THE MAIN EVENT

DOA-SCHEDULE OF EVENTS 

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• AFP DEFENDING THE AMERICAN DREAM SUMMIT

• AUGUST 30-31 
•  Loews Royal Pacific Resort at Universal Orlando®
• RSVP Required at http://site.defendingthedream.org/register/

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 TAMPA BAY DEFUND OBAMACARE ALLIANCE RALLY

• DATE: TBD in late September

• LOCATION: TBD

https://tampabaydefundobamacarerally.eventbrite.com/

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DOA-DEFUND OBAMACARE ALLIANCE

 DOA-Defund Obamacare Alliance 

The DOA - Defund Obamacare Alliance is a non-partisan, nationwide GRASSROOTS alliance united for the purpose of defunding the Unaffordable Care Act.

Any and all reputable organizations, groups, religious entities, associations, businesses, labor unions or individuals are welcome to join us under the umbrella of Grassroots for the sole purpose of defunding Obamacare, regardless of party affiliation, political philosophy, or any other agenda.

DOA will act to influence elected officials and to spread the message via every available medium concerning the damaging consequences of implementing Obamacare on American people of all ages and demographics, on the American economy, on jobs, businesses, unions, and on the lives of America's middle-class and working poor.

The DOA plan of action is to hold a series of rallies across America beginning in August, culminating in a national day of rallies and events in late September, on a date to be determined

Each local chapter of DOA will determine the nature and type of events in their area. Working together, with out caring about who gets credit, WE can do this.

Facebook DOA Defund Obamacare Alliance
FreedomWorks Defund Obamacare Alliance
Tea Party Community DOA-Defund Obamacare Alliance
@defundobamacare
defundobamacarealliance@gmail.com

The Politics of Scare Tactics

From the July 15 Tampa Bay Times-

Editorial:  Ignoring the hungry in the U.S. House

"Hungry Americans should long remember the vote taken last week by the House to endanger the nation's food stamp program."

                                                                                                                                        

"Hungry Americans?"

Who are they? Where are they? Certainly the homeless go hungry. The elderly, the infirmed, the small children of abusive or drug addicted parents often go hungry. But according to the Times Editorial, the hungry Americans are the 47 million recipients of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). 

SNAP recipients are roughly 50/50 children to adults, which means for every single parent with 3 or more children receiving food stamps there are 2 or more adults with no children also receiving benefits. 
The growth of food stamp spending, a program begun in the 1960s, has quadrupled since 2000: Increasing spending from 19.8 billion in 2000 to 37.9 billion in 2007, and since taking office, the Obama Administration has more than doubled spending on food stamps again. Spending rose from $39 billion in 2008 to a projected $85 billion in 2012. As the Times Editorial stated, part of that growth is due to the "Great Recession," but under Obama’s proposed budget, food stamp spending will not return to pre-recession levels when the economy recovers. 
No one denies that means-tested welfare is the fastest growing part of government spending. Hopefully, no one would argue that the 50 year-old  food stamp program is in desperate need of reform, as is the Farm Bill, with it's subsidies, price guarantees and skyrocketing cost of crop insurance, and the costs being added to the American tax payers' already budget busting tab.

The only way these separate programs will ever be subjected to long overdue reforms is to separate them through legislation.

And the use of scare tactics by House Democrats and the Times Editorial staff criticizing a bill for what is not in it is like criticizing the school lunch program for not dealing with spending on the infrastructure. Nothing in the Farm Bill passed by the House does anything to reduce food stamp spending.

Open letter to the press

                                                          TAKING A STAND
                                                            Does it matter?

"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter." ~
Martin Luther King, Jr.

It has been said by religious leaders, philosophers, barroom sermonizers and deep-thinkers ever since the dawn of deep thinking, that every new day we wake up, we are given a fresh start, a clean slate, a new opportunity to do the right thing, to make better choices, to take a stand for the things that matter.  This is a simple concept, but human nature insures it is not an easy thing to put into practice. Meaningful change requires an admission of being wrong, misguided or duped. Who cares to admit that and more? Practically no one. Too often we have a considerable personal investment in past decisions that even Ray Charles could see were mistakes. For instance, take the elite liberal media and Barack Obama.

Those in the press who chose to put aside their objectivity, who shirked their responsibility incumbent in their 1st Amendment guarantees and protections, who decided to sacrifice their duty to the people as their government watchdog on the alter of Obama; those card-carrying members of the Fourth Estate have a new day, a new opportunity to change their ways and take a stand now, for something that matters. If not now, then when?

The road to recovery is long. The path to righteousness-doing the right thing-is narrow. The journey to redemption is fraught with hazards and temptations. It is not an easy thing to admit to yourself and your fellows that you bought a lemon.

Remember when journalist were trusted by the public?
The Society of Professional Journalists has a Code of Ethics. The Preamble reads:
Members of the Society of Professional Journalists believe that public enlightenment is the forerunner of justice and the foundation of democracy. The duty of the journalist is to further those ends by seeking truth and providing a fair and comprehensive account of events and issues. Conscientious journalists from all media and specialties strive to serve the public with thoroughness and honesty. Professional integrity is the cornerstone of a journalist's credibility. Members of the Society share a dedication to ethical behavior and adopt this code to declare the Society's principles and standards of practice.
                                                                        * * *
Taking a stand for the truth is its own reward. Serving the public with thoroughness and honesty makes it easier to sleep well and to wake up each day with the promise of making a difference on things that matter.

Overload and Alligator Sticks

OVERLOAD and ALLIGATOR STICKS

For those unfamiliar with the Cloward and Piven Strategy, simply put, it was and is a strategy proposed, in 1966 by the far-left husband and wife political activists Richard Cloward  and Frances Fox Piven, both professors at the Columbia University School of Social Work, to create a crisis in the welfare system – by exploiting the gap between welfare law and practice – that would ultimately bring about its collapse and replace it with a system of guaranteed annual income. They hoped to accomplish this end by overloading the already overburdened welfare bureaucracy and budget with more than the system could possibly handle or afford.

This overload strategy can be used to collapse any system, i.e., power grids, national defense, a legal system, a person's circulatory system, an engine's cooling system, a web server, the constitutionally established system of checks and balances, or even one's digestive system. You get the idea.

Currently, there is a system being overloaded, steadily and progressively: the system of a representative government as established over 200 years ago in the United States. "We the People", the system comprised of the electorate and citizens of the United States, have been and are being overloaded with daily doses of the latest outrage, overreach, power grab, dereliction, deception, demonization, attention grabbing injury or atrocity, and destruction of life, liberty, property and the pursuit of happiness perpetrated by a rapidly morphing unrepresentative government. The system of "We the People" is being overloaded, nearing the point of collapse, to be replaced by a different system, one that results in "fundamentally transforming the United States of America."

So, what's an overloaded patriot to do? A wise man once told me, "When you're up to your ass in alligators, pick up a stick and go after the closest alligator."

There are several sticks from which to choose. In alphabetical order: Americans for Prosperity, Freedom Works, Heritage Action, Watchdog Wire, as well as others. I have personally worked with and used all of those mentioned, as well as local and national tea party and 912 groups. These days, on the federal level, the "closest alligator" is Congress. I have found the Heritage Action Sentry Program has an alligator stick that makes it easy to influence specific legislation and specific legislators on the issues vital to our country's future. Please check it out.
http://heritageaction.com/sentinel/

Our Own Backyard

Listening to Roseanne Barr the other day, trying to justify her reaction to the pornographic Hustler Magazine photo-shop of SE Cupp by saying, "That's how it is now, that's how things are...(that) was my point," I didn't believe her. Things can't be as bad as she claims.  She followed with a premise to validate her point:

Somehow in America we've all gotten together and given our consent that you can go as low as possible. And that's both people, both sides' fault - to keep on writing on these polarizing issues that divide the American people....--Roseanne Barr

That's when I knew something was wrong.  I mean, how did I miss that meeting?  No one ever asked me for my consent  So I decided to hold a little online get together to see if "all" Americans had given their "consent that you can go as low as possible."  It shouldn't take a large meeting to invalidate that premise.  I'm pretty sure there are more than a few folks who would withhold their consent and it only takes a few dissenters to break the "we've all gotten together and given our consent" cabal.

But then I wondered; just where would that leave us....us dissenters?"  Is it enough to just withhold our consent, or is there more that needs to be done?  That's when I decided to start a campaign to Clean Up Our Own Backyard.  For purposes of this campaign, Our Own Backyard is defined as the conservative realm, i.e., conservative blogs, websites, Facebook pages, etc., AND their comment sections, plus email groups and lists that profess conservative values, principles, ideas and political causes. 

I'm certain many of you have seen the vile, offensive and distasteful comments, cartoons and personal attacks emanating from Our Own Backyard, as well as the countless forwarded emails that, despite containing little or no facts, spread like wildfire, seemingly impossible to put out.  No doubt, some of this bilge is the product of trolls.  Yet, as residents of Our Own Backyard, they deserve to be called out just as much as our wayward brethren on the left.  Now I have no desire to infringe upon anyone's First Amendment rights.  However, when conservative principles of honesty, integrity, civility, character and personal responsibility are put aside in order to trash political opponents, Our Own Backyard becomes a garbage dump.  

So, here's the game plan.  Whenever we see an offensive or untruthful posting coming from Our Own Backyard, one that fails to uphold the values we, as conservatives profess to admire, say we believe in and argue for, and claim the 'other side' lacks, politely point out to the poster that it is not beneficial to our cause to behave in an identical manner as those we oppose.  

Helping to Clean Up Our Own Backyard could go a long way toward convincing the unconvinced and  persuadable to join our cause.  And besides, it's the Right thing to do.

Help Us Clean Up Our Own Backyard

These Are the Times....

THESE are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value. Heaven knows how to put a proper price upon its goods; and it would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.-The American Crisis, Thomas Paine (December 23, 1776)

These are the times that try men's souls. Today our Nation faces a multitude of threats, teeming crises, gathering enemies, both foreign and domestic. The values of our Declaration of Independence, the principles of our Constitution, the foundations of our personal freedom, and the fabric of our common liberty are under assault by hordes of anarchists, jihadists and Marxists, and a motley crew of tyrants from around the globe and around the corner. 

We have faced these dangers before, and we overcame them because we were united in purpose; "one Nation, under God, indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all."  Today, we are a Nation divided. And we have been divided by design.

You must stop and ponder that last statement: WE HAVE BEEN DIVIDED BY DESIGN!

Our greatest strength as a Nation, unity of good purpose, has and is being intentionally torn asunder, shredded, for political self-interest.

"Divide and conquer" is a battle tactic, the intention of which is to destroy an enemy forces' ability to fend off an attack.  It has been used in war by conquering armies throughout history.  In politics, the phrase is changed to "Divide and rule," a strategy of gaining and maintaining power based on the fact that many smaller opponents are easier to overcome and manipulate than one larger one. This strategy includes  breaking up power alliances into smaller chunks that are easier to subdue; and preventing small power groups from linking up and becoming more powerful. This technique allows a weak individual or party to fragment those who collectively would have greater influence.  The primary method of accomplishing "divide and rule" is the use of deceit and dishonesty to incite fear, anger and derision. Lying with a smile, hurling false accusations with a sneer, ridiculing with a smirk; the skill set of tyrants and demagogues.
 

"Hope and change," that all-but-forgotten, wispy, ephemeral  platitude of the academic has worn thin and been packed away while a new-old, rough and tumble, Chicago-style bag of tricks is unpacked.  Pushing punishment for "millionaires and billionaires", countering greedy, "big-money interests" by making them pay their "fair share" and doling out the dole to "ordinary Americans," insuring "Wall Street and Main Street play by the same set of rules" so the "middle-class" can have "a fair shot," the seeds of divisiveness of race, culture, and class are sown.  Proclaiming his "work isn't done yet," that he deserves a second term, admonishing those who want to "return to the same failed policies of the past" while ignoring his own failed policies of the past three years, with a straight face, the President warns Congress not to "muck up" the recovery by thwarting his economic policies.

 

"With the magnitude of the challenges we face right now, 

what we need in Washington are not more political tactics -- 

we need more good ideas. We don't need more point-scoring -- 

we need more problem-solving."

We are no longer a Nation that offers a helping hand. We are a Nation that reaches out and promptly gets our hand slapped. We are a Nation led by a Blamer in Chief so one man can win reelection.

     "I guarantee it's going to be a close election because

  the economy is not where it wants to be and even though I believe all the choices we've made have been the right ones,

        we're still going through difficult circumstances."

 We are no longer a Nation where leaders lead by example. We are a Nation with leaders who won't take responsibility for their own failures. We are a Nation led by a Not-My-Fault in Chief so one man can win reelection.

"We can’t expect to solve our problems if all we do is 

tear each other down. You can disagree with a certain 

policy without demonizing the person who espouses it."

We are no longer a Nation that inspires and is inspired by our President. We are a Nation led by a Lecturer in Chief so one man can win reelection.

  
"You got their (Republican) plan, which is let's have dirtier air,  dirtier water, (and) less people with health insurance."

 We are no longer a Nation that pulls together. We are a Nation that is being pulled apart. We are a Nation led by a Divider in Chief so one man can win reelection.

 "They get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy 

to people who aren’t like them or anti-immigrant sentiment 

or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations."

Apparently, Barack Obama has yet to change his opinion of what he likes to call, "the suffering middle-class." One wonders if middle-class, middle America has changed their opinion of Barack Obama.

 
Esther 4:14
"For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father's house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?" (ESV)

Esther had to make a choice: Facing her own death, she could muster the courage to speak up in a time of crisis, or remain silent, shirking her allegiance to her Nation as "the summer soldier and the sunshine patriot" of Thomas Paine. 

Courage and allegiance foster action; action of consequence, of purpose, of substance, of value.  

These are the times....... Make a choice while you still can. Take a stand. Speak up.
United we stand, divided we fall.