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Sunday, July 29, 2012

Obamacare and Dr Seuss


I do not like this Uncle Sam,
I do not like his health care scam.
I do not like these dirty crooks,
or how they lie and cook the books.
I do not like when Congress steals,
I do not like their secret deals.
I do not like ex-speaker Nan ,
I do not like this 'YES, WE CAN!'
I do not like this spending spree ---
I'm smart;
I know that nothing's free.
I do not like your smug replies,
when we
complain about your lies.
I do not like this kind of hope.
I do not like it ---
nope, nope, nope!

Friday, July 27, 2012

GM is not the #1 automaker in the world.

General Motors is no longer the number one automaker in the world, as President Obama has been touting on the campaign trail.

GM spokesman Jim Cain told The Daily Caller via email GM sold 4.67 million automobiles through the first six months of 2012, which is 300,000 vehicles behind the 4.97 million automobiles Toyota sold during the same time frame according to the Associated Press.

“We were the largest automaker in 2011,” Cain said. “This year, Toyota has sold more vehicles CYTD (calendar year-to-date) as they continue to recover from [the] earthquake and tsunami.”

Such information puts a damper on President Obama’s ability to take credit for reviving GM with a bailout in 2009.

“Today, the American auto industry is back,” Obama said on February 15 in a speech in Milwaukee, Wis., “And General Motors is once again the number-one automaker in the world.”

As Election Day nears, Obama has repeatedly promoted GM’s status as number one with growing frequency on the campaign trail.

“When some folks said let’s let Detroit go bankrupt, we said no… and now GM is back at number one,” Obama said at a July 6 campaign event.

Cain said GM still is the top automaker in the U.S., but exactly how far GM is behind Toyota globally could be worse than the numbers show.

A Toyota spokeswoman declined to comment on how Toyota’s sales compare to GM, but TheDC has learned GM padded its sales figures with more than 93,000 Chinese auto sales in June while trying to retain its title as the world’s number one automaker.

GM is a minority owner of SAIC GM Wuling Company Ltd., and takes less than half of the profits from the joint venture, says Mark Modica, a National Legal and Policy Center associate fellow, but claims all of the sales as its own.

Cain said that as a 44 percent owner, GM is able to claim all of the sales made by the Chinese automaker because of the language in the company’s contract that deals with joint ventures.

If GM counted only its 44 percent of the automaker’s sales, it would have to erase nearly 120,000 automobiles from the books in June.

GM reported more than 213,000 automobiles sold in China in June — up 10 percent from a year ago, according to the Detroit Free Press.

A Standard and Poor’s Capital IQ analyst said GM’s claim to all of the sales — even though it is a minority owner — is something that is “just kind of done.”

Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2012/07/25/gm-no-longer-1-despite-obamas-campaign-trail-claims/#ixzz21ptZqoEr

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Jimmy Carter Accuses Obama. of ‘Widespread Abuse of Human Rights’


A former U.S. president is accusing the current president of sanctioning the “widespread abuse of human rights” by authorizing drone strikes to kill suspected terrorists.
Jimmy Carter, America’s 39th president, denounced the Obama administration for “clearly violating” 10 of the 30 articles of  the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, writing in a New York Times op-ed on Monday that the “United States is abandoning its role as the global champion of human rights.”
“Instead of making the world safer, America’s violation of international human rights abets our enemies and alienates our friends,” Carter wrote.
While the total number of attacks from unmanned aircraft, or drones, and the resulting casualties are murky, the New America Foundation estimates that in Pakistan alone 265 drone strikes have been executed since January 2009 . Those strikes have killed at least 1,488 people, at least 1,343 of them considered militants, the foundation estimates based on news reports and other sources.
In addition to the drone strikes, Carter criticized the current president for keeping the Guantanamo Bay detention center open, where prisoners “have been tortured by waterboarding more than 100 times or intimidated with semiautomatic weapons, power drills or threats to sexually assault their mothers.”
The former president blasted the government for allowing “unprecedented violations of our rights to privacy through warrantless wiretapping and government mining of our electronic communications.”
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He also condemned recent legislation that gives the president the power to detain suspected terrorists indefinitely, although a federal judge blocked the law from taking effect for any suspects not affiliated with the September 11 terrorist attacks.
“This law violates the right to freedom of expression and to be presumed innocent until proved guilty, two other rights enshrined in the declaration,” Carter said.
While Carter never mentioned Obama by name, he called out “our government” and “the highest authorities in Washington,” and urged “concerned citizens” to “persuade Washington to reverse course and regain moral leadership.”

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Full List of Obamacare Tax Hikes

Obamacare law contains 20 new or higher taxes on American families and small businesses
Taxpayers are reminded that the President’s healthcare law is one of the largest tax increases in American history.
Obamacare contains 20 new or higher taxes on American families and small businesses.
Arranged by their respective effective dates, below is the total list of all $500 billion-plus in tax hikes (over the next ten years) in Obamacare, where to find them in the bill, and how much your taxes are scheduled to go up as of today:
Taxes that took effect in 2010:
1. Excise Tax on Charitable Hospitals (Min$/immediate): $50,000 per hospital if they fail to meet new "community health assessment needs," "financial assistance," and "billing and collection" rules set by HHS. Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,961-1,971
2. Codification of the “economic substance doctrine” (Tax hike of $4.5 billion). This provision allows the IRS to disallow completely-legal tax deductions and other legal tax-minimizing plans just because the IRS deems that the action lacks “substance” and is merely intended to reduce taxes owed. Bill: Reconciliation Act; Page: 108-113
3. “Black liquor” tax hike (Tax hike of $23.6 billion). This is a tax increase on a type of bio-fuel. Bill: Reconciliation Act; Page: 105
4. Tax on Innovator Drug Companies ($22.2 bil/Jan 2010): $2.3 billion annual tax on the industry imposed relative to share of sales made that year. Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,971-1,980
5. Blue Cross/Blue Shield Tax Hike ($0.4 bil/Jan 2010): The special tax deduction in current law for Blue Cross/Blue Shield companies would only be allowed if 85 percent or more of premium revenues are spent on clinical services. Bill: PPACA; Page: 2,004
6. Tax on Indoor Tanning Services ($2.7 billion/July 1, 2010): New 10 percent excise tax on Americans using indoor tanning salons. Bill: PPACA; Page: 2,397-2,399
Taxes that took effect in 2011:
7. Medicine Cabinet Tax ($5 bil/Jan 2011): Americans no longer able to use health savings account (HSA), flexible spending account (FSA), or health reimbursement (HRA) pre-tax dollars to purchase non-prescription, over-the-counter medicines (except insulin). Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,957-1,959
8. HSA Withdrawal Tax Hike ($1.4 bil/Jan 2011): Increases additional tax on non-medical early withdrawals from an HSA from 10 to 20 percent, disadvantaging them relative to IRAs and other tax-advantaged accounts, which remain at 10 percent. Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,959
Tax that took effect in 2012:
9. Employer Reporting of Insurance on W-2 (Min$/Jan 2012): Preamble to taxing health benefits on individual tax returns. Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,957
Taxes that take effect in 2013:
10. Surtax on Investment Income ($123 billion/Jan. 2013): Creation of a new, 3.8 percent surtax on investment income earned in households making at least $250,000 ($200,000 single). This would result in the following top tax rates on investment income: Bill: Reconciliation Act; Page: 87-93
Capital GainsDividendsOther*
2012 15% 15% 35%
2013+ 23.8% 43.4% 43.4%
*Other unearned income includes (for surtax purposes) gross income from interest, annuities, royalties, net rents, and passive income in partnerships and Subchapter-S corporations. It does not include municipal bond interest or life insurance proceeds, since those do not add to gross income. It does not include active trade or business income, fair market value sales of ownership in pass-through entities, or distributions from retirement plans. The 3.8% surtax does not apply to non-resident aliens.
11. Hike in Medicare Payroll Tax ($86.8 bil/Jan 2013): Current law and changes:
First $200,000
($250,000 Married)
Employer/Employee
All Remaining Wages
Employer/Employee
Current Law 1.45%/1.45%
2.9% self-employed
1.45%/1.45%
2.9% self-employed
Obamacare Tax Hike 1.45%/1.45%
2.9% self-employed
1.45%/2.35%
3.8% self-employed
Bill: PPACA, Reconciliation Act; Page: 2000-2003; 87-93
12. Tax on Medical Device Manufacturers ($20 bil/Jan 2013): Medical device manufacturers employ 360,000 people in 6000 plants across the country. This law imposes a new 2.3% excise tax. Exempts items retailing for <$100. Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,980-1,986
13. High Medical Bills Tax ($15.2 bil/Jan 2013): Currently, those facing high medical expenses are allowed a deduction for medical expenses to the extent that those expenses exceed 7.5 percent of adjusted gross income (AGI). The new provision imposes a threshold of 10 percent of AGI. Waived for 65+ taxpayers in 2013-2016 only. Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,994-1,995
14. Flexible Spending Account Cap – aka “Special Needs Kids Tax” ($13 bil/Jan 2013): Imposes cap on FSAs of $2500 (now unlimited). Indexed to inflation after 2013. There is one group of FSA owners for whom this new cap will be particularly cruel and onerous: parents of special needs children. There are thousands of families with special needs children in the United States, and many of them use FSAs to pay for special needs education. Tuition rates at one leading school that teaches special needs children in Washington, D.C. (National Child Research Center) can easily exceed $14,000 per year. Under tax rules, FSA dollars can be used to pay for this type of special needs education. Bill: PPACA; Page: 2,388-2,389
15. Elimination of tax deduction for employer-provided retirement Rx drug coverage in coordination with Medicare Part D ($4.5 bil/Jan 2013) Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,994
16. $500,000 Annual Executive Compensation Limit for Health Insurance Executives ($0.6 bil/Jan 2013). Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,995-2,000
Taxes that take effect in 2014:
17. Individual Mandate Excise Tax (Jan 2014): Starting in 2014, anyone not buying “qualifying” health insurance must pay an income surtax according to the higher of the following
1 Adult 2 Adults 3+ Adults
2014 1% AGI/$95 1% AGI/$190 1% AGI/$285
2015 2% AGI/$325 2% AGI/$650 2% AGI/$975
2016 + 2.5% AGI/$695 2.5% AGI/$1390 2.5% AGI/$2085
Exemptions for religious objectors, undocumented immigrants, prisoners, those earning less than the poverty line, members of Indian tribes, and hardship cases (determined by HHS).Bill: PPACA; Page: 317-337
18. Employer Mandate Tax (Jan 2014): If an employer does not offer health coverage, and at least one employee qualifies for a health tax credit, the employer must pay an additional non-deductible tax of $2000 for all full-time employees. Applies to all employers with 50 or more employees. If any employee actually receives coverage through the exchange, the penalty on the employer for that employee rises to $3000. If the employer requires a waiting period to enroll in coverage of 30-60 days, there is a $400 tax per employee ($600 if the period is 60 days or longer).Bill: PPACA; Page: 345-346
Combined score of individual and employer mandate tax penalty: $65 billion/10 years
19. Tax on Health Insurers ($60.1 bil/Jan 2014): Annual tax on the industry imposed relative to health insurance premiums collected that year. Phases in gradually until 2018. Fully-imposed on firms with $50 million in profits. Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,986-1,993
Taxes that take effect in 2018:
20. Excise Tax on Comprehensive Health Insurance Plans ($32 bil/Jan 2018): Starting in 2018, new 40 percent excise tax on “Cadillac” health insurance plans ($10,200 single/$27,500 family). Higher threshold ($11,500 single/$29,450 family) for early retirees and high-risk professions. CPI +1 percentage point indexed. Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,941-1,956


Read more: http://atr.org/full-list-obamacare-tax-hikes-a6996#ixzz20tUjtDBM

Sunday, July 15, 2012

Foundation of the US Constitution


The British, from whom America inherited its legal system, acknowledged the US
Constitution as the most advanced instrument in the establishment of rights and liberties
that the world had known. Prime Minister William Pitt, the Younger, a contemporary of
the American Statesmen, called the US Constitution the, “pattern for all future
Constitutions and the admiration of all future ages” (Charleton, Ferris, & Ryan, 1986, p.
85). Likewise, W.E. Gladstone (1878), one of the most esteemed British Prime Ministers,
praised the American Constitution saying: “As the British Constitution is the most subtle
organism which has proceeded from the womb and long gestation of progressive history,
so the American Constitution is, so far as I can see, the most wonderful work ever struck
off at a given time by the brain and purpose of man” (p. 264).
The Constitution was not developed in a vacuum. It was created by men who held
particular beliefs about the world around them. Nearly 150 years before Lord Acton was
born, these Statesmen understood his famous dictum: “Power tends to corrupt, and
absolute power corrupts absolutely” (as cited in Fears, 1887/1986, p. 383). These 2
Statesmen would translate their realistic picture of man into a durable system of
government. Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence would write,
“In questions of power, let us hear no more of trust in men, but bind them down from
mischief with the chains of the Constitution” (as cited in Stedman & Lewis, 1987, p.
261).


The Constitution was created by men who held specific
beliefs, that influenced the system they created. As the late Francis A. Schaeffer
(1968/1976/1982) explained:
There is a flow to history and culture. This flow is rooted and has its wellspring in
the thoughts of people. People are unique in the inner life of the mind--what they
are in their thought-world determines how they act. This is true of their value
systems and it is true of their creativity. It is true of their corporate actions, such
as political decisions, and it is true of their personal lives. The results of their
thought-world flow through their fingers or from their tongues into the external
world. This is true of Michelangelo’s chisel, and it is true of a dictator’s sword.
(p. 1)
The Supreme Court made this same case in legal language. In Powell v.
McCormack (1969) the court stated:
The values of the Framers of the Constitution must be applied in any case
construing the Constitution. Inferences from the text and history of the
Constitution should be given great weight in discerning the original understanding
and in determining the intentions of those who ratified the Constitution. The
precedential value of cases and commentators tends to increase, therefore, in
proportion to their proximity to the adoption of the Constitution, the Bill of
Rights, or any other amendments. (395 U.S. 486, 547) 9
To understand the assumptions of the Statesmen, you must understand them in
context. In Ex Parte Grossman (1925), the Court explained that analysis of the
Statesmen’s language must be hermeneutically sound:
The language of the Constitution cannot be interpreted safely, except where
reference to common law and to British institutions as they were when the
instrument was framed and adopted. The Statesmen and lawyers of the convention
who submitted it to the ratification of conventions of the thirteen states, were born
and brought up in the atmosphere of the common law and thought and spoke in its
vocabulary . . . when they came to put their conclusions into the form of
fundamental law in a compact draft, they expressed them in terms of common
law, confident that they could be shortly and easily understood. (267 U.S. 87,
108)

http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1006&context=fac_dis

Thursday, July 12, 2012

Obamacare and new taxes

 When does your home become part of your health care? After 2012! HOME SALES TAX.  I thought you might find this interesting, -- maybe even SICKENING! The National Association of Realtor's is all over this and working to get it repealed, before it takes effect. But, I am very pleased we aren't the only ones who know about this ploy to steal billions from unsuspecting homeowners. How many Realtor's do you think will vote Democratic in 2012? Did you know that if you sell your house after 2012 you will pay a 3.8% sales tax on it? That's $3,800 on a $100,000 home, etc. When did this happen? It's in the health care bill, -- and it goes into effect in 2013. Why 2013? Could it be so that it doesn't come to light until after the 2012 elections? So, this is  ‘change you can believe in’? Under the new health care bill all real  estate transactions will be subject to a 3.8% sales tax. If you sell a ; $400,000 home, there will be a $15,200 tax. This bill is set to ruin the  retiring generation, -- who often downsize their homes. Does this make  your November, 2012 vote more important? Oh, you weren't aware that this  was in the ObamaCare bill? Guess what; you aren't alone! There are more than a few members of Congress that weren't aware of it either. As Nancy Pelosi proudly proclaimed, "We have to pass it, to see what is in it".  You can check this out for yourself at:


http://www.gop.gov/blog/10/04/08/obamacare-flatlines-obamacare-taxes-home

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Martin Luther Said: The Individual Christian Is Subject To No Authority


"...every Christian is by faith so exalted above all things that, by virtue of a spiritual power, he is lord of all things without exception, so that nothing can do him any harm.  As a matter of fact, all things are made subject to him and are compelled to serve him in obtaining salvation."  (From the essay,' Freedom of a Christian,' 'Martin Luther: Selections From His Writings, ed. by Dillenberger, Anchor Books, 1962 p. 63.)
"Injustice is done those words 'priest,' 'cleric,' 'spiritual,' 'ecclesiastic,' when they are transferred from all Christians to those
few who are now by a mischievous usage called 'ecclesiastics.'" (Ibid., p. 65.)
Luther teaches that we don't need anyone between us, the community of believers, and our Savior.  So he objects to ecclesiastical authority -- and the hierarchy which exercises it.  God is with the entire congregation, he says, so why should we bother with a priest.
Sounds great.  Until you realize that this position echoes that of Moses' sister, the prophetess Miriam, who protests in Numbers Chapter 12, "Is it through Moses alone that the Lord speaks?  Does he not speak through us also?"  For her rebellion against the authority established by God, she contracts leprosy.  Thanks to Moses' intercessory prayer, she is cleansed.
And she is followed just a few chapters later by Korah, who incites the people against Moses and Aaron in the most disturbing words of all. They say, "Enough from you!  The whole community, all of them, are holy; the Lord is in their midst.  Why then should you set yourselves over the Lord's congregation?"  Whereupon Korah and his followers were consumed by fire sent by the Lord.  (Numbers 16.)


If Luther is correct, then the bible stories of Miriam and Korah show a great injustice. If Luther is incorrect, on what basis can he be assumed to be a good teacher of biblical faith?