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Fear itself

Robb Allen — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 13:52:56 GMT

For a few days, I started thinking this Obama thing might turn out better than I had expected. I watched as the term "President-Elect" became almost holy in nature as his minions (and even himself) started talking about all the miracles he was going to do within minutes of taking the office. I also started watching many people seem to realize he wasn't going to be able to deliver on all his promises. There was talk of "lowering expectations" from the Obama camp, and that put me a little more at ease.

I saw two outcomes from Obama and Congress.

They actually try 1/100th of what they've been talking about and auger the country into the ground, assuring a sound defeat in 2010 and Obama looking for another Community Organizer job in 2012 as people realize what they've been sold
They tack hard middle as they all wish to keep their jobs. Sure, some bad stuff comes through, but nothing that cannot be changed with a little effort.

This morning, I have come to the realization that I am wrong. #1 will happen and the populace will care not one whit about it and vote the bastards right back in.

I have no faith in my fellow Americans any more. Friends of mine who I know are smart, intelligent people are full bore Obama supporters. People are calling for a national holiday celebrating Obama. Politicians' masks slipped and they realized nobody cared. Now we have prominent Democrats openly advocating things like this

We have been guided by a Republican administration who believes in the simplistic notion that people who have wealth are entitled to keep it and they have an antipathy towards redistributing wealth and they may be able to sustain it for a while but it doesn’t work in the long run.

Obama's web site calls for draconian gun control that never worked and has no chance of reducing crime, but does have the effect of reducing legitimate gun ownership. He also calls for "mandatory volunteerism". Of course, half of that changes each day as his team sends those pages down the memory hole. And of course, Obama doesn't seem too keen on letting others make decisions, he's going to start issuing executive orders rather than wait for Congress to approve.

Orwell would have been flabbergasted.

I'm frightened. I'm literally scared of how far we've fallen from what makes America so great. Rugged individualism, personal liberty and responsibility, freedom - these aren't just quaint phrases, they are what made American the most prosperous, generous, and powerful nation this planet has ever seen. However, it's evident that a large swath of the population prefers collectivism, shared 'responsibility', and a false sense of safety over the possibility of succeeding.

I watch England, day by day, fall apart at the seams when it comes to being a Western Democracy and a free society. I hear stories of "reeducation" for preschool children to prevent racist actions like sticking out their tongues. CCTV cameras every 30 feet. Forcing property owners to remove fences lest the thieves hurt themselves trying to cross them. And when you show Americans that this is the fruits of communal labor, most of them just shrug and go back to watching who gets kicked off Dancing with the Stars.

I used to have hope my fellow Americans wouldn't stand for this. Then I watched Joe the Plumber, the quintessential "little guy" speak his mind to a politician and have his life ripped to shreds in an attempt to destroy him not by the politician, but by other Americans. I'm losing hope day by day that we'll get through this.

I used to pooh-pooh the idea that schools were just indoctrinating the kids because I came out fine. My schools never taught that kind of crap and I've noticed that all my friends on Facebook from high school all seem to share my view for freedom (I'm literally shocked to see how many of them self identify as libertarian). But that's Georgia, and it appears we were more the exception than the rule. And without children being taught about our history and what it means to be an American in schools, there's no hope for future generations to roll back the tide.

I'm depressed. Severely, thoroughly, and completely. I long for the days when the Democrats actually stood for the little guy rather than just using them to stand on. I crave the time when the Republicans actually professed for smaller government. But now, they're both the same - statists who simply want to control your life, be it who you can do the Gumby-Pokey with or how you spend your own money.

Bleh. I'd disconnect, but that would be giving up. I just don't know where to fight anymore. It's like the battle is 360° around me and to focus in any one direction means instant death.

What do you think? Is there hope? Am I being overly morose? Up my meds?

It is said a capitalist would sell you the rope to hang him with

Robb Allen — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 18:06:34 GMT

Gays will vote in the Democrats that will more than happily throw them under the bus.

Sucks to have your rights trampled, doesn't it? Maybe if you concentrated on not allowing the government so much power and teaching your fellow man and woman to respect those old fashioned notions of personal property and liberty then you wouldn't have to worry so much about the mind set that makes people think they can simply vote away your rights and the government complying.

Personally, while I didn't vote for the stupid anti-gay amendment here in Florida, I'm not going to argue too hard against it. My rights as a hard working citizen have been violated so many times it's not funny. I pay an ungodly amount in taxes (I literally cannot afford for my wife to work as the tax increase and added child care costs would have me seeing less than what I make now), have to beg for permission to exercise an inalienable right without being hassled, and having to repeatedly prove my innocence rather than the government proving my guilt that I'm completely out of giving a fuck.

Maybe when enough other people start getting their fingers slammed in the door of "the greater good" they'll start coming around to the fact that freedom means a lot more than cheap healthcare and high availability of plasma TV's, but I'm not really going to hold my breath on that one.

The struggle to remain objective

Robb Allen — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 14:20:54 GMT

So, my blog mama discusses the impending implosion of the far-right and how they're already turning into the far-left they so despise

Hey, right wingers? You have become the people you hate. You have become everything you screamed at people for being in 2004. You are running around claiming that Obama cheated, lied and bought his way to the White House. Looking around the blogosphere and its comments I see the words slimy, corrupt, devil, Antichrist, communist, evil, Stalin, Lenin, Hitler.

Now, unlike Michele, I didn't support and still do not support Barack Obama and his policies. I believe them to be detrimental to the United States and what it is that makes the US so strong. However, I also realize that it's not Barack Obama that is the US, it is you and me. And unfortunately more people seem to want nebulous change and handouts than there are who want to be left alone to live the American dream.

The problem is that the nastiest, most hateful portions of our society have come out of the woodwork. For the past few years, that has been primarily the left and their hate of all that is even remotely related to conservatives. The right side has their wastes of oxygen too, and now I see some who are ready to start deploying the same tactics that they derided for so long.

I can understand that reaction. It is human to want someone to suffer what you had to suffer in order for them to see the error of their ways. Alas, I don't think that being nasty to the other side will have that effect and will only entrench them further into their sewer pits.

When I was in the Marines, we were taught something along the lines of "kill with one hand, heal with the other". It was ingrained in us that we would fare better in war if we treated our enemies well. When captured, you fed them, kept them safe, and gave them shelter. They would be more willing to go along with you if they knew this was their fate.

The problem with the wings of any political movement is that at some point, you simply become a true believer. Listen and understand. Those wingnuts are out there. They can't be bargained with, they can't be reasoned with. They don't feel pity, or remorse, or fear, and they absolutely will not stop. Ever. Until your side is crushed. Fighting them with the same malice will have no effect. They will still continue to hate you and everything you stand for. Those are not the people you are trying to reach.

The vast majority of Americans do not fit neatly into left vs. right, conservative vs. liberal. It is those people you try to reach with reason and logic. To go off the deep end, hating everything Obama touches is going to have no effect and instead turn you into the very thing you hate.

I will fight every last thing I can coming from this administration that limits liberty. I would have fought against McCain, I've argued against Bush (although now I realize not hard enough), party be damned. Those of us who love liberty and respect private property will always be at a disadvantage as we are only given the opportunity to vote for different flavors of more government, never less. Let's not squander what little advantages we have by being reactively hateful.

Fight. Fight hard. Do not give up. Talk about liberty and freedom to your friends and family. Do not couch it in terms of left vs. right but freedom vs. slavery. Remind people that the more free people are, the more generous they become which has a benefit for the downtrodden that forced charity cannot compare to. Instill in your children the value of hard work. Volunteer your time to help someone in need. And as much as I hate to steal Obama's motto - be the change you seek.

God bless America, still the greatest country that has ever existed on this planet.

Friendship over politics

Robb Allen — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 23:31:32 GMT

Tgirsch, frequent poster over at Say Uncle's place has lost a friend of his to cancer. What makes this story even more sad is that his friend was a commenter at his site, Lean Left.

From the day he first showed up here, I’ve had a love/hate relationship with frequent commenter Ted. I have no idea how he found this blog, but it seemed like he came here with the sole purpose of disagreeing with pretty much everything I wrote (or so it seemed to me). In the beginning, we would get into huge, lengthy debates about all kinds of stuff, where we seemed to do nothing but disagree. It was so stark that I initially wrongly described him as conservative. (He was genuinely offended when I did this, as I recall.)
...
In time, I learned that he and I have a whole lot more in common than we originally thought — something which, I think, tends to occur frequently when you have rational debates with people and try to keep emotion out of it. And because of this, Ted has acted as a moderating influence, both on me, and on the blog. In short, he has kept me honest, and that’s a good thing.
...
As I mentioned above, I got to really like Ted — the “hate” part has long since vanished. It continues to amaze me that we can form bonds over the internet, even with people we’ve never met. I’ve never seen Ted face-to-face, nor have I ever even heard his voice. I’ve never seen a picture, so I don’t even have any idea what he looks like. Yet despite all of this, I consider him a friend.

Ted passed away recently, and Tgirsch has lost someone he called a friend. Even through their political differences (and I have mine with Tgirsch as well, but he has always been courteous and mild mannered), they were able to bond a friendship.

Today, I almost lost a friend due to politics and my sometimes short temper. One of my closest friends who I've known for over 10 years has really taken a liking to Obama. He is like me and can't stand McCain, but for different reasons. He absolutely loathes Palin with every fiber of his being. But he honestly believes that Obama is both qualified for the office and feels that what he'll do when he's in the White House will be beneficial to the country.

I almost lost my temper in an email exchange and said some things I would have regretted. I would have thrown away 10 years of friendship over something stupid.

While I think he's mistaken, I know he thinks the same thing about me. He's convinced that we'll hop right into a war with Iran after which McCain will croak leaving what he considers a "stupid beauty queen wannabe" in charge. I've followed Palin a bit longer than this election season and I've simply not gotten that impression of her. Then again, I've paid more attention to her record of governing than interviews on the TV so I've come away with a different viewpoint.

But I have to concede that my friend has come to the conclusions he has with the data he's received and that he's not just blindly following the Messiah. I can't fault him for that. I shouldn't. Otherwise I could lose a friend which does nobody any good.

We're humans. We're all going to have opinions on how things should be and we're not going to agree, even between the best of friends. Personally, I'm depressed I have to root for McShitSandwich primarily because he's not Obama. I shouldn't let that get in the way of who I call a friend.

Tgirsch has my deepest condolences.

The Line is Here. No, Wait - Here. How About Here?

Robb Allen — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 15:24:43 GMT

Florida sucks. This November we have not 1, but 6 Constitutional Amendments to vote on. Lucky us, there was originally 9 to ponder over, but we've managed to whittle it down a few. Only one actually removes power from the state government but is worded in such a way that even I had misread it and was planning on ticking off No.

We've got deleting provisions that allow the Legislature to regulate private property of illegal aliens, preventing gays from being as miserable as heterosexuals, wind damage, land classification, waterfront assessment, and increasing taxes for community colleges.

It surprises me that there's not a constitutional amendment to regulate the number of squares of toilet paper one can use when hitting the can. Heck, use the Florida Constitution instead, there's enough pages to go around and it's not like people aren't metaphorically wiping their asses with it anyway.

Why people think that amending the constitution to give the state power into such private matters as what kind of insurance you might think about getting or determining what your land is worth or what it can be used for is beyond me. I want my constitution to recognize my rights, require that my representatives recognize them as well, and that's all. "Prohibiting consideration of changes or improvements to residential real property which increase resistance to wind damage and installation of renewable energy source devices as factors in assessing the property’s value for ad valorem taxation purposes", whatever the hell that means, isn't a function of the Constitution.

The problem is that Floridians are treating their constitution as "living", and this is what happens to living documents. They're added onto constantly until the point where they're unwieldy, impossible to comprehend, and thus useless in protecting your rights.

While I don't think it will pass, Amendment #2 - preventing the state from having to honor a private contract between consenting parties - is dangerous insofar as it teaches the populace that in order to discriminate against those who's views you don't agree with that, all you have to do is get an amendment passed. That's all fine and dandy when it's not your ox being gored (and for the record, I'm not into the whole gay thing. Not my bag of tea, but I value rights enough to know that I must stand up for them even when they're for a group I can't relate to).

When you move the line that much, the fact that there is a line to being with gets diluted.

But hey! Free money for colleges!

Thou shall not question the glory of the Obamessiah

Robb Allen — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 18:06:05 GMT

Is this really what the left has become?

So much for freedom of speech. When I disagree with others on gun issues, I do so by laying out the facts, not by digging in my opponent's past trying to find anything to smear them with. But apparently, stand up to Barack Bend Over and Spread Your Legs While I Spread Your Wealth Obama and you'll have every last bit of dirty laundry aired from liens to signed confessions from ex-girlfriends that you were a cheap tipper on dates.

Instead of laying out exactly how Joe the Plumber would benefit under an Obama tax plan (I still can't find anything in the constitution about where the president sets tax policies), thus putting Joe and the millions like him at ease, it's politically more expedient to drag his name through the mud in order to deflect any criticism, no matter how valid.

When you sink to this level, you have lost the war of ideas.

The Political-Win-At-Any-Cost frame of mind will destroy this country.

Barack Obama - Shameless Socialist

Robb Allen — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 23:27:31 GMT

This quote by Barack Haaaaaaands Across the Water Obama is disgusting

"It's not that I want to punish your success. I just want to make sure that everybody that is behind you, that they have a chance for success too."

... I think that when you spread the wealth around, it's good for everybody.

Socialist. Pure, unadulterated wealth redistribution.

First off, you fucksicle, success comes to those who take the risks. Hard work is generally involved, but not always. I'm successful because I busted my ass (and still do on a daily basis) to learn what I can to make myself useful to society. What I earned has no place in someone else's hands simply because they either wouldn't or couldn't bother to better their lives.

In this country, it takes very, very little effort to make a living. You can work fast food and still have a place to live, clothing, clean water, and access to basic medical needs. It doesn't take much effort to learn a valuable skill such as construction worker, secretary, or accountant. Apply yourself, and upgrade to architect, CEO, or Chief Financial Officer of a corporation - Your company if you really want to work for it.

This country is already the pinnacle of success. For Pete's sake, our poor people are so fat they have a hard time punching the numbers on their cell phone with their pudgy fingers to complain about their cable going on the fritz!

Second, spreading the wealth is a built in feature of the capitalist system. You have goods I want, I have money. I pay you money, you give me goods. Wealth has not only been spread, but created at the same time. The difference between the financial state of two entities permits the flow of cash, much like the difference in charge between the poles of a battery permit electricity to flow. Once you "spread the electron-wealth evenly across the battery", game over - You have an even spread of electrons, but a dead battery that can no longer perform any work.

The economy works the same.

But Obama doesn't want the system to work itself out. No, he and his near-communist followers think that by robbing those who make money (like myself) and giving it to those who don't have as much is a much more noble goal. In the end, I lose because my effort is wasted and "those behind my success" lose the incentive to make their lives better.

You can call it what you want, but by "spreading the wealth", you are doing nothing more than punishing success. But Obama's good at that - disguising his intent with pretty words. The man could call a turd fine chocolate and his followers would eat it up like it was Godiva.

And yes, I question the patriotism of people who believe that spreading the wealth via taxation is a noble goal.

You know what would really be nice?

Robb Allen — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 12:15:01 GMT

If an Obama win wasn't a big deal. I mean, he's just the president. If you're not too familiar with everything that the president is responsible for, here's Article II of the the US Constitution

Article II

Section 1. The executive power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America. He shall hold his office during the term of four years, and, together with the Vice President, chosen for the same term, be elected, as follows:
Each state shall appoint, in such manner as the Legislature thereof may direct, a number of electors, equal to the whole number of Senators and Representatives to which the State may be entitled in the Congress: but no Senator or Representative, or person holding an office of trust or profit under the United States, shall be appointed an elector.
The electors shall meet in their respective states, and vote by ballot for two persons, of whom one at least shall not be an inhabitant of the same state with themselves. And they shall make a list of all the persons voted for, and of the number of votes for each; which list they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the seat of the government of the United States, directed to the President of the Senate. The President of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, open all the certificates, and the votes shall then be counted. The person having the greatest number of votes shall be the President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of electors appointed; and if there be more than one who have such majority, and have an equal number of votes, then the House of Representatives shall immediately choose by ballot one of them for President; and if no person have a majority, then from the five highest on the list the said House shall in like manner choose the President. But in choosing the President, the votes shall be taken by States, the representation from each state having one vote; A quorum for this purpose shall consist of a member or members from two thirds of the states, and a majority of all the states shall be necessary to a choice. In every case, after the choice of the President, the person having the greatest number of votes of the electors shall be the Vice President. But if there should remain two or more who have equal votes, the Senate shall choose from them by ballot the Vice President.
The Congress may determine the time of choosing the electors, and the day on which they shall give their votes; which day shall be the same throughout the United States.
No person except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of the United States, at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of President; neither shall any person be eligible to that office who shall not have attained to the age of thirty five years, and been fourteen Years a resident within the United States.
In case of the removal of the President from office, or of his death, resignation, or inability to discharge the powers and duties of the said office, the same shall devolve on the Vice President, and the Congress may by law provide for the case of removal, death, resignation or inability, both of the President and Vice President, declaring what officer shall then act as President, and such officer shall act accordingly, until the disability be removed, or a President shall be elected.
The President shall, at stated times, receive for his services, a compensation, which shall neither be increased nor diminished during the period for which he shall have been elected, and he shall not receive within that period any other emolument from the United States, or any of them.
Before he enter on the execution of his office, he shall take the following oath or affirmation:--"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."
Section 2. The President shall be commander in chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the militia of the several states, when called into the actual service of the United States; he may require the opinion, in writing, of the principal officer in each of the executive departments, upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective offices, and he shall have power to grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States, except in cases of impeachment.
He shall have power, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, to make treaties, provided two thirds of the Senators present concur; and he shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, judges of the Supreme Court, and all other officers of the United States, whose appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by law: but the Congress may by law vest the appointment of such inferior officers, as they think proper, in the President alone, in the courts of law, or in the heads of departments.
The President shall have power to fill up all vacancies that may happen during the recess of the Senate, by granting commissions which shall expire at the end of their next session.
Section 3. He shall from time to time give to the Congress information of the state of the union, and recommend to their consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient; he may, on extraordinary occasions, convene both Houses, or either of them, and in case of disagreement between them, with respect to the time of adjournment, he may adjourn them to such time as he shall think proper; he shall receive ambassadors and other public ministers; he shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed, and shall commission all the officers of the United States.
Section 4. The President, Vice President and all civil officers of the United States, shall be removed from office on impeachment for, and conviction of, treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.

That's it folks. Nothing in there about managing the economy. Nothing in there about improving health care or administering Roth IRAs for the homeless. No requirements to prevent or reverse global warming or stop poverty in Shitcanistan. Definitely nothing in there about wealth redistribution.

We've forgotten what it means to be free. The president should be nothing more than a figurehead most of the time, and the CIC of the armed forces when needed. We should put such little power in the office that it wouldn't matter if a lottery was held to choose who took the position. But instead so many people put an inordinate amount of faith into one individual that he or she can fix all of our woes by themselves that we grant them that power to do so.

Instead, we're left with dismal failures such as Bush and a choice between a shit sandwich and a diarrhea milkshake to replace him with.

It shouldn't matter if Obama was a flaming Communist with "I ♥ Karl Marx" tattooed on his forehead, the office of the president shouldn't affect the country as strongly as it does today. We don't need elected "leaders", we need representatives, nothing more.

I wish there was a way I could spread the desire to remain free to my countrymen, but they've chosen the path with the most comfortable yokes and lightest chains. It's been hammered into everyone's heads that it's important to have a government that can support your needs rather than one that will stay out of your way.

We're going to get what we collectively want, and we're going to get it hard.

Spirals of negativity

Robb Allen — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 01:13:28 GMT

Why is it when there's a shooting of innocents, the calls for more gun control reach a feverish pitch but when there's a story about a woman defending her life and those of her family with a firearm, there's not a similar amount of noise given to reducing the restrictions on firearms?

Even though there are more of the latter than the former?

Freedom - You're doing it wrong

Robb Allen — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 14:40:18 GMT

Sigh... Owning a gun is nice and all, but if we keep putting up with shit like this, it's a useless gesture amounting to nothing more than a distraction from the true loss of freedom

TAMPA - Hillsborough County soon will begin enforcing its strict ordinances governing adult businesses now that a federal appeals court has ruled the restrictions are constitutional.
...
"But we will make sure that these businesses comply with the law," she said.
The ruling from the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals means that dancers at bikini bars will have to stay 6 feet away from patrons, and the sale or consumption of alcohol will be prohibited at adult businesses.
Additionally, adult video stores would be prohibited from having private viewing booths and workers would have to pass a criminal background check before they are hired.

When I lived in Atlanta, you could go to a nudie bar and have your 14th shot of tequila served to you by a butt naked chick grasping the glass in a way that would, from first appearance, be viewed as anatomically impossible. Now, if you wished to keep your nose centered between your eyes and mouth, you didn't want to grope the girls but they'd touch you, that's for sure.

In a free society, what I wish to pay for is my business. If I want to go watch some lady take off her knickers while consuming absinthe with a handful of Flintstone vitamins and having taco sauce poured over my freshly shorn genitalia for $25.95, that's my business. No one else's. Period. It doesn't matter how 'icky' you find it, how morally degrading it seems to you, it's none of your business.

But that's the problem we have in our society, and both sides, left and right are to blame. When the left sees someone not caring enough, they give the government more power to take away things and redistribute. When the right sees someone parking their trailer in the wrong side of the gas station, the impose "community protections". And both have the audacity to bitch when the other side does the same thing.

Look, we can't live in anarchy. I'm not a full blown Libertarian because they don't have enough of a plan to keep society from tearing its own throat out. The non-aggression principle works fantastic when everyone is non-aggressive. I can even understand the idea of zoning for businesses and residential areas. But that's about it, folks. Once you say "You can run business of type X here", that's where the line is drawn.

Of course, that would take control away from the elite, and they're not real keen on giving it up.

Now, the constitution doesn't allow ~~mini-tyrants~~ local governments to prevent people from running nudie bars. So what to the ~~tyrants~~ legislators do when they can't directly attack the constitution? They impose "regulations"

Imposing tight regulations is one way jurisdictions can attempt to control adult businesses after courts ruled cities or counties can't pass such restrictive zoning requirements that leave no place for the businesses to operate. The regulations don't outlaw the businesses, just stringently regulate them.

You see, you can still run a tittie-joint but the girls must wear county approved pasties, dance no more than 78" away and not less than 72" from the patrons, only operate between 3AM and 4AM, cannot serve any alcohol, and must employ only blind nuns who have never been in a car with anyone who's ever had a speeding ticket. As long as you follow the near-impossible set of regulations, you can run your business as you see fit.

Reminds me a lot of "common sense gun regulations".

Here's another little factoid - I don't particularly care for strip joints. Never have. For one, I am a very, very cheap bastard and paying $10 for a watered down coke just so some strung out bint can shake her plastic tits in my face isn't what I've ever considered economical. For much less I could always get some girl drunk enough to take home which not only cost less, it generally ended up being much, much more enjoyable than just watching. Generally. And I know it's cheesy, but the prude in me always felt sorry for the dancers even though most of them did not want nor need my pity.

But that's me. If you like it, who am I to tell you no? And that's what pisses me off so much. If you value freedom, then that means letting other people do things you would never consider. I'm not into the whole gay thing. Not my bag of tea. But I'll be damned before I let some jack-ass politician tell me who (or what) I can and cannot have relations with.

Each time you allow your representatives to tack on more and more "regulations", you limit your freedom more and more. Each time you vote to increase the power of the government, even when you think that particular increase is beneficial, it will never go away and always be added on to, generally by people who you didn't want to have that power in the first place. Don't like the way Bush uses his authority? YOU gave it to him. Maybe not directly, but by constantly assuming it's the government's responsibility to do X, you grant them more and more power.

This isn't how free men and women live, this is how slaves are created.