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The last battle to prevent amnesty for illegal aliens is in the Senate today. According to Roy Beck of NumbersUSA, who has led the ten-year fight to prevent this destruction of our values:

If the DREAM Act amnesty gets 60 votes … in the Senate, it goes to the President’s desk and our as-yet-unblemished decade will end with a disaster.

But if DREAM falls short of 60 tomorrow, you citizens who have worked hand in hand with us for 10 long years will have a decade of perfect defense, with no real chance of any amnesty threats in the next two years and hopefully beyond.

The action is expected to begin at 10AM. Roy will be video streaming coverage live from the NumbersUSA conference room on his website, or you can watch it here:

UPDATE, 12 NOON: THE DREAM IS DEAD. The DREAM (Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors) Act , which would have legalized millions of aliens unlawfully in our country, failed about thirty minutes ago. Sixty votes were needed for cloture to bring it to the Senate floor for a yes or no vote. In the end, advocates only mustered 55 votes. The final vote was 55 yes, 41 no, and 4 absent.

The good Democrats, who voted no, were Sens. Mark Pryor of Arkansas, Jon Tester of Montana, Max Baucus of Montana, Kay Hagan of North Carolina, and Ben Nelson of Nebraska. The RINOs who voted for this betrayal of our country were Republican Sens. Richard Lugar of Indiana, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Kit Bond of Missouri, and Robert Bennett of Utah. (Although Republican, Bennett is a lame duck, having been defeated last May in his state’s Republican convention to select candidates for this past November’s general election by a more conservative Republican, so this may be his last betrayal.)

Senators Jim Bunning (R-KY), Judd Gregg (R-NH), Orrin Hatch (R-UT), and Joe Manchin (D-WV) were absent. In this case, being absent was tantamount to being on the right side, because in a vote for cloture, it is the number of “yes” votes that is important, and being absent has the same effect as voting “no.”

As you may know, I do not celebrate Christmas, and I do not participate in religious services. Nevertheless, I believe in and respect both the Christian and Jewish traditions.

That said, I would like to wish you and my many friends and readers a very Merry Christmas or a Happy Hanukkah and a Happy and Prosperous New Year

An ancient Chinese curse is said to admonish, “May you live in interesting times.” However, I don’t necessarily believe that “living in interesting times” is a curse. It can also be a blessing, which is certainly the case for those of us who are lucky enough to be living in America at this time, no matter what we may think our individual or collective problems are.

At no time in history has any culture enjoyed the standard of living, social benefits and opportunities that we Americans take for granted all too often. Our society has become so bountiful with benefits that are so widespread that most Americans not only take it in stride but also generally assume it is our due, even with the steady onslaught of negative spin that’s fed to us by the media.

So, putting aside the many negatives in the world we share for the moment, I for one, wish to recognize and give thanks for the many positive aspects of my life, not the least of which is my longevity. I have had a long and productive life, with a full measure of challenges, success and failure, all of which taught me valuable lessons and gave me a perspective that I would not otherwise have had.

Now in my 82nd year, I find myself often telling people that I am living testimony to the advances in medicine and health care that we enjoy as Americans, for which I am very grateful. Without doubt, I would not be here today were it not for modern medicine and the care and attention of my wife and working partner of more than 35 years, who diligently watches over me.

However, I am not alone. There are millions of elderly Americans who are able to remain active and productive in spite of their advancing years, and I think it’s worth noting that a little over 100 years ago the average lifespan of Americans was only about 44 years for men and 49 years for women. Today it’s around 72 and 79 years respectively.

I am also grateful for my family (three children, six grandchildren), my many friends and associates, and the opportunities I continue to find that keep me active and productive, not the least of which is writing editorials for two local newspapers in the area where I live, as well as for a number of websites that collectively have upwards of one million readers.

There is more, much more, for which I am grateful. But, enough said, I think.

So, once again, please accept my very best wishes for a

Merry Christmas (or Hanukkah) and a Happy and Prosperous New Year in 2011.

We are engaged in a many-sided war: The American people vs al Qaeda terrorists vs rogue nations, such as Iran and North Korea, vs the U.S. bureaucracy.

The current flap over the methods of screening passengers by the Transportation and Safety Administration (TSA) at U.S. airports have been met with strong resistance by people who were traveling by air over the Thanksgiving holiday.

The media has been giving wall-to-wall coverage of the indignities suffered by travelers. “Don’t touch my junk” has become the rallying cry of the people who are being screened.

No question, it’s offensive. However, Janet Napolitano, the head of the nation’s Homeland Security Department, argues that it is not only necessary but has announced that the same procedures will soon be extended to people who are traveling by bus and train.

But, is it really necessary to pat-down young children and infants, or little old ladies, people who are handicapped?

The TSA says that it is, while other experts say that it is not, frequently citing Israeli airport security methods as an example of a better way to do things.

The problem with our approach to airport security is that Political Correctness prevents us from “profiling” travelers, based on the notion that all passengers represent the same degree of threat until they have been physically screened. Thus, airport security is not allowed to target specific groups that are generally considered a greater risk than others, such as Muslims, notwithstanding the fact that a specific group of Muslims, that is, Jihadists, are required by their religion to kill Infidels (non-Muslims).

We are not allowed to cite Muslim religious bias in public discourse, or base our actions or policies on Muslim characteristics, not the least of which is often their attire. Instead, PC rules require that everyone be screened to the same extent, the very elderly, infants, pregnant women, people with prosthetic devices, etc.

Even Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said (on CBS’ “Face the Nation”) the new security measures should be less intrusive, commenting that she would not submit to a pat-down if she could avoid it.

Isaac Yeffet, former security chief for el al Israel Airlines, offers some specific recommendations to the U.S., based on his experience, noting “that U.S. airlines should use “exactly the same system as El Al…Yes, profiling…Every passenger has to be interviewed by security. We have to be polite. We know how to ask questions.”

Yeffet further commented that the U.S. TSA’s claim that we now have adequate airport security in this county is an “illusion,” adding, Technology in general can never replace a qualified and well-trained human being.”

Instead of body scanning and patting down every passenger, Israeli security focuses on determining if a passenger is suspicious by intensively interviewing them. “We at El Al have used the hand/body search for so many years, but we did it only to suspicious passengers that were interviewed by us.”
Nahum Liss of the Israeli Airports Authority has stated that Israel’s heavily fortified international airport is the most protected in the world. Passengers are “thoroughly” questioned by “selectors” who look for passengers who match a suspicious profile. Liss notes that the screening is done by “intelligent, motivated” students who have served in the Israeli military and are trained to identify passengers who pose a potential risk.

Daniel Estrin, writing for the Associated Press, observed: “Routine security procedures start far away from the terminal…Before even entering the airport, all cars are stopped for a security check by armed guards. Cameras scan license plates to match them with a database of suspicious vehicles…one of the many security filters passengers must pass before boarding flights, some…unknown to the passengers and many others still kept secret.”

The airport’s main terminal also has 700 closed-circuit cameras and is fortified against explosions, including the trash cans inside the terminal.

El Al is considered the most secure airline in the world, and has experienced only one hijacking in its history.

So, what makes The Obama administration and the TSA think that they can do it better?
Why are they submitting people to such demeaning inspections as requiring a breast cancer survivor to show her prosthesis or a bladder cancer survivor whose bag of urine burst during screening?

The Heritage Foundation’s “Morning Bell” recently commented that “The best security is intelligence and law enforcement that finds and stops bad people before they get near the plane. Pretending that everyone is a risk, as the TSA does now, is a weak substitute for intelligence.”

© 2010 Harris R. Sherline, All Rights Reserved

Read more of Harris Sherline’s commentaries on his blog at www.opinionfest.com

My church did not use the secular proclamation issued by Barack Obama this year. He expressed thanks for the contributions of men — the founding fathers and our military troops. Barack Obama did not mention God.

While we are indeed grateful for the wisdom of the patriots who conceived our form of government and for the sacrifice of those who stand in harm’s way to keep us free, we must remain mindful of the First Commandment. We are a Judeo-Christian nation, even though we are tolerant and hospitable to all faiths.

Here is the proclamation that preceded our Thanksgiving Day service.

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THANKSGIVING DAY PROCLAMATION:

Whereas it is the incumbent duty of communities, as well as individual persons…. to recollect the innumerable blessings conferred upon them by their all gracious Father and Benefactor; and as the season of the year is now approaching when – in imitation of the example of our venerable forefathers – a day has been invariably set apart for this laudable and religious purpose:

I … accordingly appoint Thursday, the twenty-fifth day of November next, to be observed as a day of public thanksgiving and praise throughout this Commonwealth, hereby calling upon ministers and people of every denomination to assemble on the said day and … render to God the tribute of praise for His unmerited goodness towards us: in favoring us with so great a measure of health; in preserving us from desolating judgments; in so far smiling upon our trade, our liberty, and the works of our hands; …[and] in continuing to us the innocent enjoyments of social life, the means of religion, the right of private judgment, and the Holy Scriptures – which are able to enlighten and make us wise to eternal salvation…

And… it is highly becoming that we present our humble and penitent supplications to the God of all grace that He would be pleased mercifully to forgive our manifold sins., and through the sanctifying influences of His Spirit, correct our heart and manners and make us a holy and happy people; that He would be pleased to preserve to us our invaluable rights and liberties, civil and religious; to prosper the administration of the government of the United States, and of this and other States in the Union;… to smile upon our university and all seminaries of learning so that streams may issue from them to make glad the city of our God; … to put an end to civil and religious invasions on the rights of men; and to cause the benign religion of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ to be known, understood, and practiced among all the inhabitants of the earth…

John Hancock
Signer of the Declaration of Independence and Governor of Massachusetts.

Enough of this debilitating political correctness! Political correctness is really mass mesmerism, designed to delude our nation into abandoning those moral and spiritual principles upon which it was founded, and which made it great. This malicious mental warfare is advanced by those self-styled elites who would reduce the sovereign nations of our planet to globalized slavery for their own benefit.

Given the lack of spiritual understanding and moral incisiveness of the current occupant of the Oval Office, we cannot expect much from the presidential proclamation for this year’s Thanksgiving Day. So, as a wake-up call for this Thanksgiving season, we’re offering two alternatives — the first national proclamation of Thanksgiving by the Continental Congress and George Washington’s first presidential proclamation of Thanksgiving Day.

The United States has no official religion. For those churches which are congregational in organization, who owe no ecclesiastical obligations, there is no requirement to read the proclamation of the current US president at the Thanksgiving service. We urge all of our American Daughter readers to suggest using one of these alternatives to their pastors. Never in our nation’s history has this wake-up call been so desperately needed.

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Thanksgiving Proclamation 1777
by the Continental Congress:
The First National Thanksgiving Proclamation

IN CONGRESS
November 1, 1777
FORASMUCH as it is the indispensable Duty of all Men to adore the superintending Providence of Almighty God; to acknowledge with Gratitude their Obligation to him for Benefits received, and to implore such farther Blessings as they stand in Need of: And it having pleased him in his abundant Mercy, not only to continue to us the innumerable Bounties of his common Providence; but also to smile upon us in the Prosecution of a just and necessary War, for the Defense and Establishment of our unalienable Rights and Liberties; particularly in that he hath been pleased, in so great a Measure, to prosper the Means used for the Support of our Troops, and to crown our Arms with most signal success:

It is therefore recommended to the legislative or executive Powers of these UNITED STATES to set apart THURSDAY, the eighteenth Day of December next, for SOLEMN THANKSGIVING and PRAISE: That at one Time and with one Voice, the good People may express the grateful Feelings of their Hearts, and consecrate themselves to the Service of their Divine Benefactor; and that, together with their sincere Acknowledgments and Offerings, they may join the penitent Confession of their manifold Sins, whereby they had forfeited every Favor; and their humble and earnest Supplication that it may please GOD through the Merits of JESUS CHRIST, mercifully to forgive and blot them out of Remembrance; That it may please him graciously to afford his Blessing on the Governments of these States respectively, and prosper the public Council of the whole: To inspire our Commanders, both by Land and Sea, and all under them, with that Wisdom and Fortitude which may render them fit Instruments, under the Providence of Almighty GOD, to secure for these United States, the greatest of all human Blessings, INDEPENDENCE and PEACE: That it may please him, to prosper the Trade and Manufactures of the People, and the Labor of the Husbandman, that our Land may yield its Increase: To take Schools and Seminaries of Education, so necessary for cultivating the Principles of true Liberty, Virtue and Piety, under his nurturing Hand; and to prosper the Means of Religion, for the promotion and enlargement of that Kingdom, which consisteth “in Righteousness, Peace and Joy in the Holy Ghost.”

And it is further recommended, That servile Labor, and such Recreation, as, though at other Times innocent, may be unbecoming the Purpose of this Appointment, be omitted on so solemn an Occasion.

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Editor’s note: We kept the old-fashioned letter “s” from the original, which looks like a modern “f”.

General Thanksgiving
By the PRESIDENT of the United States Of America
A PROCLAMATION

WHEREAS it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favour; and Whereas both Houfes of Congress have, by their joint committee, requefted me “to recommend to the people of the United States a DAY OF PUBLICK THANSGIVING and PRAYER, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to eftablifh a form of government for their safety and happiness:”

NOW THEREFORE, I do recommend and affign THURSDAY, the TWENTY-SIXTH DAY of NOVEMBER next, to be devoted by the people of thefe States to the fervice of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our fincere and humble thanksfor His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the fignal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpofitions of His providence in the courfe and conclufion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have fince enjoyed;– for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enable to eftablish Conftitutions of government for our fafety and happinefs, and particularly the national one now lately instituted;– for the civil and religious liberty with which we are bleffed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffufing useful knowledge;– and, in general, for all the great and various favours which He has been pleafed to confer upon us.

And also, that we may then unite in moft humbly offering our prayers and fupplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and befeech Him to pardon our national and other tranfgreffions;– to enable us all, whether in publick or private ftations, to perform our feveral and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a bleffing to all the people by conftantly being a Government of wife, juft, and conftitutional laws, difcreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all fovereigns and nations (especially fuch as have shewn kindnefs unto us); and to blefs them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increafe of fcience among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind fuch a degree of temporal profperity as he alone knows to be beft.

GIVEN under my hand, at the city of New-York, the third day of October, in the year of our Lord, one thousand feven hundred and eighty-nine.

(signed) G. Washington

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Have we forgotten the words?

As we celebrate this Thanksgiving holiday, please take time to enjoy the verses of two traditional American songs, the Thanksgiving Hymn and the Thanksgiving Prayer. They affirm the gratitude of a people for their God.

The copies we are sharing here did not come from a church hymnal. They were transcribed from a songbook distributed in our public school systems in the year 1945. This book was in every literate home in the United States at that time, and was called I Hear America Singing, or more formally Twice 55 Community Songbook.

The assertion that our nation ever intended to separate our devotion to God from our public spaces and our public life is a blatant lie. Our philosophy of reliance on divine guidance motivated the founding fathers, permeates the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution, is inscribed on our original monuments and government buildings and is embossed on our coinage.

The worthy gentlemen who drafted the Constitution only intended that membership in a particular religious denomination must never be made a prerequisite for holding public office, and that citizens should never be forced to subscribe to a specific denomination. They were still mindful of the bitter religious strife between Catholics and Protestants in England, and wanted to ensure that the new republic got started on a more ecumenical footing.

The insidious erosion of our patriotic traditions and our national identity must not be permitted to continue. Every thinking American must stand against the revision of our historical records and the activism of judges who would destroy the ideological foundations of our liberty.

But at this time of joyful harvest and quiet prayer, just savor the words of these two beloved hymns of gratitude.

The Thanksgiving Hymn

and

The Thanksgiving Prayer

References:

The First Independent Thanksgiving of the Revolution

The First National Thanksgiving Proclamation

Full Text of the Original Thanksgiving Proclamation

Origins of Fourth Thursday of November as Thanksgiving Day

© Nancy K. Matthis

Without radical course correction, we will soon all be working for China. One of the most effective ads in this year’s election cycle was the video depicting a Chinese Professor explaining to his class why the US now works for China. This vignette correctly predicts our future.

The Feds recent action of Quantitative Easing (QE), to pump money into the economy, coupled with massive spending and higher taxes are desparate and last minute moves destined for failure. Ostensibly, the effect of QE is to further drive down interest rates to stimulate borrowing. However, if interest rates were any lower they’d be paying borrowers to take the loans.

Clearly, cash is available but people refuse to incur the debt. Business will not borrow or invest because of the uncertainty of what Congress has in store for the future in terms of taxes, regulations and health care. All of these factors combine to drain disposable income from consumers and without that there is no prospect or incentive for business to invest in inventory. Without an investment in inventory there is no need for workers. Without workers there is no demand for the inventory. Business and the economy need customers not low interest rates.

Exacerbating matters is the cost of health care. Those medical costs which could potentially cripple a family will soon cripple families because government will soon confiscate a large chunk of disposable income and force it to be spent on insurance — expenditures overseen and enforced by the governemnt. Enforcement means yet more government employees and even higher taxes to cover those costs.

Compounding the downward spiral is the fact that the Fed’s infusion of cash will accelerate the devaluation of the dollar. Given that, why would anyone want to buy our debt (bonds) especially at low interest rates? Given the enormity of the debt, how will we cover the cost (interest) of servicing that debt especially when we will have to raise rates to make our bonds attractive to buyers? Alternatively, will there even be interested buyers when the rise in interest rates is more than offset by a devalued dollar?

When interest rates rise, the private bond market will collapse. Investment dollars will not rush to equities because business growth has been stifled. That money will then pursue commodities which will result in too many dollars chasing too few goods ergo rampant inflation. This also portends bad news to equity markets.

In this environment how will states like New York, California and Illinois continue to manage their huge deficits much less the Federal Government? And we haven’t even talked about the unaffordable public employee pension fiasco and out of control Medicaid and unfunded liabilites for Social Security and Medicare. Note that public employee pensions are intended to be funded by private bond and equity markets with shortfalls made up by taxpayers. Government will not be able to meet its obligations and will not be able to raise taxes enough to cover those over extended obligations.

The oncoming train I wrote about earlier is getting uncomfortably close.

Clearly, taxes and spending are driving us deeper into a hole. Before that hole becomes insurmountable perhaps we should try something different — something like massive reductions in taxes and spending. And do it sooner rather than later else the next unfunded governemnt mandate will be Rosetta Stone language lessons in Chinese.

Every vote counts, and you have to watch those who count the votes like a hawk. Those are the two take-away lessons for tea party patriots who are newly involved in the political process and coming up against the party machines for the first time.

First let’s consider the tight race in Virginia’s House District 11 because of the notable irregularities. The local tea party endorsed Republican candidate Keith Fimian, who was trying to unseat big spender (of our money) Democratic incumbent Gerry Connolly. After the initial vote count was announced, Connolly claimed victory with a slim margin of 968 votes. However, we’ve just gotten these details from the non-partisan Northern Virginia Tea Party, whose co-chairmen are one Republican and one Democrat:

Current count:

Gerald E. “Gerry” Connolly (D)
111,695 or 49.22%

Keith S. Fimian (R)
110,727 or 48.79%

There are several developments in the Fimian – Connolly race that may call into question the accuracy of the current vote totals. Here are the issues that are being looked at:

In Fairfax County, the voting machines failed to register votes from over 800 ballots, including 106 in the Sideburn precinct alone. (Keith Fimian won that precinct 58% – 40%.) In Prince William County, the machines failed to register votes on more than 200 additional ballots.

In several precincts, there were actually more votes than voters. That is, voting machines reported a higher number of votes than the number of voters marked on the pollbooks as having voted in the election.

As of Election Day, there were over 1,150 absentee ballots that had been mailed out to military and other overseas voters but had yet to be received back in the 11th Congressional District.

We also understand that officials in Prince William County rejected over 280 absentee ballots, with another 200-300 absentee ballots being rejected in Fairfax County.

…these are some of the questions that are being considered at this time.

In Arizona’s House District 8, incumbent Democrat Gabrielle Giffords has claimed victory over Republican challenger and Iraq veteran Jesse Kelly, with a lead of 3,641 votes in precinct totals. But there are an unknown number of absentee ballots and possibly a large number of provisional ballots which have not yet been reported by the media.

In California’s House District 11, Republican challenger David Harmer had the support of the Pleasanton/NorCal TEA Party against incumbent Democrat Jerry McNerney. Votes are still being counted, and the counting process could continue until Thanksgiving, after which there may be a recount.

In California’s House District 20, incumbent Democrat Jim Costa is trailing slightly behind newcomer and Republican candidate Andy Vidak, a member of the Bakersfield Tea Party Patriots. Votes are still coming in.

In Illinois’ House District 8, Republican challenger Joe Walsh holds a lead of 553 votes in precinct totals over incumbent Democratic Melissa Bean. Bean is hoping to erase the Republican’s lead with absentee ballot counting from the infamous Cook County.

In Kentucky House District 6, incumbent Democrat Ben Chandler holds a 600 vote lead in precinct totals over Republican challenger Andy Barr, who has asked for a recanvass.

Another undecided race is playing out in New York’s House District 1. Republican challenger Randy Altschuler, a self-funded local businessman, ran against Democratic incumbent Tim Bishop. On election night, Tim Bishop claimed victory:

(Nov. 3, 2010) United States Representative Tim Bishop appeared last night at the Islandia Marriot to claim victory in his race against Randy Altschuler, a millionaire businessman. However, with absentee ballots left to be counted, Mr. Altschuler declined to concede.

According to the Suffolk Board of Elections, only 3,461 votes separated the two candidates in the hard-fought and expensive race. Mr. Bishop had 50.96 percent of the vote to Mr. Altschuler’s 49.04 percent, with a total of 181,043 votes cast….

But after more serious ballot scrutiny, that 3,461 vote lead evaporated, and became a slim margin of 392 in favor of Altschuler. Absentee ballots remain to be counted.

In New York’s House District 25, Republican challenger and tea party favorite Ann Marie Buerkle is holding a slim lead in precinct totals over Democratic incumbent Daniel Maffei, with a margin of 659 votes. An estimated 9,500 absentee ballots remain uncounted.

In North Carolina’s House District 2, Republican challenger Renee Ellmers received 1,646 votes more than seven-term incumbent Democrat Bob Etheridge. Etheridge is expected to request a recount.

In Texas House District 27, Republican challenger Blake Farenthold holds a lead of just 792 votes over 28-year incumbent Democrat Solomon Ortiz:

Ortiz has not conceded, however. On Friday, based on what he termed “numerous irregularities,” he said he would request a manual recount of the 101,116 votes cast in the race. He has said that the irregularities include the “misplaced” ballots in Nueces County, a power outage at an early voting site, and a polling site that opened almost an hour late on Election Day, “depriving many from casting their vote.”

In Washington House District 2, incumbent Democrat Rick Larsen appears to be holding on to his lead over tea party favorite and Republican challenger John Koster, with a 3,841 vote margin as of Saturday night.

Related:

The Right Point of View — Congressional Race Still Up in the Air- Randy Altschuler Ahead