do some sort of work, they wouldn't stand a chance in the working world.  The attorney general, Eric Holder lied to Congress, and got away with it.  Then Secretary of Defense Panetta lied to Congress when he said that troops are never sent anywhere until the situation is known...that is just plain BS.  The re-election of the president trumped any truth about Benghazi.  The IRS is an outlaw agency, which answers to no one, apparently, and it should be abolished.   General Martin Dempsey is more politician than general, and is a disgrace to the uniform he wears.  The big man at the National Security Agency, Mr. Clapper, is not just a liar, he's an idiot.  The president talks about phoney this and phoney that...he is the biggest phoney in the country!   Political correctness is BS, and we need to understand that.

            I will take every opportunity to tell people that I retired from our Navy, because I'm proud of that service and, at the time, I was proud of my country.  Not as much any more.  This country used to manufacture products that could proudly bear the words "Made In The USA", and it's damned difficult to find many things like that anymore.  Sure, we still make sox and underwear, but I think 99% of the electronics in use in this country, including those used by the government, are made in a foreign country!  I even read something that the government was buying American flags from China!  Are we nuts altogether?  Buying our country's flag from another country?  I drive a Ford truck because, as far as I know, it's still made in this country, but I cannot say that for the others of the former "big three".  I went to buy a can of tomatoes the other day and looked to see if it was a product of this country...and it wasn't, so I didn't buy it.

            Now, lest you think this is a right-wing nutcase saying this stuff...well, you may be right, but if it is going to take nutcases to get this country back on track, then that's what I am.  My political affiliation changed when the president won the nomination back in 2008, but this is no longer a right or left problem, this is a national problem, actually a national disgrace.  This country, MY country, is being sold down the river and the majority of the population either doesn't care or isn't smart enough to care, and THAT is another disgrace, the apathy and ignorance of the people.  So, at the risk of repeating myself, and perhaps insulting someone...wake up dummies, America needs you, NOW!

Larry Usoff, U.S Navy, Retired

LET ME SET THE RECORD STRAIGHT ABOUT MY THINKING

            First, if anybody is reading this, let me set you straight about my thinking on various things.  Some of my listeners to the radio show have written and said that it seemed like I was taking both sides of certain news items, so I'll reiterate my thoughts on various things.  Let's take Fast and Furious, that gun-running scheme operated by our own government.  It cost the life of a Border Patrolman, Brian Terry, but no one has been jailed, no one has been fired, because of the bungling of the Justice Department.  I believe that the top people in the DOJ are a bunch of liars.  The top liar, Eric Holder, was held in contempt of Congress and caught in a lie, but did he lose any sleep over that?  Nope, didn't lose a dollar in pay either.  He should have been fined, at the very least, for lying to Congress.

            The Ft. Hood shooter, Nidal Hasan, should have been tried, found guilty and executed within 30 days of the shooting.  There's no excuse for the long delays EXCEPT that the president is a Muslim and he doesn't want Hasan to be executed.  Yes, I believe that the president IS a Muslim.  A review of his administration's stand(s) on various dealing with Muslims will show that he prefers them over other groups.

He talks out of both sides of his mouth, from both faces...yes, that's calling him two-faced, and I don't like either one of them.  If the truth were to surface, we'd find out for sure that he is not born in this country, and yes, I know that's also contentious...but I don't care.

            Our armed forces are being deliberately hollowed-out so that, if a real problem arose, either outside the country or in it, the remaining hand-picked generals and admirals might not want to, or be able to, defend this country.  While I'm on that subject, of arms and armed forces, why are the police forces in this country beefing up like they're Seals or Rangers?  Why has the DOJ bought up billions of rounds of ammunition, of a type that is prohibited in warfare today?   Why are we being spied on?  I believe that there is an "event" of some sort coming, and that the president will declare martial law, suspend the Constitution and its amendments, and name himself King, or Emperor, or whatever other title he likes.

            Actually, under this president, no matter what you do, you don't get fired.  Oh, you might be sacrificed for the sake of an election, like the four in Benghazi, but no one has been fired.  The IRS, which should be abolished if we want to save any part of this country, is riddled through and through with corruption, liars and, probably, thieves.   As I've said before, I love my country...but I fear my government.

            Any comments?

Larry Usoff, US Navy Retired

ENOUGH. IS ENOUGH

To say that I am outraged would be an understatement.  I could chew nails and spit bullets I am so mad!  Now you're wondering what I'm mad about, huh?  It's that Department of In-justice headed by that OTHER incompetent idiot, Eric Holder.  Where does he come off circumventing the Constitution and its 5th Amendment?  Oh, he and the other idiots know all about that one part, where they don't have to answer anything...but they conveniently forget about that part where it says  "nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb".  Yeah, that's the part they skip around, when they think they can get away with it.  George Zimmerman was tried and found not guilty, and that's the end of that.  Even an idiot like Holder should be able to understand that...and then, to top it all, some OTHER idiot wants the UN to look into the case.  The UN has become an anti-American voice for all the countries that dislike us...many of which we have helped with money and other aid.

            When is the American public going to raise their collective voice and say ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.  Ok, we have a black president, so that experiment is over.  It's really too bad that the country elected an incompetent, lying, charlatan, but they had to have him.  Are we going to sit back now and let him finish the job of "transforming" this country from what it was...which was something great, something admired all around the world, to something that is laughed at, shunned, and allows its people to be murdered with no apparent reply to that.  In the old days, a congingent of our finest troops would have been in Benghazi and dispersed the mob, and saved the four Americans.  Yes, I am convinced that Obama left them to die there because it would look bad on his re-election bid.  Well, he's in there now, but he damn sure doesn't have to stay there.  Let's impeach him, indict him and incarcerate him.

            Nothing gets done, at least nothing gets done right, in congress unless it affects someone personally, and usually in the wallet.  That's a bad way to run a country.  If there's any patriots left in that body, let them stand up and say ENOUGH IS ENOUGH, and do something that's good for the country, regardless of what it does for their party or for themselves.  I'm tired, I'm outraged, and I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore!

The wimps in congress keep talking gun control and they have NO idea what that means.  First, in many of my listener's opinions, gun control is hitting what you aim at.  The government, or at least this administration, wants your guns because they need to have a disarmed public to do what it is that I believe they have planned.  Transformation?  Oh, you bet...to a dictatorship.  You want to see how well gun control works, look at the statistics from Chicago.  I'm told they have the stiffest gun laws in the country...and the largest count of murders with firearms.

            Larry Usoff, US Navy Retired.