The 10th Amendment Center

What is that you say? You don't know about the 10th Amendment? That's fine good reader, it's not a topic that's oft discussed. Sure, we all remember that there are twenty-something amendments to our Constitution. Some of the more famous ones are the 1st (freedom of speech), 2nd (self-defense), 4th (privacy). What you may not recall, if you're under 50, is the 10th amendment (states' rights).  To quote:

"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."

You see that. Anything not explicitly expressed in the Constitution is left to the states or the people. That means, that authority is left to the people or the states to decide what they want to do. So...I don't see health care or education in the Constitution, therefore they are up to the States or the people to decide how they want to implement (or not) any laws. Further, jurisprudence states that any unconstitutional laws passed are void from the date of passing, not when a court decides. From American Jurisprudence via Wiki:

The legal encyclopedia American Jurisprudence says the following in regard to constitutionality:

The general rule is that an unconstitutional statute, though having the form and the name of law, is in reality no law, but is wholly void and ineffective for any purpose since unconstitutionality dates from the time of its enactment and not merely from the date of the decision so branding it; an unconstitutional law, in legal contemplation, is as inoperative as if it had never been passed ... An unconstitutional law is void. (16 Am. Jur. 2d, Sec. 178)

We have forgotten as a people what we are capable of. The concept of nullification and true liberty and tolerance has been lost but we are beginning to remember. The good folks at The Tenth Amendment Center and further the Florida chapter are helping remind us that we have the power, not the out-of-control politicians in Washington, we just have to exercise it.

Recently, Michael Boldin of The Tenth Amendment Center gave a speech about nulification. If you have time, give it once over.

Affairs

I received this in email today and thought you'd like it.

The 1st Affair

A married man was having an affair with  his secretary..

One day they went to her place and made love all afternoon..

Exhausted, they fell asleep and woke up at 8  PM.

The man hurriedly dressed and told his lover to take his shoes outside and rub them in the grass and dirt.

He put on his shoes and drove home.

'Where have you been?' his wife demanded.

'I can't lie to you,' he replied, 'I'm having an affair with my secretary. We had sex all afternoon.'

She looked down at his shoes and said: 'You lying bastard!

You've been playing golf!'

The 2nd Affair

A middle-aged couple had two beautiful daughters but always talked about having a son.

They decided to try one last time for the son they always wanted.

The wife got pregnant and delivered a healthy baby boy.

The joyful father rushed to the nursery to see his new son.

He was horrified at the ugliest child he had ever seen.

He told his wife:  'There's no way I can be the father of this baby.

Look  at the  two beautiful daughters I  fathered!

Have  you  been fooling around behind my back?'

The  wife smiled sweetly and replied:

'Not this time!' Honey

The 3rd Affair

A mortician was working late one night.

He examined the body of Mr. Taylor he was about to be cremated, and made a startling discovery.

Taylor had the largest private part he had ever seen!

'I'm sorry Mr. Taylor,' the mortician commented, 'I can't allow you to be cremated with such an impressive private part..

It must be saved for posterity.'

So, he removed it, stuffed it into his briefcase, and took it home

'I  have something to show you won't believe,' he said to his wife, opening his briefcase.

'My  God!' the wife exclaimed, 'Taylor is dead!'

The  4th Affair

A  woman was in bed with her lover when she heard her husband opening the front door.

'Hurry,' she said, 'stand in the corner.'

She  rubbed baby oil all over him, then  dusted him with talcum powder..

'Don't  move until I tell you,' she said, 'pretend you're a statue.'

'What's  this?' the husband inquired as he entered the room.

'Oh it's a statue,' she replied, 'the Smiths bought one and I liked it so I got one for us, too.'

No more was said, not even when they went to bed.

Around 2 AM the husband got up, went to the kitchen and returned with a sandwich and a beer.

'Here,' he said to the statue, have this.

I stood like that for two days at the Smiths and nobody offered me a damned thing.'

The  5th Affair

A man walked into a cafe, went to the bar and ordered a beer.

'Certainly, Sir, that'll be one cent.

''One  Cent?' the man exclaimed.

He glanced at the menu and asked: 'How much for a nice juicy steak and a bottle of wine?'

'A  nickel,' the barman  replied.

'A  nickel?' exclaimed the man.

'Where's the guy who owns this place?'

The  bartender replied: 'Upstairs, with my wife.'

The man asked: 'What's he doing upstairs with your wife?'

The  bartender replied: 'The  same thing I'm doing to his business down here.'

The 6th Affair

Jake was dying. His wife sat at the bedside.

He looked up and said weakly:  'I have something I must confess.'

'There's no need to, 'his wife replied.

'No,' he insisted,

'I want to die in peace.

I slept with your sister, your best friend, her best friend, and your mother!'

'I know,' she replied, 'now just rest and let the poison work.'

A Good Point

I received this in email..

We are the only country where we have homeless without shelter, children going to bed without eating, elderly going without needed meds, and mentally ill without treatment - yet we have a benefit for the people of Haiti on 12 TV stations, ships and planes lining up with food,water, tents, clothes, bedding, doctors and medical supplies. Imagine if we gave ourselves the same support that we gave other countries. I feel bad for them, but who cares about America.

It makes a good point.

I'm going to go off topic a bit because I recall several media outlets complained that America didn't respond fast enough, didn't respond with enough for Haiti. To them and to all you MoFo's out there that think that America, as the richest nation, should lead and help you in your time of need...Fuck you.

Every time there's a disaster we're criticized for not leading the aid effort, then for leading the effort. I'm tired of my country leading the world, dealing with other nations' problems, and getting spat on for our charity. When some 3rd world country asks for help, we are criticized for being slow or not sending enough. It's not an easy task. When it's time to leave and take our expertise and equipment, we are cursed for depriving them of needed aid. Pay for it or fuck you.

When my government decides to spend money (my/our tax money) on giving aid to other nations which I may or may not agree with, there is a moral conflict. If my neighbor wants to help the people of Haiti, that's fine. That's what a donation to a charity can do. If I disagree and think the people of America need help, I can do the same with a charitable donation. BUT, to take taxes, which we are in dire need of, and are meant to help Americans, and send it to another country is simply wrong. If congress and the president wanted to send money, they could have dug into their pockets and passed the hat around. It's contemptible how easy they spend other peoples' money. Fuck you.

Obamacare's Costs

The Washington Examiner has an opinion article of how much the Democrat Obamacare plan will cost us. Despite "The Messiah's" promises to not raise taxes on those making $250,000 or less we'll all feel the pinch and still not receive affordable nor better quality service. Let's repeal this crap!

The health overhaul plan just enacted represents the largest tax hike in U.S. history - $569 billion over 10 years through a dizzying array of taxes and fees that promise to frustrate taxpayers at every turn.  ObamaCare will make every day feel like April 15^th.
And despite President Obama’s campaign promise that no one making $250,000 or less would see a tax increase, Congress’ Joint Committee on Taxation confirms that these tax hikes will hit millions of middle- and working-class families who are struggling to make ends meet.

Read more at the Washington Examiner

Pimping -- Driving in Korea

Good reader, let me show you to a site that I visit. It's called Driving in Korea and I'm pimping it, baby. A fellow blogger called Mr. Wonderful introduced the idea to me by pimping my own blog.

Anyway, I know the gentleman that started it and quite frankly I'm a bit jealous that I didn't start it. If you've lived in Korea for more than a few days you'll know that driving, hell, being a pedestrian here presents its challenges and it's peculiarities. It's often joked about amongst expats and Koreans alike. The driving rules or laws are merely suggestions. Also, don't expect a police officer to help you out. Judging from experience and the stories I've heard, an expat will have about a 80% chance of the accident being called against you because YOU are the foreigner. Also, don't be surprised when, after an accident occurs, to be yelled at, the other driver running up and down the street gathering fellow conspirators, and when the cops arrive, lie down on the street to be taken to the hospital.

But don't take my word for it, have a look-see at Driving in Korea.

If GW Bush had...

Received this in an email and thought I share it with you. I'm not pro-Bush, but the email makes a point about the media's (and people's) hypocrisy and inconsistency.

 If George W. Bush had been the first President to need a teleprompter installed to be able to get through a press conference, would you have laughed and said this is more proof of how inept he is on his own and is really controlled by smarter men behind the scenes?

 If George W. Bush had spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to take Laura Bush to a play in NYC, would you have approved?

 If George W. Bush had reduced your retirement plan's holdings of GM stock by 90% and given the unions a majority stake in GM, would you have approved?

 If George W. Bush had made a joke at the expense of the Special Olympics, would you have approved?

 If George W. Bush had given Gordon Brown a set of inexpensive and incorrectly formatted DVDs, when Gordon Brown had given him a thoughtful and historically significant gift, would you have approved?

If George W. Bush had given the Queen of England an iPod containing videos of his speeches, would you have thought this embarrassingly narcissistic and tacky?

 If George W. Bush had bowed to the King of Saudi Arabia , would you have approved?

 If George W. Bush had visited Austria and made reference to the non-existent "Austrian language," would you have brushed it off as a  minor slip?

 If George W. Bush had filled his cabinet and circle of advisers with people who cannot seem to keep current in their income taxes, would you have approved?

 If George W. Bush had stated that there were 57 states in the United States , would you have said that he is clueless.
 If George W. Bush would have flown all the way to Denmark to make a five minute speech about how the Olympics would benefit him walking out his front door in Texas , would you have thought he was a self important, conceded, egotistical prick.

 If George W. Bush had been so Spanish illiterate as to refer to "Cinco de Cuatro" in front of the Mexican ambassador when it was the 5th of May (Cinco de Mayo), and continued to flub it when he tried again, would you have winced in embarrassment?

 If George W. Bush had mis-spelled the word "advice" would you have hammered him for it for years like Dan Quayle and potatoe as proof of what a dunce he is?

 If George W. Bush had burned 9,000 gallons of jet fuel to go plant a single tree on Earth Day, would you have concluded he's a hypocrite?

 If George W. Bush's administration had okayed Air Force One flying low  over millions of people followed by a jet fighter in downtown    Manhattan  causing widespread panic, would you have wondered whether they actually  get what happened on 9-11?

 If George W Bush had failed to send relief aid to flood victims throughout the Midwest with more people killed or made homeless than in    New Orleans , would you want it made into a major ongoing political issue  with claims of racism and incompetence?

 If George W. Bush had created the position of 32 Czars who report directly to him, bypassing the House and Senate on much of what is happening in America , would you have approved.

 If George W. Bush had ordered the firing of the CEO of a major corporation, even though he had no constitutional authority to do so, would you have approved?

 If George W. Bush had proposed to double the national debt, which had taken more than two centuries to accumulate, in one year, would you have approved?

 If George W. Bush had then proposed to double the debt again within 10 years, would you have approved?
 

So, tell me again, what is it about Obama that makes him so brilliant and impressive? Can't think of anything? Don't worry. He's done all this in 10 months -- so you'll have three years and two months to come up with an answer.

End The Mandate!!!

The Campaign for Liberty started in 2007 by bringing together people that supported Ron Paul. After Ron Paul pulled out of the race in June 2008 the movement, that was so inspired by such a candidate, continued. What we saw were more candidates and people mobilizing in the same small government mentality. These people, these independents, were fiscally conservative and socially liberal. They/We love individual liberties that were reduced under Bush and despise the fiscal irresponsibility displayed by Bush and Obama. The recent health care bill is such an example. It will require a reduction of liberties, such as privacy, because the government will need to maintain personal information; I don't need to go into the fiscal lunacy of this bill.

Luckily, our republic can change for the better. I haven't given up hope (Not the Obama-style hope). It is possible to repeal laws. It's rare, but it can happen. I think the last time this happened was when I was a budding teen during the Reagan administration. It was the repeal of the national speed limit law of 55mph. Anyway, here is a flier to get rid of the mandate in the health care bill. If we can't repeal the damn thing, at least we can pull the teeth out of it. Keep it, pass it along, and keep up the fight, good friend. You can also find C4L in my sidebar.

A Bit of History with Rain

I apologize for the age of this minor controversy, but it relates to my post about Time magazine and their top100 this year. You see, a couple of years ago, Rain, the famous Korean pop singer, better known to Americans as Ninja Assassin or "the Asian guy" in Speed Racer, was number one in Time's 2008 most influential people. Stephen Colbert of Comedy Central was playfully enraged, but of course the Korean press and netizens took it seriously as if it were a national insult. Come on people, lighten up. The back an forth made for a good read in the blogosphere back then and I wanted to post it here for you, dear reader.

So here it is, a compilation of what happened in 2008 between Stephen Colbert and Rain...

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Stephen vs. Rain
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Fox News

Time's 100

Time is conducting its online poll of the 100 most influential people in the world and of course the Koreans are doing their best to put Rain and Kim Yuna on top. It's a poll that people can vote on multiple times so results will vary.

Let's see, currently Kim Yuna has a rating of 94, but I'm sure the K-netizens will fix that. Rain has a rating of 96. The K-netizens are definitely pushing him because of previous years when he was on the list and beat out Stephen Colbert, currently 86. The other good thing about this poll is that you can vote down someone you don't like, as evidenced by Stephen's 86 (I'm biased towards Stephen). Another celebrity of note is Ron Paul, currently at 93. I think for many Americans, he's reawakened our political spirits.

Vote to heart's content! Bonus points if you have a script that I can run to help me outvote the K-netizens.

A Brief Comparison of Libertarianism vs Liberalism

I once read a blog that confused libertarianism and liberalism. I don't remember the blog now, but I remember her confusion. I think she confused them because they are close in spelling. What she was talking about on her posting was liberalism and their merits. I commented on that post trying to tell her the difference between these two very different concepts. All she responded with, was a dismissive,  "uh....ok." She clearly didn't care or understand what I was talking about. Fine, it's her blog. Well, this is mine.

Liberalism as defined by wiki:

From the Latin liberalis, "of freedom" is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights.Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but most liberals support such fundamental ideas as constitutions, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights, free trade, secular society, and the market economy. These ideas are often accepted even among political groups that do not openly profess a liberal ideological orientation. Liberalism encompasses several intellectual trends and traditions, but the dominant variants are classical liberalism, which became popular in the 18th century, and social liberalism, which became popular in the 20th century.

When I read the definition above, I think of concepts that are usually associated with the founding of America such as laissez-faire and separation of church and state, possibly a close definition of modern-day libertarianism. But for this discussion I'll limit myself to modern liberalism or post-1930's-FDR-statistism. The concept that most people think of when it comes to liberalism is actually, social liberalism or modern liberalism. The current US Democratic Party and the Korean DLP and Minjudang are considered modern liberals or leftists.

John Stossel recently wrote an article that is much more eloquent:

...By contrast, libertarians want government to leave people alone—in both the economic and personal spheres. Leave us free to pursue our hopes and dreams, as long as we don't hurt anybody else.

Ironically, that used to be called "liberal," which has the same root as "liberty." Several hundred years ago, liberalism was a reaction against the stifling rules imposed by aristocracy and established religion.

I wish I could call myself "liberal" now. But the word has been turned on its head. It now means health police, high taxes, speech codes, and so forth.

So I can't call myself a "liberal." I'm stuck with "libertarian." If you have a better word, please let me know....

 A typical reaction to libertarianism is, "What about the poor?" The poor aren't helped by the government. It doesn't help them become self-reliant but dependent upon the welfare. Libertarianism would get licensing and regulations out of the way so the poor can help themselves. Have people looked around Korea? There are all sorts of pojang makcha's and truck-based vendors and sidewalk sellers. Can you imagine if someone tried to do that in the states? The police would hassle these people.

Another point is referencing the Constitution. Liberals like to focus on the general welfare clause and expand the government to do good things for everyone. Libertarians tend to strictly interpret the Constitution because the intent of the Constitution was to restrict the government to specific duties. All of this beauracracy is rooted in FDR's unconstitutional expansions, and when the government grows it takes from our pockets and erodes the liberties and rights that were fought for 200 years ago.

Feeling a Little Demotivated??

From the good people at VeryDemotivational.com.  A few of their latest, but a plenty more.

For my countrymen....

For the pervs....Nice!

For the English teachers...witty.

For the gay community in Daegu...

For the guys that can't get any...

Did I Mention Hawtness?

Friends, I'm a sucker for the ladies. I especially have it in for girls with armloads of tattoos, goth chicks, bad girls with striped hair and librarian girls that do that swishy thing when they let their hair down.  In order to get my fix--because I'm married--I go to Hawtness.com. You can find it in my blog roll if you prefer.

Here's a sample...

Need I say more?

Time to Work Towards Repealing the Bill...

There's a group on Facebook that I recently joined up. It's called "Repeal The Bill" - Let's Find 10,000,000 People to Help Us End Obamacare!  You see, I have hope...not the big-government-can-solve-all-my-problems-hope, but rather the hope that Americans will see what their government is doing. The more we empower government to do for us, the more liberties we give up. I mean, really, do I have to talk about the Constitution again?  Don't worry, I won't. I've beaten that horse beyond death.


If you're reading this site, you're probably in agreement with me because I've probably scared off my more liberal readers. Sorry guys, I know I used to be one of you..you know greater good and all, but I went back and re-read the Constitution and found that most if not all that both parties are doing is against the Constitution, hence illegal. If we're supposed to follow the laws, then the law of the land must be followed. To that end, I hope we can repeal the Pelosi-Reid-Obama abomination.


Here's their site: http://www.repealthebillrememberinnovember.com/

I encourage you to join, buy a pin and vote in November!

Mo' Tron

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!

That's me. Oddly I suddenly become un-manned when I see things related to the Tron 2 movie. I talked the awesomeness before. Well, some creative people got a hold of the original Tron and did a redeux of the trailer circa 1960 and 2010.

For you viewing pleasure...

Tron vs. Saul Bass from Hexagonall on Vimeo.

Tron 1960

Tron 2010

Pretty snazzy!